Dai Zong (Tang Dynasty)

Accession to the throne

In May 762, his grandfather Xuan-zong first died, and then Emperor Su-zong , just before this, a clash of eunuch Li Fugo and Empress Zhang and Prince Li Xi occurred, as a result of which Li Fugo was able to kill all his opponents. The seriously ill emperor Su-zong could not stand the events and died on May 17, and on May 18, Li Yu ascended the throne as emperor Dai-zong. The eunuch Lee Fugo tried to isolate the emperor, allowing him to communicate only with servants. ^{[1] The} Emperor harbored a grudge and began to bear a plan for how to get rid of a eunuch. He brought the subordinate eunuch Chen Yuanzhen (程元振) closer. To lull Li Fugo’s vigilance, he began to assign him one honorary title after another, but then gradually transferred the command of the power departments to Chen, until he suddenly removed Li Fugo from the post of Minister of War and Commander-in-Chief, transferring them to Chen, and ordered Li Fugo to leave the palace, appropriating him however the title of Prince Bolu and showing respect. Lee Fugo tried to resign, but the resignation was politely rejected. The emperor was afraid to openly kill the eunuch, remembering his evil intentions, and sent the killer to him, who killed Li Fugo on November 8, 762, taking his head and arm. The emperor ordered the killer to be arrested and arranged a magnificent funeral for Li Fugo, replacing his hand and head with wooden ones. ^[one]

Fighting the Yan Dynasty

As a result of the An Lushan rebellion , the Yan state was formed, in which 4 emperors were replaced. In 761, Shi Chaoi killed his father, Shi Simin, and took the throne.

At the end of 762, the emperor sent the eunuch Lu Qingtan (劉 清潭) to the Uigur Kaganate for help. Kagan Idigian ^[2] had already received an offer of an alliance with Shi Chaoi, at first refused to support Dai Zong, but his father-in-law Pugu Huayen convinced him. In the winter of 762, the combined forces of the Uigurs and Chinese liberated Luoyang , and Shi Chaoyi fled. Supposedly, in the spring of 763, Shi Chaoi committed suicide, and on this the Yan state ceased to exist. ^[one]

On the advice of Pugu Huayen, the emperor agreed to leave a number of Yang generals in their possession, fearing the continuation of the war. As a result, a layer of military governors ( Zedushi ) appeared. The result of this decision was the presence of a large number of independent militarists, which negatively affected the subsequent history of the Tang Dynasty until its collapse. ^{[1] [3]}

Defeat to Tibetans and Troubles

In the fall of 763, Pugu Huayen was suspected by several generals and officials of rebellion. As a result, Pugu became disillusioned with the central government and began to act independently. At the same time, Tibet , which during the time of the An Lushan rebellion gradually occupied Chinese prefectures, unexpectedly attacked Chang'an . Commander-in-Chief Chen Yuanzhen could not handle the generals who could not forgive him for the persecution and execution of several generals., ^{[1] [4]} Thus, when the emperor asked for urgent intervention by the provincial generals, no one came to his aid. On November 16 ^[5], he was forced to leave Chang'an and flee to Shan Prefecture. The Tibetans proclaimed Prince Li Chenghong (李承宏) as Tang Emperor, but within a month the Tang population was able to organize resistance and General Guo Ziyi launched a counterattack. The emperor again returned to the capital, but a considerable territory was lost. Chen Yuanzhen was removed from the post of commander in chief, and Chancellor Yuan Zai and the eunuch Yu Chaoen became the most influential figure at the court. ^[four]

In 764, Li Co. was appointed heir to the throne. His mother, the concubine of Shen, was taken prisoner by the army of the Yan state, the emperor tried hard to find her, but in vain. ^[four]

In 764, Pugu Huayen strengthened in Yuncheng , Shaanxi ), and sent his son to confront the Tang troops. The son died and Pugu dug in the Shofan region (朔方, now Yinchuan ). ^[four]

At this time, Chancellor Lu Yan was able to implement a project to open the Bianhe River (汴河) for shipping, connecting it with a canal to the Yellow River and Yellow River , thereby restoring the supply system of the capitals that existed before the war.

Pugu in conspiracy with the Uigurs and Tibetans was preparing an attack on Chang'an, but in 765 he died and his army swore allegiance to the emperor. Nevertheless, there remained several virtually independent generals who did not submit to the central government. ^[four]

In 765, unrest arose in Jiannan County. The new governor, Guo Yinai (郭英 乂), opposed official Tsui Ning , but was defeated and killed, as a result, Tsui began to rule independently, and the emperor was not able to remove him. ^[6]

Early Dali Period

Gradually, the emperor began to move away from Taoism and leaned toward Buddhism under the influence of Yuan Zai, Wang Jin and Du Hongjian. The Buddhist monk Amoghavajra (Bukun) was close to the emperor and received the title of count. The emperor freed the monks from physical punishment, while rich donations were granted to churches and monasteries. Later, Sima Guan and other historians condemned the emperor’s penchant for Buddhism and characterized his rule as a decline in law and order. ^[6]

In 768, Li Huaixian was assassinated by his officers and the emperor tried to take control of Lulong County (盧龍, near modern Beijing), he had to intervene and change military governors there. ^{[6] [6] [7]}

Late Dali Period

In 773, riots broke out in Zhaoyi County (昭 義, modern Anyang , Henan ). The new governor Xue E was opposed by the Tien Chengyi, the governor of Weibo County (魏博, now Handan , Hebei ), who took control of several prefectures and expelled the governors from there ^[7] In the spring of 775, the emperor gathered generals against Tien, who initially began to defeat, but confusion in management led to the fact that the emperor was forced to abandon the continuation of the campaign and forgive Tian. ^[7]

In 775, the beloved wife of Emperor Dougou died. ^[7]

In 776, after the death of the governor of Biansong County (汴 宋, modern Kaifeng , Henan ), the district was occupied by officer Li Lingyao (李靈曜), and a complex campaign was launched to restore order there. ^[7]

The emperor’s attempts to cope with military governors were ineffective, they acted almost independently, ignoring the central authorities, and attempts to oppose one governor led to the strengthening of others.

By the year 777 ^[7]

• Li Zhengji with an army of 60 thousand soldiers ruled Pinlu County, which includes 15 prefectures.
• Tien Chensi with an army of 50 thousand soldiers ruled Weibo County, which includes 7 prefectures.
• Li Baocheng with an army of 50 thousand soldiers ruled Chengde County, which includes 7 prefectures.
• Liang Chunyi with an army of 25 thousand soldiers ruled East Shannan, including 6 prefectures.

In 779, the Tien Chensa died, and the emperor allowed his nephew Tian Yue to inherit his inheritance. Li Chongzhen was expelled from Huaisi County (淮西, now Zhumadian , Henan ) as his subordinate official, but the emperor, believing in his trustworthiness, took him to the capital and appointed him chancellor. ^[7]

In the summer of 779, the emperor fell ill and soon died. The throne was succeeded by Li Ko (as emperor De-zong ). ^[7]