Zhang Gongjin (594–632),

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 Theobald ...

Hongshen, titled Duke of Tan, was an official and general during the

Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...

of China. He played an important role in the

Xuanwu Gate Incident The Xuanwu Gate Incident was a palace coup for the throne of the Tang dynasty on 2 July 626, when Prince Li Shimin (Prince of Qin) and his followers assassinated Crown Prince Li Jiancheng and Prince Li Yuanji (Prince of Qi). Li Shimin, the secon ...

in 626 which helped Emperor Taizong obtained the crown. He was a key general of Tang dynasty during the campaign against

Illig Qaghan Illig Qaghan (Old Turkic: ; ), born Ashina Duobi (), posthumous name Prince Huang of Guiyi (歸義荒王), was the last qaghan of the Eastern Turkic Khaganate. Background He was a son of Yami Qaghan and his Tuyuhun wife Poshi (婆施). He was ...

of Tujue. Because of his contributions, he was listed as one of 24 founding officials of Tang dynasty honored on the

Lingyan Pavilion Lingyan Pavilion () was a small tower beside Sanqing Hall () in the southwest of Taiji Palace (), Chang'an, the capital of the Tang dynasty. Its location in modern China is roughly in the north of Xi'an, Shaanxi. The original 24 On 23 March 643, d ...

In history

Zhang Gongjin was originally a low-ranked official under the warlord

Wang Shichong Wang Shichong (; 567– August 621), courtesy name Xingman (行滿), was a Chinese military general, monarch, and politician during the Sui dynasty who deposed Sui's last emperor Yang Tong and briefly ruled as the emperor of a succeeding state ...

. In 618, Zhang submitted to

and became a follower of

Li Shimin Emperor Taizong of Tang (28January 59810July 649), previously Prince of Qin, personal name Li Shimin, was the second emperor of the Tang dynasty of China, ruling from 626 to 649. He is traditionally regarded as a co-founder of the dynasty ...

, the then Prince of Qin, who was in a rivalry against the crowned prince

Li Jiancheng Li Jiancheng (; 589 – July 2, 626, formally Crown Prince Yin (, literally, "the hidden crown prince"), nickname Vaishravana (; Sanskrit: Vaiśravaṇa), was the first crown prince of the Chinese Tang Dynasty. He was the oldest son of the foun ...

for the potential chance of becoming the next emperor. In 626, Li Shimin ambushed and killed Li Jiancheng at Xuanwu Gate. During this incident, Zhang Gongjin played a big role in stopping Li Jiancheng's reinforcement forces led by Feng Li, Xue Wanche and Xie Shufang from breaking through the Xuanwu Gate. Li Shimin soon became the new emperor (Emperor Taizong) after the incident. During Emperor Taizong's reign, Zhang Gongjin was a military commander guarding Daizhou, an important city in the north of Tang empire. He managed to keep Daizhou safe during invasions of Tujue people. In 629, the steppe in the north, home of Tujue tribes, suffered from a serious winter storm. Zhang Gongjin thus suggested to launch a counterattack against Tujue. He listed five reasons why Tang should launch this attack. Emperor Taizong took his advise and sent out six troops, all under Li Jing's command, to attack Tujue. Zhang Gongjin was the vice chief commander under Li Jing during this campaign. The

was captured by Tang dynasty in the following year, which marked the collapse of the Eastern Turkic Khanate. Because of his contributions in this campaign, Zhang was given the title Duke of Zou. He was then appointed to be the military commander of Xiangzhou. During his time in Xiangzhou, he gained reputation as a good governor.''

Old Book of Tang The ''Old Book of Tang'', or simply the ''Book of Tang'', is the first classic historical work about the Tang dynasty, comprising 200 chapters, and is one of the Twenty-Four Histories. Originally compiled during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdo ...

''：破定襄，败颉利，玺书慰劳，进封邹国公。转襄州都督，甚有惠政。 Zhang Gongjin died in Xiangzhou in 632. In 639, Emperor Taizong promoted his title to be Duke of Tan. In 643, he was listed on the

In folk legends

In folk legends, Zhang Gongjin was a low-ranked officer under

Luo Yi Luo Yi () (died 627), known during service to Tang Dynasty as Li Yi (), courtesy name Ziyan (子延) or Ziting (子廷), was a Sui Dynasty official who rose against the rule of Emperor Yang of Sui and occupied the modern Beijing region. He subsequ ...

, the general guarding

Youzhou You Prefecture or You Province, also known by its Chinese name Youzhou, was a prefecture ('' zhou'') in northern China during its imperial era. "You Province" was cited in some ancient sources as one of the nine or twelve original provinces ...

in Sui dynasty. Later, he joined the peasant uprising and became a leader of

Wagang Army Wagang Army ({{zh, s=瓦岗军, 611–618) was a key rebel army in the late Sui dynasty of China. The Wagang Army was primarily led by Zhai Rang before 617, and Li Mi after 617. To its greatest extent, it occupied major territories in the Henan ...

. After Wagang Army disbanded, Zhang Gongjin submitted to Tang dynasty and became a general. During the war against

Goguryeo Goguryeo (37 BC–668 AD) ( ) also called Goryeo (), was a Korean kingdom located in the northern and central parts of the Korean Peninsula and the southern and central parts of Northeast China. At its peak of power, Goguryeo controlled most ...

, Zhang Gongjin was killed by the Korean general

Yeon Gaesomun Yeon GaesomunSome Chinese and Korean sources stated that his surname was Yeongae () and personal name was Somun (), but the majority of sources suggest a one-syllable surname and a three-syllable personal name. (594–666) was a powerful militar ...

in the battle.

Family

Grandfather: *Zhang Ganzhi: A mid-ranked governor in

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 ...

dynasty Father: *Zhang Shiru: Duke of Dingyuan County (Retroactively recognized by Tang dynasty) Sons: *Zhang Daxiang: Vice minister of Ministry of Revenue *Zhang Dasu: A local governor of Huaizhou, and a historian *

Zhang Da'an Zhang Da'an (張大安) (died 684) was an official of the Chinese Tang Dynasty, serving as a chancellor during the reign of Emperor Gaozong. Zhang Da'an was one of the sons of Zhang Gongjin (張公謹), a key follower of Li Shimin (the eventual ...

: Chancellor during Emperor Gaozong's reign *Zhang Daya: Died in a young age Daughter: *Zhang Wuliang Grandsons: *Zhang Chen: A county-level governor in Shandong *Zhang Fei: A teaching staff at Imperial Academy *Zhang Xu: A low-ranked local governor in Dingzhou *Zhang Xuan: A mid-ranked officer in the central court during

Wu Zetian Wu Zetian (17 February 624 – 16 December 705), personal name Wu Zhao, was the ''de facto'' ruler of the Tang dynasty from 665 to 705, ruling first through others and then (from 690) in her own right. From 665 to 690, she was first empres ...

's reign *Zhang Qia: General of Left Jinwu Guard Army *Zhang Shui: A top scholar at Imperial Academy *Zhang Jun: A mid-ranked officer Notable Great Grandsons: *Zhang Hui: A prefecture-level governor *

Yi Xing Yi Xing (, 683–727), born Zhang Sui (), was a Chinese astronomer, Buddhist monk, inventor, mathematician, mechanical engineer, and philosopher during the Tang dynasty. His astronomical celestial globe featured a liquid-driven escapement, the ...

(Zhang Sui): One of best-known Buddhists, scientists and mathematicians in ancient China.

References

{{Twenty-four meritorious officials of Lingyan Pavilion Tang dynasty Tang dynasty people Tang dynasty generals Transition from Sui to Tang 594 births 632 deaths