Emperor Yizong

Emperor Yizong – Tang Dynasty

Emperor Yizong was born as Li Wen, yet his name was eventually changed to Li Cui. He became the Tang Dynasty emperor and his rule lasted from 859 until 873. Yizong of Tang was the eldest son of Emperor Xuanzong.

Based on classic historians’ texts, the Tang Emperor didn’t pay a lot of attention to important governmental affairs. Instead, he opted to live in opulence and grandiose. Not only that, but the emperor became an alcoholic and surrounded himself with beautiful women.

All of these were done while the government collected heavy taxes from the empire’s citizens. Of course, these taxes were also used for all the lavish activities and enjoyments of the emperor.

Despite being a greatly devout Buddhist, Emperor Yizong would hold extravagant Buddhist ceremonies throughout the year. Then, he would even have frequent musical performances scheduled in the palace.

If he greatly enjoyed the performance, Yizong of Tang rewarded the entertainers richly. And sometimes, they were even bestowed government ranks.

Eventually, Emperor Yizong exhausted the dynasty’s treasury which had accumulated during the rule of his father. Because of this, great hardships and problems like famine resulted, which led people to resort to cannibalism.

Later during his rule, widespread agrarian rebellions began, which brought even more issues and problems to the empire.

The Early Life of Emperor Yizong

The future Tang emperor Li Wen was born in 834 during the rule of his cousin, Wenzong of Tang. His father was Li Yi, Prince of Guang, while his mother was the concubine, Lady Chao.

In 846, the brother and successor of Emperor Wenzong died. So, Li Yi had to succeed the throne as the Tang emperor. During that time, Li Wen was given the title, Prince of Yun.

The Reign of Emperor Yizong

After the death of Emperor Xuanzong in 859, Li Yi ascended the throne as Emperor Yizong. He was placed in position by the eunuch Wang Zongshi, who apparently murdered other eunuchs supporting Li Zi. The latter was another son of Emperor Xuanzong.

Yizong of Tang was instantly met with two military issues. Here, Tang and Nanzhao got into a diplomatic issue over the Nanzhao king’s name, Quilong. It’s because the name violated the naming taboo for Yingzong’s ancestor, Xuanzong.

Because of this, Emperor Yizong refused to provide a formal edict to bestow the kingly title to Qiulong. The latter then responded by changing his state to Dali, then declaring himself as an equal to the Tang emperor. From there, he attacked a couple of Tang outposts.

During Yizong of Tang’s rule, there occurred a resurgence of the eunuchs’ power. Plus, there were constant fratricidal issues between the officials and eunuchs of the court.

Changing of Positions at the Court

Emperor Yizong also honored his grandmother, Empress Dowager Zheng. She was named the grand empress dowager. Of course, he also posthumously honored Consort Chao, his mother, as empress dowager.

Meanwhile, the chancellor Linghu Tao was relieved of his position as chancellor and replaced by Bai Minzhong, the former chancellor. Unfortunately, Bai never assumed the position of chancellor. He got into an accident when he was heading to the imperial meeting hall.

Rebellions and Uprisings during His Reign

From 830 onward, the first instances of unrest and issues appeared in Henan and the Huai Valley. Then, problems started reaching the Yangtze Valley and the southern areas in 856.

Huge uprisings in south Anhui also started in 858, which were led by Kang Quantai. In 859, Qiu Fu started the uprisings in the Zhenjiang area.

The situation started getting complicated by a costly battle against the Nanzhao kingdom along the borders in Annam. Later, it spread out to Sichuan and continued from 858 until 866.

After successfully suppressing the invaders, portions of the garrison forces were sent to Lingnan. And under Pang Xun, they plundered and fought their way back to the Henan area. This caused widespread chaos in 868 and 869.

Aside from the chaos, the incident led to the cutting of the canal. What made it an issue was that it connects the capital to the Huai and Yangtze provinces. In 870, a war broke out once again with Nanzhao.

The Decline of Emperor Yizong’s Rule

Emperor Yizong of Tang was then succeeded by Li Yan, who was only 11 years old. He was the emperor’s young son, whom the palace eunuchs favored greatly to succeed the throne.

The reason for this was because Emperor Yizong eventually fell critically ill later in the year. He wasn’t able to designate an heir to the throne. So, the eunuchs Han Wenyue and Liu Xingshen chose his son, Li Yan, as heir to the throne.

The two eunuchs had an edict issued under the Tang emperor’s name to make Li Yan the crown prince. Soon after, Emperor Yizong died, so his son took the throne as the Tang emperor with the reign name Xizong.