Who they were
A minor village official of peasant origin from Pei, Liu Bang joined the revolts against the Qin dynasty.
What they did
He was the first rebel leader to enter the Qin capital region (206 BC), famously replacing Qin’s harsh laws with just three articles, and was granted the title King of Han. He then won the Chu–Han Contention against Xiang Yu, sealing victory at Gaixia (202 BC), and proclaimed himself emperor that year. He governed pragmatically, keeping the Qin administrative framework while easing laws, taxes and burdens — though his enfeoffment of relatives as regional kings stored up later trouble.
Legacy
With Zhu Yuanzhang of the Ming, he is one of only two commoner founders of a major dynasty. The Han he founded gave its name to the Han Chinese.