His granduncle Dou Ying ( 竇嬰, Empress Dowager Dou's brother or cousin ) slipped in a knife pen, and he wrote a letter and then committed suicide.

However, it was at her behest that Emperor Wu executed his grand uncle Dou Ying ( 竇嬰 ) ( Empress Dou's cousin ) in 132 BC for having insulted Tian.

When the plot was uncovered, the eunuchs arrested Empress Dowager Dou ( d. 172 CE ) and Chen Fan.

When the retainers gradually deserted Dou Wu, he was forced to commit suicide.

Dou Xian (; Wade-Giles: Tou Hsien, d. AD 92 ) was a prominent Chinese general and statesman of the Eastern Han Dynasty.

A native of modern-day Xianyang, Shaanxi Province, he was part of the powerful Dou clan which dominated court politics during his tenure.

He was involved in palace intrigue as a supporter of Empress Dou, and in the death of her romantic rival, Consort Song.

There were also other types of triumvirates during the Eastern Han ; for example, at the onset of the reign of Emperor Ling of Han ( r. 168 – 189 ), the General-in-Chief Dou Wu ( d. 168 ), the Grand Tutor Chen Fan ( d. 168 ), and another prominent statesman Hu Guang ( 91 – 172 ) formed a triumvirate nominally in charge of the Privy Secretariat, when in fact it was a regent triumvirate overseeing the affairs of state and Emperor Ling.

Without the fort at Cypress Valley, there was nothing to keep Li Shimin from marching on Luoyang after his defeat of Wang's ally Dou Jiande at the Battle of Hulao, forcing Wang Shichong to surrender.

Dou was wrongfully accused by Zhang Lür ( 張驢兒, literally " The Mule Zhang ") of the murder of his father, when Dou E refused to marry Zhang Lür.

As of 713, it was said that five of the seven chancellors at the time -- Dou Huaizhen, Cen Xi, Xiao Zhizhong, Cui Shi, and Lu Xiangxian -- were recommended by her ( although Lu was not considered a follower of hers ).

Meanwhile, it was said that Princess Taiping, Dou, Cen, Xiao, and Cui ; along with other officials Xue Ji, Li Jin ( 李晉 ) the Prince of Xinxing ( a grandson of Li Deliang ( 李德良 ), a cousin of Tang's founder Emperor Gaozu ), Li You ( 李猷 ), Jia Yingfu ( 賈膺福 ), Tang Jun ( 唐晙 ); the generals Chang Yuankai ( 常元楷 ), Li Ci ( 李慈 ), and Li Qin ( 李欽 ); and the monk Huifan ( 惠範 ), were plotting to overthrow Emperor Xuanzong.

Heavily influenced by his wife Empress Dou, who was an adherent to Taoism, Emperor Wen governed the country with the general policies of non-intereference with the people and relaxed laws.

Emperor Jing was born to Emperor Wen, then Prince of Dai, and Consort Dou, one of his favorite consorts, in 188 BC.

He was deeply influenced by his mother Empress Dou, who was a Taoist and required all of her children and grandchildren to study Taoist doctrines.

This was favored by Empress Dowager Dou as well, but opposed by officials, who believed such a move would bring instability to dynastic succession.

Zhou, later as prime minister, offended virtually every powerful figure around Emperor Jing — his brother Prince Liu Wu and his mother Empress Dowager Dou ( for refusing to save Liang first when Liang was sieged by Wu and Chu forces ), and his wife Empress Wang and her brother Wang Xin ( 王信 ), whom Emperor Jing wanted to create a marquess but whose candidacy was rebuffed by Zhou.

Wei and Dou did in 29, and as they were assisting Eastern Han forces to the north of Chengjia, Gongsun was further discouraged from trying to expand his empire.

After Chengjia's fall, Dou turned over the lands under his control to Emperor Guangwu in 36, and was made prime controller.

Dou Wu resisted, but was eventually defeated, and he committed suicide.

The Dou clan was slaughtered.

However, his work was interrupted by political problems, as his association with the family of Empress Dowager Dou led to his imprisonment and death ( either by execution or torture ).

With the aid of the eunuch Zheng Zhong ( d. 107 CE ), Emperor He ( r. 88 – 105 CE ) had Empress Dowager Dou ( d. 97 CE ) put under house arrest and her clan stripped of power.

Dou Wu, who in the past had planned to put them to death, was assassinated himself.

Empress Dowager Dou was enraged, and she put Dou Xian under arrest, and Dou Xian offered to lead an army against the North Xiongnu ( Xiongnu having been divided into two since the times of Emperor Guangwu, with South Xiongnu being a loyal vassal and North Xiongnu being a constant nuisance, at most ) to atone for his crimes.

In 1759, Zhao Hui sent for relief troops, 600 troops showed up and were under the overall command of generals Fu De and Machang with the 200 cavalry led by Namjal ; other high-ranking officers included Arigun, Dou Bin, Duan Ji Bu, Fulu, Yan Xiangshi, Zhanyinbao, Yisamu, Agui and Shuhede.

Upon hearing that Dou was approaching, he decided to advance east to take up defensive position at the key Hulao Pass in advance of Dou's arrival, leaving a relatively small Tang army, under the command of his brother Li Yuanji the Prince of Qi, at Luoyang.

* June 4 – Wang Shichong surrenders to Li Shimin following Dou Jiande's defeat.

* May 28 – Battle of Hulao: Li Shimin defeats the numerically superior army of Dou Jiande.

* June 4 – Wang Shichong surrenders to Li Shimin following Dou Jiande's defeat.

* Dou Jiande, warlord and opponent of Li Yuan

* Dou Jiande, warlord and opponent of Li Yuan

Through these political establishments, the Xianbei who entered China were largely merged with the Han, examples such as the wife of Emperor Gaozu of Tang, Duchess Dou and Emperor Taizong of Tang's ( Li Shimin's ) wife, Empress Zhangsun, both have Xianbei ancestries, while those who remained behind in the northern grassland emerged as later powers to rule over China.

Aided by Li Shimin ( 李世民 ), whom he created the Prince of Qin, he defeated all the other contenders, including Li Gui, Dou Jiande, Wang Shichong, Xue Rengao and Liu Wuzhou.

Meanwhile, Li Yuan's second son, by his wife Duchess Dou ( who had died earlier ), Li Shimin, was with him in Taiyuan, and was secretly planning rebellion against Sui rule with Pei Ji the head of the household at Emperor Yang's secondary palace nearby and Liu Wenjing the Jinyang County ( 晉陽, i. e., Taiyuan ) magistrate, but at first did not reveal their plans to Li Yuan.

He sent secret messengers to Hedong ( 河東, in modern Yuncheng, Shanxi ) to recall his sons ( as he had left his sons Li Jiancheng, Li Yuanji, both by Duchess Dou as well, and Li Zhiyun ( 李智雲 ), by his concubine Lady Wan, there to watch over his household ) and the capital Chang ' an to recall his daughter ( the later Princess Pingyang ) and her husband Chai Shao ( 柴紹 ).

Around the same time, however, Dou Jiande the Prince of Xia made a major offensive against the cities that had submitted to Tang in modern Hebei and Henan, north of the Yellow River, seizing nearly all of them and taking Emperor Gaozu's cousin Li Shentong ( 李神通 ) the Prince of Huai ' an, Emperor Gaozu's sister the Princess Tong ' an, and Li Shiji's father Li Gai ( 李蓋 ) captive.

With Li Gai in Dou's custody, Li Shiji surrendered to Dou as well.

Dou refused, and attacked Wei in coordination with Emperor Guangwu's forces.

Emperor Gaozu was initially fearful that Dou and Wang would be able to sandwich Li Shimin's forces and ordered Li Shimin to retreat, but upon Li Shimin's petition changed his mind and permitted Li Shimin to remain in the Luoyang region.

In summer 621, the Tang and Xia forces engaged at Hulao, and Li Shimin defeated Dou, capturing him.

However, Dou Jiande delayed and when he finally arrived, Li Shimin brought forces to meet the new threat.

After becoming emperor, however, he was unable to withstand military pressure from Tang Dynasty forces, forcing him to seek aid from Dou Jiande the Prince of Xia.

By winter 620, Zheng was in a desperate situation, and Wang Shichong sent messengers to Dou, seeking help from Xia forces.