Han Jian (Chinese: 韓建; 855 – August 15, 912), courtesy name Zuoshi (佐時), was a warlord and official of the Tang and Later Liang dynasties of China. He is most well known for having had Emperor Zhaozong of Tang under his control at his power base at Hua Prefecture (華州; in modern-day Weinan, Shaanxi) from 896 to 898 and slaughtering the imperial princes while Emperor Zhaozong was there. He served as chancellor of the Later Liang dynasty.
Han Jian was born in 855, during the reign of Emperor Xuānzong of Tang. He was from Xu Prefecture (許州, in modern Xuchang, Henan). His ancestors, including his father Han Shufeng (韓叔豐), had served for generations in the army. When Qin Zongquan took over Cai Prefecture (蔡州, in modern Zhumadian, Henan) in 880, he encouraged people to join his army, and Han Jian did.
In 881, when the eunuch general Yang Fuguang was able to persuade Zhou Ji the military governor (jiedushi) of Zhongwu Circuit (忠武, headquartered at Xu Prefecture) to renounce his allegiance to Huang Chao — a major agrarian rebel who had captured the Tang capital Chang'an, forced then-reigning Emperor Xizong (Emperor Xuānzong's grandson) to flee to Chengdu, and declared himself the emperor of a new state of Qi — and return to the Tang fold, Yang also persuaded Qin to send forces to contribute to the war efforts against Huang's Qi state. Yang organized his army into eight corps, commanded by Lu Yanhong, Jin Hui (晉暉), Wang Jian, Han Jian, Zhang Zao (張造), Li Shitai (李師泰), and Pang Cong (龐從) respectively. Han thereafter served under Yang.
Yang Fuguang died in 883 while stationed at Hezhong Circuit (河中, in modern Yuncheng, Shanxi) and still fighting against Huang. Instead of continuing to fight against Huang, Lu decided to take his troops and rove around the region, pillaging as he went. Wang, Han, Zhang, Jin, and Li followed him as well. Later in 883, Lu captured Xingyuan (興元, in modern Hanzhong, Shaanxi) the capital of Shannan West Circuit (山南西道), expelling the military governor Niu Xu (牛勗) and claiming the title of acting military governor. He commissioned Han and the other Zhongwu corps commanders as prefects within Shannan West, but did not allow them to actually report to their prefectures. He was particularly suspicious of Wang and Han because of their deep friendship, but wanting to comfort them, he often treated them well. Wang and Han realized Lu's intentions, however, and in fall 884, with Emperor Xizong's trusted eunuch Tian Lingzi secretly tempting them with offers of good treatment, they, along with Zhang, Jin, and Li, abandoned Lu and fled to Chengdu to serve under Tian. After Emperor Xizong returned to Chang'an in 885 after Huang's defeat, Han was made the defender of Tong Pass and the prefect of Hua Prefecture.
Prior to Emperor Zhaozong's stay at Hua Prefecture
At that time, the Tang empire was divided between warlords, most of whom were only interested in battling and seizing more territory. However, as the prefect of Hua Prefecture, Han Jian encouraged the refugees from the wars to settle in Hua and promoted agriculture. It was said that within a span of a few years, both the Hua prefectural government and the people of Hua were wealthy. The popular sentiment at the time greatly praised him, along with Cheng Rui the military governor of Jingnan Circuit (荊南, headquartered in modern Jingzhou, Hubei).
By 890, Han was carrying the title of military governor as well, of a newly created Zhenguo Circuit (鎮國), which included only Hua Prefecture and nearby Tong Prefecture (同州, also in modern Weinan). That year, when Emperor Xizong's brother and successor Emperor Zhaozong declared a general campaign against Li Keyong the military governor of Hedong Circuit (河東, headquartered in modern Taiyuan, Shanxi) and put the chancellor Zhang Jun in command of the operations, Han personally led his army to join Zhang's and was also responsible for supplying the army. The imperial army, however, was dealt a blow when Zhang's deputy commander, Sun Kui (孫揆), was captured in an ambush by Li Keyong's adoptive son Li Cunxiao. Subsequently, when the imperial army and Li Keyong's main army met, Han carried out a nighttime attack against Li Cunxiao but was repelled. After Han's defeat, the armies from Fengxiang (鳳翔, headquartered in modern Baoji, Shaanxi) and Jingnan (靜難, headquartered in modern Xianyang, Shaanxi, not the same circuit Cheng ruled) deserted the imperial army. After Li Keyong's army further defeated Zhang and forced the imperial army into a defensive posture at Jin Prefecture (晉州, in modern Linfen, Shanxi), the armies from Baoda (保大, headquartered in modern Yan'an, Shaanxi) and Dingnan (定難, headquartered in modern Yulin, Shaanxi) Circuits also abandoned the imperial army, leaving Zhang and Han defending Jin Prefecture with troops sent by Li Keyong's archrival Zhu Quanzhong the military governor of Xuanwu Circuit (宣武, headquartered in modern Kaifeng, Shanxi). Li Cunxiao put Jin under siege, but after deciding that capturing a chancellor would be a bad idea, he lifted the siege and allowed Zhang and Han to flee, and they did. To flee back west across the Yellow River, they were forced to tear down local residents' homes and use the building material to construct rafts. The defeat left the imperial army in shambles, although the extent of damage to Han's own army is unclear. Subsequently, Li Keyong, as a condition for resubmitting to the imperial government, demanded the exiles of Zhang and fellow chancellor Kong Wei; however, instead of going into exile, both Zhang and Kong fled to Hua, where Han put them under his protection.
In 891, after accusations of treason were made against the powerful eunuch Yang Fugong (Yang Fuguang's brother), Emperor Zhaozong sent imperial guards to attack Yang's mansion. Yang fled to Yang Fuguang's adoptive son Yang Shouliang the military governor of Shannan West, and they, along with Yang Fugong's other adoptive sons or nephews Yang Shouzhong (楊守忠), Yang Shouzhen (楊守貞), and Yang Shouhou (楊守厚), all of whom were nearby governors, rose against the imperial government. In spring 892, Han, along with Li Maozhen the military governor of Fengxiang, Wang Xingyu the military governor of Jingnan, Li Maozhen's brother Li Maozhuang (李茂莊) the military governor of Tianxiong Circuit (天雄, headquartered in modern Tianshui, Gansu), and Wang Xingyu's brother Wang Xingyue (王行約) the military governor of Kuangguo Circuit (匡國, headquartered at Tong Prefecture) (thus showing that Han had lost control of Tong by this point), submitted a petition for Emperor Zhaozong to declare a general campaign against Yang Fugong and his adoptive sons/nephews and make Li Maozhen the overall commander of the operations. Emperor Zhaozong hesitated, believing that if Li Maozhen conquered the Yangs' territory, he would be even harder to control, but Li Maozhen launched the campaign anyway without imperial sanction, forcing Emperor Zhaozong to eventually agree to the campaign. Li Maozhen eventually defeated the Yangs, forcing them to try to flee to Li Keyong (except Yang Shouhou who seemed to die a natural death around that time); on the way, they were intercepted and arrested by Han's soldiers. Han delivered them to Chang'an, where they were executed. Li Maozhen took over their territory.
In 895, a succession dispute that rose after the death of Wang Chongying the military governor of Huguo Circuit (護國, new name for Hezhong) brought Han and his allies Li Maozhen and Wang Xingyu into direct dispute with the imperial government and Li Keyong. Wang Chongying's brother and predecessor Wang Chongrong had adopted Wang Ke, the biological son of his brother Wang Chongjian (王重簡), as his own son, and after Wang Chongying's death, the soldiers at Hezhong, with Li Keyong's backing, wanted Wang Ke to succeed Wang Chongying. However, Wang Chongying's own biological sons Wang Gong the military governor of Baoyi Circuit (保義, headquartered in modern Sanmenxia, Henan) and Wang Yao (王瑤) the prefect of Jin had wanted Wang Gong to take over instead, and thus induced Han, Li Maozhen, and Wang Xingyu to lobby Emperor Zhaozong on Wang Gong's behalf. Emperor Zhaozong approved Li Keyong's request and rejected that of Han and his allies, leaving the three feeling humiliated. Wang Xingyu and Han were further displeased that their requests to take over two Shence Army bases were rejected as well. In summer 895, Han, Li Maozhen, and Wang Xingyu decided to march on Chang'an. They accused the former chancellors Wei Zhaodu and Li Xi, whom they viewed to be against them, of corruption, and when Emperor Zhaozong refused to execute Wei and Li Xi, they executed Wei and Li Xi anyway. They also forced Emperor Zhaozong to issue an edict transferring Wang Ke to Kuangguo, Wang Gong to Hezhong, and Wang Xingyue to Baoyi, before returning to their own circuits (but leaving troops at Chang'an to watch over Emperor Zhaozong).