Four Commanderies of Han

Four Commanderies of Han in 1 BC

Four Commanderies of Han with Jin in 106 BC

Four Commanderies of Han in 107 BC

Four Commanderies of Han in 3 AD

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The Four Commanderies of Han (漢四郡, 한사군) are Lelang, Lintun, Xuantu and Zhenfan commanderies in northern Korean Peninsula and part of the Liaodong Peninsula.^[1][2] set up by Emperor Wu of the Han dynasty in early 2nd century BC after his conquest of Wiman Joseon. The commanderies were set up to control the populace in the area as far south as the Han River, with a core area at Lelang near present-day P'yongyang,^[3] which was previously under the control of Gojoseon. The accurate positions of the commanderies other than Lelang commandery are still under debate.

The Chinese presence existed for 400 years. As its administrative center in Lelang, the Chinese built what was inessence a Chinese city where the governor, officials, and merchants, and Chinese colonists lived. Their administration had considerable impact on the life of the native population and ultimatedly the very fabric of Gojoseon society became eroded.^[4] Goguryeo, a later founded, primarily ethnic Korean, kingdom, slowly began conquering the commanderies and eventually absorbed them into its own territory.^[5]

List of four Commanderies of Han

• Lelang Commandery (樂浪郡, 낙랑군, BC. 108 ~ AD 313):^[6] 25 prefectures, 62,812 households, population of 406,748.
• Lintun Commandery (臨屯郡, 임둔군, BC 107 ~ BC 82)
• Xuantu Commandery (玄菟郡, 현도군, BC 107 ~ AD 302):^[7] 3 prefectures, 45,006 households, population of 221,845.
• Zhenfan Commandery (真番郡, 진번군, BC 107 ~ BC 82)

A commandary that was separated out of Lelang Commandery in the later years of its history is the Daifang Commandery (帶方郡, 대방군, AD 204 ~ AD 313)

Other descriptions: the Tongdian,^[8] the Records of Three Kingdoms,^[9] the Book of Later Han^[10]

See also

• Gojoseon-Han War
• Daifang Commandery

References

Han dynasty topics History Chu–Han Contention Feast at Hong Gate Lü Clan Disturbance Rebellion of the Seven States Han–Xiongnu War Gojoseon–Han War Xin dynasty Red Eyebrows Rebellions and Lülin Goguryeo–Han War Southward expansion (Han–Minyue War Han–Nanyue War Han–Dian War First Chinese domination of Vietnam Han suppression of the Trung sisters' rebellion Second Chinese domination of Vietnam) Disasters of the Partisan Prohibitions Way of the Five Pecks of Rice Yellow Turban Rebellion End of Han Society and culture Records of the Grand Historian Book of Han Gansu Flying Horse Huainanzi Eight Immortals of Huainan Mawangdui Silk Texts Luxuriant Dew of the Spring and Autumn Annals Yiwu Zhi Old Texts Han poetry Fu Government Emperor Three Lords and Nine Ministers Nine Ministers Three Ducal Ministers Kings Four Commanderies Protectorate of the Western Regions (Chief Official) List of government titles Economics Silk Road Ancient Chinese coinage Sino-Roman relations Science and technology Zhang Heng Hua Tuo Zhou Bi Suan Jing Book on Numbers and Computation The Nine Chapters on the Mathematical Art Huangdi Neijing Jin Gui Yao Lue Shanghan Lun