Qin and Han · Ruler

Zhao Tuo 趙佗

Died BC 137

Passages
32
Chapters
8
Histories
2

Overview

The translated histories identify Zhao Tuo as an administrator, general, military officer, and official. This record brings together 32 passages from 8 chapters across 2 histories, with names, dates, relationships, offices, and events preserved as source-backed claims.

Names

TypeEnglishChinesePinyin
Personal Zhao Tuo 趙佗 Zhao Tuo
Title Commandant of Nanhai 南海尉 Nanhai Wei
Title Commandant Tuo 尉佗 Wèi Tuó
Title Commandant Zhao Tuo 尉佗 Wei Tuo
Title King of Nanyue 南粵王 Nanyue Wang
Title King of Nanyue 南越王
Title King of Nanyue 南粵王
Title King Zhao Tuo of Nanyue 南越王趙佗
Title Martial Emperor of Nanyue 南越武帝
Title Martial King of Nanyue 南越武王
Regnal Southern Martial Emperor 南武帝
Given name Tuo 佗 Tuo
Personal Tuo 佗 Tuó
Alternate name Tuo 佗 Tuó
Given Tuo 佗 Tuó
Personal Wei Tuo 尉佗 Wèi Tuó
Alternate name Wei Tuo 尉佗 Wèi Tuó
Surname Zhao 趙 Zhao
Surname Zhao 趙 Zhào
Personal name Zhao Tuo 它 Tuo
Personal name Zhao Tuo 趙佗 Zhao Tuo
Personal name Zhao Tuo 尉佗 Wèi Tuó
Personal Zhao Tuo 尉佗 Wei Tuo
Personal Zhao Tuo 佗 Tuo
Personal name Zhao Tuo 趙佗 Zhào Tuó

Identity

Historicity
Historical
Identification
Named
Sex
Male

Roles

  • Administrator
  • General
  • Military Officer
  • Official
  • Ruler
  • Warlord

Life and dates

Death

  • Date Context: Source Date: Text: 建元四年 · Western Year: BC 137
    Explicit · shiji:113:s0038

Attested activity

  • Source Date: Text: 三年 · Western Year: BC 192
    Explicit event contextual date · hanshu:003:s0038
  • Source Date: Text: 五年春…尉佗自稱南武帝 · Western Year: BC 183
    Explicit event contextual date · hanshu:004:s0027
  • Source Date: Text: 令佗無後 · Western Year: BC 111
    Explicit event contextual date · shiji:113:s0142
  • Source Date: Text: 孝文帝元年 · Western Year: BC 179
    Explicit · shiji:113:s0022, shiji:113:s0028
  • Source Date: Text: 尉佗之王，本由任囂 · Western Year: c. BC 203
    Explicit event contextual date · shiji:113:s0136
  • Source Date: Text: 建元四年 · Western Year: BC 137
    Explicit · shiji:113:s0038
  • Source Date: Text: 漢初定 · Western Year: c. BC 202
    Explicit event contextual date · shiji:113:s0137
  • Source Date: Text: 漢十一年 · Western Year: BC 196
    Explicit · shiji:113:s0013
  • Source Date: Text: 秦時 · Western Interval: Start: BC 221 · End: BC 207
    Explicit event contextual date · shiji:113:s0003, shiji:113:s0004
  • Source Date: Text: 隆慮離溼疫，佗得以益驕 · Western Year: c. BC 181
    Explicit event contextual date · shiji:113:s0138
  • Source Date: Text: 高后時 · Western Interval: Start: BC 187 · End: BC 180
    Explicit event contextual date · shiji:113:s0014, shiji:113:s0016

Family

Immediate source-linked family. Drag to pan, scroll or pinch to zoom, and select a person to open their record.

  • Ancestor of Zhao Hu (趙胡)
    Kinship Term: grandson / 孫 · Generation Distance: 2
  • Parent of Father of Zhao Hu
    Kinship Term: son / 子 · Parentage: biological · Subject Role: son · Object Role: father
  • Kinship Role: descendants · Count: 0 · Negated: true · Provenance: Mode: historian-judgment · Speaker Person Id: Sima Qian (太史公) · Date Context: Source Date: Text: 令佗無後 · Western Year: BC 111
    Explicit · shiji:113:s0142
  • Kinship Role: cousins and kinsmen · Count: 2 · Note: 從昆弟 summoned and favored by Emperor Wen
    Explicit · shiji:113:s0024

Origins and identity

Career and standing

  • Label: acting Commandant of Nanhai / 行南海尉事 · Action: appointed
    Explicit · shiji:113:s0008
  • Label: Magistrate of Longchuan in Nanhai / 南海龍川令 · Action: appointed
    Explicit · shiji:113:s0003
  • Text: 立它為南粵王
    Explicit · hanshu:002:s0269
  • Title: Martial Emperor of Nanyue / 南越武帝 · Action: assumed
    Explicit · shiji:113:s0016
  • Title: Martial King of Nanyue / 南越武王 · Action: assumed
    Explicit · shiji:113:s0011
  • Title: King of Nanyue / 南越王 · Action: held
    Explicit · hanshu:003:s0038
  • Title: king / 王 · Action: held
    Explicit · shiji:113:s0136
  • Title: King of Nanyue / 南越王 · Action: installed
    Explicit · shiji:113:s0013
  • Status: Han vassal king · Action: accepted
    Explicit · shiji:113:s0031, shiji:113:s0036
  • Status: feudal-lord · Action: ranked-among · Date Context: Source Date: Text: 漢初定 · Western Year: c. BC 202
    Strongly inferred · shiji:113:s0137
  • Title: king / 王 · Action: became
    Explicit · shiji:113:s0136
  • Title: Southern Martial Emperor / 南武帝 · Date Context: Source Date: Text: 五年春 · Western Year: BC 183
    Explicit · hanshu:004:s0027

Places and affiliations

Works and attributed material

Events and relationships

  • Kind: political · Role: ruler · Action: abandoned-imperial-style
    Explicit · shiji:113:s0034
  • Kind: political · Role: ruler · Action: assumed-imperial-style
    Explicit · shiji:113:s0021
  • Kind: military · Role: commander · Action: attacked-and-annexed · Place: Guilin and Xiang commanderies / 桂林、象郡
    Explicit · shiji:113:s0011
  • Kind: political · Role: feudal-lord · Action: enrolled-among-feudal-lords · Date Context: Source Date: Text: 漢初定，列為諸侯 · Western Year: c. BC 202
    Strongly inferred · shiji:113:s0137
  • Kind: political · Role: king · Action: grew-arrogant · Other Person Id: Longlü (隆慮) · Date Context: Source Date: Text: 隆慮離溼疫，佗得以益驕 · Western Year: c. BC 181
    Explicit · shiji:113:s0138
  • Kind: political · Role: line-founder · Action: line-extinguished · Other Person Id: Lü Jia (呂嘉) · Date Context: Source Date: Text: 呂嘉小忠，令佗無後 · Western Year: BC 111
    Explicit · shiji:113:s0142
  • Kind: military · Role: commander · Action: raided · Place: Changsha border towns / 長沙邊邑
    Explicit · shiji:113:s0016
  • Kind: political · Role: ruler-of-realm · Action: realm-shaken · Date Context: Source Date: Text: 甌駱相攻，南越動搖 · Western Year: c. BC 135
    Strongly inferred · shiji:113:s0139
  • Kind: political · Role: king · Action: rose-to-kingship · Other Person Id: Ren Xiao (任囂) · Date Context: Source Date: Text: 尉佗之王，本由任囂 · Western Year: c. BC 203
    Explicit · shiji:113:s0136
  • Kind: diplomatic · Role: actor · Action: submitted-as-subject-and-presented-tribute · Date Context: Source Date: Text: 三年 · Western Year: BC 192
    Explicit · hanshu:003:s0038
  • Relation: beneficiary-of · Person Id: Ren Xiao (任囂)
    Explicit · shiji:113:s0136
  • Relation: successor-protege-of · Person Id: Ren Xiao (任囂)
    Strongly inferred · shiji:113:s0008

Assessments and attributes

  • Assessment: grew more arrogant after Longlü was stricken by damp and plague · Provenance: Mode: historian-judgment · Speaker Person Id: Sima Qian (太史公) · Date Context: Source Date: Text: 隆慮離溼疫，佗得以益驕 · Western Year: c. BC 181
    Explicit · shiji:113:s0138

References in the histories

Open any source group to read the Chinese and English passage in context.

Book of Han, Chapter 2Volume 1: Annals of Emperor Gaozu 2 · 3 passages
Open chapter
Book of Han, Chapter 3Volume 2: Annals of Emperor Hui · 1 passage
Open chapter
Book of Han, Chapter 4Volume 3: Annals of Empress Lü Zhi · 1 passage
Open chapter
Book of Han, Chapter 5Volume 4: Annals of Emperor Wen · 1 passage
Open chapter
Book of Han, Chapter 74Volume 64a: Yan, Zhu, Wuqiu, Zhufu, Xu, Yan, Zhong, Wang, and Jia 1 · 1 passage
Open chapter
Book of Han, Chapter 75Volume 64b: Yan, Zhu, Wuqiu, Zhufu, Xu, Yan, Zhong, Wang, and Jia 2 · 1 passage
Open chapter
Book of Han, Chapter 96Volume 85: Gu Yong and Du Ye · 1 passage
Open chapter
Records of the Grand Historian, Chapter 113Treatise on the Nanyue · 23 passages
Open chapter
至二世時，南海尉任囂病且死，召龍川令趙佗語曰：「聞陳勝等作亂，秦為無道，天下苦之，項羽、劉季、陳勝、吳廣等州郡各共興軍聚眾，虎爭天下，中國擾亂，未知所安，豪傑畔秦相立。 When the Second Emperor's reign began, the Commandant of Nanhai, Ren Xiao, fell gravely ill and lay near death. He summoned Zhao Tuo, the Magistrate of Longchuan, and told him: "I have heard that Chen Sheng and the others have risen in revolt. Qin has ruled without the Way, and the whole realm suffers for it. Xiang Yu, Liu Ji, Chen Sheng, Wu Guang, and men across the commanderies and districts have all raised armies and gathered followers, fighting over the empire like tigers. The Central Plains are thrown into chaos, and no one knows where peace will come from. Great men everywhere have turned against Qin and set themselves up as rival lords.
佗曰：「高帝立我，通使物，今高後聽讒臣，別異蠻夷，隔絕器物，此必長沙王計也，欲倚中國，擊滅南越而并王之，自為功也。」 Tuo declared: "Emperor Gaozu installed me as king and opened trade and diplomatic relations. Now Empress Dowager Gao heeds the words of slanderous ministers, treats us as foreign barbarians, and cuts off our access to iron goods and implements. This is surely a plot by the King of Changsha, who wishes to lean on the might of the Central Plains to destroy Nanyue, annex our territory, and claim the glory for himself."
陸賈至南越，王甚恐，為書謝，稱曰：「蠻夷大長老夫臣佗，前日高后隔異南越，竊疑長沙王讒臣，又遙聞高后盡誅佗宗族，掘燒先人冢，以故自棄，犯長沙邊境。 When Lu Jia reached Nanyue, the king was deeply alarmed. He composed a letter of apology, which read: "Your humble barbarian subject, the Great Elder Tuo: when Empress Dowager Gao cut off relations with Nanyue, I privately suspected the King of Changsha of slandering me at court. Then I heard from afar that the Empress Dowager had executed all of my kinsmen and dug up and burned the ancestral tombs. In my despair, I cast aside all restraint and raided the Changsha border.