Yang Guozhong
Yang Guozhong () (died July 15, 756), né
Yang Zhao (), was a Chinese politician who served as principal
chancellor of the
Tang dynasty from 752 to 756, late in the reign of
Emperor Xuanzong. Known in his youth as a
gambler and wastrel, Yang rose rapidly to political power after his distant cousin,
Yang Yuhuan, became Emperor
Xuanzong's favorite consort in 744. His familial ties and skills as a financial administrator helped him navigate the tumultuous court politics of the late 740s and early 750s to become the emperor's leading chancellor in 752. While Yang enjoyed Emperor Xuanzong's trust, his competence as chancellor was questioned and he became entangled in a fierce rivalry with an erstwhile political ally, the general and imperial favorite
An Lushan. Yang was blamed for precipitating An's
cataclysmic rebellion in 755. In the following year, he forced the Tang army of
Geshu Han, then holding favorable defensive positions in
Tong Pass, to confront the rebel army, leading to a rout of Tang forces and the fall of the imperial capital,
Chang'an. Yang attempted to flee to his base in
Chengdu with Emperor Xuanzong, but when the imperial party stopped at Mawei Station in modern
Shaanxi, Yang and his family, including Yang Yuhuan, were massacred by
imperial guard soldiers who blamed them for the chaos.
Provided by Wikipedia