Sima Zhao

Incident at Gaoping Tombs

Sima Zhao's involvement in his father's coup d'état against the regent Cao Shuang in 249 is unclear. According to the Book of Jin, he was not told about the plan, hatched by his father and his older brother, until the last minute – a view disagreed with by other historians, who believed that he was intimately involved in the planning. In the aftermath of the successful coup, however, his father became regent, and he himself became important in status. In 251, when his father suppressed the failed rebellion of Wang Ling, Sima Zhao served as deputy commander. During the next few years, he was involved in commanding forces in repelling invasions by Shu's commander of the armed forces, Jiang Wei.

Succeeding Sima Shi

In 254, while Sima Zhao was at the capital Luoyang, advisors to the Wei emperor Cao Fang suggested that the emperor surprise Sima Zhao and kill him to seize his troops, and then use those troops against Sima Shi. Cao Fang, apprehensive, did not act on the suggestion, but the plot was still discovered, and Sima Zhao assisted his brother in deposing the emperor and replacing him with Cao Mao. In the aftermath of the removal of the emperor, the generals Guanqiu Jian and Wen Qin rebelled in 255 but were defeated by Sima Shi.

Sima Shi, however, had a serious eye illness that was aggravated by the campaign, and he died less than a month later. At that time, Sima Zhao was with his brother at Xuchang (in modern Xuchang, Henan). The 14-year-old emperor Cao Mao made an effort to regain imperial power. He issued an edict which, under the rationale that Sima Shi had just defeated Guanqiu Jian and Wen Qin's rebellion and that the southeastern empire was still not complete pacified, ordered Sima Zhao to remain at Xuchang and that Sima Shi's assistant Fu Jia return to Luoyang with the main troops. Under Fu Jia and Zhong Hui's advice, however, Sima Zhao returned to Luoyang anyway against edict, and was able to maintain control of the government. Indeed, from that point on, he did not let Cao Mao or Empress Dowager Guo out of his control.

Consolidation of authority

Conquest of Shu

In 262, aggravated by Jiang Wei's incessant border attacks, Sima Zhao considered hiring assassins to murder Jiang Wei, but this plan was opposed by his two advisors, Zhong Hui and Xun Xu. Zhong Hui and Xun Xu believed that Jiang Wei had worn out his troops and that it would be an appropriate time to try to destroy Shu once and for all. Sima Zhao put Zhong Hui and Deng Ai in charge of the invasion forces (even though Deng Ai initially opposed the campaign), and they set out in spring 263.

Zhong Hui and Deng Ai faced little opposition from Shu's forces, whose strategy was to draw the Wei forces in and then close on them—a strategy that backfired, as the Wei forces, much quicker than expected, leapt past Shu border cities and immediately onto the important Yang'an Pass (陽安關, in modern Hanzhong, Shaanxi), capturing it. Still, Jiang Wei was able to regroup and block off the Wei forces from further advances, until Deng Ai led his troops over a treacherous mountain pass, descending on Jiangyou (in modern Mianyang, Sichuan), defeating Zhuge Zhan and heading directly for the Shu capital, Chengdu. Surprised by Deng Ai's quick advances and believing that Jiang Wei would be unable to return fast enough to defend the capital against Deng Ai, the Shu emperor Liu Shan surrendered to Wei. During the campaign, in light of the successes, Sima Zhao had the emperor Cao Huan bestow on him the title of the Duke of Jin and accepted the Nine Bestowments.

Zhong Hui's Rebellion

Another turmoil quickly came after Shu's destruction, however. Deng Ai, proud of his achievements, became arrogant in his correspondence with Sima Zhao, drawing Sima's suspicion. Zhong Hui, who had plans to rebel himself, quickly forged letters that further damaged the relations between Sima Zhao and Deng Ai beyond repair, and Sima ordered Deng to be arrested. Zhong Hui did so, seizing Deng Ai's troops and merging them with his own, and then, with Jiang Wei as his assistant (but with Jiang's actual intentions to eventually kill Zhong and restore Shu), declared rebellion in 264, but his troops rebelled against him and killed both him and Jiang Wei.

Death

After Zhong Hui's rebellion was defeated, Sima Zhao was granted the title King of Jin, the penultimate step to usurpation. He set out to revise the laws and the civil service system in accordance of how he would want his own empire to be. He further sought peace with Eastern Wu, to prevent further complications for his planned takeover, a gesture that was not reciprocated.

Later that year, Sima Zhao considered whom to make his heir. He considered his talented younger son Sima You, who had been adopted by Sima Shi because Sima Shi did not have sons of his own, under the rationale that because Sima Shi had great achievement in the Simas' obtaining and retaining power, the succession should go back to his son. The majority of his advisors, however, recommended his oldest son Sima Yan instead, and Sima Zhao finally resolved to make Sima Yan his designated heir.

On 6 September 265, Sima Zhao died before he could receive actual imperial authority, although he was buried with imperial honours on 20 October 265. Four months later, however, Sima Yan would have the Wei emperor Cao Huan abdicate in favor of him, ending Wei and establishing the Jin dynasty. After he did so, he posthumously honored Sima Zhao as Emperor Wen.