In China's long feudal history, bloody battles for the throne were fought not only between father and son, but also among the members of the clan. The "Rebellion of the Eight Kings" of the Jin Dynasty (Western Jin Dynasty) is a typical microcosm. The so-called "Eight Kings" refer to Sima Yi (sima liang the prince of Runan), the fourth son of Sima Yi (posthumously emperor Xuan of Jin, also known as Emperor Gaozu of Jin), the ninth son Sima Lun the Prince of Zhao, the fifth son of Sima Yan of The Jin Dynasty (the founding emperor of the Jin Dynasty, Sima Yisun, and the eldest son of Sima Zhao) the fifth son of Sima Wei the Prince of Chu, the sixth son Sima Yi the Prince of Changsha, the sixteenth son Sima Ying the Prince of Chengdu, the grandson of Sima Fu of Xuan Emperor Sima Yi, the grandson of Sima Fu the Prince of Hejian, sima Yi's other younger brother Sima Kui's grandson Sima Yue the Prince of Donghai, and Sima Yue the Prince of Qi, the son of Sima You, the younger brother of Emperor Wu.
After Sima Yan, the Emperor wu of Jin, usurped Wei Jianjin, he believed that the main reason for Cao Wei's downfall was that he did not divide the princes with the same surname. Therefore, after he ascended the throne, he made 27 members of his Sima clan king.
In April of the first year (290) of the Western Jin Dynasty, Emperor Taixi of the Western Jin Dynasty died of illness and was succeeded by his son Sima Zheng, the famous "idiot emperor" in history, who was succeeded by Sima Zheng, the powerful empress Dowager Jia Nanfeng (the daughter of Taiwei JiaChong), for the sake of his dictatorship, and then blackmailed Emperor Hui to order Sima Wei, the king of Chu, to kill Sima Liang, the king of Runan, and then executed Sima Wei, the king of Chu, for the crime of correction. After that, Empress Jia Nanfeng monopolized power for 9 years. In the ninth year (299) of emperor Yuankang of the Jin Dynasty, Jia Hou deposed the crown prince Sima Suo, causing widespread dissatisfaction among his courtiers. The following year, at the instigation of Sima Lun the Prince of Zhao, Jia Hou killed the crown prince for attempting treason. This incident became the trigger for the "Rebellion of the Eight Kings".
Sima Lun, the King of Zhao, plotted to kill sima song the deposed crown prince after he threw jia, but only to find an excuse for himself to realize his ambitions. Jia Nanfeng's move just happened to be the plan of king Zhao, and after king Zhao took the opportunity to raise an army against Jia, the rebels invaded Luojing, and after capturing Jia, the fierce and fierce Jia Nanfeng was forcibly poured into wine mixed with gold shavings and killed. After that, Sima Lun, the King of Zhao, took sole control of the imperial government, proclaimed himself Chancellor, and put Sima Zheng, the Emperor hui of Jin, under house arrest. The following year, in the first year of Yongning (301), Sima Lunsuo deposed Emperor Hui of Jin and sat on the dragon chair himself, that is, he was proclaimed emperor. When he claimed to be the prime minister, he did not make much noise, but when he claimed to be emperor, it was like stabbing a honeycomb, and immediately attracted a crowd of people to beat him (the whole world attacked together). Sima Tong the Prince of Qi, Sima Ying the King of Chengdu, Sima Yong the King of Hejian and others joined forces to fight against Sima Lun. Two months after the battle between the two sides, Sima Lun was defeated, and he himself followed in the footsteps of Jia Nanfeng, and was also poured into the golden wine and died. Subsequently, Sima Tong, the King of Qi, assisted the government.
Not long after, Sima Yong, the king of Hejian, started an infighting with sima sima the prince of Qi, who had the monopoly power. Sima Yi, the king of Changsha, still rebelled against Sima Yi and killed Sima Tong, the king of Qi. It was ruled by Sima Yi, the king of Changsha, who had strong troops and strong horses. In the second year after Sima Yi took power (303 AD), Sima Yi joined forces with Sima Ying, the king of Chengdu, to attack Sima Yi, who fought hard against Luoyang City, but was captured by Sima Yue, the king of the Eastern Seas, and then sent to Sima Yi, who brutally roasted Sima Yi alive with charcoal. Sima Ying, the king of Chengdu, seized the power of the imperial government and was made the emperor's brother by the puppet emperor Jin Huidi. Only two years later, Sima Yue, the king of the East China Sea, once again launched a mutiny, failed and fled. In the third year of Yongxing (306), Sima Yue gathered his army again, made a comeback, and attacked Chang'an in one fell swoop (the Jin Dynasty had moved from Luoyang to chang'an), Sima Ying was unable to fight, defeated and captured, and was taken to the prison of his hometown of Yecheng, where he was hanged soon after.
Sima Yong, the king of Hejian, was deceived by Sima Yue to return to Luoyang as a chancellor, and was captured by Sima Mo, the king of Nanyang, halfway through the road, and immediately hanged in a carriage. Subsequently, Sima Yue poisoned Sima Zheng, the emperor of Jinhui, and made Sima Zheng's brother Sima Zheng emperor, emperor, for Emperor Huai of Jin, with Sima Yue alone in charge of the imperial government, and the "Rebellion of the Eight Kings" ended here.
The entire Western Jin Dynasty lasted only 53 years of luck, and the "Rebellion of the Eight Kings" accounted for one-third of the time, the chaotic life was ruined, the blood flowed into a river, the economy stopped, and the country was in ruins. According to historical records, when Sima Zheng, the Emperor of Jinhui, returned to Luoyang, there was only one ox cart for the emperor to ride in the vast escort team, and the rest of the ministers of culture and military affairs, harem concubines, and guards had to follow on foot, which was the direct consequence of this great turmoil. After the end of the war, the Jin Dynasty became devastated and also went to the road of decline, followed by a period of more military disturbance and turmoil.
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