-
The Tragedy at Mawei and the Fracture of the Tang
•
The Collapse at Tong Pass and the Flight Following the disastrous order to attack, General Geshu Han led the Tang army out of Tong Pass, only to fall into a rebel ambush at Lingbao. The Tang forces were decimated; of the 200,000 soldiers, fewer than 8,000 survived. Geshu Han was betrayed by his own…
-
The Cataclysm of An and Shi: The Fall of the Golden Age
•
The Rise of the Yang Clan Yang Guozhong, originally named Yang Zhao, was the nephew of Zhang Yizhi, a favorite consort of Empress Wu Zetian. In his youth, he was a gambler and a drunkard, despised by his relatives until he found a lifeline in the military in Sichuan. His fortune changed dramatically when…
-
The Rise and Fall of the Kaiyuan-Tianbao Era
•
The Struggle for the Throne Following the reign of Wu Zetian, the ambition for imperial power spread among the women of the court, notably her daughter Princess Taiping, her daughter-in-law Empress Wei, and her granddaughter Princess Anle. Empress Wei and Princess Anle poisoned Emperor Zhongzong, plotting to install a child emperor so that Wei…
-
The Rise of the Empress: Wu Zetian’s Path to the Dragon Throne
•
From Concubine to Consort Emperor Gaozong of Tang, though less capable than his father Emperor Taizong of Tang, initially ruled smoothly with the aid of veteran ministers and by adhering to his father’s advice. During this prosperous era, he completed the construction of the Daming Palace, a monumental complex of unparalleled scale and grandeur.…
-
Xuanzang’s Journey West
•
The Imperial Welcome and the Monk’s Vow Following the death of his trusted advisor Wei Zheng, Emperor Taizong of Tang found solace in a piece of joyful news: the monk Xuanzang, who had departed for India (Tianzhu) years earlier to seek Buddhist scriptures, was finally returning.