History of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms

Chapter 457 National Hero Zhang Yichao

【National Hero Zhang Yichao】

After losing control of Shu, problems arose in the northwest of the empire.

The first thing that came to Li Siyuan was a piece of good news: Liangzhou generals and the people jointly submitted a petition requesting that Comrade Sun Chao be appointed as Jiedushi. In other words, Liangzhou (now Wuwei City, Gansu Province), a strategic point in the world and a national defense, returned to the central government!
Li Siyuan was actually confused and asked in astonishment: "Who is Sun Chao?"

The people around him then told him the whole story of Liangzhou:
It would be a long story to ask Sun Chao of Liangzhou, so let's cut to the chase. The Tang Dynasty had an important neighbor in the west - Tubo, which had a huge influence on the western border of the Tang Dynasty. After the "Anshi Rebellion", the Tang Dynasty was in decline and gradually lost control of the northwest territory. Tubo took this opportunity to devour and nibble away at the Hexi region, including Shazhou, Liangzhou, Guazhou, Lanzhou, etc.

Tubo implemented high-pressure slave rule and cruel exploitation on the people here. The people in the occupied areas hoped day and night that the Tang Dynasty's army could recover their homeland. According to historical records, whenever Tang Dynasty envoys passed through this area, the people would line the streets to greet them, weeping and telling them the tragic experience of the "slaves of the conquered country" and asking them: "Does the emperor still care about the lives of the trapped Tubo people?"

The envoys saw that these people were dressed in Tang Dynasty clothes, with only slightly changed accents. After asking, they learned that they were descendants of refugees who fell into Tubo during the "Anshi Rebellion", the "second generation of refugees" and "third generation of refugees".

Decades have passed, and several generations have passed away, but the people here still have their hearts set on the Tang Dynasty and still sing "Chinese Heart". Although they have never seen what the "Tang Dynasty" looks like, they have passed it on from generation to generation, "We are Chinese! The Emperor of the Tang Dynasty is our Emperor! The motherland will not abandon us."

In this situation, the song "Chinese Heart" lingers in my ears.

The Chinese people have a strong sense of cohesion since ancient times.

During the reigns of Emperor Wuzong and Emperor Xianzong, the Tang Dynasty rebounded from the bottom, with the "Huaichang Restoration" and "Dazhong Reign", while the Tubo's national strength declined sharply due to the combined effects of political turmoil and natural disasters. As one side gained, the other lost, and the Tang Dynasty began to use military force against Tubo to recover lost territory.

The series of victories of the Tang army greatly inspired the people of Hexi to resist the tyranny of Tubo. When the king's army conquers the Central Plains in the north, don't forget to tell your father during the family sacrifice.

In the second year of the Dazhong period (848), a hero named Zhang Yichao united various forces opposing Tubo and launched an uprising in Shazhou. He expelled the Tubo army and gained control of Shazhou. He then sent envoys to contact the Tang court, report the local situation, and request the central government to send troops for support.

Emperor Xuanzong of Tang highly praised Zhang Yichao's heroic feat and immediately promoted him to be the defense commander of Shazhou, encouraging him to continue fighting against Tubo and recover lost territory.

Zhang Yichao lived up to expectations and took Shazhou as his base to recapture ten states including Gua, Gan, Su, and Lanzhou, and recovered a large area of ​​territory including Xinjiang, Gansu, and Qinghai today. In the fifth year of Dazhong (851), he sent envoys to present maps and books of eleven states. Since then, the Hexi region, which had been under the rule of Tubo for a long time, returned to the embrace of the Tang Dynasty.

Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty set up the Guiyi Army in Shazhou, which was under the jurisdiction of the eleven states mentioned above. He appointed Zhang Yichao as the governor of the Guiyi Army and conferred him the title of Duke of Nanyang County, with a fief of 2,000 households and an actual fief of 300 households (already a treatment superior to that of a king). He also received other titles and gifts that need not be listed in detail.

In short, Zhang Yichao was a national hero who recovered Hexi in the late Tang Dynasty.

The Tubo forces were squeezed into Liangzhou, which controlled the "Hexi Corridor" and strangled the thin neck of the Tang Dynasty in and out of the Western Regions. Without Liangzhou, the Shazhou Guiyi Army would not be able to establish effective contact with the court, and the court would not be able to effectively manage the Western Regions.

As a result, Zhang Yichao launched a bloody battle against Liangzhou that lasted for three years, and finally recovered Liangzhou in the second year of Xiantong (861) during the reign of Emperor Yizong of Tang.

Later, the Tang Dynasty set up the Liangzhou Jiedushi, which governed six states and was concurrently led by Comrade Zhang Yichao. However, the Tang Dynasty did not effectively utilize the Hexi Corridor, because after the brief rebound during the reigns of Emperor Wuzong and Emperor Xuanzong, the Tang Dynasty suffered another setback during the reign of Emperor Yizong. The subsequent historical stories during the reigns of Emperor Xizong, Emperor Zhaozong, and Emperor Ai were as described in the previous million words, which were extremely tragic.

On the one hand, Zhang Yichao relied on his own efforts and worked hard to develop the domestic economy and restore production. On the other hand, he also strengthened military training to resist the counterattack of Tubo at all times.

In the vicinity of the Hexi Corridor, in addition to the Tubo, there were the Dangxiang in the east, the Uighurs in the north, and the remnants of the Tuyuhun in the southwest... They had all submitted to the Tubo, and often attacked the Guiyi Army and Liangzhou alone or in groups. Zhang Yichao was not afraid, and without the support of the Tang court, he led the people of Hexi to fight bravely and defend the fruits of victory.

Zhang Yichao once defeated Tuyuhun, chasing them for more than a thousand miles, capturing three of their prime ministers alive and beheading them all, which greatly frightened the Tuyuhun tribe;
He also took the initiative to send more than a thousand troops to expedition against the remnants of the Uighurs and Tubo entrenched in Yizhou (now Hami, Xinjiang), and returned with a great victory.

The two great victories greatly enhanced Zhang Yichao's regional prestige, making the Uighur, Tuyuhun and other tribes no longer dare to have unreasonable expectations, and the various ethnic minority tribes expressed their willingness to submit.

Zhang Yichao pursued the basic national policy of the imperial court to control and appease the people, absorbed a large number of foreign people, and strengthened the prestige of the country. The minority soldiers who surrendered also actively expressed their loyalty and competed to make contributions to the Tang Dynasty.

For example, Zhang Yichao appointed the Uighur general Pugujun to recapture cities such as Xizhou, and then led troops to attack Tubo. This battle directly defeated Tubo and caused its rapid demise.

Therefore, this book begins from the end of Emperor Xuanzong's reign, focusing on Emperor Yizong, Emperor Xizong, Emperor Zhaozong, and Emperor Ai, the last four emperors of the Tang Dynasty. The most frequently appearing foreign forces are Nanzhao and Khitan. Tubo, which once had close relations with the Tang Dynasty, rarely appears. The only time it appeared was when talking about Nanzhao, where it played a supporting role.

The reason why such a huge, powerful and long-standing old neighbor has been ignored by us is not because I can avoid it, but thanks to the national hero Comrade Zhang Yichao, who brought Tubo from the top to the bottom.

In the eighth year of Xiantong (867), Zhang Yichao's brother Zhang Yitan, who was left as a hostage in Chang'an, died. The 69-year-old Zhang Yichao returned to the court and came to Chang'an to continue to be a hostage.

Sorry, calling him a hostage sounds bad. The court appointed Zhang Yichao as the general of the Central Imperial Guards, promoted him to the position of Minister of Education, and awarded him a luxurious villa in the city of Chang'an.

After Zhang Yichao returned to the court, Zhang Yitan's son was elected as the regent to guard Guiyi Army and Liangzhou.

In the 872th year of Xiantong (), Zhang Yichao died of illness in the capital Chang'an. He was posthumously awarded the title of Grand Tutor.

The next year (873), Emperor Yizong died and Emperor Xizong ascended the throne, followed by the "Wang Xianzhi and Huang Chao uprisings" (874).

As the Tang Dynasty gradually declined, the connection between Liangzhou and other places and the Central Plains dynasty was gradually cut off.

Thanks to my old friend "Book Friend 20180121110920727" for his valuable monthly ticket. I will add another chapter today to show my gratitude!

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(End of this chapter)