Emperor He of Han

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Emperor He of Han 漢和帝
Emperor of the Han dynasty
Reign	9 April 88 – 13 February 106
Predecessor	Emperor Zhang of Han
Successor	Emperor Shang of Han
Born	79
Died	13 February 106 (aged 26)
Father	Emperor Zhang of Han
Mother	Consort Liang

Emperor He of Han (Chinese: 漢和帝; pinyin: Hàn Hédì; Wade–Giles: Han Ho-ti; 79 – 13 February 106^[1]) was an emperor of the Chinese Han dynasty who ruled from 88 to 106. He was the 4th emperor of the Eastern Han, and the 20th emperor of the Han dynasty.

Emperor He was a son of Emperor Zhang and, the then Empress Dou. He ascended the throne at the age of nine and ruled for 17 years. It was during Emperor He's reign that the Eastern Han dynasty began its decline. Strife between consort clans and eunuchs began when Empress Dowager Dou (Emperor He's adoptive mother) made her own family members important government officials. Her family was corrupt and intolerant of dissension. In 92, Emperor He was able to fix the situation by removing the empress dowager's brothers with the aid of the eunuch Zheng Zhong and his half-brother Liu Qing the Prince of Qinghe. This in turn created a precedent for eunuchs to be involved in important affairs of state. The trend would continue to escalate for the next century, contributing to the eventual end of the Han dynasty in 220. Further, while Qiang revolts, spurred by corrupt and/or oppressive Han officials, started during his father Emperor Zhang's reign, they began to create major problems for the Han during Emperor He's reign and would last until the reign of Emperor Ling.

Emperor He himself appeared to be a kind and gentle man. However, he lacked his father's and grandfather Emperor Ming's acumen for governance and for judgment of character. Although Emperor He's reign arguably began Han's long decline, notable scientific progress was made during this period, including the invention of paper by the eunuch Cai Lun in 105.

One additional trend that started with Emperor He was the lack of imperial heirs - most of Emperor He's sons predeceased him, and at his death he had only two living male children, neither of whom survived long after his death. Whereas many dynasties had succession crises triggered by an emperor's many sons vying to succeed him, in the case of the Eastern Han, the crises were triggered by the lack of direct male line heirs, further adding to dynastic instability.