Li Congke

Biography

Family Background and Early Life

Li Congke was originally surnamed Wang and came from a common family in Pingshan, Zhenzhou. His father died when he was young, leaving him and his mother Lady Wei dependent on one another. In 895 Li Siyuan captured Pingshan, took Lady Wei and her son captive, and made Lady Wei a concubine. Her son, already around ten years old, was adopted by Li Siyuan and given the name Li Congke. The New History of the Five Dynasties records that his family background was humble, that his widowed mother was taken by Li Siyuan while he was a cavalry officer, and that her son Asan was then adopted and renamed Congke.

Li Congke was described as more than seven chi tall, composed and cautious, taciturn, physically imposing, brave, and resolute. The Old History of the Five Dynasties states that he was reserved as a child and became famous for martial courage as an adult, earning Li Siyuan's affection.

Years of Campaigning

Li Congke accompanied Li Siyuan in campaigns across north China and became known for fearless fighting. Jin prince Li Cunxu also praised him, once remarking that Asan was not only close to him in age but equally willing to fight.

In 919, during the Battle of Huliupo between Li Cunxu and Later Liang, both armies were exhausted. Li Congke protected Zhuangzong as he seized a strategic hill and broke the enemy elite, restoring morale. In 922, during fighting along the Yellow River, Li Congke took a little more than ten cavalrymen and withdrew among enemy troops. On reaching the gate of their camp, he suddenly shouted, killed several soldiers, cut down an observation pole with an axe, and rode calmly back. Li Cunxu exclaimed, “Magnificent, Asan!” and personally rewarded him with wine.

In 923 Li Congke followed Li Siyuan in capturing Yunzhou. Later that year, after Zhuangzong defeated the Later Liang general Wang Yanzhang, Li Siyuan led the vanguard toward Bianzhou with Li Congke's elite cavalry close behind. They advanced day and night and entered the city first. Zhuangzong credited Li Siyuan and Li Congke with restoring the realm of Tang.

Li Congke was appointed prefect of Weizhou in 924. In 925, when Li Siyuan was ordered north against the Khitans, he asked that Li Congke be appointed to a post at Taiyuan, but Zhuangzong was displeased and instead made Li Congke commander of the assault cavalry at Shimen. During the Weizhou mutiny in 926, Li Congke led his men rapidly toward Changshan and joined Wang Jianli, helping strengthen Li Siyuan's forces as they moved south.

Rise, Fall, and Restoration to Office

After Mingzong's accession in 926, Li Congke was made military governor of Hezhong. He subsequently received increasingly senior honorary offices. Because of an earlier feud with powerful privy commissioner An Chonghui, however, he was driven from his command in 930 through a scheme involving his subordinate Yang Yanwen. He returned to Luoyang and was stripped of office and confined. An Chonghui sought his death for losing his command, but Li Siyuan repeatedly protected his adopted son, recalling their familial bond and Li Congke's hardships in supporting the household.

When An Chonghui fell from power in 931, Li Congke returned to office as General of the Left Guard and defender of the Western Capital. In 932 he became Grand Commandant and military governor of Fengxiang. In 933 he was created Prince of Lu.

Rebellion and Seizure of the Throne

After Emperor Min Li Conghou came to the throne in 933, he grew increasingly suspicious of Li Congke. He first removed Li Congke's son Li Chongji from his imperial guard command and sent him to Bozhou, then summoned Li Congke's daughter Li Huiming, who had become a Buddhist nun, into the palace. Li Congke understood these measures as signs of distrust and became deeply anxious.

Emperor Min then followed the advice of Zhu Hongzhao and Feng Yun and adopted a policy of transferring major military governors between commands. Li Congke was ordered to leave Fengxiang and take the Hedong command. His officers warned that, because the young emperor was controlled by Zhu and Feng and Li Congke's prestige was so great, leaving Fengxiang would likely be fatal. Li Congke therefore chose rebellion.

In 934 he raised troops at Fengxiang and circulated proclamations calling on military governors to join him in “clearing the ruler's side” of Zhu Hongzhao, Feng Yun, and other ministers. Emperor Min sent Wang Sitong to besiege Fengxiang. The city was difficult to defend and its outer positions soon fell. In desperation, Li Congke stripped off his upper garments, displayed his old battle scars, stood on the wall, and wept before the attacking soldiers. He appealed to his long service under the late emperor and asked what crime justified the court's suspicion of its own kin. His display moved many besieging soldiers. Commanders including Yang Siquan and Yin Hui changed sides, and Li Congke defeated the imperial army.

As he advanced east, prefectures and imperial troops surrendered to him. Within weeks he reached Shanzhou and threatened Luoyang. Emperor Min fled. On the third day of the fourth month, Li Congke entered Luoyang. Chancellor Feng Dao and civil and military officials urged him to take the throne. The next day, the empress dowager issued an edict deposing Li Conghou as Prince of E and naming Li Congke regent. On the sixth day, Li Congke was proclaimed emperor and adopted the Qingtai era name.

Difficulties of Government

Before leaving Fengxiang, Li Congke had promised each soldier a reward of one hundred strings of cash upon entering Luoyang. The treasury proved far too poor to meet the promise. Financial commissioner Wang Mei proposed extracting property from the capital's residents, and officials suggested advance collection of five months' rent from both officials and commoners according to property holdings. Despite aggressive collection, only a fraction of the required amount was raised. People were imprisoned for failing to pay, and some reportedly committed suicide. Old palace stores, regional tribute, and even utensils, clothing, and jewelry used by the empress dowager and senior consorts were gathered, yet the funds remained insufficient.

Privy scholar Li Zhuanmei later recommended reducing the promised rewards. Soldiers, frustrated by the outcome, composed a saying contrasting the gentle Emperor Min, whom they called a “bodhisattva,” with Li Congke, whom they likened to “raw iron.”

Li Congke worried about the political situation and complained that Chancellor Lu Wenji and others offered no useful advice on military or state affairs. Lu and his colleagues replied that their short formal audiences, surrounded by guards, left little opportunity for candid discussion. Li Congke then ordered that chancellors could remain after other officials withdrew and could request private audiences whenever confidential matters required it.

Taichang official Shi Zaide submitted a memorial criticizing both central and local civil and military officials and proposing reforms to appointment and examination procedures. Lu Wenji and remonstrance officials Liu Tao and Yang Zhaojian demanded punishment. Li Congke rejected this, telling Hanlin scholar Ma Yinsun that a new ruler should encourage open speech and that punishing an official for offering advice would silence everyone else. He issued an edict invoking the precedent of Wei Zheng's request that Emperor Taizong reward Huangfu Decan and defended Shi Zaide as a loyal critic.

Defeat and Death

Relations between Li Congke and Hedong military governor Shi Jingtang steadily worsened. Both had been leading generals under Li Siyuan and were known for military courage. After taking the throne, Li Congke became increasingly suspicious of Shi. In 935 he sent Wuning military governor Zhang Jingda to station forces at Daizhou and monitor him.

In 936 Li Congke ordered Shi Jingtang transferred to the Tianping command in an attempt to weaken his military base. Shi refused, denounced Li Congke's accession as illegitimate, and demanded that the throne be yielded to Prince Xu, a son of Mingzong. Li Congke stripped Shi of his offices and sent Zhang Jingda with tens of thousands of troops against Jinyang. Shi sought Khitan aid and offered territory and submission in return. In the ninth month, the Khitan ruler personally led fifty thousand troops to assist him. The Later Tang army suffered a severe defeat, and Shi's forces and the Khitan army then advanced toward Luoyang. Although Later Tang still possessed substantial forces, Li Congke became despondent, spent his days drinking and lamenting, and did not personally take the field. Regional commanders began surrendering to Shi Jingtang.

On the twenty-sixth day of the intercalary eleventh month of 936 (January 11, 937), Li Congke recognized that the situation was hopeless. Taking the imperial jade seal, Empress Dowager Cao, Empress Liu, his son Li Chongmei, and other family members, he ascended Xuanwu Tower and burned himself to death. Later Tang thereby ended, and the imperial seal was said to have disappeared. In the second month of 937, Shi Jingtang ordered his remains collected and buried south of Huiling.

Major Activities

Military Career

Li Congke was renowned in his youth for bravery. At Huliupo in 919, he protected Zhuangzong and helped break elite enemy troops. In 922, he rode among the enemy with a small group, killed several men, cut down an observation pole, and returned safely. In 923, he followed Li Siyuan in taking Yunzhou and was among the first to seize Bianzhou.

War for the Throne

In 934 Li Congke rebelled under the slogan of purging evil ministers from the ruler's side. During the siege of Fengxiang, he exposed his old battle scars and appealed directly to attacking troops, inducing commanders such as Yang Siquan and Yin Hui to defect. He then defeated the court army, advanced on Luoyang, and took the throne.

Measures in Government

Li Congke attempted some reforms after becoming emperor. He protected Shi Zaide from punishment for blunt criticism and issued an edict encouraging open remonstrance. At the same time, his effort to fulfill extravagant reward promises to soldiers led to harsh exactions on residents of Luoyang, causing severe hardship. His reliance on mediocre ministers such as Lu Wenji also contributed to deteriorating government.

Contest with Shi Jingtang

Li Congke's suspicion of Shi Jingtang intensified after his accession. In 935 he stationed Zhang Jingda at Daizhou to watch Shi, and in 936 he ordered Shi transferred to Tianping. The order directly triggered Shi's rebellion. Shi allied with the Khitans, defeated Later Tang forces, and ultimately brought down Li Congke's regime.

The stages of his later career and downfall were as follows: in 930 (first year of Changxing), through An Chonghui's scheme, he was deprived of military command and moved to Luoyang, where he was dismissed and kept under surveillance; in 931 (second year of Changxing), after An Chonghui fell from power, he was appointed senior general of the left guards and commissioner at the western capital; in 932 (third year of Changxing) he was promoted to grand commandant and transferred as military commissioner of Fengxiang; in 933 (fourth year of Changxing) he was enfeoffed as Prince of Lu, and after Emperor Min, Li Conghou, came to the throne he was distrusted, his son Li Chongji being transferred away and his daughter Li Huiming summoned into the palace as a hostage; in 934 (first year of Yingshun) he refused the order transferring him to Hedong, rose in arms in the name of clearing the court, entered Luoyang in the fourth month and took the throne, changing the era name to Qingtai; in 935 (second year of Qingtai) he sent Zhang Jingda to station troops at Daizhou to constrain and watch Shi Jingtang; in 936 (third year of Qingtai) he ordered Shi Jingtang's transfer to Tianping, whereupon Shi Jingtang rebelled and called in the Khitan, and on the twenty-sixth day of the intercalary eleventh month (11 January 937) he burned himself to death, aged fifty-two. His passage from valiant officer to provincial commander and then to emperor is inseparable from the struggle over military power in the last years of the Later Tang and the intervention of the Khitan.

His passage from field commander to emperor and the struggle over military power in the last years of the Later Tang, with Khitan intervention, were cause and effect for one another: during his reign he first stationed Zhang Jingda at Daizhou to constrain Shi Jingtang and then ordered Shi Jingtang's transfer to Tianping, which directly provoked his rebellion and the Khitan advance south. As to his own career, his early valour, guarding Zhuangzong in taking the earthwork at the battle of Huliupi, riding into the enemy ranks with a dozen horsemen by the Yellow River and being first to take Bianzhou with Li Siyuan, won him Zhuangzong's regard, while the loss of military command through An Chonghui's suspicion in 930, his reappointment in 931 and the enfeoffment as Prince of Lu followed by Emperor Min's distrust in 933 show that he stood throughout between trust and precaution at the Later Tang court. His suicide by fire on 11 January 937 was followed by the fall of the Later Tang.

Personal Relations

• Adoptive father: Li Siyuan, Emperor Mingzong of Later Tang.
• Mother: Empress Xuanxian, Lady Wei.
• Wife: Empress Liu.
• Eldest son: Li Chongji, killed by Emperor Min in 934.
• Second son: Prince Yong Li Chongmei, died with his father in 937.
• Daughter: Princess Zhao Li Huiming, a Buddhist nun with the religious name Youcheng, killed by Emperor Min in 934.
• Li Cunxu, Emperor Zhuangzong of Later Tang: praised Li Congke's military bravery.
• Li Conghou, Emperor Min of Later Tang: became suspicious of Li Congke and drove him into rebellion.
• Shi Jingtang: military governor of Hedong, later rebelled and allied with the Khitans to destroy Later Tang.
• Lu Wenji: chancellor criticized by Li Congke for failing to provide useful counsel.
• Zhang Jingda: Wuning military governor sent against Shi Jingtang.
• Yang Siquan: imperial guard commander who defected to Li Congke during the Battle of Fengxiang.
• Yin Hui: commander who defected during the same campaign.
• Wang Mei: financial commissioner who proposed extracting property from residents to fund military rewards.
• Li Zhuanmei: privy scholar who proposed reducing the soldiers' promised rewards.
• An Chonghui: privy commissioner who maneuvered against Li Congke.
• Zhu Hongzhao and Feng Yun: officials under Emperor Min whose transfer policy helped provoke Li Congke's rebellion.
• Wang Sitong: commander sent to suppress Li Congke.

Historical Assessment

Five Dynasties and Contemporary Assessments

• The Old History of the Five Dynasties praised Li Congke's martial talent and imperial bearing but lamented that he seized the throne by force and, when fate turned against him, passively awaited destruction.
• A soldiers' saying, “Remove the bodhisattva and raise up raw iron,” contrasted Emperor Min's gentle weakness with Li Congke's harsh strength.

Song and Yuan Assessments

• Ouyang Xiu's New History of the Five Dynasties placed him among the “deposed emperors” and criticized the illegitimacy of his seizure of the throne.
• Song historians generally regarded him as brave in war but incapable in government, attributing his fall in part to loss of popular support.

Ming and Qing Assessments

• Ming and Qing historians often evaluated him through the lens of loyalty and legitimacy, arguing that an adopted son who seized the throne lacked a proper basis for rule.
• Wang Fuzhi's Du Tongjian Lun treated him as an example of the militarized politics and breakdown of political norms characteristic of the Five Dynasties.

Modern Assessments

• Complete Biographies of Chinese Emperors, edited by Shan Cong, summarizes him as brave in battle but incapable in government.
• A modern work on The Art of War describes him as a contradictory figure: daring when fortune favored him, but indecisive and despondent when circumstances turned against him.
• Modern scholars often interpret his rise and fall through the politics of military governors in the Five Dynasties, seeing his career as representative of a broader pattern of military rule.