Yuan Hong’s 袁宏 Evaluation of the Han-Wei Transition

Abstract

The early depictions of the transition from the Han 漢 (25-220) to the Wei dynasty 魏 (220-265) are surprisingly diverse. Within a span of less than two hundred years, several historians arrived at different views on the event’s legitimacy and as a result described it in widely varying tones. This is still visible in the dynastic histories: while Chen Shou’s 陳壽 (233-297) Sanguo zhi 三國志 paints the picture of the establishment of a legitimate dynasty, Fan Ye 范曄 (398-446) in his Hou Han shu 後漢書 describes a ruthless overthrow of the Han court by Cao Cao 曹操 (155-220) and his son Cao Pi 曹丕 (187-226).