Liu Yao (died 329[1]), courtesy name Yongming, was the final emperor of the Xiongnu-led Han-Zhao dynasty of China.
However, the empire was soon divided in half, as the general Shi Le declared independence and established the Later Zhao dynasty.
As he grew, he became known for his archery skills and his studiousness—although his studies were described to be surveys rather than careful readings, except for books on military strategy, which he spent much of his time on.
He therefore fled to Chaoxian (朝鮮, near modern Pyeongyang, North Korea—not, in this case, a generic geographic term for Korea).
In 311, Liu Yao, in conjunction with Wang, Shi Le, and Huyan Yan, captured Luoyang and Emperor Huai of Jin.
For the next few years, Liu Yao fought largely inconclusive battles against Jin forces, both those directly under Emperor Min and those under Sima Bao the Prince of Nanyang.
(However, unknown to his father, Liu Yin fled but was captured by or sold to a tribe named Heiniyuju (黑匿郁鞠) as a slave.)
Meanwhile, senior Han princes and officials who escaped the Pingyang massacre offered the throne to Liu Yao, who accepted.
As emperor, Liu Yao showed flashes of brilliance, both at governance and military matters, at times, as well as willingness to listen to contrary opinions.
Later in 319, Liu Yao created Princess Yang—the former Jin empress—empress, making her the only person in Chinese history to serve as empress for two emperors and two empires.
Subsequently, he released You and commissioned You with a force to suppression the rebellion, and You was able to persuade most of the rebels to surrender and defeat the rest.
In 322, while on a campaign against the Di chief of Chouchi, Yang Nandi, Liu Yao was stricken by a communicable disease, and while he was still able to force Yang to submit, his general Chen An, a former subordinate of Sima Bao, mistakenly thought that Liu Yao had already died, and therefore declared independence as the Prince of Liang, controlling most of Qin Province (秦州, modern eastern Gansu).
In 323, Liu Yao, having recovered, personally attacked Chen's headquarters at Shanggui (上邽, in modern Tianshui, Gansu).
Later Zhao took this opportunity to effectively take the modern central Henan, northern Jiangsu, and western Shandong under its control.
In fall 328, Shi Hu attacked Former Zhao's Hedong Commandery (roughly modern Yuncheng, Shanxi).
Liu Yao personally led an army and defeated Shi Hu, and then headed south and surrounded Luoyang, capturing several commanderies around it.
This greatly shocked Shi Le, as he was worried that Liu Yao would next attack his capital Xiangguo (襄國, in modern Xintai, Hebei).
In the Book of Jin, Liu Yao was described as a tall man (approximately 2.28 metres) and that he had greyish eyebrows and a sparse long beard.