Yang Liang
Encyclopedia
Yang Liang -- courtesy name Dezhang (德章), alternative name Jie (傑), nickname Yiqian (益錢) -- was an imperial prince of the Chinese
History of China
Chinese civilization originated in various regional centers along both the Yellow River and the Yangtze River valleys in the Neolithic era, but the Yellow River is said to be the Cradle of Chinese Civilization. With thousands of years of continuous history, China is one of the world's oldest...

 dynasty Sui Dynasty
Sui Dynasty
The Sui Dynasty was a powerful, but short-lived Imperial Chinese dynasty. Preceded by the Southern and Northern Dynasties, it ended nearly four centuries of division between rival regimes. It was followed by the Tang Dynasty....

. He was a son of Emperor Wen
Emperor Wen of Sui
Emperor Wen of Sui — personal name Yang Jian , Xianbei name Puliuru Jian , nickname Naluoyan — was the founder and first emperor of China's Sui Dynasty . He was a hard-working administrator and a micromanager. As a Buddhist, he encouraged the spread of Buddhism through the state...

 and his wife Empress Dugu Qieluo
Empress Dugu Qieluo
Empress Dugu Qieluo , formally Empress Wenxian , was an empress of the Chinese dynasty Sui Dynasty...

, who, during his father's reign, controlled the region north of the Yellow River
Yellow River
The Yellow River or Huang He, formerly known as the Hwang Ho, is the second-longest river in China and the sixth-longest in the world at the estimated length of . Originating in the Bayan Har Mountains in Qinghai Province in western China, it flows through nine provinces of China and empties into...

. After his father's death in 604, he rose against his brother Emperor Yang
Emperor Yang of Sui
Emperor Yang of Sui , personal name Yang Guang , alternative name Ying , nickname Amo , known as Emperor Ming during the brief reign of his grandson Yang Tong), was the second son of Emperor Wen of Sui, and the second emperor of China's Sui Dynasty.Emperor Yang's original name was Yang Ying, but...

, but was soon defeated by Emperor Yang's general Yang Su
Yang Su
Yang Su , courtesy name Chudao , formally Duke Jingwu of Chu , was a powerful general during Sui Dynasty whose authority eventually became nearly as supreme as the emperor's...

 and forced to surrender. He was reduced to commoner rank and imprisoned for the rest of his life.

Background

It is not known exactly when Yang Liang was born, but it is known that he was the youngest of the five sons of Yang Jian
Emperor Wen of Sui
Emperor Wen of Sui — personal name Yang Jian , Xianbei name Puliuru Jian , nickname Naluoyan — was the founder and first emperor of China's Sui Dynasty . He was a hard-working administrator and a micromanager. As a Buddhist, he encouraged the spread of Buddhism through the state...

 and Yang Jian's wife Dugu Qieluo
Empress Dugu Qieluo
Empress Dugu Qieluo , formally Empress Wenxian , was an empress of the Chinese dynasty Sui Dynasty...

. As the third of his older brothers, Yang Jun
Yang Jun (Sui Dynasty)
Yang Jun , nickname Azhi , formally Prince Xiao of Qin , was an imperial prince of the Chinese dynasty Sui Dynasty. He was a son of Emperor Wen and his wife Empress Dugu Qieluo, who died as a result of an illness caused by poisoning by his jealous wife Princess Cui...

, was born in 571 (the fourth, Yang Xiu
Yang Xiu (Sui Dynasty)
Yang Xiu was an imperial prince of the Chinese dynasty Sui Dynasty. He was a son of Emperor Wen and his wife Empress Dugu Qieluo, and during most of his father's reign was given great control over the modern Sichuan and Chongqing region...

, similarly has an unknown birth year) and he was already born at least by the time that Yang Jian seized the throne from Emperor Jing of Northern Zhou
Emperor Jing of Northern Zhou
Emperor Jing of Northern Zhou , personally name né Yuwen Yan , later Yuwen Chan , was the last emperor of the Chinese/Xianbei dynasty Northern Zhou. He became emperor at the age of six, after his father Emperor Xuan formally passed the throne to him, but Emperor Xuan retained the imperial powers...

, ending Northern Zhou
Northern Zhou
The Northern Zhou Dynasty followed the Western Wei, and ruled northern China from 557 to 581. It was overthrown by the Sui Dynasty.Northern Zhou's basis of power was established by Yuwen Tai, who was paramount general of Western Wei, following the split of Northern Wei into Western Wei and...

 and establishing Sui Dynasty
Sui Dynasty
The Sui Dynasty was a powerful, but short-lived Imperial Chinese dynasty. Preceded by the Southern and Northern Dynasties, it ended nearly four centuries of division between rival regimes. It was followed by the Tang Dynasty....

 as its Emperor Wen in 581, he would have been born sometime between 573 and 580. In 581, after Emperor Wen took the throne, he created his sons imperial princes, and Yang Liang was created the Prince of Han.

During Emperor Wen's reign

Yang Liang did not participate in the campaign that destroyed rival Chen Dynasty
Chen Dynasty
The Chen Dynasty , also known as the Southern Chen Dynasty, was the fourth and last of the Southern dynasties in China, eventually destroyed by the Sui Dynasty....

 in 589 and unified China (in which his older brothers Yang Guang
Emperor Yang of Sui
Emperor Yang of Sui , personal name Yang Guang , alternative name Ying , nickname Amo , known as Emperor Ming during the brief reign of his grandson Yang Tong), was the second son of Emperor Wen of Sui, and the second emperor of China's Sui Dynasty.Emperor Yang's original name was Yang Ying, but...

 the Prince of Jin and Yang Jun the Prince of Qin participated), suggesting that he was not yet old enough by that point. In 592, he was made the governor of the capital province Yong Province (雍州, roughly modern Xi'an
Xi'an
Xi'an is the capital of the Shaanxi province, and a sub-provincial city in the People's Republic of China. One of the oldest cities in China, with more than 3,100 years of history, the city was known as Chang'an before the Ming Dynasty...

, Shaanxi
Shaanxi
' is a province in the central part of Mainland China, and it includes portions of the Loess Plateau on the middle reaches of the Yellow River in addition to the Qinling Mountains across the southern part of this province...

). In 597, he was made the commandant at Bing Province (并州, roughly modern Taiyuan
Taiyuan
Taiyuan is the capital and largest city of Shanxi province in North China. At the 2010 census, it had a total population of 4,201,591 inhabitants on 6959 km² whom 3,212,500 are urban on 1,460 km². The name of the city literally means "Great Plains", referring to the location where the Fen River...

, Shanxi
Shanxi
' is a province in Northern China. Its one-character abbreviation is "晋" , after the state of Jin that existed here during the Spring and Autumn Period....

), and was in charge of the 52 provinces north of the Yellow River
Yellow River
The Yellow River or Huang He, formerly known as the Hwang Ho, is the second-longest river in China and the sixth-longest in the world at the estimated length of . Originating in the Bayan Har Mountains in Qinghai Province in western China, it flows through nine provinces of China and empties into...

. In 598, when Emperor Wen attacked 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....

, Yang Liang served as co-commander of the operation (along with the general Wang Shiji (王世積))—a campaign that ended disastrously, as a drought prevented food supplies from being sent by water, and therefore the army ran out of food. As it arrived at Liao River
Liao River
The Liao River is the principal river in northeast China . The province of Liaoning and the Liaodong Peninsula derive their names from the river....

, the border between Sui and Goguryeo, there began to be an epidemic in the army. Further, the ships commanded by the former Chen general Zhou Luohou (周羅睺) encountered a storm and suffered great losses. The Sui forces were forced to withdraw, although Goguryeo then sued for peace. (During the campaign, the general Gao Jiong
Gao Jiong
Gāo Jiǒng Gāo Jiǒng Gāo Jiǒng (d. August 27, 607 courtesy name Zhaoxuan (昭玄), alternative name Min (敏), known during the Northern Zhou period by the Xianbei name Dugu Jiong (独孤颎/獨孤熲), was a key official and general of the Chinese Sui Dynasty...

 served as Yang Liang's lieutenant, and, due to his senior status, often disobeyed the young Yang Liang, causing Yang Liang to be so displeased that he complained to his mother Empress Dugu, further straining the relationship between Empress Dugu and Gao over Gao's refusal to endorse Yang Guang, her favorite son, as crown prince
Crown Prince
A crown prince or crown princess is the heir or heiress apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The wife of a crown prince is also titled crown princess....

, and in 599, at Empress Dugu's urging, Emperor Wen removed Gao from his post.)

In 599, when Sui forces attacked Tujue's Dulan Khan, Ashina Yongyulü, Yang Liang was nominally the overall commander of the operations, but did not go to the front. In summer 600, when Dulan Khan's successor Bujia Khan Ashina Dianjue (阿史那玷厥), who was a rival claimant to the Tujue throne to the Sui-supported Qimin Khan
Qimin Khan
Yаmi Qaghan, personal name: Ashina Jankan , at one point known as Tolis Qaghan and after Yаmi Qaghan(Old Turkic: , Jаmï qaγan, Chinese: 啓民可汗, 啟民可汗/启民可汗, Modern Chinese: (Pinyin): qǐmín kěhàn, (Wade-Giles): ch'i-min k'o-han, Middle Chinese: (Guangyun) ), personal name: Ashina Jankan (阿史那染幹/阿史那染干,...

 Ashina Rangan, attacked Sui, Yang Liang was one of the four commanders (along with his brother Yang Guang and the generals Yang Su
Yang Su
Yang Su , courtesy name Chudao , formally Duke Jingwu of Chu , was a powerful general during Sui Dynasty whose authority eventually became nearly as supreme as the emperor's...

 the Duke of Yue and Shi Wansui (史萬歲) the Duke of Taiping) sent by Emperor Wen to engage Bujia Khan, and they defeated him, although Yang Liang's contribution to the campaign was unclear.

Meanwhile, Emperor Wen much favored Yang Liang, but Yang Liang was becoming ambitious and troubled by the removal of his oldest brother, Yang Yong
Yang Yong
Emperor Yang Yong , nickname Xiandifa , sometimes known by his posthumous title of Prince of Fangling , was a crown prince of the Chinese dynasty Sui Dynasty. He was the oldest son of Emperor Wen and his wife Empress Dugu Qieluo...

, as crown prince in 600. (Yang Guang replaced Yang Yong as crown prince.) He therefore persuaded Emperor Wen that his headquarters at Taiyuan was the key to the defense against Tujue, so Emperor Wen permitted him to produce weapons and build up Taiyuan's defenses. Two of his trusted generals, Wang Kui (王頍) and Xiao Mohe
Xiao Mohe
Xiao Mohe , courtesy name Yuanyin , was a general of the Chinese dynasties Chen Dynasty and Sui Dynasty. He initially served in the military in the late Liang Dynasty, and gradually grew in stature and fame during the reigns of each of the emperors of Chen...

, both of whom believed that they should have been given greater responsibility by Emperor Wen, also encouraged him to eventually consider rebelling. Yang Liang was further troubled after another brother, Yang Xiu the Prince of Shu, was deposed over charges of wastefulness in 602. (Part of the charges against Yang Xiu, which appeared to have been manufactured by Yang Guang, was that Yang Xiu secretly cursed Emperor Wen and Yang Liang, but there was no evidence indicating that Yang Xiu actually did so or that Yang Liang believed Yang Xiu did or resented Yang Xiu over it.)

Rebellion against Emperor Yang

In 604, Yang Guang became emperor (as Emperor Yang) after Emperor Wen's death. (Most traditional historians believe that Emperor Wen was murdered at Yang Guang's order, although they admit a lack of direct evidence.) Emperor Yang, apprehensive of Yang Liang's intentions, did not initially announce Emperor Wen's death, and sent the general Qutu Tong (屈突通) to Taiyuan to, using an edict in Emperor Wen's name, summon Yang Liang to the capital Daxing. However, Yang Liang figured out the edict to be a forgery, and declared a rebellion, supported by governors of 19 provinces. However, even though Wang Kui pointed out to him that he needed to make a quick election between the strategies of attacking Daxing quickly (in which case he needed to advance as fast as he could) or to try to hold his territory north of the Yellow River (in which case he needed to make certain that the generals in charge of his operations were largely people from the old territory of Northern Qi
Northern Qi
The Northern Qi Dynasty was one of the Northern dynasties of Chinese history and ruled northern China from 550 to 577.-History:The Chinese state of Northern Qi was the successor state of the Chinese/Xianbei state of Eastern Wei and was founded by Emperor Wenxuan...

), Yang Liang could not decide which set of strategies to use, and therefore used a mixed approach. As his rationale for rebelling, he declared that Yang Su had committed treason. (As the modern 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...

 pointed out, falsely accusing Yang Su of treason was an unconvincing declaration. Bo suggested that even if Yang Liang had not known about Yang Guang's involvement in Emperor Wen's death by that point, he still nevertheless should have accused Yang Guang of patricide.)

Yang Liang made initial gains, and his forces, commanded by Pei Wen'an (裴文安), quickly captured the strategically important Pu Province (蒲州, roughly modern Yuncheng, Shanxi
Shanxi
' is a province in Northern China. Its one-character abbreviation is "晋" , after the state of Jin that existed here during the Spring and Autumn Period....

) and were poised to cross the Yellow River to attack the capital region. For reasons unclear then, Yang Liang changed his mind and destroyed the bridge over the Yellow River, stalling his own advances, although he soon advanced south from Taiyuan himself to again make another offensive. Soon, Yang Su, loyal to Emperor Yang, advanced north and met Yang Liang's forces. Against Wang's suggestion that he should engage Yang Su quickly, Yang Liang withdrew to Qingyuan (清源, near Taiyuan), thus losing initiative. Yang Su defeated him and captured Xiao Mohe, forcing him to retreat back to Taiyuan, where Yang Su put him under siege. Wang Kui committed suicide. Eventually, Yang Liang surrendered. Even though officials largely suggested that Yang Liang should be executed, Emperor Yang did not do so, but reduced him to commoner rank and put him under imprisonment. He died in imprisonment, and although it was unclear the year he died, it appeared to be not long after his capture. His son Yang Hao (楊顥, different person than Yang Jun's son who later was declared emperor) was also imprisoned, and when Emperor Yang was assassinated by the general Yuwen Huaji
Yuwen Huaji
Yuwen Huaji was a general of the Chinese dynasty Sui Dynasty who, in 618, led a coup against Emperor Yang of Sui, killing him. He subsequently declared Emperor Yang's nephew Yang Hao led Emperor Yang's elite Xiaoguo Army north, but was then repeatedly defeated by Li Mi, Li Shentong , and...

in 618, Yang Hao was also killed.
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