The Anshi Rebellion that broke out in 755 changed the historical trend of the Tang Dynasty, turning the illustrious Tang Empire from prosperity to decline. When the news of An Lushan's rebellion came, Tang Xuanzong was shocked, and he couldn't believe that the Hu man, who had been favored by himself, would actually raise troops against Tang. So why did An Lushan rebel? Some people think that the reason is simple, An Lushan has ambition! In fact, this is only one of the reasons, and there are more historical stories hidden behind this!
1. Nobles in the DPRK
In 735, Li Linfu paid homage to the prime minister, after which he defeated Zhang Jiuling and others, firmly holding the power of the prime minister in his own hands. At the same time, Li Linfu actively cultivated his own power in the imperial court and localities, and in order to occupy the phase for a long time, he also proposed to Emperor Xuanzong of Tang to reuse the generals as envoys on the border, and they were "good at fighting and courageous." An Lushan and Li Linfu have known each other for a long time, and it was under Li Linfu's strong recommendation that he was appreciated by Tang Xuanzong. So Li Linfu can be regarded as a noble man of An Lushan.
An Lushan was in awe of Li Linfu, and according to historical records, "Lushan thought that Lin Fu was a god, and every time he saw Lin Fu, he was sweaty in winter." "Lin Fu took the warm words, the Zhongshu Hall sat down, and covered it with his own robe", An Lushan was very happy, he would not hide anything from Li Linfu, and he also respectfully called him "Shilang". However, by 753. Li Linfu fell ill and died, and under Yang Guozhong's instigation, An Lushan saw the wind and took the helm, participated in framing Li Linfu for rebellion, and gained more political capital for himself.
Second, offend the prince
An Lushan had a good relationship with Emperor Xuanzong of Tang and Yang Guifei, as he did his best to woo the two, thus winning the favor of the emperor. However, An Lushan was a rough man after all, and he did not put the crown prince Li Heng in his eyes because of the emperor's trust, resulting in a very bad relationship between the two. In addition, An Lushan also noticed that the situation of the crown prince Li Heng in the dynasty was also poor, like walking on thin ice, so he did not put Li Heng in his eyes even more, and even deliberately offended the prince in order to please Tang Xuanzong.
Once, An Lushan was ordered by Emperor Xuanzong of Tang to visit the crown prince, but when he saw Li Heng, he refused to pay his respects. The people around him kept urging An Lushan to kneel, but he was still unmoved. An Lushan stood with his hands folded, and then said: "Chenhu people, do not learn to the court, do not know who the prince is?" Tang Xuanzong said, "This Crown Prince is also! Long live the Emperor of Qiuqiu, and the Emperor of Zhu is also. An Lushan then said: "Ministers and fools, the only person who knows is His Majesty, but he does not know that there is a prince. ”
Third, if you do not resist, you will die
In addition to Prince Li Heng, there is another person who is also very dissatisfied with An Lushan, this person is the uncle and prime minister Yang Guozhong! An Lushan looked down on Yang Guozhong and "regarded it with contempt"; And Yang Guozhong also knew that An Lushan "could not be left in the end", so Yang Guozhong continued to squeeze An Lushan after serving as prime minister. In 754, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang intended to appoint An Lushan as prime minister, but was resolutely opposed by Yang Guozhong, to which An Lushan "wanted to be the prime minister and was quite shy."
At the same time, Yang Guozhong constantly said in front of Tang Xuanzong that An Lushan would rebel, resulting in An Lushan's situation being very unfavorable. An Lushan had cried about this in front of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, but he still could not shake Yang Guozhong's power. At this time, Tang Xuanzong was already old and could die at any time. And Yang Guozhong also stepped up his actions against An Lushan, "provoking Lushan, but fortunately he quickly rebelled." All in all, An Lushan has reached the point of "either rebellion or death", and rebellion has become the only way out.
References: 1. The Old Book of Tang; 2. The New Book of Tang; 3. "General Guide to Information and Governance"