Background and early career

It is not known when Cui Anqian was born. He was from the prominent Cui clan of Qinghe (清河, in modern Xingtai, Hebei), which claimed ancestry from the ruling house of the Spring and Autumn period state Qi, and which traced its ancestry to officials of Qin Dynasty, Han Dynasty, Cao Wei, Jin Dynasty (266–420), Later Zhao, Southern Yan, Liu Song, Northern Wei, Northern Qi, and Tang Dynasty. Cui Anqian's grandfather Cui Yi (崔異) served as a prefectural prefect, and his father Cui Cong served as a regional governor and was created the Count of Qinghe. He had at least three older brothers, Cui Yanfang (崔彥方), Cui Shenyou (who would later serve as chancellor), and Cui Zhoushu (崔周恕), and at least one younger brother, Cui Yanchong (崔彥沖).

Cui Anqian passed the imperial examinations in the Jinshi class in 849, during the reign of Emperor Xuānzong. During the reign of Emperor Xuānzong's son Emperor Yizong, he would successively serve as the governor (觀察使, Guanchashi) of Jiangxi Circuit (江西, headquartered in modern Nanchang, Jiangxi) and then the military governor (Jiedushi) of Zhongwu Circuit (忠武, headquartered in modern Xuchang, Henan) as well as the prefect of Zhongwu's capital Xu Prefecture (許州).

During Emperor Xizongs reign

During the reign of Emperor Yizong's son Emperor Xizong, the Tang realm became overrun by agrarian rebels. In 876, Cui Anqian, pursuant to Emperor Xizong's orders, sent troops under his officer Zhang Zimian to combat the major agrarian rebel Wang Xianzhi. In 877, however, Emperor Xizong ordered Zhang Zimian to transfer his 7,000 men to another Zhongwu officer, Zhang Guan, who was to serve under the overall commander of the operations against Wang, Song Wei (宋威)—who, for reasons lost to history, had long despised Zhang Zimian. The chancellor Zheng Tian objected, pointing out that giving the Zhongwu troops to Song would leave Cui and Zhongwu Circuit defenseless; as a result, Emperor Xizong had Zhang Zimian give 4,000 of his soldiers to Song, while allowing him to return to Zhongwu with 3,000 men.

Cui was subsequently transferred to Xichuan Circuit (西川, headquartered in modern Chengdu, Sichuan) to serve as its military governor and the mayor of its capital Chengdu Municipality. Once there, he tried to root out corruption that was rampant under the prior military governor Gao Pian and to revise improper regulations that Gao had imposed. He also tried to strengthen Xichuan's defenses by improving military training. In 878, when Dali, which had long been in intermittent warfare with Tang, made peace overtures through letters that its prime minister wrote to the Tang Office of the Chancellors, the chancellors did not respond directly but had Cui author a response in his own name. Eventually, however, Cui's actions to try to rectify the problems that Gao left him offended Gao's ally, the chancellor Lu Xi, and Lu falsely accused Cui of crimes. Cui was thus removed from his office, given the honorary post of advisor to the Crown Prince (even though there was no crown prince at the time), and sent to the eastern capital Luoyang.

After the major agrarian rebel Huang Chao captured the capital Chang'an around the new year 881 and established his own state of Qi as its emperor, Emperor Xizong fled to Chengdu. Cui followed Emperor Xizong there, and was subsequently made senior advisor to the Crown Prince. In 882, with Gao, then titular overall commander of the operations against Huang, taking no real actions against Huang, the chancellor Wang Duo volunteered to oversee the operations against Huang. Emperor Xizong agreed, and further made Cui Wang's deputy. (Gao, in anger, wrote an irreverent submission to Emperor Xizong that accused Wang of being a failed general and Cui of being corrupt, and Emperor Xizong had Zheng author a harshly worded response.) In 883, however, after Wang was relieved of his command, Cui was also relieved of his command and made the defender of Luoyang. In 886, when the warlord Zhu Mei supported Emperor Xizong's distant cousin Li Yun the Prince of Xiang as a competing claimant to the imperial throne, Cui, who was then at Hezhong Circuit (河中, headquartered in modern Yuncheng, Shanxi), submitted a letter supporting Li Yun's claim, along with other imperial officials then at Hezhong. He appeared to suffer no reprisals after both Li Yun and Zhu were killed later in the year, however.

During Emperor Zhaozongs reign

In 889, by which time Emperor Xizong's brother Emperor Zhaozong was emperor, Wang Jingwu the military governor of Pinglu Circuit (平盧, headquartered in modern Weifang, Shandong) died. Most of Wang's officers supported his son Wang Shifan as his successor, but one of his officers, Zhang Chan the prefect of Di Prefecture (棣州, in modern Binzhou, Shandong), refused to support Wang Shifan. Emperor Zhaozong, trying to take initiative in this conflict, commissioned Cui Anqian as the military governor of Pinglu, carrying the honorary chancellor title of Shizhong (侍中). Zhang welcomed Cui to Di Prefecture and planned a campaign against Wang Shifan. The campaign apparently lasted for more than a year, but in early 891, Wang Shifan, after killing the officer Lu Hong (盧弘), who had turned against him, used the momentum to attack Di Prefecture. Di fell, and Wang killed Zhang; Cui fled back to Chang'an. Emperor Zhaozong subsequently commissioned Wang as the military governor of Pinglu. Cui subsequently died, although the date is not known. He was given the posthumous name of Zhenxiao (貞孝, "faithful and filially pious").

Notes and references

Sources

• Old Book of Tang, vol. 177.

• New Book of Tang, vol. 114.

• Zizhi Tongjian, vols. 252, 253, 254, 255, 256, 258.

家世

崔安潛出自清河崔氏定著六房之一的烏水房。

• 高祖：崔融，中書舍人、國子司業、修國史，謚曰文

• 曾祖：崔翹，禮部尚書、東都留守，贈太子太傅，謚曰成

• 祖父：崔異，尚書水部員外郎、渠州刺史，贈太子太保

• 父親：崔從，檢校尚書右僕射兼揚州大都督府長史、御史大夫、充淮南節度使、封清河伯，贈太師，謚曰貞

• 兄：崔彥方

• 兄：崔慎由（唐宣宗時宰相）

• 兄：崔周恕

• 弟：崔彥衝。

經歷

唐宣宗大中三年（849年），崔安潛中進士，試秘書省校書郎，為鹽鐵巡官、巡察判官，授萬年縣尉，任職弘文館，行殿中侍御史，補右史，充史館修撰，改禮部員外郎，奏授河中節度判官、檢校禮部郎中，賜緋魚袋，又拜吏部員外郎，遷長安縣令，拜司封郎中知制誥，一年後升尚書右丞，充弘文館學士判院事，賜紫金魚袋。

唐懿宗在位年間，出任江西觀察使檢校右散騎常侍兼御史大夫，征拜戶部侍郎，又出為忠武軍節度使，兼許州（忠武軍軍部）刺史，檢校禮部尚書，兼御史大夫。轉兵部尚書。

唐僖宗繼承父親唐懿宗之位而登基後，宦官田令孜用事，請以兄陳敬瑄為忠武軍兵馬使，崔安潛不許。

唐僖宗在位年間，唐朝農民起義蜂起。乾符三年八月（876年），在僖宗命令下，崔安潛派將領張自勉率軍對抗王仙芝農民大軍。乾符三年十二月，兵部侍郎鄭畋上言稱崔安潛威望過人，請以為行營都統，僖宗頗採納。乾符四年三月（877年），忠武都將李可封戍邊歸來，至邠州，迫脅當地節度使，索要舊日所欠糧鹽，留居四月，周邊震驚。乾符四年七月，李可封回許州，崔安潛按問誅殺之。乾符四年八月，僖宗又命張自勉將七千軍隊交給忠武軍大將張貫，讓張貫去為討伐王仙芝的都統宋威效力，而宋威一直鄙視張自勉。並詔崔安潛等遣還使者。乾符四年十月，宰相鄭畋反對，指出王仙芝亂起以來，崔安潛首請會兵討伐，把忠武軍交給宋威會讓崔安潛和忠武鎮毫無防禦。最後僖宗從鄭畋議，命張自勉將四千軍隊交給宋威，張自勉得以率軍三千返回忠武。

乾符五年三月（878年），崔安潛罷都統，歸忠武軍，黃巢農民軍攻打鄭、郟、襄城、陽翟，都被崔安潛所敗。隨後崔安潛被調任西川節度使及成都（西川軍部）尹、安撫雲南八國等使，加檢校尚書右僕射。他試圖根除前任高駢遺留下來的猖獗的腐敗問題並修正高駢制定的欠妥的政令。他還試圖加強軍事訓練，鞏固西川的防禦力量。

崔安潛為忠武、西川節度使時，幕府有劉崇望兄弟四人。後崔安潛為吏部尚書，劉崇望以員外郎判南曹。

乾符五年十二月，不時和唐朝開戰的南詔以宰相給唐朝宰相官署寫信的方式講和。宰相們沒有直接回應，而是讓崔安潛以他自己的名義予以回複。

乾符六年四月（879年），又以鼓勵盜賊互相舉報的方式使得鎮中無盜賊。又因蜀兵怯弱，奏遣大將齎牒去陳、許諸州募壯士，與蜀人一起訓練為用，得三千人，分為三軍，也學忠武軍黃頭軍戴黃帽，也號黃頭軍；又奏乞求洪州弩手，教蜀人用弩射走丸，選得千人，號神機弩營。蜀兵從此更強。

廣明元年五月（880年），上表支持禮部侍郎崔澹等議，反對與南詔和親，並請求募兵，十戶一保，發山東銳兵六千戍諸州，只要五年就能讓南詔為奴。僖宗手詔問和親事，崔安潛答不可對南詔示怯。然而，崔安潛試圖矯正高駢遺留問題的行動得罪了高駢的盟友宰相盧攜，並遭到盧攜的誣陷。

八月，崔安潛因此罷官，擔任榮譽職位太子賓客（當時並無皇太子）、分司東都洛陽。

十二月（880年），黃巢農民大軍攻陷都城長安，自稱大齊皇帝，僖宗逃往成都。崔安潛隨駕，改任太子少師。僖宗起崔安潛為檢校右僕射。

廣明二年正月（881年），討伐黃巢的名義都統高駢無所動作，宰相王鐸自薦取代高駢，崔安潛也上表請求為副帥，王鐸也表崔安潛為副。僖宗答應了，七月，任王鐸為京城四面諸道行營兵馬都統，時任太子太師崔安潛為副都統。崔安潛兼領租庸，署孫偓為判官，奏為御史中丞。

二年五月（881年），高駢憤怒地寫了一篇無禮的表章上表僖宗，彈劾王鐸是個敗將、崔安潛貪污腐敗，而僖宗則讓鄭畋作書嚴厲地回複了他。

中和二年（882年），征拜刑部尚書，不久檢校司空同平章事，充大明宮留守。

中和三年正月（883年），王鐸和崔安潛都被解職，崔安潛改任東都留守。

光啟二年（886年），軍閥靜難節度使朱玫意欲另立宗室襄王李熅為帝，四月，當時在河中的崔安潛和其他河中官員一同上箋賀李煴受冊為權監軍國事。但十二月李熅和朱玫被殺後，崔安潛似乎並未遭到清算，還被遷右僕射併入覲行在，授忠武軍、義成軍兩鎮節度使、諸道租庸、關東宣諭制置等使、檢校司徒、門下侍郎同平章事，後又守左僕射兼鳳翔尹，又加檢校司徒同平章事，不久又拜左僕射，改太子太傅，遷御史大夫。

唐昭宗年間

僖宗弟唐昭宗龍紀元年（889年）十月，平盧節度使王敬武去世，部將大多支持其子王師範繼任，但棣州刺史張蟾拒絕支持王師範。昭宗想在其中掌握主動權，任當時為特進、太子少師、博陵郡開國侯、食邑一千戶的崔安潛為檢校太傅、兼侍中、青州刺史、充平盧軍節度觀察、押新羅渤海兩蕃等使。張蟾迎崔安潛入棣州，計劃討伐王師範。崔安潛闢左拾遺楊煚為支使。戰事持續了一年多，期間大順元年（890）三月宣武軍節度使朱全忠上表稱崔安潛等為縉紳名族，宜用為節度使，昭宗從之。但二年（891年）三月，王師範殺死了叛將盧弘，趁勢攻打棣州。棣州陷落，王師範殺張蟾。崔安潛不敢入鎮，逃歸長安，複授太子少師。隨後，昭宗征拜崔安潛檢校司徒，又加太子太師，又拜左僕射。任王師範為平盧節度使。後昭宗出奔華州，崔安潛隨駕，在華州去世。昭宗為之輟朝二日，贈太尉、開府儀同三司，謚貞孝。

子女

• 崔柅，字制之，太常卿，後梁工部尚書、西都留守副使

• 崔艤，字濟之，右拾遺，897年卒

• 崔伽護

• 崔氏，適前囗囗盧囗

• 崔氏，適前進士李楹

• 崔氏，適監察御史鄭騫

注釋