During Jin Dynasty

Liu Yifu was born in 406, when his father Liu Yu was already a paramount general of Jin and effectively regent. His mother was Liu Yu's concubine Consort Zhang. He was Liu Yu's oldest son.

As Liu Yu consolidated his power, he began to bestow on Liu Yifu increasingly more nominal authority, although Liu Yu had his subordinates actually carry out the duties that Liu Yifu would otherwise be expected to carry out. In 415, he was officially made heir apparent of Liu Yu's dukedom of Yuzhang and made the governor of Yan Province (兗州, then modern central Jiangsu). In 416, he was made the governor of Yu Province (豫州, then modern central Anhui). Later that year, he was again made the governor of Yan Province, but also the governor of Xu Province (徐州, modern northern Jiangsu). Then, in the fall, as Liu Yu launched a major campaign to attack Later Qin, Liu Yifu was made the defender of the capital Jiankang, even though it was Liu Muzhi who had actual authority.

In 417, after Liu Yu had destroyed Later Qin and annexed its territory, Liu Muzhi died. Liu Yu then withdrew, leaving the former Later Qin capital Chang'an in the hands of Liu Yifu's younger brother Liu Yizhen the Duke of Guiyang, but again with generals and officials actually in charge. In 418, after he had reached Pengcheng (彭城, in modern Xuzhou, Jiangsu), he considered making Liu Yifu the governor of Jing Province (荊州, roughly modern Hubei), but at the counsel of Zhang Shao that Liu Yifu, as the heir, should not be sent away from Jiankang, that post was given to Liu Yilong instead. When Liu Yu accepted the greater title of Duke of Song that year, Liu Yifu became the heir apparent to his dukedom, and in 419, after he was created the Prince of Song, Liu Yifu was given the special honor to be known as Crown Prince of Song. It was also around this time that he married Emperor Gong of Jin's daughter Sima Maoying the Princess Haiyan.

During Emperor Wus reign

After Liu Yu seized the throne from Emperor Gong and established Liu Song (as its Emperor Wu) in 420, he created Liu Yifu crown prince.

By 422, Emperor Wu was ill. His official Xie Hui saw that Crown Prince Yifu was often spending time with people lacking in abilities and virtue, and warned Emperor Wu about it. Emperor Wu considered making Liu Yizhen the Prince of Luling crown prince instead. Xie, however, after meeting with Liu Yizhen, had an even worse opinion of Liu Yizhen, and so Emperor Wu stopped considering so.

As Emperor Wu grew seriously ill later that year, he entrusted Crown Prince Yifu to Xu Xianzhi, Fu Liang, Xie Hui, and Tan Daoji. At the same time, however, he secretly warned Crown Prince Yifu that Xie was such a quick thinker that he could not be trusted greatly. He then died, and Crown Prince Yifu took the throne as Emperor Shao.

Reign

Emperor Shao honored his stepgrandmother Xiao Wenshou as grand empress dowager, and he created his wife Crown Princess Sima Maoying as empress. The matters of the central government were largely in the hands of Xu Xianzhi, Fu Liang, and Xie Hui.

One immediate matter that needed to be dealt with was that Emperor Mingyuan of Northern Wei, hearing of Emperor Wu's death, launched a major attack on Liu Song and crossed the Yellow River. In winter 422, Northern Wei forces captured Huatai (滑台, in modern Anyang, Henan). In spring 423, they captured Luoyang. Tan Daoji was dispatched to try to save the northern cities, and he was able to save Shandong Peninsula from falling, but by summer 423, the last major Liu Song outpost on the Yellow River, Hulao (虎牢, in modern Zhengzhou, Henan), had fallen, along with Xuchang. Only then did Northern Wei stop its advances.

In fall 423, Emperor Shao honored his mother Consort Zhang as empress dowager.

By 424, Xu, Fu, and Xie had grown increasingly dissatisfied with Emperor Shao as an emperor, as Emperor Shao had failed to follow the proper behavior during the three-year mourning period for his father, but spent most of his time on games and pleasure rather than on studies and important matters of state, despite encouragement from his official Fan Tai (范泰). They therefore considered deposing him, but they were also dissatisfied with the next ranked son of Emperor Wu, Liu Yizhen, who was talented but was even more frivolous than Emperor Shao in his behavior, often spending time with other talented but frivolous men, including Xie Lingyun and Yan Yanzhi (顏延之) and often requesting the imperial government to supply him with more and more money. They therefore stoked the rivalry that Emperor Shao already had with Liu Yizhen and then accused Liu Yizhen of crimes, and Emperor Shao reduced Liu Yizhen to commoner status and exiled him to Xin'an Commandery (新安, roughly modern Hangzhou, Zhejiang).

With Liu Yizhen out of the way, Xu, Fu, and Xie prepared to remove Emperor Shao as well. Because they were apprehensive about the powerful armies that Tan and Wang Hong had, they summoned Tan and Wang to the capital and then informed them of the plot. They then sent soldiers into the palace to arrest Emperor Shao, after first persuading the imperial guards not to resist. Before Emperor Shao could get up from bed in the morning, the soldiers were already in his bedchamber, and he made a futile attempt to resist, but was captured. He was sent back to his old palace. The officials then, in the name of Empress Dowager Zhang, declared Emperor Shao's faults and demoted him to Prince of Yingyang, offering the throne to his younger brother Liu Yilong Prince of Yidu instead.

After removal

Liu Yifu was exiled to Wu Commandery (roughly modern Suzhou, Jiangsu) and kept under secure guard. One month later, Xu Xianzhi sent the assassin Xing Antai (邢安泰) to assassinate the former emperor. Liu Yifu was still a strong man, and he fought his way out of the capital of Wu Commandery, but he was eventually chased down and knocked to the ground with a doorknob, and then killed.

Though Liu Yifu died sonless, in 429, Liu Lang, the eldest son of his younger brother Liu Yigong, was designated as his heir.

Era name

• Jingping (景平 jǐng píng) 423–424

Family

Consorts:

• Princess consort, of the Sima clan of Henei (王妃 河內司馬氏; 403–439), personal name Maoying (茂英)

Ancestry

生平

劉義符於義熙二年（406年）出生，其時劉裕已經四十四歲，他對得到這個遲來的兒子亦十分高興，後來更立其為豫章公世子。義熙十二年（416年）劉裕北伐後秦時，劉義符就受任中軍將軍，監太尉留府事，留守建康留府。義熙十四年（418年），劉裕受封宋公，建宋國，又以劉義符為宋公世子。劉裕於元熙元年（419年）進封宋王，並加殊禮，劉義符成為宋王太子。至永初元年（420年）劉裕篡晉自立，劉義符亦被立為皇太子。

永初三年（422年），劉裕病重，特意召見劉義符並告誡他：「檀道濟雖然有才幹和謀略，但沒有遠大志向，絕不像他兄長檀韶那麼難駕御。徐羨之、傅亮，應該沒有異心。謝晦數次跟我出征，頗為機智，若有人懷有異心，那肯定是他了。」並以徐羨之、傅亮、謝晦及檀道濟四人為顧命大臣，又明令往後有幼主繼位都不用母后臨朝，朝事都全交給宰相。劉裕在五月癸亥日（6月26日）去世後，劉義符就於同日即位為帝。

劉義符即位後仍需守父喪，但他在期間表現無禮，常與身邊的人十分親密，遊樂無度。當時特進范泰曾寫書勸諫，但劉義符不聽。而謝晦早年見劉義符身邊的都是小人，就曾向劉裕表示劉義符不是繼承宋室的人選，徐羨之、傅亮及謝晦最終在景平二年（424年）謀廢劉義符，並召江州刺史王弘及南兗州刺史檀道濟入朝，命中書舍人邢安泰及潘盛為內應，然後讓皇太后下令廢劉義符為營陽王。那天早上，謝晦、檀道濟及徐羨之領兵自雲龍門入宮，其時潘盛已經撤去宿衞軍隊，故此無人阻攔謝晦等軍。而劉義符那時在華林園設下市場，並親身去賣物；又開了水道，前一天和身邊親近乘船高歌大叫，並遊玩到天淵池後睡在船上，到了那天早上還沒醒。士兵進宮後殺害劉義符身邊兩個侍者，更傷了其手指，接著就將其扶出東閤，沒收皇帝璽綬，終將其送到吳郡幽禁。六月癸丑日（8月4日），徐羨之命邢安泰於金昌亭弒殺劉義符，劉義符極力反抗，要逃出昌門，但遭追捕者用門閂絆倒，最終遇害，享年十九歲。

徐羨之隨後立了宜都王劉義隆為帝。至元嘉九年（432年）以劉義恭長子劉朗為南豐縣王，作為劉義符的後嗣。

家庭

父母

父

• 宋武帝劉裕

母

• 皇太后張闕

后妃

• 皇后司馬茂英

家系

注釋