生平

即位

刘宏本封解渎亭侯，为承袭其父刘苌的爵位。母董夫人。他是汉章帝的玄孙，汉桓帝的堂侄。

永康元年桓帝崩，由于桓帝无子，城门校尉窦武主持商讨立嗣问题，召侍御史刘儵访查宗室中有否贤明之人，而刘儵推荐了刘宏。于是窦太后便在皇宫之中决定由刘宏嗣位，使刘儵以光禄大夫身份与中常侍曹节带领中黄门、虎贲、羽林军一千多人，前往河间迎接刘宏。建宁元年正月二十日，刘宏来到夏门亭，窦武亲自持节用青盖车把他迎入殿内。第二天，登基称帝，改元为「建宁」。

汉羌战争

建宁元年，护羌校尉段熲率领一万馀人，从彭阳（今甘肃省庆阳市镇源县东）直指高平（今宁夏固原市原州区），在逢义山（今宁夏固原市西北）大破先零诸种。再出桥门谷（今陕西省延安市子长市东北），并在奢延泽（今内蒙古自治区鄂托克前旗东南）、落川（今洛河上游）、令鲜水接连击败羌族残军，最后在灵武谷（今宁夏银川市贺兰县西北贺兰山东麓））给予羌族致命打击。七月，段熲追击至泾阳（今甘肃省平凉市西北），羌族残军只剩四千馀帐，溃逃至汉阳郡群山之中。

建宁二年，段熲在凡亭山（今宁夏固原市彭阳县西南）大破羌族残军，并在射虎谷（今甘肃省天水市西）全歼羌族，于是平定了东方羌乱。

党锢之祸

建宁元年九月，洛阳发生政变。陈蕃、窦武密谋诛杀宦官，王甫、曹节等反击，陈蕃、窦武、尚书令尹勋、侍中刘瑜、屯骑校尉冯述、虎贲中郎将刘淑、前尚书魏朗、议郎巴肃等被夷三族。窦太后也被移居南宫。

建宁二年，一只青蛇在皇帝御座上出现，大司农张奂、郎中谢弼上书平反陈蕃、窦武，宦官大为反感，于是张奂自囚廷尉数日，而谢弼被赶出朝廷，后来被曹节侄儿东郡太守曹绍以其他罪名逮捕处死。

十月，第二次党锢之祸爆发。大长秋曹节示意有关部门的人上奏要求汉灵帝批准各州郡逮捕审问虞放及李膺、杜宻、朱㝢、荀翌、翟超、刘儒、范滂等钩党。汉灵帝问曹节：「什么是钩党？」曹节答：「钩党就是乱党。」汉灵帝再问：「乱党有何罪？一定要杀吗？」曹节答：「他们互相勾结，准备有不轨行为。」汉灵帝再问：「什么是不轨行为？」曹节答：「阴谋推翻政府。」汉灵帝这才批准了上奏。李膺、范滂等最终下狱死。

熹平元年，窦太后病逝，由于窦太后曾参与诛灭宦官，宦官深为痛恨，试图使其无法配飨桓帝。汉灵帝召集文武百官讨论，在太尉李咸、廷尉陈球坚持下，汉灵帝将窦太后安葬宣陵。

有人在朱雀门上写上诟骂宦官的话语，灵帝命司隶校尉刘猛调查，刘猛不肯加强行动，一个多月都没有调查到任何结果，引起了宦官不满。刘猛被贬为谏议大夫，由段熲接任司隶校尉。段熲一上任便雷厉风行，逮捕了太学生一千馀人。

熹平五年，永昌太守曹鸾上书请求结束党禁。汉灵帝看到奏章后大怒若狂，曹鸾下狱死，汉灵帝更扩大对党人的打击。

直到中平元年三月，因为黄巾之乱爆发的缘故，党禁才被解除。

对外战争

建宁三年，凉州刺史孟陀命从事任涉，会同戊己校尉曹宽、西域长史张宴动员焉耆、龟兹、车师前后国共三万馀人讨伐疏勒，攻桢中城四十馀日，不克而退，自此东汉无力干涉疏勒。

熹平六年（177年），鉴于鲜卑多次侵扰汉朝边境。夏育建议讨伐鲜卑，在朝廷多次商讨后，派夏育出高柳（今山西省大同市阳高县）、田晏出云中（今内蒙古呼和浩特市托克托县）、臧旻率南匈奴大军出雁门（今山西省朔州市东南）三路大军讨伐鲜卑。结果遭檀石槐大败而归，夏育、田晏、臧旻被废为庶人。

宦官乱政

熹平元年，十月，王甫诬杀渤海王刘悝。

光和元年，七月，一道虹霓出现在玉堂，灵帝深为讨厌，召集群臣讨论，杨赐和蔡邕上书抨击当权官员，奏章被曹节偷看得知，于是当权官员对杨赐、蔡邕开启报复，杨赐以帝师免罪，蔡邕则被放逐到朔方郡。同年，王甫诬陷宋皇后，宋皇后一家被杀。

光和二年，王甫养子沛相王吉，到任五年，诛杀一万馀人，司隶校尉阳球入宫谢恩时上奏灵帝王甫诸人罪恶，于是王甫、王吉、王萌父子、段熲、袁赦等人皆下狱死。

后来阳球与陈球等谋诛宦官，曹节发现并反击，阳球、陈球、刘合、刘纳等下狱死。

汉灵帝晚年宠幸「十常侍」，汉灵帝甚至宣称：「张让是我爹，赵忠是我娘。」有一次汉灵帝想上永安宫候台，宦官们深怕汉灵帝看到他们的豪华府宅，于是让中大人尚但进言：「天子不应该登高，登高则百姓星散。」汉灵帝听了之后便不再上较高的亭台楼阁了。

内乱频仍

熹平元年，会稽变民许生在句章（今浙江省宁波市馀姚市东南）起兵，自称阳明皇帝，部众多达数万。朝廷派遣扬州刺史臧旻、丹阳太守陈夤前往讨伐。直到熹平三年十一月，臧旻等才在会稽斩许生，平定其乱事。

光和元年，正月，合浦、交趾乌浒蛮叛变，和九真、日南等郡变民结合，一连攻陷数郡。到光和四年，交趾人梁龙再联合变民叛乱，汉灵帝任命兰陵令朱儁为交州刺史，朱儁斩梁龙，平定了交州的乱事。

中平元年，黄巾之乱爆发。汉灵帝以北中郎将卢植、左中郎将皇甫嵩、右中郎将朱儁等讨伐，首脑张角同年病死，大部分的渠帅也被政府军平定，只留下一些残部持续作乱。

同年，交趾变民俘虏刺史及合浦太守来达，首领自称「柱天将军」，汉灵帝命贾琮当交趾刺史，贾琮到任后安抚民心，击斩渠帅，平定了乱事。同年七月，巴郡妖巫张修起兵叛变，政府称之为「米贼」。

同年，北地先零羌及枹罕、河关变民造反，拥立北宫伯玉、李文侯当将军。变民又胁迫在西州有重名的边章、韩遂出任叛军领袖，四处攻击郡县，击斩护羌校尉泠徵及金城太守陈懿。并包围凉州刺史左昌于冀城（今甘肃省天水市甘谷县），并在狐盘（今甘肃省天水市甘谷县南）大败盖勋所率领的政府军。中平二年，张温在美阳之战击败了叛军，但在包围榆中城（今甘肃省兰州市东）时被叛军切断粮道，只得草草撤退。中平四年时，变民包围陇西（今甘肃省定西市临洮县），太守李相如、司马马腾投降，凉州刺史耿鄙、汉阳太守傅燮被杀。变民更拥立王国为统帅，开始劫掠三辅地区。中平五年，王国包围陈仓（今陕西省宝鸡市陈仓区），汉灵帝命左将军皇甫嵩率前将军董卓前往迎击。王国等包围陈仓八十馀日，无法攻破城池。中平六年，二月，王国解围撤退，皇甫嵩下令追击，大破王国。王国因此战被变民罢黜，另推举阎忠为首领，不久阎忠逝世，变民等便互相攻伐，开始内斗，势力也逐渐消退。

中平二年，自从黄巾之乱之后，各地大小民变不断，最大的一支是黑山军，由张燕率领。后来张燕派使节到洛阳请求政府招安，而汉灵帝允许，任命张燕为平难中郎将。

中平三年，二月，江夏民兵赵慈造反，击斩南阳太守秦颉。同年六月，被荆州刺史王敏平定。

中平四年，前中山相张纯因不满没有被推荐为将领，夥同前泰山太守张举及乌桓酋长丘力起兵叛变，劫掠蓟中，根据地设在肥如（今河北省唐山市迁安市东北）。张举自称皇帝，张纯自称弥天将军、安定王，宣称张举将代汉而起，命汉灵帝下台，百官前来迎接张举前往洛阳。中平五年，汉灵帝命骑都尉公孙瓒前往讨伐，公孙瓉在石门（今辽宁省朝阳市西南）大败张纯，乘胜追击，却在管子城反被丘力居包围，全军崩溃。直到中平六年，幽州牧刘虞到职，派人出使鲜卑部落等，于是张纯、张举逃亡塞外，丘力居则归降朝庭，乱事遂平。十月，长沙变民区星自称将军，聚众万馀，汉灵帝命议郎孙坚为长沙太守，前往平乱，而孙坚顺利击败区星。

中平五年，黄巾残党郭泰于白波谷起兵，世称「白波贼」。三月，南匈奴屠各叛军击斩并州刺史张懿。益州变民马相、赵祇在绵竹（今四川省德阳市北）起兵，击斩刺史郤俭，连破巴郡、犍为郡，拥有部众数万，于是自称皇帝。不久，益州从事贾龙率官民反击，逐走马相等，迎接新任州牧刘焉上任。冀州刺史王芬密谋趁汉灵帝北返河间故宅时，劫持汉灵帝并诛杀宦官，之后废汉灵帝而立合肥侯。后汉灵帝打消北返念头，徵召王芬，王芬逃亡，自杀。

熹平石经

熹平四年（175年），议郎蔡邕认为儒家经典流传过程中出现许多错误，于是联合中常侍李巡、五官中郎将堂溪典、光禄大夫杨赐、谏议大夫马日磾、议郎张驯、韩说、太史令单扬等人共同上书要求校勘儒家经典。于是汉灵帝设立熹平石经，将校勘后的儒家经典分别刻在四十六块石碑之上，并安置在太学门外，作为经典标准，供人学习。

鸿都门学

汉灵帝有辞赋、书法和音乐爱好。光和元年，灵帝建立鸿都门学，最初号称以研究儒术经义为名，后招集众多文士从事辞赋及书法等文艺创作活动。因鸿都门学专重文艺而轻儒家经典，引起不少大臣反对。

横徵暴敛

汉灵帝还是侯爵时，生活贫苦，等到当了皇帝之后，常常讥笑桓帝不懂经营家产，于是大肆卖官鬻爵，将所得做为私房钱使用。光和元年，汉灵帝在西园设官邸，开始卖官鬻爵。

光和三年，汉灵帝兴建毕圭苑、灵昆苑。

光和四年（181年），灵帝在皇宫之中扩建西园，修建集市供自己享乐。灵帝和宫女模仿民间市集里的商人、窃贼、地痞，并驾著白驴在西园中来回穿梭。甚至起裸游馆千间，灵帝特别喜欢娇嫩纯洁的幼女，选十四岁以上十八岁以下的宫女于池中裸游，并命令宫女只能穿开档裤，原因竟是为了方便自己临幸宫女。又曾于西园弄狗与人兽交。

中平二年，洛阳南宫云台、乐成门火灾，中常侍张让、赵忠说服汉灵帝将田亩每亩增加十钱，作为「修宫捐」，在修筑宫殿的材料上又大为苛刻，并且藉机压榨各州郡财物，到后来刺史、太守、各级官吏的变动，都得支付「助军捐」或「修宫捐」。直到钜鹿太守司马直上奏指控政府且服毒自杀后，汉灵帝才停止徵收「修宫捐」。同年，崔烈付了五百万钱担任了司徒，汉灵帝对左右亲信说：「当时真应该坚持下去，这个官可以卖千万钱啊。」程夫人在旁说：「崔烈是冀州名士，怎么肯买官，是看在我的份上才出了五百万钱，你还不满意啊。」

中平三年，汉灵帝命钩盾令宋典修建南宫玉堂殿，又命掖庭令毕岚铸四个佛像，再铸四个大钟。又在平门外铸独角兽、虾蟆状的喷水器及人工洒水车等。

废史立牧

中平五年，汉灵帝听从了太常刘焉的建议，将刺史改成了权力更加庞大的州牧，造成了日后群雄割据的基础。

西园军

中平五年八月，汉灵帝自从黄巾之乱后，开始留意军事，小黄门蹇硕体格健壮，深通兵法武略，于是汉灵帝设立西园八校尉，以蹇硕为上军校尉，管辖西园军。西园军的势力庞大，连大将军都得接受其管辖。

去世

中平六年，汉灵帝在南宫嘉德殿去世。汉灵帝有两个儿子，刘辩及刘协。汉灵帝认为刘辩轻佻，多次想立刘协为太子，但一直十分犹豫，后来汉灵帝病重，便把刘协托付给蹇硕。汉灵帝死后引发了东汉最后一次的戚宦相争，间接导致了东汉的灭亡。

总体而言，汉灵帝统治时期朝政败坏，卖官鬻爵风气盛行，民不聊生激起大量民变，从而成为东汉灭亡的导火线。

灵帝朝公卿

太傅

• 陈蕃(168年)

• 胡广(168年－172年)

大将军

• 窦武(168年)

• 何进(184年－189年)

太尉

• 周景(－168年)

• 刘矩(168年)

• 闻人袭(168年－169年)

• 刘宠(169年)

• 郭禧(169年－170年)

• 闻人袭(170年－171年)

• 李咸(171年－173年)

• 段熲(173年)

• 陈耽(174年－176年)

• 许训(176年)

• 刘宽(176年－177年)

• 孟戫(177年－178年)

• 张颢(178年)

• 陈球(178年)

• 桥玄(178年－179年)

• 段熲(179年)

• 刘宽(179年－181年)

• 许戫(181年－182年)

• 杨赐(182年－184年)

• 邓盛(184年－185年)

• 张延(185年－186年)

• 张温(186年－187年)

• 崔烈(187年)

• 曹嵩(187年－188年)

• 樊陵(188年)

• 马日磾(188年－189年)

• 刘虞(189年－)

司徒

• 胡广(－168年)

• 刘宠(168年－169年)

• 许训(169年－171年)

• 桥玄(171年)

• 许栩(171年－172年)

• 袁隗(172年－176年)

• 杨赐(176年－177年)

• 袁滂(178年－179年)

• 刘合(179年)

• 杨赐(179年－181年)

• 陈耽(181年－182年)

• 袁隗(182年－185年)

• 崔烈(185年－187年)

• 许相(187年－188年)

• 丁宫(188年－)

司空

• 宣酆(－168年)

• 王畅(168年)

• 刘宠(168年)

• 许栩(168年－169年)

• 刘嚣(169年－170年)

• 桥玄(170年－171年)

• 来艳(171年)

• 宗俱(171年－173年)

• 杨赐(173年)

• 唐珍(173年－174年)

• 许训(174年－176年)

• 刘逸(176年－177年)

• 陈球(177年)

• 陈耽(177年－178年)

• 来艳(178年)

• 袁逢(178年－179年)

• 张济(179年－184年)

• 张温(184年－185年)

• 杨赐(185年)

• 许相(185年－187年)

• 丁宫(187年－188年)

• 刘弘(188年－)

评价

• 范晔《后汉书·孝灵帝纪》：「《秦本纪》说赵高谲二世，指鹿为马，而赵忠、张让亦绐灵帝不得登高临观，故知亡敝者同其致矣。然则灵帝之为灵也优哉！」、「灵帝负乘，委体宦孽。征亡备兆，《小雅》尽缺。麋鹿霜露，遂栖宫卫。」

• 董卓：「天下之主，宜得贤明，每念灵帝，令人愤毒！」《后汉书·卷七十四上·袁绍刘表列传第六十四上》

• 盖勋：「吾仍见上，上甚聪明，但拥蔽于左右耳。」《后汉书·虞傅盖臧列传第四十八》

• 张超《灵帝河闲旧庐碑》：赫赫在上．陶唐是承．继德二祖．四宗是凭．上纳鉴乎羲农．中结轨乎夏商．元首既明．股肱惟良．乃因旧宇．福德所基．修饰经构．农隙得时．树中天之双阙．崇冠山之华堂．通楼闲道．丹阶紫房．金窗郁律．玉璧内璫．青蒲充庖．朱草栖箱．川鱼踊跃．云鸟舞翔．煌煌大汉．含德乾纲．体效日月．验化阴阳．格于上下．震畅八荒．三光宣曜．四灵效祥．天其嘉享．丰年穰穰．驺虞奏乐．鹿鸣荐觞．二祝致告．福禄来将．永保万国．南山无量．（《艺文类聚 卷六十四》）

• 汉灵帝与其前任皇帝汉桓帝的统治时期是东汉最黑暗的时期，诸葛亮的《出师表》中就有蜀汉开国皇帝刘备每次「叹息痛恨于桓灵」的陈述：「亲贤臣，远小人，此先汉所以兴隆也；亲小人，远贤臣，此后汉所以倾颓也。先帝在时，每与臣论此事，未尝不叹息痛恨于桓、灵也。」

• 薛莹：「汉氏中兴，至于延平而世业损矣。冲质短祚，孝桓无嗣，母后称制，奸臣执政。孝灵以支庶而登至尊，由蕃侯而绍皇统，不恤宗绪，不祗天命；上亏三光之明，下伤亿兆之望。于时爵服横流，官以贿成。自公侯卿士降于皂隶，迁官袭级无不以货，刑戮无辜，摧扑忠良；佞谀在侧，直言不闻。是以贤智退而穷处，忠良摈于下位；遂至奸雄蜂起，当防隳坏，夷狄并侵，盗贼糜沸。小者带城邑，大者连州郡。编户骚动，人人思乱。当此之时，已无天子矣。会灵帝即世，盗贼相寻，其后宫室。焚灭，郊社无主，危自上起，覃及华夏。使京室为墟，海内萧条，岂不痛哉！」（《全晋文·卷八十一》）

• 王嘉《拾遗记》：「安、灵二帝，同为败德。夫悦目快心，罕不沦乎情欲，自非远鉴兴亡，孰能移隔下俗。佣才缘心，缅乎嗜欲，塞谏任邪，没情于淫靡。至如列代亡主，莫不凭威猛以丧家国，肆奢丽以覆宗祀。询考先坟，往往而载，佥求历古，所记非一。贩爵鬻官，乖分职之本；露宿郊居，违省方之义。」

• 虞世南：「灵帝承疲民之后，易为善政，黎庶倾耳。咸冀中兴，而帝袭彼覆车，毒逾前辈，倾覆宗社，职帝之由。天年厌世，为幸多矣。」（《唐文拾遗·卷十三》）

• 杜牧：「桓、灵四十年间杀千百比干，毒流其社稷，可以血食乎？可以坛？单父天拜郊乎？」（《樊川文集》）

• 周昙：「榜悬金价鬻官荣，千万为公五百卿。公瑾孔明穷退者，安知高卧遇雄英。」（《全唐诗·卷七百二十九》）

• 胡三省：「观灵帝以尚但之言不敢复升台榭，诚恐百姓虚散也，谓无爱民之心可乎！使其以信尚但者信诸君子之言，则汉之为汉，未可知也。」（《资治通鉴·卷第五十八·汉纪五十》）

• 蔡东藩《后汉演义》：「汉季之中常侍，谁不曰可杀？惟庸主如桓灵，方信而用之。」「国家赏罚有明经，宵小谗言怎可听？功罪不分昏愦甚，从知灵帝本无灵！」「若平乐观中之讲武，设坛张盖，夸示威风，灵帝自以为耀武，而盖勋乃以黩武为对，犹非知本之谈。黩武二字，惟汉武足以当之，灵帝岂足语此？彼之所信任者，妇寺而已，如皇甫嵩、朱儁诸才，皆不知重用；甚至一病不起，犹视赛硕为忠贞，托孤寄命，《范史》谓灵帝负扆，委体宦孽，征亡备兆，小雅尽缺，其亦所谓月旦之定评也乎？」

家庭

后妃

• 宋皇后

• 何皇后

• 王美人，追尊灵怀皇后

• 马贵人，仅见于《汉官六种·汉仪》

子女

• 弘农怀王（汉少帝）刘辩，何皇后生

• 汉献帝刘协，王美人生

• 万年公主，生母不详

艺术形象

影视形象

• 香港丽的电视台电视剧《三国春秋》（1976年）：司马华龙

• 电视剧《曹操》（1999年）：赵炎

• 中国中央电视台电视剧《武圣关公》（2004年）：徐连顺

• 电视剧《曹操》（2014年）：林妙可（少年）、严琨（成年）

登场作品

• 苍天航路（王欣太）

Family background and accession to the throne

Liu Hong was a hereditary marquis – the Marquis of Jiedu Village (解渎亭侯). In the Han dynasty, a village marquis's marquisate usually comprised only one village or, in rarer cases, two or three villages. He was the third person in his family to hold this title; his father Liu Chang and grandfather Liu Shu were also formerly Marquis of Jiedu Village. His great-grandfather, Liu Kai, the Prince of Hejian, was the sixth son of Emperor Zhang, the third emperor of the Eastern Han dynasty. His mother, Lady Dong, was Liu Chang's formal spouse.

When Emperor Huan died in 168 without a son to succeed him, his empress, Empress Dou, became empress dowager, and she examined the genealogy of the imperial clan to choose a candidate to be the next emperor. For reasons unknown, her assistant Liu Shu recommended Liu Hong, the Marquis of Jiedu Village. After consulting with her father Dou Wu and the Confucian scholar-official Chen Fan, Empress Dowager Dou installed a 12-year-old Liu Hong on the throne, and continued ruling on his behalf as regent. The newly enthroned Emperor Ling bestowed posthumous titles on his grandfather, father and grandmother, honouring them as emperors and an empress respectively. His mother, Lady Dong, did not become empress dowager and instead received the title of an Honoured Lady.

Early reign

Dou Wu and Chen Fan, who became the most important officials in the central government, sought to purge the eunuch faction. Later in 168, they even proposed to exterminate all the powerful eunuchs, a proposal that Empress Dowager Dou rejected. However, word of the plot was leaked, and the eunuchs, after kidnapping the empress dowager and taking the young emperor into custody (after persuading him that it was for his own protection) arrested and executed Chen Fan. Dou Wu resisted but was eventually defeated and forced to commit suicide. The Dou clan was slaughtered. The powerful eunuchs, led by Cao Jie (曹节) and Wang Fu (王甫), became the most powerful individuals in the central government.

After the destruction of the Dou clan, in 169, Emperor Ling promoted his mother to the position of empress dowager, though he continued honouring Empress Dowager Dou, now under house arrest, as empress dowager as well. Members of the Dong clan began to enter government, but did not have substantial influence. Later that year, the eunuchs persuaded Emperor Ling that the "partisans" (i.e., Confucian officials and those who supported them) were plotting against him, and a large number of partisans were arrested and killed; the others had their civil liberties stripped completely, in an event historically known as the second Disaster of Partisan Prohibitions.

Empress Dowager Dou died in 172. Despite suggestions by eunuchs to have her only buried as an imperial consort and not be honoured as Emperor Huan's wife, Emperor Ling had her buried with full honours befitting an empress dowager in Emperor Huan's mausoleum. In the aftermaths of her death, a vandal wrote on the palace gate: "All that is under the heaven is in upheaval. Cao and Wang murdered the empress dowager. The key officials only know how to be officials and had nothing faithful to say."

The angry eunuchs ordered an investigation which led to over 1,000 arrests, but nothing conclusive was found. In that year, the eunuchs also falsely accused Emperor Huan's brother, Liu Kui, the Prince of Bohai, of treason and forced him to commit suicide. The members of his entire household, including his wife, concubines, children, assistants and principality officials, were all rounded up and executed. As the Han government became more corrupt, the people received heavier tax burdens. As Emperor Ling grew older, he not only took no remedial action, but continued to tolerate the eunuchs' corruption for the most part. A major defeat of the Han army by the Xianbei tribes in 177 further drained the imperial treasury.

In 178, Emperor Ling's wife Empress Song, whom he made empress in 171 but did not favour, fell victim to the eunuchs' treachery. Her aunt, Lady Song, was Liu Kui's wife, so the eunuchs were worried that she would seek vengeance on them. Thus, by collaborating with other imperial consorts who wanted to replace the empress, the eunuchs falsely accused Empress Song of using witchcraft to curse Emperor Ling. The emperor believed them and deposed the empress, who was imprisoned and died in despair. Her father, Song Feng (宋酆), and the rest of her family were exterminated.

Middle reign

In 178, Emperor Ling introduced the practice of selling political offices for money – a practice which severely damaged the Han civil service system (chajuzhi, Chinese: 察举) and led to widespread corruption. The people who paid for these positions perpetuated corruption upon taking office. That was exactly what Emperor Ling had in mind: he allowed the officials to pay by instalments after taking office if they could not afford the initial amount.

In 180, Emperor Ling instated Lady He as the new empress and appointed her brother, He Jin, as a key official in his government. (According to legends, she managed to enter Emperor Ling's imperial harem because her family bribed the eunuchs in charge of selecting women for the emperor.) She received the position of empress because she bore Emperor Ling a son, Liu Bian; the emperor had other sons but they died prematurely before Liu Bian's birth.

During these years, Emperor Ling became interested in building imperial gardens so he ordered the commandery and principality officials throughout the Han Empire to pay their tributes to him directly, so he could use the money to finance his construction projects. This, in turn, created pressures on the officials to resort to corrupt practices so they could extract a larger tribute from their jurisdictions for the emperor. In spite of all his flaws, Emperor Ling occasionally heeded good advice from his subjects but was not consistent in doing so. His subjects often found it frustrating to try to convince him on policy issues because he only listened to them when he wanted to.

The Yellow Turban Rebellion

Sometime before 183, a major Taoist rebel movement had started in Ji Province – the Taiping Sect (太平教), led by Zhang Jiao, who claimed he had magical powers to heal the sick. By 183, his teachings and followers had spread to eight of the empire's thirteen provinces – Ji, Qing, Xu, You, Jing, Yang, Yan, and Yu. Several key imperial officials became concerned about Zhang Jiao's hold over his followers, and suggested that the Taiping Sect be disbanded. Emperor Ling did not listen to them.

Zhang Jiao had in fact planned a rebellion. He commissioned 36 military commanders, set up a shadow government, and wrote a declaration: "The blue heaven is dead. The yellow heaven will come into being. The year will be jiazi. The world would be blessed." (Under the traditional Chinese sexagenary cycle calendar method, 184 would be the first year of the cycle, known as jiazi.) Zhang Jiao had his supporters write jiazi in large characters with white talc everywhere they could – including on the doors of government offices in the imperial capital and other cities. One of Zhang Jiao's followers, Ma Yuanyi, plotted with two eunuchs to start an uprising inside the palace.

Early in 184, this plot was discovered, and Ma Yuanyi was immediately arrested and executed. Emperor Ling ordered that Taiping Sect members be arrested and executed, and Zhang Jiao immediately declared a rebellion. Every member of the rebellion wore a yellow turban or headscarf as their symbol – and therefore the rebellion became known for it. Within a month, Zhang Jiao controlled large areas of territory. Under suggestion by the eunuch Lü Qiang, who was sympathetic to the partisans, Emperor Ling pardoned the partisans to ward off the possibility they would join the Yellow Turbans. (Lü Qiang himself became a victim, however, when the other eunuchs, in retaliation, falsely accused him of wanting to depose the emperor, and he committed suicide later that year.)

Emperor Ling sent out a number of military commanders against the Yellow Turbans, and in these campaigns several of them distinguished themselves –

including Huangfu Song, Cao Cao, Fu Xie (傅燮), Zhu Jun, Lu Zhi, and Dong Zhuo. A key military development with great implications later was that the Yellow Turbans fought mainly with troops deployed from the battle-tested Liang Province who had been accustomed to suppressing rebellions by the Qiang tribes. In late 184, Zhang Jiao was killed, and while the rest of the Yellow Turbans were not defeated immediately, they gradually dissipated by the following year. Because of the Liang Province forces' contributions to the campaign, they began to be feared and began to look down on troops from all other provinces. During and in the aftermaths of the Yellow Turban Rebellion, many people from other provinces, in order to ward off pillaging by Yellow Turbans or governmental forces, also organised themselves into military groups, and a good number resisted government forces, and even after the Yellow Turbans were defeated, the central government's control of the provinces was no longer what it used to be.

Late reign

Even after the Yellow Turban Rebellion was suppressed, Emperor Ling did not change his wasteful and corrupt ways. He continued to levy heavy taxes and continued to sell offices. As a result, other agrarian and military rebellions multiplied. In 185, when a fire broke out in the southern part of the imperial palace, the Ten Attendants suggested to Emperor Ling to levy a tax of ten maces from every mu of farmland to raise funds for rebuilding the palace. Emperor Ling then ordered the officials in Taiyuan (太原), Hedong and Didao (狄道) commanderies to transport wood and patterned rocks to Luoyang (the imperial capital) as construction materials. When the shipments reached the palace, the eunuchs who received them scolded the labourers for delivering materials of poor quality, and insisted on paying them far below market prices – to as low as a tenth of the market price. They then resold the materials to other eunuchs, who refused to buy. Over time, the accumulated piles of wood started decaying. The construction works were thus delayed for years. In order to please Emperor Ling, some regional officials levied heavier taxes and forced the people to produce greater quantities of construction materials – this led to greater resentment from the common people.

Emperor Ling appointed cavalry officers to serve as his messengers whenever he issued orders for things to be delivered to Luoyang. These officers, known as zhongshi (中使; "central emissaries"), abused their power by forcing the regional officials, who were afraid of them, to give them bribes. The appointment of officials below the position of Inspector (刺史) was decided by the amount of money they could pay to fund the army and palace construction. Before assuming office, these officials had to undergo an assessment to determine their "value". Some who could not afford the required amount committed suicide, while others who refused to take up their appointments were forced into accepting.

Around the time, there was one Sima Zhi, who had been newly appointed as the Administrator (太守) of Julu Commandery (钜鹿郡). As he had a reputation for being an honest official, he was required to pay less – three million maces. Upon receiving the order, he lamented, "I should be like a parent to the common people, but I have been forced to exploit them to satisfy (the Emperor's) needs. I can't bear to do this." He attempted to resign, claiming that he was ill, but his request was denied. When he reached Meng Ford (孟津) near Luoyang, he wrote a memorial to point out all the problems with the government and cite historical examples to warn the emperor. He then committed suicide by consuming poison. After reading Sima Zhi's memorial, Emperor Ling temporarily stopped collecting funds for rebuilding the palace, but quickly resumed his construction projects later. He built a hall within the western gardens and filled it with treasures and silk taken from the agriculture department. He also visited his birthplace in Hejian Commandery, where he acquired land and used it to build mansions and towers. As Emperor Ling came from a relatively poor background as a lesser marquis, he had a strong desire to accumulate as much personal wealth as possible – especially after he saw that his predecessor, Emperor Huan, did not leave behind a large family fortune for him. He drew his wealth not just from the imperial treasuries, but also from the low-ranking eunuchs who attended to him.

Emperor Ling often said, "Regular Attendant Zhang (Rang) is my father, Regular Attendant Zhao (Zhong) is my mother." As the eunuchs were highly trusted and favoured by Emperor Ling, they behaved lawlessly and abused their power. They even built lavish mansions for themselves in the same design as the imperial palace. When Emperor Ling once visited Yong'anhou Platform (永安侯台), a high viewing platform, the eunuchs were worried that he would see their mansions and become suspicious. Thus, they told him, "Your Majesty shouldn't put yourself on higher ground. If you do so, the people will scatter." The emperor believed them and stopped visiting high towers and viewing platforms.

In 186, Emperor Ling tasked the eunuchs Song Dian (宋典) and Bi Lan (毕岚) with overseeing new construction projects, including a new palace hall, four large bronze statues, four giant bronze bells and water-spouting animal sculptures, among others. He also ordered coins to be minted and widely circulated. Many people perceived this to be a display of the emperor's extravagance, and pointed to signs showing that the coins will eventually scatter everywhere. This turned out to be true when chaos broke out in Luoyang after Emperor Ling's death. Emperor Ling appointed Zhao Zhong as "General of Chariots of Cavalry" (车骑将军) but removed him from office after some 100 days.

In 188, under the suggestions of Liu Yan, Emperor Ling greatly increased the political and military power of the provincial governors and selected key officials to serve as provincial governors.

In 189, as Emperor Ling became critically ill, a succession issue came into being. Emperor Ling had two surviving sons – Liu Bian, the son of Empress He, and Liu Xie, the son of Consort Wang. Because Emperor Ling had, earlier in his life, frequently lost sons in childhood, he later believed that his sons needed to be raised outside the palace by foster parents. Therefore, when Liu Bian was born, he was entrusted to Shi Zimiao (史子眇), a Taoist, and referred to "Marquis Shi." Later, when Liu Xie was born, he was raised by Emperor Ling's mother, Empress Dowager Dong, and was known as "Marquis Dong." Liu Bian was born of the empress and was older, but Emperor Ling viewed his behaviour as being insufficiently solemn and therefore considered making Liu Xie crown prince, but hesitated and could not decide.

When Emperor Ling died later that year, a powerful eunuch whom he trusted, Jian Shuo, wanted to first kill Empress He's brother, General-in-Chief He Jin, and then make Liu Xie emperor, and therefore set up a trap at a meeting he was to have with He Jin. He Jin found out, and peremptorily declared Liu Bian emperor.

Family

Consorts and Issue:

• Empress, of the Song clan (皇后 宋氏; d. 178)

• Empress Lingsi, of the He clan (灵思皇后 何氏; d. 189)

　• Liu Bian, Prince Huai of Hongnong (弘农怀王 刘辩; 176–190), first son

• Empress Linghuai, of the Wang clan (灵怀皇后 王氏; d. 181), personal name Rong (荣)

　• Liu Xie, Emperor Xiaoxian (孝献皇帝 刘协; 181–234), second son

• Unknown

　• Princess Wannian (万年公主), first daughter

Ancestry