生平

永嘉六年（312年）游綸、張豺擁有幾萬人，占據苑鄉，王浚讓他們暫代原官行使職權，石勒派夔安、支雄等七將攻打，攻破外圍營壘。游綸、張豺向石勒請降。石虎滅前趙，張豺虜獲了前趙皇帝劉曜的小女兒安定公主，被石虎納為妾，深得寵愛，生下了齊公石世。建武十四年（348年）石虎廢殺太子石宣。與群臣商議立太子。太尉張舉推薦燕公石斌。戎昭將軍張豺考慮到石虎年老有病，想立石世為繼承人，希望劉氏為太后，自己能得以輔佐朝政。便說：「燕公石斌母親出身低賤，本人又曾經有過過錯；彭城公石遵的母親鄭櫻桃以前因為廢太子石邃之事被黜，如今再立石遵為太子，臣恐不能無微恨，陛下宜審思之！陛下以前兩立太子，他們的母親全都出身低賤，導致了朝廷禍亂不斷。如今應選母貴子孝者立為太子。」石虎與張舉、李農作出決定，命令公卿大臣聯名上書，請立石世為太子。大司農曹莫不肯簽名，石虎派張豺詢問，曹莫叩頭拜首：「天下重器，不宜立年少者，所以不敢署名。」

太寧元年（349年）四月初九，石虎病情惡化，命彭城王石遵為大將軍，鎮守關右；命燕王石斌為丞相，錄尚書事；命張豺為鎮衛大將軍、領軍將軍、吏部尚書。接受遺詔，輔佐朝政。劉皇后討厭石斌，怕他輔政對太子不利，和張豺謀劃除掉他。當時石斌在襄國，劉氏派使者欺騙石斌說，石虎的病情已逐漸好轉。石斌知道後，開始打獵縱酒。劉氏和張豺假傳詔令，稱石斌毫無忠孝之心，將他免官歸家，張豺派弟弟張雄假傳詔令殺掉了石斌。四月廿二日，劉皇后矯詔以張豺為太保、都督中外諸軍，錄尚書事，如霍光故事。四月廿三日，石虎死，太子石世即位，尊劉氏為皇太后。劉氏臨朝稱制，以張豺為丞相；張豺推辭不受，請以彭城王石遵、義陽王石鑒為左右丞相，以安其心。張豺找太尉張舉謀劃誅殺司空李農，張舉和李農關係密切，把此事告訴了李農。李農聞訊後逃到廣宗。張豺以張離為鎮軍大將軍，監中外諸軍事，作為自己的副手。石遵發兵直奔鄴城，五月十一日，石遵士兵達九萬人，石閔為前鋒。鄴城耆舊、羯士都說：「彭城王前來奔喪，我們應出城迎接，不能為張豺守城！」紛紛越城跑出，張豺雖以殺頭也不能制止。張離也率領二千龍騰衛士準備迎接石遵。劉太后召張豺來到宮中，對他哭訴：「先帝梓宮未殯，而禍難至此！今嗣子衝幼，托之將軍；將軍將若之何？欲加遵重位，能弭之乎？」張豺十分害怕，只是說：「唯唯（是的是的）。」劉太后下詔，任命石遵為丞相，兼領大司馬、大都督、督中外諸軍，錄尚諸事，加黃鉞、九錫。五月十四日，石遵抵達安陽亭，張豺出來迎接，被石遵拘拿。五月十五日，石遵進入鄴城，在平樂市殺了張豺，滅三族。

Early life and career

Zhang Chai was a man from Guangping County in Julu Commandery. In 312, Zhang Chai and a fellow townsman named You Lun (游綸) gathered a large host of people and staged a revolt in the city of Yuanxiang (苑鄕, in present-day Hebei and Beijing), which was at the time under Han Zhao. Zhang Chai and You Lun surrendered to the Youzhou warlord and Jin general Wang Jun and in response, the Han general Shi Le sent his army to besiege Yuanxiang. Wang Jun directed his army to attack Shi Le's capital in Xiangguo, forcing Shi Le to take his focus away from Yuanxiang. However, Shi Le managed to turn back Wang Jun's army. With Wang Jun defeated, Zhang Chai and You Lun surrendered back to Han Zhao that same year.

Shi Le broke away from Han Zhao in 319 and established his own state of Later Zhao. Zhang Chai appears to have followed Shi Le during the split. In 329, he participated in Shi Hu's campaign against Liu Yin and Liu Xi in Shanggui. The campaign was a victory for Shi Hu and resulted in the complete destruction of Han Zhao. During the campaign, Zhang Chai captured the Han Zhao emperor Liu Yao's daughter, the Princess of Anding, who was only twelve years old at the time. Zhang introduced her to Shi Hu, who made her one of his concubines. The Princess of Anding eventually grew up to be one of Shi Hu's favoured wife and gave birth to one of his sons, Shi Shi.

Supporting Shi Shi to the throne

In 348, Shi Hu was troubled with a succession issue. He had just executed his heir, Shi Xuan (石宣), who plotted to assassinate Hu but was discovered. At the suggestion of Zhang Ju, Shi Hu was considering making either Shi Bin (石斌) or Shi Zun as his new heir. Zhang Chai, who was serving as the General Who Awes the Rong at the time, proposed against it, "The Duke of Yan (Shi Bin) had a lowborn mother, and he has already committed a transgression. The Duke of Pengcheng』s (Shi Zun) mother (Zheng Yingtao) had been demoted before due to the incident with your original Crown Prince (Shi Sui (石邃), who was also executed by Shi Hu). If she becomes Empress again, I fear she might still hold a grudge. I pray Your Majesty reconsider."

Under the guise of concern, Zhang Chai actually wanted Shi Shi installed because he was still a child. Zhang Chai was confident that Shi Hu would die soon, and this succession crisis can aid him in expanding his personal power. He further adds, "When Your Majesty chose your heirs before, their mothers were all of common blood, and that was why disasters happened one after another. So this time, you should choose as your crown prince a son who is both filial and born of noble blood." Shi Hu agreed and made Shi Shi his Crown Prince and Lady Liu as his Empress. When a petition was published to have the ministers support Shi Shi to the throne, one minister, Cao Mo (曹莫), refused to sign the petition. When Shi Hu sent Zhang Chai to ask why, he expressed his belief that it was not proper to have a child be emperor.

The following year in 349, Zhang Chai's instincts proved to be correct, as Shi Hu became deathly ill. Shi Hu started appointing regents to guide Shi Shi, them being Shi Bin, Shi Zun and Zhang Chai. Zhang Chai was appointed Grand General Who Guards And Protects, General Who Leads The Army, and Supervisor of the Masters of Writing. Both Zhang and Empress Liu saw Shi Bin as a potential rival for them once Shi Hu dies. They sent a messenger to Shi Bin falsely informing him to enjoy himself in Xianngguo, stating that Shi Hu was now recovering from his illness. Once Shi Bin started participating in excessively indulgent activities, Empress Liu and Zhang Chai forged an edict denouncing him as an unfilial son and had him confined in his home, where Zhang had his brother Zhang Xiong (張雄) watch the prince with his soldiers. Zhang Chai later sent a false edict to his brother telling him to kill Shi Bin.

Another false edict was forged by the Empress, this time solidifying Zhang Chai's power over the court. The Empress made Zhang Chai Grand Guardian and Commander of all military affairs, and chief of affairs of the Masters of Writing. He was to hold so much power that it was comparable to that of Huo Guang during the Han dynasty.

Brief control over the government

Shi Hu died on the 25th of May in 349. Empress Dowager Liu took control of the court affairs and made Zhang Chai the Prime Minister. However, Zhang Chai objected to this and instead suggested that Shi Zun and the Prince of Yiyang, Shi Jian be made Prime Ministers of the Left and Right respectively to satiate them, which she agreed to.

One of Zhang Chai's first goal was to eliminate the Minister of Works, Li Nong. He planned to execute him but one of the conspirators, Zhang Ju was a friend of Li Nong, so he leaked the plot to him, giving Li ample time to flee to Guangzong. Li Nong then fled to Shangbai (上白, in modern-day Guangzong County, Hebei) where he defended himself with remnants of the Qihuo, so the Empress Dowager ordered Zhang Ju to besiege Li Nong with capital troops. Meanwhile, Zhang Chai appointed Zhang Li (張離) as Grand General Who Guards The Army and Chief of all military affairs to act as his adjutant.

Shi Hu's generals and ministers had all despised Zhang Chai and the Empress Dowager for their grasp over the court, and the attack on Li Nong only served to make their resentment grow stronger. A group of powerful generals, including Pu Hong, Yao Yizhong and Shi Min, were returning from quelling the rebellion of Liang Du (梁犢) when they came across Shi Zun on their way back home. They pleaded him to lead them in deposing the Shi Shi, the Empress Dowager and Zhang Chai in exchange that they support him in becoming the new emperor. Shi Zun agreed and raised he troops in Licheng (李城, in modern-day Pingyi County, Shandong) to march over to Yecheng. He then sent out a proclamation calling out Zhang Chai's crimes, sending Zhang Chai into a state of panic and causing him to recall the troops from Shangbai.

Shi Zun and his army reached Tangyin on June 12th with Shi Min serving the vanguard. Zhang Chai intended to march out and face him, but many of his troops defected in support of the prince as they thought he had come to mourn his late father. Zhang Chai tried to kill as many defectors that he can but most of them escaped to the opposing side. Even his adjutant Zhang Li decided to defect and opened the gates for Shi Zun to enter. The Empress Dowager was distressed and urged Zhang to grant him high-ranking offices. An edict was made appointing Shi Zun as Prime Minister along with many other offices, but he continued his advance into Ye.

Shi Zun reached Anyang Point on June 15th, and Zhang Chai fearfully went out to welcome him but was arrested by Shi Zun instead. On June 16th, Shi Zun reached the palace and carried out the mourning ceremony. Zhang Chai was executed at the Pingle (平樂) market square in Ye along with his family members to the third degree. After Shi Zun ascended the throne, Shi Shi and the now-deposed Lady Liu were also executed. Despite their removal, Later Zhao was thrown into civil war between Shi Zun and his brothers who supposedly sought to avenge Shi Shi, and Shi Zun himself would only rule for 183 days before he was removed by Shi Min, starting Later Zhao's swift decline.