Preface
In ancient Chinese history, power struggles were often spectacular dramas. Emperor Wen of Sui's decision to abolish the position of Prince Yang Yong became the focus of heated discussions in the society at that time.
During the reign of Emperor Wen of Sui Yang Jian, there were frequent changes of crown princes, which eventually led to the fall of the Sui Dynasty. What is the reason behind this? Is it the crown prince Yang Yong who is arrogant and domineering, or the emperor Yang Guang who is too insidious and treacherous?
1. The fall of the Gao dynasty of the Northern Qi Dynasty
Gao Huan, the founder of the Northern Qi Dynasty, instructed his younger brother Gao Yan not to hurt his son, the crown prince Gao Yin, on his deathbed. However, Gao Yan did not listen to his brother's last words, and deposed and killed Gao Yin shortly after his accession to the throne. As a result, the Gao dynasty fell into internal friction, and was finally destroyed by the Northern Zhou ten years later.
Gao Huan's connivance with his heirs led to the collapse of the dynasty, which brought a profound lesson to Emperor Wen of Sui. He believes that as the head of a country, he must strictly discipline his children, and he must not be laissez-faire like Gao Huan. Gao Huan's approach was of course out of preference for his son, but this doting eventually harmed the entire dynasty.
Emperor Wen of Sui knew that if a monarch could not strictly control his own heirs, it would inevitably lead to serious political consequences. Therefore, he was determined to learn from Gao Huan's lessons and take more drastic measures on the issue of managing his heirs.
2. The family grievances of the Yuwen family of the Northern Zhou Dynasty
After the death of Yuwenfeng, the founding emperor of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, power fell into the hands of his nephew Yuwenhu. In order to seize power, Yuwentai successively killed Yuwentai's two sons, Emperor Xiaomin and Emperor Ming, and finally established Yuwentai's other son as emperor, known as Emperor Wu of the Northern Zhou Dynasty.
After Emperor Wu came to power, he carefully planned, and finally got rid of Yuwen Hu and regained control of power. But Emperor Wu's sons were all mediocre, and he had to pass the throne to the crown prince, later Emperor Xuan. Emperor Xuan's rule was corrupt, and he wantonly slaughtered the threatening Yuwen ministers, and was eventually destroyed by the Sui Dynasty.
The infighting in the Yuwen family brought a heavy lesson to Emperor Wen of Sui. He believed that the internal struggle of the imperial family would greatly deplete the country's strength, so it was necessary to prevent it from happening. The fall of the Yuwen clan shows that even if a dynasty is firmly established, as long as there is an internal struggle for power, it will inevitably come to an end. Emperor Wen of Sui was well aware of this, and was determined to prevent his own heirs from falling into the same predicament.
3. Emperor Wen of Sui's idea of separation
When the Sui Dynasty was first established, Emperor Wen of Sui handed over important military and political power to several sons, such as Yang Guang, King of Jin, Yang Jun, King of Qin, and Yang Xiu, King of Shu, to prevent a repeat of the fall of the Northern Zhou Dynasty.
"Let the sons divide the big town, and the autocratic power is in the emperor's room", Emperor Wen of Sui intended to let his sons control the power of one side to prevent his relatives from interfering in politics. This was the lesson he learned from the fall of the Northern Zhou Dynasty.
He believed that if power was concentrated in one's own hands, it would easily lead to the covetousness of foreign relatives and internal power struggles, which would eventually lead to the collapse of the dynasty. Therefore, he decided to delegate power to the princes, allowing them to control one side in order to maintain the stability of the dynasty.
This feudal system did play the expected role to a certain extent, but at the same time, it also buried the hidden danger of the fall of the Sui Dynasty. The princes wielded a lot of power, and it was inevitable that they would have a tendency to be arrogant and domineering, which was why Emperor Wen of Sui had to control them harshly after that.
Fourth, the meritorious prince who pacified the Chen Dynasty
In order to realize the great cause of unification, Emperor Wen of Sui entrusted Yang Guang with the important task of pacifying the Chen Dynasty. Yang Guang does have extraordinary talents, controlling the overall situation, selecting generals, and formulating strategies, which are indispensable to the destruction of Chen.
However, with the unification of the whole country, Yang Guang and other princes began to be arrogant and lascivious, violating the system. Emperor Wen of Sui was very dissatisfied with this, believing that this was the same reason for the fall of the Gao dynasty of the Northern Qi Dynasty. The reason why Yang Guang and other princes behaved like this was that, on the one hand, they held a lot of power, which inevitably led to arrogance, and on the other hand, it also reflected the mistakes of Emperor Wen of Sui in disciplining his children.
Emperor Wen of Sui was originally very cautious about the issue of heirs, but in practice, there were deviations. On the one hand, he gave the princes great power in the hope of maintaining the stability of the dynasty, but on the other hand, he failed to effectively control them, which led to the indulgence of the princes. This contradictory approach eventually led to internal turmoil in the Sui Dynasty.
5. The change in the character of Emperor Wen of Sui
Faced with the domineering behavior of the princes, Emperor Wen of Sui began to change his attitude towards them. He first removed Yang Jun, the king of Qin, from his official position, and then deposed the crown prince Yang Yong and renamed Yang Guang as the crown prince.
"Who is not born to parents, and even this! I read the Book of Qi closely, and when I saw Gao Huan indulging his son, I was overwhelmed with indignation, and I was very angry, and I was very angry!" Emperor Wen of Sui thus thoroughly learned the lesson of the fall of the Northern Qi Dynasty and began to discipline his heirs strictly.
This change in Emperor Wen of Sui reflects his two very different attitudes towards the issue of heirs. At first, he handed over power to the princes out of concern for the stability of the dynasty, but later found that this was counterproductive, so he began to tighten control again. This capricious approach undoubtedly exacerbated the contradictions within the Sui Dynasty.
This character trait of Emperor Wen of Sui is also one of the important reasons for the fall of the Sui Dynasty. As a monarch, he should keep a clear head and make long-term policies, rather than being swayed by the situation in front of him and making decisions that are rushed. This character flaw eventually led to the fall of the Sui Dynasty.
Sixth, the beginning of internal friction in the Sui Dynasty
After Yang Guang ascended the crown prince, Emperor Wen of Sui issued an edict not to allow officials in the East Palace to claim to be subordinate to him to prevent him from being arrogant. Soon, Yang Xiu, the king of Shu, was also deposed. Although Emperor Wen of Sui was wary of Yang Guang, he still passed the throne to him before his death. On his deathbed, Emperor Wen realized that he had made a big mistake, but it was too late.
Emperor Wen of Sui's attitude towards Yang Guang once again reflected his contradictions in dealing with the issue of heirs. On the one hand, he feared that Yang Guang would be as arrogant and indulgent as the Gao dynasty of the Northern Qi Dynasty, so he took drastic measures, and on the other hand, he passed the throne to him on his deathbed. This inconsistent approach exacerbated the contradictions within the Sui Dynasty.
After Yang Guang ascended the throne, the internal friction of the Sui Dynasty further intensified. This was not only due to Emperor Wen of Sui's own character flaws, but also related to the political environment at the time. As a newly established dynasty, the Sui Dynasty was under tremendous pressure to consolidate its rule, which forced Emperor Wen of Sui to take some inappropriate measures on the issue of heirs. But these measures eventually led to the fall of the Sui Dynasty.
7. The fall of the Sui Dynasty
After Yang Guang ascended the throne, the internal friction of the Sui Dynasty intensified, which eventually led to the decline of national power. Tang Dynasty generals Li Yuan and others took the opportunity to raise troops and invaded Chang'an in 618, Yang Guang was killed, and the Sui Dynasty fell. The fall of the Sui Dynasty was due to both the personal character flaws of Emperor Wen of Sui and the influence of the political environment at that time.
As a newly established dynasty, the Sui Dynasty was under tremendous pressure to consolidate its rule, which forced Emperor Wen of Sui to take some inappropriate measures on the issue of heirs. But these measures eventually led to the fall of the Sui Dynasty.
Emperor Wen of Sui's mistake was that he neither let go of his heirs like Gao Huan nor completely eradicate the threat like Yuwen Hu. He tries to find a balance between the two extremes, but ends up in a dilemma. This contradictory approach not only did not solve the problem, but aggravated the contradictions within the Sui Dynasty, and eventually led to the tragedy of its demise.
epilogue
When Emperor Wen of Sui Yang Jian established a new dynasty, he was deeply influenced by the lessons of the previous dynasty's demise, and his attitude towards his heirs was capricious.
The flaws of his personal character, coupled with the shortcomings of the absolute monarchy system, led to the intensification of internal contradictions in the Sui Dynasty, and finally led to the catastrophe of the collapse of the family and country.
History has taught us that no ruler should have the problem of improper family style, otherwise it will eventually lead to a crisis of destruction.