Wudi, whose original name was Liu Che (156 B.C.-87 B.C.), was an emperor of the Han Dynasty (206 B.C.-220 A.D.) who vastly expanded the territory of the Chinese empire. Specifically, he incorporated Southern China and northern and central Vietnam, as well as northern and central and Korea. He was a ruthless and autocratic ruler, with a great interest in religious rituals, and a firm believer in immortality. He only recognized Confucionism as the state religion of China and he was a great patron of the arts. His reign, which lasted over five decades, was one of the longest in the history of China.
Wudi, a title that was granted to him posthumously, means "Martial Emperor."