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101-588: Emperor Daizong was the eldest son of Emperor Suzong – the first emperor of the Tang dynasty to succeed as the eldest child. During the Anshi Rebellion (which Emperor Suzong's entire reign was dedicated to fighting), he served as a general of Tang and Huige joint operations that recaptured the capital Chang'an and the eastern capital Luoyang from the rebel state of Yan , and the Anshi Rebellion

202-578: A hermit , leaving Li Fuguo, Consort Zhang (who was then created empress), and Li Chu the lead figures at court, and Li Fuguo, in command of the imperial guards, would soon have such paramount powers that even Emperor Suzong was afraid of offending him. Empress Zhang, meanwhile, wanted to make her son Li Shao ( 李佋 ) crown prince, but Emperor Suzong, believing Li Chu, who was his oldest son, to be capable and accomplished, created him crown prince instead and changed his name to Li Yu. Emperor Suzong also welcomed Emperor Xuanzong back from Jiannan and housed him at

303-482: A chancellor, while making Li Xilie acting military governor. In summer 779, Emperor Daizong grew ill and soon died. Li Kuo succeeded him as emperor (as Emperor Dezong). Consorts and Issue: Emperor Suzong of Tang Emperor Suzong of Tang ( yihai day, 711 – 16 May 762; r. 756 – 762), personal name Li Heng , né Li Sisheng ( 李嗣升 ), known as Li Jun ( 李浚 ) from 725 to 736, known as Li Yu ( 李璵 ) from 736 to 738, known briefly as Li Shao ( 李紹 ) in 738,

404-411: A close associate, Zhang Yue , stating: "A powerful individual did not want me to have many sons. I am afraid that this woman would become a target. What do you think?" Li Longji began to prepare an herbal stew that, in traditional Chinese medicine , was believed to be able to induce an abortion , but as he did so, fell asleep and had a dream that a god descended and overturned the ding holding

505-401: A palace converted from Emperor Xuanzong's old residence as an imperial prince, Xingqing Palace ( 興慶宮 ). A month after Chang'an was recaptured, Tang and Huige forces recaptured Luoyang as well, and Luoyang suffered heavy pillaging by Huige forces. An Qingxu fled to Yecheng and took up position there, but most Yan territory resubmitted to Tang, and war appeared to be poised to end. To cement

606-705: A panic and fled. Hearing the news, An Lushan's son and successor An Qingxu , who had become the emperor of Yan, abandoned Luoyang and fled. Once Huige forces entered Luoyang, they went on a rampage. Li Chu had the people gather up a large cache of silk to bribe the Huige prince, and only thereafter did the rampage end. Upon Li Chu's entry into Luoyang, he initially announced that the Tang officials who had surrendered to Yan would be forgiven. However, soon they were rearrested and delivered to Chang'an. Several were executed, while many others were punished by demotion or exile. In winter 757, Li Chu returned to Chang'an with Guo, and

707-717: A rebellion, An finally did, from his base at Fanyang (范陽, in modern Beijing ). After the rebellion started, Emperor Xuanzong briefly considered making Li Heng regent , but at the pleas of Consort Yang and her three sisters (who were fearful that Li Heng would act against them if he had regent powers), did not actually do so. By summer 756, An had declared a new state of Yan as its emperor, and his forces were approaching Chang'an. On July 14, 756, Emperor Xuanzong, with Yang Guozhong suggesting that they flee to Jiannan Circuit (劍南, headquartered in modern Chengdu ), abandoned Chang'an and fled with Gao Lishi, Yang Guozhong, Wei, Li Heng, Consort Yang, and her family. The following day, July 15,

808-619: A renegade, and when Pugu's mother, who did not follow him to Lingwu, died, he buried her with honors. Around this time, the official Liu Yan headed a project to reopen Bian River ( 汴河 ), a canal that connected the Yellow River and the Huai River , which had been crucial for shipping food supplies from the Yangtze River -Huai River region to Chang'an and Luoyang prior to the Anshi Rebellion but which had become silted during

909-433: A serious imperial response, along with the offended warlords. In summer 775, Emperor Daizong announced a campaign against Tian, with Li Zhengji and Li Zhongchen attacking Weibo from the south, and Zhu Tao, Li Baochen, and Xue Jianxun ( 薛兼訓 ) attacking Weibo from the north. Initially, the imperial forces were scoring victories over Weibo forces, but after Tian flattered Li Zhengji in a humble letter, Li Zhengji withdrew from

1010-671: A small number of guard soldiers commanded by Li Tan, then headed to the border city of Lingwu . With the army at Lingwu pressuring him to take imperial title, Li Heng declared himself emperor on August 13 (as Emperor Suzong). When news of this reached Emperor Xuanzong in Jiannan, Emperor Xuanzong recognized Emperor Suzong as emperor and took the title of Taishang Huang (retired emperor), although he continued to exercise some imperial authority—including, for example, issuing an edict that posthumously honored Emperor Suzong's mother Consort Yang as Empress Yuanxian . (Some historians, including

1111-438: A surprise attack on him, but was unable to kill Zhu, effectively ending any hopes of the campaign against Tian. By 776, Emperor Daizong was forced to pardon Tian and abandon the campaign. Also in 775, Emperor Daizong's favorite concubine Consort Dugu died. He posthumously honored her empress and, saddened greatly by her death, kept her casket in the palace for almost three years, only finally burying her in 778. In 776, after

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1212-601: The 2010 Chinese census , Lingwu has a population of 261,677. Lingwu was historically known as Lingzhou ( simplified Chinese : 灵州 ; traditional Chinese : 靈州 ; pinyin : Língzhōu , Xiao'erjing : لِئٍ‌جِوْ). During the Warring States period , the area was absorbed into the Qin dynasty under Beidi Commandery . The area was first incorporated into the Han dynasty in 191 BCE by Emperor Hui . In 437 CE, under

1313-524: The Buddhist monk Bukong with great honors, including creating him a duke. The temples at Chang'an became very wealthy, and Emperor Daizong further ordered that monks and nuns not be subject to physical punishments. With the emperor and the chancellors all devout Buddhists, Buddhism became the leading influence in the empire. (Traditional historians, such as the Song dynasty historian Sima Guang , ascribed

1414-515: The Northern Wei , the area was incorporated as Bogulu Town  [ zh ] . In 526 CE, Bogulu Town was renamed as Lingzhou. In 756 CE, during the Tang dynasty , Emperor Suzong fled to Lingzhou during the Anshi Rebellion , where he ascended the throne with the aid of loyal bureaucrats and military supporters, only notifying his father Xuanzong after the fact. Lingzhou became part of

1515-638: The Three Excellencies ) and Zhongshu Ling ( 中書令 ) – the head of the legislative bureau of government (中書省, Zhongshu Sheng ) and a post considered one for a chancellor. Li Fuguo gave a major part of the command responsibilities to Cheng Yuanzhen. Carrying out further retaliation against Xiao Hua, Li Fuguo had Xiao further demoted. Meanwhile, though, Li Fuguo did not expect that both Emperor Daizong and Cheng, who wanted more power, would turn against him. In summer 762, at Cheng's secret suggestion, Emperor Daizong issued an edict that stripped Li Fuguo of

1616-766: The Western Xia in 1038. It was besieged by Genghis Khan in November 1226. On May 20, 1996, Lingwu was upgraded from a county to a county-level city . On October 25, 2002, Lingwu was transferred from the prefecture-level city of Wuzhong to Yinchuan . The western border of Lingwu is formed by the Yellow River . Lingwu's climate is arid, with little precipitation and high levels of sunshine. Lingwu administers one subdistrict , six towns , two townships and one other township-level division . The city's sole subdistrict is: The city's six towns are: The city's two townships are: The city also administers

1717-532: The An Lushan rebellion in the Yangzhou massacre (760) , In 758, however, one of the major Yan generals who had submitted to Tang, Shi Siming , claiming that there had been a plot by Emperor Suzong and the Tang general Li Guangbi , to have his subordinate Wu Cheng'en ( 烏承恩 ) assassinate him, re-rebelled and advanced south. In spring 759, he engaged the Tang forces then sieging An Qingxu at Yecheng, and while

1818-434: The Anshi Rebellion; Emperor Daizong sent many imperial messengers throughout the realm to search for Consort Shen, but was not able to find her. Meanwhile, also in 764, Pugu Huai'en, then at Hezong (河中, in modern Yuncheng , Shanxi ), formally rose against Tang imperial troops, against his mother's advice. An attack against Yuci (榆次, in modern Jinzhong , Shanxi ), commanded by Pugu Huai'en's son Pugu Yang ( 僕固瑒 ), however,

1919-478: The Biansong prefectures he took, Yun Prefecture (鄆州, in modern Tai'an , Shandong ). In 777, Emperor Daizong, tired of Yuan Zai's and Wang Jin's corruption and hold on power, had them arrested. Yuan was executed and Wang was exiled, and they were replaced by Yang Wan and Chang Gun . Emperor Daizong hoped that Yang could lead a reform of the government, but Yang died later that year, leaving Chang in control of

2020-592: The Prince of Guangwu the Emperor of Tang, although they withdrew within the course of a month due to the Tang people's resistance efforts and counterattacks commanded by Guo Ziyi. Emperor Daizong was able to soon return to Chang'an. Still, much territory had fallen into Tibetan hands and Tang forces were not able to counterattack. As the popular sentiment at the time blamed Cheng for the disaster, he stripped Cheng of his posts and sent him back to his home. Soon thereafter,

2121-518: The Prince of Yan. On May 18, Li Yu ascended the throne (as Emperor Daizong). Li Fuguo effectively took over the control of the imperial government, going as far as telling Emperor Daizong: You, Emperor, just remain in the palace. Let this old servant of yours handle what is outside. Emperor Daizong was secretly displeased, but in order to placate Li Fuguo, gave him the title of Shangfu (尚父, meaning, "like father") and ordered that he not be referred to by name. He also made Li Fuguo Sikong (司空, one of

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2222-563: The Prince of Zhong, and his name was changed to Li Jun. In 728, his own mother Consort Yang Guipin died. In 729, when there was a Khitan and Kumo Xi incursion, Li Jun was put in titular command of the army sent to repel the Khitan and the Xi, with Emperor Xuanzong's second cousin Li Hui ( 李褘 ) the Prince of Xin'an in actual command of the army. After Li Hui defeated the Khitan and the Xi, Li Jun

2323-449: The Tang proposal. In winter 762, the joint Tang and Huige forces recaptured Luoyang, forcing Shi Chaoyi to flee. (Shi Chaoyi would eventually commit suicide in spring 763, ending Yan.) In the aftermaths of Yan's destruction, Emperor Daizong contemplated what to do with several Yan generals who had surrendered to Tang but who still retained substantial holdings— Xue Song , Li Huaixian , Zhang Zhongzhi (on whom Emperor Daizong soon bestowed

2424-552: The Wei brothers to be punished. The Wei brothers, along with a number of their associates—including the former chancellor Li Shizhi , Wei Bin ( 韋斌 ), Wei Jian's nephew Li Quan ( 李琄 ) the Prince of Xue, Pei Kuan ( 裴寬 ), and Li Qiwu ( 李齊物 ), were all demoted. (In 747, at Li Linfu's instigation, the Wei brothers, Huangfu, and Li Shizhi were all forced to commit suicide.) Later in 746, yet another incident again nearly brought disaster to Li Heng. One of Li Heng's other consorts, Consort Du,

2525-516: The Yan and Tang forces went into a stalemate. While the stalemate was continuing, in 760, after the eunuch Xing Yan'en ( 邢延恩 ) reported to Emperor Suzong that the general Liu Zhan ( 劉展 ) was disobeying orders, and that Liu's name was in mystical prophecies, Emperor Suzong accepted Xing's suggestion to find a way to eliminate Liu. After Liu found this out, he was forced into rebellion in late 760; he had successes against other Tang generals and controlled

2626-498: The Yan generals An Shouzhong ( 安守忠 ) and Li Guiren ( 李歸仁 ), Li Chu, pointing out that his own troops were tired, stopped him. (Upon the recapturing of Chang'an, Li Mi resigned and became a hermit, depriving Li Chu of an ally.) Subsequently, Li Chu, Guo Ziyi , and Pugu, along with Huige forces, continued to proceed toward Luoyang. They first attacked Shancheng (陝城, in modern Sanmenxia , Henan ) and initially could not succeed, but when Huige forces engaged, Yan forces were thrown into

2727-1231: The Zhaoyi officer Pei Zhiqing ( 裴志清 ) rose against Xue E, and Tian subsequently captured Zhaoyi's capital Xiang Prefecture ( 相州 ). Xue E fled to imperial territory, while Tian continued his campaign to capture the rest of Zhaoyi territory despite Emperor Daizong's orders to stop his campaign. With Xue Song's other relatives Xue Xiong ( 薛雄 ) and Xue Jian ( 薛堅 ) still holding Wei (衛州, in modern Xinxiang , Henan ) and Ming (洺州, in modern Handan) Prefectures, Tian attacked them and captured those prefectures, as well as Ci Prefecture (磁州, in modern Handan as well). (The remaining prefectures of Zhaoyi came under imperial control and were eventually merged with Zelu Circuit (澤潞, headquartered in modern Changzhi , Shanxi ), governed by Li Baoyu's cousin Li Baozhen .) These defiant actions by Tian, who had already angered Li Zhengji, then ruling Pinglu Circuit (平盧, then headquartered in modern Weifang , Shandong ), by disrespecting him and Li Baochen, then ruling Chengde Circuit (成德, headquartered in modern Shijiazhuang , Hebei ), by killing Li Baochen's brother Li Baozheng ( 李寶正 ), brought

2828-539: The alliance with Huige, Emperor Suzong also gave his daughter Princess Ningguo in marriage to Yaoluoge Moyanchuo. Al-Mansur sent his diplomatic delegations regularly to China. Al-Mansur's delegations were known in China as Heiyi Dashi ( Black Clothed Arabs ). In 756 al-Mansur sent 3,000 mercenaries to assist Emperor Suzong of Tang in the An Lushan rebellion. A massacre of foreign Arab and Persian Muslim merchants by former Yan rebel general Tian Shengong happened during

2929-457: The border city of Lingwu . With the army at Lingwu pressuring him to take imperial title, Li Heng declared himself emperor (as Emperor Suzong). After Emperor Suzong assumed imperial title, he considered making Li Tan the supreme commander of the armed forces, but his advisor Li Mi pointed out that Li Chu was older and that naming Li Tan the supreme commander would cause confusion as to who would be his heir. Emperor Suzong agreed and made Li Chu

3030-549: The campaign, causing other imperial generals south of the Yellow River to hesitate to advance as well. Meanwhile, Li Baochen was offended when an imperial eunuch, Ma Chengqian ( 馬承倩 ), who had visited Li Baochen's army, was so dissatisfied with Li Baochen's gift to him that he threw it on the ground, and Tian was also able to use hoaxes to persuade Li Baochen that if he joined forces with Tian to attack Lulong, he would be successful. Li Baochen thus turned against Zhu, launching

3131-455: The case to further explode into a major incident although he believed Li Linfu's accusations, demoted Wei and Huangfu out of the capital and, for the time being, stopped the investigation. However, when Wei Jian's brothers Wei Lan ( 韋蘭 ) and Wei Zhi ( 韋芝 ) submitted a defense of their brother Wei Jian later in 746—and the defense cited words from Li Heng—Emperor Xuanzong was incensed. Li Heng, in fear, divorced Crown Princess Wei and asked for

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3232-479: The central government's power was thus slowly eroded and diminished. The power of the warlords would not prevent the Tang western territories from being overrun by Tibetan invasions and eventually lost to the Tibetan Empire , which even managed to capture Chang'an in 763 for a short period before being expelled. Emperor Daizong was credited for removing the corrupt eunuch Li Fuguo , who had placed him on

3333-600: The circuit in Cui's hands. Meanwhile, by this point, Emperor Daizong, who had previously favored Taoism , had begun to become a devout Buddhist due to the influences of his chancellors Yuan Zai, Wang Jin , and Du Hongjian. Yuan, in particular, advocated the belief that it was by the blessings of the Buddha that Tang was able to survive the Anshi Rebellion and Pugu's rebellion. As a result, Emperor Daizong's policies began to be heavily influenced by Buddhist principles, and he honored

3434-401: The circuit was thrown into a confusion. Eventually, the situation settled down, but the circuit eventually became effectively independently ruled by Cui, although Cui was more obedient and respectful to the central government than the other warlords. Emperor Daizong tried to have the chancellor Du Hongjian rule the circuit, but Du, unwilling to challenge Cui, soon returned to Chang'an and left

3535-455: The circuit, Zhu Xicai paid him great respect but did not allow him to take actual rein of the circuit, and Wang returned to Chang'an soon thereafter. Emperor Daizong was forced to make Zhu Xicai the military governor later in the year. In 770, Emperor Daizong, tired of Yu Chao'en's hold on power and arrogance, plotted with Yuan and laid a trap for Yu, killing him. Thereafter, however, Yuan's power became unchallenged at court. In 772, Zhu Xicai

3636-447: The command of Yaoluoge Moyanchuo's son. When Li Chu met the Huige prince, he offered for them to be sworn brothers . The prince was very pleased and honored Li Chu as an older brother. Thereafter, the joint Tang and Huige troops proceeded toward Chang'an and, after defeating Yan forces at Xiangji Temple ( 香積寺 ), near Chang'an, recaptured Chang'an. Emperor Suzong had promised that Huige forces would be allowed to pillage Chang'an, but at

3737-458: The court of any opposition against them and controlled everything, but at the end of Emperor Suzong's reign, both became enemies. In 762, with Emperor Suzong gravely ill, Li Fuguo killed Empress Zhang in a power struggle and shortly after that, Emperor Suzong died. He was succeeded by his son Emperor Daizong, who was eventually able to kill Li Fuguo, but the tradition of eunuchs in power had started. Suzong's death on 16 May came only 13 days after

3838-419: The crown prince's palace to spy on Li Longji and that she did not want him to have many sons. (He already had two by that point—Li Sisheng's older brothers Li Sizhi , later named Li Cong (by Consort Liu) and Li Siqian , later named Li Ying (by Consort Zhao).) Li Longji was worried that, if Princess Taiping found out that Yang Guipin was pregnant, Princess Taiping's associates might harm him, and he spoke to

3939-501: The crown prince, and that he did not even know what a crown prince was. Only after Emperor Xuanzong explained what a crown prince is—the reserve emperor, to succeed him later—was An willing to bow to Li Heng. This caused Emperor Xuanzong to favor An even more, but also later caused An to be apprehensive of whether Li Heng would bear continued resentment toward him over the incident. Later in 747, Li Linfu tried to use yet another case to undermine Li Heng. The general Wang Zhongsi , who

4040-565: The death of Biansong Circuit (汴宋, headquartered in modern Kaifeng , Henan )'s acting military governor Tian Shenyu ( 田神玉 ), its officer Li Lingyao ( 李靈曜 ) seized the circuit. Emperor Daizong commissioned a campaign by the surrounding circuits against Biansong and Li Lingyao, and despite aid from Tian, was quickly defeated, although the imperial government received little benefit as five of Biansong's eight prefectures were taken and merged into Li Zhengji's Pinglu Circuit, and Li Zhengji then moved his headquarters from Qing Prefecture ( 青州 ) to one of

4141-547: The death of his father, the Emperor Xuanzong. Li Sisheng was born in 711, during the second reign of his grandfather Emperor Ruizong , as the third son of his father, then the Crown Prince, Li Longji , who would later become Emperor Xuanzong. His mother Consort Yang Guipin (posthumously Empress Yuanxian ) was from the imperial clan of the preceding Sui dynasty . Her great-grandfather Yang Shida ( 楊士達 )

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4242-456: The earnest pleas of Li Chu, the Huige prince agreed to wait until capturing Luoyang, which had become the Yan capital, to carry out the pillage. The people of Chang'an, believing that Li Chu had saved them from a deadly Huige rampage, welcomed him in a grand procession and proclaimed, "The Prince of Guangping is truly a leader to be loved by both the Han and the barbarians." Meanwhile, when Pugu Huai'en advocated quick advances to try to capture

4343-636: The elite Tang forces recalled from the Anxi Circuit and the Western Regions ( Xiyu ). (Emperor Suzong did so by promising that the Huige forces would be permitted to pillage the Chang'an region once it was recaptured.) Li Mi suggested that these forces be used to attack Yan's power base at Fanyang first, to root out the possibility of a Yan recovery. Emperor Suzong chose not to do so and decided to attack Chang'an first, with Li Chu in command of

4444-444: The eunuch Liu Qingtan ( 劉清潭 ) to Huige to request aid from its Dengli Khan Yaoluoge Yidijian (a younger brother of the Huige prince that he had previously become sworn brother to), who had also received an alliance proposal from Shi Chaoyi. Yaoluoge Yidijian thus initially rejected Emperor Daizong's proposal and advanced south to aid Shi Chaoyi, but after further persuasion by Pugu Huai'en, whose daughter he had married, he agreed with

4545-409: The eunuch Luo Fengxian ( 駱奉仙 ) had suspected of plotting rebellion, was angry at the suspicion on him and, after submitting a number of accusatory petitions, began to act independently of the imperial government. Meanwhile, though, Tibet , which had begun to seize Tang western prefectures one by one during the Anshi Rebellion, launched a sudden attack on Chang'an. At that time, with Cheng in power and

4646-427: The forces of his new state of Yan were approaching the Tang capital Chang'an , forcing Emperor Xuanzong to flee to Chengdu . When Emperor Xuanzong's train reached Mawei Station (馬嵬驛, in modern Baoji , Shaanxi ), angry soldiers, blaming the rebellion on the chancellor Yang Guozhong (Consort Yang's cousin), killed Yang Guozhong and his family members and forced Emperor Xuanzong to kill Consort Yang. Subsequently,

4747-422: The four major Yan generals, two more military governors who were de facto independent, Li Zhengji and Liang Chongyi . Also in 765, after Yan Wu ( 嚴武 ) the military governor of Jiannan Circuit died, the succeeding military governor Guo Ying'ai ( 郭英乂 ), resentful that the officer Cui Ning had not recommended him to succeed Yan, attacked Cui. Cui counterattacked and defeated Guo, who was killed in flight, and

4848-459: The generals hating him for his previous accusations against the generals Lai Tian ( 來瑱 ) and Li Huairang ( 李懷讓 ) that led to their deaths, when Emperor Daizong sought emergency aid from the provincial generals, none came to his aid, and on November 16, he was forced to abandon Chang'an and flee to Shan Prefecture (i.e., Shancheng). Tibetan forces declared Emperor Suzong's cousin Li Chenghong

4949-441: The government. By 777, it was considered that these warlords were ruling their realms de facto independently: In 779, Tian died, and Emperor Daizong permitted Tian's nephew Tian Yue to succeed him. Meanwhile, Li Zhongchen was expelled from his Huaixi Circuit (淮西, headquartered in modern Zhumadian , Henan ) by his officer Li Xilie . Emperor Daizong, believing Li Zhongchen to have been faithful to him, kept him at Chang'an as

5050-442: The household as well. Li Linfu also used this case to have two other officials friendly with Liu, Li Yong ( 李邕 ) and Pei Dunfu ( 裴敦復 ), executed by caning. In 747, when one of Emperor Xuanzong's favorite generals, An Lushan , visited the capital Chang'an to pay respect to Emperor Xuanzong, An, who was not Han , initially refused to bow to Li Heng—pretending that he was only loyal to Emperor Xuanzong and to no one else, including

5151-485: The imperial guard headquarters. Imperial guards commanded by Li Fuguo and Cheng then entered the palace and arrested Empress Zhang, Li Xi, and their associates. It was said that with Emperor Suzong resting at Changsheng Hall ( 長生殿 ), the soldiers dragged Empress Zhang and the attending ladies in waiting and eunuchs away from his presence. Emperor Suzong was said to be left alone without attendants. He died on May 16. Li Fuguo executed Empress Zhang, Li Xi, and Li Xian ( 李僩 )

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5252-501: The imperial guards accompanying the emperor, angry at Yang Guozhong, rose at Mawei Station (馬嵬, in modern Baoji , Shaanxi ) and killed him and forced Emperor Xuanzong to kill Consort Yang as well. Emperor Xuanzong then poised to continue to head toward Jiannan. The people in the Mawei region tried to persuade Emperor Xuanzong not to continue on—believing that Chang'an could be recaptured. Emperor Xuanzong asked Li Heng to try to comfort

5353-546: The imperial surname of Li and a new personal name, Baochen), and Tian Chengsi . Pugu suggested that he allow them to remain at their posts as military governors ( Jiedushi ) to avoid further resistance, and Emperor Daizong, fearful of further wars, agreed. This would mark the beginning of warlordism that plagued Tang for the rest of the dynasty. In fall 763, Emperor Daizong faced two new additional threats. Pugu, whom two other generals Xin Yunjing ( 辛雲京 ) and Li Baoyu and

5454-403: The initial battle was indecisive, the Tang forces panicked during the battle and collapsed, allowing the siege of Yecheng to be lifted. Shi Siming then led An Qingxu into a trap and killed him, taking over as the emperor of Yan and further advancing south to recapture Luoyang, again making it Yan's capital. However, his further attempts to advance against Chang'an was blocked by Li Guangbi, and

5555-415: The intercession of another general, Geshu Han , however, Wang was spared from death, and Li Heng was not implicated. It was said that during this time period, Li Linfu made other attempts to undermine Li Heng, but with Gao Lishi and Zhang Shuo's son Zhang Ji ( 張垍 ), who had married Li Heng's sister Princess Ningqing, protecting Li Heng, Li Heng escaped unharmed each time. As of 754, the chancellor in power

5656-562: The joint forces. The forces recaptured Chang'an in fall 757, allowing Emperor Suzong to rebuild his administration in the capital. (Huige forces were set to pillage Chang'an, but Li Chu bowed to the Huige prince commanding Huige forces to plead to delay the pillage—pointing out that if pillaging were carried out, the people of the eastern capital Luoyang , then serving as Yan's capital, would resist heavily, and asking that Huige pillage Luoyang instead. The Huige prince agreed.) After Emperor Suzong recaptured Chang'an, Li Mi resigned and became

5757-623: The lower Yangtze region for several months until he was defeated by another Tang general, Tian Shen'gong ( 田神功 ). Meanwhile, Emperor Xuanzong settled into a routine at Xingqing Palace, with Chen Xuanli ( 陳玄禮 ) and Gao Lishi attending to him. Also often attending to him were his sister Li Chiying ( 李持盈 ) the Princess Yuzhen, the lady-in-waiting Ru Xianyuan ( 如仙媛 ), and the eunuchs Wang Cheng'en ( 王承恩 ) and Wei Yue ( 魏悅 ). The imperial musicians often played for him, and he often climbed up Changqing Tower ( 長慶樓 ) to receive well wishes from

5858-400: The machinations of Consort Wu , who had by then become Emperor Xuanzong's favorite concubine, Empress Wang was deposed, and she died shortly after. Thereafter, Consort Wu began a campaign, in association with the chancellor Li Linfu , to have her own son Li Qing the Prince of Shou made crown prince, but was not able to initially succeed. Meanwhile, in 726, Li Sisheng's title was changed to

5959-565: The modern historian Bo Yang , believed that Emperor Xuanzong's continued issuance of edicts, while not on the surface conflicting with Emperor Suzong's authority, caused Emperor Suzong pressure to try to recapture Chang'an as quickly as possible to avoid any contention for the throne—either in the form of Emperor Xuanzong himself resuming imperial authority or in the form of another imperial prince rising to defeat Yan. ) Emperor Suzong, once he became emperor, set his eyes on recapturing Chang'an from Yan forces, as Yan forces faced heavy resistance from

6060-417: The most powerful figures at court became the chancellor Yuan Zai , who flattered Emperor Daizong, and the eunuch Yu Chao'en , who commanded the imperial guards. In 764, Emperor Daizong created Li Kuo, whom he had earlier signaled to be the likely heir by designating him the supreme commander of the armed forces, crown prince. Li Kuo's mother Consort Shen had been captured by Yan forces and disappeared during

6161-563: The official Yang Shenjin ( 楊慎矜 ), at Li Linfu's instigation, reported to Emperor Xuanzong that, one night, Li Heng met Wei while both were sightseeing, and shortly after, Wei met a friend of his, the general Huangfu Weiming ( 皇甫惟明 ) at a Taoist temple , Li Linfu used these incidents to accuse Wei and Huangfu of secretly pledging allegiance to Li Heng and planning to remove Emperor Xuanzong to replace him with Li Heng. Wei and Huangfu were arrested and interrogated by Yang, Wang Hong ( 王鉷 ), and Ji Wen ( 吉溫 ), but Emperor Xuanzong, who did not want

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6262-438: The people in the Mawei region tried to persuade Emperor Xuanzong not to continue on to Chengdu—believing that Chang'an could be recaptured. Emperor Xuanzong asked Li Heng to try to comfort the people. Once Li Heng left Emperor Xuanzong's presence, however, Li Heng's trusted eunuch Li Fuguo , Li Chu's brother Li Tan the Prince of Jianning, and Li Chu, persuaded Li Heng not to follow Emperor Xuanzong to Chengdu—arguing that with

6363-462: The people of the Guanzhong region (i.e., the region around Chang'an) and was not able to keep the region under firm control. (By this point, An Lushan had been assassinated and succeeded by his son An Qingxu , as the emperor of Yan.) However, an immediate attempt to do so, commanded by the chancellor Fang Guan , was defeated by the Yan forces near Chang'an with heavy losses. Meanwhile, around

6464-549: The people. Once Li Heng left Emperor Xuanzong's presence, however, Li Fuguo and Li Heng's sons Li Tan the Prince of Jianning and Li Chu the Prince of Guangping, persuaded Li Heng not to follow Emperor Xuanzong to Jiannan—arguing that with the physical barriers between Chang'an and Jiannan, that once they had left the region, Chang'an could no longer be captured. Li Heng agreed and had Li Chu report this to Emperor Xuanzong. Emperor Xuanzong agreed with Li Heng's decision, but he himself continued on to Jiannan. Li Heng, escorted by

6565-416: The physical barriers between Chang'an and Jiannan Circuit (劍南, headquartered in modern Chengdu), that once they had left the region, Chang'an could no longer be captured. Li Heng agreed and had Li Chu report this to Emperor Xuanzong. Emperor Xuanzong agreed with Li Heng's decision, but he himself continued on to Jiannan. Li Heng, escorted by a small number of guard soldiers commanded by Li Tan, then headed to

6666-442: The poor governance and justice system during Emperor Daizong's time to this.) In 768, after Li Huaixian was assassinated by his officers Zhu Xicai , Zhu Ci , and Zhu Ci's brother Zhu Tao , Emperor Daizong made an attempt to take back control of Lulong Circuit (盧龍, headquartered in modern Beijing), which Li Huaixian had governed. He made Wang Jin the military governor and Zhu Xicai the acting military governor. When Wang arrived at

6767-430: The populace. He also often held feasts for generals and people from Jiannan, with Li Chiying and Ru serving as hostesses. Emperor Xuanzong's attendants looked down at Li Fuguo. To retaliate, Li Fuguo began to try to convince Emperor Suzong that Emperor Xuanzong and his attendants were plotting to seize power back. In 760, with Emperor Suzong's tacit, although not explicit, approval, on one occasion when Emperor Xuanzong

6868-424: The reign of his son Emperor Daizong . During Emperor Suzong's reign, the tradition of eunuchs becoming top-ranked officials began, with Li Fuguo becoming the commander of the imperial guards and possessing nearly absolute power near Emperor Suzong's reign. Li Fuguo allied and befriended Emperor Suzong's wife, Empress Zhang, at the beginning of Emperor Suzong's reign, and in an alliance of power, both cleared

6969-669: The same time, Emperor Suzong's brother Li Lin the Prince of Yong tried to mount a challenge against him, seeking to effectively secede with the region south of the Yangtze River , but was quickly defeated and killed by forces loyal to Emperor Suzong. Emperor Suzong's court was also itself filled with internal struggles, with Li Fuguo aligned with Emperor Suzong's favorite concubine Consort Zhang , in opposition to Li Chu, Li Tan, and Emperor Suzong's trusted advisor Li Mi . In early 757, after Li Tan repeatedly accused Li Fuguo and Consort Zhang of corruption, Li Fuguo and Empress Zhang in turn falsely accused him of trying to assassinate Li Chu, who

7070-399: The sister of the official Wei Jian ( 韋堅 ), was created crown princess. As Li Heng's ascension to be crown prince was against Li Linfu's wishes, and also because Wei Jian, who drew favor from Emperor Xuanzong due to his abilities to increase revenues for the imperial treasury, was becoming a rival to Li Linfu at court, Li Linfu looked for ways to incriminate both Wei and Li Heng. In 746, when

7171-419: The stew. When he told Zhang this as well, Zhang responded, "This is heaven's will. You should not worry." (As a result, later on in life, Li Sisheng would feel personally indebted to Zhang Yue.) In 712, Emperor Ruizong passed the throne to Li Longji, who took the throne as Emperor Xuanzong, but Emperor Ruizong retained actual power as Taishang Huang (retired emperor). Shortly after Emperor Xuanzong took

7272-433: The supreme commander instead. Subsequently, Li Chu and Li Mi were entrusted with the keys of the makeshift palace, and one would always be on duty to be ready to receive important military reports. In 757, Emperor Suzong considered creating Li Chu crown prince, but Li Mi and Li Chu, pointing out that it would be inappropriate to do so before Chang'an were recaptured, advised him otherwise. Subsequently, Emperor Suzong's court

7373-531: The throne using their own power and political influence, later the rest of Emperor Daizong's reign would also see dominance by such individuals as the eunuchs Cheng Yuanzhen and Yu Chao'en , as well as the chancellor Yuan Zai . It is also worth noting that Emperor Daizong became the first Tang emperor to succeed to the throne as a result of maneuvers by eunuchs. Emperor Daizong was himself also said to be overly devout in Buddhism . Daizong's father, Li Jun ,

7474-617: The throne, Emperor Daizong did not want to kill him openly. Instead, on November 12, 762, an assassin got into Li Fuguo's mansion and killed him, taking his head and an arm away as well. Emperor Daizong formally issued an order seeking the arrest of the assassin, and buried Li Fuguo in a grand ceremony, after having a wooden head and wooden arm carved to be buried with the rest of the body. At this point, Emperor Daizong still had to face Yan, now ruled by Shi Chaoyi —the son and successor to Shi Siming , who had killed and succeeded An Qingxu and recaptured Luoyang from Tang in 759. Late in 762, he sent

7575-409: The throne, Emperor Ruizong, as retired emperor, was the one who created Li Sisheng the Prince of Shan. (After Emperor Xuanzong suppressed Princess Taiping's associates in 713 and forced her to commit suicide, Emperor Ruizong transferred imperial authorities to Emperor Xuanzong and was no longer involved in politics.) Li Siqian, whose mother Consort Zhao was then Emperor Xuanzong's favorite concubine,

7676-443: The time being, Emperor Suzong frequently visited Emperor Xuanzong, but he himself grew ill as well and rarely visited. He also regretted permitting Li Fuguo to take these actions and considered killing him, but hesitated and ultimately did not do so because Li Fuguo commanded the imperial guards. Indeed, thereafter, Li Fuguo became minister of defense, and Emperor Suzong was often forced to comply with his wishes as far as governance

7777-479: The titles of minister of defense and assistant of military affairs to the supreme commander—thus stripping him of military command—giving the latter post to Cheng. He also ordered Li Fuguo to leave the palace and take residence up outside, although he created Li Fuguo the Prince of Bolu. Li Fuguo became apprehensive and offered to retire, and Emperor Daizong declined and sent him away with formal respect. Because Li Fuguo had killed Empress Zhang and had supported him for

7878-465: The township-level division of: Lingwu's population was reported as 261,677 in the 2010 Chinese census . In the 2000 Chinese census , the city's population was 249,890. The city has a Hui majority population. The city has significant coal , natural gas , and petroleum reserves. Lingwu has a proven coal reserve of 27.3 billion tons. Lingwu also has a significant agricultural sector, with rice , wheat , corn , and jujubes all being grown in

7979-492: The very-ill Emperor Suzong. Lingwu Lingwu ( simplified Chinese : 灵武 市 ; traditional Chinese : 靈武 市 ; pinyin : Língwǔ Shì , Xiao'erjing : لِئٍ‌وُ شِ) is a county-level city of Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region , Southwest China , it is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Yinchuan . It is the most important industrial city of Ningxia. Lingwu spans an area of 3,846 square kilometres (1,485 sq mi), and according to

8080-525: The very-ill Emperor Suzong. Empress Zhang then entered into an alliance with Li Yu's younger brother Li Xi ( 李係 ) the Prince of Yue, and they tried to set a trap for Li Fuguo, with 200 strong eunuchs loyal to her and Li Xi ready to act against Li Fuguo. On May 14, 762, she issued an order in Emperor Suzong's name, summoning Li Yu into the palace. However, Cheng received this news and reported this to Li Fuguo and Li Yu, and Cheng then escorted Li Yu to

8181-423: The wars. After the project was completed, Chang'an again had adequate food supplies, allowing the region to begin to recover. Pugu, meanwhile, had allied with Huige and Tibet, and in late 764 and then again in 765 allied with them to attack the Chang'an region. After Pugu died in 765, however, the threat subsided, and his army resubmitted to Emperor Daizong. However, by this point, Emperor was facing, in addition to

8282-443: Was Yang Guozhong (Li Linfu having died in 752), the cousin of Emperor Xuanzong's then-favorite concubine Yang Guifei (unrelated to Li Heng's mother). Yang Guozhong and An were locked in a power struggle, and Yang repeatedly accused An of plotting a rebellion, but Emperor Xuanzong would not believe it, although Li Heng eventually came to agree with Yang Guozhong. In late 755, with Yang Guozhong repeatedly trying to provoke An into

8383-459: Was a daughter of the official Du Youlin ( 杜有鄰 ). Consort Du's brother-in-law Liu Ji ( 柳勣 ) had a dispute with the Du family and falsely accused them of using witchcraft in favor of Li Heng. Li Linfu had Ji Wen interrogate Liu, and Ji implicated Liu in the alleged plot as well. Du Youlin, Liu, and Liu's friend Wang Zeng ( 王曾 ) were all caned to death, and Li Heng felt compelled to expel Consort Du from

8484-412: Was a high -level official during Sui and had been given the title Prince of Zheng ( 鄭王 ). Her father Yang Zhiqing ( 楊知慶 ) was a general of the imperial guards during Tang. At the time that Consort Yang Guipin was pregnant with Li Sisheng, Li Longji was locked in a power struggle with his aunt, Emperor Ruizong's sister Princess Taiping , and it was said that Princess Taiping had placed many associates in

8585-727: Was also itself filled with internal struggles, with Li Fuguo aligned with Emperor Suzong's favorite concubine Consort Zhang , in opposition to Li Chu, Li Tan, and Li Mi. In early 757, after Li Tan repeatedly accused Li Fuguo and Consort Zhang of corruption, Li Fuguo and Empress Zhang in turn falsely accused him of trying to assassinate Li Chu in order to become the heir. Emperor Suzong, in anger, ordered Li Tan to commit suicide, which drew fear from Li Chu and Li Mi. Li Chu considered assassinating Li Fuguo and Consort Zhang, but at Li Mi's urging, stopped his plans to do so. In fall 757, troops from Huige , whose Bayanchur Khan Yaoluoge Moyanchuo had answered Emperor Suzong's request for help, arrived under

8686-553: Was an emperor of the Chinese Tang dynasty and the son of Emperor Xuanzong . Suzong ascended the throne after his father fled to Sichuan during the An Lushan Rebellion in 756; Li Heng himself had fled in the opposite direction, to Lingwu , where he was declared emperor by the army. Much of Emperor Suzong's reign was spent in quelling the aforementioned rebellion, which was ultimately put down in 763 during

8787-418: Was bedridden by this point, and it was said that he was so saddened by Emperor Xuanzong's death that his illness further advanced. He thus granted regent powers on Li Yu. By this point, Empress Zhang and Li Fuguo were no longer allies, and Empress Zhang summoned Li Yu, wanting an alliance with him to kill Li Fuguo and his subordinate Cheng Yuanzhen . Li Yu refused, pointing out that this would cause alarm to

8888-549: Was capable, he hesitated. At the urging of the eunuch Gao Lishi , who believed that one of his older sons should be made crown prince, Emperor Xuanzong created Li Yu crown prince on 24 Jun 738 and renamed him Li Shao. (As it was quickly pointed out that he thus shared a name with the Liu Song crown prince Liu Shao , who killed his father and usurped the throne, his name was then quickly changed to Li Heng and would not change again thereafter.) One of his consorts, Consort Wei,

8989-516: Was concerned, although Emperor Suzong rebuffed his wishes to become chancellor. In 761, Shi Siming was assassinated and succeeded by his son Shi Chaoyi , and it was said that other Yan generals, who were originally Shi Siming's equals, began to disobey Shi Chaoyi's orders. Tang forces thus were able to beat back the Yan forces but were not able to dislodge Shi Huaiyi from Luoyang, and final victory over Yan would not come in Emperor Suzong's lifetime. In summer 762, Emperor Xuanzong died. Emperor Suzong

9090-440: Was created crown prince. Li Sisheng, although his mother alive, was raised by Emperor Xuanzong's wife Empress Wang , who was herself sonless. It was said that in his childhood, he was kind and studious, and Emperor Xuanzong was pleased with him. Emperor Xuanzong thus made the officials He Zhizhang ( 賀知章 ), Pan Su ( 潘肅 ), Lü Xiang ( 呂向 ), Huangfu Bin ( 皇甫彬 ), and Xing Su ( 邢璹 ) accompany him in his studies. In 724, due to

9191-414: Was finally put down early in his own reign, in 763. However, thereafter, the Tang state was plagued by warlords such as Tian Chengsi , Li Baochen , and Liang Chongyi who essentially governed their realms as independent states while only pledging nominal loyalty to the emperor. This would prove disastrous for future generations as subsequent Tang emperors were unable to remove or control these warlords and

9292-902: Was in turn assassinated by his subordinate Li Huaiyuan ( 李懷瑗 ), and Zhu Ci replaced him. Zhu Ci took a more respectful stand toward the imperial government, and thereafter, while the central government did not take back actual control of Lulong, Lulong soldiers often participated in campaigns commissioned by the imperial government. (Eventually, indeed, Zhu Ci himself would arrive at Chang'an and thereafter remain an imperial general near Chang'an and not return to Lulong, leaving Lulong in Zhu Tao's hands.) In 773, Xue Song died, and Emperor Daizong agreed to let his brother Xue E succeed him in ruling Zhaoyi Circuit (昭義, headquartered in modern Anyang , Henan ). However, Tian Chengsi, who ruled nearby Weibo Circuit (魏博, headquartered in modern Handan , Hebei ), had other designs. In spring 775, under his encouragement,

9393-664: Was nevertheless rewarded with the honorific title of Situ ( 司徒 ), one of the Three Ducal Ministers . In 735, his name was changed to Li Yu. In 737, due to the machinations of Consort Wu, Li Ying, along with his brothers Li Yao ( 李瑤 ) the Prince of E and Li Ju ( 李琚 ) the Prince of Guang, was accused of crimes, deposed, and forced to commit suicide. Consort Wu and Li Linfu continued to lobby for Li Qing (whose name had been changed to Li Mao at this point) to be created crown prince, but with Consort Wu having died herself later in 737 and Emperor Xuanzong believing that Li Yu

9494-540: Was older than he was, in order to become the heir. Emperor Suzong, in anger, ordered Li Tan to commit suicide, which drew fear from Li Chu and Li Mi. Li Chu considered assassinating Li Fuguo and Consort Zhang, but at Li Mi's urging, stopped his plans to do so. Emperor Suzong, finding it difficult to recapture Chang'an just with his own troops, then entered into an alliance with Huige 's Bayanchur Khan Yaoluoge Moyanchuo, where Huige forces arrived at Emperor Suzong's then-headquarters at Fengxiang (鳳翔, in modern Baoji) to join

9595-658: Was out riding, Li Fuguo intercepted him and forced him to move back to the main palace. Even on that occasion, however, Gao would not submit to Li Fuguo and even yelled at Li Fuguo to force him to get off his horse and to escort Emperor Xuanzong on foot, along with Gao. Soon after Emperor Xuanzong was forcibly moved, Li Fuguo forced Chen to retire, Li Chiying to return to her temple (she had become an ordained Daoist nun in 711), and exiled Gao, Wang, Wei, and Ru. Emperor Suzong then had his daughters Princesses Wan'an and Xianyi attend to Emperor Xuanzong, but Emperor Xuanzong, having lost his trusted attendants, became silent and ill. For

9696-400: Was raised with Li Heng inside the palace because his father Wang Haibin ( 王海賓 ) had died in battle in service to the empire, was accused of interfering with the campaign of another general, Dong Yan'guang ( 董延光 ), against Tibetan Empire . Li Linfu broadened the accusation to an accusation that Wang was planning to start a coup to overthrow Emperor Xuanzong and replace him with Li Heng. At

9797-419: Was repelled by Tang forces, and Pugu Yang's own soldiers killed him. Pugu, believing he was facing defeat, took his troops, largely from Shuofang Circuit (朔方, headquartered in modern Yinchuan , Ningxia ), back to its headquarters at Lingwu and dug in there; he thereafter remained a threat to the Tang imperial government, although Emperor Daizong, still hoping that he would resubmit, never formally declared him

9898-758: Was said that Empress Zhang did not give up the idea of having Li Shao become crown prince and was looking for ways to undermine Li Yu. Li Yu tried to react with meekness and humility. After Li Shao died in 759, because Empress Zhang's other son, Li Tong ( 李侗 ) the Prince of Ding was still young, Li Yu's position was no longer threatened. In 762, Emperor Suzong had become seriously ill. After Emperor Xuanzong died in summer 762, Emperor Suzong, in mourning, grew worse. He had Li Yu assume regent powers. By this point, Empress Zhang and Li Fuguo were no longer allies, and Empress Zhang summoned Li Yu, wanting an alliance with him to kill Li Fuguo and his subordinate Cheng Yuanzhen . Li Yu refused, pointing out that this would cause alarm to

9999-570: Was studious, particularly in the Classic of Rites and the I Ching . He was much favored by his grandfather. Emperor Xuanzong chose for him, as his wife and princess, Lady Cui the daughter of the Lady of Han, a sister of Emperor Xuanzong's favorite concubine Consort Yang Yuhuan ; however, his oldest son Li Kuo was born of a concubine, Consort Shen . In 755, the general An Lushan rebelled at Fanyang (范陽, in modern Beijing ), and by summer 756,

10100-557: Was subsequently created the greater title of Prince of Chu. In spring 758, his title was changed to Prince of Cheng. Emperor Suzong wanted to further create him crown prince, but hesitated because Consort Zhang, who had since been created empress, had a son named Li Shao ( 李佋 ), carrying the title of Prince of Zhao, whom she wanted to be crown prince. When he consulted the chancellor Li Kui , Li Kui advocated for Li Chu, and Emperor Suzong agreed, creating Li Chu crown prince on June 29, 758. He also changed Li Chu's name to Li Yu. However, it

10201-448: Was the Prince of Zhong under his father Emperor Xuanzong when Daizong was born. His mother was Li Jun's concubine Consort Wu. He was the oldest of Emperor Xuanzong's over 100 grandsons. In 740, by which time Li Jun (whose name had been changed to Li Heng by that point) was crown prince , Li Chu was created the Prince of Guangping. That year, his mother Consort Wu died. In his youth, he was said to be kind, meek, and filially pious, and

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