During Tang Dynasty

Zhang Juhan was born in 858, during the reign of Emperor Xuānzong of Tang, but it is not known where he was born or how he came to become a eunuch. Early in the Xiantong era of Emperor Xuānzong's son and successor Emperor Yizong of Tang (860-874), he was adopted by the eunuch Zhang Congmei (張從玫). (Therefore, it appeared likely that his original name was not Zhang.) Because Zhang Congmei was a eunuch official (director of the office of ladies in waiting), Zhang Juhan was able to, through that heritage, become a eunuch official as well. At one point, he served as the eunuch monitor of the army at Rong District (容管, headquartered in modern Yulin, Guangxi).

In 883, during the reign of Emperor Yizong's son and successor Emperor Xizong, Zhang Juhan was recalled from Rong District to serve as an assistant at the Hall of Imperial Scholars (學士院, Xueshiyuan). He was subsequently made an assistant to the directors of palace communications (樞密承旨, Xumi Chengzhi), as well as the director of office of palace treasury (內府令, Neifu Ling).

During the time that Emperor Xizong's brother Emperor Zhaozong was in exile at Hua Prefecture (華州, in modern Weinan, Shaanxi) — i.e., from 896 to 898 — he gave Zhang the greater title of Zhong Changshi (中常侍) and sent him to Lulong Circuit (盧龍, headquartered in modern Beijing), to serve as Lulong's eunuch monitor. Later, when Emperor Zhaozong was set to summon Zhang back to the capital Chang'an, Lulong's military governor (Jiedushi) Liu Rengong submitted a petition that Zhang be kept at Lulong, and Zhang ended up staying at Lulong. In 903, when Emperor Zhaozong, then under control of the major warlord Zhu Quanzhong the military governor of Xuanwu Circuit (宣武, headquartered in modern Kaifeng, Henan), under the urging of both Zhu and Zhu's ally the chancellor Cui Yin, issued an edict for a general slaughter of eunuchs, Liu hid Zhang and executed an inmate in his stead, claiming that he had already executed Zhang.

In 906, Zhu launched a major attack on Liu's domain, attacking Yichang Circuit (義昌, headquartered in modern Cangzhou, Hebei), then governed by Liu's son Liu Shouwen. Liu Rengong sought aid from Li Keyong the military governor of Hedong Circuit (河東, headquartered in modern Taiyuan, Shanxi). Li agreed, but under the provision that Liu send troops to Hedong so that the Hedong and Lulong troops could jointly attack Zhaoyi Circuit (昭義, headquartered in modern Changzhi, Shanxi), which had fallen under Zhu's control at that time, to try to relieve the pressure on Yichang. Liu sent Zhang and the secretary Ma Yu (馬鬱) with an army to Hedong, to join the attack on Zhaoyi. After the campaign, however, Li kept Zhang and did not return him to Lulong. After Li captured Zhaoyi and put his adoptive nephew Li Sizhao in command of the circuit, Zhang was made the eunuch monitor of the Zhaoyi army, personally commanding the 3,000 soldiers from Lulong.

During Jin

In 907, Zhu Quanzhong forced Emperor Zhaozong's son and successor Emperor Ai to yield the throne to him, ending Tang and starting a new Later Liang. Li Keyong and several other regional warlords (Li Maozhen, Wang Jian, and Yang Wo) refused to recognize the new regime, and effectively became independent rulers of their own domains — in Li Keyong's case, as Prince of Jin. Shortly after, Later Liang launched an army to put Zhaoyi's capital Lu Prefecture (潞州) under siege. Zhang Juhan aided Li Sizhao in defending the city, until (after Li Keyong's death early in 908) Li Keyong's son and successor Li Cunxu arrived to defeat the Later Liang army and lift the siege. After that battle, whenever Li Sizhao accompanied Li Cunxu on campaigns away from Zhaoyi, Zhang would be in charge of Zhaoyi in Li Sizhao's absence. It was said that every spring he encouraged the people to be attentive in growing vegetables and trees, and he did what he could to aid the farmers.

In 923, Li Cunxu was planning to declare himself emperor of a new Later Tang, and therefore summoned Zhang and the assistant to the military governor of Anyi (安義, i.e., Zhaoyi, changed to Anyi to observe naming taboo for Li Sizhao), Ren Huan, to his presence at Wei Prefecture (魏州, in modern Handan, Hebei). This act caused apprehension in the heart of Li Sizhao's son and successor Li Jitao, who had taken control of the circuit without the approval of Li Cunxu after Li Sizhao's death in battle. As he thought that Li Cunxu summoned Zhang and Ren to prepare to act against him, he thus submitted the circuit to Later Liang's emperor Zhu Zhen.

During Later Tang

Shortly after, Li Cunxu declared himself emperor of Later Tang. He made Zhang, as well as Guo Chongtao, his chiefs of staff (Shumishi), but it was said that Guo had recommended Zhang in order to bypass Li Shaohong, causing Li Shaohong's resentment. Meanwhile, Zhang was said to be careful and not liking to be involved in disputes, so effectively, Guo made all of the important decisions. After Li Cunxu conquered Later Liang later in the year, he gave Zhang a grand general title and put him in charge of the eunuch bureau (內侍省, Neishi Sheng), but continue to have him serve as a chief of staff with Guo. During Li Cunxu's reign, the eunuchs had substantial involvement on policy decisions, but Guo (not a eunuch) continued to oversee the final policy decisions. Zhang continued to not engage himself in those decisions, for the most part.

By 926, the Later Tang realm was engulfed in various mutinies against Li Cunxu, partly caused by a famine and partly caused by the army's discontent after Li Cunxu killed Guo and Zhu Youqian on false suspicions of treason. Believing that Wang Zongyan (Wang Jian's son and successor), the emperor of the defunct state of Former Shu, which a Later Tang army under Guo's command had conquered in 925, who was then in the process of being transported to the Later Tang capital Luoyang, would create trouble, Li issued an edict ordering Wang's death, and further stated in the edict, "Wang Yan and his entire procession should be executed." Zhang reviewed the edict, and decided by his own to alter the edict to read, "Wang Yan and his entire family should be executed," thus saving more than 1,000 Former Shu officials and palace attendants accompanying Wang.

Later in the year, Li Cunxu was himself killed in a mutiny at Luoyang itself. His adoptive brother Li Siyuan, who had rebelled against him earlier, quickly arrived at Luoyang and took control, initially using the title of regent (although he would later claim imperial title himself). Shortly after Li Siyuan claimed the regent title, Zhang begged him for retirement, and Li Siyuan agreed. Zhang thereafter returned to Chang'an, and Li Siyuan gave his adoptive son Zhang Yangui (張延貴) an official position at Chang'an in order to have Zhang Yangui be able to attend to him. He died of illness in 928.

Notes and references

• History of the Five Dynasties, vol. 72.

• New History of the Five Dynasties, vol. 38.

• Zizhi Tongjian, vols. 264, 272, 274, 275.

唐朝年間

張居翰生于858年，出生地及成為宦官的緣由不詳。唐懿宗咸通年間（860年-874年），他被掖庭令張從玫收為養子（故他可能最初本不姓張），因而得以蔭官，曾任容管監軍判官。

唐僖宗中和三年（883年），張居翰被召回為學士院判官。後遷樞密承旨、內府令，賜緋衣。

唐昭宗于896年至898年流亡華州，授張居翰內常侍，出任盧龍監軍，與節度使劉仁恭相善。後來昭宗召張居翰回長安，劉仁恭上表留張居翰在盧龍。天複三年（903年），處在大軍閥宣武軍節度使朱全忠控制下的昭宗在朱全忠及其盟友宰相崔胤敦促下下詔屠戮宦官，劉仁恭將張居翰藏匿在大安山的北溪，殺了其他的囚犯，稱已斬殺了張居翰。

天祐三年（906年），朱全忠對劉仁恭發起大舉進攻，攻劉仁恭子劉守文治下的義昌。劉仁恭求援于河東節度使李克用。李克用答應了，但要劉仁恭派軍到河東，合兵攻打已落入朱全忠控制的昭義，以試圖緩解義昌的壓力。于是劉仁恭派張居翰與書記馬鬱和三萬軍隊一起去河東，合攻昭義。戰後，李克用卻將張居翰留下，沒有遣歸盧龍。李克用占領昭義後，以養侄李嗣昭領之，以張居翰為昭義軍監軍，親率三千盧龍軍。

晉國年間

907年，朱全忠迫使唐哀帝禪位于他，終結唐朝，建立後梁。李克用和幾個其他地方軍閥李茂貞、王建、楊渥拒絕承認新政權，實際上成為各自轄區的獨立統治者，其中李克用就是晉王。不久，後梁發兵圍昭義軍部潞州。張居翰助李嗣昭守城，直至908年初李克用去世後，其子繼承人李存勖到達擊敗後梁軍解圍。戰後，李嗣昭每次離開昭義陪李存勖作戰，都由張居翰知留後事。每年春天，他都教百姓種植蔬菜和樹，盡所能幫助農民。

923年二月，李存勖計劃建立後唐並稱帝，召張居翰和安義（即昭義，為避李嗣昭諱改名）節度判官任圜去魏州見他。此舉使在李嗣昭戰死後未經李存勖同意就控制了軍鎮的李嗣昭之子和繼承人李繼韜心生警惕。他認為李存勖召張、任是準備針對自己，舉鎮投降了後梁皇帝朱瑱。

後唐年間

四月，李存勗稱後唐皇帝，任張居翰和郭崇韜為樞密使，加張居翰特進，但郭崇韜曾推薦張居翰以使其居李紹宏之上，招致李紹宏的怨恨。張居翰謹慎，不喜歡捲入爭執，故實際上是郭崇韜作所有重要決定。李存勗欲以魏州推官蕭希甫知制誥，正逢詔命定內宴儀，問蕭希甫樞密使能坐嗎，蕭希甫認為不可，張居翰聞之怒，對蕭希甫說：「老夫歷事三朝天子，見內宴數百，你本是田舍兒，怎麼知道宮禁事！」蕭希甫不能對。宦官們因而痛恨蕭希甫，宰相豆盧革等依附張居翰等宦官排擠之，使他只能做駕部郎中。同年十月，李存勗留張居翰和李紹宏守魏州，隨後滅後梁。二年（924年），張居翰作為樞密使、特進、左領軍衛上將軍、知內侍省事被加驃騎大將軍、守左驍衛上將軍，進封開國伯，賜功臣號，仍與郭崇韜同任樞密使。李存勗年間，宦官幹政，但最終政務仍然由郭崇韜做主。張居翰也很大程度上並不參與其中。

926年，後唐陷入多起反對李存勗的兵變中，這些兵變部分緣起飢荒和李存勗因相信謀反誣告而殺死郭崇韜和朱友謙後在軍隊中造成的不滿。郭崇韜於925年率後唐軍滅前蜀，王建之子和繼承人王衍正在被帶往後唐都城洛陽途中。三月，李存勗認為王衍會造成麻煩，下詔處死王衍，還在詔書上說：「王衍一行，並從殺戮」。張居翰複查詔書，認為殺降不祥，自作主張把詔書按在柱子上，將其塗改為「王衍一家，並從殺戮」，隨同王衍的前蜀官員、僕役一千餘人因而獲救。

四月，李存勗在興教門之變中被殺，在鄴城之變中被叛軍擁立的李嗣源，很快進兵洛陽以控制局勢，在張居翰等人勸進下，初稱監國（後自己稱帝）。李嗣源監國後不久，張居翰在至德宮面請退休，李嗣源許之。張居翰此後返回長安，李嗣源以其養子張延貴為西京職事，以便供養張居翰。天成三年（928年）四月，張居翰在長安病故。

有墓誌《唐故內樞密使推誠保運致理功臣驃騎大將軍守右驍衛上將軍知內侍省事上柱國清河縣開國伯食邑七百戶張公墓誌銘並序》。