Liu Chongwang


Liu Chongwang , courtesy name Xitu, formally the Baron of Pengcheng, was an official of the Chinese dynasty Tang Dynasty, serving as a chancellor during the reign of Emperor Zhaozong.

Background

Liu Chongwang was probably born in 839, during the reign of Emperor Wenzong. His ancestors claimed ancestry from the Cao Wei-era Xiongnu prince Liu Qubei, and his traceable ancestors included officials of Northern Qi, Sui Dynasty, and Tang Dynasty, including the early Tang general Liu Zhenghui. Both his grandfather Liu Zao and father Liu Fu were Tang officials as well, but neither was particularly prominent — with Liu Zao serving as Mishu Lang, an administrator at the Palace Library, and Liu Fu serving as a prefectural prefect. Liu Chongwang was the third of eight brothers; both of his older brothers Liu Chonggui and Liu Chongyi, as well as three younger brothers, Liu Chonglu, Liu Chongmo, and Liu Guī, would serve as Tang officials as well; his other younger brothers were Liu Guì and Liu Yu. Liu Chongwang passed the imperial examinations in the Jinshi class in 875, during the reign of Emperor Wenzong's cousin Emperor Yizong.

During Emperor Xizong's reign

During the reign of Emperor Yizong's son Emperor Xizong, when the imperial official Wang Ning became the governor of Xuanshe Circuit, Liu Chongwang served on his staff as the surveyor of food supply missions to the capital Chang'an. Later, when the imperial official Cui Anqian served as the military governor of Zhongwu Circuit and then of Xichuan Circuit, he invited Liu and three of his brothers to serve on staff, and all four became known for being talented. Later, apparently after Cui was recalled to Chang'an, Liu followed him to Chang'an and served as sheriff of Chang'an County and was later made a scholar at Hongwen Pavilion. When Cui served as the minister of civil service affairs, Liu served under him with the low-level titles of Sixun Yuanwailang and then Libu Yuanwailang, but was said to be instrumental in reforming the state of the ministry of civil service affairs at that time.
Liu's activities during the next few years — which included tumultuous events including the major agrarian rebel Huang Chao's capture of Chang'an and Emperor Xizong's flight to Xichuan and subsequent return to Chang'an after Huang's defeat — were not clear. As of 886, however, Emperor Xizong was caught up in a conflict between the powerful eunuch Tian Lingzi and the warlords Wang Chongrong the military governor of Huguo Circuit and Li Keyong the military governor of Hedong Circuit, and was forced to flee Chang'an again when Wang and Li defeated Tian and Tian's allies Zhu Mei the military governor of Jingnan Circuit and Li Changfu the military governor of Fengxiang Circuit. After the emperor fled to Xingyuan, Zhu declared Li Yun the Prince of Xiang emperor at Chang'an, and for a while, it appeared that Emperor Xizong's court at Xingyuan would be defeated and replaced. With Tian having resigned and been replaced at the imperial court by Yang Fugong, whose late adoptive brother Yang Fuguang had worked closely with Wang, Emperor Xizong had Yang Fugong write a letter to Wang urging him to again support Emperor Xizong; Liu was in charge of carrying this letter to Huguo and persuading Wang, and he was successful in doing so, eventually leading to Emperor Xizong's prevailing over Li Yun and being able to return to Chang'an. For Liu's accomplishments, he was made an imperial scholar. He was later promoted to be the chief imperial scholar and the deputy minister of census, and later the deputy minister of defense. It was said that he served as an imperial scholar for four years.

During Emperor Zhaozong's reign

In 889, by which time Emperor Xizong had died and been succeeded by his brother Emperor Zhaozong, Emperor Zhaozong made Liu Chongwang Zhongshu Shilang — the deputy head of the legislative bureau of government — and chancellor, with the designation Tong Zhongshu Menxia Pingzhangshi. Liu also successively served, while chancellor, as the minister of defense and minister of civil service affairs. In 890, when his chancellor colleague Zhang Jun and Kong Wei advocated a campaign against Li Keyong, Liu and another chancellor, Du Rangneng, opposed, but to no avail. After Li Keyong defeated the imperial troops and forced Emperor Zhaozong to remove Zhang and Kong, Liu remained chancellor, with his other posts changed to Menxia Shilang — the deputy head of the examination bureau and acting director of the treasury ; he was also in charge of editing the imperial history.
By 891, the relationship between Emperor Zhaozong and Yang Fugong had deteriorated to such a point that Emperor Zhaozong forced Yang Fugong into retirement but became apprehensive that Yang Fugong and his adoptive nephew Yang Shouxin the commander of the Yushan Army were planning a coup. He decided to act against Yang Fugong first by sending imperial guards under the officers Li Shunjie and Li Shoujie to attack Yang Fugong's mansion. However, the Yangs' soldiers were initially victorious. The other imperial guards, who were initially not involved in the battle, were planning to pillage the Chang'an markets in the confusion, but Liu met with them and persuaded them to be faithful to the emperor and join the battle against the Yangs, leading them personally. When the Yangs' soldiers saw that the other imperial soldiers were joining the battle, they collapsed and fled. Yang Fugong and Yang Shouxin fled to Xingyuan to join Yang Fuguang's adoptive son Yang Shouliang the military governor of Shannan West Circuit in an open revolt against the imperial government, but the Yangs were eventually defeated.
Meanwhile, the warlords Zhu Quanzhong the military governor of Xuanwu Circuit and Shi Pu the military governor of Ganhua Circuit had been locked into years of warfare, and by spring 892, Shi was near defeat, with his capital Xu Prefecture under intense siege by Zhu. He sued for peace, and Zhu initially agreed — but demanded, as part of the peace terms, that he leave Ganhua. Zhu thereafter reported the situation to the imperial government and asked the imperial government to send a successor to Shi; in response, Emperor Zhaozong commissioned Liu as the new military governor of Ganhua, still carrying the Tong Zhongshu Menxia Pingzhangshi title as an honorary title, while recalling Shi to Chang'an. After Liu departed Chang'an, however, Shi came to believe that this was a trick by Zhu to get him out of Xu Prefecture to be killed, and so refused to leave the city; Liu turned around at Huayin and returned to Chang'an, but apparently did not resume his post as chancellor. Liu was later given the post of minister of worship.
In 895, Wang Chongrong's brother and successor at Huguo, Wang Chongying, died, leading to a succession struggle between Wang Chongrong's adoptive son Wang Ke, whom the soldiers supported as Wang Chongying's successor, and Wang Chongying's son Wang Gong, who was then the military governor of neighboring Baoyi Circuit but wanted the more important Huguo Circuit. Li Keyong supported Wang Ke, while Wang Gong was supported by Li Maozhen the military governor of Fengxiang, Han Jian the military governor of Zhenguo Circuit, and Wang Xingyu the military governor of Jingnan. Emperor Zhaozong tried to resolve the dispute by commissioning the chancellor Cui Yin as the military governor of Huguo. Upon hearing the remarks, Li Keyong's liaison Xue Zhiqin publicly stated, "While Lord Cui is honored and virtuous, but if there is to be a replacement to Wang Ke, it is better to name Lord Liu of Guangde, as my lord respects him." Later in the year, when Li Maozhen, Wang Xingyu, and Han, upset that Emperor Zhaozong rejected their request, led their armies to Chang'an to force Emperor Zhaozong's hand and killed the chancellors Li Xi and Wei Zhaodu, they also forced Emperor Zhaozong to exile Liu to Zhao Prefecture to serve as the military advisor to the prefect. After Li Keyong defeated Wang Xingyu later that year and forced Li Maozhen and Han to reconcile with the imperial government, Li Keyong spoke on Liu's behalf, and Liu, who had reached Jingnan Circuit on the way to exile, was recalled to Chang'an to serve as the minister of defense.
In 897, warfare between Wang Jian the military governor of Xichuan Circuit and Gu Yanhui the military governor of Dongchuan Circuit resulted in Gu's total defeat and suicide. In spring 898, Emperor Zhaozong, hoping to seize control of Dongchuan back, commissioned Liu the military governor of Dongchuan Circuit. However, when Liu was on the way to Dongchuan, the imperial government heard that Wang had already commissioned his adoptive son Wang Zongdi as the acting military governor of Dongchuan. Not wanting to create a conflict with Wang Jian, Emperor Zhaozong recalled Liu to serve as the minister of defense again and made Wang Zongdi the military governor of Dongchuan. Liu probably died in 900 and was given posthumous honors. One of his sons, Liu Jun, later became a chancellor for the Southern Han state of the subsequent Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period.