Tang Founding Generals by KOEI (in Late Tang Armor) 【三国志14】KOEI 唐开国元勋画
Romance of the Three Kingdoms 14 on Steam
Recently I have found a batch of very exquisite artworks by KOEI's Romance of the Three Kingdoms 14【三国志14】which depicts several founders of the Tang dynasty as an Easter egg. I have always considered KOEI as some of the best portrait artists in the industry and have been a lifelong fan of their aesthetics- thus seeing them lend their talent in one of my favorite periods of Chinese is nothing less of a dream come true. I will write up a very brief description of the warrior/ statesman featured and their historical achievements.
GORGEOUSLY ANACHROISTIC
Though before we proceed, I would like to clarify to anyone interested in using them as a historic reference that although all of the figures are indeed depicted in Tang dynasty armors, they are depicted in elaborate Late Tang (835－907) era armors rather than that of Early Tang (618－713). No doubt these are chosen as their armors because of their beauty and elaborate craftsmanship. Regardless, since the Tang dynasty is seldomly covered in the West overall, it's time we are introduced to some of Tang dynasty's founders.
YUCHI GONG- THE PRINCE'S FIST
Ferocious, gruff, and fearless to the point of madness, Yuchi Gong was a terrifying berserker of a warrior and one of Prince Li Shimin's best fighting soldiers. He was instrumental in many events that propelled the Tang Prince to become the future Taizong Emperor. Later he would be deified as a God in Chinese folk religion.
Yuchi Gong (585–658) lived a life that was- in many ways somewhat typical of the early founders of Tang. He was an unequalled warrior who fought in a rebel army that topple the dying Sui dynasty- and in the ensuing civil war his superiors fought and was defeated by the young 20 year old Prince of Tang Li Shimin. After surrendering to the young Tang Prince- and was pardoned by him, Yuchi Gong became one of the greatest warriors in the Tang army. Though they were previous enemies, Yuchi Gong and the young Tang Prince instantly formed a close bond and Gong quickly rose to become one of Li Shimin's best champions. His birth name indicates that he likely had non- Han, or partially Han ethnicity and was either a Xianbei or a Hu~ "Western foreigner."
Fearsome Grimace: Later portrait of Yuchi Gong in Tang courtly attire. But consistent with the man's descriptions. Yuchi Gong had the aspect of a wild fighting man. He had a fearsome and bushy beard of bristling whiskers. In many ways he was like Li Shimin's own Zhang Fei.
A life long fighting man. Yuchi Gong was at the forefront of many battles and events that propelled the young Tang Prince to become one of the greatest Tang Emperors. He was instrumental in helping Li Shimin defeat several of Tang's most dangerous rivals in northern China in battle, and personally fought as the Prince's vanguard in many such battles. Including dueling champions from rival armies before the battle of Hulao and stealing many warhorses. After the conclusion of the civil war-Yuchi Gong was approached by Prince Shimin's 2 rival brothers. At first they tried to bribe him to turn him against their brother, then they attempted to assassinate and torture him. He was only spared from execution by Li Shimin's intercession. Because of this spiraling power struggle Yuchi Gong played a decisive role in the coup Li Shimin would launch against his 2 brothers.
During the Xuanwu Gate when Li Shimin's younger brother tried to strangle the unhorsed Li Shimin to death with his bow string- Yuchi Gong rushed in and chased off the brother with a spear then slew him with an arrow. Thereafter, he marched into the sitting Emperor Gaozu's presence and informed him that Li had just put down 2 of his brothers. Sensing that military power now rested in his son's hands, the Gaozu emperor entered into retirement and passed the throne to Prince Shimin (later known as the Taizong Emperor.) For the critical role he played in aiding the Taizong Emperor to the throne, Yuchi Gong would hold an honored position at court. After his death, he would be deified in the Chinese folk religion as a Door God.
QIN SHUBAO- BLACK- CLAD VANGUARD
Though a fearless warrior in his own right, because he was often paired up with the more tempestuous Yuchi Gong- Qin Shubao by contrast was seen as the cooler, deliberate, and fastidious of the two champions. Where as Yuchi Gong was the war hungry berserker, Qin Shubao was the image of a diligent and obedient soldier.
Like Yuchi Gong, Qian Shubao (died 638) was also said to be a warrior without equal. And like Yuchi Gong- Qin also began his career as one of the young Prince Shimin's enemies. A remarkable soldier in his youth, Qin was widely appreciated by a gallery of employers for his honor and talent. Punctual and respectful, he served the dying Sui dynasty in its last days and was suicidally brave in putting down several numerically superior rebel armies in battle.
This changed- however, when his commander was slain in battle and the other superiors surrendered the army, along with him to a rebel leader named Li Mi. Although it was not his decision to submit to Li Mi's rebel army, he still served it dutifully and was praised by them as one of their best warriors. His fortunes would change again when his employer was betrayed by another warlord Wang Shichong and resounded defeated. After this, instead of serving the untrustworthy Wang Shichong, Qin rode to the camp of Prince Li Shimin and submitted.
Yuchi Gong and Qin Shubao: Two of Emperor Taizong's best champions would become deified as Door Gods and are still venerated today across East Asia on various temples in Taiwan, China, and Malaysia
Qin's career took off in service under Li Shimin and in only 1 year became one of Li Shimin's best warriors along with another surrendered warrior Yuchi Gong. For his fearlessness and loyalty, Li Shimin put Qin at the head of his 1,000 elite bodyguards~ the Jet Black Armor Cavalry 玄甲军, who were clad in black uniform and black armor, and personally commanded by Li Shimin himself, with Qin and Yuchi Gong as his assistants. This corps subsequently accomplished much during the campaign against Wang and Dou Jiande, another rebel warlord in the climactic Battle of Hulao- where Li Shimin's much smaller army was able to utterly defeat a massive relif army of 100,000+ soldiers under Duo and force Wang Shichong to surrender at Luoyang.
It was said that whenever Qin was following Li Shimin in battle, where there would be enemy soldiers who dared to display their bravery and taunt Li Shimin, Li Shimin would send Qin to attack them, and often Qin was able to target them and destroy them. Li Shimin therefore was particularly impressed with him, and Qin was proud of his own abilities.
Like Yuchi Gong, Qin Shubao also actively participated in the Xuanwu Gate incident where Li Shimin's 2 rival brothers were slain. Despite his stellar war records, Qin would be wracked with illness after Taizong took to the throne and he would die before reaching an old age. Like Yuchi Gong, Qin was also deified as a Door God by Chinese folk religion.
LI JING- EARLY TANG'S GOD OF WAR
A general who vanquished several empires in his notches. A somewhat gorgeously anachronistic depiction of Li Jing in elaborate mountain pattern armor of the Late Tang, 5 Dynasties and 10 Kingdoms, and Song era. Li Jing was a cerebral commander and one of Taizong Emperor's best generals. He was instrumental in defeating both the Eastern and Western Gokturk Khaganates and also the Tuyuhun Kingdom in modern Qinghai.
In the last days of the crumbling Sui dynasty Li Jing (571 – 649) was a respected and talented minister. Handsome and eloquent, he was a very cerebral scholar and was posted in several administrative jobs. However, during his posting as a prefect of the imperial frontier capital of Taiyuan, Li Jing's keen observations led him to suspect the nearby commander Li Yuan (the future Gaozu Emperor of Tang and Li Shimin's father) maybe privately accumulating a rebel force and was planning to usurp the Sui imperial court. He wrote to the imperial court warning of Li Yuan's danger, however because most of the empire was then engulfed in massive peasant uprisings, his notice was not delivered to the capital, and instead Li Yuan (who as predicted, had rebelled) captured the capital and declared his own dynasty.
Li Jing had a long and star- studded career, and unlike some of Li Shimin's early champions, whose brightest moments of their career climaxed during Tang's (and more precisely Prince Li Shimin's) acension- Li Jing's career actually surged upward following Li Shimin ascended the throne as the Taizong Emperor. Along with another talented cerebral commander Li Shiji, The 2 of them were instrumental in wielding the empire's armies and defeating several hostile empires all in 1 decade. Were as Yuchi Gong and Qin Shubao were Prince Shimin's tactical arms, Li Jing and Li Shiji were the empire's fighting arms. Both would have each vanquished several empires in their careers, making Tang hegemony all but assured.
After the Tang took the capital Li Jing's warnings to exposed Li Yuan were discovered and Li Jing was sentenced to be executed. However, during Li Jing's would- be execution Li Jing loudly protested his unjust sentencing upon the scaffold to the seated Li Yuan and said that he was merely dutifully doing what any loyal minister would do. Impressed, Li Yuan spared him and Li Jing's career truly began under service to the Tang.
During Gaozu's reign Li Jing was a key strategist who outlined several strategies in which the still disunited southern China was to be reconquered under Tang rule. With the south pacified, he was transferred to the northeast against the Eastern Gokturks who were invading Tang's eastern frontiers. At this time, Prince Li Shimin eliminated 2 of his rival brothers in the Xuanwu Gate Incident and soon, Li Jing became one of the key commanders put in charge of defeating the Gokturk Khaganate.
Li Jing's strategies exploited the internal princely divisions within Gokturk Khaganate's royal ranks and also prepared for deep offensives against the few key cities within the Khaganate. After a disastrous winter hailstorm destroyed many flocks of the tribesmen of the north and a civil war broke out among the Gokturk princes, Taizong then intervened under the preetext of protecting one of the Princes- who was a sworn ally of Tang. In the rapid campaign Li Jing's army merged with other Gokturks and defeated the Khagan's army then capture the Khagan himself- made him an honored hostage in Chang An. This ended the Eastern Khaganate. Li Jing then commanded the Tang army in annexing the Western Gokturk Khaganate and the Tuyuhun Kingdom. Together with the dangerously talented minister Li Shiji~ who eventually vanquished the Xueyantuo and Guguryeo, Li Jing and Li Shiji were considered 2 of the most capable early Tang commanders.
PRINCE LI SHIMIN- FUTURE TAIZONG EMPEROR OF TANG
The young Warrior Prince Li Shimin- the Prince of Qin, and future Taizong 太宗 Emperor of Tang (598 – 649). Decisive and tolerant, two traits that defined Li Shimin. A cerebral and charismatic leader, he was able to persuade most of his enemies to work for him and become key parts of his imperial cabinet. During his reign Tang became the undisputed Hegemon on East Asia and entered into a Gold Age. Arguable the best Tang Emperor along with Xuanzong who presided during the High Tang era (713－766.) In his youth- then known as the Prince of Qin (a fief awarded in the West) he personally defeated several of Tang's most dangerous foes while leading from the front.
Ming dynasty portrait of Taizong Emperor which the KOEI portrait is almost definitely based on, note the almost exact similar collars and embroidered cloud and dragon motif of his emblem.
When he was 19 his entire family was branded as traitors and marked for death, instead he led his family's armies, defeated a realm of vicious rivals and toppled an empire. The young lord Li Shimin was born in a brood of lions, his father Li Yuan was one of the most feared and respected commanders of the Sui dynasty and his brothers were all capable commanders in their own right as generals, even his sister, the Princess Pingyang successfully raised a great army of rebels under her own command and took many cities for her father. Upon his ascension as the Taizong Emperor his cabinet consisted of many defeated ministers, and that a good portion of his best generals were former enemies. A merciful ruler who was shockingly tolerant of criticism, Taizong presided over a highly gifted court. During his reign Tang China entered a golden age.
Figure: Gokturk gift-bearers, guests, and a prince marked by a prominent tent. When the Gokturk princes rendered fealty to him, one of the first of Taizong's acts was to purchase all of the ethnic Han slaves owned by the Gokturks back and have them emancipated. However, he paid back the worth of each of the slaves to their respective owners from the Tang state's coffers. After this, the various Turkic prince would frequently serve the Tang and provided much needed cavalry support and address the Li rulers in the style of the "Heavenly Khagan."
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Comments
I am interested in the anecdote about Li Shimin purchasing ethnic Han slaves and emancipating them from the Turks. How interesting! But is it true though? Was there a sense of ethnic "Han-ness" among the Chinese of the early Tang for them to feel sympathy for 'fellow Han'? Was there this modern sense of ethnicity? It's well known that the Li family and entire Sui ruling class were a hybrid class of Han and Xianbei of the former Northern Zhou and Touba Wei so why would Li Shimin have special sympathy for some random Han slaves captured by the Turks on one of their raids? Was a it a PR exercise by Li Shimin perhaps?
~I think in your latter point you also should know that both Sui and Tang rulers made a lot of their own ancestral connections to former dynasties, Sui marketed themselves as Han even though Emperor Wen had a very Xianbei upbringing in a heavily Xianbei court: among them he was called Puliuru Jian after all. Same goes for the early Tang rulers, they were intermarried with the Xianbei nobility but after the establishment of the Tang they claimed they were descendants of Lao zi (traditional birth name of Li Er) and Li Xin- the Qin statesman who crafted the plan for Qin Shihuang to conquer the rest of the 6 kingdoms.
Do you know why they did this? In overextending beyond their traditional northern cultural norms and suddenly began to pump their chest for a new- grander cultural identity that harkons to a past that none of them ever lived before? Look on a map. No really, look on a map around the time where Emperor Wen was reunifying China and when the Tang Emperors where reunifying China and that will answer your questions instantly. Such a state has not been around since the Han dynasty, is it unsurprising that~ say, for someone well familiar with Charlemagne's "Renovatio imperii Romanorum" statement and the highest level titles in the Crusader Kings series that once they are close to acquire something that unites all of these lands in precedence, organization, and self conceptualization that they'd let a great example from the past go to waste???
In China, a lot of marriages between Han and ethnic minorities are done to women who are ethnic minorities, and most of their children become ethnic minorities and no longer identify themselves as Han.