The Struggle Between Emperor and Chancellor: A Contest Between Imperial and Ministerial Power

The supremacy of imperial power was an undisputed fact in ancient Chinese society. Yet the chancellor, who stood The Outcast and above all others, was in some ways a direct threat to the emperor's authority. From Li Si's appointment as chancellor in the Qin dynasty to Zhu Yuanzhang's abolition of the office, the struggle between imperial and ministerial power never ceased. It involved conspiracies and open strategies, alliances and checks, bitter infighting, and even bloody killings.

[Recommendation]

When supreme imperial authority faces a powerful chancellorship, an inevitable tug-of-war is about to erupt. The emperor's power may weaken, the chancellor may gain the upper hand, or a vassal state may rise to prominence. When it all falls silent, the struggle between emperor and chancellor comes to an end, but history goes on... In accessible language, this book tells some of the most representative stories of conflict between emperors and chancellors throughout history.

[Author]

Tong Chao was born in Xuzhou, Jiangsu, in 1938, and his ancestral home was Shaoxing, Zhejiang. He graduated with an undergraduate degree from the History Department of Peking University in 1961 and completed his graduate studies at the History Department of Sichuan University in 1964. He served as a research fellow and deputy director at the Institute of History of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences; president and editor-in-chief of the journal Research in Chinese History; director of the History Department at the Graduate School of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences; and deputy secretary-general of the Chinese Society of Historians, as well as the Chinese Society for the History of the Wei, Jin, and Northern and Southern Dynasties.