During the decline of the Han Dynasty, the area surrounding Shu was under the control of Liu Bei, a distant relative of the Han emperor. After Cao Pi of Wei seized the imperial throne in 220, he proclaimed himself to be the next Han emperor and the real ruler of China. Therefore the Kingdom of Shu is also known as the Kingdom of Shu-Han. Althrough Liu Bei is said to be the founder of the Shu-Han dynasty, he himself never claimed to be the founder of a new dynasty.
In 222, Liu Bei initiated an unsuccessful attack on the Kingdom of Wu. He survived this attack, but one year later he became ill and died. He was succeeded by Liu Chan, who did not really care for governance and left his kingdom in the hands of his ministers.
The prime minister of Shu, Zhuge Liang-whose name is synonmous with wisdom in China-made peace with Wu instead of taking revenge. He had a bigger target, the Kingdom of Wei. He himself died of disease during the seventh attempt to conquer Wei. Jiang Wei, his successor, also tried but failed.
In 263, it was Wei's turn to attack Shu. Jiang Wei was killed and the kingdom conquered. Liu Chan was captured and taken to Luoyang. The Wei emperor gave him the title Duke of Comfort and allowed him to retire in peace.
Important figures
Rulers of Kingdom of Shu or Kingdom of Shu-Han 221 - 263
| Posthumous names | Family name (in bold) and first names | Durations of reigns | Era names and their ranges of years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Convention: use family and first names | |||
| Zhaolie (昭烈 Zhāoliè) | Liu Bei | 221-223 | Zhāngwǔ (章武) 221-223 |
| Houzhu (後主 Hòuzhǔ) | Liu Chan | 223-263 | Jiànxīng (建興) 223-237Yánxī (延熙) 238-257 |