Tian Lingzi
PoliticsWhen Xizong was a close confidant of the king, he controlled the Shence Army and was domineering. He kidnapped Xizong twice and fled. Later, he went to his brother Chen Jingxuan and was killed by Wang Jian in 893.
Dynasties of ChinaTang dynastyTang dynasty lineage
XizongLi Xuan
Qianfu and others · Reign 873—888
He was supported by the eunuchs at the age of twelve, and he wandered around excessively. After Huang Chao invaded Chang'an, he fled twice, and the Tang Dynasty existed in name only.
IBiography
- Reign
- 15 years
- Reign era
- Qianfu and others
- Order of accession
- Ruler #20 · Tang dynasty lineage
- Life dates
- 862—888
- Titles
- Temple name: Xizong · Posthumous title: Emperor Huishenggongdingxiao · Buried at Jingling Mausoleum
Li Xuan, formerly known as Li Yan, was the fifth son of Yizong. Yizong died of illness in 873, and the eunuchs Liu Xingshen and Han Wenyue supported him to the throne at the age of twelve. He liked cockfighting, betting on geese, and batting, and entrusted all political affairs to the eunuch Tian Lingzi, whom he called "father." After years of floods and droughts and heavy taxes and servitude, Wang Xianzhi and Huang Chao rebelled one after another and fought in most of China. In 880, they invaded Chang'an and he fled to Chengdu in a hurry.
After that, vassal towns in various places took advantage of the opportunity to suppress Huang Chao to expand their strength. Shatuo Li Keyong regained Chang'an, and Zhu Wen, the surrendered general of Huang Chao, was awarded the title of Xuanwu Jiedushi. In 884, Huang Chao was defeated and died. In 885, Xizong returned to Chang'an, but Tian Lingzi and Hezhong King Chongrong fought for the salt pond, which led to Li Keyong's attack. He fled again. Zhu Mei, the governor of Xingning, took the opportunity to proclaim King Xiang Li Xiang as emperor. He returned to Chang'an in 888 and died of illness a month later at the age of twenty-seven.
IITimeline
During the reign · 873—888
PoliticsThe eunuchs supported him
In July, Yizong died of illness. The eunuchs Liu Xingshen and Han Wenyue supported the twelve-year-old King Pu Li Yan to take the throne and changed his name to Li Xuan. He favored the eunuch Tian Lingzi and entrusted political affairs to him, calling him "father".
SocietyWang XianzhiHuang Chao uprising
There has been severe drought in Guandong for consecutive years, and the government continues to press for rent. At the end of the previous year, Wang Xianzhi launched an uprising in Changyuan. In 875, Huang Chao, an aggrieved man, gathered a crowd to respond. Both of them had been selling private salt, and the rebels moved to Henan and Shandong.
PoliticsHitting bet Mikawa
In order to install his cronies, Tian Lingzi asked his brother Chen Jingxuan and four others to go out to Sanchuan. Xizong asked four people to compete in a batting competition and decided the appointment based on ranking. Chen Jingxuan came first and was appointed as the governor of Xichuan.
MilitaryHuang Chao enters Chang'an
Huang Chao led his army from Ling N & S, attacked Luoyang in November, broke through Tongguan in December, and captured Chang'an. Xizong fled to Chengdu under the escort of Tian Lingzi. Huang Chao assumed the throne of emperor in Hanyuan Hall, and his country was named Daqi.
MilitaryRecover Chang'an
In the previous year, Huang Chao general Zhu Wen surrendered to Tang Dynasty and was named Quanzhong. Li Keyong, the leader of Shatuo, led his army southward and united with other towns to conquer Chang'an in April. Huang Chao withdrew eastward. Tang Dynasty appointed Li Keyong as the governor of Hedong and Zhu Quanzhong as the governor of Xuanwu.
Culture"Qin Fu Yin" by Wei Zhuang
The poet Wei Zhuang wrote the long poem "Qin Fu Yin" in Luoyang, describing the miserable situation of Huang Chao's army after entering Chang'an through the words of a refugee woman. "The inner treasury was burned to beautiful ashes, and the bones of the princes were trampled in the streets." It was widely circulated, and people at the time called him "The Qin Fu Yin Scholar".
Lasting legacyThis poem was later lost for nearly a thousand years because of Wei Zhuang's denunciation. It was only rediscovered in the Dunhuang Scripture Cave Manuscript at the beginning of the 20th century.
Science & technologyChengdu printed books
Liu Jue, who followed Xizong to Shu, recorded in the "Preface to the Liu Family Instructions" that Chengdu bookstores sold a large number of Yin and Yang miscellaneous books, calligraphy books and elementary school books printed on woodblocks, indicating that woodblock printing had begun to be used for commercial publishing.
Lasting legacyThe fragmentary pages of the printed almanac of Fan Shangjia of Chengdu, unearthed in Dunhuang in the second year of Zhonghe (882), are now in the collection of the British Library. It is one of the earliest printed almanacs in existence.
MilitaryHuang Chao was defeated
In May, Li Keyong passed by Bianzhou after pursuing Huang Chao. Zhu Quanzhong attacked him at night after hosting a banquet at Shangyuan Post. Li Keyong almost died, and the two became feuding. In June, Huang Chao was defeated and died in the Langhu Valley of Mount Tai.
PoliticsKing wants to be emperor
At the end of the previous year, Tian Lingzi and Hezhong Jiedushi Wang Chongrong competed for the salt pond of Jie County. Li Keyong and Wang Chongrong invaded Chang'an, and Xizong fled again. Zhu Mei, the governor of Xingning, took the opportunity to support King Xiang Li Jin as emperor. At the end of the year, Zhu Mei was killed by his subordinates, and Li Jin was also executed.
EconomyYangzhou is broken
In 887, Huainan general Bi Shiduo launched an army and invaded Yangzhou. Jiedu envoy Gao Pian was killed. After that, Qin Yan, Sun Ru, Yang Xingmi and others fought for it repeatedly. Yangzhou, which was originally "promoting one and benefiting two" and rich in the world, is now almost in ruins.
IIIPeople of this reign
Huang Chao
MilitaryCaozhou Yuanju was born as a salt merchant and failed to succeed in many trials. He raised an army in 875, invaded Chang'an in 880 and proclaimed himself emperor, but was defeated and died in 884.
Wang Xianzhi
MilitaryA native of Puzhou, he was a smuggler in salt. He started an uprising in Changyuan in 874. He once tried to recruit the emperor but failed, and was defeated and killed in Huangmei in 878.
Li Keyong
MilitaryThe son of Li Guochang, a native of Shatuo, was blind in one eye and was nicknamed "One-Eyed Dragon". In 883, he led his army to regain Chang'an, and since then he has long been competing with Zhu Wen for supremacy.
Zhu Wen
MilitaryGeneral Huang Chao surrendered to the Tang Dynasty in 882 and was named Quanzhong. In the following year, he was appointed as the military governor of Xuanwu and gradually gained power with Bianzhou as his base.