An Lushan ( Chinese : 安祿山 ; pinyin : Ān Lùshān ; 20th day of the 1st month (19 February) 703 – 29 January 757) was a Chinese military general and rebel leader during the Tang dynasty and is primarily known for instigating the An Lushan Rebellion which devastated China and killed millions of people.
150-516: An Lushan was of Sogdian and Göktürk origin, at least by adoption. He rose to prominence as a general by defending the northeastern Tang frontier from the Khitans and other threats. Through his frequent visits to Chang'an , the Tang capital, An Lushan managed to gain favour with Emperor Xuanzong of Tang and Chancellor Li Linfu . By 751, he had been appointed military governor over three prefectures. After
300-766: A Sabao , which suggests their importance to the socioeconomic structure of China. The Sogdian influence on trade in China is also made apparent by a Chinese document which lists taxes paid on caravan trade in the Turpan region and shows that twenty-nine out of the thirty-five commercial transactions involved Sogdian merchants, and in thirteen of those cases both the buyer and the seller were Sogdian. Trade goods brought to China included grapes , alfalfa , and Sassanian silverware , as well as glass containers, Mediterranean coral, brass Buddhist images, Roman wool cloth, and Baltic amber . These were exchanged for Chinese paper, copper, and silk. In
450-565: A Bronze Age urban culture: original Bronze Age towns appear in the archaeological record beginning with the settlement at Sarazm , Tajikistan, spanning as far back as the 4th millennium BC, and then at Kök Tepe, near modern-day Bulungur , Uzbekistan, from at least the 15th century BC. In the Avesta , namely in the Mihr Yasht and the Vendidad , the toponym of Gava ( gava-, gāum ) is mentioned as
600-659: A Turko-Sogdian delegation travelled to the Roman emperor in Constantinople to obtain permission to trade and in the following years commercial activity between the states flourished. Put simply, the Sogdians dominated trade along the Silk Road from the 2nd century BC until the 10th century. Suyab and Talas in modern-day Kyrgyzstan were the main Sogdian centers in the north that dominated
750-674: A crisis. Following the Muslim conquest of Transoxiana in the 8th century, the Samanids resumed trade on the northwestern road leading to the Khazars and the Urals and the northeastern one toward the nearby Turkic tribes. During the 5th and 6th century, many Sogdians took up residence in the Hexi Corridor , where they retained autonomy in terms of governance and had a designated official administrator known as
900-664: A fortress in Sogdiana, was captured in 327 BC by the forces of Alexander the Great , the basileus of Macedonian Greece, and conqueror of the Persian Achaemenid Empire. Oxyartes , a Sogdian nobleman of Bactria, had hoped to keep his daughter Roxana safe at the fortress of the Sogdian Rock, yet after its fall Roxana was soon wed to Alexander as one of his several wives. Roxana, a Sogdian whose name Roshanak means "little star",
1050-574: A friendship had developed between An Lushan and the Emperor. When An went to Chang'an later that year to pay homage to Emperor Xuanzong, he presented Emperor Xuanzong with 8,000 Xi captives. In 751, Xuanzong had a magnificent mansion built for An in Chang'an, sparing no expense, using jade, gold, and silver in many different places. On An's birthday, 20 February 751, Emperor Xuanzong and Consort Yang awarded him with clothing, treasures, and food. On 23 February, when An
1200-673: A gift to Byzantine ruler Justin II , but also proposed an alliance against Sassanid Persia. Justin II agreed and sent an embassy to the Turkic Khaganate, ensuring the direct silk trade desired by the Sogdians. It appears, however, that direct trade with the Sogdians remained limited in light of the small amount of Roman and Byzantine coins found in Central Asian and Chinese archaeological sites belonging to this era. Although Roman embassies apparently reached Han China from 166 AD onwards, and
1350-572: A key position along the ancient Silk Road. They played an active role in the spread of faiths such as Manicheism , Zoroastrianism , and Buddhism along the Silk Road. The Chinese Sui Shu ( Book of Sui ) describes Sogdians as "skilled merchants" who attracted many foreign traders to their land to engage in commerce. They were described by the Chinese as born merchants, learning their commercial skills at an early age. It appears from sources, such as documents found by Sir Aurel Stein and others, that by
1500-457: A large body and impressed by his plea, released him and had him serve as a police officer, along with Shi, and both of them were said to be capable at catching criminals. Later, Zhang promoted him to be a military officer. As Zhang believed that he was obese, he did not dare to eat too much while in Zhang's presence, and this drew Zhang's favor. Zhang took him in and treated him like a son. At a time that
1650-455: A major attack against the Khitan, advancing quickly to the heart of Khitan territory, but, hampered by rains, was defeated by the Khitan, and the general He Side ( 何思德 ) was killed. An himself was almost killed, and, after retreating, blamed the defeat on Ge Jie ( 哥解 ) and Yu Chengxian ( 魚承仙 ), executing them. He subsequently had Shi defend against the Khitan counterattack, and Shi was able to repel
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#17330863161491800-688: A new state of Yan , making Zhang Tongru and the surrendered Tang official Daxi Xun ( 達奚珣 ) his chancellors. He created An Qingxu the Prince of Jin and another son, An Qinghe ( 安慶和 ), the Prince of Zheng. Meanwhile, Yan Zhenqing's cousin Yan Gaoqing ( 顏杲卿 ), who initially submitted to An, rose against An at Changshan Commandery (常山, roughly modern Baoding , Hebei ) but was quickly defeated and delivered to An in Luoyang; An executed him and sent An Qingxu to make an initial attack against Tong Pass, and Geshu Han repelled
1950-581: A priest. Miwnay cursed her Sogdian husband for leaving her, saying she would rather have been married to a pig or dog. Another letter in the collection was written by the Sogdian Nanai-vandak addressed to Sogdians back home in Samarkand informing them about a mass rebellion by Xiongnu Hun rebels against their Han Chinese rulers of the Western Jin dynasty informing his people that every single one of
2100-520: A raid by Qapaghan Qaghan (692–716), ruler of the Second Turkic Khaganate . In the 10th century, Sogdiana was incorporated into the Uighur Empire , which until 840 encompassed northern Central Asia. This khaganate obtained enormous deliveries of silk from Tang China in exchange for horses, in turn relying on the Sogdians to sell much of this silk further west. Peter B. Golden writes that
2250-419: A result, the deputy ministers of civil service, Song Yao ( 宋遙 ) and Miao Jinqing were demoted. An often pleased Emperor Xuanzong by offering Emperor Xuanzong tributes of rare items, such as rare animals or jewels. By this time, he was even more obese than before, and Emperor Xuanzong, on one occasion, jokingly asked him, "What does this barbaric belly contain?" He responded, "Other than a faithful heart, there
2400-541: A sword that he usually put under his bed, and Li Zhu'er killed him. The next morning, Yan first announced to the Yan officials that An Lushan was seriously ill and was creating An Qingxu crown prince, and then An Qingxu took the throne, before announcing An Lushan's death. It was said that An Qingxu was an introvert who couldn't speak to others properly. As a result, Yan Zhuang advised him not to meet officials frequently, and he entrusted most of affairs of state to Yan and created Yan
2550-483: Is characterized by strong Iranian-Sogdian elements probably brought with intense Sogdian-Tocharian trade, the influence of which is especially apparent in the Central-Asian caftans with Sogdian textile designs, as well as Sogdian longswords of many of the figures. Other characteristic Sogdian designs are animals, such as ducks, within pearl medallions. Aside from the Sogdians of Central Asia who acted as middlemen in
2700-620: Is found in the Mihr Yasht, ie., the hymn dedicated to the Zoroastrian deity Mithra . In verse 10.14 it is described how Mithra reaches Mount Hara and looks at the entirety of the Airyoshayan ( airiio.shaiianem , 'lands of the Arya '), where navigable rivers rush with wide a swell towards Parutian Ishkata, Haraivian Margu , Gava Sogdia ( gaom-ca suγδəm ), and Chorasmia . The second mention
2850-553: Is found in the first chapter of the Vendidad, which consists of a list of the sixteen good regions created by Ahura Mazda for the Iranians. Gava is the second region mentioned on the list, directly behind Airyanem Vaejah , the homeland of Zarathustra and the Iranians, according to Zoroastrian tradition: The second of the good lands and countries which I, Ahura Mazda, created, was the Gava of
3000-755: Is no longer spoken. However, a descendant of one of its dialects, Yaghnobi , is still spoken by the Yaghnobis of Tajikistan. It was widely spoken in Central Asia as a lingua franca and served as one of the First Turkic Khaganate 's court languages for writing documents. Sogdians also lived in Imperial China and rose to prominence in the military and government of the Chinese Tang dynasty (618–907 AD). Sogdian merchants and diplomats travelled as far west as
3150-494: Is nothing else." On another occasion, when Emperor Xuanzong's son Li Heng the Crown Prince was in audience, he refused to bow to Li Heng, stating, "I am a barbarian, and I do not understand formal ceremony. What is a crown prince?" Emperor Xuanzong responded, "He is the reserve emperor. After my death, he will be your emperor ." An apologized, stating, "I am foolish. I had only known about Your Imperial Majesty, and not that there
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#17330863161493300-476: Is such a thing as a reserve emperor." He bowed, but Emperor Xuanzong, believing him to be honest, favored him even more. As he was allowed to enter the palace, he asked that he become an adoptive son of Emperor Xuanzong's favorite concubine Consort Yang Guifei , and Emperor Xuanzong agreed. Thereafter, on one occasion, he bowed to Consort Yang first before bowing to Emperor Xuanzong, stating, "Barbarians bow to mothers first before fathers." Xuanzong, now believing An
3450-576: Is widely attributed to the ruler's lack of control. However, unlike Egypt, which was quickly recaptured by the Persian Empire, Sogdiana remained independent until it was conquered by Alexander the Great . When the latter invaded the Persian Empire , Pharasmanes, an already independent king of Khwarezm , allied with the Macedonians and sent troops to Alexander in 329 BC for his war against the Scythians of
3600-740: The Anikova dish . The Umayyads fell in 750 to the Abbasid Caliphate , which quickly asserted itself in Central Asia after winning the Battle of Talas (along the Talas River in modern Talas Oblast , Kyrgyzstan) in 751, against the Chinese Tang dynasty. This conflict incidentally introduced Chinese papermaking to the Islamic world . The cultural consequences and political ramifications of this battle meant
3750-699: The Taishang Huang [i.e., An Lushan], arrive from afar to save me from death. I have no way to repay your kindness. Shi suddenly changed his expression and rebuked An: Losing the two capitals is nothing worthy to be mentioned. You were a son, and you killed your father and usurped his throne. Heaven, earth, and the gods cannot tolerate you. I am attacking the bandits on behalf of the Taishang Huang , and I will not listen to your flattery. Shi then executed An Qingxu, his four brothers, Gao, Sun, and Cui. He took over An's territory and troops and soon claimed for himself
3900-734: The Amu Darya and the Syr Darya , and in present-day Uzbekistan , Turkmenistan , Tajikistan , Kazakhstan , and Kyrgyzstan . Sogdiana was also a province of the Achaemenid Empire , and listed on the Behistun Inscription of Darius the Great . Sogdiana was first conquered by Cyrus the Great , the founder of the Achaemenid Empire, and then was annexed by the Macedonian ruler Alexander
4050-743: The Anxi Protectorate of the Tang dynasty , until the Muslim conquest of Transoxiana . Qutayba ibn Muslim (669–716), Governor of Greater Khorasan under the Umayyad Caliphate (661–750), initiated the Muslim conquest of Sogdia during the early 8th century, with the local ruler of Balkh offering him aid as an Umayyad ally. However, when his successor al-Jarrah ibn Abdallah governed Khorasan (717–719), many native Sogdians, who had converted to Islam, began to revolt when they were no longer exempt from paying
4200-571: The Bingmashi ( 兵馬使 ) of Pinglu Army. In 741, when the deputy chief imperial censor Zhang Lizhen ( 張利貞 ) was sent to survey the Hebei (河北, i.e., the region north of the Yellow River ) and visited Pinglu Army, An ingratiated himself with Zhang, so much so that he even bribed Zhang's servants. When Zhang returned to Chang'an and praised An, Emperor Xuanzong promoted An to be the commandant at Ying Prefecture and
4350-523: The Black Sea region (even though this anticipated campaign never materialized). During the Achaemenid period (550–330 BC), the Sogdians lived as a nomadic people much like the neighboring Yuezhi , who spoke Bactrian , an Indo-Iranian language closely related to Sogdian, and were already engaging in overland trade. Some of them had also gradually settled the land to engage in agriculture. Similar to how
4500-631: The Byzantine Empire . They played an essential part as middlemen in the Silk Road trade route. While initially practicing the faiths of Zoroastrianism , Manichaeism , Buddhism and, to a lesser extent, the Church of the East from West Asia , the gradual conversion to Islam among the Sogdians and their descendants began with the Muslim conquest of Transoxiana in the 8th century. The Sogdian conversion to Islam
4650-512: The Gui [ Oxus ] river. They are bordered on the south by Daxia [ Bactria ], on the west by Anxi [ Parthia ], and on the north by Kangju [beyond the middle Jaxartes /Syr Darya]. They are a nation of nomads , moving from place to place with their herds, and their customs are like those of the Xiongnu. They have some 100,000 or 200,000 archer warriors. From the 1st century AD,
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4800-628: The Kushan Empire (30–375 AD) of Central and South Asia . A now-independent and warlike Sogdiana formed a border region insulating the Achaemenid Persians from the nomadic Scythians to the north and east. It was led at first by Bessus , the Achaemenid satrap of Bactria . After assassinating Darius III in his flight from the Macedonian Greek army, he became claimant to the Achaemenid throne. The Sogdian Rock or Rock of Ariamazes,
4950-559: The Principality of Farghana , where their ruler at-Tar (or Alutar) promised them safety and refuge from the Umayyads. However, at-Tar secretly informed al-Harashi of the Sogdians hiding in Khujand , who were then slaughtered by al-Harashi's forces after their arrival. From 722, following the Muslim invasion, new groups of Sogdians, many of them Nestorian Christians , emigrated to the east, where
5100-794: The Sakas overran the Greco-Bactrian kingdom around 145 BC, soon followed by the Yuezhi , the nomadic predecessors of the Kushans . From then until about 40 BC the Yuezhi tepidly minted coins imitating and still bearing the images of the Greco-Bactrian kings Eucratides I and Heliocles I . The Yuezhis were visited in Transoxiana by a Chinese mission, led by Zhang Qian in 126 BC, which sought an offensive alliance with
5250-573: The Tang campaign against Karakhoja and Chinese conquest of 640, with a gradual adoption of Chinese bronze coinage over the course of the 7th century. The fact that these Eastern Roman coins were almost always found with Sasanian Persian silver coins and Eastern Roman gold coins were used more as ceremonial objects like talismans , confirms the pre-eminent importance of Greater Iran in Chinese Silk Road commerce of Central Asia compared to Eastern Rome. The Kizil Caves near Kucha , mid-way in
5400-769: The Tarim Basin , record many scenes of traders from Central Asia in the 5–6th century: these combine influence from the Eastern Iran sphere, at that time occupied by the Sasanian Empire and the Hephthalites , with strong Sogdian cultural elements. Sogdia, at the center of a new Silk Road between China to the Sasanian Empire and the Byzantine Empire became extremely prosperous around that time. The style of this period in Kizil
5550-428: The Uyghurs not only adopted the writing system and religious faiths of the Sogdians, such as Manichaeism, Buddhism, and Christianity, but also looked to the Sogdians as "mentors", while gradually replacing them in their roles as Silk Road traders and purveyors of culture . Muslim geographers of the 10th century drew upon Sogdian records dating to 750–840. After the end of the Uyghur Empire , Sogdian trade underwent
5700-563: The Yellow River , quickly capturing Chenliu (陳留, roughly modern Kaifeng , Henan ) and Yingyang (滎陽, roughly modern Zhengzhou , Henan ) Commanderies. He approached Luoyang, where he encountered an ill-prepared army commanded by Feng, defeating Feng quickly and forcing Feng to flee and concede Luoyang to him. Feng joined forces with Gao and urged a retreat to Tong Pass ; Gao agreed, and they took up defensive positions there, and An did not proceed quickly, but remained at Luoyang, planning to declare himself emperor there. (Soon, due to accusations of
5850-466: The ancient Romans imported Han Chinese silk while the Han dynasty Chinese imported Roman glasswares as discovered in their tombs, Valerie Hansen (2012) wrote that no Roman coins from the Roman Republic (507–27 BC) or the Principate (27 BC – 330 AD) era of the Roman Empire have been found in China. However, Warwick Ball (2016) upends this notion by pointing to a hoard of sixteen Roman coins found at Xi'an , China (formerly Chang'an ), dated to
6000-404: The eunuch Bian Lingcheng ( 邊令誠 ), Emperor Xuanzong executed Feng and Gao, and replaced Gao with Geshu Han.) Some Tang officials north of the Yellow River resisted An Lushan under the leadership of Yan Zhenqing , the governor of Pingyuan Commandery (平原, roughly modern Dezhou , Shandong ). On Lunar New Year 's day, 756 (5 February), An Lushan declared himself Emperor at Luoyang, establishing
6150-408: The heqin policy, being executed in retaliation, and both groups rebelled in 745, though An defeated them. According to the Song dynasty historian Sima Guang , it was said that An was attempting to increase his own strength and planning a rebellion, and in 747, he claimed to be building Fort Xiongwu ( 雄武城 ) and asked fellow military governor Wang Zhongsi to contribute troops, hoping to hold onto
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6300-423: The retreat of the Chinese empire from Central Asia . It also allowed for the rise of the Samanid Empire (819–999), a Persian state centered at Bukhara (in what is now modern Uzbekistan ) that nominally observed the Abbasids as their overlords , yet retained a great deal of autonomy and upheld the mercantile legacy of the Sogdians. Yet the Sogdian language gradually declined in favor of the Persian language of
6450-417: The 1st century BC. In his Shiji published in 94 BC, Chinese historian Sima Qian remarked that "the largest of these embassies to foreign states numbered several hundred persons, while even the smaller parties included over 100 members ... In the course of one year anywhere from five to six to over ten parties would be sent out." In terms of the silk trade, the Sogdians also served as middlemen between
6600-434: The 4th century they may have monopolized trade between India and China . A letter written by Sogdian merchants dated 313 AD and found in the ruins of a watchtower in Gansu , was intended to be sent to merchants in Samarkand , warning them that after Liu Cong of Han-Zhao sacked Luoyang and the Jin emperor fled the capital, there was no worthwhile business there for Indian and Sogdian merchants. Furthermore, in 568 AD,
6750-410: The 6th-century Byzantine historian Menander Protector writes of how the Sogdians attempted to establish a direct trade of Chinese silk with the Byzantine Empire . After forming an alliance with the Sasanian ruler Khosrow I to defeat the Hephthalite Empire, Istämi , the Göktürk ruler of the First Turkic Khaganate , was approached by Sogdian merchants requesting permission to seek an audience with
6900-461: The 7th century, the Chinese Buddhist pilgrim Xuanzang noted with approval that Sogdian boys were taught to read and write at the age of five, though their skill was turned to trade, disappointing the scholarly Xuanzang. He also recorded the Sogdians working in other capacities such as farmers, carpetweavers, glassmakers, and woodcarvers. Shortly after the smuggling of silkworm eggs into the Byzantine Empire from China by Nestorian Christian monks,
7050-486: The Chinese Empire and the Sasanian Empire. Because of the Hephthalite occupation of Sogdia, the original coinage of Sogdia came to be flooded by the influx of Sasanian coins received as a tribute to the Hephthalites. This coinage then spread along the Silk Road . The symbol of the Hephthalites appears on the residual coinage of Samarkand , probably as a consequence of the Hephthalite control of Sogdia, and becomes prominent in Sogdian coinage from 500 to 700 AD, including in
7200-472: The Chinese Han Empire and the Parthian Empire of the Middle East and West Asia. Sogdians played a major role in facilitating trade between China and Central Asia along the Silk Roads as late as the 10th century, their language serving as a lingua franca for Asian trade as far back as the 4th century. Subsequent to their domination by Alexander the Great, the Sogdians from the city of Marakanda ( Samarkand ) became dominant as traveling merchants, occupying
7350-405: The Great in 328 BC. It would continue to change hands under the Seleucid Empire , the Greco-Bactrian Kingdom , the Kushan Empire , the Sasanian Empire , the Hephthalite Empire , the Western Turkic Khaganate and the Muslim conquest of Transoxiana . The Sogdian city-states , although never politically united, were centered on the city of Samarkand . Sogdian , an Eastern Iranian language ,
7500-526: The Khitan. In 752, he wanted to launch a major counterattack against the Khitan, requesting that the ethnically Tujue general Li Xianzhong ( 李獻忠 ) accompany him. Li Xianzhong was afraid of An; when An ordered Li to attack the Khitan, Li rebelled, thus putting a halt to An's campaign. Later that year, when Emperor Xuanzong, seeing that both An Lushan and An Sishun (who by this point was the military governor of Shuofang Circuit (朔方, headquartered in modern Yinchuan , Ningxia )) had poor relations with Geshu Han ,
7650-507: The Kushans, together with whom they initially controlled trade in the Ferghana Valley and Kangju during the 'birth' of the Silk Road. Later, they became the primary middlemen after the demise of the Kushan Empire . Unlike the empires of antiquity, the Sogdian region was not a territory confined within fixed borders, but rather a network of city-states , from one oasis to another, linking Sogdiana to Byzantium , India , Indochina and China . Sogdian contacts with China were initiated by
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#17330863161497800-466: The Luoyang palace, and his generals rarely saw him, with most important matters going through his official Yan Zhuang ( 嚴莊 )—but even Yan and a favorite eunuch of An's, Li Zhu'er ( 李豬兒 ), were being frequently battered. Meanwhile, An Lushan favored another son An Qing'en ( 安慶恩 ), the son of his second wife Lady Duan (who might have carried the title of empress by this point). An considered letting An Qing'en be his crown prince, instead of An Qingxu, who
7950-421: The Pontic or Royal Scythians became *Skula, in which the δ has been regularly replaced by an l. According to Szemerényi, Sogdiana ( Old Persian : Suguda- ; Uzbek : Sug'd, Sug'diyona ; Persian : سغد , romanized : Soġd ; Tajik : Суғд, سغد , romanized : Suġd ; Chinese : 粟特 ; Greek : Σογδιανή , romanized : Sogdianē ) was named from the Skuδa form. Starting from
8100-412: The Prince of Fengyi. He tried to ingratiate his generals by promoting their positions. Meanwhile, with the major general Shi Siming besieging the Tang general Li Guangbi at Taiyuan , An Qingxu ordered Shi to return to his base of Fanyang and leave the general Cai Xide ( 蔡希德 ) at Taiyuan to watch Li Guangbi's actions. He also sent the general Yin Ziqi ( 尹子奇 ) to attack the city of Suiyang , then under
8250-467: The Samanids (the ancestor to the modern Tajik language ), the spoken language of renowned poets and intellectuals of the age such as Ferdowsi (940–1020). So too did the original religions of the Sogdians decline; Zoroastrianism, Buddhism, Manichaeism , and Nestorian Christianity disappeared in the region by the end of the Samanid period. The Samanids were also responsible for converting the surrounding Turkic peoples to Islam . The Samanids occupied
8400-417: The Sasanians obtained the areas south of it. The Turks fragmented in 581, and the Western Turkic Khaganate took over in Sogdia. Archaeological remains suggest that the Turks probably became the main trading partners of the Sogdians, as appears from the tomb of the Sogdian trader An Jia . The Turks also appear in great numbers in the Afrasiab murals of Samarkand , where they are probably shown attending
8550-469: The Sassanid king of kings for the privilege of traveling through Persian territories in order to trade with the Byzantines. Istämi refused the first request, but when he sanctioned the second one and had the Sogdian embassy sent to the Sassanid king, the latter had the members of the embassy poisoned. Maniah, a Sogdian diplomat, convinced Istämi to send an embassy directly to Byzantium's capital Constantinople , which arrived in 568 and offered not only silk as
8700-427: The Seleucid Empire founded in 248 BC by Diodotus I , for roughly a century. Euthydemus I , a former satrap of Sogdiana, seems to have held the Sogdian territory as a rival claimant to the Greco-Bactrian throne; his coins were later copied locally and bore Aramaic inscriptions . The Greco-Bactrian king Eucratides I may have recovered sovereignty of Sogdia temporarily. Finally Sogdia was occupied by nomads when
8850-430: The Silk Road trade, other Sogdians settled down in China for generations. Many Sogdians lived in Luoyang , capital of the Jin dynasty (266–420), but fled following the collapse of the Jin dynasty's control over northern China in 311 AD and the rise of northern nomadic tribes. Aurel Stein discovered 5 letters written in Sogdian known as the "Ancient Letters" in an abandoned watchtower near Dunhuang in 1907. One of them
9000-442: The Sogdian diaspora in China. Han Chinese men frequently bought Sogdian slave girls for sexual relations. An Qingxu An Qingxu ( 安慶緒 ) (730s – 10 April 759 ), né An Renzhi ( 安仁執 ), was a son of An Lushan , a general of the Chinese Tang dynasty who rebelled and took the imperial title, and then established his own state of Yan . An Qingxu served as the Prince of Jin in 756–757, and later killed his father and took
9150-426: The Sogdian region from circa 819 until 999, establishing their capital at Samarkand (819–892) and then at Bukhara (892–999). In 999 the Samanid Empire was conquered by an Islamic Turkic power, the Kara-Khanid Khanate (840–1212). From 1212, the Kara-Khanids in Samarkand were conquered by the Kwarazmians . Soon however, Khwarezmia was invaded by the early Mongol Empire and its ruler Genghis Khan destroyed
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#17330863161499300-430: The Sogdians ( gāum yim suγδō.shaiianəm ). Thereupon came Angra Mainyu , who is all death, and he counter-created the locust, which brings death unto cattle and plants. While it is widely accepted that Gava referred to the region inhabited by the Sogdians during the Avestan period, its meaning is not clear. For example, Vogelsang connects it with Gabae, a Sogdian stronghold in western Sogdia and speculates that during
9450-471: The Sogdians in 84, when the latter were trying to support a revolt by the king of Kashgar . Historical knowledge about Sogdia is somewhat hazy during the period of the Parthian Empire (247 BC – 224 AD) in Persia. The subsequent Sasanian Empire of Persia conquered and incorporated Sogdia as a satrapy in 260, an inscription dating to the reign of Shapur I claiming "Sogdia, to the mountains of Tashkent " as his territory, and noting that its limits formed
9600-540: The Tang general Geshu Han , and Geshu repelled An Qingxu's attack. By early 757, when Yan forces had captured Chang'an and forced both Emperor Xuanzong and his crown prince Li Heng to flee, it was said that An Lushan was having eye problems and had become blind, and was also suffering from ulcers on his body. As a result, his temper became terrible, and his servants, if they had caused him any ill will, would often be whipped or caned, and sometimes even executed. Once he declared imperial title, he spent most of his time inside
9750-409: The Turks had been more welcoming and more tolerant of their religion since the time of Sassanian religious persecutions. They particularly created colonies in the area of Semirechye , where they continued to flourish into the 10th century with the rise of the Karluks and the Kara-Khanid Khanate . These Sogdians are known for producing beautiful silver plates with Eastern Christian iconography, such as
9900-424: The Yan advance, the Yan forces were unable to capture either Emperor Xuanzong, who eventually reached Shu Commandery, or Li Heng, who fled to Lingwu and took the Tang imperial title there (as Emperor Suzong). (Xuanzong recognized Li Heng's actions and subsequently took the title Taishang Huang ( retired emperor ).) Hearing news of Chang'an's fall, Guo and Li Guangbi withdrew to Lingwu, allowing Shi to again pacify
10050-490: The Yuezhi against the Xiongnu . Zhang Qian, who spent a year in Transoxiana and Bactria , wrote a detailed account in the Shiji , which gives considerable insight into the situation in Central Asia at the time. The request for an alliance was denied by the son of the slain Yuezhi king, who preferred to maintain peace in Transoxiana rather than seek revenge. Zhang Qian also reported: the Great Yuezhi live 2,000 or 3,000 li [832–1,247 kilometers] west of Dayuan , north of
10200-425: The Yuezhi morphed into the powerful Kushan Empire , covering an area from Sogdia to eastern India . The Kushan Empire became the center of the profitable Central Asian commerce. They began minting unique coins bearing the faces of their own rulers. They are related to have collaborated militarily with the Chinese against nomadic incursion, particularly when they allied with the Han dynasty general Ban Chao against
10350-404: The Yuezhi offered tributary gifts of jade to the emperors of China , the Sogdians are recorded in Persian records as submitting precious gifts of lapis lazuli and carnelian to Darius I , the Persian king of kings . Although the Sogdians were at times independent and living outside the boundaries of large empires, they never formed a great empire of their own like the Yuezhi, who established
10500-406: The accusations from Yang Guozhong were false. Emperor Xuanzong took no actions against either An or Yang Guozhong. The An Lushan Rebellion spanned from 16 December 755 to 17 February 763. This rebellion appears to have involved the death of some 13 million people, which would make it one of the deadliest wars in history. Many scholars attribute the loss of 36 million people in the Tang census after
10650-416: The attack. By this time, the Tang generals Guo Ziyi and Li Guangbi had fought their way into Emperor An's territory north of the Yellow River, cutting off the communication between Luoyang and Fanyang, causing much fear in An's troops. An considered withdrawing north of the Yellow River to secure the territory, but meanwhile, suspicions had begun to rise between Yang Guozhong and Geshu, each believing that
10800-501: The caravan routes of the 6th to 8th centuries. Their commercial interests were protected by the resurgent military power of the Göktürks , whose empire was built on the political power of the Ashina clan and economic clout of the Sogdians. Sogdian trade, with some interruptions, continued into the 9th century. For instance, camels, women, girls, silver, and gold were seized from Sogdia during
10950-612: The city-building efforts of the Kidarites . The Hephthalites probably ruled over a confederation of local rulers or governors, linked through alliance agreements. One of these vassals may have been Asbar, ruler of Vardanzi , who also minted his own coinage during the period. The wealth of the Sasanian ransoms and tributes to the Hephthalites may have been reinvested in Sogdia, possibly explaining
11100-563: The coinage of their indigenous successors the Ikhshids (642–755 AD), ending with the Muslim conquest of Transoxiana . The Turks of the First Turkic Khaganate and the Sasanians under Khosrow I allied against the Hephthalites and defeated them after an eight-day battle near Qarshi , the Battle of Bukhara , perhaps in 557. The Turks retained the area north of the Oxus, including all of Sogdia, while
11250-534: The comical situation and rewarded both Consort Yang and An greatly. Thereafter, whenever An visited the capital, he was allowed free admittance to the palace, and there were rumors that he and Consort Yang had an affair, but Emperor Xuanzong discounted the rumors. At An's request, Emperor Xuanzong also gave him the governorship of Hedong Circuit (河東, headquartered in modern Taiyuan , Shanxi ), in addition to Pinglu and Fanyang. Two of his sons, An Qingzong and An Qingxu, were given ministerial level positions, and An Qingzong
11400-519: The commander of Pinglu Army, to defend against the Khitan, the Xi, Balhae , and the Heishui Mohe . In 742, Xuanzong further promoted Pinglu Army to be a military circuit, making An its military governor ( jiedushi ). In 743, An visited Chang'an to pay homage to Emperor Xuanzong. Emperor Xuanzong treated him well and allowed him to visit the palace at all times. He began to inject himself into court politics—as
11550-557: The conference, however, Geshu and An Lushan got into an argument, which only stopped after Gao gazed at Geshu, stopping him from responding to An Lushan's insults. In 753, with Li Linfu's death and replacement by Yang Guozhong, Yang Guozhong, intending to posthumously dishonor Li Linfu, had An Lushan corroborate his accusations that Li Linfu was involved in Li Xianzhong's rebellion. An agreed, and subsequently, with further corroboration from Li Linfu's son-in-law Yang Qixuan ( 楊齊宣 ), Li Linfu
11700-495: The death of Li Linfu in 753, An Lushan's rivalry with General Geshu Han and Chancellor Yang Guozhong created military tensions within the empire. In late 755, An Lushan instigated open revolt and quickly captured Luoyang , the eastern capital, where in early 756 he proclaimed himself emperor of the new Yan dynasty. While his generals continued his campaigns, An Lushan remained in the Luoyang palace; his health failed and he became increasingly violent and paranoid. In early 757 he
11850-519: The defense by the Tang generals Zhang Xun and Xu Yuan ( 許遠 ), intending to capture Suiyang first and then send Yin south to capture Tang territory south of the Huai River (Yin, however, was locked into a siege of Suiyang that would last until winter 757, stopping any possibility of Yan's advancing south). To show favor to Shi, he created Shi the Prince of Guichuan and made him the military governor ( jiedushi ) of Fanyang Circuit; instead, Shi, hoarding
12000-528: The diaspora Sogdians and Indians in the Chinese Western Jin capital Luoyang died of starvation due to the uprising by the rebellious Xiongnu, who were formerly subjects of the Han Chinese. The Han Chinese emperor abandoned Luoyang when it came under siege by the Xiongnu rebels and his palace was burned down. Nanai-vandak also said the city of Ye was no more as the Xiongnu rebellion resulted in disaster for
12150-444: The edict was drafted, Xuanzong delayed and instead sent the eunuch Fu Qiulin ( 輔璆琳 ) to send fresh fruits to An and to observe him—upon which An was alleged to bribe Fu into submitting a favorable report. Yang, however, persisted in his reports against An. Yang then attacked some of An's staff and associates, including having the mayor of Jingzhao arrest An's friend Li Chao ( 李超 ) and others, and executing them secretly. An Qingzong, who
12300-677: The effort of An Qingxu and others. Also that year, when An Lushan's close associate Ji Wen ( 吉溫 ) went to meet An Lushan before departing for the Tang capital Chang'an , it was An Qingxu that An Lushan sent to accompany Ji to the borders of his territory. In 755, when An Lushan rebelled at his post at Fanyang Circuit ( 范陽 , headquartered in modern Beijing ), An Qingxu was apparently with his father and accompanied his father south. In response to An Lushan's rebellion, An Qingxu's mother Lady Kang and older brother An Qingzong ( 安慶宗 ), then at Chang'an, were executed, and after An Lushan captured Chenliu Commandery ( 陳留 , roughly modern Kaifeng , Henan ), it
12450-468: The embassy of the Chinese explorer Zhang Qian during the reign of Emperor Wu (r. 141–87 BC) of the former Han dynasty . Zhang wrote a report of his visit to the Western Regions in Central Asia and named the area of Sogdiana as " Kangju ". Following Zhang Qian's embassy and report, commercial Chinese relations with Central Asia and Sogdiana flourished, as many Chinese missions were sent throughout
12600-552: The entire Silk Road , but would trade goods through middlemen based in oasis towns, such as Khotan or Dunhuang . The Sogdians, however, established a trading network across the 1500 miles from Sogdiana to China. In fact, the Sogdians turned their energies to trade so thoroughly that the Saka of the Kingdom of Khotan called all merchants suli , "Sogdian", whatever their culture or ethnicity. The Sogdians had learnt to become expert traders from
12750-412: The former chancellor Chen Xilie and the key officials Zhang Jun ( 張均 ) and Zhang Ji ( 張垍 ), and An made Chen and Zhang Ji chancellors as well. Meanwhile, An had Emperor Xuanzong's sister, Princess of Huo, as well as a number of other imperial relatives, executed, and sacrificed their organs to An Qingzong. At this point, there was a new Tang Emperor: Li Heng , or Emperor Suzong. Due to the slowness of
12900-820: The heart of the empire was without defenses. He selected some 8,000 soldiers among the surrendered Khitan, Xi, and Tongluo ( 同羅 ) tribesmen, organizing them into an elite corps known as the Yeluohe ( 曵落河 ), which meant "the brave". He retained Gao Shang ( 高尚 ), Yan Zhuang ( 嚴莊 ), Zhang Tongru ( 張通儒 ), and Sun Xiaozhe ( 孫孝哲 ) as his strategists; and Shi Siming, An Shouzhong ( 安守忠 ), Li Guiren ( 李歸仁 ), Cai Xide ( 蔡希德 ), Niu Tingjie ( 牛廷玠 ), Xiang Runrong ( 向潤容 ), Li Tingwang ( 李庭望 ), Cui Qianyou ( 崔乾祐 ), Yin Ziqi ( 尹子奇 ), He Qiannian ( 何千年 ), Wu Lingxun ( 武令珣 ), Neng Yuanhao ( 能元皓 ), Tian Chengsi , Tian Qianzhen ( 田乾真 ), and Ashina Chengqing ( 阿史那承慶 ) as his generals. Late in 751, An launched
13050-419: The imperial title for himself. He was eventually defeated by Tang forces and cornered at Yecheng in present-day Hebei . After An Lushan's general Shi Siming lifted the siege, An Qingxu met Shi to thank him, but Shi arrested and executed him. An Renzhi was physically strong and capable in mounted archery. It is not known when An was born, although he was said to be not yet 20 when Emperor Xuanzong gave him
13200-509: The land of the Sogdians. Gava is, therefore, interpreted as referring to Sogdia during the time of the Avesta . Although there is no universal consensus on the chronology of the Avesta, most scholars today argue for an early chronology, which would place the composition of Young Avestan texts like the Mihr Yasht and the Vendiad in the first half of the first millennium BCE. The first mention of Gava
13350-408: The military governor of Hexi (河西, headquartered in modern Wuwei , Gansu ) and Longxi (隴西, headquartered in modern Haidong prefecture, Qinghai ) Circuits, and wanted to improve relations between these three key border troop commanders, he summoned all three to the capital and had the powerful eunuch Gao Lishi host a feast for the three of them, trying to get them to resolve their unpleasantries. At
13500-569: The modern regions of Samarkand and Bukhara in modern Uzbekistan, as well as the Sughd region of modern Tajikistan. In the High Middle Ages , Sogdian cities included sites stretching towards Issyk Kul , such as that at the archeological site of Suyab . Oswald Szemerényi devotes a thorough discussion to the etymologies of ancient ethnic words for the Scythians in his work Four Old Iranian Ethnic Names: Scythian – Skudra – Sogdian – Saka . In it,
13650-458: The mostly honorary title of minister of vassal affairs, likely in 751. He was An Lushan's second son, and his mother was An Lushan's first wife Lady Kang. At some point, Emperor Xuanzong gave him the name of Qingxu. The first definitive historical references to him were in 752, when, in a defeat that An Lushan suffered against the Xi , An Lushan was said to have fallen into a hole and was only saved through
13800-657: The names of the province given in Old Persian inscriptions, Sugda and Suguda, and the knowledge derived from Middle Sogdian that Old Persian -gd- applied to Sogdian was pronounced as voiced fricatives, -γδ-, Szemerényi arrives at *Suγδa as an Old Sogdian endonym . Applying sound changes apparent in other Sogdian words and inherent in Indo-European, he traces the development of *Suγδa from Skuδa, "archer", as follows: Skuδa > *Sukuda by anaptyxis > *Sukuδa > *Sukδa ( syncope ) > *Suγδa ( assimilation ). Sogdiana possessed
13950-477: The names provided by the Greek historian Herodotus and the names of his title, except Saka , as well as many other words for "Scythian", such as Assyrian Aškuz and Greek Skuthēs , descend from *skeud-, an ancient Indo-European root meaning "propel, shoot" (cf. English shoot). *skud- is the zero-grade; that is, a variant in which the -e- is not present. The restored Scythian name is *Skuδa ( archer ), which among
14100-614: The northeastern Sasanian borderlands with the Kushan Empire . However, by the 5th century the region was captured by the rival Hephthalite Empire . The Hephthalites conquered the territory of Sogdiana, and incorporated it into their Empire, around 479 AD, as this is the date of the last known independent embassy of the Sogdians to China. The Hephthalites may have built major fortified Hippodamian cities (rectangular walls with an orthogonal network of streets) in Sogdiana, such as Bukhara and Panjikent , as they had also in Herat , continuing
14250-436: The official Su Xiaoyun ( 蘇孝韞 ) complained to him that the imperial examinations that year was unfair and that Zhang Shi ( 張奭 ), the son of the deputy chief imperial censor Zhang Yi ( 張倚 ), had been given top grade despite having no abilities. An reported this to Emperor Xuanzong, who ordered a retesting before him personally. Zhang Shi was not able to even write one character in response to Emperor Xuanzong's reexamination. As
14400-513: The once vibrant cities of Bukhara and Samarkand. However, in 1370, Samarkand saw a revival as the capital of the Timurid Empire . The Turko-Mongol ruler Timur brought about the forced immigration to Samarkand of artisans and intellectuals from across Asia, transforming it not only into a trade hub but also into one of the most important cities of the Islamic world. Most merchants did not travel
14550-418: The other had designs on himself. Yang therefore persuaded Emperor Xuanzong to order Geshu to attack the Yan general Cui Qianyou, who was then stationed at Shan Commandery. (This order was against the advice of Geshu, Guo, and Li Guangbi that the proper strategy was to secure Tong Pass and let Guo and Li Guangbi capture the Yan territory to the north.) Geshu, with Emperor Xuanzong repeatedly ordering him to attack,
14700-427: The palace and attacked An Lushan. An tried to fight back, but could not locate a sword that he had put under his bed. Li Zhu'er attacked his stomach and abdomen. As his intestines were coming out of his body, An screamed "this is a thief of my own household" and died. The next morning, Yan announced to the Yan officials that An Lushan was seriously ill, and that he had appointed An Qingxu crown prince. Then, after taking
14850-559: The pro-Umayyad Sogdian ruler Tarkhun in 710, decided that resistance against al-Harashi's large Arab force was pointless, and thereafter persuaded his followers to declare allegiance to the Umayyad governor. Divashtich (r. 706–722), the Sogdian ruler of Panjakent , led his forces to the Zarafshan Range (near modern Zarafshan, Tajikistan ), whereas the Sogdians following Karzanj, the ruler of Pai (modern Kattakurgan , Uzbekistan), fled to
15000-421: The prosperity of the region from that time. Sogdia, at the center of a new Silk Road between China to the Sasanian Empire and the Byzantine Empire became extremely prosperous under its nomadic elites. The Hephthalites took on the role of major intermediary on the Silk Road , after their great predecessor the Kushans , and contracted local Sogdians to carry on the trade of silk and other luxury goods between
15150-573: The rebel Spitamenes, who wed Seleucus I Nicator and bore him a son and future heir to the Seleucid throne . According to the Roman historian Appian , Seleucus I named three new Hellenistic cities in Asia after her (see Apamea ). The military power of the Sogdians never recovered. Subsequently, Sogdiana formed part of the Hellenistic Greco-Bactrian Kingdom , a breakaway state from
15300-570: The rebellion to a breakdown in Tang taxation and census gathering. In the spring of 755, matters were coming to a head. An Lushan submitted a petition to Emperor Xuanzong to replace 32 Han generals under his command with non-Han generals. Xuanzong accepted An's request despite opposition from chancellors Yang Guozhong and Wei Jiansu , who took An's request as a sign of impending rebellion. Yang and Wei then suggested that An be promoted chancellor, and that his three commands be divided between his three deputies. Emperor Xuanzong initially agreed, but after
15450-551: The reception by the local Sogdian ruler Varkhuman in the 7th century AD. These paintings suggest that Sogdia was a very cosmopolitan environment at that time, as delegates of various nations, including Chinese and Korean delegates, are also shown. From around 650, China led the conquest of the Western Turks , and the Sogdian rulers such as Varkhuman as well as the Western Turks all became nominal vassals of China, as part of
15600-578: The region north of the Yellow River and east of the Taihang Mountains with exception of pockets held by Yan Zhenqing and other Tang officials under his command. Once he had assumed the imperial title, An Lushan spent most of his time inside the Luoyang palace. His generals rarely saw him, and most important matters were handled through Yan Zhuang (嚴莊). An Lushan suffered from chronic eye problems that eventually led to blindness; he had ulcers ; and he
15750-591: The reigns of various emperors from Tiberius (14–37 AD) to Aurelian (270–275 AD). The earliest gold solidus coins from the Eastern Roman Empire found in China date to the reign of Byzantine emperor Theodosius II (r. 408–450) and altogether only forty-eight of them have been found (compared to thirteen-hundred silver coins) in Xinjiang and the rest of China. The use of silver coins in Turfan persisted long after
15900-473: The same request, and Emperor Xuanzong granted this privilege to Geshu.) Later, in 754, An defeated Xi forces, capturing their chieftain Li Riyue ( 李日越 ). Meanwhile, Yang Guozhong viewed the official Wei Zhi ( 韋陟 ) as a threat and accused Wei of corruption. Yang Guozhong later accused Wei of bribing An's associate Ji Wen ( 吉溫 ), and Wei and Ji were both demoted. An submitted a petition on their behalf, claiming that
16050-522: The siege on Yecheng. An Qingxu's forces gathered the food and supplies abandoned by Tang forces, and An thereafter considered, with Sun Xiaozhe ( 孫孝哲 ) and Cui, the possibility of refusing Shi, who gathered his troops and again approached Yecheng, admittance. Shi himself was not communicating with An, but was feasting his soldiers and watching Yecheng. Zhang and Gao Shang ( 高尚 ) requested permission to meet Shi, and An agreed; Shi gave them gifts and let them return to Yecheng. An, unsure what to do, again offered
16200-424: The soldiers resented Cui for his harshness. By winter 758, the Tang generals Guo Ziyi , Lu Jiong ( 魯炅 ), Li Huan ( 李奐 ), Xu Shuji ( 許叔冀 ), Li Siye , Ji Guangchen ( 季廣琛 ), Cui Guangyuan ( 崔光遠 ), Dong Qin ( 董秦 ), Li Guangbi , and Wang Sili ( 王思禮 ), were gathering at Yecheng and putting it under siege. An Qingxu tried to fight out of the siege, but was defeated by Tang forces, and his brother An Qinghe ( 安慶和 )
16350-503: The summons. In winter 755, An launched his rebellion on 16 December, claiming he had received a secret edict from Emperor Xuanzong to advance on Chang'an to remove Yang. The imperial officials were all apprehensive, because An had the strongest troops of the realm at the time, except for Yang, who believed that An could be suppressed easily. Emperor Xuanzong commissioned the general Feng Changqing as military governor of Fanyang and Pinglu, intending to have him replace An after An's rebellion
16500-454: The supplies that An Lushan had previously shipped to Fanyang, began to disobey An Qingxu's orders, and An Qingxu could not keep him in check. When the Tang general Guo Ziyi attacked Tong Pass, intending to recapture Chang'an, however, An was able to send forces to repel Guo's attack. However, the Tang prince Li Chu the Prince of Guangping (the son of Li Heng, who by this point had taken imperial title as Emperor Suzong), with aid from Huige ,
16650-517: The surname Kang or not: he took the name of An from his stepfather An Yanyan. The surnames Kang and An suggest that they were respectively from the Sogdian kingdoms of Samarkand (康國; cf. Kangju ) and Bukhara ( 安國 ). The An are not to be confused with Anxi, which had been established as a prefecture by the Chinese in 661. On his side, Matsui Hitoshi, noting that nothing in the historical records provides hard evidence of Sogdian origin and that An Lushan
16800-640: The tax on non-Muslims, the jizya , because of a new law stating that proof of circumcision and literacy in the Quran was necessary for new converts. With the aid of the Turkic Turgesh , the Sogdians were able to expel the Umayyad Arab garrison from Samarkand, and Umayyad attempts to restore power there were rebuffed until the arrival of Sa'id ibn Amr al-Harashi (fl. 720–735). The Sogdian ruler (i.e. ikhshid ) of Samarkand, Gurak , who had previously overthrown
16950-442: The throne to Shi, which Shi declined. Shi instead suggested to him that perhaps they could both be emperors of independent, allied states. An, pleased, exited Yecheng and met with Shi to swear to the alliance. When An met Shi, he knelt down to thank Shi for his help, stating: I did not have the abilities to uphold the empire; I lost the two capitals and was put under siege. I did not know that Your Royal Highness would, on account of
17100-413: The throne, An Qingxu reported that An Lushan had died. Two years later, in 759, after Shi Siming killed An Qingxu and assumed the imperial title, Shi Siming buried An Lushan with the ceremony due an imperial prince, not an emperor, and gave him the rather unflattering posthumous name of La (剌, meaning "unthinking"). Sogdia Sogdia or Sogdiana was an ancient Iranian civilization between
17250-540: The time of the Avesta, the center of Sogdia may have been closer to Bukhara instead of Samarkand . Achaemenid ruler Cyrus the Great conquered Sogdiana while campaigning in Central Asia in 546–539 BC, a fact mentioned by the ancient Greek historian Herodotus in his Histories . Darius I introduced the Aramaic writing system and coin currency to Central Asia , in addition to incorporating Sogdians into his standing army as regular soldiers and cavalrymen. Sogdia
17400-515: The time that An arrived at Yecheng, he had only 1,000 infantry soldiers and 300 cavalry soldiers. Soon, however, Yan generals Ashina Chengqing ( 阿史那承慶 ), Cai Xide, Tian Chengsi , and Wu Lingxun ( 武令珣 ), who had been attacking other Tang cities, headed to Yecheng and coalesced there, allowing An to have over 60,000 soldiers under his disposal and thus regaining some measure of strength. Meanwhile, apprehensive of Shi, he sent Ashina and An Shouzhong ( 安守忠 ) to Fanyang to order Shi to contribute troops, but
17550-494: The troops that Wang would send and not return them. Wang, instead, led the troops himself to Xiongwu in advance of the rendezvous date and, after participating in the building project, returned with the soldiers, and submitted reports to Emperor Xuanzong that he believed An was planning treason. Li Linfu, who was at this point apprehensive of Wang as a potential rival, used this as one of the reasons to indict Wang, and Wang was, later in 747, removed from his post. Also in 747, An Lushan
17700-477: The way, at a small village, Mawei Station, prompted by general Chen Xuanli who believed that Yang Guozhong had provoked this rebellion, the imperial guards assassinated Yang Guozhong, and demanded the death of Yang Guifei, to which the Emperor reluctantly consented. An, caught by surprise of the Emperor's retreat, had Cui advance slowly into Chang'an, even though the Tang mayor of Chang'an, Cui Guangyuan ( 崔光遠 ), offered to surrender. Also surrendering to Yan forces were
17850-404: Was posthumously named Prince La of Yan ( 燕剌王 ) by his deputy Shi Siming . It was said that An Lushan knew six non-Chinese languages, and, after he grew older, served as an interpreter in one of the military markets, which were set up by the Chinese government largely to obtain horses in exchange for silk through foreign trade. Serving with him was Shi Sugan (later named Shi Siming), who
18000-432: Was An Qingxu who realized that An Qingzong had been executed and who tearfully informed his father, sending his father into a rage in which he executed the Tang soldiers who surrendered to him at Chenliu. In 756, after An Lushan declared himself emperor of a new state of Yan at Luoyang , he created An Qingxu the Prince of Jin. He subsequently sent An Qingxu to make a preliminary attack against Tong Pass , then defended by
18150-671: Was a brother of general An Bozhi ( 安波至 ). An Lushan, therefore, took the surname An. Early in Emperor Xuanzong of Tang 's Kaiyuan era, 713–741, there was a disturbance among the Göktürk tribe that An Yanyan belonged to, and An Lushan fled to Tang with An Yanyan and An Yanyan's nephew, An Sishun . He later settled in Ying Prefecture (營州, roughly modern Chaoyang, Liaoning ). Sources conflict about An Lushan's biological father's origin and surname; for example, whether An Lushan's father had
18300-642: Was able to recapture Chang'an in summer 757. Tang forces under Li Chu and Huige forces then advanced east, toward Luoyang. In winter 757, An put together his forces and sent them, under Yan Zhuang's command, to defend Shan Commandery ( 陝郡 , roughly modern Sanmenxia , Henan ). When Yan forces engaged Tang forces, however, they saw that Huige forces were on Tang's side, and, in fear, they collapsed. Yan Zhuang and Zhang Tongru ( 張通儒 ) fled back to Luoyang to inform An, and An, after executing some 30 Tang generals who had been captured, abandoned Luoyang and fled north, to Yecheng , which he converted to Ancheng Municipality. At
18450-410: Was also listed on the Behistun Inscription of Darius. A contingent of Sogdian soldiers fought in the main army of Xerxes I during his second, ultimately-failed invasion of Greece in 480 BC. A Persian inscription from Susa claims that the palace there was adorned with lapis lazuli and carnelian originating from Sogdiana. During this period of Persian rule, the western half of Asia Minor
18600-466: Was as submissive to him as a son to a father, showed him even greater favors. In 744, with further praises from the powerful chancellor Li Linfu and Pei Kuan, An was, in addition to Pinglu, made the military governor of Fanyang Circuit (范陽, headquartered in modern Beijing). Wanting to show his military abilities, he often pillaged the Khitan and the Xi. His actions led to two princesses of the royal clan, who were married to Khitan and Xi leaders as part of
18750-399: Was considering appointing An Qing'en to be crown prince (instead of An Qingxu, who otherwise was in line to receive that title). Knowing that he was out of favor, and fearing that An Lushan was planning to kill him, An Qingxu, along with He, Yan, and Li Zhu'er, decided to assassinate An Lushan. On the night of 29 January 757, with Yan and An Qingxu watching outside, Li Zhu'er took a sword into
18900-587: Was defeated. According to army regulations, he was supposed to be executed. Zhang then sent him to the capital, Chang'an ; by not executing An himself, Zhang was hoping that Emperor Xuanzong would pardon An. The chancellor Zhang Jiuling , arguing that An's death would be necessary to preserve military discipline and further believing that An had the appearance of a rebel, advocated An's death, but Emperor Xuanzong believed An to be able and did not want to execute him, and therefore spared him but stripped him of titles, returning him to serve under Zhang. In 740, An became
19050-410: Was defeated. The Emperor also sent Feng to the eastern capital, Luoyang , to build up the defense there; another general, Gao Xianzhi , was ordered to command a secondary defense at Shan Commandery (陝郡, roughly modern Sanmenxia , Henan ). He executed An Qingzong and An's first wife Lady Kang, and forced An Qingzong's present wife, Lady Rongyi, to take her own life. On 8 January 756, An Lushan crossed
19200-556: Was extremely obese. His sheer weight once crushed to death a horse and he needed three servants to help him to put on and take off his clothes when he visited Huaqing Pool . An Lushan had a highly-trusted Khitan eunuch named Li Zhu'er ( 李豬兒 ). But in his sickness and blindness An became ill-tempered and paranoid, and would flog or even murder his servants if they had caused him any displeasure. Even Yan Zhuang and Li Zhu'er were said to be hit frequently. An Lushan favored his son An Qing'en ( 安慶恩 ) (the son of his second wife, Lady Duan) and
19350-423: Was forced to do so, and was defeated by Cui. Geshu's subordinate Huoba Guiren ( 火拔歸仁 ) seized him and surrendered to Yan forces. Subsequently, An induced Geshu to write letters to several Tang generals, urging them to surrender, but they all refused. When Yan forces captured Tong Pass, Emperor Xuanzong and Yang, in panic, abandoned Chang'an and fled toward Shu Commandery (蜀郡, roughly modern Chengdu , Sichuan ). On
19500-658: Was given an imperial clan member's daughter, the Lady Rongyi, in marriage. An was arrogant toward other officials, including Consort Yang's second cousin Yang Guozhong . However, carrying the honorary title of deputy chief imperial censor ( 御史大夫 ) at this point, he was respectful of his colleague Wang Hong ( 王鉷 ), an associate of Li Linfu's, although initially not Li Linfu—and therefore, on one occasion, Li Linfu intentionally summoned Wang Hong in An's presence, and when Wang Hong arrived, he
19650-456: Was given the honorary title as chief deputy imperial censor (御史大夫, Yùshǐ Dàfū ), and Lady Duan , now described as his wife, although Lady Kang was still alive, was created a lady. In 748, Emperor Xuanzong awarded An Lushan an iron certificate promising that he would not be executed, except for treason, and in 750, he created A Prince of Dongping , setting a precedent for generals not of the imperial Li clan to be created princes. By this point,
19800-483: Was governed from the satrapy of nearby Bactria . The satraps were often relatives of the ruling Persian kings, especially sons who were not designated as the heir apparent . Sogdiana likely remained under Persian control until roughly 400 BC, during the reign of Artaxerxes II . Rebellious states of the Persian Empire took advantage of the weak Artaxerxes II, and some, such as Egypt , were able to regain their independence. Persia's massive loss of Central Asian territory
19950-728: Was intending to have Ashina and An Shouzhong take over Shi's command if possible. Instead, Shi arrested Ashina and An Shouzhong and submitted to Tang. Many other cities previously under Yan's control also submitted to Tang, and An Qingxu's territory shrank to just Yecheng and the surrounding area. It was said that An Qingxu became cruel and paranoid in light of these military losses, and that if generals submitted to Tang, he would slaughter their families if they were Han and their tribes if they were non-Han. Meanwhile, believing accusations that Zhang made against Cai, he killed Cai, which further led to dissension among his soldiers, particularly since he then put Cui Qianyou ( 崔乾祐 ) in command of his army, and
20100-492: Was killed. Meanwhile, with Shi recently having again rebelled against Tang, An sent the general Xue Song to Fanyang to seek aid from Shi, offering the throne to him. Shi thus advanced south toward Yecheng. Meanwhile, Tang forces, under the command of nine generals (with Li Siye having died during the siege), were uncoordinated. On 7 April 759, Shi engaged Tang forces—and, when a storm suddenly arrived, both armies panicked; Shi's forces fled north, and Tang forces fled south, lifting
20250-635: Was living at Yingzhou, a settlement of Kumo Xi and Khitan people , suggests that "Perhaps [An Lushan's father] might have been of Khitan origin." Edward H. Schafer, however, maintains that An Lushan is probably the Sinicized version of a name derived from Anxi (安息 " Parthia (n)") and the common Sogdian name ܪܘܚܫܐܢ Roxshan "the Bright" related to the Sogdian female name Roxana , also borne by Alexander 's Sogdian wife, Roxana . His name has also been transcribed as Āluòshān ( 阿犖山 ) or Yàluòshān ( 軋犖山 ), and he
20400-480: Was making false accusations. After that, Emperor Xuanzong refused to believe any suggestions that An was plotting rebellion despite Li Heng agreeing with Yang's assessment on this issue. The Emperor even considered promoting An to be chancellor; however, Yang opposed this, and the promotion did not occur. An returned to Fanyang. At An's request, Emperor Xuanzong allowed him to award his soldiers high ranks without first receiving imperial approval. (Geshu, hearing this, made
20550-566: Was murdered by a eunuch with the support of his son, An Qingxu . An Lushan's mother was a Göktürk of the Ashide clan and served as a sorceress. According to historical sources, his original name might have been Aluoshan or Yaluoshan, the latter stated in the Old Book of Tang to mean "war" in Old Turkic . His father died early, and his mother Lady Ashide married a Turkic general An Yanyan ( 安延偃 ), who
20700-513: Was not recorded in history, he married a Lady Kang as his first wife; they had at least one son, An Qingxu , who, however, was not his oldest son. By 736, An Lushan carried a general title and was serving under Zhang Shougui as an officer of the Pinglu Army (平盧軍, based in modern Chaoyang). In 736, after An disobeyed Zhang's orders and made an overly aggressive attack against the Khitan and the Xi , he
20850-444: Was one day older than he was and who became a good friend of his. In 732, when the general Zhang Shougui ( 張守珪 ) was governing You Prefecture (幽州, roughly modern Beijing ), it was discovered that An Lushan had stolen sheep . Zhang was set to execute An Lushan by caning, when An Lushan yelled out, "Is it that you, Lord, do not wish to destroy the two barbarian tribes? Why do you want to cane An Lushan to death?" Zhang, seeing that he had
21000-450: Was otherwise in line to receive that honor (as Qingxu was now Lushan's eldest surviving son; Lushan's eldest son Qingzong had already been executed in 756). An Qingxu often feared that An Lushan would put him to death. He, Yan, and Li Zhu'er therefore plotted. On the night of 29 January 757, with Yan and An Qingxu watching outside, Li Zhu'er took a sword into the palace and attacked An Lushan; An Lushan tried to fight back, but could not locate
21150-518: Was part of the Greek civilization. As the Achaemenids conquered it, they met persistent resistance and revolt. One of their solutions was to ethnically cleanse rebelling regions, relocating those who survived to the far side of the empire. Thus Sogdiana came to have a significant Greek population. Given the absence of any named satraps (i.e. Achaemenid provincial governors) for Sogdiana in historical records, modern scholarship has concluded that Sogdiana
21300-425: Was paying Li Linfu great respect, causing An to be surprised and apprehensive, and thereafter An carefully cultivated his relationship with Li Linfu as well. It was also said that, by this point, An began to be apprehensive of what would happen once Emperor Xuanzong died—as he remembered how he had refused to bow to Li Heng—and he began to plan an eventual rebellion, which was further encouraged by his observation that
21450-454: Was plotting a rebellion, but Emperor Xuanzong dismissed the accusations. Yang Guozhong, instead, allied with Geshu against An. In spring 754, Yang asserted to the Emperor that An was set on rebelling, an accusation Yang had made before. Yang predicted that if Emperor Xuanzong summoned An to Chang'an, he would surely not come. However, when Emperor Xuanzong tested Yang's hypothesis by summoning An, he immediately appeared in Chang'an and claimed Yang
21600-510: Was posthumously dishonored, and his family members were exiled. Also in 753, Li Xianzhong's troops were defeated by the Uyghur Khaganate , and they surrendered to An, further enhancing his strength. Despite their cooperation posthumously accusing Li Linfu, a rivalry soon developed between An and Yang Guozhong, as An did not fear Yang Guozhong the way he did Li Linfu. Yang Guozhong made repeated accusations against An to Emperor Xuanzong that he
21750-465: Was put down by Alexander and his generals Amyntas , Craterus , and Coenus , with the aid of native Bactrian and Sogdian troops. With the Scythian and Sogdian rebels defeated, Spitamenes was allegedly betrayed by his own wife and beheaded. Pursuant with his own marriage to Roxana, Alexander encouraged his men to marry Sogdian women in order to discourage further revolt. This included Apama , daughter of
21900-407: Was summoned to the palace, Consort Yang, in order to please Emperor Xuanzong, had an extra-large infant wrapping made, and wrapped An in it, causing much explosion of laughter among the ladies-in-waiting and eunuchs. When Emperor Xuanzong asked what was going on, Consort Yang's attendants joked that Consort Yang gave birth three days ago and was washing her baby Lushan. Emperor Xuanzong was pleased by
22050-590: Was the mother of Alexander IV of Macedon , who inherited his late father's throne in 323 BC (although the empire was soon divided in the Wars of the Diadochi ). After an extended campaign putting down Sogdian resistance and founding military outposts manned by his Macedonian veterans, Alexander united Sogdiana with Bactria into one satrapy. The Sogdian nobleman and warlord Spitamenes (370–328 BC), allied with Scythian tribes, led an uprising against Alexander's forces. This revolt
22200-493: Was then at Chang'an, reported Yang's attack to An Lushan, causing considerable concern to An Lushan, who, thereafter, refused to attend the funeral of an imperial prince in summer 755, and did not offer to send a large number of horses to Chang'an that autumn, which aroused the suspicions of Emperor Xuanzong. Allegations of An's bribes to Fu also reached the Emperor, who then had Fu executed, and sent another eunuch, Feng Shenwei ( 馮神威 ) to Fanyang to again summon An Lushan, who ignored
22350-653: Was virtually complete by the end of the Samanid Empire in 999, coinciding with the decline of the Sogdian language, as it was largely supplanted by New Persian . Sogdiana lay north of Bactria , east of Khwarezm , and southeast of Kangju between the Oxus ( Amu Darya ) and the Jaxartes ( Syr Darya ), including the fertile valley of the Zeravshan (called the Polytimetus by the ancient Greeks ). Sogdian territory corresponds to
22500-653: Was written by a Sogdian woman named Miwnay who had a daughter named Shayn and she wrote to her mother Chatis in Sogdia. Miwnay and her daughter were abandoned in China by Nanai-dhat, her husband who was also Sogdian like her. Nanai-dhat refused to help Miwnay and their daughter after forcing them to come with him to Dunhuang and then abandoning them, telling them they should serve the Han Chinese. Miwnay asked one of her husband's relative Artivan and then asked another Sogdian man, Farnkhund to help them but they also abandoned them. Miwnay and her daughter Shayn were then forced to became servants of Han Chinese after living on charity from
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