Three Kingdoms and Six Dynasties · Final emperor of the Liang dynasty

Xiao Fangzhi 蕭方智

c. AD 542 - AD 557

Passages: 14
Chapters: 4
Histories: 3

Overview

Xiao Fangzhi was a Final emperor of the Liang dynasty.

Other names

Type	English	Chinese	Pinyin
Courtesy name	Huixiang	慧相	Huixiang
Childhood name	Fazhen	法真	Fazhen
Posthumous name	Jing	敬
Temple name	Emperor Jing	敬皇帝	Jing huangdi

Life and dates

Death

AD 557 陳受禪後
Age 16 · At outer residence 外邸
Directly stated · Book of Liang 6, passage 179

Age

16
Reckoning Sui
Directly stated · Book of Liang 6, passage 179

Attested activity

AD 550 to AD 557 世祖諸男…夏賢妃生敬皇帝
Strongly inferred · Book of Liang 44, passage 126
AD 555 天成元年
Dated from the passage context · Book of Northern Qi 33, passages 23-24
AD 557 太平二年
Dated from the passage context · Book of Liang 6, passages 73, 137, 179
AD 556 太平元年春正月戊寅
Dated from the passage context · Book of Liang 6, passage 36
AD 549 太清三年
Dated from the passage context · Book of Liang 6, passage 181
AD 554 承聖三年十一月
Dated from the passage context · Book of Liang 6, passage 184

Show 5 more source-backed claims

AD 553 承聖二年
Dated from the passage context · Book of Liang 6, passage 183
AD 552 承聖元年
Dated from the passage context · Book of Liang 6, passage 182
AD 555 承聖四年二月癸丑
Dated from the passage context · Book of Liang 6, passage 185
AD 557 是月
Dated from the passage context · Book of Zhou 4, passage 193
AD 555 紹泰元年冬十月己巳
Dated from the passage context · Book of Liang 6, passage 9

Family

Immediate relationships attested in the translated histories.

Child of Consort Xia (夏貴妃)
birth mother 所生
Directly stated · Book of Liang 6, passage 22
Spouse of Empress Wang (王皇后)
consort/empress 妃/皇后 · Primary marriage
Directly stated · Book of Liang 6, passage 23
Child of Emperor Yuan (世祖)
father 父
Directly stated · Book of Liang 6, passage 180
Child of Emperor Shizu (世祖)
son 子
Directly stated · Book of Liang 44, passage 126
Child of Lady Xia the Worthy (夏賢妃)
son 子
Directly stated · Book of Liang 44, passage 126

Key source chapters

Career and standing

Grand Steward acting with imperial authority 太宰、承製
AD 554 承聖三年十一月 · Appointed
Directly stated · Book of Liang 6, passage 184
General Who Pacifies the South 平南將軍
AD 553 承聖二年 · Appointed
Directly stated · Book of Liang 6, passage 183
Inspector of Jiangzhou 江州刺史
AD 553 承聖二年 · Appointed
Directly stated · Book of Liang 6, passage 183
Marquis of Xingliang 興梁侯
AD 549 太清三年 · Enfeoffed
Directly stated · Book of Liang 6, passage 181
Prince of Jin'an 晉安王
AD 552 承聖元年 · Enfeoffed · Households 2000
Directly stated · Book of Liang 6, passage 182
King of Jiangyin 江陰王
AD 557 陳受禪後 · Enfeoffed
Directly stated · Book of Liang 6, passage 179

Show 4 more source-backed claims

Appointed
AD 555 承聖四年 · Crown prince
Directly stated · Book of Liang 6, passage 6
Ascended
AD 555 紹泰元年前丙午
Directly stated · Book of Liang 6, passage 8
Abdicated
AD 557 太平二年 · With Chen Baxian (陳霸先)
Directly stated · Book of Liang 6, passage 137
AD 557 是月
Authority Chen Baxian (陳霸先)
Directly stated · Book of Zhou 4, passage 193

Places and affiliations

Polity Liang 梁 · Relation Belonged to
Directly stated · Book of Liang 44, passage 1
Polity Liang 梁 · Relation Ruled
Directly stated · Book of Liang 6, passages 8, 179
AD 555 承聖四年二月癸丑
At Xunyang 尋陽 · Relation Arrived from
Directly stated · Book of Liang 6, passage 185

Works and attributed material

AD 557 太平二年
Edict · Author
Directly stated · Book of Liang 6, passages 120-137
AD 557 太平二年春正月壬寅
Edict · Author
Directly stated · Book of Liang 6, passages 73-79
AD 555 紹泰元年冬十月己巳
Edict · Author
Directly stated · Book of Liang 6, passages 9-16

Assessments and attributes

Assessment high abdication like laying down a burden when Heaven's mandate had departed · Mode historian-judgment
Directly stated · Book of Liang 6, passage 138

Source notes

Ninth son of Emperor Yuan (世祖第九子)
Field birth-order
Directly stated · Book of Liang 6, passage 180

References in the histories

Search passages

History

14 passages

Book of Northern Qi, Chapter 33Volume 33 Biographies 25: Xiao Yuanming; Xiao Zhi (Liang); Xiao Tui; Xiao Fang (Liang); Xu Zhicai · 4 passages

是時梁太尉王僧辯、司空陳霸先在建鄴，推晉安王方智為丞相。 At that time Liang grand commandant Wang Sengbian and minister of works Chen Baxian were at Jiankang; they installed Prince of Jin'an Fang Zhi as chancellor.

以方智為太子，授王僧辯大司馬。 Fang Zhi was made heir apparent; Wang Sengbian was appointed grand marshal.

冬，霸先襲殺僧辯，復立方智，以明為太傅、建安王。 In winter Baxian attacked and killed Sengbian, restored Fang Zhi, and made Ming grand tutor and Prince of Jian'an.

方智請稱臣，永為藩國，齊遣行臺司馬恭及梁人盟於歷陽。 Fang Zhi asked to style himself subject and remain a vassal state forever; Qi sent acting commissioner Sima Gong and Liang men to covenant at Liyang.

Book of Liang, Chapter 6Volume 6: Emperor Jing · 8 passages

敬皇帝，諱方智，字慧相，小字法真，世祖第九子也。 Emperor Jing, personal name Fangzhi, style name Huixiang and childhood name Fazhen, was the ninth son of Emperor Yuan.

太清三年，封興梁侯。 In Taiqing 3, he was enfeoffed as Marquis of Xingliang.

承聖元年，封晉安王，邑二千戶。 In Chengsheng 1, he was enfeoffed as Prince of Jin'an with a fief of two thousand households.

三年十一月，江陵陷，太尉揚州刺史王僧辯、司空南徐州刺史陳霸先定議，以帝爲太宰、承製，奉迎還京師。 In the eleventh month of the third year, Jiangling fell. Wang Sengbian, grand commandant and inspector of Yangzhou, and Chen Baxian, minister of works and inspector of South Xuzhou, agreed on a plan: the emperor would serve as grand steward, acting with imperial authority, and be escorted back to the capital.

甲辰，入于京師，以帝爲皇太子。 On jiachen he entered the capital and the emperor was made crown prince.

丙午，帝卽皇帝位。 On bingwu the emperor took the throne.

陳王踐阼，奉帝爲江陰王，薨于外邸，時年十六，追諡敬皇帝。 When the King of Chen ascended the throne, he made the emperor King of Jiangyin. The emperor died at his outer residence at the age of sixteen, and was posthumously titled Emperor Jing.

史臣曰：梁季橫潰，喪亂屢臻，當此之時，天歷去矣，敬皇高讓，將同釋負焉。 The historiographer says: When the Liang age collapsed, calamity followed calamity; Heaven's mandate had departed; Emperor Jing's high abdication was like laying down a burden.

Book of Liang, Chapter 44Volume 44: Eleven Princes of Taizong; Two Princes of Shizu · 1 passage

夏賢妃生敬皇帝。 Lady Xia the Worthy bore Emperor Jing.

Book of Zhou, Chapter 4Volume 4 Annals 4: Emperor Ming · 1 passage

是月，梁相陳霸先廢其主蕭方智而自立，是為陳武帝。 That month Liang chancellor Chen Baxian deposed his ruler Xiao Fangzhi and took the throne himself as Chen Wudi.