Yang Yanzhao (楊延昭) ( 958 – 9 February 1014), named Yang Yanlang (楊延朗) before 1012, was a military general in

ancient China The earliest known written records of the history of China date from as early as 1250 BC, from the Shang dynasty (c. 1600–1046 BC), during the reign of king Wu Ding. Ancient historical texts such as the '' Book of Documents'' (early chapte ...

's Northern

Song Dynasty The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...

. For over 2 decades he defended Song's northern border against the Khitan-ruled

Liao Dynasty The Liao dynasty (; Khitan: ''Mos Jælud''; ), also known as the Khitan Empire (Khitan: ''Mos diau-d kitai huldʒi gur''), officially the Great Liao (), was an imperial dynasty of China that existed between 916 and 1125, ruled by the Yelü ...

, helping Song thwart Liao's repeated

invasion An invasion is a military offensive in which large numbers of combatants of one geopolitical entity aggressively enter territory owned by another such entity, generally with the objective of either: conquering; liberating or re-establishing con ...

attempts between 999 and 1004. He was one of

Yang Ye Yang Ye (楊業) or Yang Jiye (楊繼業)According to he changed his name directly from Liu Jiye to Yang Ye in 979, changing both the surname and the given name. If this is to be believed, the name Yang Jiye is technically incorrect, but shows ...

's 7 sons. '' History of Song'' mentions that he was called Yang Liulang (楊六郎, literally "Yang's 6th son") by the

Khitans The Khitan people (Khitan small script: ; ) were a historical nomadic people from Northeast Asia who, from the 4th century, inhabited an area corresponding to parts of modern Mongolia, Northeast China and the Russian Far East. As a people desce ...

who feared him. In the largely fictional legends of ''

Generals of the Yang Family ''The Generals of the Yang Family'' is a collection of Chinese folklore, plays and novels on a military family from the earlier years of imperial China's Song Dynasty (960–1279). The stories recount the unflinching loyalty and the remarkable b ...

'', Yang Yanzhao is Yang Ye's 6th eldest son to explain this nickname,It's unclear today what the nickname means. Some historians believe the

Khitan people The Khitan people (Khitan small script: ; ) were a historical nomadic people from Northeast Asia who, from the 4th century, inhabited an area corresponding to parts of modern Mongolia, Northeast China and the Russian Far East. As a people desce ...

referred to

sirius Sirius is the list of brightest stars, brightest star in the night sky. Its name is derived from the Ancient Greek language, Greek word , or , meaning 'glowing' or 'scorching'. The star is designated α Canis Majoris, Latinisation ...

as ''liulang xing'' (六郎星; "6th Son Star"), so the nickname conferred a degree of respect, as important generals were believed to be

reincarnations Reincarnation, also known as rebirth or transmigration, is the philosophical or religious concept that the non-physical essence of a living being begins a new life in a different physical form or body after biological death. Resurrection is a ...

stars A star is an astronomical object comprising a luminous spheroid of plasma held together by its gravity. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked eye at night, but their immense distances from Earth ma ...

. Some believe there had been a scribal error in '' History of Song'', since the words "Eldest son" (大郎) and "Sixth son" (六郎) are very similar in writing. Some believe "Liulang" is simply a

transliteration Transliteration is a type of conversion of a text from one writing system, script to another that involves swapping Letter (alphabet), letters (thus ''wikt:trans-#Prefix, trans-'' + ''wikt:littera#Latin, liter-'') in predictable ways, such as ...

of a nickname in the still undeciphered

Khitan language Khitan or Kitan ( in large script or in small, ''Khitai''; , ''Qìdānyǔ''), also known as Liao, is a now-extinct language once spoken in Northeast Asia by the Khitan people (4th to 13th century). It was the official language of the Liao Empir ...

. Others believe he was indeed the 6th oldest of the generation if cousins are included. even though

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the stu ...

s believe he was actually the eldest or 2nd eldest son.

Early career

Yang Yanzhao's

given name A given name (also known as a forename or first name) is the part of a personal name quoted in that identifies a person, potentially with a middle name as well, and differentiates that person from the other members of a group (typically a fa ...

was originally Yanlang (延朗). As a child, he was quiet but enjoyed playing military strategy games. His father

(then still called Liu Jiye), a distinguished general, had commented that Yanlang resembled him, and would bring him along on military campaigns. In 986, the

armies embarked on a large-scale northern campaign to take the

Sixteen Prefectures The Sixteen Prefectures () comprise a historical region in northern China along the Great Wall in present-day Beijing, Tianjin, and northern Hebei and Shanxi. Name It is more specifically called the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun or the Six ...

from Khitan-ruled

. Yang was the

vanguard The vanguard (also called the advance guard) is the leading part of an advancing military formation. It has a number of functions, including seeking out the enemy and securing ground in advance of the main force. History The vanguard derives fr ...

general for his father

's troops during the attacks on the

prefectures A prefecture (from the Latin ''Praefectura'') is an administrative jurisdiction traditionally governed by an appointed prefect. This can be a regional or local government subdivision in various countries, or a subdivision in certain international ...

Yingzhou and

Shuozhou Shuozhou is a prefecture-level city in northern Shanxi province, China, bordering Inner Mongolia to the northwest. It is situated along the upper reaches of the Fen River. The prefecture as a whole has an area of about and, in 2010, a popu ...

. He fought on despite an arrow piercing his arm in the attacks of

. After his father's death, he was named a vice-commissioner of honor ceremony (崇儀副使) and sent to

Jingzhou Jingzhou () is a prefecture-level city in southern Hubei province, China, located on the banks of the Yangtze River. Its total residential population was 5,231,180 based on the 2020 census, 1,068,291 of whom resided in the built-up (''or metro' ...

. In the years that followed, he had a stint in

Huainan Huainan () is a prefecture-level city with 3,033,528 inhabitants as of the 2020 census in north-central Anhui province, China. It is named for the Han-era Principality of Huainan. It borders the provincial capital of Hefei to the south, Lu'an ...

to oversee the recovery from

flood A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are an area of study of the discipline hydrol ...

s in

Yangtze River The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ; ) is the longest list of rivers of Asia, river in Asia, the list of rivers by length, third-longest in the world, and the longest in the world to flow entirely within one country. It rises at Jari Hill in th ...

and

Huai River The Huai River (), Postal Map Romanization, formerly romanization of Chinese, romanized as the Hwai, is a major river in China. It is located about midway between the Yellow River and Yangtze, the two longest rivers and largest drainage basins ...

, eventually becoming the metro inspection commissioner (都巡檢使) of the Baozhou area on the Song border, where he would remain for the rest of his life. At the border, Yang continued his father's tradition of instilling strong discipline in his troops by setting good examples. He had few servants and associates for his position and would endure the same hardship as his soldiers. He befriended Yang Si (楊嗣), another brave general at the border, and

commoner A commoner, also known as the ''common man'', ''commoners'', the ''common people'' or the ''masses'', was in earlier use an ordinary person in a community or nation who did not have any significant social status, especially a member of neither ...

s would gradually call the duo the "two Yangs".

War against Liao

In the winter of 999, Yang was guarding the small city of Suicheng (遂城, still in today's

Xushui County Xushui District () is a district of the city of Baoding, Hebei Hebei or , (; alternately Hopeh) is a northern province of China. Hebei is China's sixth most populous province, with over 75 million people. Shijiazhuang is the capital ...

) when the invading Liao army laid siege and attacked it continuously.

Xiao Chuo Xiao Yanyan (; 953–1009), also known as Empress Dowager Chengtian (承天皇太后) was a Khitan empress and military leader of imperial China's Liao dynasty. She was regent on behalf of her son from 982. History Xiao Yanyan was the 3rd ch ...

, Liao's charismatic

empress dowager Empress dowager (also dowager empress or empress mother) () is the English language translation of the title given to the mother or widow of a Chinese, Japanese, Korean, or Vietnamese emperor in the Chinese cultural sphere. The title was also g ...

, personally oversaw the attacks. With little resources in the city, Yang's outnumbered soldiers became more frightened by day. Yang quickly recruited fit men from the city's population to strengthen the troops defending the city, providing them with weapons and

armor Armour (British English) or armor (American English; see spelling differences) is a covering used to protect an object, individual, or vehicle from physical injury or damage, especially direct contact weapons or projectiles during combat, or fr ...

. He also ordered his men to pour water on the outside of the city's

defensive wall A defensive wall is a fortification usually used to protect a city, town or other settlement from potential aggressors. The walls can range from simple palisades or earthworks to extensive military fortifications with towers, bastions and gates ...

s. Since the temperature was freezing, water quickly turned into ice, making Liao's attempt to climb the city walls impossible. Finally the Liao forces had no choice but to retreat, and Yang chased after them and obtained much

. News of the victory was initially not reported to

Emperor Zhenzong of Song Emperor Zhenzong of Song (23 December 968 – 23 March 1022), personal name Zhao Heng, was the third emperor of the Song dynasty of China. He reigned from 997 to his death in 1022. His personal name was originally Zhao Dechang, but was changed ...

by Fu Qian (傅潛), the regional military commissioner in charge of 80,000 soldiers. For fear of suffering a defeat, Fu Qian had tried hard to avoid confronting the invading Liao army. Previously, when the "two Yangs" and other generals repeatedly requested for soldiers and orders to attack, Fu always scolded them rudely. Once

Emperor Zhenzong Emperor Zhenzong of Song (23 December 968 – 23 March 1022), personal name Zhao Heng, was the third emperor of the Song dynasty of China. He reigned from 997 to his death in 1022. His personal name was originally Zhao Dechang, but was change ...

found out, he removed Fu from the post and summoned Yang Yanlang. Yang described the situation at the border and answered all questions to the

emperor An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereignty, sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), ...

's satisfaction. Impressed, Emperor Zhenzong told several princes, "Yanlang's father had been a famous general for the previous emperor. Yanlang now defends the border and commands his army just like his father. It is highly commendable." Yang was appointed the regional inspector (刺史) of Mozhou (莫州, today's Maozhou) and given many awards. As always, instead of bringing the gifts back to his family, he distributed it among his soldiers. When the Liao forces invaded again in the winter, Yang fought them on but kept on retreating, finally luring his enemy to the west of a mountainous place called Yangshan (羊山, in today's

), where he had set up an

ambush An ambush is a long-established military tactics, military tactic in which a combatant uses an advantage of concealment or the element of surprise to attack unsuspecting enemy combatants from concealed positions, such as among dense underbru ...

. The Liao force was annihilated and Yang presented the severed head of a Liao general to

. Together with Yang Si, Yang Yanlang was promoted to become a military training commissioner (團練使) in 1001. Speaking to his

ministers Minister may refer to: * Minister (Christianity), a Christian cleric ** Minister (Catholic Church) * Minister (government), a member of government who heads a ministry (government department) ** Minister without portfolio, a member of governme ...

, Emperor Zhengzong characterized the "two Yangs" as loyal and brave, adding, "Many in the imperial court are jealous of them, but I will defend them with (my) power." When in 1002, the "two Yangs" were attacked on the way to reinforce the besieged Baozhou and lost many of soldiers, Emperor Zhenzong pardoned them, saying, "(Their) bravery is renowned, (I) will just watch their future accomplishments." In 1004, Liao Dynasty initiated a major invasion to the south, and came to a standstill with the Song forces in Chanzhou (in today's

Puyang Puyang is a prefecture-level city in northeastern Henan province, People's Republic of China. Located on the northern shore of the Yellow River, it borders Anyang in the west, Xinxiang in the southwest, and the provinces of Shandong and Hebei ...

). Emperor Zhenzong came to the frontier and strongly boosted the morale of Song soldiers. Liao decided to negotiate a peace treaty, but Yang Yanzhao voiced his strong opinion against it, saying "as the Khitans (Liao) are at a standstill in Chanzhou, thousands of '' li'' away from their home in the north, their soldiers and horses are very tired. Despite their large numbers they could be easily defeated now." However Emperor Zhenzong eventually decided for a peace treaty, known as the

Chanyuan Treaty The Chanyuan Treaty () was signed between the Northern Song dynasty and the Liao dynasty in 1005, and marked a pivotal point in Chinese history and in the relations between the two dynasties. The treaty laid the foundation for approximately a cent ...

, which specified that Song must pay annual tributes to Liao. To voice his protest, Yang Yanzhao fought a last battle during Liao's retreat and killed and captured countless Liao soldiers.

Later years

According to '' History of Song'', Yang Yanzhao was an intelligent and brave general who commanded a disciplined army for several decades on the

frontier A frontier is the political and geographical area near or beyond a boundary. A frontier can also be referred to as a "front". The term came from French in the 15th century, with the meaning "borderland"—the region of a country that fronts o ...

. Any reward he received he shared with his soldiers, never bringing anything home. During battles he would fight the enemies with his soldiers on the battleground, while he often attributed victories to his subordinates, therefore his soldiers were very loyal to him. When he died at the age of 56, Emperor Zhenzong was very saddened and ordered a special envoy to bring his coffin home. Many people along the way wept when they saw his coffin. His 3 surviving sons, Yang Chuanyong (楊傳永), Yang Dezheng (楊德政), Yang Wenguang all became officials.

In fiction

, Yang Yanzhao is the 6th son of

and

She Saihua She Saihua (佘賽花) is a legendary heroine from ancient China's Northern Song Dynasty. The wife of Yang Ye and the mother of their 7 sons, she is a prominent figure in the stories on '' Generals of the Yang Family''. The elderly and widowed ...

. He was the only son who returned from the battlefield to the family after the defeat in Golden Beach. In the stories he is also referred to as Yang Jing (楊景). In the stories, he married Princess Chai, a descendant of

Emperor Shizong of Later Zhou Chai Rong () (27 October 921 – 27 July 959), later known as Guo Rong (), also known by his temple name as the Emperor Shizong of Later Zhou, was the second emperor of the Later Zhou dynasty of China, during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms ...

. Like others in the Chai family, Princess Chai holds a death-exemption certificate from

Emperor Taizu of Song Emperor Taizu of Song (21 March 927 – 14 November 976), personal name Zhao Kuangyin, courtesy name Yuanlang, was the founder and first emperor of the Song dynasty of China. He reigned from 960 until his death in 976. Formerly a distinguish ...

. Their son

Yang Zongbao Yang Zongbao (楊宗保) is a character in the ''Generals of the Yang Family'' legends. In these largely fictionalized stories, he is the son of general Yang Yanzhao and Princess Chai, the husband of Mu Guiying and the father of Yang Wenguang ...

also became a Song general.

Notes

Sources

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Yang, Yanzhao 950s births 1014 deaths Song dynasty generals The Generals of the Yang Family characters