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Lew Bong and the Han Dynasty |
Emperor Chin Shi Wong was the first to unify the many kingdoms of China. He accomplished this in the year 221 BC However, he was a ruthless ruler. He burned most books in China, joined various walls into the Great Wall through forced labor, forced farmers to give half of their crops to support his vast armies, buried alive scholars who questioned his rule, and was buried with the terra cotta army in Xian. There were many rebellions, but they were all crushed because only the Emperor's soldiers were allowed to have metal weapons. Our 75th generations ancestor (from the Yellow Emperor), Lew Bong, lead one peasant rebellion near the city of Poi (today's Shuizhou). It was crushed and many villages were torched by the the Emperor's soldiers in retaliation. Meanwhile, a leading general in the Kingdom of Chor had successfully pushed the Chin soldiers out of his kingdom. The ruler of Chor was killed by Chin Shi Wong's soldiers, so they sought a replacement. However, it was deemed that only someone who was both a learned person and was a direct descendent of the Yellow Emperor's royal line (with 'dragon blood') should be placed on the throne. Lew Shui (our 74th generation ancestor) suggested that his youngest son, Lew Gel be appointed. Lew Gel was a poet who tended sheep in the wilds outside of the settled areas. (His poems are still recited in China today.) Once his lineage was confirmed, he was approached, but declined the author. He was also the younger brother of Lew Bong. After being told that his village had burned and his mother had been killed and his brother Lew Bong was lost, he changed his mind and became the King of Chor (Chor Ye Wang). Lew Bong was born in 258 BC in a village near the City of Pei in Kangsu Province. He was known as the Lord of PEI and the King of Han Wan and the Emperor Han Gau Jo, fonder of the Han Empire (202 BC to 220 AD). After the failure of his village rebellion, he lead his men to join the Chor army. He and his troops were not treated well, being considered simple peasants, and were given inferior weapons. The revolted, which lead to Lew Bong being brought before the division commander, Hong Yi. Lew Bong was surprised to see that the general's concubine was his former mistress. Lew Bong's wife became close friends with this concubine and with her help she got the two men to prick their finger and mix their blood in a bowl. They then drank from this bowl in a ceremony of brotherhood. Hong Yi's consul did not trust Lew Bong, saying he looked like a dragon and would bring bad fortune, and urged Hong Yi to kill him, but he did not because of their blood brotherhood After the leader of the Chor army, who had pushed out the Chin army, died, his nephew, Hong Yi, inherited the entire Chor army. Hong Yi made Lew Bong a general, gave him 20,000 troops, and sent him away -- mostly to get rid of him because of his consul's mistrust and because Hong Yi's concubine was still attracted to Lew Bong. An agreement was made that whoever was the first general to reclaim the Chor capital of Xian from the Chin would be made the new king. (Some say this was declared by Lew Gel [Chor Yen Wang], other say it was an agreement made between Lew Bong and Hong Yi). Hong Yi attacked the capital straight on with his much large army, while Liu Bong took his smaller army and entered the capital 3 days earlier via a back route on which the resistance was minimal. The Chin emperor at the time, Ge-Ying, and his staff met Lew Bong at the city gate and hailed, 'long live the Lord of PEI Sitting on the throne as the new king (Han Wong - Han King), Lew Bong immediately announced:
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| Chor-Han War |
Three days later, Hong Yi arrived with his troops. He captured and executed the Chin emperor and in insisted that he should be the rightful new emperor. Because the empire was in disarray, with many warlords needing to be subdued, it was agreed that Lew Bong would be made the king and would be responsible for subduing all the land to the east of the Hong-kau channel (1) ; while Hong Yi would be responsible for the lands to the west. Hong Yi (who declared himself Chor Ba-Wang -- the conqueror king) was ruthless in his suppression of resistance, often burying enemy soldiers alive.) Lew Bong, with two of China's most famous advisors (Jeong Leong and Hon Shen), subdued rebel groups all the way to the Taklamakan Desert. Finally, the two old friends would meet in a 2-year long battle known as the Chor-Han Struggle. Lew Bong had absorbed most of the former Chin soldiers and had a well disciplined and trained army. Hong Yi's army included his so-called '800 Strongmen' -- the biggest and strongest troops, each able to lift a 1000 pound stone rooster. However, Lew Bong set fire traps in a forest entrapped and killed the 800 Strongmen force. Hong Yi's concubine committed suicide when this happened, blaming herself for not having killed Lew Bong the day she first saw him at the Chor army camp. The next day, Lew Bong's soldier cornered Hong Yi on the banks of the Woo Jing River. Hong Yi took his sword and yelled to heave, "Why have you created Lew Bong and yet also created me?", and then killed himself. Lew Bong proclaimed himself Emperor. Han Gau Jo, meaning the highest ancestor of the Han, for 'Father of the Han'. Lew Bong is the most famous Lew to whom the Lei Au Lew clan is a direct descendant.(2) Lew Bong's 4th son inherited his thrown. The Lei Au Lew are descendant of the 6th son of Lew Bong, who became the King of Dung Ping Tin (Dong Ping Tin Wong). |
| * Notes |
1 - The Hong-Kau channel was an overflow ditch to help control the flooding of the Yellow River. It was built about 2250 BC and lies about 100 miles east of Xian. The Chinese chess board, which was invented at the time of the Chor-Han War, contains this channel as the border between the two chess armies. 2 - Lew Bei is another very famous Lew in Chinese history, but not our ancestor. His portrait and statue appears in many Lew Family Association buildings. |