【註】《汉书》，又名《前汉书》，中国古代历史著作，东汉班固所著，是中国第一部纪传体断代史。《漢書》的記載， 上起劉邦被封為漢王元年（西元前206年），下終王莽地皇四年（ 西元23年），以西漢一朝為主，同時亦囊括了四年楚漢之爭， 十五年王莽改制，共二百三十年的史事。全書包括十二「紀」、八「 表」、十「志」、七十「列傳」，凡一百篇，共八十餘萬言。 至唐代顏師古以《漢書》卷帙繁重，便將篇幅較長者分為上、 下卷或上、中、下卷，成為現行本《漢書》一百二十卷。《漢書》 中所載漢武帝以前之紀、傳，多用《史記》舊文，武帝以後之史事， 則為新撰。汉书虽沿用史记旧文，但补充了大量新的资料， 因此比史记更显得有史料价值。

【作者簡介】班固（32年—92年），字孟坚，扶风安陵（今陕西咸阳）人，东汉史学家班彪之长子，东汉历史学家，《汉书》作者。与司马相如、扬雄、张衡合称为汉赋四大家，与父班彪、及其弟班超，三人合称“三班”。 其曾祖父班况，汉成帝时为越骑校尉。班固年少时，班固的父亲班彪教其读书识字，九岁能写文章，十六岁入首都洛阳太学，博览群书，“九流百家之言，无不穷究”。建武三十年（54年），班彪卒，班固自太学返乡服丧。 班固继承父业，撰写《汉书》，共一百篇。《汉书》更改《史记》体例，废除世家一体。班固编写过程中，有人告发其“私修国史”，因而被捕入狱。他的弟弟班超向皇帝说明班固修《汉书》的目的是颂扬汉德，让后人了解历史，从中获取教训，并无毁谤朝廷之意。后来无罪开释，明帝更给班家一些金钱，协助编写史书。有一天，汉明帝问班固：“卿弟安在？”班固回答说：“为官写书，受直以养老母”。 汉明帝颇赏识班固的才能，召为兰台令史（中央档案典籍管理员），奉诏与陈宗、伊敏、孟异等撰《世祖本纪》及诸传记，后转迁为郎，典校秘书，又撰功臣、平林、新市、公孙述等列传，共成列传、载记28篇。当时兰台令史傅毅是他的同僚，二人皆以文闻名，班固与弟班超书曰：“武仲（傅毅的字）能属文，为兰台令史，下笔不能自休。”此即文人相轻的流传。班固又奉敕诏完成其父所著书。 汉章帝时，班固任玄武司马。建初四年（79年）章帝效法西汉宣帝石渠阁故事，诏诸王、诸儒赵博、李育等集合于白虎观讲论五经异同，由班固纂成《白虎通义》。章帝建初七年（82年），基本完成《汉书》的写作。

Note: The 《Book of Han》, also known as the 《Book of the Former Han》, is an ancient Chinese historical work compiled by Ban Gu of the Eastern Han dynasty. It is the first official dynastic history written in the annals-biography style.

The work begins with the first year Liu Bang was enfeoffed as King of Han (206 BCE) and ends with the fourth year of Wang Mang’s reign (23 CE), covering mainly the Western Han dynasty, while also including the four years of the Chu–Han Contention and the fifteen years of Wang Mang’s reforms, spanning a total of 230 years of history.The book originally consisted of 100 sections: twelve Annals , eight Tables , ten Treatises , and seventy Biographies , amounting to over 800,000 characters.

By the Tang dynasty, Yan Shigu, finding the text too voluminous, divided longer sections into upper and lower (or upper, middle, and lower) parts, forming the present version of 120 juan (scrolls). The annals and biographies before Emperor Wu of Han largely borrowed from the older 《Records of the Grand Historian》, while those concerning Emperor Wu and later events were newly composed. Although it retains much from the 《Shiji》, the 《Book of Han》 supplements it with a large amount of new material, and therefore possesses even greater value as a historical source.

Introduction to the author: Ban Gu (32–92 CE), courtesy name Mengjian, was a native of Anling in Fufeng (present-day Xianyang, Shaanxi). He was the eldest son of Ban Biao, who was also a historian of the Eastern Han. Ban Gu is renowned as the author of the 《Book of Han》.

He was celebrated as one of the “Four Masters of Han Rhapsody” , alongside Sima Xiangru, Yang Xiong, and Zhang Heng. Together with his father Ban Biao and younger brother Ban Chao, the three became known as the “Three Bans”. His great-grandfather Ban Kuang served as Commandant of the Cavalry under Emperor Cheng of Han.

From an early age, Ban Gu studied under his father and demonstrated extraordinary talent—writing essays by the age of nine and entering the Taixue (Imperial Academy) in Luoyang at sixteen. He was well-versed in the “Nine Schools and the Hundred Schools of Thought.”

When Ban Biao died in 54 CE, Ban Gu left the academy to return home and observe mourning. He then inherited his father’s undertakings and began compiling the 《Book of Han》， which ultimately comprised 100 chapters. In this work he modified the structure of Sima Qian’s Records of the Grand Historian, abolishing the category of “hereditary houses.” During the compilation, someone accused him of “privately compiling the state history,” and he was imprisoned. His brother Ban Chao explained to the emperor that Ban Gu’s purpose in writing the Hanshu was to extol the virtues of the Han dynasty, allow posterity to understand history, and to draw lessons from it—without any intent to slander the court. Ban Gu was then acquitted and released, and Emperor Ming even provided the Ban family with funds to support the work of writing history.

On one occasion, Emperor Ming asked Ban Gu, “Where is your younger brother now?” Ban Gu replied, “He serves as an official to write and earns a stipend to support our mother.” Impressed, the emperor appointed Ban Gu as Lantai Lingshi (archivist of the imperial library), entrusting him with the compilation of the Annals of Emperor Guangwu and other biographies. Ban Gu later became a Gentleman-in-Attendance and was tasked with supervising imperial archives. He compiled biographies and records of 28 figures, including officials, rebels, and warlords.

Ban Gu’s contemporary at the archives, Fu Yi, was also a noted writer. The two had a rivalry. Ban Gu wrote to his younger brother Ban Chao:
“Wuzhong (courtesy name of Fu Yi), being skilled in literary composition, became a clerk in the Archives at Lantai, and once he put brush to paper, he could not stop himself,” thus giving rise to the saying “men of letters disparage one another”. Ban Gu also completed works his father had left unfinished, by imperial order.

During Emperor Zhang’s reign, Ban Gu was appointed Xuanwu Sima (a military officer). In the 4th year of Jianchu (79 CE), Emperor Zhang, imitating Emperor Xuan of the Western Han, convened princes and scholars such as Zhao Bo and Li Yu at the White Tiger Hall to debate the differences among the Five Classics. Ban Gu compiled these discussions into the 《Baihu Tongyi》 (Comprehensive Meaning of the White Tiger Hall Discussion). By the 7th year of Jianchu (82 CE), the writing of the 《Book of Han》 was basically completed.