Li Sigong
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Li Sigong (李思恭) (d. 886?''
New Book of Tang The ''New Book of Tang'', generally translated as the "New History of the Tang" or "New Tang History", is a work of official history covering the Tang dynasty in ten volumes and 225 chapters. The work was compiled by a team of scholars of the So ...
'', vol. 221, part 1.
), né Tuoba Sigong (拓拔思恭), formally the Duke of Xia (夏國公), was a Tangut warlord of the late
Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, c=唐朝), or the Tang Empire, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907, with an Wu Zhou, interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed ...
, who, for his contributions against the rebel Huang Chao, was installed as
Dingnan Jiedushi Dingnan Jiedushi (), also known as Xiasui Jiedushi (), was a ''jiedushi'' created in 787 by the Tang dynasty that lasted until the early Northern Song dynasty, when its ruler Li Yuanhao proclaimed himself emperor and established the Western Xia ...
(定難, headquartered in modern
Yulin, Shaanxi Yulin ( zh, s=榆林 , p=Yúlín , ‘’’local pronunciation: y³⁵ˌljʌŋ’’) is a prefecture-level city in the Shaanbei region of Shaanxi province, China, bordering Inner Mongolia to the north, Shanxi to the east, and Ningxia to th ...
) as its military governor (''
Jiedushi The ''jiedushi'' (, Old Turkic: Tarduş) or jiedu, was a regional military governor in China; the title was established in the Tang dynasty and abolished in the Yuan dynasty. The post of ''jiedushi'' has been translated as "military commissi ...
''). The position was hereditary and passed down through his family, eventually becoming the fully independent Tangut state of
Western Xia The Western Xia or the Xi Xia ( zh, c=, w=Hsi1 Hsia4, p=Xī Xià), officially the Great Xia ( zh, c=大夏, w=Ta4 Hsia4, p=Dà Xià, labels=no), also known as the Tangut Empire, and known as Stein (1972), pp. 70–71. to the Tanguts ...
from the 11th to 13th centuries.


Background

It is not known when Tuoba Sigong was born. His family was of Tangut stock from the Pingxia () branch. Late in the ''Xiantong'' () era (861–874) of Emperor Yizong, he seized control of You Prefecture (宥州, in modern Ordos,
Inner Mongolia Inner Mongolia, officially the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, is an Autonomous regions of China, autonomous region of China. Its border includes two-thirds of the length of China's China–Mongolia border, border with the country of Mongolia. ...
), which had been established by the Tang imperial government to govern the Tangut, and claimed the title of prefect.


Campaign against Huang Chao

Around new year 881, during the reign of Emperor Xizong, the major agrarian rebel Huang Chao attacked and captured the Tang imperial capital
Chang'an Chang'an (; zh, t=長安, s=长安, p=Cháng'ān, first=t) is the traditional name of the city now named Xi'an and was the capital of several Chinese dynasties, ranging from 202 BCE to 907 CE. The site has been inhabited since Neolithic time ...
, forcing Emperor Xizong to flee to
Chengdu Chengdu; Sichuanese dialects, Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: ; Chinese postal romanization, previously Romanization of Chinese, romanized as Chengtu. is the capital city of the Chinese province of Sichuan. With a ...
. Huang established a new state of Qi as its emperor. A number of Tang generals near Chang'an gathered their troops to prepare to attack Huang to recapture Chang'an. Tuoba Sigong gathered his own troops and went to Fu Prefecture (鄜州, in modern
Yan'an Yan'an; ; Chinese postal romanization, alternatively spelled as Yenan is a prefecture-level city in the Shaanbei region of Shaanxi Province of China, province, China, bordering Shanxi to the east and Gansu to the west. It administers several c ...
,
Shaanxi Shaanxi is a Provinces of China, province in north Northwestern China. It borders the province-level divisions of Inner Mongolia to the north; Shanxi and Henan to the east; Hubei, Chongqing, and Sichuan to the south; and Gansu and Ningxia to t ...
) to rendezvous with Li Xiaochang () the military governor of Fuyan Circuit (鄜延, headquartered at Fu Prefecture). They swore an oath to attack Huang, and subsequently advanced south toward Chang'an. In light of Tuoba Sigong's display of loyalty, Emperor Xizong made him the acting military governor of Xiasui Circuit ().''
Zizhi Tongjian The ''Zizhi Tongjian'' (1084) is a chronicle published during the Northern Song dynasty (960–1127) that provides a record of Chinese history from 403 BC to 959 AD, covering 16 dynasties and spanning almost 1400 years. The main text is ...
'', vol. 254.
Subsequently, with Tang forces gathered around Chang'an, Huang abandoned Chang'an. The forces under the Tang generals Tang Hongfu (), Cheng Zongchu (), and Wang Chucun entered the city, but did not notify Tuoba, Li Xiaochang, or
Zheng Tian Zheng Tian (, 821?''New Book of Tang'', vol. 185./825?''Old Book of Tang'', vol. 178.–883?), courtesy name Taiwen (), formally Duke Wenzhao of Xingyang (), was a Chinese politician and military commander of the late Tang dynasty who served ...
the military governor of Fengxiang Circuit (鳳翔, headquartered in modern
Baoji Baoji ( zh, s= , t= , p=Bǎojī; ) is a prefecture-level city in western Shaanxi province, People's Republic of China. Since the early 1990s, Baoji has been the second largest city in Shaanxi. Geography The prefecture-level city of Baoji had a ...
,
Shaanxi Shaanxi is a Provinces of China, province in north Northwestern China. It borders the province-level divisions of Inner Mongolia to the north; Shanxi and Henan to the east; Hubei, Chongqing, and Sichuan to the south; and Gansu and Ningxia to t ...
). The Tang forces that entered the city became bogged down in pillaging the city, and Qi forces counterattacked, crushing them and recapturing Chang'an. Subsequently, Qi forces engaged those under Tuoba and Li Xiaochang at Wangqiao (王橋, in modern
Xianyang Xianyang ( zh, s=咸阳 , p=Xiányáng) is a prefecture-level city in central Shaanxi province, situated on the Wei River a few kilometers upstream (west) from the provincial capital of Xi'an. Once the capital of the Qin dynasty, it is now int ...
,
Shaanxi Shaanxi is a Provinces of China, province in north Northwestern China. It borders the province-level divisions of Inner Mongolia to the north; Shanxi and Henan to the east; Hubei, Chongqing, and Sichuan to the south; and Gansu and Ningxia to t ...
), defeating them. Tuoba and Li Xiaochang nevertheless stayed in the area, and Huang sent his general
Zhu Wen Emperor Taizu of Later Liang (), personal name Zhu Quanzhong () (December 5, 852 – July 18, 912), né Zhu Wen (), name later changed to Zhu Huang (), nickname Zhu San (朱三, literally, "the third Zhu"), was a Chinese military general, mona ...
to defend against them. Soon thereafter, Emperor Xizong made Tuoba full military governor and renamed his circuit Dingnan Circuit (meaning, "those who stopped disaster"). Tuoba and Li Xiaogong then engaged Zhu and the major Qi general Shang Rang, but could not prevail, and withdrew. Subsequently, Tuoba was also made the acting mayor of Jingzhao Municipality (京兆, i.e., the Chang'an region). However, the extent of his participation in the subsequent Tang victory over Huang is not known—although the
Song dynasty The Song dynasty ( ) was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 960 to 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song, who usurped the throne of the Later Zhou dynasty and went on to conquer the rest of the Fiv ...
work the ''
New History of the Five Dynasties The ''Historical Records of the Five Dynasties'' (''Wudai Shiji'') is a Chinese history book on the Five Dynasties period (907–960), written by the Song dynasty official Ouyang Xiu in private. It was drafted during Ouyang's exile from 1036 t ...
'', which referred to him as Tuoba Sijing in the biographies of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period military governors of Dingnan Circuit, for reasons unclear, had the semi-laudatory, semi-derogatory explanation that because Tuoba had neither great accomplishments nor rebellious acts against the imperial government, his deeds went largely unrecorded.''
New History of the Five Dynasties The ''Historical Records of the Five Dynasties'' (''Wudai Shiji'') is a Chinese history book on the Five Dynasties period (907–960), written by the Song dynasty official Ouyang Xiu in private. It was drafted during Ouyang's exile from 1036 t ...
'', vol. 40.
After Huang was destroyed, Tuoba was created the Duke of Xia, and given the imperial surname of Li. At some point, he also apparently seized Fuyan Circuit, an act that later was referred to by Li Keyong the military governor of Hedong (河東, headquartered in modern
Taiyuan Taiyuan; Mandarin pronunciation: (Jin Chinese, Taiyuan Jin: /tʰai˦˥ ye˩˩/) is the capital of Shanxi, China. Taiyuan is the political, economic, cultural and international exchange center of Shanxi Province. It is an industrial base foc ...
,
Shanxi Shanxi; Chinese postal romanization, formerly romanised as Shansi is a Provinces of China, province in North China. Its capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-level cities are Changzhi a ...
).


Death

In 886, after Emperor Xizong fled to Xingyuan (興元, in modern
Hanzhong Hanzhong ( zh, s= , t= , l=middle of the Han River (Hubei), Han River; abbreviation: Han) is a prefecture-level city in Southern Shaanxi, the southwest of Shaanxi, Shaanxi province, China, bordering the provinces of Sichuan to the south and Gans ...
,
Shaanxi Shaanxi is a Provinces of China, province in north Northwestern China. It borders the province-level divisions of Inner Mongolia to the north; Shanxi and Henan to the east; Hubei, Chongqing, and Sichuan to the south; and Gansu and Ningxia to t ...
) due to a major dispute between the powerful
eunuch A eunuch ( , ) is a male who has been castration, castrated. Throughout history, castration often served a specific social function. The earliest records for intentional castration to produce eunuchs are from the Sumerian city of Lagash in the 2 ...
Tian Lingzi (who controlled Emperor Xizong's court) and Li Keyong and Wang Chongrong the military governor of Hezhong Circuit (河中, headquartered in modern
Yuncheng, Shanxi Yuncheng () is the southernmost prefecture-level city in Shanxi province, People's Republic of China. It borders Linfen and Jincheng municipalities to the north and east, and Henan (Luoyang and Jiyuan to the east, Sanmenxia to the south) a ...
), Tian's erstwhile ally Zhu Mei the military governor of Jingnan Circuit (靜難, headquartered in modern Xianyang) declared Emperor Xizong's distant relative Li Yun the Prince of Xiang the new emperor. Emperor Xizong ordered Li Sigong to attack Zhu. Before Li Sigong could launch his troops, however, he died. Emperor Xizong gave Li Sigong's younger brothers Li Sijian Dingnan Circuit and Li Sixiao () Baoda Circuit (保大, i.e., Fuyan). Li Sijian's successor Li Yichang might have been Li Sigong's son—the traditional sources differ as to whether he was Li Sijian's son or Li Sigong's son.'' History of Song'', vol. 485.


Personal Information

* Children ** Li Renyou (), died early, father of Li Yichang **
Li Renfu Li Renfu (李仁福) (died March 10, 933''Zizhi Tongjian'', vol. 278.Academia Sinicabr>Chinese-Western Calendar Converter), possibly né Tuoba Renfu (拓拔仁福), formally the Prince of Guo (虢王), was an ethnic Dangxiang (Tangut) warlord durin ...
() (died 933), Later become the military governor of Dingnan Circuit


Notes and references

* ''
New Book of Tang The ''New Book of Tang'', generally translated as the "New History of the Tang" or "New Tang History", is a work of official history covering the Tang dynasty in ten volumes and 225 chapters. The work was compiled by a team of scholars of the So ...
'', vol. 221, part 1. * ''
Zizhi Tongjian The ''Zizhi Tongjian'' (1084) is a chronicle published during the Northern Song dynasty (960–1127) that provides a record of Chinese history from 403 BC to 959 AD, covering 16 dynasties and spanning almost 1400 years. The main text is ...
'', vol. 254. {{DEFAULTSORT:Li, Sigong 9th-century births 886 deaths Tang dynasty jiedushi of Xiasui Circuit 9th-century Tangut people