Cheng Han

Cheng Han was one of the Sixteen Kingdoms, a state built in Sichuan by the Li clan of the Ba Di people and lasting from 304 to 347. Its origins lay in the disorder that followed the rebellion of Qi Wannian in 296, when refugees from the north-west poured into Sichuan and the Li family became their leaders. Li Te rose against the Western Jin and was killed; his son Li Xiong took Chengdu and in 304 proclaimed the state of Cheng, with its capital at Chengdu. The regime gave land and offices to refugee leaders, kept Di customs and patronised Buddhism, and at its height controlled most of the Sichuan basin. In 338 Li Shou usurped the throne and renamed the state Han, whence the combined name used by historians. The state was weakened by succession disputes, a revolt among its generals and heavy taxation, and in 346 the Eastern Jin commander Huan Wen set out to conquer it, reaching Chengdu in 347 and forcing the last ruler, Li Shi, to surrender. Cheng Han was among the earliest of the Sixteen Kingdoms to be founded, and its coins and tombs are important evidence for society in Sichuan during the period of division.