Five Chinese emperors who rose from humble beginnings
In the waning years of the Yuan dynasty (1206 — 1368), a husband and wife worked as servants of a feng shui master. One day, the master caught and cooked a lively carp that had jumped out of a river, and the wife ate the leftover fish head. She then became pregnant with a boy who would grow up to overthrow the Yuan and rule over China: Zhu Yuanzhang (朱元璋), founder of the Ming dynasty (1368 — 1644).
Zhu’s birth on October 21, 1328, has been embellished by various fantastical legends that seem to spell his destiny from an early age. As he was one of only a handful of Chinese emperors to rise from peasant origins, Zhu and his descendants likely relied on such myths to justify their right to rule. But magical carp or not, the Ming founder’s astonishing climb from impoverished beggar to the Son of Heaven cements him as one of the greatest emperors in Chinese historical memory.
Chen Sheng (陈胜), leader of the first armed rebellion against an imperial dynasty in China in 209 BCE, is credited with the famous line, “Are kings and nobles destined for high status by birth?” The following rulers of humble origins prove that the circumstances of one’s birth certainly didn’t have to be a barrier to greatness:
Liu Bang 刘邦 (256 or 247 – 195 BCE): Sheriff, Outlaw, King
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