Shangguan Yi (; 608 – 4 January 665),

courtesy name A courtesy name ( zh, s=字, p=zì, l=character), also known as a style name, is an additional name bestowed upon individuals at adulthood, complementing their given name. This tradition is prevalent in the East Asian cultural sphere, particula ...

Youshao (), formally Duke of Chu (), was a Chinese poet and politician. He was an official of the Chinese

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 ...

, serving as

chancellor Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...

during the reign of Emperor Gaozong. In 664, Emperor Gaozong was displeased with his wife Empress Wu (later known as Wu Zetian) for her controlling behavior, and grew resentful of her controlling influence in the empire. Shangguan proposed to Emperor Gaozong that Empress Wu be deposed. The emperor was initially receptive to this proposal, but disavowed it once Empress Wu discovered the plot. Empress Wu then had Shangguan accused of plotting treason with Emperor Gaozong's oldest son, the former

crown prince A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title, crown princess, is held by a woman who is heir apparent or is married to the heir apparent. ''Crown prince ...

Li Zhong (who was displaced by Empress Wu's son Li Hong), and Shangguan was executed. Empress Wu then began to attend state assemblies and to oversee the emperor's actions and decisions, hearing all the details of the government and obvious intervening in the government. Shangguan's granddaughter Shangguan Wan'er later served as a key secretary to Empress Wu and a beloved

concubine Concubinage is an interpersonal relationship, interpersonal and Intimate relationship, sexual relationship between two people in which the couple does not want to, or cannot, enter into a full marriage. Concubinage and marriage are often regarde ...

to her son Emperor Zhongzong.

Background

Shangguan Yi was born in 608. His family was initially from what would eventually become Shan Prefecture (陝州, roughly modern

Sanmenxia Sanmenxia ( zh, s= , t= , p=Sānménxiá; Postal romanization, postal: Sanmenhsia) is a prefecture-level city in the west of Henan, Henan Province, China. The westernmost prefecture-level city in Henan, Sanmenxia borders Luoyang to the east, Nanya ...

Henan Henan; alternatively Honan is a province in Central China. Henan is home to many heritage sites, including Yinxu, the ruins of the final capital of the Shang dynasty () and the Shaolin Temple. Four of the historical capitals of China, Lu ...

), but as his father Shangguan Hong () served as the deputy director of

Emperor Yang of Sui Emperor Yang of Sui (隋煬帝, 569 – 11 April 618), personal name Yang Guang (), alternative name Ying (), Xianbei name Amo (), was the second emperor of the Sui dynasty of China. Emperor Yang's original name was Yang Ying, but he was rena ...

's palace at the secondary capital Jiangdu (江都, in modern

Yangzhou Yangzhou is a prefecture-level city in central Jiangsu Province, East China. Sitting on the north bank of the Yangtze, it borders the provincial capital Nanjing to the southwest, Huai'an to the north, Yancheng to the northeast, Taizhou, Jiangsu, ...

Jiangsu Jiangsu is a coastal Provinces of the People's Republic of China, province in East China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with its capital in Nanjing. Jiangsu is the List of Chinese administra ...

), the Shangguan household relocated to Jiangdu and settled there. Late in Emperor Yang's ''Daye'' era (605–618), Shangguan Hong was killed by the general Chen Leng (). Shangguan Yi was still young at the time, and he escaped death by going into hiding. Thereafter, he became a

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

monk A monk (; from , ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many reli ...

and spent much time on studying the

sutra ''Sutra'' ()Monier Williams, ''Sanskrit English Dictionary'', Oxford University Press, Entry fo''sutra'' page 1241 in Indian literary traditions refers to an aphorism or a collection of aphorisms in the form of a manual or, more broadly, a ...

s. He also studied the

Confucian classics The Chinese classics or canonical texts are the works of Chinese literature authored prior to the establishment of the imperial Qin dynasty in 221 BC. Prominent examples include the Four Books and Five Classics in the Neo-Confucian traditi ...

, and was said to be literarily talented.

During Emperor Taizong's reign

Early in the reign of succeeding the

's second emperor Emperor Taizong,

Yang Gongren Yang Guan (died 639), courtesy name Gongren, better known as Yang Gongren, formally Duke Xiao of Guan, was a Chinese military general and politician during the Sui dynasty, Sui and Tang dynasty, Tang dynasties, at one point serving as a chancello ...

was serving as the acting commandant at Yang Prefecture (揚州, i.e., Jiangdu), when Yang became impressed with Shangguan's talents and recommended him for the

imperial examination The imperial examination was a civil service examination system in History of China#Imperial China, Imperial China administered for the purpose of selecting candidates for the Civil service#China, state bureaucracy. The concept of choosing bureau ...

. Emperor Taizong also heard of Shangguan's talent and made him an imperial scholar and later an official at the archival bureau. As Emperor Taizong himself liked to write, he often had Shangguan review his drafts and also write responses to them; he also often invited Shangguan to imperial feasts. Shangguan also participated in the writing of the ''

Book of Jin The ''Book of Jin'' is an official Chinese historical text covering the history of the Jin dynasty (266–420), Jin dynasty from 266 to 420. It was compiled in 648 by a number of officials commissioned by the imperial court of the Tang dynasty, ...

'', the official history of the

Jin dynasty (266–420) The Jin dynasty or Jin Empire, sometimes distinguished as the or the , was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty in China that existed from 266 to 420. It was founded by Emperor Wu of Jin, Sima Yan, eldest son of Sima Zhao, who had previou ...

, a project led by the

Fang Xuanling Fang Qiao (579 – 18 August 648), courtesy name Xuanling, better known as Fang Xuanling (), posthumously known as Duke Wenzhao of Liang, was a Chinese statesman and writer who served as a chancellor under Emperor Taizong in the early Tang dyna ...

. After the project was complete, he became an imperial historian and was awarded with linen.

During Emperor Gaozong's reign

After Emperor Taizong's death in 649, Emperor Taizong's son Li Zhi became emperor (as Emperor Gaozong). Sometime thereafter, he made Shangguan Yi the deputy director of the archival bureau. In 662, he promoted Shangguan to be ''Xi Tai Shilang'' (), the deputy head of the legislative bureau of government (西臺, ''Xi Tai''), along with the honorific title ''Yinqing Guanglu Daifu'' (). He also gave Shangguan the designation ''Tong Dong Xi Tai Sanpin'' (), making him a chancellor ''de facto.'' It was said that Shangguan was by now particularly known for his poetry, particularly a style featuring five characters per line; his poetry was said to be decorated and delicate—a style that was then often imitated and became known as the Shangguan Style. It was said that Shangguan was arrogant because of his talent and became the object of much jealousy. By 664, Emperor Gaozong was said to be deeply fearful and resentful of his powerful second wife Empress Wu, as she interfered too much every day with his decisions and took many of the imperial orders arbitrarily against his will. After the

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 ...

Wang Fusheng () reported to Emperor Gaozong that Empress Wu had, against strict regulations, engaged the

Taoist Taoism or Daoism (, ) is a diverse philosophical and religious tradition indigenous to China, emphasizing harmony with the Tao ( zh, p=dào, w=tao4). With a range of meaning in Chinese philosophy, translations of Tao include 'way', 'road', ...

monk Guo Xinzhen () to engage in sorcery, Emperor Gaozong was angry, and he summoned Shangguan to ask for advice on what to do. Shangguan suggested, "The empress has no control of herself, and the entire empire is dissatisfied with her. Please depose her." Emperor Gaozong agreed and had Shangguan draft an edict deposing her. However, because among Emperor Gaozong's attendants were her allies, she found out, and she immediately entered the great palace with the soldiers in an authoritarian manner appeared before him to defend herself. As Emperor Gaozong was caught red-handed with the draft edict in his hand, Emperor Gaozong was scared and ashamed, and he reconciled with her. He further blamed Shangguan for the idea, to divert Empress Wu's displeasure. As Shangguan had served on the staff of Emperor Gaozong's first

Li Zhong (who was not born of Empress Wu and who was displaced by Empress Wu's son Li Hong in 656 while Li Zhong was the Prince of Chen, and later both Shangguan and Wang served on Li Zhong's staff while Li Zhong was crown prince,As Li Zhong was created the Prince of Chen in 646 and crown prince in 652, and then reduced to be the Prince of Liang in 656, Shangguan's service must have been between those years.) Empress Wu had her ally Xu Jingzong accuse Shangguan, Wang, and Li Zhong of plotting to kill Emperor Gaozong. Around the new year 665, Shangguan and Wang were both arrested and executed. Also killed was Shangguan's son Shangguan Tingzhi (). Li Zhong was thereafter forced to commit suicide. From then on, whenever Emperor Gaozong presided over imperial meetings and makes all the day-to-day decisions of the empire, Empress Wu would sit behind a pearl screen behind him to hear the all movements and reports and see and the real power of the state was fully and directly in the imperial meetings of that on Empress Wu. By order of Empress Wu Shangguan's assets were seized, and his family were taken as servants. A number of officials close to Shangguan, including fellow chancellor Liu Xiangdao, were demoted. Shangguan Tingzhi's daughter Shangguan Wan'er, who was also literarily talented, became a palace servant. Empress Wu favored her talent and made her a secretary. After Empress Wu had seized the throne herself but then was overthrown by her son Emperor Zhongzong in 705, Emperor Zhongzong took Shangguan Wan'er as a

. She became powerful, as Emperor Zhongzong often had her draft his edicts. For this reason, Emperor Zhongzong posthumously awarded both Shangguan Yi and Shangguan Tingzhi a number of honors and reburied them with honor.

Notes

References

* ''Old Book of Tang'', vol. 80. * ''New Book of Tang'', vol.

105 105 may refer to: *105 (number), the number * AD 105, a year in the 2nd century AD * 105 BC, a year in the 2nd century BC * 105 (telephone number), the emergency telephone number in Mongolia * 105 (MBTA bus), a Massachusetts Bay Transport Authority ...

. * ''Zizhi Tongjian'', vol. 201.

External links

Book 40
of the ''

Quan Tangshi ''Complete Tang Poems'' (or ') is the largest collection of Tang poetry, containing some 49,000 lyric poems by more than twenty-two hundred poets. In 1705, it was commissioned at the direction of the Qing dynasty Kangxi Emperor and published un ...

'' (which collects Shangguan Yi's poems) in the

Chinese Text Project The Chinese Text Project (CTP; ) is a digital library project that assembles collections of early Chinese texts. The name of the project in Chinese literally means "The Chinese Philosophical Book Digitization Project", showing its focus on books ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shangguan, Yi 608 births 665 deaths 7th-century Chinese poets Chancellors under Emperor Gaozong of Tang Poets from Jiangsu Politicians from Yangzhou Sui dynasty Buddhists Tang dynasty Buddhist monks Tang dynasty poets Writers from Yangzhou