Yang Shouliang
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Yang Shouliang (楊守亮) (d. 892), né Zi Liang (訾亮), was a warlord late in 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 ...
, who controlled Shannan West Circuit (山南西道, headquartered in modern Hanzhong,
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 ...
) from 887 to 892. He was initially an agrarian rebel under Wang Xianzhi, but later came to serve under the imperial
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 ...
general Yang Fuguang, becoming Yang Fuguang's adoptive son. He was gradually promoted in the imperial guard ranks, and was eventually made the 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 ...
'') of Shannan West by Emperor Xizong. After his adoptive uncle Yang Fugong broke with Emperor Xizong's brother and successor Emperor Zhaozong in 891, however, Yang Shouliang followed Yang Fugong's lead and resisted the imperial government. He was subsequently defeated by the warlord Li Maozhen 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 ...
) and executed.


Background

It is not known when Zi Liang was born, but it is known that he was from Cao Prefecture (曹州, in modern Heze,
Shandong Shandong is a coastal Provinces of China, province in East China. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilization along the lower reaches of the Yellow River. It has served as a pivotal cultural ...
). Both he and his younger brother Zi Xin () became followers of the agrarian rebel Wang Xianzhi. After Wang's death in battle, they followed another agrarian rebel, Xu Tangju (), in pillaging Hong (洪州, in modern
Nanchang Nanchang is the capital of Jiangxi, China. Located in the north-central part of the province and in the hinterland of Poyang Lake Plain, it is bounded on the west by the Jiuling Mountains, and on the east by Poyang Lake. Because of its strate ...
,
Jiangxi ; Gan: ) , translit_lang1_type2 = , translit_lang1_info2 = , translit_lang1_type3 = , translit_lang1_info3 = , image_map = Jiangxi in China (+all claims hatched).svg , mapsize = 275px , map_caption = Location ...
) and Rao (饒州, in modern Shangrao,
Jiangxi ; Gan: ) , translit_lang1_type2 = , translit_lang1_info2 = , translit_lang1_type3 = , translit_lang1_info3 = , image_map = Jiangxi in China (+all claims hatched).svg , mapsize = 275px , map_caption = Location ...
) Prefectures. When the imperial
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 ...
general Yang Fuguang pacified the region, he captured Zi Liang and Zi Xin and made them his adoptive sons, changing their names to Yang Shouliang and Yang Shouxin ().'' New Book of Tang'', vol. 186.


As imperial guard officer

Yang Shouliang's activities during the subsequent years under his adoptive father Yang Fuguang were not clear. By 886, when Yang Fuguang had died and Yang Fuguang's adoptive brother Yang Fugong was the most powerful eunuch at the court of then-reigning Emperor Xizong—which was then in exile at Xingyuan (興元, in modern Hanzhong,
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 ...
), trying to fight off the rival claim to the Tang throne by Li Yun at the 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 ...
—Yang Shouliang was serving as the commander of one of the corps of the imperial guards, the Hubi Corps (); that summer, during the campaign against Li Yun and Li Yun's chief supporter Zhu Mei the military governor of Jingnan Circuit (靜難, headquartered 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 ...
), Emperor Xizong commissioned Yang Shouliang as the military governor of Jinshang Circuit (金商, headquartered in modern Ankang,
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 ...
) and the controller (制置使, ''Zhizhishi'') of the capital region, with the goal of attacking north from Jinshang's capital Jin Prefecture () to recapture Chang'an with the forces of the military governors Wang Chongrong the military governor of Huguo Circuit (護國, headquartered in modern Yuncheng,
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 ...
) and Li Keyong the military governor of Hedong Circuit (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 ...
) (who had previously battled imperial forces but had returned their allegiance to Emperor Xizong by this point). It is unclear what progress, if any, Yang Shouliang actually made. Regardless, by spring 887, Zhu had been killed by his own subordinate Wang Xingyu; Li Yun fled to Wang Chongrong's domain and was executed by Wang Chongrong, ending his rival claim on the imperial throne. Yang Shouliang was thereafter made the military governor of Shannan West Circuit (headquartered at Xingyuan). (His adoptive brother/cousin Yang Shouzhong () succeeded him at Jinshang.)''
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. 256.


As military governor of Shannan West

One of the immediate concerns that Yang Shouliang had was with one of his subordinates, Wang Jian the prefect of Li Prefecture (利州, in modern Guangyuan,
Sichuan Sichuan is a province in Southwestern China, occupying the Sichuan Basin and Tibetan Plateau—between the Jinsha River to the west, the Daba Mountains to the north, and the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau to the south. Its capital city is Cheng ...
), whom Yang feared for his might in battle. Yang made several summons of Wang to report to the circuit headquarters at Xingyuan, but Wang, fearing that Yang would take actions against him, refused. Instead, Wang attacked Lang Prefecture (閬州, in modern Nanchong,
Sichuan Sichuan is a province in Southwestern China, occupying the Sichuan Basin and Tibetan Plateau—between the Jinsha River to the west, the Daba Mountains to the north, and the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau to the south. Its capital city is Cheng ...
), seized it, and claimed the title of defender of Lang. He also gathered more troops and supplies around him, making it even more difficult for Yang to exercise control over him. By 888, Wang was locked in a campaign with Chen Jingxuan the military governor of Xichuan Circuit (西川, headquartered in modern
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 ...
,
Sichuan Sichuan is a province in Southwestern China, occupying the Sichuan Basin and Tibetan Plateau—between the Jinsha River to the west, the Daba Mountains to the north, and the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau to the south. Its capital city is Cheng ...
) and could not achieve victory over Chen. He petitioned then-reigning Emperor Zhaozong (Emperor Xizong's brother and successor, who was supported by Yang Fugong), who had previously grudges against Chen and Chen's brother, the eunuch Tian Lingzi, whom Chen was protecting, for the imperial government to be involved in the campaign. The imperial government, in response, sent the
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 ...
Wei Zhaodu to command the campaign against Chen, while making Yang, Wang, and Wang's ally Gu Yanlang the military governor of Dongchuan Circuit (東川, headquartered in modern Mianyang,
Sichuan Sichuan is a province in Southwestern China, occupying the Sichuan Basin and Tibetan Plateau—between the Jinsha River to the west, the Daba Mountains to the north, and the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau to the south. Its capital city is Cheng ...
) Wei's assistants in the campaign. However, Yang's actual involvement in the campaign, if any, was not clearly stated in historical accounts.''Zizhi Tongjian'', vol. 257. (By 891, the imperial government had given up on the campaign, but Wang then proceeded and defeated Chen, seizing Xichuan Circuit.)''Zizhi Tongjian'', vol. 258. Also by 891, Emperor Zhaozong and Yang Fugong had had a falling out, as Emperor Zhaozong despised Yang Fugong for his control of the palace. Yang Fugong particularly had an enmity with Emperor Zhaozong's maternal uncle Wang Gui (), and when Emperor Zhaozong wanted to make Wang Gui a military governor, Yang Fugong initially refused, causing even more tension between Yang Fugong and Wang Gui. Yang Fugong thus devised a plan to get rid of Wang Gui. He had Wang Gui made the military governor of Qiannan Circuit (). (It is unclear where the headquarters of Qiannan Circuit was located, and, as the modern historian
Bo Yang Bo Yang ( zh , t = 柏楊 , s = 柏杨 , p = Bó Yáng ; 7 March 1920 – 29 April 2008), sometimes also erroneously called Bai Yang, was a Chinese people, Chinese historian, novelist, philosopher, poet based in Taiwan. He is also regarded as a ...
noted, it could have been a circuit that merely existed on paper that Yang Fugong created to get rid of Wang Gui.)''
Bo Yang Bo Yang ( zh , t = 柏楊 , s = 柏杨 , p = Bó Yáng ; 7 March 1920 – 29 April 2008), sometimes also erroneously called Bai Yang, was a Chinese people, Chinese historian, novelist, philosopher, poet based in Taiwan. He is also regarded as a ...
Edition of the Zizhi Tongjian'', vol. 65 91
As Wang Gui went through Shannan West Circuit on the way to his post, he was taking a ferry across a river at Jibo Ford (吉柏津, in modern Guangyuan,
Sichuan Sichuan is a province in Southwestern China, occupying the Sichuan Basin and Tibetan Plateau—between the Jinsha River to the west, the Daba Mountains to the north, and the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau to the south. Its capital city is Cheng ...
), Yang Shouliang had the ferry scuttled, such that Wang Gui and all his family and staff members drowned. Emperor Zhaozong knew that this was Yang Fugong's idea, and his hatred for Yang Fugong intensified. He subsequently tried to make Yang Fugong the eunuch monitor of the army 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 ...
), but Yang Fugong refused, claiming that he was ill and wanted to retire. Emperor Zhaozong subsequently approved of his retirement. In Yang Fugong's retirement, he met often with Yang Shouxin, who was then the commander of the Yushan Camp (). This led to rumors and accusations that Yang Fugong and Yang Shouxin were planning a coup against Emperor Zhaozong. In winter 891, Emperor Zhaozong acted preemptively, ordering the imperial guard commanders Li Shunjie (李順節, who had previously been an adoptive son of Yang Fugong's with the name Yang Shouli ()) and Li Shoujie () to attack Yang Fugong's mansion. When the chancellor Liu Chongwang subsequently arrived to encourage the imperial guards to attack, the Yangs' guards abandoned them. Yang Fugong and Yang Shouxin fled to Shannan West Circuit, and there, they, along with Yang Shouliang, Yang Shouzhong, and other adoptive sons/nephews of Yang Fugong's Yang Shouzhen () the military governor of Longjian Circuit (龍劍, headquartered in modern Mianyang) and Yang Shouhou () the prefect of Mian Prefecture (in modern Mianyang) in rising against the imperial government.


In resistance to the imperial government and Li Maozhen

Initially, Yang Shouliang tried to attack and seize Dongchuan, which was then under the rule of Gu Yanlang's brother and successor Gu Yanhui, but was repelled by the joint forces of Xichuan and Dongchuan. When he tried to go through Jin Prefecture to attack Chang'an, he was intercepted and repelled by
Feng Xingxi Feng Xingxi (馮行襲) (died 31 July 910Academia Sinica]Chinese-Western Calendar Converter''Zizhi Tongjian'', :zh:s:資治通鑑/卷267, vol. 267.), courtesy name Zhengchen (正臣), formally Prince Zhongjing of Changle (長樂忠敬王), was a w ...
at Jin. In spring 892, five nearby military governors—Li Maozhen of Fengxiang, Wang Xingyu of Jingnan, Han Jian (Zhenguo warlord), Han Jian of Zhenguo Circuit (鎮國, headquartered in modern Weinan,
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 ...
), Wang Xingyue (王行約, Wang Xingyu's brother) of Kuangguo Circuit (匡國, headquartered in modern Weinan as well), and Li Maozhuang (李茂莊, Li Maozhen's brother) of Tianxiong (天雄, headquartered in modern Tianshui,
Gansu Gansu is a provinces of China, province in Northwestern China. Its capital and largest city is Lanzhou, in the southeastern part of the province. The seventh-largest administrative district by area at , Gansu lies between the Tibetan Plateau, Ti ...
)—apparently seeing this as an excellent opportunity to annex the Yangs' territory, submitted a joint petition requesting permission to attack the Yangs and requesting that Li Maozhen be put in command of the operations. Emperor Zhaozong, believing that if Li Maozhen took over the Yangs' territory, he would be even harder to control, ordered mediation, but no one accepted imperial mediation. Subsequently, Emperor Zhaozong felt compelled to agree with Li Maozhen's wishes, and so formally declared Li Maozhen the commander of the operations against the Yangs. Meanwhile, Yang Shouliang also entered into an alliance with Yang Sheng (), a former follower of Chen's and Tian's who was holding out at Peng Prefecture (彭州, in modern Chengdu) after their defeat, but the alliance did not yield results in subsequent battles with Wang Jian. Indeed, when Yang Shouliang sent his adoptive sons Yang Zishi (), Yang Ziqian (), and Yang Zizhao () to aid Yang Sheng, the three of them, seeing that Yang Shouliang appeared to be headed for defeat, surrendered to Wang.''Zizhi Tongjian'', vol. 259. In fall 892, Li Maozhen captured Xingyuan. Yang Shouliang, along with Yang Fugong, Yang Shouxin, Yang Shouzhen, Yang Shouzhong, and another follower of Yang Fugong's, Man Cun (), fled to Lang Prefecture. Wang Jian then sent his officer Hua Hong to attack them at Lang, and Hua defeated them but did not dislodge them. However, in fall 894, Li Maozhen attacked them at Lang and forced them to flee again—and this time, Yang Shouliang was only described as having fled with Yang Fugong and Yang Shouxin. They tried to go through Mount Shang (商山, in modern Shangluo,
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 flee to Hedong Circuit (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 ...
) to join Hedong's military governor Li Keyong, but when they got to Qianyuan (乾元, in modern Shangluo), they were captured by Han's troops and delivered to Han. When Yang Shouliang saw that 800 of Han's guards were formerly his soldiers, he stated to Han, "They were among those whom I treated well. None of them was willing to die for me. For you, Lord, to keep them around merely wastes your textiles and food. It is better to kill them." Han agreed. Yang Shouliang then asked to get a chance to plead his case with Emperor Zhaozong, and Han delivered him, Yang Fugong, and Yang Shouxin to Chang'an. However, when Emperor Zhaozong interrogated Yang Shouliang, he could not say anything. Emperor Zhaozong then had them executed.


Notes and references

* '' New Book of Tang'', vol. 186. * ''
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 ...
'', vols. 256, 257, 258, 259. {{DEFAULTSORT:Yang, Shouliang 9th-century births 894 deaths Politicians from Heze Tang dynasty jiedushi of Jinshang Circuit Tang dynasty jiedushi of Shannan West Circuit People executed by the Tang dynasty by decapitation Executed people from Shandong People executed by the Tang dynasty 9th-century executions Tang dynasty generals from Shandong 9th-century Chinese people