Gao Xianzhi
Encyclopedia
Gao Xianzhi, or Ko Sōnji, (died January 24, 756) was a Tang general of Korean (Goguryeo
Goguryeo
Goguryeo or Koguryŏ was an ancient Korean kingdom located in present day northern and central parts of the Korean Peninsula, southern Manchuria, and southern Russian Maritime province....

) descent. He was known as a great commander during his lifetime. He is most well known for taking part in multiple military expeditions to conquer the Xiyu (modern Xinjiang
Xinjiang
Xinjiang is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China. It is the largest Chinese administrative division and spans over 1.6 million km2...

 and former Soviet Central Asia
Central Asia
Central Asia is a core region of the Asian continent from the Caspian Sea in the west, China in the east, Afghanistan in the south, and Russia in the north...

) region over the infamous Pamir Mountains
Pamir Mountains
The Pamir Mountains are a mountain range in Central Asia formed by the junction or knot of the Himalayas, Tian Shan, Karakoram, Kunlun, and Hindu Kush ranges. They are among the world’s highest mountains and since Victorian times they have been known as the "Roof of the World" a probable...

, all the way to the Aral Sea
Aral Sea
The Aral Sea was a lake that lay between Kazakhstan in the north and Karakalpakstan, an autonomous region of Uzbekistan, in the south...

 and the Caspian Sea
Caspian Sea
The Caspian Sea is the largest enclosed body of water on Earth by area, variously classed as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. The sea has a surface area of and a volume of...

. In 751, he was the commander of the Tang forces during the Battle of Talas
Battle of Talas
The Battle of Talas in 751 AD was an especially notable conflict between the Arab Abbasid Caliphate and the Chinese Tang Dynasty for control not only of the Syr Darya region, but even more...

, fighting against forces of the Abbasid Caliphate. The Tang defeat, which exposed the Abbasid forces to such technology as paper
Paper
Paper is a thin material mainly used for writing upon, printing upon, drawing or for packaging. It is produced by pressing together moist fibers, typically cellulose pulp derived from wood, rags or grasses, and drying them into flexible sheets....

 and compass
Compass
A compass is a navigational instrument that shows directions in a frame of reference that is stationary relative to the surface of the earth. The frame of reference defines the four cardinal directions – north, south, east, and west. Intermediate directions are also defined...

, is considered the event that marked both the end of western expansion by Tang and eastern expansion by the Abbasid Caliphate.

Around the new year 756, while Gao and fellow general Feng Changqing
Feng Changqing
Feng Changqing was a general of the Chinese dynasty Tang Dynasty. Feng was described as ugly in his appearance, and when he first met Gao Xianzhi and asked to be a guard for Gao, Gao initially rejected him, but eventually agreed to take Feng as a soldier under his command...

 were defending Tong Pass against forces of An Lushan
An Lushan
An Lushan was a general who rebelled against the Tang Dynasty in China.His name was also transcribed into Chinese as Āluòshān or Gáluòshān ,...

, who had rebelled against Tang rule in 755, both Gao and Feng offended the powerful eunuch
Eunuch
A eunuch is a person born male most commonly castrated, typically early enough in his life for this change to have major hormonal consequences...

 Bian Lingcheng (邊令誠). Bian then accused Feng of cowardice and Gao of corruption, and both were executed.

Early life

Gao Xianzhi was born during his duty in Tang's western regions. Unlike most soldiers of his day, historical records say Gao Xianzhi was not muscular or extraordinarily strong like other army officers; his father always worried about his son's poor health. However, he demonstrated great courage from an early age; he possessed skills in cavalry and archery.

Gao Xianzhi loyalty and bravery, allowed him to be promoted to the position of general in the Tang army in his 20s, serving in Central Asia near Kashgar
Kashgar
Kashgar or Kashi is an oasis city with approximately 350,000 residents in the western part of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China. Kashgar is the administrative centre of Kashgar Prefecture which has an area of 162,000 km² and a population of approximately...

, in the Taklamakan Desert along with his father, under the Tang military command for Anxi Circuit (安西, headquartered in modern Aksu Prefecture
Aksu Prefecture
Aksu Prefecture is located in mid-western Xinjiang, China. It has an area of 132,500 km² and 2.19 million inhabitants .The name Aksu is Turkic for 'white water'.-Geography:...

, Xinjiang
Xinjiang
Xinjiang is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China. It is the largest Chinese administrative division and spans over 1.6 million km2...

). He successively served under the military governors (jiedushi
Jiedushi
The Jiedushi were regional military governors in China during the Tang Dynasty and the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. Originally set up to counter external threats, the jiedushi were given enormous power, including the ability to maintain their own armies, collect taxes, and pass their...

) Tian Renwan (田仁琬) and Gai Jiayun (蓋嘉運), but was not promoted by them. However, Gai's successor Fumeng Lingcha (夫蒙靈詧) was impressed by him, and so repeatedly recommended him for promotions. By the end of Emperor Xuanzong
Emperor Xuanzong of Tang
Emperor Xuanzong of Tang , also commonly known as Emperor Ming of Tang , personal name Li Longji , known as Wu Longji from 690 to 705, was the seventh emperor of the Tang dynasty in China, reigning from 712 to 756. His reign of 43 years was the longest during the Tang Dynasty...

's Kaiyuan era (727-741), he was serving as Fumeng's deputy.

First western campaign

At that time, Lesser Bolü (小勃律, a city state centering modern Gilgit
Gilgit
Gilgit is a city in northern PakistanGilgit may refer to other terms related with the area of the city:* Gilgit River* Gilgit Valley* Gilgit District* Gilgit Agency * Gilgit Airport...

, Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...

) was allied with Tufan, leading to some 20 city states around it to also become Tufan vassals. A Tufan princess became the wife and queen of Lesser Bolü's king. Tian Renwan, Gai Jiayun, and Fumeng Lingcha all had tried to attack Lesser Bolü before, but was unable to defeat it. In 747, Gao Xianzhi led a three-pronged attack of 10,000 cavalry soldiers, surprising both Lesser Bolü and Tufan forces stationed in Lesser Bolü. He captured Lesser Bolü's king and queen and returned to Tang territory with them.

However, Fumeng was angry that Gao directly reported the news of the victory to Emperor Xuanzong
Emperor Xuanzong of Tang
Emperor Xuanzong of Tang , also commonly known as Emperor Ming of Tang , personal name Li Longji , known as Wu Longji from 690 to 705, was the seventh emperor of the Tang dynasty in China, reigning from 712 to 756. His reign of 43 years was the longest during the Tang Dynasty...

 without first reporting to him, cursing him with obscenities and threatening to kill him. The eunuch
Eunuch
A eunuch is a person born male most commonly castrated, typically early enough in his life for this change to have major hormonal consequences...

 Bian Lingcheng, whom Emperor Xuanzong had sent to monitor Gao's forces, interceded on Gao's behalf and reported Fumeng's threats to Emperor Xuanzong. Emperor Xuanzong, in response, around the new year 748, summoned Fumeng back to the capital Chang'an
Chang'an
Chang'an is an ancient capital of more than ten dynasties in Chinese history, today known as Xi'an. Chang'an literally means "Perpetual Peace" in Classical Chinese. During the short-lived Xin Dynasty, the city was renamed "Constant Peace" ; yet after its fall in AD 23, the old name was restored...

 and promoted Gao to take over his position. Despite this, Gao never lost his respect for Fumeng, although he arrested several of Fumeng's subordinates who attacked him—fellow deputy military governor Cheng Qianli (程千里), and the army officers Bi Sichen (畢思琛) and Wang Tao (王滔), but then released him, stating that he was venting his anger, and that now that he had, he believed that they could still serve under him. He entrusted Feng Changqing
Feng Changqing
Feng Changqing was a general of the Chinese dynasty Tang Dynasty. Feng was described as ugly in his appearance, and when he first met Gao Xianzhi and asked to be a guard for Gao, Gao initially rejected him, but eventually agreed to take Feng as a soldier under his command...

 as his assistant, often having Feng lead troops or, when he himself led troops in campaigns, had Feng be in charge of the headquarters. Li Siye
Li Siye
Li Siye , formally Prince Zhongyong of Wuwei , was a general of the Chinese Tang Dynasty who fought in the Battle of Talas. He fought valiantly at the Battle of Talas after the defeat of the main forces commanded by Gao Xianzhi, and his efforts allowed Gao to escape from the pursuit that Abbasid...

 also first distinguished himself as an army officer under Gao.

As a result of Gao's first campaign, Tang began to contend for influence with the Abbasid Caliphate and Tufan in the area of modern northern Pakistan and Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...

. About 72 local Indian
Indian subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent, also Indian Subcontinent, Indo-Pak Subcontinent or South Asian Subcontinent is a region of the Asian continent on the Indian tectonic plate from the Hindu Kush or Hindu Koh, Himalayas and including the Kuen Lun and Karakoram ranges, forming a land mass which extends...

 and Sogdian
Sogdiana
Sogdiana or Sogdia was the ancient civilization of an Iranian people and a province of the Achaemenid Empire, eighteenth in the list on the Behistun Inscription of Darius the Great . Sogdiana is "listed" as the second of the "good lands and countries" that Ahura Mazda created...

 kingdoms became Tang vassals, ending the Tufan dominion of the Pamir Mountains. While he served as the military governor of Anxi, placing such places as Tokmak
Tokmak, Uzbekistan
Tokmak is a city in Uzbekistan located on a peninsula on the south coast of the Aral Sea. The area has a population of around 3000....

, Kucha
Kucha
Kuchaor Kuche Uyghur , Chinese Simplified: 库车; Traditional: 庫車; pinyin Kùchē; also romanized as Qiuzi, Qiuci, Chiu-tzu, Kiu-che, Kuei-tzu from the traditional Chinese forms 屈支 屈茨; 龜玆; 龟兹, 丘玆, also Po ; Sanskrit: Kueina, Standard Tibetan: Kutsahiyui was an ancient Buddhist kingdom...

, and Kashmir
Kashmir
Kashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range...

, under the jurisdiction of his headquarters.

Second campaign and Battle of Talas

In late 749, Shilidaqieluo (失里怛伽羅), a prince of the Tuhuoluo (吐火羅, believed by some to be the Tocharians
Tocharians
The Tocharians were the Tocharian-speaking inhabitants of the Tarim Basin, making them the easternmost speakers of Indo-European languages in antiquity. They were known as, or at least closely related to, the Yuezhi of Chinese sources...

), reported to Tang that the king of Qieshi (朅師, believed to be in modern northern India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

), had been aligned with Tufan to pin down Chinese forces stationed at Lesser Bolü, and suggested that Emperor Xuanzong send forces the region. In spring 750, Emperor Xuanzong sent Gao Xianzhi to attack Qieshi, capturing its king Botemo (勃特沒) and making Botemo's son Sujia (素迦) king instead. He then made a peace treaty with Shi (石國, modern Tashkent
Tashkent
Tashkent is the capital of Uzbekistan and of the Tashkent Province. The officially registered population of the city in 2008 was about 2.2 million. Unofficial sources estimate the actual population may be as much as 4.45 million.-Early Islamic History:...

, Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south....

) and then, once Shi stood down its defenses, attacked it without warning. He captured the Shi king Chebishi (車鼻施) and sent Chebishi to Chang'an to be executed, drawing great anger from the nearby states, particularly after Gao slaughtered the old and weak captives. Gao also personally took much treasure in the battle—a large supply of diamonds, several camel-loads of gold, prized horses, and other treasures. In spring 751, Gao personally visited Chang'an, and, for his contributions, Emperor Xuanzong gave him the honorific title Kaifu Yitong Sansi (開府儀同三司) and was poised to move him to Hexi Circuit (河西, headquartered in modern Wuwei, Gansu
Gansu
' is a province located in the northwest of the People's Republic of China.It lies between the Tibetan and Huangtu plateaus, and borders Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, and Ningxia to the north, Xinjiang and Qinghai to the west, Sichuan to the south, and Shaanxi to the east...

), when the military governor of that circuit, An Sishun
An Sishun
An Sishun was a general of the Chinese dynasty Tang Dynasty during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong, probably of Tujue extraction. He was related to another general, An Lushan...

, resisted the move. Emperor Xuanzong allowed An to remain at Hexi and Gao to remain at Anxi.

Meanwhile, though, a Shi prince had fled, and he reported to the various states around the region how Gao had turned on Shi and destroyed it. The states, in anger, aligned with the Abbasid Caliphate. When Gao heard this, he made a preemptory attack with 30,000 soldiers against Abbasid Caliphate, reaching Talas
Taraz
Taraz , is a city and a center of the Jambyl Province in Kazakhstan. It is located in the south of Kazakhstan, near the border with Kyrgyzstan, on the Talas River...

 (in modern Khazakhstan) and meeting Abbasid forces there. The armies fought bitterly for five days, before Qarluq
Qarluq
The Karluks were a prominent nomadic Turkic tribe residing in the regions of Kara-Irtysh and the Tarbagatai Mountains west of the Altay Mountains...

 forces turned against Gao. Tang forces were crushed, with only several thousand surviving out of the 30,000, and that remnant was only saved due to the valiant efforts of Li Siye. Another subordinate of Gao who distinguished himself at the battle was Duan Xiushi
Duan Xiushi
Duan Xiushi , courtesy name Chenggong , formally Prince Zhonglie of Zhangye , was a general of the Chinese dynasty Tang Dynasty. He was known for his strict military discipline...

, whom Gao recommended for promotion after the battle. The battle marked the end of Chinese advances to the west, and the heavy losses by Abbasid forces despite the victory appeared to end Abbasid designs in the east as well. Gao was then made a commanding general of the imperial guards. In 755, Gao was created the Duke of Miyun.

Death

Also in 755, An Lushan
An Lushan
An Lushan was a general who rebelled against the Tang Dynasty in China.His name was also transcribed into Chinese as Āluòshān or Gáluòshān ,...

, the military governor of Fanyang Circuit (范陽, headquartered in modern Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...

), rebelled against Emperor Xuanzong's rule. Emperor Xuanzong nominally commissioned his son Li Wan (李琬) the Prince of Rong the commander of the forces defending against An's attack, and put Gao Xianzhi in charge as Li Wan's deputy. Gao gathered 50,000 soldiers from the Chang'an region and took up position at Shang Commandery (陝郡, roughly modern Sanmenxia
Sanmenxia
-Administration:The prefecture-level city of Sanmenxia administers one district, two county-level cities and three counties.*Hubin District*Lingbao City*Yima City*Lushi County*Shan County*Mianchi County*Sanmenxia Development Zone...

, Henan
Henan
Henan , is a province of the People's Republic of China, located in the central part of the country. Its one-character abbreviation is "豫" , named after Yuzhou , a Han Dynasty state that included parts of Henan...

). Bian Lingcheng was made Gao's monitor.

Meanwhile, Feng Changqing was sent to the eastern capital Luoyang
Luoyang
Luoyang is a prefecture-level city in western Henan province of Central China. It borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to the east, Pingdingshan to the southeast, Nanyang to the south, Sanmenxia to the west, Jiyuan to the north, and Jiaozuo to the northeast.Situated on the central plain of...

 to defend against An's attack on Luoyang, but once Feng got to Luoyang, he was given inadequate weapon supplies, and An's forces defeated his. Feng retreated to Shan, and suggested to Gao that Shan was not easily defendable and that they should retreat to Tong Pass, which was a much better defensive position. Gao agreed, and the two of them took up position at Tong Pass. When An's forces subsequently attacked Tong Pass, they could not capture it, and historians credited Gao with the improved defenses.

However, during the campaign, Gao had caused much offence against Bian, as Bian was making demands of him that he was not meeting. When Bian returned to Chang'an, he accused Feng of exaggerating An's strength, and accused Gao of improperly abandoning Shan as well as corruptly withholding food supplies and imperial rewards to soldiers for personal benefit. Emperor Xuanzong, believing Bian, issued edicts for Feng's and Gao's executions. After Bian returned to Tong Pass, he first read the edict for Feng's execution. Feng was beheaded, and upon the completion of that execution, Bian then read the second edict ordering Gao's execution. Gao cried out:
The soldiers cried out for Gao as well, but Bian still beheaded Gao. As Gao was to be killed, he looked at Feng's body and stated:

Legacy

His tactics, which helped him to defeat many enemy troops with superior power.

Gao is also considered historically important by many Chinese since he led the Tang army in the Battle of Talas
Battle of Talas
The Battle of Talas in 751 AD was an especially notable conflict between the Arab Abbasid Caliphate and the Chinese Tang Dynasty for control not only of the Syr Darya region, but even more...

 even though his Tang army was outnumbered. Despite being the commander of the losing side, the battle helped spread paper and compass to the rest of the world. With the help of paper, which was introduced to Europe around the 14th century, made much foreign knowledge available to more Europeans, and ultimately bringing the Renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...

 in Europe. The compass, which spread to Europe through the Muslim World
Muslim world
The term Muslim world has several meanings. In a religious sense, it refers to those who adhere to the teachings of Islam, referred to as Muslims. In a cultural sense, it refers to Islamic civilization, inclusive of non-Muslims living in that civilization...

, became an important tool in navigation and led the way to the Age of Exploration.

Gao's defeat, which marked the end of Tang's expansion to the west, was partially fictionalized by the modern Chinese historian Bo Yang
Bo Yang
This article is about the Chinese writer. His name in Western languages is homonymic with Bó Yáng .Boyang , also sometimes called Baiyang, was a Chinese language writer based in Taiwan...

in the short story The Tashkent Massacre—the Chinese Were Cursed Here! (塔什干屠城—就在這裡, 中國人受到詛咒!), in which he gave a fictional curse by the queen of Shi, cursing Tang and the Chinese for eternity for Gao's treachery.
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