Helian Bobo

Helian Bobo (Chinese: 赫連勃勃; Middle Chinese Guangyun: [xɐk-li̯ɛn˩ bʰuət-bʰuət]; 381 – c. September 425), né Liu Bobo (劉勃勃), with the epithet Qujie (屈孑), was the founder of the Xiongnu state of Xia, which rose to prominence during the Sixteen Kingdoms period. He belonged to the Tiefu (鐵弗) branch of the Xiongnu, was a descendant of the southern chanyu Liu Qubei, and the son of Liu Weichen, its chieftain. After his father was killed by Northern Wei and the tribe collapsed, Liu Bobo sought refuge with Moyigan, a Xianbei chieftain of Later Qin, and married Moyigan's daughter. As an adult, noted for his imposing stature, eloquence, and intelligence, he won the favor of Emperor Yao Xing of Later Qin, who appointed him a general and placed more than thirty thousand men from the Tiefu and other tribes under his command.

In 407, after Later Qin made peace with Northern Wei, Liu Bobo rebelled. Claiming descent from the Xia dynasty royal line, he styled himself Heavenly King of Great Xia and Grand Chanyu and adopted the era name Longsheng (龍昇), marking the establishment of the Xia state. He spent the following years roaming the northern steppe, deploying cavalry offensives against Later Qin and Southern Liang in the Shuofang region.

In 413, after a series of successful campaigns against Later Qin and Southern Liang, he considered his position secure. He mobilized one hundred thousand people to build a new capital at Tongwan on the steppe along the Wuding River, took the surname Helian, and adopted the era name Fengxiang (鳳翔).

In 417, after the Jin dynasty chancellor Liu Yu led the imperial forces of Jin north, they captured Chang'an (長安), the capital of Later Qin, seized its last ruler Yao Hong, and brought the state to an end. Liu Yu then withdrew south, leaving his generals to hold the capital. Helian Bobo took the opportunity, struck the garrison amid infighting among the Jin commanders, drove out the Jin forces, occupied Chang'an, enthroned himself as emperor of Great Xia, and adopted the era name Changwu (昌武). He designated Chang'an the southern capital and Tongwan the northern capital, then returned to Tongwan. The following year, upon completion of the palaces at Tongwan, he introduced a new era name, Zhenxing (真興). Contemporary sources portray his rule as severe and often cruel.

In 425, Helian Bobo died in the Yong'an Hall (永安殿) at Tongwan at the age of forty five. He was posthumously honored as Emperor Wulie of Xia (夏武烈帝).

Liu Bobo was born in 381, when his father Liu Weichen was a chief of the Tiefu tribe and a vassal of the Former Qin. It is not known whether his mother Lady Fu was Liu Weichen's wife or concubine. He was one of Liu Weichen's younger sons. After the Former Qin collapsed in light of various rebellions after its emperor Fu Jiān's defeat at the Battle of Fei River in 383, Liu Weichen took control of what is now part of Inner Mongolia south of the Yellow River and extreme northern Shaanxi, and while he nominally submitted to both the Later Qin and Western Yan as a vassal, he was actually a powerful independent ruler. However, in 391, he sent his son Liu Zhilidi to attack the Northern Wei's prince Tuoba Gui, and Tuoba Gui not only defeated Liu Zhilidi, but crossed the Yellow River to attack Liu Weichen's capital Yueba (in modern Ordos, Inner Mongolia), capturing it and forcing Liu Weichen and Liu Zhilidi to flee. The next day, Liu Weichen was killed by his subordinates, and Liu Zhilidi was captured. Tuoba Gui seized Liu Weichen's territory and people and slaughtered his clan.

However, Liu Bobo survived the disaster and fled to the Chigan (叱干) tribe, which had once been under his father's authority. Its chief, Taixifu (太悉伏), fearing reprisals after receiving Tuoba Gui's demand for Bobo, had him bound and sent under guard. On the way, however, Taixifu's nephew Chigan Ali (叱干阿利) secretly dispatched men to intercept the escort, free Bobo, and deliver him to the Xianbei leader Moyigan (沒弈干), the Duke of Gaoping, a Later Qin vassal and a former ally of Liu Bobo's father Liu Weichen. Moyigan not only gave Liu Bobo refuge but also married one of his daughters to Liu Bobo. Liu Bobo, from that point on, became highly dependent on his father-in-law. (Meanwhile, in 393, Tuoba Gui, because of Tai Xifu's refusal to deliver Liu Bobo to him, attacked Tai and slaughtered his people, although Tai himself escaped and fled to Later Qin.) Little is known about Liu Bobo's life during the following years. In 402, Tuoba Gui's brother Tuoba Zun, the Prince of Changshan attacked Moyiyu's homebase of Gaoping (in modern Guyuan, Ningxia), and Moyigan was forced to flee to Later Qin, abandoning his own people, who were scattered about, although later the Later Qin recaptured Gaoping and gave it back to Moyigan.

Sometime before 407, because Liu Bobo was the son in law of the Xianbei leader Moyigan, he was presented at the court of Later Qin's Emperor Yao Xing. At that time, Liu Bobo stood nearly two meters tall, with broad shoulders and an imposing build, quick witted and eloquent, and the son of a Xiongnu chieftain. Yao Xing was struck by him at first sight and soon considered appointing him a general, entrusting him with troops to guard against Northern Wei. Yao Xing's brother Yao Yong, however, spoke against it, believing Liu Bobo to be untrustworthy, stating: