Person
Gia Quyen Chi
A Han official who in 46 BC sent up a memorial arguing against sending troops to Chu Nhai; Emperor Yuan agreed and abolished the commandery.
At a glance
- Dates
- The memorial of 46 BC, under Emperor Yuan of Han1
- Role
- The official whose memorial argued against sending troops to Chu Nhai, the voice of a man who wanted to give the land up; it led to Chu Nhai commandery being abolished1
- Earliest record
- The Han thu, the life of Gia Quyen Chi1
Life
The old chronicles say
In 46 BC he sent up a memorial arguing against sending troops to Chu Nhai. He heaps up contemptuous words for the Lac Viet, and concludes that they were never worth making into commanderies and districts. The island is damp with mist, full of poisonous plants, snakes and centipedes; before the men have even seen the enemy, the soldiers are already dying of themselves. His closing line is a reckoning of profit and loss: to abandon it is nothing to regret, and not to fight is no loss of majesty. Emperor Yuan agreed. His edict placed the reason squarely at home: the lands east of the passes are in great distress, and the granaries and treasuries are empty. Then the order: let Chu Nhai commandery be abolished.1
That same memorial leaves a figure that is hard to place. Put briefly, there were nine commanderies at the founding and seven from the abandonment of the island onward; but in his memorial the Han bring Nam Hai under control and make it eight commanderies. The figure eight fits neither of those two dates, and the episode has not found an explanation for it. Nine, seven, eight: three figures for the same land, and all three in the official histories.12
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