Ashina Buzhen was a member of the ruling caste of the Western Turks. He was appointed

khagan Khagan or Qaghan (Mongolian:; or ''Khagan''; otk, 𐰴𐰍𐰣 ), or , tr, Kağan or ; ug, قاغان, Qaghan, Mongolian Script: ; or ; fa, خاقان ''Khāqān'', alternatively spelled Kağan, Kagan, Khaghan, Kaghan, Khakan, Khakhan ...

by Emperor Gaozong of 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 ...

after the

conquest of the Western Turks The conquest of the Western Turks, known as the Western Tujue in Chinese sources, was a military campaign in 655–657 led by the Tang dynasty generals Su Dingfang and Cheng Zhijie against the Western Turkic Khaganate ruled by Ashina Helu. The T ...

. His fierce rivalry with his cousin,

Ashina Mishe Ashina Mishe (; ?–662) was a puppet Turkic khagan installed by the Emperor Gaozong of the Tang dynasty to rule over former Western Turkic territories. Xue Zongzheng suggested he and Duolu Khagan were the same person. Early life He was title ...

, was instrumental in driving the Western Turks away from the Tang and into allegiance with the

Tibetan Empire The Tibetan Empire (, ; ) was an empire centered on the Tibetan Plateau, formed as a result of imperial expansion under the Yarlung dynasty heralded by its 33rd king, Songtsen Gampo, in the 7th century. The empire further expanded under the 38 ...

Life

Buzhen was a member of the ruling caste of the Western Turks. According to modern Turkish historian Ahmet Taşağıl, he was a descendant of Istemi. After the Western Turks were conquered by the Chinese Tang dynasty his younger cousin Mishe was created khagan in 632. Angered by this, Buzhen attacked Mishe in 639 and killed 20 people including several of Mishe's brothers and nephews. Consequently, Mishe submitted to the Tang, fearing for his life. Buzhen declared himself

Yabghu Yabghu ( otk, 𐰖𐰉𐰍𐰆, yabγu,Entrabγu">"𐰖𐰉𐰍𐰆_ Dulu_tribes_(咄陆叶护)_but_was_not_accepted_by_the_Dulu._Having_lost_prestige,_he_too_submitted_to_Tang. Buzhen_participated_in_the_Goguryeo–Tang_War.html" ;"title="Dulu_Turks.html" ;"title="abγuйабғұ"in_"Ethno-Cultural_Dictionary"_''Türik_Bitig''_),_also_rendered_as_Jabgu,_Djabgu_or_Yabgu,_was_a_state_office_in_the_early_Turkic_peoples.html" ;"title="abγuй ...

(khagan) of the Dulu Turks">Dulu tribes (咄陆叶护) but was not accepted by the Dulu. Having lost prestige, he too submitted to Tang. Buzhen participated in the Goguryeo–Tang War">Tang-Goguryeo war in 645 and the Battle of Irtysh River where Tang armies defeated Ashina Helu. In 657 he was appointed Jiwangjue Khagan () to rule over five Western Turkic tribes by Emperor Gaozong. In 659 he participated in a campaign alongside Mishe against rival claimant to the title of khagan, Zhenzhu Yabgu, near

Shuanghe Shuanghe is a county-level city in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, People's Republic of China. It is located east of Bole City and southwest of Alashankou and the border with Kazakhstan. Shuanghe governs an area of and has a population of ...

. in 662 Gaozong sent the general Su Haizheng (蘇海政) to attack Qiuzi and ordered Buzhen and Mishe to assist him. Buzhen, continuing his rivalry with Mishe, falsely informed Su that Mishe was preparing to rebel and would attack the Tang army; Su responded by ambushing Mishe, killing him and his chief assistants. Shunishi chief Chupan (鼠尼施處半啜) and Basaigan chief Tong Ishbara (拔塞幹暾沙鉢俟斤), angry over Ashina Mishe's death, turned away from Tang and submitted to the

instead. When Buzhen died in 667, Tang influence in the region was greatly reduced.

References

Sources

* ''

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 ...

'' - Tujue Biographies (旧唐书·突厥传) * ''

Zizhi Tongjian ''Zizhi Tongjian'' () is a pioneering reference work in Chinese historiography, published in 1084 AD during the Northern Song dynasty in the form of a chronicle recording Chinese history from 403 BC to 959 AD, covering 16 dynast ...

''
Volume 200
7th-century Turkic people Ashina house of the Turkic Empire Tang dynasty generals at war against the Göktürks Tang dynasty generals at war against Goguryeo Göktürk rulers {{China-hist-stub