Emperor Zhongzong - His Second Reign

Emperor Zhongzong – His Second Reign – Tang Dynasty

Li Zhe, known as Emperor Zhongzong, was in exile for 14 years after being dethroned as the Tang dynasty ruler. He was recalled, named as crown prince, then eventually reigned for the second time. His second regime lasted for five years.

In 697, a major Khitan incursion led by Khan Sun Wanrong occurred. During this invasion, the khan issued a declaration, questioning Wu Zetian for keeping Li Zhe or Emperor Zhongzong in exile. Other chancellors agreed with recalling Li Zhe, and eventually, Wu Zetian finally acknowledged the declaration.

The court was caught in a power struggle by 698. This caused Empress Wu to recall the former Tang emperor to the capital. Later, Li Dan yielded the crown prince’s position to Li Zhe, which the Empress Dowager approved.

In the same year, Li Zhe was proclaimed as crown prince and took his brother’s position. Wu Zetian also changed Li Zhe’s name to Li Xian, and later, she changed his surname to Wu.

Death of Empress Wu Zetian

In 705, during spring, Wu Zetian was severely ill. The officials Zhang Changzong and Zhang Yizhi attended to her and dealt with the state’s major affairs. There were also rumors about these brothers plotting to oust Li Xian.

On February 20, a palace coup overthrew Wu Zetian, and he was put under house arrest by the coup leaders. As a result, Li Xian was restored as the Tang emperor.

By winter of the same year, Wu Zetian died. Emperor Zhongzong had her buried at Qianling with his father, the former Emperor Gaozong.

The Second Reign of Emperor Zhongzong under Empress Wei

Zhongzong of Tang continued his rule and initially assigned the five coup leaders in high positions at the court. However, he governed under the influence of his wife, Empress Wei. She directed the government, handled court matters, assigned government posts to family members, seized lands, and sold children as slaves.

Buddhism continued to hold its place at court. However, becoming a monk under Emperor Zhongzong’s rule was a position to be bought, rather than self-sacrifice.

Empress Wei disliked Li Chongfu, Emperor Zhongzong’s oldest surviving son and Prince of Qiao. Because of that, she falsely accused Li Chongfu of being conniving in crown prince Yide’s death. As a result, Zhongzong demoted Li Chongfu, making him serve as a prefect under heavy guard.

Initially, Zhongzong of Tang offered the crown prince position to Li Dan, but the latter declined. Instead, he named Li Chongjun, his son from a concubine, as crown prince.

Later in 705, Empress Wei warned Emperor Zhongzong that the coup leaders at the court were dangerous. Since the emperor agreed, he made the coup leaders as princes but removed them as chancellors.

The next year, Wang Tongjiao, Emperor Zhongzong’s son-in-law, was accused of plotting to murder Wu Sansi and overthrow Empress Wei. The accusation stemmed from him despising the two.

Since there was no proof regarding the plot against Wu Sansi, Wang Tongjiao’s alleged conspirators were executed. Wu Sansi also accused the five princes of associating with the plot. Because of this, they either died or were killed while in exile.

Domination of the Court

The empress was the most dominant figure at the court, along with Li Guo’er, the Princess Anle. Other powerful figures included Princess Changning (older daughter of Emperor Zhongzong and Empress Wei) and Lady of Cheng (Wei’s sister). The Tang emperor’s concubine, Consort Shangguan, and her mother also had roles in the Tang government.

These women were directly commissioned by Emperor Zhongzong to openly accept bribes and recommend numerous people to be officials. However, this wasn’t approved by the Zhongshu Sheng/the legislative and the Menxia Sheng/examination bureaus.

It was said that the civil service system was overrun with corruption and was close to collapsing.

Peace between China and Tibet

In 708, during winter, the Tuqishi chieftain Suoge succeeded his father and was challenged by his father’s subordinate, Juechuo.

The latter was unable to defeat Suoge. So, he bribed some people to sway the Tang emperor into launching a joint assault against Tuqishi and their empire.

Upon hearing this, Suoge launched a preemptive attack, aiming for a couple of key Tang garrisons. They eventually captured Juechuo and killed Feng Jiabin, one of the Tang generals who aided Juechou.

After the 4th Emperor of Tang recognized the authority of Suoge, hostility immediately ceased. Again, Suoge became a vassal of the Tang Empire.

In 710, Zhongzong of Tang sent off the daughter of Li Shouli, his nephew and Prince of Yong. Her name was Princess Jincheng, and she was sent to the Tibetan Empire. His purpose was to have her married to Emperor Me Agstom, to secure the peace between the two empires.

Death of Emperor Zhongzong

Emperor Zhongzong died in 710, and it was likely due to poisoning. Rumors state that his wife possibly did this. He was buried in Dingling of the Fuping County in Shaanxi.

After the Tang emperor’s death, his wife, Empress Wei, installed the 16-year-old Li Chongmao as emperor. He was the son of Emperor Zhonzong and a concubine.

The empress assumed that Chongmao was someone easy to control and would allow her to preserve her power. Unfortunately, her plans failed when Emperor Zhongzong’s sister, Princess Taiping, launched a coup with her nephew, Li Longji.

Longji’s father, Emperor Ruizong, was then restored as the emperor of the Tang Dynasty.