The Yellow Turban Rebellion

The power of the Eastern Han Dynasty went in to depression and steadily declined after the reign of Emperor He of Han from a variety of political and economic problems. A series of Han emperors ascended the throne while still youths, and de facto Imperial power often rested with the young emperors' older relatives. Because these relatives occasionally were loath to give up their influence, emperors would, upon reaching maturity, be forced to rely on political alliances with senior officials and eunuchs to achieve control of the government. Political posturing and infighting between Imperial relatives and government eunuchs was a constant problem in Chinese government at the time. During the reigns of Emperors Huan and Ling, leading officials' dissatisfaction with the eunuchs' usurpations of power reached a peak, and many began to openly protest against them. The first and second protests met with failure, and the court eunuchs persuaded the Emperor to execute many of the protesting scholars. Some local rulers seized the opportunity to exert despotic control over their lands and citizens, since many feared to speak out in the oppressive political climate. Emperors Huan' and Ling's reigns were recorded as particularly dark periods of Han Dynasty rule. In addition to political oppression and mismanagement, China experienced a number of natural disasters during this period, and local rebellions sprung up throughout China.

Zhang Jiao the leader of The Yellow Turban(Modern Portrait)

In the second month of 184 AD, Zhang Jiao, leader of the Dao of Supreme Harmony Taoist movement, along with his two brothers Zhang Liang and Zhang Bao, led the movement's followers in a rebellion against the government that was called the Yellow Turban Rebellion. Their movement quickly attracted followers and soon numbered several hundred thousands and received support from many parts of Han China. They had 36 bases throughout China, with large bases having 10,000 or more followers and minor bases having 6,000 to 7,000, similar to Han armies. Their motto was: "The Han Emperor's already dead, Lord Zhang Jiao shall take his stead; the year-cycle is at its head, into fortune shall all be led!" (Chinese: 蒼天已死，黃天當立，歲在甲子，天下大吉)  Emperor Ling of Han dispatched Generals Huangfu Song, Lu Zhi, and Zhu Jun to lead the Han armies against the Yellow Turbans, and decreed that local governments had to supply soldiers to assist in their efforts. It is at this point that the great epic Romance of the Three Kingdom begins its narrative. The Yellow Turbans were ultimately defeated and its surviving followers dispersed throughout China, but due to the turbulent situation throughout the empire, many were able to survive as bandits in mountainous areas, thus continuing their ability to contribute to the turmoil of the era.

With the widespread increase in bandits across the Chinese nation, the Han army had no way to repel each and every raiding party. In 188, Emperor Ling accepted a memorial from Yizhou governor Liu Yan suggesting he grant direct administrative power over feudal provinces and direct command of regional military to local governors, as well promoting them in rank and filling such positions with members of the Liu family or court officials. This move made provinces (zhou) official administrative units, and although they had power to combat rebellions, the later intra-government chaos allowed these local governors to easily rule independently of the central government. Soon after this move, Liu Yan severed all of his region's (modern Sichuan) ties to the Han court, and several other areas followed suit.