51 Facts About Gao Pian

Gao Pian, courtesy name Qianli, formally the Prince of Bohai, was a Chinese military general, poet, and politician of the Tang Dynasty.

Gao Pian initially gained renown for defeating Nanzhao incursions, but later became known for his failure to repel the rebel army under Huang Chao and his mismanagement of Huainan Circuit, which he governed as military governor.

Gao Pian was a grandson of the famed general Gao Chongwen, who had suppressed the rebellion of Liu Pi during the reign of Emperor Xianzong.

Gao Pian's father was named Gao Chengming, and served as an officer of the imperial Shence Armies.

Gao Pian was considered intelligent, and was respected by the honored officers in the Shence Armies, including the eunuchs who commanded the Shence Armies.

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Gao Pian was thereafter promoted to be the prefect and defender of Qin Prefecture, and was again successful there.

In 864, the chancellor Xiahou Zi recommended Gao Pian, who had by that point become a general of the imperial guards, to take over the Tang forces then under Zhang Yin the military governor of Lingnan West Circuit, to attack Annan.

The eunuch monitor of his army, Li Weizhou disliked Gao Pian and wanted him to leave, so Li hurried Gao Pian into action.

Gao Pian thus agreed to take 5,000 men to head west toward Annan and asked Li to follow up with the remaining forces, but after Gao Pian departed, Li took over the remaining troops and did not render him any aid.

Gao Pian, meanwhile, was joined by the eunuch Wei Zhongzai, and their joint forces repeatedly defeated Dali forces.

Li then submitted a report stating that Gao Pian was stopping at Feng Prefecture and refusing to advance.

Emperor Yizong was outraged, and in summer 866, sent the general Wang Yanquan to replace Gao Pian, intending to summon Gao Pian back to Chang'an to punish him.

When Gao Pian received the edict at Haimen, he returned to the Jiaozhi front — where Li Weizhou and Wang Yanquan had taken over but had lifted the siege.

Gao Pian resumed the siege, and finally captured it in winter 866, killing Duan and the local chieftain Zhu Daogu, who was allied with Dali forces.

Gao Pian further carried out a major project to remove obstacles for sea transportation between Jinghai and Lingnam East Circuit, such that the difficulties for supplying Jiaozhi in the past were removed.

In 868, Gao Pian was recalled to Chang'an to serve as a general of the imperial guards.

Gao Pian was made the military governor of Tianping Circuit and was said to have governed it well.

In 873, when Emperor Yizong died and was succeeded by his son Emperor Xizong, Gao Pian was still at Tianping, and was given the honorary chancellor title of Tong Zhongshu Menxia Pingzhangshi.

Gao Pian, realizing that he was looking at a potential major epidemic if the people were all confined to the city of Chengdu, ordered, even before he could reach Chengdu, that the city gates be opened and the people allowed to exit, and it was said that the people were initially very pleased by his arrival.

Gao Pian withdrew commissions from officials who initially served as non-commissioned administrators, and employed heavy punishment.

Gao Pian thereafter issued a public apology restoring the Raiders' commissions and salaries.

Gao Pian was said to have even considered executing Raiders who were not at Chengdu at the time of the mutiny, and he only stopped when his subordinate Wang Yin pointed out that they could not have participated in the mutiny, and that he, as a Taoist, should be more merciful.

Gao Pian sent the Buddhist monk Jingxian to Dali, assuring peace and that Tang would eventually give Qiulong a Tang princess to marry.

In 878, Gao Pian was transferred to be the military governor of Jingnan Circuit.

Gao Pian was given the honorific title of acting Sikong and created the Duke of Yan, hoping that Wang's followers would submit to him.

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In 879, Gao Pian sent his officers Zhang Lin and Liang Zuan to attack Huang, and they had a victory over Huang.

Gao Pian suggested that with Zhang stationed at Chen Prefecture and Wang Zhongren at Xun and Chao Prefectures, he could take his own forces and head directly toward Guang Prefecture to face Huang.

Gao Pian further proposed that the chancellor Wang Duo, who had been put in charge of the operations against Huang, station his troops at Wu, Gui, Zhao, and Yong Prefectures to intercept Huang when the latter flees.

Gao Pian subsequently captured Guang Prefecture and held it for some time.

Meanwhile, Gao Pian recruited 70,000 soldiers to add to the ranks of the soldiers under his command, and was much honored for his success against Huang.

Gao Pian spoke against the proposal, pointing out that with the empire afflicted by widespread famine and the people joining the agrarian rebels in droves, only the merchants still supported the imperial government, and that this proposal would turn them against the imperial government as well.

Gao Pian therefore submitted much gold to Zhang, and further wrote Gao, offering to surrender to Gao.

Gao Pian, hoping to accept Huang's surrender as his accomplishment and further capture Huang by trickery, offered to recommend Huang as a military governor.

Further, although reinforcements were arriving at Huainan from Zhaoyi, Ganhua, and Yiwu Circuits, Gao Pian, not wanting to have his accomplishment be divided, submitted a petition stating that he no longer needed the assistance and returned the reinforcements.

When Huang found out that Gao Pian's reinforcements had left Huainan, he cut off relations with Gao Pian and challenged Huainan forces to a battle.

Gao Pian, instead, sent urgent pleas to the imperial government for aid — disappointing the imperial government in that it was hopeful that Gao Pian would be able to destroy Huang by himself.

Emperor Xizong issued an edict rebuking Gao Pian for returning the reinforcements, and Gao Pian submitted another petition satirizing Emperor Xizong by pointing out that Emperor Xizong approved his offer to return the reinforcements.

Gao Pian thereafter claimed to be ill and refused to engage Huang.

Meanwhile, with Gao Pian refusing to engage, the imperial general Cao Quanzhen, with only 6,000 men against Huang's 150,000 men, tried to hold off the Huang advance, but was unable to do so.

Meanwhile, with two wild pheasants flying into the offices of Huainan's capital county Guangling County, the sorcerers that Gao Pian trusted indicated that this was a sign of ill fortune, that the offices would soon be empty.

Gao Pian thus tried to dispel the misfortune by mobilizing his troops and claiming that he was ready to attack Huang.

Gao Pian exited the city with 80,000 men and stationed himself at Dongtang, just east of the city, but refused to advance further.

Gao Pian ordered the nearby circuits' forces to join him, but Zhou Bao discovering that Gao had no actual intent to attack Huang, Zhou refused to mobilize Zhenhai troops and refused to join Gao, believing that Gao was intending to act against him.

Gao Pian subsequently used Zhou's hostility as the excuse to demobilize.

Emperor Xizong agreed, and, in spring 882, made Wang the overall commander against Qi instead, stripping that title from Gao Pian, but allowing him to remain the military governor of Huainan and the director of the monopolies.

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Gao Pian submitted an angry and rude petition, complaining that he was not given sufficient authority, complaining that Wang Duo and Wang's deputy Cui Anqian were incompetent, and comparing Emperor Xizong to such failed leaders as Qin Dynasty's Ziying and Han Dynasty's Gengshi Emperor.

Emperor Xizong responded harshly, in an edict drafted by the chancellor Zheng Tian, and thereafter, Gao Pian refused to submit any revenues to the imperial government.

Meanwhile, Gao Pian was beginning to realize that Lu had, in effect, becoming the ruler of Huainan, and that he was unable to exercise his own power independently.

Gao Pian tried to curb Lu's powers, and Lu started planning to eventually remove Gao and replace Gao himself.

Meanwhile, it was said that various signs of misfortune were appearing at Huainan's capital Yang Prefecture, but when Zhou Bao was forced to flee Run Prefecture after a mutiny against him in 887, Gao Pian believed that the signs of misfortune pointed to Zhou, and believed himself to be safe.

Meanwhile, Lu, now outside Yang Prefecture, issued a letter in Gao Pian's name summoning the officer Yang Xingmi, then the prefect of Lu Prefecture to aid him.