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The Tang campaigns against Karasahr () were two military campaigns sent by Emperor Taizong of the
Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...
against the
Tarim Basin The Tarim Basin is an endorheic basin in Northwest China occupying an area of about and one of the largest basins in Northwest China.Chen, Yaning, et al. "Regional climate change and its effects on river runoff in the Tarim Basin, China." Hyd ...
kingdom of
Karasahr Karasahr or Karashar ( ug, قاراشەھەر, Qarasheher, 6=Қарашәһәр), which was originally known, in the Tocharian languages as ''Ārśi'' (or Arshi) and Agni or the Chinese derivative Yanqi ( zh, s=焉耆, p=Yānqí, w=Yen-ch'i), is an ...
, a vassal of the
Western Turkic Khaganate The Western Turkic Khaganate () or Onoq Khaganate ( otk, 𐰆𐰣:𐰸:𐰉𐰆𐰑𐰣, On oq budun, Ten arrow people) was a Turkic khaganate in Eurasia, formed as a result of the wars in the beginning of the 7th century (593–603 CE) after ...
. The city-state, which later became part of
Xinjiang Xinjiang, SASM/GNC: ''Xinjang''; zh, c=, p=Xīnjiāng; formerly romanized as Sinkiang (, ), officially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China (PRC), located in the northwes ...
), may have been known to its inhabitants by the Tocharian name ''Agni'', which was rendered ''Yanqi'' in Chinese sources. The first campaign in 644 was led by the Tang commander Guo Xiaoke, protector-general of the
Anxi Protectorate The Protectorate General to Pacify the West (Anxi Grand Protectorate), initially the Protectorate to Pacify the West (Anxi Protectorate), was a protectorate (640 – ) established by the Chinese Tang dynasty in 640 to control the Tarim Basin. Th ...
in western China, who defeated the oasis state and a Western Turkic army and installed a Tang loyalist as ruler. The second campaign in 648, which was part of the campaign against Karasahr's neighboring state of
Kucha Kucha, or Kuche (also: ''Kuçar'', ''Kuchar''; ug, كۇچار, Кучар; zh, t= 龜茲, p=Qiūcí, zh, t= 庫車, p=Kùchē; sa, कूचीन, translit=Kūcīna), was an ancient Buddhist kingdom located on the branch of the Silk Road ...
, was led by a Turkic general of the
Tang Dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...
, Ashina She'er, who defeated and conquered
Karasahr Karasahr or Karashar ( ug, قاراشەھەر, Qarasheher, 6=Қарашәһәр), which was originally known, in the Tocharian languages as ''Ārśi'' (or Arshi) and Agni or the Chinese derivative Yanqi ( zh, s=焉耆, p=Yānqí, w=Yen-ch'i), is an ...
.


Background

Karasahr, a kingdom in the Tarim Basin, became a
tributary state A tributary state is a term for a pre-modern state in a particular type of subordinate relationship to a more powerful state which involved the sending of a regular token of submission, or tribute, to the superior power (the suzerain). This to ...
of Tang China in 632. In 632, the nearby oasis states
Kashgar Kashgar ( ug, قەشقەر, Qeshqer) or Kashi ( zh, c=喀什) is an oasis city in the Tarim Basin region of Southern Xinjiang. It is one of the westernmost cities of China, near the border with Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Pakistan. ...
and
Khotan Hotan (also known as Gosthana, Gaustana, Godana, Godaniya, Khotan, Hetian, Hotien) is a major oasis town in southwestern Xinjiang, an autonomous region in Western China. The city proper of Hotan broke off from the larger Hotan County to become ...
surrendered to Chinese suzerainty, as did the kingdom of Yarkand in 635. Karasahr was influenced by
Persian culture The culture of Iran () or culture of PersiaYarshater, Ehsa, ''Iranian Studies'', vol. XXII no. 1 (1989) is among the most influential in the world. Iran, also known as Persia, is widely considered to be one of the cradles of civilization. Due t ...
,
Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
, and the Greco-Buddhist culture of
Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is borde ...
. The rulers of Karasahr grew uneasy as the Chinese expanded into Central Asia. After the conquest of the city of Turfan, center of the kingdom of Gaochang, the Chinese army stationed nearby was seen as a direct threat. This is a little ironic, because Gaochang's military aggression against Karasahr (a response to Karasahr's developing a trade route to China that bypassed Gaochang) had earlier served as one of the pretexts for the Tang campaign against Gaochang.


644 Campaign

Karasahr ended its tributary relationship with the Tang dynasty and formed a marriage alliance with the
Western Turkic Khaganate The Western Turkic Khaganate () or Onoq Khaganate ( otk, 𐰆𐰣:𐰸:𐰉𐰆𐰑𐰣, On oq budun, Ten arrow people) was a Turkic khaganate in Eurasia, formed as a result of the wars in the beginning of the 7th century (593–603 CE) after ...
, its previous suzerain. The state of
Kucha Kucha, or Kuche (also: ''Kuçar'', ''Kuchar''; ug, كۇچار, Кучар; zh, t= 龜茲, p=Qiūcí, zh, t= 庫車, p=Kùchē; sa, कूचीन, translit=Kūcīna), was an ancient Buddhist kingdom located on the branch of the Silk Road ...
, although technically a Tang vassal, aided Karasahr's rebellion in 644. Fearing Tang military ambitions, Kucha also ended its status as a Chinese tributary state. The Tang emperor responded by sending an army led by commander Guo Xiaoke, protectorate-general of the
Anxi Protectorate The Protectorate General to Pacify the West (Anxi Grand Protectorate), initially the Protectorate to Pacify the West (Anxi Protectorate), was a protectorate (640 – ) established by the Chinese Tang dynasty in 640 to control the Tarim Basin. Th ...
, against the kingdom. Long Lipozhun, a brother of the former king, defected to the Tang and served as Guo's guide. Guo planned a surprise attack, marching towards the city from the Yulduz, and attacked the kingdom at dawn. The city fell and the king Long Tuqizhi was captured when the Tang troops swam across the moat that surrounded the city. Guo Xiaoke installed Long Lipozhun as ruler and led his army back toward Gaochang with Long Tuqizhi as a captive. The Western Turks sent 5,000 cavalry to assist Karasahr. They arrived three days after Guo's departure and captured Long Lipozhun. They then pursued Guo Xiaoke's army, but were defeated by the Tang troops. One of the Western Turk leaders later sent a
tudun A tudun was a governor resident in a town or other settlement in the ancient Bulgar, Avar or Gokturk empires, particularly those of the Bulgars and the Khazars. The tudun was the personal representative of the imperial government and could ...
to rule Karasahr, but the tudun pulled out after receiving threats from Tang Taizong. The people of Karasahr then installed Long Lipozhun's cousin Xue Apo'anazhi as their king and remained vassals of the Western Turks.


648 campaign

The Tang general Ashina She'er, a member of the Turkic Ashina royal family, was sent to attack Kucha with 100,000 Tiele auxiliary cavalry in 648. Although the Tang expedition did not attack Karasahr directly, the pro-Turk king fled his capital city and attempted to hold off the Tang forces on the eastern borders of Kucha. The Tang expedition pursued, captured, and executed him. Another pro-Tang Karasahr aristocrat, Lipozhun's cousin Xiannazhun, was then installed as ruler of Karasahr.


Aftermath

Karasahr became one of the Tang empire's Four Garrisons of the Pacified West (the others being Kucha, Khotan, and Kashgar) when the headquarters of the Protectorate of the Pacified West was moved from Gaochang to Kucha in 658 or 659, but it is not clear whether any Tang troops were stationed in Karasahr between 648 and 658. The Tang pulled out of Karasahr in 670 as a result of a Tibetan invasion of the Tarim Basin. Tang forces regained the Tarim Basin in 692 but lost it to the Tibetans for the second and last time in the 790s, by which time the Tarim Basin had been cut off from the Tang empire by the Tibetan conquest of the Gansu Corridor in the 760s.


Citations


Bibliography

* * {{Tang dynasty topics Wars involving the Tang dynasty Battles involving the Tang dynasty Chinese Central Asia Military history of the Göktürks 644 648 640s conflicts History of Xinjiang Rebellions in the Tang dynasty 7th century in China Emperor Taizong of Tang