家世

李繼韜生年不詳，僅知其弟李繼忠生于896年。父李嗣昭是晚唐大軍閥河東節度使李克用的養侄，母楊氏是李嗣昭的妻子，很善于理財，故李嗣昭家變得極富。據《李繼忠墓誌》，李嗣昭有八子，李繼韜有兄長李繼儔及弟李繼忠、李繼達、李繼能、李繼襲、李繼遠、李繼鎔，其中李繼達、李繼鎔生母不詳，其餘六人都是楊氏所生。楊夫人儲存的大量錢財對李嗣昭行軍有幫助，如天祐四年（907年）—五年（908年），時任晉王李克用（李克用死後由其子繼承人李存勖襲爵）麾下昭義節度使的李嗣昭被李克用的主要競爭對手後梁太祖朱全忠圍困于昭義軍部潞州，楊夫人的財物使他得以在被圍的情況下供養軍隊。李繼韜少年時就狡獪無賴。

控制安義（匡義）

十九年（922年），在李存勖命令下，李嗣昭率晉軍對抗張處瑾。張處瑾的父親張文禮先前領導針對李存勖盟友趙王王鎔的兵變，殺死王鎔，接管趙地，死後將地盤留給張處瑾。四月，李嗣昭在與趙國叛軍的一場戰鬥中喪生，李存勖命李嗣昭諸子護其喪車回晉都太原安葬。李繼能卻無視李存勖命令，聚集其父的數千昭義牙兵，擁喪車歸潞州。李存勖派弟弟李存渥追趕他們，重申李存勖之命。李繼能及其兄弟不但不遵李存勖之命，還想殺李存渥，李存渥逃回晉都。

當時，李繼韜兄長李繼儔任澤州刺史，應在李嗣昭死後繼承軍鎮，也是李存勖中意的繼承人。但李繼儔為人懦弱，在苫廬守喪時，李繼韜趁機軟禁他，上表李存勖，稱被士兵逼迫，只好自為留後。李存勖面臨趙國叛軍、後梁和契丹帝國多線作戰，只得退讓，改昭義為安義以避李嗣昭諱，以李繼韜為留後。

李繼韜雖然被任為留後，卻不滿現狀。晉軍軍前糧餉不足，租庸計請潞州轉米五萬貯于相州，李繼韜稱經費不足，請求只轉三萬。被李繼韜委以政務的幕僚魏琢、牙將申蒙也試圖說服他晉國無人，終將被後梁所並。李繼韜起初未決。

二十年（923年）三月，李存勖正意圖作為唐朝正統繼承人稱帝，召昭義監軍宦官張居翰和節度判官任圜去他所在的魏州，意在給他們在新朝廷之中安排職務，但李繼韜卻對李存勖的企圖愈發擔憂。魏琢、申蒙說服李繼韜，這是李存勖要向張居翰等詢問李繼韜的事，意在誅殺他，李繼韜的弟弟李繼遠也附和，稱有家財百萬、倉儲十年，應該自己打算，不要受制于人。李繼韜派李繼遠去後梁都城大梁，以安義降梁。後梁皇帝朱瑱大喜，改安義為匡義，以李繼韜為節度使，授宰相榮銜同中書門下平章事。李繼韜也派年幼的二愛子去大梁為質。同時，他害怕李存勖來攻，散財招募士兵加入他的軍隊，堯山人郭威也在其中，好鬥有力氣，又好酒，李繼韜奇之，郭威多次犯法犯禁，李繼韜也都縱容。郭威因殺人而下獄，李繼韜惜他有才有勇，放走了他，後來又召到麾下。

他麾下的澤州刺史裴約為李嗣昭生前親信，拒絕隨李繼韜歸梁，召集本州人說：「我事故節度使，已二紀（二十四年）有餘，每見他分財給士兵，志在平定仇人，不幸薨歿。如今郎君父喪未葬，就背棄君親，我可以在這裏自刃而死，不能隨之歸梁。」眾人都感泣。朱瑱派驍將董璋攻之。這時契丹犯燕、薊之地，樞密使郭崇韜奏稱：「汴寇（即後梁）未平，繼韜背叛，北邊捍禦，非李存審不可。」于是在病中的時任內外蕃漢馬步總管李存審被充盧龍節度使。

李繼韜倒戈正值梁、唐在黃河相持，莊宗有憂色，閏四月，召養兄橫海軍節度使李嗣源于帳中，說：「繼韜以上黨降梁，而梁正急攻澤州，我出不意襲鄆州，以斷梁右臂，可以嗎？」李嗣源應命，襲破鄆州。

裴約拒戰很久，告急于已建立後唐皇朝稱帝即莊宗皇帝的李存勖。莊宗仍在與梁軍相持，得知昭義軍只有裴約不背叛，知道他是忠臣，很高興，對諸將說：「朕對繼韜薄嗎，對裴約厚嗎？裴約能分逆順，不附賊黨，先兄何等不幸，生此鴟梟！」雖然派兵相救，但救兵未到，董璋已于八月攻破澤州，殺裴約。

唐失去德勝城後，梁軍每日掠澶州、相州，取黎陽、衛州，契丹數次進犯幽州、涿州，李繼韜的背叛使唐局勢依舊嚴峻，唐諸將都憂惑以為成敗未可知。

身亡

同年十月，莊宗在一次奇襲中攻陷大梁，城陷之際，朱瑱自殺，後梁滅亡。後梁領地為後唐所控制。莊宗入大梁，抓到李繼韜二子，對他們說：「你們如此年幼，已經能幫你們的父親謀反了。你們長大了能做什麼呢？」

十二月，得知大梁陷落，李繼韜震恐，不知所措。他想放棄職位，逃到契丹。不久，他收到莊宗召他的命令。李繼遠稱他應該至少守住城池，去面見莊宗意味著馬上就要死；但其他人稱李繼韜將因李嗣昭的大功而蒙赦，且莊宗論關係也是李繼韜的堂叔，又有母親保全。李繼韜不顧李繼遠反對，決意遵旨。楊夫人收集財物，帶了四十萬兩銀子，和李繼韜一同去被莊宗定為都城的洛陽，一到達，她就賄賂莊宗最寵愛的宦官和伶人，他們因而為李繼韜說情，稱他為奸人所惑，應看在李嗣昭面子上予以赦免，不可令李嗣昭無後。楊夫人還見了莊宗及其寵妾劉夫人，哭泣請死，乞求饒李繼韜一命，並陳說李嗣昭功勳。莊宗被感動，因而下詔赦免李繼韜，將他留在宮中，予以善待，帶他一同打獵，達一月有餘。事實上，這時他還被認為合法的安義（名字已改回）節度使，並加檢校太保、同中書門下平章事。

但李存渥仍為李繼韜兄弟謀殺他一事所怒，反覆指責李繼韜，李繼韜因而害怕。他賄賂莊宗左右，讓他們請求將他遣回安義。但莊宗不同意。李繼韜因而秘密送信給李繼遠，要他讓士兵放火以示不滿，希望一旦此事發生，莊宗就將遣他回鎮安撫士兵。但此信被攔截下來。莊宗發現後，貶李繼韜為登州長史，隨後以其有再度謀叛之罪下令將他斬殺于于天津橋南，其二子一併處決。莊宗又遣使去上黨斬李繼遠。李繼韜麾下牙兵被分配隸屬從馬直，其中就有郭威，得補為軍吏。

李繼韜死後，家室及婢女、僕人、珍玩等為奉命權知潞州的李繼儔所據，李繼儔納妓妾，搜刮錢財享樂，被召還京師也不立即出發。李繼達見兄弟、侄子四人被殺，而兄長卻無骨肉之情如此貪淫，又率麾下攻殺李繼儔，隨即也敗死。此時距李繼韜伏誅僅六天。

李繼韜伏誅後，其生前所寵牙將楊立常想作亂，最終于同光二年（924年）四月發動兵變，五月被平定。

注釋及參考文獻

Background

It is not known when Li Jitao was born. His father Li Sizhao was an adoptive nephew of the major late-Tang Dynasty warlord Li Keyong the military governor (Jiedushi) of Hedong Circuit (河東, headquartered in modern Taiyuan, Shanxi), and his mother Lady Yang was Li Sizhao's wife and described to be very capable of managing finances, such that Li Sizhao's household became extremely wealthy. In Li Sizhao's biography in the Old History of the Five Dynasties, Li Sizhao was said to have seven sons, but only six were listed with their birth rank and said to be born of Lady Yang; among those six, Li Jitao was the second born, with an older brother, Li Jichou (李繼儔), and four younger brothers, Li Jizhong (李繼忠), Li Jineng (李繼能), Li Jixi (李繼襲), and Li Jiyuan (李繼遠). (Another brother, Li Jida (李繼達), was not given a birth rank in Li Sizhao's biography, nor was it clear whether he was born of Lady Yang or not; however, the Zizhi Tongjian suggested that Li Jida was next ranked after Li Jitao.) Lady Yang's large collection of money was said to be helpful to Li Sizhao's campaigns, as, for example, in 907-908, when he, then the military governor of Zhaoyi Circuit (昭義, headquartered in modern Changzhi, Shanxi) under Li Keyong, then the Prince of Jin (and then, after Li Keyong's death, Li Keyong's son and heir Li Cunxu), came under the siege of Li Keyong's archrival Zhu Wen (Zhu Quanzhong) at Zhaoyi's capital Lu Prefecture (潞州); Lady Yang's wealth was said to be able to allow him to supply his army despite his being under siege. Li Jitao himself was described as treacherous and lacking in righteous behavior when he was young.

Control of Anyi/Kuangyi Circuit

In 922, under Li Cunxu's orders, Li Sizhao was commanding the Jin army against Zhang Chujin, whose father Zhang Wenli had led a mutiny against Li Cunxu's ally Wang Rong the Prince of Zhao, killed Wang, and taken over Zhao lands, before dying and leaving the territory in Zhang Chujin's hands. Li Sizhao was killed in a battle against the Zhao rebels, and Li Cunxu ordered Li Sizhao's sons to escort Li Sizhao's funereal train to the Jin capital Taiyuan for burial. Li Jineng ignored Li Cunxu's orders, however, and gathered up the several thousand soldiers from Zhaoyi in the Jin ranks, and instead began to escort Li Sizhao's funereal train toward Lu Prefecture. Li Cunxu sent his brother Li Cunwo (李存渥) after them, reiterating Li Cunxu's orders. Li Jineng and the other brothers not only disobeyed Li Cunxu's orders, but threatened to kill Li Cunwo, but Li Cunwo fled back to the Jin headquarters.

At that time, Li Jitao's older brother Li Jichou was serving as the prefect of Ze Prefecture (澤州, in modern Jincheng, Shanxi), and was expected to inherit the circuit after Li Sizhao's death. However, Li Jichou was weak in personality, and Li Jitao took the opportunity to have Li Jichou put under house arrest, while submitting a report to Li Cunxu claiming that the soldiers were forcing him to take over. As Li Cunxu was facing multiple campaigns at that time (against the Zhao rebels, Later Liang, and Khitan Empire), he was forced to acquiesce, and so he changed the name of Zhaoyi to Anyi (安義) (to observe naming taboo for Li Sizhao) and made Li Jitao its acting military governor.

Li Jitao, though, despite being named acting military governor, did not feel comfortable with the situation. His staff members Wei Zhuo (魏琢) and Shen Meng (申蒙) were also trying to persuade him that Jin lacked generals with talent and would eventually be defeated by Later Liang. Li Jitao's worries about Li Cunxu's intent were further exacerbated in spring 923, when Li Cunxu, at that time intending on claiming imperial title as the legitimate successor to the Tang throne, summoned both Zhaoyi's eunuch army monitor Zhang Juhan and circuit secretary Ren Huan to Wei Prefecture (魏州, in modern Handan, Hebei), where he was at the time, intending to give them positions in a new imperial administration. Instead, Wei Zhuo and Shen persuaded Li Jitao that this showed that Li Cunxu intended to act against him, and they were echoed in this by Li Jiyuan. Li Jitao thus sent Li Jiyuan to the Later Liang capital Daliang, submitting Anyi to Later Liang. The Later Liang emperor Zhu Zhen was greatly pleased, and changed the name of the circuit further to Kuangyi (匡義), making Li Jitao its military governor and granting him the honorary chancellor title of Tong Zhongshu Menxia Pingzhangshi. In return, Li Jitao sent two sons to the Later Liang capital to serve as hostages. At the same time, fearing a Li Cunxu attack, he spent wealth to try to entice soldiers into joining his army. Guo Wei was among the recruited, but later was detained for homicide. Li Jitao appreciated Guo's talent and courage and set him free. (Li Jitao's subordinate, Pei Yue (裴約) the prefect of Ze, refused to follow Li Jitao's actions, but Zhu sent his general Dong Zhang against Pei; Dong was able to capture Ze and kill Pei.)

Death

Later in the year, however, Li Cunxu (by that point having declared himself emperor of a new Later Tang as its Emperor Zhuangzong) captured Daliang in a surprise attack; Zhu Zhen committed suicide as the city fell, ending Later Liang. Later Liang territory came under Later Tang control. When Emperor Zhuangzong entered Daliang and seized Li Jitao's two sons, he commented to them, "You are this young, but you are already capable of assisting your father in committing treason. What will you be when you grow up?"

Hearing of Daliang's fall, Li Jitao fell into extreme fear, not sure what to do. He considered abandoning his post and fleeing to Khitan. Shortly after, he received an order from Emperor Zhuangzong, summoning him. Li Jitao was inclined to follow the order, despite Li Jiyuan's opposition. (Li Jiyuan argued that he should at least hold out in the city, and that going to see Emperor Zhuangzong meant immediate sudden death; however, other staffers argued that he would be spared due to Li Sizhao's great contributions.) Lady Yang gathered up her wealth and went to Luoyang (which Emperor Zhuangzong had made into his capital) with Li Jitao, and once they got there, she bribed Emperor Zhuangzong's favorite eunuchs and actors, who thereafter spoke favorably on Li Jitao's behalf, arguing that he was just misled and that he should be spared on Li Sizhao's behalf. Lady Yang also met with Emperor Zhuangzong and his favorite concubine Lady Liu, begging for Li Jitao's life. Therefore, Emperor Zhuangzong (at that time) decided to spare Li Jitao. He kept Li Jitao in the palace and treated him well, for over a month. (Indeed, it appeared that he was considered the legal military governor of Anyi (with the name reverted) at this time, as he was referred to as such in the annals of Emperor Zhuangzong's reign.)

However, Li Cunwo, still angry over Li Jitao's brothers' threats to kill him, rebuked Li Jitao repeatedly, causing Li Jitao to become fearful. He thus bribed Emperor Zhuangzong's attendants to have them request for him that he be sent back to Anyi. Emperor Zhuangzong, however, did not agree. Li Jitao thereafter tried to secretly send a letter to Li Jiyuan, asking him to have the soldiers display discontent by setting fires, hoping that if that occurred, Emperor Zhuangzong would decide to send him back to calm the soldiers. The letter, however, was apparently intercepted. Once Emperor Zhuangzong discovered this, he first ordered that Li Jitao be demoted to be the prefect of Deng Prefecture (登州, in modern Yantai, Shandong), and then ordered him executed, along with his two sons.

Notes and references

• Old History of the Five Dynasties, vol. 52.

• New History of the Five Dynasties, vol. 36.

• Zizhi Tongjian, vols. 271, 272.