An Shi Rebellion
BY OLIVIA YI
An Lushan, an important general during the Tang dynasty, decided to rebel against the rising power of Yang Gouzhang. This rebellion started because the emperor didn't pay enough attention to run the empire, the relationships between aristocratic families worsened, and so did the frontier when Tibetan and western Turks. Yang Guifei, a concubine, had a cousin named Yang Guozhong. Yang Guozhong decided to take control over the empire. However, the new ruler did not like how An Lushan had a lot of power and tried to lower his position. This tempered An Lushan and so he decided to rebel against Yang Guozhong.
This rebellion lasted 8 years, which a very long time. Many people (the death toll was about 13 million people) were killed in the civil war and people weren't sure of their social and economic level. An Lushan had a lot of people that supported his side of the rebellion. Two years into the rebellion, An Lushan became blind two years into the rebellion. His personality got crankier and was more fickle. He became harder to please and highly irritable. This lost him many followers but still the rebellion kept going. As the rebellion was going on, An Lushan was assassinated by a eunuch slave who worked with An Lushan's son. The rebellion finally ended with the help of Turkish Uighur Forces. This event is important because it symbolized the start of weakening of the Tang dynasty. The emperor was no longer able to keep everyone in check.
This rebellion lasted 8 years, which a very long time. Many people (the death toll was about 13 million people) were killed in the civil war and people weren't sure of their social and economic level. An Lushan had a lot of people that supported his side of the rebellion. Two years into the rebellion, An Lushan became blind two years into the rebellion. His personality got crankier and was more fickle. He became harder to please and highly irritable. This lost him many followers but still the rebellion kept going. As the rebellion was going on, An Lushan was assassinated by a eunuch slave who worked with An Lushan's son. The rebellion finally ended with the help of Turkish Uighur Forces. This event is important because it symbolized the start of weakening of the Tang dynasty. The emperor was no longer able to keep everyone in check.
The picture above is a portrait of An Lushan, a great military leader of the Tang dynasty.
This is a picture from one of the battles of the An Shi Rebellion. This rebellion is supposed to be the most brutal rebellion in history.