Emperor Xiaoming of Northern Wei

Emperor Xiaoming of Northern Wei (510 – March 31, 528), personal name Yuan Xu, is an emperor of the Chinese/Xianbei dynasty Northern Wei.

Due to his young age (five) when he ascends the throne in 515, governmental matters are dominated by his mother Empress Dowager Hu (with an intervening regency by the official Yuan Cha from 520 to 525), whose overly lenient attitude toward officials' corruptions spurs many agrarian rebellions that throw essentially the entire state into war.

In 528, Emperor Xiaoming trieds to curb his mother's powers and kill her lover Zheng Yan by conspiring with the general Erzhu Rong, and Empress Dowager Hu kills him.

Soon, Erzhu overthrows her, and from this point on, Northern Wei emperors no longer have full actual authority.

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