城阳王刘章 / Liu Zhang (King of Chengyang)

Overview

城阳王刘章 / Liu Zhang is presented as a capital actor in the overthrow of the Lü faction, a supporter of his brother 齐王刘襄 for emperor, and one of the dead relatives whose absence precedes 刘兴居’s rebellion.

Current Profile

Hanji 213 says Liu Zhang killed Lü Chan in the capital and expected Liu Xiang’s anti-Lü contribution to lead to the throne. Senior ministers instead installed 刘恒, and the eventual grant of Chengyang is portrayed as smaller than the Zhao reward previously discussed.

Within the episode, Liu Zhang matters both as an anti-Lü contributor and as lost support for Liu Xingju. His death helps explain the latter’s sense of exposure, but the host’s suggestion that Liu Heng’s pressure contributed to the death is not independently supported.

Key Characteristics

• Capital participant in the violent removal of the Lü faction.
• Advocate of Liu Xiang’s accession.
• Recipient of Chengyang in the post-crisis territorial settlement.
• Political support whose death leaves Liu Xingju more isolated.
• Subject of an unproven pressure-related death interpretation in the episode.

Evidence

Capital action and settlement:

• Hanji 213 credits Liu Zhang with killing Lü Chan and says he received Chengyang rather than a previously expected Zhao grant.

Connection to the rebellion:

• Hanji 213 makes Liu Zhang’s death one part of Liu Xingju’s later isolation and fear.

Qualifications

This profile relies on one structured podcast summary. Exact anti-Lü actions, promised and final grants, chronology, kinship details, and the cause of death require comparison with transmitted histories. No evidence in the source establishes that Liu Heng ordered or intentionally caused Liu Zhang’s death.

What Changed

• Created a semantically suffixed page to avoid collision with 刘璋 of Yi province.
• Kept the pressure-related death theory source-scoped rather than adopting it as biography.

Relationships

• 齐王刘襄 - brother and preferred candidate for the imperial succession.
• 济北王刘兴居 - royal relative whose later isolation is linked to Liu Zhang’s death.
• 汉文帝刘恒 - succession winner and ruler under whom Liu Zhang receives Chengyang.
• 刘兴居济北叛乱 - later rebellion whose background includes Liu Zhang’s contribution and death.