Course Map of Sui’s Campaign Against Chen
3 min readYang Guang: Emperor of the Sui Dynasty Craving for Grandeur and Success
Portrait of Yang Guang(569-618)
yang Guang was the second son of Yang lian who established the sui pynasty. He was first made the prince of in in 581, and was then designated crown prince in 600. After murdering hisown father four yearslater, he acededto the throne and occupiedit for 14 years (604-617). He was given the posthumous title of Emperor Yang.
Yang Guang(569-618) of the Han nationality, also named Yang Ying and nicknamed A-mo, was of Huayin of Shaanxi origin and was born in Chang’ an. The second emperor of the Sui Dynasty(581-618), he went in for large-scale construction and wantonly engaged in military ventures during his reign of 14 years(604-617), which eventually brought about the downfall of his empire.
Course Map of Sui’s Campaign Against Chen
Subjugating the Chen Dynasty
Since the Sui Dynasty was established in 58 1 by Yang Jian (541-604),a powerful minister of the Northern Zhou Dynasty (557-581), the Chen Dynasty(also called Southern Chen,557-589)–the last of the Southern Dynasties–became the only monarchy in the south that could contend with it. In order to put an end to national disunity during the Northern and Southern Dynasties (386-589), in 588 Yang Jian appointed his second son Yang Guang who was Prince of Jin then as commander-in-chief of a joint force of 500,000 to attack the Southern Chen.
In the twelfth lunar month of that year, the waterborne troops of the Sui went down the Yangtze River, pressing ahead like a hot knife through butter. The Chen capital Jiankang fell in the first lunar month of the following year, and Emperor Chen Shubao(5 53-604) became a captive.
By order of Yang Guang, when entering Jiankang the Sui army inflicted not the slightest harm on the people. Making a name for himself from this battle, Yang Guang was soon promoted to Grand Commandant in charge of the entire army of the Sui Dynasty.
Replacing His Brother as Crown Prince
No sooner had Yang Jian proclaimed himself emperor than he designated his eldest son Yang Yong as crown prince. Yang Guang had distinguished himself time and again on the battlefield, but Yang Yong, by contrast, lived in luxury and indulged in sensual pursuits. As a result, he gradually fell into disfavor. Meanwhile, Yang Guang who had been coveting the position of crown prince pretended that he had no interest in women and led a thrifty and simple life. In this way he won favor with his parents instead.
In 590,He was then appointed commanding officer in charge of local military and political affairs there, with Jiangdu(present Yangzhou City of Jiangsu Province) as the seat of his residence, and was allowed to have an audience with the emperor once a year. Every time he returned to the capital Chang an he cried bitterly before his mother Empress Dugu(who was ethnically Hun,543-602), blaming himself for not being a filial son. He had once tearfully accused his brother of plotting to murder him. To think that the empress accepted it as true!
Yang Guang also instigated some courtiers to speak ill of his brother. They even spread a rumor that Yang Yong had wished an early death upon his father so that he could succeed to the throne soon. Consequently, Yang Jian’s dislike of his eldest son grew with each passing day, and at last deposed him in 600, making Yang Guang the new crown prince.
Yang Guang allegedly had his father who was gravely ill murdered, and thus eventually realized his own dream of becoming emperor. He then ordered his brother Yang Yong to commit suicide.
