Early military service ｜ A native of Anxi in Zhending, he served early under Guo Wei, the founding emperor of Later Zhou.
?–1002 CE
General and merit officer of the Chenqiao mutiny
Zhao Yanhui
赵彦徽
Zhao Yanhui was a military commander of the late Zhou and early Song. A former subordinate of Guo Wei and Chai Rong, he served alongside Zhao Kuangyin and was one of the six military supporters associated with the Chenqiao transition of 960. After the Song was founded he briefly held the office of Commander of the Imperial Infantry and then became Military Governor of Jianxiong. He took part in an early Song campaign against…
?–1002 CENorthern Song
PROFILE
Zhao Yanhui was a military commander of the late Zhou and early Song. A former subordinate of Guo Wei and Chai Rong, he served alongside Zhao Kuangyin and was one of the six military supporters associated with the Chenqiao transition of 960. After the Song was founded he briefly held the office of Commander of the Imperial Infantry and then became Military Governor of Jianxiong. He took part in an early Song campaign against Northern Han but was later remembered for heavy exactions from the people of his command. He died at Jinzhou in 968.
- Period
- Late Five Dynasties to early Northern Song
- Dynasty / polity
- Later Zhou, Northern Song
- Identity
- General and merit officer of the Chenqiao mutiny
- Native place
- Anxi, Zhending
- Date of death
- 968
- Highest office
- Commandant of the infantry of the imperial guard; military commissioner of Jianxiong
- Posthumous honours
- Palace Attendant
LIFE TIMELINE
General under Shizong ｜ Served as a general under Shizong and was a colleague of Zhao Kuangyin, who treated him as an elder brother.
Commandant of the right wing ｜ Appointed commandant of the right wing of the Tiger Rapid guard and nominal defence commissioner of Yuezhou.
Chenqiao mutiny ｜ Took part in the Chenqiao mutiny as one of the six merit officers; after the accession of Song Taizong he became military commissioner of Wuxin and commandant of the infantry of the imperial guard.
After Li Jun's defeat ｜ After the defeat of Li Jun he was removed from his central command together with Zhang Guanghan and sent out as military commissioner of Jianxiong.
The cup of wine ｜ Attended the banquet at which military power was relinquished and the next day petitioned with Shi Shouxin and others to resign their commands.
Campaign against Northern Han ｜ Joined Li Jixun in entering Northern Han territory and attacking its frontier towns and the Liao and Shi prefectures.
Death ｜ Came to court, fell ill from excessive drinking, was sent back to his command and soon died; hearing of his hoarding, Song Taizu thought less of him and granted him the posthumous office of palace attendant.
BIOGRAPHY
Biography
Zhao Yanhui's early career was formed in the Later Zhou military establishment. He knew Zhao Kuangyin before the latter became emperor, and the two were close enough that Zhao Kuangyin treated him as an elder brother. During the events at Chenqiao, Yanhui belonged to the group of commanders whose support helped turn a military movement into a dynastic change.
The new emperor did not leave him in charge of the central infantry for long. After the suppression of Li Jun's revolt, Yanhui was removed from the Imperial Guard and appointed Military Governor of Jianxiong, a frontier command with responsibility for the approaches to Northern Han. His participation in the 961 retirement of senior commanders therefore had a symbolic as well as a practical dimension: he represented the founding military circle even though his central command had already ended.
In 963 he assembled forces for a limited operation against Northern Han. The surviving record gives few details of the campaign, but his tenure at Jinzhou is described more critically. He collected large private revenues and paid little attention to local welfare. The emperor tolerated the conduct for a time and only expressed disapproval after Yanhui's death. His biography thus combines founding military service with the problem of how early Song rulers controlled provincial commanders.
Major Activities
- Support for the Chenqiao transition and the foundation of the Song.
- Command of the early Song infantry and the Jianxiong military circuit.
- Participation in the Northern Han frontier campaign.
- A case study in the tension between military reward and local administration.
Personal Relations
- Guo Wei and Chai Rong: Later Zhou patrons.
- Zhao Kuangyin: Former colleague, later Emperor Taizu.
- Shi Shouxin, Gao Huaide, Zhang Lingduo, Wang Shenqi, and Zhang Guanghan: Other commanders associated with the 960 transition.
- Li Jixun: Commander with whom he coordinated the Northern Han expedition.
Historical Assessment
The founding narrative honours him as one of the military supporters of the Song transition. Official histories are less favourable about his treatment of local communities. Modern studies place him between these two views: he mattered in the transfer of power, but his provincial administration shows why the early Song court sought to reduce the autonomy of military commanders.
FIGURES ASSOCIATED WITH THIS DYNASTY
Bibliography
- History of the Song, imperial-clan and officials' biographies.
- History of the Liao and Old History of the Five Dynasties, where relevant.