Emperor Guangwu of Han (Chinese: 漢光武帝; 15 January 5 BC – 29 March AD 57), personal name Liu Xiu (劉秀), courtesy name Wenshu (文叔), was the founding emperor of the Chinese Eastern Han dynasty. Through the Eastern Han's suppression and conquest of regional warlords, the dynasty's rule over the whole of China proper was consolidated by the time of Emperor Guangwu's death in AD 57. During his reign, Taoism was made the official religion of the Eastern Han, and the Chinese folk religion began to decline.
Liu Xiu was one of the many descendants of the Western Han imperial family. Following the usurpation of the throne by Wang Mang and the ensuing civil war during the disintegration of Wang's Xin dynasty, he emerged as one of several descendants of the fallen dynasty claiming the imperial throne.
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