In early
Han dynasty, Hejian was part of the
Zhao Kingdom. The kingdom was created in 178 BC when it was granted to Liu Piqiang (劉辟彊), son of
Liu You, King You of Zhao (趙幽王) and brother of
Liu Sui, King of Zhao. After Piqiang's death, the territory passed to his son Liu Fu (劉福). Fu died without an heir and the kingdom was dissolved. The kingdom was briefly restored under
Emperor Guangwu's reign. In 90 AD,
Emperor Zhang reestablished Hejian on the territories of
Lecheng,
Bohai and
Zhuo commanderies. Liu Kai (劉開), the sixth son of the emperor, became the King of Hejian. Kai's lineage held Hejian until the foundation of
Cao Wei dynasty.
Emperor Huan and his successors all came from this branch of the imperial family. Hejian became a commandery under Cao Wei. In early
Western Jin dynasty, Hejian became the fief of
Sima Yong, brother of
Sima Yi. In 140 AD, the kingdom administered 11 counties, namely Lecheng (樂成), Gonggao (弓高), Yi (易), Wuyuan (武垣), Zhongshui (中水), Mao (鄚), Gaoyang (高陽), Wen'an (文安), Shuzhou (束州), Chengping (成平) and Dongpingshu (東平舒). The total population was 634,421, or 93,754 households. ==Kings under the Han dynasty==