Dynasties of ChinaTang dynastyTang dynasty lineage
Zhenguan · Reign 626—649
After Xuanwumen seized the throne, he humbly accepted advice, founded the Reign of Zhenguan, destroyed the Eastern Turks and was revered as the "Khan of Heaven".
Li Shimin was the second son of Li Yuan. He joined the army as a boy and joined the army with his father in 617. After the establishment of the Tang dynasty, he led troops to conquer the east and west as the King of Qin, and successively defeated Xue Rengao, Liu Wuzhou, Dou Jiangde and Wang Shichong. He was named General Tiance, opened a literature hall and recruited "Eighteen Bachelors" such as Fang Xuanling and Du Ruhui. His reputation and power grew day by day, forming a sharp opposition with Crown Prince Li Jiancheng and King QiLi Yuanji.
In June 626, he launched the Xuanwu Gate Incident and killed Jiancheng and Yuanji. He ascended the throne in August and changed his name to Yuan Zhenguan the following year. Taking the fall of the Sui Dynasty as a lesson, he appointed Fang Xuanling, Du Ruhui, Wei Zheng, Zhangsun Wuji and others to improve the system of the three provinces, accept advice with an open mind, take corvees lightly and pay less taxes, and merge provinces, prefectures and counties, and the social economy recovered rapidly, which is known as the "Reign of Zhenguan" in history. Externally, he sent Li Jing to destroy the Eastern Turks and suppress Tuyuhun, and Hou Junji to destroy Gaochang. He also sent Wen Chenggongzhu to ally with Tubo. He was respected as "Khan of Heaven" by all ethnic groups in the northwest.
In his later years, he gradually became arrogant and extravagant, and built palaces many times. Wei Zheng once went to Shuzhichen "Ten Gradually". In 643, Crown Prince Li Chengqian rebelled and was deposed, and was replaced by King Li Zhi of Jin. In 645, he personally conquered Goguryeo and returned after being frustrated outside the city of Anshi. He died of illness in Cuiwei Palace in Zhongnan Mountain in 649 and was buried in Zhaoling. His words and deeds in discussing politics with his ministers were later compiled into "Zhenguan Zhengyao" by historian Wu Jing, which became a must-read book for later emperors.
Tang Taizong is recognized as one of the wise kings in Chinese history. He was good at employing people, accepted advice with an open mind, and took the fall of the Sui Dynasty as a lesson and ignored the corvee and paid less. During the Zhenguan period, the official administration was clear and the system was complete. However, he forced his father to take the throne by killing his brother. In his later years, he also carried out large-scale construction projects and went on an expedition to Goguryeo. He personally participated in the compilation of national history, and his image was beautified by historians to a certain extent.
PoliticsAdvocating for raising troops
Li Shimin, Liu Wenjing and others made friends with heroes and persuaded his father Li Yuan to rebel against the Sui Dynasty. Two "Books of the Tang Dynasty" claim that the army was planned by him, but according to Wen Daya's "Notes on the Entrepreneurship of the Tang Dynasty", the leader was actually Li Yuan. One theory is that Taizong's contribution was exaggerated by later historians.
MilitaryBattle of Hulao
They seized Hulao Pass with 3,500 cavalry and blocked Dou Jiande's more than 100,000 reinforcements for more than a month. In May, he took advantage of his exhaustion to attack and captured Dou Jiande alive, forcing Wang Shichong who was trapped in Luoyang to surrender in Kaicheng, and pacified Henan and Hebei in one fell swoop.
PoliticsAdmiral Tiance
Because of his contribution to pacifying the Central Plains, Li Yuan granted him the post of "General Tiance", which placed him above the kings and allowed him to appoint his own officials. He opened a literature school in Fuzhong and named Fang Xuanling, Du Ruhui, Kong Yingda and other eighteen people as bachelors, known as the "Eighteen Bachelors".
PoliticsXuanwu Gate Incident
In the early morning of the fourth day of June, Li Shimin led Zhangsun Wuji, Yuchi Jingde and others to set up an ambush at Xuanwu Gate, the north gate of the palace city, and shot Crown Prince Li Jiancheng with his own hands. Three days later, he was established as Crown Prince and ascended the throne in the Xiande Hall of the East Palace on the ninth day of August.
DiplomacyWeishui Alliance
Less than twenty days after taking the throne, the Eastern Turk Jieli Khan led more than 100,000 riders to the north of the Weishui River bridge outside Chang'an City. Taizong personally led six cavalry to the Weishui River to talk with Jieli across the river. Immediately, the army arrived. The two sides formed an alliance with Xingbaima on the bridge, and the Turks retreated.
PoliticsMerging provinces, prefectures and counties
After changing the Yuan Dynasty to Zhenguan, the country was divided into ten areas including Guannei, Henan, Hebei, Jiangnan, and Lingnan according to the mountainous situation. It also merged prefectures and counties on a large scale to streamline central officials and reduce the burden on the people.
PoliticsImprove the three-province system
The Zhongshu Province drafts the edict, the Menxia Province reviews and refutes it, and the Shangshu Province executes it. Taizong required his subordinates to conscientiously reject and refuse to obey, and also used his official title to "participate in government affairs" and other pretexts to enter the political hall to discuss matters, forming a chief minister system in which everyone discussed.
CultureXuan Zang traveled westward to seek the Dharma
In 629 (some say 627), the eminent monk Xuan Zang was not allowed to leave the customs, so he traveled westward by Hexi privately, crossed the desert and snow-capped mountains to Tianzhu, and studied at Nalanda Temple for many years. In 645, he returned to Chang'an with the scriptures and statues. Taizong summoned him and ordered him to write "The Records of the Western Regions of the Tang Dynasty".
Lasting legacy"Records of the Western Regions of the Tang Dynasty" provided key basis for modern archaeologists to identify Indian Buddhist sites such as Nalanda Temple. The Nalanda Temple site was listed as a World Heritage in 2016.
MilitaryDestroy the Eastern Turks
Li Jing led three thousand cavalry to surprise Dingxiang and defeated the main Turkic force in Yinshan Mountain. Jieli Khan was captured and taken to Chang'an, and the Eastern Turkic Khanate was destroyed. In April, the princes of all ethnic groups in the northwest gathered in Chang'an and honored Taizong as "Khan of Heaven".
DiplomacyThe first batch of envoys sent to Tang Dynasty
Emperor Shumei of Japan sent Inugami Oda Sho and others as envoys to the Tang dynasty. They were among the first batch of envoys sent to the Tang dynasty. In the following two hundred years, Japan sent envoys to the Tang Dynasty more than ten times, and a large number of foreign students and learned monks came to China to study laws, regulations, Buddhism and literature.
Lasting legacyHeijo Kyo built in 710 and Heian Kyo (today's Kyoto) in 794 both imitated Chang'an's checkerboard layout, and Kyoto neighborhoods still retain this pattern.
CultureGrand occasion of Chinese studies
Taizong personally visited the Imperial College many times, built 1,200 more school buildings, and increased the number of students to more than 8,000. Goryeo, Baekje, Silla, Gaochang, Tubo, etc. also sent their children to school. He also ordered Kong Yingda and others to compile "Five Classics Justice" to unify the annotations of classics.
MilitaryPut down Tuyuhun
Tuyuhun repeatedly invaded Hexi. Li Jing led Hou Junji and others on an expedition to Qinghai and pursued them all the way to the vicinity of Qiemo. Tuyuhun Khan Fuyun was defeated and died. The Tang Dynasty established his son as Khan, and Tuyuhun became a vassal state of Tang dynasty.
CultureComplete the history of the Five Dynasties
Linghu Defen, Wei Zheng and others were ordered to compile the historical books of the Liang, Chen, Northern Qi, Northern Zhou and Sui dynasties, and in 648 they re-edited the "Book of Jin". From then on, the system in which the imperial court set up museums and the chief minister supervised the revision of history was established.
Lasting legacy"Book of Liang", "Book of Chen", "Book of Northern Qi", "Book of Zhou", "Book of Sui" and "Book of Jin" are all included in Twenty-Four Histories. A total of eight of the Twenty-Four Histories were written in the early Tang Dynasty.
PoliticsPromulgation of "Zhenguan Law"
Fang Xuanling, Zhangsun Wuji and others revised and completed the "Zhenguan Code" based on the Wu De Code. Compared with the old code, ninety-two capital crimes were eliminated, and those who changed the serious ones to minor ones were invincible. This established the basic appearance of the Tang Code.
SocietyRevised "Clan Chronicle"
Gao Shilian and others were ordered to evaluate the ranking of surnames in the world, and the first draft still ranked the Cui family of Shandong nobles as the first. Taizong was dissatisfied and ordered "to stop using today's officials and nobles as the ranking" and instead put the royal family first, followed by relatives, in order to suppress the old clan.
MilitaryDestroy Gaochang and establish Anxi
Qu Wentai, the king of Gaochang, blocked the trade routes in the Western Regions. Hou Junji led his army to attack Gaochang, established Xizhou on its land, and established the Anxi Protectorate in Jiaohe City. Tang dynasty forces entered the Western Regions and the Silk Road became smoother.
Lasting legacyThe Gaochang Ancient City and Jiaohe Ancient City in Turpan were listed as World Heritage Sites in 2014 as the "Silk Road: Road Network of the Chang'an-Tianshan Corridor" heritage site.
DiplomacyWen Chenggongzhu entered Tibet
Songtsan Gampo, the leader of Tubo, sent Prime Minister Ludongzan to propose marriage. Taizong married Wen Chenggongzhu, the daughter of the clan, and was escorted by Li Daozong, the king of Jiangxia. Songtsen Gampo personally went to Bohai to welcome him, and since then, peaceful exchanges between Tang and Tibet have been maintained for a long time.
Lasting legacyIt is said that the twelve-year-old statue of Sakyamuni brought by Wen Chenggongzhu is still enshrined in the Jokhang Temple in Lhasa. The Jokhang Temple was listed as a World Heritage in 2000.
PeopleWei Zheng died of illness
In the first month of the first month, Wei Zheng passed away. Taizong came to mourn in person, saying, "Using a person as a mirror can help you understand gains and losses." Now he has lost a mirror. In February, Yan Liben was ordered to paint portraits of twenty-four heroes including Zhangsun Wuji, Wei Zheng, and Li Jing in Lingyan Pavilion.
PoliticsRenamed Crown Prince
Crown Prince Li Chengqian competed with the King of Wei, Li Tai, for favor. Chengqian plotted a rebellion and was deposed as a commoner. Li Tai was also demoted for plotting to seize the legitimate throne. Zhangsun Wuji advocated the establishment of Jin Wang Li Zhi, who was kind-hearted, and Taizong accepted it.
MilitaryConquer Goguryeo personally
Taizong personally led the army to cross the Liao River and conquered ten cities including Liaodong and Baiyan. However, they could not conquer Anshi for a long time. The weather was cold and food supplies were exhausted, so they retreated in September. Afterward, he sighed: "If Wei Zheng is here, I won't be able to do what I do."
DiplomacyTowering Khan Road
The Tang army defeated Xue Yantuo in Mobei, and all the Tiele tribes surrendered. The following year, the Yanran Protectorate was established under the jurisdiction of the Yanran Protectorate. The "Towering Khan Road" was opened south of Uihe, and 68 post stations were set up along the way to facilitate the leaders of various ethnic groups to enter the court.
PoliticsDied of illness and buried in Zhaoling
He died of illness in the Hanfeng Hall of Cuiwei Palace in May and was buried in Zhaoling on Jiuwei Mountain in August. Zhaoling started the Tang Dynasty's "mountain-based mausoleum" system. With nearly 200 tombs, it is the largest imperial mausoleum of the Tang Dynasty.
Lasting legacyAmong the six stone carvings of Zhaoling, "Sa Lu Zi" and "Fist Mao Zhu" were stolen and shipped to the United States in 1914 and are now in the Museum of the University of Pennsylvania. The other four horses are in the Xi'an Forest of Steles Museum.
The younger sister of Zhangsun Wuji, married Li Shimin at the age of thirteen. During the Xuanwu Gate Incident, she personally comforted the soldiers; after becoming the queen, she did not allow her relatives to have exclusive power, and often protected Wei Zheng and others who directly advised her, and wrote the "Women's Rules".
King of Qin is the mastermind of the Mansion and participates in planning the Xuanwu Gate Incident. He served as chief minister for more than ten years, commanded hundreds of departments, revised laws and regulations, and supervised the compilation of national history. Together with Du Ruhui, he was known as "Fang Mou Du Duan".
Good at making decisions, he and Fang Xuanling were in charge of the government and formulated rules and regulations. He died of illness in 630 at the age of forty-six, and Taizong cried bitterly.
Originally a member of Li Jiancheng's staff, Taizong reused him regardless of past suspicions. He has advised on more than 200 things, and once published a book called "Ten Gradually Cannot Be Ended", which bluntly pointed out Taizong's slackness in his later years.
The first general in the early Tang Dynasty defeated Xiao Xian and Fu Gong'er in the south, defeated the Eastern Turks in the north, and defeated Tuyuhun in the west. Later generations' military book "Li Wei Gong Wen Dui" was written in his name.
The brother of Zhangsunhuanghou, one of the main planners of the Xuanwu Gate Incident, the first of the twenty-four heroes of Lingyan Pavilion, participated in the revision of "Zhenguan Law", and Taizong was ordered to assist the government before his death.
He was originally Liu Wu's general in Zhou Dynasty. After he surrendered to Tang Dynasty, he saved Li Shimin from danger many times and shot Li Yuanji to death in the Xuanwu Gate Incident. The people later regarded him and Qin Qiong as door gods.
A daughter of the Tang Dynasty, she married Songtsen Gampo, Zampo of Tubo, in 641. She lived in Tubo for nearly 40 years and died in 680. There are many legends about her among the Tibetan people.