Why did Li Dan give up the throne three times? What is the reason? Interested readers and history encyclopedia editors, let’s take a look together!
Tang Ruizong Li Dan was the fifth emperor of the Tang Dynasty and the eighth son of Tang Gaozong. There is a ‘Rui’ in his temple name.
Rui represents intelligence, why did Li Dan get the title of this character? In fact, Li Dan and Li Xian are both sons of Wu Zetian. They were once pushed to the throne by Empress Wu Zetian, but later overthrown. But what sets Li Dan apart from Li Xian is that Wu Zetian never exerted “oppression” on Li Dan like she did on Li Xian. On the contrary, he also gave Li Danwu the surname, making Li Dan the heir to the throne. After his own death, he would return the Li family’s world to the Li family.
Wu Chengsi and Wu Sansi are all plotting to usurp the throne, and Li Xian’s eventual re ascension to the throne can be considered an accident. Only Li Dan, from the beginning, was voluntarily passed on the throne by Wu Zetian. Why is Wu Zetian so optimistic about Li Dan? Wu Zetian clearly wanted to occupy the territory of the Tang Dynasty. But she tolerated him staying on the dragon throne for six years. Why? In fact, the answer is Li Dan’s temple name “Rui”. The child is too smart, smart to the point of great wisdom. He really doesn’t care about power and influence. I really know what I need. He lives a happy life without fighting for anything, but he has never suffered any losses. Life has given him too many twists and turns, but he has resolved all these hardships, honors, or humiliations and remained calm. Isn’t this considered great wisdom? In fact, these are not much. The true wisdom of Li Zhi lies in his three attempts to abdicate the throne, becoming the emperor who abdicated the throne the most times in Chinese history.
Ordinary people spend their whole lives competing for fame and fortune, but Li Dan won the throne three times and gave up all three times. The first one was his mother, then gave it to his brother, and finally gave it to his son. Li Dan became emperor for the first time after his brother was deposed, and Wu Zetian appointed him emperor in the same month. After becoming emperor, Li Dan was not like his brother Li Xian who was a nouveau riche. The status of the emperor seemed to have never existed for Li Dan. He still lives quietly in the deep palace, practicing his calligraphy and reading his books.
Wu Zetian was very satisfied with Li Dan’s performance and attitude, and was not in a hurry to deal with him, so he could calmly ascend to the throne. It can be said that Wu Zetian’s success as empress was inseparable from her good coordination with Li Dan. If Li Dan did not cooperate or cooperate actively and seriously, it would bring a lot of trouble to Wu Zetian’s path as emperor. Of course, she can force Li Dan to obey, but what benefits does it bring to her? After all, they are her own sons.
Li Dan was always considerate of his mother’s wishes, able to understand her difficulties and obey everything, which is why Wu Zetian did not rush to abdicate Li Dan. On the contrary, she was happy to let Li Dan become the emperor before the conditions were fully ripe, because Li Dan was the one who could truly cooperate with her. The time was ripe for Wu Zetian to ascend the throne, and Li Dan did not wait for her to urge him. He took the initiative to abdicate and also requested that Wu Zetian give him the surname Wu. This is the first time that Li Dan has made the world go through.
Li Dan’s move of asking Wu Zetian to give him the surname Wu is indeed impressive. Because after all, he was the biological son of Wu Zetian, even if several nephews of the Wu family were very close to Wu Zetian, they could not compare to their own sons. Since the emperor can be the empress, what’s wrong with her son’s surname Wu? Li Dan’s actions made Wu Zetian very happy. This child still regards me as his mother. He really understands me. So she happily agreed to Li Dan’s request, accepted Li Dan’s throne, and gave him the surname Wu. Wu Zetian was certainly happy to do so and made Li Dan the heir to the emperor, keeping it unchanged. No matter how many twists and turns, no matter how many crises, Wu Zetian did not abolish his succession to the throne. Wu Zetian carefully protected Li Dan’s position as crown prince, but Li Dan finally gave up this position.
We should see Li Dan’s intelligence in this matter. Does this mean that Wu Zetian changed her attitude towards him? No, on the contrary, Wu Zetian hoped that Li Xian would inherit the throne because she loved Li Dan. Wu Zetian was well aware that Li Dan was not interested in returning the debt and never formed her own group. But Li Xian is different. Although he has been looking very honest for many years, it is actually just superficial. But his wife Weishi never truly gave up her rebellious heart. There are many people in the court who have good relationships with them. If Li Xian becomes the emperor, Li Dan will not oppose it, but what if Li Dan becomes the emperor, Li Xian may not argue, but will Wei Shi and her accomplices make Li Dan feel at ease?
Moreover, as I grew older, those who were once afraid of me and supported Wu Zetian in the court had to take matters into their own hands. Li Xian’s legitimate royal bloodline is the heir to the throne, while Li Dan ascended the throne himself. If we really want to ‘restore Li Tang’, obviously for those who hold the Tang school, Li Xian will be more generous than Li Dan. Why do we have to “roast” Li Dan over the fire? But Wu Zetian was also unwilling to seize the throne of Li Dan’s heir. Li Dan is so clever that she immediately saw her thoughts and proposed to give the throne to Li Xian. This is Li Dan’s second time leading the world.
Li Xian died of poisoning shortly after becoming emperor. In June of the same year, Li Longji, the third son of Emperor Ruizong, launched a coup and led the Imperial Guards to invade the palace, killing Empress Wei, Princess Anle, and other rebellious factions such as Shangguan Wan’er. Together with Princess Taiping, Li Dan was elected as the emperor. However, Li Dan was not interested in the position of emperor. He even issued a special order to prove that he really didn’t want to be emperor, which was the intention of Li Longji and Princess Taiping. After Li Dan became emperor again, the two main forces in the court were his son and sister. Li Longji is a rare “pure man” since the Tang Dynasty. But if Princess Taiping wants to become Empress Wu Zetian again, there will definitely be a conflict between the two, and as the emperor himself, he does not have the ability to balance the relationship between the two.
Li Dan saw these very clearly and knew that the Li family rarely could make such a good person. If he couldn’t fully play his role, the Li clan would never have a chance. In 712 AD, Li Dan officially issued a decree and awarded Li Longji Buddhist Temple. He completely withdrew from imperial power and enjoyed his free life. I passed the throne to my son Li Longji, completely breaking away from this world that he despised and living a life of freedom. Li Longji did not disappoint Li Dan, not only quickly eliminating the power of Princess Taiping, but also establishing the most glorious and prosperous period in the Tang Dynasty and the entire feudal history of China – the prosperous era of Kaiyuan.
