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Yuwen Shu
Yuwen Shu (Chinese: 宇文述; died 20 November 616), courtesy name Botong (伯通), formally Duke Gong of Xu (許恭公), was a Chinese military general and politician of the Sui dynasty. He was a confidant of Emperor Yang (Yang Guang) and was instrumental in Yang Guang's displacement of his brother Yang Yong as crown prince; therefore, after Yang Guang became emperor, Yuwen Shu became exceedingly powerful and was one of two generals who spearheaded Yangdi's efforts in the Goguryeo-Sui Wars. His son Yuwen Huaji later led a coup against Emperor Yang in 618 and, after killing Emperor Yang, briefly claimed imperial title in 619 and founded the state of Xu, but was soon captured and killed. Another son of Yuwen Shu, Yuwen Shiji, however, was a friend of the Tang dynasty's founder Li Yuan (Emperor Gaozu), and after Li Yuan established Tang remained an influential official.
Yuwen Shu's ancestors were originally named Poyetou (破野頭) and were ethnically Xianbei. As they became followers of the Yuwen branch of the Xianbei, their names were named to Yuwen. His great-great-grandfather Yuwen Juyudun (宇文侰與敦), great-grandfather Yuwen Changshou (宇文長壽), and grandfather Yuwen Gu (宇文孤) all served under Northern Wei as army officers at Woye Garrison (沃野, in modern Bayan Nur, Inner Mongolia). Yuwen Shu's father Yuwen Sheng (宇文盛) was a general under Northern Zhou and eventually served as the minister of imperial clan affairs, one of the six main ministers under Northern Zhou's six-department governmental structure.
It is not known when Yuwen Shu was born. When he was young, he became known for his skills at riding and archery. Because of his father's achievements, during the reign of Emperor Wu of Northern Zhou, he was made a mid-level governmental official. He was much favored by Emperor Wu's regent Yuwen Hu, and he became a commander of Yuwen Hu's personal guards. After Emperor Wu killed Yuwen Hu and personally took power in 572, he made Yuwen Shu the deputy minister of imperial clan affairs, and eventually, he was created the Duke of Boling, and then the Duke of Puyang.
In 580, after the death of Emperor Wu's son and successor Emperor Xuan, Emperor Xuan's father-in-law Yang Jian seized power as regent, and the general Yuchi Jiong, suspicious of Yang's intentions, rose against him at Xiang Province (相州, roughly modern Handan, Hebei). Yang sent the general Wei Xiaokuan against Yuchi, and Yuwen served under Wei. He defeated Yuchi's general Li Jun (李雋), and later, with other generals, defeated Yuchi's son Yuchi Dun (尉遲惇). Eventually, after Wei was victorious over Yuchi Jiong, forcing Yuchi Jiong to commit suicide, Yuwen's title was promoted to Duke of Bao.
In 581, Yang Jian had Emperor Xuan's young son Emperor Jing yield the throne to him, ending Northern Zhou and starting the Sui dynasty as its Emperor Wen. Yuwen Shu served as a general for Sui. In winter 588, when Emperor Wen launched a major attack on rival Chen dynasty, Yuwen Shu participated in the campaign, and after the generals Han Qinhu (韓擒虎) and Heruo Bi (賀若弼) crossed the Yangtze River to attack the Chen capital Jiankang, Yuwen advanced to the nearby fortress of Shitou to aid Han and Heruo. After Heruo and Han captured Jiankang and the Chen emperor Chen Shubao, the Chen generals Xiao Huan (蕭瓛) and Xiao Yan (蕭巖) were holding out in modern Zhejiang. Yuwen was sent, along with Yan Rong (燕榮), to attack Xiao Huan and Xiao Yan, and he defeated Xiao Huan and forced Xiao Yan to surrender. After the completion of the campaign, in recognition of his contributions, Emperor Wen gave his son Yuwen Huaji a mid-level governmental post, while making Yuwen Shu himself the commandant at An Province (安州, roughly modern Xiaogan, Hubei).
After the campaign against Chen, Emperor Wen's son Yang Guang the Prince of Jin, who was in overall command of the campaign against Chen, became the commandant at Yang Province (揚州, roughly modern Yangzhou, Jiangsu). Yuwen Shu was friendly with Yang Guang, and Yang Guang, whose ambitions included displacing his older brother Yang Yong the Crown Prince as his father's heir, therefore requested in 600 and received Emperor Wen's approval to have Yuwen's command post moved to Shou Province (壽州, roughly modern Lu'an, Anhui), closer to Yang Guang's post. At one point, Yang Guang consulted Yuwen Shu as to how he could displace his brother. Yuwen suggested entering an alliance with the powerful official Yang Su—and forming the relationship with Yang Su through Yang Su's brother and confidant Yang Yue (楊約). Yang Guang therefore gave Yuwen much treasure and had him go to the capital Chang'an to try to meet Yang Yue. Yuwen offered some of the treasures pillaged from Chen to Yang Yue, and then also intentionally lost to Yang Yue when the gambled. After he had become sufficiently familiar to Yang Yue, he revealed to Yang Yue that it was Yang Guang's intent to enter into an alliance with Yang Su—persuading Yang Yue that given that Yang Su did not have a warm relationship with Yang Yong, his family would be in danger if Yang Yong were to succeed Emperor Wen. Yang Yue, in turn, persuaded Yang Su, who subsequently persuaded Emperor Wen and Emperor Wen's wife Empress Dugu that Yang Yong should be deposed. Emperor Wen and Empress Dugu agreed, and in 600 Emperor Wen deposed Yang Yong and replaced him with Yang Guang. Yang Guang made Yuwen Shu a commander of his palace guards and gave his daughter, the Princess Nanyang, to Yuwen Shu's son Yuwen Shiji (宇文士及) in marriage.
In 604, while Emperor Wen was ill, Yuwen Shu was one of the guard commanders that Yang Guang summoned to guard Emperor Wen's vacation palace Renshou Palace (仁壽宮, in modern Baoji, Shaanxi). Emperor Wen soon died—a death that traditional historians, while admitting a lack of direct evidence, generally believed to be a murder ordered by Yang Guang. Yang Guang then took the throne as Emperor Yang, and he put Yang Yong to death.
After Emperor Yang took the throne, Yuwen Shu, as one of his confidants, became more and more powerful, eventually becoming one of the most powerful individuals in the realm; Emperor Yang also elevated his title to Duke of Xu (許國公). In 607, Yuwen, in order to allow Yun Dingxing (雲定興), the father of Yang Yong's favorite concubine Consort Yun, to join Emperor Yang's regime, persuaded Yun that Yang Yong's sons needed to die, and then persuaded Emperor Yang of the same. Emperor Yang poisoned Yang Yong's oldest son (by Consort Yun), Yang Yan (楊儼) the former Prince of Changning, and exiled Yang Yong's other sons, but eventually had them all killed. It was only after the deaths of Yang Yong's sons that Yuwen was able to recommend Yun to Emperor Yang, who made Yun one of his chief engineers.
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Yuwen Shu
Yuwen Shu (Chinese: 宇文述; died 20 November 616), courtesy name Botong (伯通), formally Duke Gong of Xu (許恭公), was a Chinese military general and politician of the Sui dynasty. He was a confidant of Emperor Yang (Yang Guang) and was instrumental in Yang Guang's displacement of his brother Yang Yong as crown prince; therefore, after Yang Guang became emperor, Yuwen Shu became exceedingly powerful and was one of two generals who spearheaded Yangdi's efforts in the Goguryeo-Sui Wars. His son Yuwen Huaji later led a coup against Emperor Yang in 618 and, after killing Emperor Yang, briefly claimed imperial title in 619 and founded the state of Xu, but was soon captured and killed. Another son of Yuwen Shu, Yuwen Shiji, however, was a friend of the Tang dynasty's founder Li Yuan (Emperor Gaozu), and after Li Yuan established Tang remained an influential official.
Yuwen Shu's ancestors were originally named Poyetou (破野頭) and were ethnically Xianbei. As they became followers of the Yuwen branch of the Xianbei, their names were named to Yuwen. His great-great-grandfather Yuwen Juyudun (宇文侰與敦), great-grandfather Yuwen Changshou (宇文長壽), and grandfather Yuwen Gu (宇文孤) all served under Northern Wei as army officers at Woye Garrison (沃野, in modern Bayan Nur, Inner Mongolia). Yuwen Shu's father Yuwen Sheng (宇文盛) was a general under Northern Zhou and eventually served as the minister of imperial clan affairs, one of the six main ministers under Northern Zhou's six-department governmental structure.
It is not known when Yuwen Shu was born. When he was young, he became known for his skills at riding and archery. Because of his father's achievements, during the reign of Emperor Wu of Northern Zhou, he was made a mid-level governmental official. He was much favored by Emperor Wu's regent Yuwen Hu, and he became a commander of Yuwen Hu's personal guards. After Emperor Wu killed Yuwen Hu and personally took power in 572, he made Yuwen Shu the deputy minister of imperial clan affairs, and eventually, he was created the Duke of Boling, and then the Duke of Puyang.
In 580, after the death of Emperor Wu's son and successor Emperor Xuan, Emperor Xuan's father-in-law Yang Jian seized power as regent, and the general Yuchi Jiong, suspicious of Yang's intentions, rose against him at Xiang Province (相州, roughly modern Handan, Hebei). Yang sent the general Wei Xiaokuan against Yuchi, and Yuwen served under Wei. He defeated Yuchi's general Li Jun (李雋), and later, with other generals, defeated Yuchi's son Yuchi Dun (尉遲惇). Eventually, after Wei was victorious over Yuchi Jiong, forcing Yuchi Jiong to commit suicide, Yuwen's title was promoted to Duke of Bao.
In 581, Yang Jian had Emperor Xuan's young son Emperor Jing yield the throne to him, ending Northern Zhou and starting the Sui dynasty as its Emperor Wen. Yuwen Shu served as a general for Sui. In winter 588, when Emperor Wen launched a major attack on rival Chen dynasty, Yuwen Shu participated in the campaign, and after the generals Han Qinhu (韓擒虎) and Heruo Bi (賀若弼) crossed the Yangtze River to attack the Chen capital Jiankang, Yuwen advanced to the nearby fortress of Shitou to aid Han and Heruo. After Heruo and Han captured Jiankang and the Chen emperor Chen Shubao, the Chen generals Xiao Huan (蕭瓛) and Xiao Yan (蕭巖) were holding out in modern Zhejiang. Yuwen was sent, along with Yan Rong (燕榮), to attack Xiao Huan and Xiao Yan, and he defeated Xiao Huan and forced Xiao Yan to surrender. After the completion of the campaign, in recognition of his contributions, Emperor Wen gave his son Yuwen Huaji a mid-level governmental post, while making Yuwen Shu himself the commandant at An Province (安州, roughly modern Xiaogan, Hubei).
After the campaign against Chen, Emperor Wen's son Yang Guang the Prince of Jin, who was in overall command of the campaign against Chen, became the commandant at Yang Province (揚州, roughly modern Yangzhou, Jiangsu). Yuwen Shu was friendly with Yang Guang, and Yang Guang, whose ambitions included displacing his older brother Yang Yong the Crown Prince as his father's heir, therefore requested in 600 and received Emperor Wen's approval to have Yuwen's command post moved to Shou Province (壽州, roughly modern Lu'an, Anhui), closer to Yang Guang's post. At one point, Yang Guang consulted Yuwen Shu as to how he could displace his brother. Yuwen suggested entering an alliance with the powerful official Yang Su—and forming the relationship with Yang Su through Yang Su's brother and confidant Yang Yue (楊約). Yang Guang therefore gave Yuwen much treasure and had him go to the capital Chang'an to try to meet Yang Yue. Yuwen offered some of the treasures pillaged from Chen to Yang Yue, and then also intentionally lost to Yang Yue when the gambled. After he had become sufficiently familiar to Yang Yue, he revealed to Yang Yue that it was Yang Guang's intent to enter into an alliance with Yang Su—persuading Yang Yue that given that Yang Su did not have a warm relationship with Yang Yong, his family would be in danger if Yang Yong were to succeed Emperor Wen. Yang Yue, in turn, persuaded Yang Su, who subsequently persuaded Emperor Wen and Emperor Wen's wife Empress Dugu that Yang Yong should be deposed. Emperor Wen and Empress Dugu agreed, and in 600 Emperor Wen deposed Yang Yong and replaced him with Yang Guang. Yang Guang made Yuwen Shu a commander of his palace guards and gave his daughter, the Princess Nanyang, to Yuwen Shu's son Yuwen Shiji (宇文士及) in marriage.
In 604, while Emperor Wen was ill, Yuwen Shu was one of the guard commanders that Yang Guang summoned to guard Emperor Wen's vacation palace Renshou Palace (仁壽宮, in modern Baoji, Shaanxi). Emperor Wen soon died—a death that traditional historians, while admitting a lack of direct evidence, generally believed to be a murder ordered by Yang Guang. Yang Guang then took the throne as Emperor Yang, and he put Yang Yong to death.
After Emperor Yang took the throne, Yuwen Shu, as one of his confidants, became more and more powerful, eventually becoming one of the most powerful individuals in the realm; Emperor Yang also elevated his title to Duke of Xu (許國公). In 607, Yuwen, in order to allow Yun Dingxing (雲定興), the father of Yang Yong's favorite concubine Consort Yun, to join Emperor Yang's regime, persuaded Yun that Yang Yong's sons needed to die, and then persuaded Emperor Yang of the same. Emperor Yang poisoned Yang Yong's oldest son (by Consort Yun), Yang Yan (楊儼) the former Prince of Changning, and exiled Yang Yong's other sons, but eventually had them all killed. It was only after the deaths of Yang Yong's sons that Yuwen was able to recommend Yun to Emperor Yang, who made Yun one of his chief engineers.