page_title: War of the Eight Princes
section_title: Prince of Donghai (Sima Yue), 306–307
hierarchical_section_title: War of the Eight Princes / Prince of Donghai (Sima Yue), 306–307
caption_attribution_description: English: Map showing the Uprising of the Five Barbarians in Jin dynasty. 中文（中国大陆）‎: 五胡乱华永嘉之乱示意地图
context_page_description: The War of the Eight Princes, Rebellion of the Eight Kings, or Rebellion of the Eight Princes was a series of civil wars among kings/princes of the Chinese Jin dynasty from 291 to 306 AD. The key point of contention in these conflicts was the regency over the developmentally disabled Emperor Hui of Jin. The name of the conflict is derived from the biographies of the eight princes collected in Chapter 59 of the Book of Jin.
  The "War of the Eight Princes" is somewhat of a misnomer: rather than one continuous conflict, the War of the Eight Princes saw intervals of peace interposed with short and intense periods of internecine conflict. At no point in the whole conflict were all of the eight princes on one side of the fighting. The literal Chinese translation, Disorder of the Eight Kings, may be more appropriate in this regard.
  While initial conflicts were relatively minor and confined to the imperial capital of Luoyang and its surroundings, the scope of the war expanded with each new prince who entered the struggle. The numerous tribal groups in the north and northwest who had been heavily drafted into the military then exploited the chaos to seize power.
context_section_description: Sima Ying fled to Chaoge where he was captured and put under house arrest by Sima Xiao. A month later, however, Sima Xiao died under mysterious circumstances. Xiao's successor Liu Yu forged a false edict ordering the execution of Ying and killed him. Lu Zhi buried Ying and took up a staff position with Sima Yue. 
  Meanwhile, Sima Yong had taken up arms again and captured Chang'an, but was unable to advance much further than the Guanzhong region. Both sides therefore settled into a stalemate.
  Emperor Hui of Jin died on 8 January 307 from eating poisoned wheat cakes. His brother Sima Chi succeeded him, posthumously known as Emperor Huai of Jin. As part of the accession rituals, Emperor Huai issued an edict ordering Yong to come to court as Minister over the Masses. Believing that he was to be pardoned, Yong agreed to attend court. He was killed in an ambush while enroute to the capital by forces loyal to the Prince of Nanyang, Sima Mo. 
  Sima Yue had won the War of the Eight Princes.
caption: Uprising of the Five Barbarians
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