Du Sengming
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Du Sengming (509–554),
courtesy name A courtesy name (), also known as a style name, is a name bestowed upon one at adulthood in addition to one's given name. This practice is a tradition in the East Asian cultural sphere, including China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.Ulrich Theob ...
Hongzhao, was a military general of the Liang
dynasty A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family,''Oxford English Dictionary'', "dynasty, ''n''." Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1897. usually in the context of a monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A ...
during the
Northern and Southern dynasties The Northern and Southern dynasties () was a period of political division in the history of China that lasted from 420 to 589, following the tumultuous era of the Sixteen Kingdoms and the Eastern Jin dynasty. It is sometimes considered a ...
period. Although he died three years before its establishment, he was pivotal in the rise of the Chen dynasty and as such was usually considered a figure from the said dynasty. Sengming and
Zhou Wenyu Zhou may refer to: Chinese history * King Zhou of Shang () (1105 BC–1046 BC), the last king of the Shang dynasty * Predynastic Zhou (), 11th-century BC precursor to the Zhou dynasty * Zhou dynasty () (1046 BC–256 BC), a dynasty of China ** West ...
rebelled against the Liang dynasty in 543 when their master, Lu Zixiong (盧子雄) was executed, but after was captured by Chen Baxian, he became one of Chen's generals. He greatly contributed in quelling the Hou Jing Disturbance and briefly fought with
Northern Qi Qi, known as the Northern Qi (), Later Qi (後齊) or Gao Qi (高齊) in historiography, was a Chinese imperial dynasty and one of the Northern dynasties during the Northern and Southern dynasties era. It ruled the eastern part of northern China ...
in 554 before dying at the young age of 46. He, along with Zhou and
Hou Andu Hou Andu () (520 – 6 July 563According to Emperor Wen's biography in ''Book of Chen'', Hou Andu was forced to commit suicide on the ''guisi'' day of the 6th month of the 4th year of the ''Tianjia'' era of his reign. This corresponds to 6 Jul 56 ...
, were considered the three key generals of Chen Baxian rise to power.


Life


Early life and career

Du Sengming was from Linze County (臨澤縣, in modern-day
Gaoyou Gaoyou (), is a county-level city under the administration of Yangzhou, Jiangsu province, China, located in the Yangtze River Delta on the north side of the Yangtze River. History Recent archaeological finds at the Longqiuzhuang site in Gaoyou has ...
,
Jiangsu Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with its ca ...
) in
Guangling Commandery Guangling Commandery ( zh, 廣陵郡) was a historical commandery of China from Han dynasty to Tang dynasty, located in present-day central Jiangsu province in central coastal China. It was named after Guangling, a historical name of Yangzhou. In e ...
. He was described as having a short stature but brave personality, excelling in both horse riding and archery. During the middle of the ''Datong'' era (大同, 535–546), he and his brother, Du Tianhe (杜天合), were subordinates of the Protector of Nanjiang Prefecture (南江州), Lu Anxing (盧安興). They helped him put down the revolts of the '' Lǐliáo'' (俚僚) people and were stationed as Xinzhou (新洲, in modern-day
Xinxing County Xinxing County, Postal romanization, alternately romanization of Chinese, romanized as Sunhing, is a county (China), county of the prefecture (China), prefecture-level prefecture-level city, city of Yunfu in the west of Guangdong province, China. ...
,
Guangdong Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020) ...
) to defend the area. After Anxing died, the brothers continued to serve his son, Lu Zixiong who took his father's position.


Avenging Lu Zixiong

In 542, a rebellion headed by Lý Bôn in Jiaozhou broke out in response to the cruel administration of the Inspector of Jiaozhou, Xiao Zi (蕭諮). The Inspector of Guangzhou, Xiao Ying (蕭映), was tasked in quelling the rebellion with Lu Zixiong and Sun Jiong (孫冏) serving as his generals. At the time, the summer was unusually hot, so Zixiong and Jiong advised Xiao Ying to wait for autumn. However, Xiao Ying ignored them, and in 343, he was badly defeated by the rebels. Xiao Zi was quick to accuse Zixiong and Sun Jiong of collaborating with the rebels. Emperor Wu believed Xiao Zi and issued the two's execution in December of that year. The death of Zixiong greatly angered Du Tianhe, who felt that the Lu family had treated him well. He conspired with Lu Zixiong's brothers, Lu Zilüe (盧子略) and Lu Zilie (盧子烈) in Nanjiang, telling them: The brothers agreed, and together with Du Sengming and his peer, Zhou Wenyu, they rose in rebellion and arrested the new Protector of Nanjiang, Shen Yi (沈顗). They marched onto Guangzhou and placed the provincial capital under siege as the rebels rapidly grew in number, creating an entirely new crisis in the region. In 544, the Prefect of
Gaoyao Gaoyao, alternately romanized as Koyiu, is an urban district of Zhaoqing in western Guangdong, China. Population: 706,000. Name Gaoyao—literally "high-&-wanting"—is a former name of the Lingyang Gorge on the Xi River. It was original ...
, Chen Baxian, was ordered by Xiao Ying to put down the rebels. With 3,000 elite soldiers, Chen crushed the rebellion. Du Tianhe was killed in battle while Du Sengming and Zhou Wenyu were both captured by Chen. Chen was impressed by Du and Zhou's display of bravery and thought of them as model soldiers. Because of that, he did not punish them but instead released them. Du became a member of Chen's staff while Zhou would do the same a bit later.


Hou Jing Disturbance (548–552)

In 548, the general
Hou Jing Hou Jing (; died June 552), courtesy name Wanjing (萬景), was a Chinese military general, monarch, and politician. He was a general of Northern Wei, Eastern Wei, and Liang, and briefly, after controlling the Liang imperial regime for several ...
, who had defected from
Eastern Wei Wei (), known in historiography as the Eastern Wei (), was an imperial dynasty of China that followed the disintegration of the Northern Wei dynasty. One of the Northern dynasties during the Northern and Southern dynasties period, the Eastern We ...
to Liang, rebelled and by 549 had captured the capital of Jiankang. Emperor Wu was placed under house arrest and died in captivity. The governor of Guangzhou and member of the Northern Wei Yuan imperial family, Yuan Jingzhong (元景仲), was asked by Hou Jing to join him. When Chen heard this, he denounced Jingzhong and led his troops to attack him. During this, Du and Zhou were both said to be meritorious, and after their victory, Chen compelled Jingzhong to commit suicide. Later, the former Inspector of
Gaozhou Gaozhou is a county-level city in southwestern Guangdong Province, China. Formerly the primary city in the area, it is now administered as part of the prefecture-level city of Maoming. As of the 20210 census, Gaozhou had a population of 1,32 ...
, Lan Yu (蘭裕), revolted in Shixing, so Chen went to quell his revolt. Du served as the vanguard general and with him, the revolt was crushed and Lan Yu was captured. With Shixing pacified, Du together with
Hu Ying HU or Hu may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Hu Sanniang, a fictional character in the ''Water Margin'', one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature * Tian Hu, one of the antagonists in the ''Water Margin'' * Hollywood Unde ...
were ordered to garrison themselves at
Dayu Dayu may refer to: * Dayu, Banmauk, Sagaing Region, Burma * Yu (Stargate), a Goa'uld System Lord in the TV show ''Stargate SG-1'' *Softstar (大宇資訊), a Chinese language video game developer and publisher. China *Yu the Great (大禹), legend ...
and gather the talents of Shixing before embarking north. However, Chen's plans to go to Jiankang was opposed by Emperor Wu's nephew, Xiao Bo, who he had initially invited Chen to occupy
Guangzhou Guangzhou (, ; ; or ; ), also known as Canton () and alternatively romanized as Kwongchow or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of Guangdong province in southern China. Located on the Pearl River about north-northwest of Hong Kon ...
. Chen ignored him, so Bo colluded with the Nankang warlord Cai Luyang (蔡路養) to make sure that Chen never makes it to the capital. Du Sengming fought in the battle with Cai when his horse was injured amidst the fighting, leaving him vulnerable. Chen quickly rode to battle and gave him his horse. With Chen's horse, Du resumed the battle and shifted the tide. Cai was defeated and Chen occupied Nankang. The Inspector of Gaozhou and Hou Jing's ally, Li Qianshi (李遷仕), occupied Dagaokou and sent his general Du Ping to Ganshi (灨石, located along the modern day
Gan River The Gan River (, Gan: Kōm-kong) runs north through the western part of Jiangxi before flowing into Lake Poyang and thus the Yangtze River. The Xiang-Gan uplands separate it from the Xiang River of neighboring eastern Hunan. Two similarly sized ...
) to reinforce the area. Zhou defeated Du Ping and captured Ganshi, causing Li to personally led his troops to retake the city. Zhou and Li were caught in a stalemate, but reinforcements from Du Sengming allowed Zhou to repel Li in the end. Later, Li allied himself with a native of
Ningdu Ningdu County () is a county in the southeast of Jiangxi province, People's Republic of China. It is the northernmost county-level division under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Ganzhou. The village of Xiaoyuan in Ningdu County ...
, Liu Xiaoshang (劉孝尚), and together they laid siege on Chen's army at Nankang. Du and Zhou fought the enemy for 100 days, and in 551 they finally captured Li and executed him in Nankang. Chen continued his advance along the Ganjiang river from Nankang. Du stayed in Xichang (西昌, in present-day Suzhou,
Jiangsu Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with its ca ...
), where he served as Chief Controller of Ancheng (安成, in modern
Ji'an Ji'an () is a prefecture-level city situated in the central region of Jiangxi province of the People's Republic of China while bordering Hunan province to the west. It has an area of and as of the 2020 census, had a population of 4,469,176, of ...
,
Jiangxi Jiangxi (; ; formerly romanized as Kiangsi or Chianghsi) is a landlocked province in the east of the People's Republic of China. Its major cities include Nanchang and Jiujiang. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze river in the north int ...
) and Luling (盧陵; in modern
Ji'an County Ji'an County () is a County (People's Republic of China), county of west-central Jiangxi province, China. It is under the jurisdiction of the prefecture-level city of Ji'an. Administrative divisions In the present, Ji'an County has 1 subdistrict ...
, Jiangxi). Emperor Wu's son and de facto leader, Xiao Yi, awarded Du with the offices of General Who Clears the Fields and Inspector of Xinzhou (信州, modern eastern Chongqing) as well as the title of Viscount of Linjiang. Du was also granted 300 taxable households. In 552, Chen set out from Yuzhang (豫章郡; around present-day
Nanchang Nanchang (, ; ) is the capital of Jiangxi Province, People's Republic of China. Located in the north-central part of the province and in the hinterland of Poyang Lake Plain, it is bounded on the west by the Jiuling Mountains, and on the east ...
, Jiangxi) to help reclaim Jiankang from Hou Jing. He had Du serve as his vanguard once more, and he consecutively defeated Hou's army. When his army reached
Caizhou Caizhou or Cai Prefecture was a '' zhou'' (prefecture) in imperial China in modern Henan, China, seated in modern Runan County. It existed (intermittently) from 606 until 1293. Caizhou was the location of the Siege of Caizhou, the last major bat ...
, Du set fire to the rebel ships. Hou was defeated and killed that year, and Xiao Yi ascended the throne, later to be known as Emperor Yuan. For his merits in the war, Du was awarded Cavalier In Regular Attendance, General Who Illuminates Might, Inspector of Southern
Yanzhou Yanzhou ( postal: Yenchow; ) is a district in the prefecture-level city of Jining, in the southwest of Shandong province, People's Republic of China. It was also the name of one of the Nine Provinces in ancient China, where Yu combated floods by ...
and acting Prefect of
Jinling Nanjing (; , Mandarin pronunciation: ), alternately romanized as Nanking, is the capital of Jiangsu province of the People's Republic of China. It is a sub-provincial city, a megacity, and the second largest city in the East China region. T ...
. He was also promoted to Marquis of Linjiang County, and his taxable households were increased to 500.


Relieving Dongfang Guang (554)

In 554, Du participated in the expedition to reclaim Guangling from Northern Qi. After Guangling was captured, he was awarded Commissioner Bearing Credentials and was promoted to Cavalier in Regular Attendance with Direct Access and General Who Pacifies the North. Around the time, a man named Dongfang Guang (東方光) rebelled against Qi in Suyu. The Qi general, Wang Qiu (王球) went to suppress him but Du came in support of Dongfang and repelled Wang.


Death and posthumous honours

At the end of that year,
Western Wei Wei (), known in historiography as the Western Wei (), was an imperial dynasty of China that followed the disintegration of the Northern Wei. One of the Northern dynasties during the era of the Northern and Southern dynasties, it ruled the weste ...
forces besieged Jiangling, where Emperor Yuan was situated. Du was supposed to lead his troops to rescue the city but on the way, he died in Jiangzhou at the age of 46. He was posthumously appointed Cavalier In Regular Attendance and named Marquis of Wei. He was succeeded by his son, Du Jin (杜晉). Three years later in 557, Chen dissolved the Liang and established his Chen dynasty, becoming known in history as Emperor Wu of Chen. His nephew, Emperor Wen, succeeded him in 559 after he died, and further awarded Du the privilege of a Separate Office with equal ceremonial to the Three Excellencies.


Anecdote

Traditional historians tell an account that supposedly foretold the fates of Du Sengming and his comrades, Zhou Wenyu and Hou Andu. When Chen held a feast for the three generals, they began to brag about their achievements against each other when Chen told them: If true, the account is inaccurate in regard to Du's fate. He was the only one of the three to die peacefully, while Zhou was assassinated by a trusted associate, Xiong Tanlang, and Hou was executed by Emperor Wen for his arrogance.(初,高祖在京城,嘗與諸將醼,杜僧明、周文育、侯安都為壽,各稱功伐。高祖曰:「卿等悉良將也,而嵭有所短。杜公志大而識闇,狎於下而驕於尊,矜其功不收其拙。周侯交不擇人,而推心過差,居危履險,猜防不設。侯郎馐誕而無铬,輕佻而肆志。嵭非全身之道。」卒皆如其言。) Book of Chen, Volume 8


References

* Yao, Silian (ed.) (636). ''
Book of Chen The ''Book of Chen'' or ''Chen Shu'' (''Chén Shū'') was the official history of the Chen dynasty, one of the Southern Dynasties of China. The ''Book of Chen'' is part of the official Twenty-Four Histories of imperial China. It was compiled by ...
'' (''Chen Shu''). * Sima, Guang (1084). ''
Zizhi Tongjian ''Zizhi Tongjian'' () is a pioneering reference work in Chinese historiography, published in 1084 AD during the Northern Song (960–1127), Northern Song dynasty in the form of a chronicle recording Chinese history from 403 BC to 959&n ...
''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Du, Sengming Liang dynasty generals Chen dynasty people 509 births 554 deaths