Emperor Yang of Sui facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Emperor Yang of Sui隋煬帝 |
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Tang dynasty portrait of Emperor Yang by Yan Liben
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| Emperor of the Sui dynasty | |||||||||||||||||
| Reign | August 21, 604 – April 11, 618 | ||||||||||||||||
| Predecessor | Emperor Wen | ||||||||||||||||
| Successor | Yang You | ||||||||||||||||
| Born | 569 | ||||||||||||||||
| Died | 11 April 618 (aged 49) Danyang, Sui China |
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| Burial | Jiangdu | ||||||||||||||||
| Consorts | Empress Min | ||||||||||||||||
| Issue | Yang Zhao Yang Jian Yang Gao Princess Nanyang |
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| House | Yang | ||||||||||||||||
| Dynasty | Sui | ||||||||||||||||
| Father | Emperor Wen | ||||||||||||||||
| Mother | Empress Wenxian | ||||||||||||||||
Emperor Yang of Sui (隋煬帝, 569 – 11 April 618) was the second emperor of the Sui dynasty in China. His personal name was Yang Guang (楊廣). He was also known by his Xianbei name, Amo.
Yang Guang was born as Yang Ying, but his father, Emperor Wen of Sui, changed his name to Yang Guang. In 581, when his father started the Sui dynasty, Yang Guang became the Prince of Jin. He was a skilled military leader. In 588, he led armies that conquered the Chen dynasty in southern China. This victory made him very popular.
Because of his military success and clever political moves, he became the crown prince in 600. After his father's death in 604, Yang Guang became the new emperor. He ruled from 604 to 618.
Emperor Yang started many huge building projects. The most famous was finishing the Grand Canal. He also rebuilt parts of the Great Wall. He led military trips that made the Sui empire bigger than ever. However, some of these trips, like the one to Champa, caused thousands of soldiers to die from diseases like malaria. His wars, especially against Goguryeo, cost a lot of money. These wars and high taxes made people angry and led to many rebellions.
With northern China in chaos, Emperor Yang spent his last days in Jiangdu (modern Yangzhou, Jiangsu). There, his general Yuwen Huaji led a rebellion and killed him. Many historians believe Emperor Yang's rule was too harsh. They say his costly wars and high taxes led to the quick downfall of the Sui dynasty.
Contents
Early Life and Rise to Power
Yang Guang was born in 569. His parents were Yang Jian and Duchess Dugu Qieluo. He was their second son. His older sister, Yang Lihua, married Emperor Wu of Northern Zhou. Yang Guang was known for being handsome and smart. His parents liked him the most among their sons.
In 581, Yang Jian became Emperor Wen and started the Sui dynasty. Yang Guang's older brother, Yang Yong, became the crown prince. Yang Guang was given the title of Prince of Jin.
Becoming the Prince of Jin
In 581, Emperor Wen put Yang Guang in charge of the provinces north of the Yellow River. He also made Yang Guang the head of a government office in that area. In 582, Yang Guang married a daughter of Emperor Ming of Western Liang, who became Princess Xiao. People said Yang Guang loved and respected her.
In 588, Emperor Wen launched a big attack on the Chen dynasty. Yang Guang led the main part of this attack. His generals crossed the Yangtze River and captured the Chen capital, Jiankang. The Chen emperor, Chen Shubao, was caught. Yang Guang was praised for this victory. He treated Chen Shubao and his family kindly.
How Yang Guang Became Crown Prince
By 600, Yang Guang's older brother, Yang Yong, had lost favor with their parents. Emperor Wen disliked Yang Yong's spending habits. Empress Dugu was unhappy because Yang Yong had many wives. Yang Guang, on the other hand, pretended to be careful with money. He also acted as if he only loved Princess Xiao. (Though he had other wives in secret).
Yang Guang also made Empress Dugu believe that Yang Yong wanted to harm him. He worked with powerful officials to create false evidence against Yang Yong. Because of this, Emperor Wen removed Yang Yong as crown prince. Yang Guang then became the new crown prince. Yang Yong was kept under house arrest.
Emperor Yang's Rule
In 604, Emperor Wen became very ill and died. Many historians believe Yang Guang ordered his father's death, though there is no clear proof. After his father's death, Yang Guang became Emperor Yang.
Early Challenges and Big Projects
One of Emperor Yang's first challenges was a rebellion by his brother, Yang Liang. Yang Liang had support from many provinces. Emperor Yang sent his general, Yang Su, to fight him. Yang Su quickly defeated Yang Liang, who then surrendered. Emperor Yang did not kill Yang Liang but imprisoned him for life.
In 604, Emperor Yang moved the capital to Luoyang. He believed the old capital, Chang'an, was not good for his health. He ordered huge construction projects in Luoyang to make it a grand capital. He also started building the Grand Canal of China. This massive canal connected the Yellow River with the Huai River and the Yangtze River. It was built very quickly, but many workers died during its construction.
Emperor Yang also ordered 40 smaller palaces to be built across the empire. He said he needed them to visit different areas and see how people lived. In 605, he took his first of many tours on a luxurious imperial ship.
Important Events and Changes
In 606, Yang Zhao, the crown prince, died. Emperor Yang did not choose another crown prince for the rest of his rule. He left his second son, Yang Jian, in charge of Luoyang when he was away.
In 607, Emperor Yang changed the way the government was organized. He also got rid of some noble titles, keeping only princes, dukes, and marquesses. He began to focus on expanding China's influence. He reopened trade with countries in the West.
In 608, Emperor Yang ordered over a million men to build another canal, the Yongji Canal. This canal connected the Yellow River to Zhuo Commandery (modern Beijing). There were not enough men, so women were also forced to work.
Emperor Yang also had problems with his second son, Yang Jian. He found out Yang Jian was using witchcraft. Emperor Yang punished many of Yang Jian's friends.
Wars and Rebellions
Emperor Yang's biggest challenge was his wars against Goguryeo (a kingdom in modern Korea). In 607, he demanded that King Yeong-yang of Goguryeo visit him. The king refused. By 611, Emperor Yang decided to attack Goguryeo. He gathered hundreds of thousands of soldiers. Many died from disease and tiredness even before reaching the battlefields. This led to many soldiers leaving the army and becoming rebels.
In 612, Emperor Yang launched his first attack on Goguryeo. He ordered generals to get his approval for every move. This made it hard for his army to win. The Sui navy attacked Goguryeo's capital, Pyongyang, but was defeated. The land army also faced problems. At the Salsu River, Goguryeo general Eulji Meundeok tricked the Sui army. He released water from a dam, drowning many Sui soldiers. Out of 305,000 men, only 2,700 survived. This war was a huge disaster for the Sui dynasty. It cost many lives, a lot of money, and made people lose faith in the emperor.
In 613, Emperor Yang prepared for a second war against Goguryeo. More men deserted and joined rebel groups. While he was fighting in Manchuria, news came that Yang Xuangan, the son of his former general Yang Su, had rebelled near Luoyang. Emperor Yang had to stop his war and return to deal with the rebellion. Yang Xuangan was defeated and killed. Emperor Yang punished many people who had supported Yang Xuangan.
The Empire Crumbles
By 614, Emperor Yang wanted to launch a third war against Goguryeo. His officials did not agree, but no one dared to speak against him. More soldiers deserted. Goguryeo offered peace, and Emperor Yang accepted for a short time. But when King Yeong-yang again refused to meet him, Emperor Yang planned a fourth campaign, which never happened.
Rebellions grew stronger across the empire. Generals like Zhang Xutuo and Wang Shichong had some victories, but the overall situation for the Sui dynasty was getting worse.
In 615, Emperor Yang was touring the northern provinces when the Shibi Khan of the Turks launched a surprise attack. Emperor Yang and his court were trapped in a city. He was very scared. He promised to end the wars and reward his soldiers to boost their morale. A princess, Princess Yicheng, who had married the Khan, secretly warned the emperor that the Turks were being attacked from the north. This made the Khan lift the siege. Once the danger passed, Emperor Yang broke most of his promises. He did not return to the capital and continued to plan for war.
By 616, Emperor Yang began to realize the seriousness of the rebellions. Many areas were no longer sending messages to the capital. He started to think about moving the capital to the south, to Danyang (modern Nanjing). He did not like to hear bad news about the rebels.
He left Luoyang and went to Jiangdu. After he left, a rebel leader named Li Mi captured the main food storages near Luoyang. This made it hard for the Sui army to get food. Another rebel, Li Yuan, captured Chang'an in 617. Li Yuan declared Emperor Yang's grandson, Yang You, as the new emperor (Emperor Gong). Li Yuan then held the real power.
The End of Emperor Yang's Reign
In Jiangdu, Emperor Yang's lifestyle became very luxurious. He had over 100 rooms in his palace, each filled with beautiful women. He seemed to know his end was near but did not care. He once told his wife, Empress Xiao, "I have a good neck, and I'm waiting for someone to sever it."
His personal guards, the Xiaoguo Army, missed their families in the north. They realized Emperor Yang did not plan to return north and began to desert. Their commanders worried about being punished. They decided to rebel and chose Yuwen Huaji, a general, as their leader.
In late spring 618, the coup began. The rebels entered the palace and surrounded Emperor Yang. They accused him of many wrongs. Emperor Yang admitted his mistakes. They killed his youngest son, Yang Gao, right there. Then, they killed Emperor Yang. The rebels also killed many high-ranking officials and relatives of Emperor Yang.
Empress Xiao and the palace women had to make simple coffins for Emperor Yang and his son. Later, a Sui official buried Emperor Yang with a small ceremony. In 622, after the Tang dynasty was established, its first emperor, Li Yuan, reburied Emperor Yang with more honors.
Discovery of Emperor Yang's Tomb
In April 2013, Emperor Yang's tomb was found in Yangzhou. Two brick tombs were discovered during construction work. A stone tablet in the western tomb confirmed it belonged to Emperor Yang. The other tomb might be for his wife, Empress Xiao.
The tomb is quite small, only about 4.98 by 5.88 meters. This is smaller than many tombs of important people from that time. Archaeologists believe it is small because Emperor Yang died suddenly during a rebellion. There was no time to build a grand tomb.
The tomb had been damaged and robbed in ancient times. No body or coffin was found. However, some artifacts were recovered, including gold-decorated jade belts and lion-shaped door-knockers.
Arts and Talents
Emperor Yang was a supporter of the arts. He brought many foreign orchestras from across Asia to his court. He was also a talented poet himself. However, he was known for being very jealous. He even had two poets killed because he thought their poems were better than his own.
Family and Descendants
Emperor Yang had several children. His main wife was Empress Min.
- Sons:
- Yang Zhao (584–606), his first son, who was briefly crown prince.
- Yang Jian (585–618), his second son.
- Yang Gao (607–618), his fourth son, killed with him.
- Daughters:
- Princess Nanyang (586–630).
- Princess Yang, who later married Li Shimin of the Tang dynasty.
Emperor Yang's grandsons, Yang Tong and Yang You, briefly held the title of emperor after his death. His descendants continued to live in China for many generations.
Images for kids
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A simple gold crown icon.
