Emperor Muzong

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About Emperor Muzong

Reign Years:820 – 824 A.D

Given Name: Li Heng

Reign Name:Emperor Muzong

Emperor Muzong – Tang Dynasty

Muzong of Tang was a ruler of China’s Tang Dynasty and reigned for four years. He was the son of Emperor Xianzong and was made the crown prince in 812 during his father’s rule.

Background

Emperor Muzong was born as Li You in 795 during his great grandfather’s rule. His mother, Princess Guo, was the daughter of the well-known general, Guo Ziyi.

In 806, Li Chun became Emperor Xianzong, and Li You became the Prince of Sui. Then after his father’s death, he ascended the throne in 820 as Muzong of Tang.

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Reign of Emperor Muzong

After he succeeded the throne, Emperor Muzong spent most of his time drinking and feasting. He neglected his duties as emperor, so subdued Jiedushi took the opportunity and began challenging the government.

It eventually led to a new de-facto independence of different circuits. These were found north of the Yellow River that Xianzong once subdued. When it came to internal corruption, it increased greatly.

As soon as Muzong took the throne, he killed those alchemists who supplied his father with the so-called immortality medicines. He then had two chancellors, Linghu Chu & Huangfu Bo, exiled, then replaced them with new ones.

During his rule, he also honored his mother as empress dowager and supplied her extravagantly. Aside from drinking and feasting, he spent a lot of time gaming and hunting. He did this against the advice of officials who found his activities inappropriate.

Interestingly, he was quite tolerant to those who gave him such advice.

When Emperor Muzong took the throne, he inherited a newly restored and united state, thanks to the Yuanhe restoration during Emperor Xianzong’s reign. The circuits of Pinglu and Chengdu had become independent from the imperial government at this time.

Conflicts between the Circuits and the Government

During the winter of 820, there were major events that tested Muzong of Tang’s abilities. One of them was keeping the circuits under control.

Before the death of Chengde’s military governor, Wang Chengzong, he sent his sons, Zhixin and Zhigan, to Chang’an as hostages. He did this to prove his submission to the imperial government.

However, the governor’s subordinates wanted Chengde to be independent from the imperial government. So, they supported Chengzong’s brother, Wang Chengyuan, to succeed him instead.

The thing was, Chenguan pretended to accept the support the subordinates gave, yet he was loyal to the imperial government. He then secretly petitioned for Emperor Muzong to replace him.

Although it was against general Yang Yuanqing’s advice, Muzong of Tang reacted by moving Tian Hongzheng, Weibo’s military governor. The submission of this specific individual in 812 to the imperial government was a vital step for the Yuanhe Restoration.

In 821, a low-level officer accidentally clashed with Wei’s guards. With that, Wei ordered the officer to be whipped, yet other officers refused to follow since they were unaccustomed to such punishments.

Because of this, Zhang Hongjin had the officers arrested. That evening, the soldiers disobeyed and killed Wei together with a couple of Zhang’s staff members. After, they had Zhang under arrest.

The next day, the mutineers regretted their actions but asked Zhang for forgiveness, but they didn’t receive a response. The mutineers believed that Zhang had no intention to forgive them. So, they supported Zhu Kerong instead of serving as the acting military governor.

A Munity Led by Wang Tingcou

In 821, during fall, the Chengde officer Wang Tingcou planned a mutiny after the Weibo troops left Chengde. He led his soldiers and attacked Tian Hongzheng’s headquarters and executed him, his staff, and his family members. He also killed those who disagreed with him to take control of Chengde.

Niu Yuanyi, the prefect of Shen (a Chengde prefecture), tried to resist Wang Tingcou. However, the capital of Shen was eventually besieged.

Operation Against Lulong and Chengde

Li Su from Wuning Circuit plotted a campaign against officers Wang and Zhu. However, Li Su fell ill and was replaced by Oei Du as the Weibo Circuit’s military governor.

Muzong of Tang commissioned the chancellor Pei Du to supervise the whole operation against Chengde and Lulong. The renowned imperial generals Li Guangyan and Wu Chongyun were also involved in the operation. Pei Du’s army had over 100,000 soldiers against the rebel troops’ less than 10,000 soldiers.

At this point, Emperor Muzong’s extravagance had exhausted the imperial treasury. The emperor’s trusted imperial scholar, Yuan Zhen, interfered with Pei Du’s battle plans.

The imperial forces were unable to defeat the Chengde and Lulong rebels. When Tian Bu attempted to advance, they mutinied while they were led by Shi Xiangcheng.

Tian Bu tried to rally the remaining soldiers, who continued refusing to follow his orders. With that, he committed suicide. Shi Xiangcheng submitted to the imperial government and received imperial penalty, eventually seizing Weibo.

The imperial government was forced to surrender and name Zhu and Wang as their circuits’ military governors. This marked an end in the campaign.

With all of these events, the imperial government was never able to control Chengde, Weibo, and Lulong circuits again. From hare, the Tang Dynasty met its eventual downfall.

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End of Reign

In 824, Emperor Muzong’s illness recurred, causing his death after a short while. Li Zhan succeeded the throne as Emperor Jingzong.

The end of Emperor Muzong’s brief reign was the beginning of the Tang Dynasty’s downfall.