X-Nico

3 unusual facts about Emperor Taizong's campaign against Xiyu states


Emperor Taizong's campaign against Xiyu states

Emperor Taizong of Tang (r. 626–649) of Tang Dynasty China, after subjugating the Eastern Turkic Khaganate, began to exert his military power toward the Western Regions, then dominated by the Western Turkic Khaganate as well as a number of city-states loosely allied with the Western Turkic Khaganate.

In contrast to its eastern cousin Eastern Turkic Khaganate, Western Turkic Khaganate did not pose a major threat to Tang Dynasty in the early years of Tang's existence, as it was farther from Tang territory and not attacking Tang.

Both Shule and Yutian then also submitted to Tang, allowing the Tang Dynasty to dominate the region until it was briefly seized by Tufan (Tibet) during the reign of Emperor Taizong's son Emperor Gaozong.


Emperor Taizong's campaign against Eastern Tujue

Emperor Taizong of Tang (r. 626-649), the second emperor of Chinese dynasty Tang Dynasty, faced a major threat from Tang's northern neighbor, the Eastern Turkic Khaganate, whom his father Emperor Gaozu of Tang had been subjugated by in several manners.

By 627, Emperor Taizong, hearing this, was contemplating attacking the Eastern Turkic Khaganate, and he consulted the chancellor Xiao Yu and his brother-in-law Zhangsun Wuji.

With much internal troubles, Ashina Duobi was unable to aid Liang, and later in 628, with Emperor Taizong's brother-in-law Chai Shao (柴紹) sieging Liang's capital Shuofang (朔方, in modern Yulin, Shaanxi), Liang Shidu's cousin Liang Luoren (梁洛仁) assassinated Liang Shidu and surrendered, ending the final rival claim to Emperor Taizong's for China's imperial throne.

Turkic nobles largely surrendered to Tang, while the Turkic Khaganate's people scattered in three directions—either surrendering to Tang, surrendering to Xueyantuo, or fleeing west to the Western Turkic Khaganate and the nearby kingdoms.

At the same time, however, Xueyantuo, which had been a vassal of both the Eastern Turkic Khaganate and the Western Turkic Khaganate at times, was beginning to strengthen, as was another vassal of the Eastern Turkic Khaganate, Huige, and Ashina Duobi was unable to defeat or contain them.

Li Jingxuan

Late in the reign of Emperor Taizong, the chancellor Ma Zhou, knowing Li Jingxuan's talent, recommended him to be a resident scholar to study with Emperor Taizong's crown prince Li Zhi.

Pugu Huai'en

Pugu Gelanbayan (僕固歌濫拔延) was a chieftain of the Pugu tribe, one of the nine major constituent tribes of the Tiele Confederation who submitted to Tang Dynasty rule in 646, during the reign of Emperor Taizong.


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