For those who are interested in the rebellion of An Lushan, the History Encyclopedia editor brings a detailed article for your reference.
The Tang Dynasty is one of the dynasties in China. It was once ruled by Emperor Taizong of Tang’s Zhenguan reign and had an extremely prosperous period. The prosperity and glory of the Tang Dynasty should have continued indefinitely. But during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, something happened that caused the Tang Dynasty to turn from prosperity to decline, so that in the end, the Tang Dynasty could not persist when facing enemies and ultimately perished.
And this incident, known as the ‘An Lushan Rebellion’ in history, was a rebellion launched by An Lushan and Shi Siming during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang Dynasty. Due to this rebellion, there was a significant population loss during a period of time in the Tang Dynasty, resulting in a significant decline in the country’s economy during the later period of the Tang Dynasty. As for why An Lushan rebelled, I believe many people are puzzled because he was highly trusted and favored by Emperor Xuanzong of Tang at that time.
An Lushan was not originally from the Central Plains, but was born in the Western Regions and was a member of the Sogdian tribe. At that time, he left the Turks and came to Youzhou in the Tang Dynasty, becoming a subordinate of the Youzhou Governor. Because An Lushan was skilled in warfare and had very strong combat abilities, he made outstanding contributions and was repeatedly promoted. Later, he was even appointed as the Prince of Dongping County. An Lushan even bribed a trusted minister of Tang Xuanzong to speak up for him, and gradually he also came to Tang Xuanzong’s side.
Later, An Lushan became the adopted son of Yang Guifei
His relationship with Emperor Xuanzong became even closer, and both Emperor Xuanzong and Yang Guifei liked and trusted him very much. Later, An Lushan was repeatedly given eye drops by Yang Guozhong to Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, believing that An Lushan, who held a heavy army and was deeply trusted by the emperor, would one day rebel. Finally, An Lushan cried out to Emperor Xuanzong of Tang and falsely accused Yang Guozhong. In the end, Yang Guozhong was executed.
Tang Xuanzong favored An Lushan so much, why did An Lushan rebel? Scholars have conducted careful research on that period of history and later summarized several reasons. Firstly, it is because of something that Li Longji once did. As an emperor, he was good at governing the court, but other aspects of Li Longji were criticized. Before having Yang Yuhuan, he favored Empress Wu Huifei.
At that time, Empress Wu Huifei had already given birth to a son for Li Longji, but the Crown Prince of the Tang Dynasty was Li Ying. Empress Wu Huifei wanted her son to ascend to power, so she framed Li Ying and slandered the Crown Prince for wanting to rebel. However, Li Longji executed Li Ying without conducting a careful investigation. And two other princes, Li Yao and Li Ju, were also implicated in this matter and executed. Even his biological son can be easily executed, Li Longji can be said to be indifferent.
And the second point is also because Li Longji was very suspicious. Although it is natural for him to be a little suspicious as an emperor, Li Longji was too prone to suspicion. An Lushan was a military general with a heavy army, stationed at the border for a long time and rarely appearing in the palace. However, Li Longji summoned An Lushan into the palace every now and then, which made An Lushan feel that Li Longji was suspicious of him.
Later, An Lushan indeed discovered the clue, which was that Right Prime Minister Yang Guozhong often slandered him, claiming that he had rebellious intentions, which was originally done because of unhappy cooperation. However, Li Longji’s suspicion made him begin to suspect An Lushan, and An Lushan believed that since this was the case, the Emperor would sooner or later treat him like executing Li Ying, so he might as well take action first, rather than directly losing his life! That’s why the An Lushan Rebellion occurred.
