Background

Li Cunxu was born in 885, at Jinyang (i.e., Taiyuan), during the reign of Emperor Zhaozong of Tang. His father was the late-Tang Dynasty major warlord Li Keyong the military governor of Hedong Circuit (河東, headquartered in modern Taiyuan, Shanxi). His mother was Li Keyong's concubine Lady Cao. He was Li Keyong's oldest biological son.

In 895, when Li Keyong was on a (eventually successful) campaign against the warlords Wang Xingyu the military governor of Jingnan Circuit (靜難, headquartered in modern Xianyang, Shaanxi), Li Maozhen the military governor of Fengxiang Circuit (鳳翔, headquartered in modern Baoji, Shaanxi), and Han Jian the military governor of Zhenguo Circuit (鎮國, headquartered in modern Weinan, Shaanxi)—who, earlier, had entered the capital Chang'an and executed the chancellors Wei Zhaodu and Li Xi over Emperor Zhaozong's objections—Li Keyong sent Li Cunxu to pay homage to the emperor. Emperor Zhaozong, upon seeing Li Cunxu's appearance, caressed him and stated, "You, son, will be a pillar for the state. Please be faithful to the imperial house." After Li Keyong defeated the three warlords (killing Wang and forcing Li Maozhen and Han to nominally resubmit to the emperor), Li Cunxu was given the honorific title of acting Sikong (司空) and made the prefect of Xi Prefecture (隰州, in modern Linfen, Shanxi), and later successively the prefect of Fen (汾州) and Jin (晉州) Prefectures (both in modern Linfen), but as he did not report to those prefectures, the titles were honorary. He was said to understand music, and often sang or danced before his father. He had a rudimentary understanding of the Spring and Autumn Annals. When he grew older, he became capable at riding and archery.

Li Cunxu was said to be intelligent, brave, and alert even in his youth. In or around 902, seeing his father's distress at years of losses against archrival Zhu Quanzhong the military governor of Xuanwu Circuit (宣武, headquartered in modern Kaifeng, Henan), he pointed out that his father's public display of distress would merely distress the troops and the people as well, and that it was better to lie low and wait for Zhu to make a mistake before trying to react, allowing the troops and the people to rest for the time. He also spoke to Li Keyong about what he saw as the issue of the ethnically Shatuo soldiers pillaging the civilian populace—although Li Keyong was unwilling to curb the soldiers' behaviors at that time, pointing out that if he did, the soldiers might scatter and be unable to be gathered again.

In 906, Zhu was on campaign against another major warlord, Liu Rengong the military governor of Lulong Circuit (盧龍, headquartered in modern Beijing), and he put Liu Rengong's son Liu Shouwen the military governor of Yichang Circuit (義昌, headquartered in modern Cangzhou, Hebei) under siege at Yichang's capital Cang Prefecture (滄州). Liu Rengong sought aid from Li Keyong—whom he had previously rebelled against and thereafter became independent from. Li Keyong, bearing that grudge, initially refused to aid Liu. Li Cunxu pointed out that Zhu had become so strong at that point that nearly all of the other warlords had submitted to him as vassals, and that Hedong and Lulong were two of the few remaining holdouts. He advocated aiding Liu to stop Zhu's expansion, while at time helping Li Keyong gain a reputation for magnanimity. Under Li Cunxu's advocacy, Li Keyong agreed, and requested Liu send troops to him to jointly attack Zhu's possession Zhaoyi Circuit (昭義, headquartered in modern Changzhi, Shanxi) to open a second front. Liu did so. Subsequent, when Li Keyong attacked Zhaoyi's capital Lu Prefecture (潞州), Zhaoyi's military governor Ding Hui, who had secretly resented Zhu for having killed Emperor Zhaozong in 904, surrendered Zhaoyi to Li Keyong, forcing Zhu to abandon his campaign against Liu.

In 907, Zhu had Emperor Zhaozong's son and successor Emperor Ai yield the throne to him, ending Tang and starting a new Later Liang as its emperor. He claimed to be the proper ruler for all of the former Tang realm, but Li Keyong, as well as Li Maozhen, Yang Wo the military governor of Huainan Circuit (淮南, headquartered in modern Yangzhou, Jiangsu), and Wang Jian the military governor of Xichuan Circuit (西川, headquartered in modern Chengdu, Sichuan), refused to recognize him as emperor, effectively becoming sovereigns of their own realms (Jin, Qi, Hongnong, and Former Shu, respectively). Zhu thereafter sent his general Kang Huaizhen (康懷貞) to put Li Cunxu's adoptive cousin Li Sizhao, whom Li Keyong had made the military governor of Zhaoyi, under siege at Lu. Kang built walls and trenches around Lu to cut off communications with the outside, and subsequent relief forces that Li Keyong sent under Zhou Dewei's command, while having some minor successes against Later Liang forces, were unable to lift the siege. By spring 908, Li Keyong had fallen seriously ill. He entrusted Li Cunxu, whom he designated as his heir, to his brother Li Kening, the eunuch monitor Zhang Chengye, Li Cunxu's adoptive brother Li Cunzhang, the officer Wu Gong (吳珙), and the secretary general Lu Zhi (盧質), while repeatedly stating to Li Cunxu that the immediate urgency after his death would be to rescue Li Sizhao. He then died and was succeeded as the Prince of Jin by Li Cunxu.

As Prince of Jin

Initial consolidation of power

After Li Keyong's death, Li Kening initially took over the discipline of the army, and no one dared to create a disturbance. By contrast, the officers and the soldiers did not then respect the young (then 22) Li Cunxu, and they were constantly commenting about him. Li Cunxu, in fear, offered the command of the army to Li Kening, but Li Kening declined, pointing out that he was Li Keyong's lawful heir. Under Li Kening's and Zhang Chengye's insistence, Li Cunxu took the titles of Prince of Jin and military governor of Hedong.

Many of Li Keyong's adoptive sons who served as officers, however, were older and more accomplished militarily than Li Cunxu, and they did not respect him; many refused to meet him to pay homage, and some refused to bow to him. One of those, Li Cunhao (李存顥), tried to persuade Li Kening to take over the command himself, but Li Kening refused Li Cunhao's overture, going as far as to threaten him with execution. However, Li Cunhao and several other adoptive sons sent their wives to persuade Li Kening's wife Lady Meng. Lady Meng agreed with their idea, and therefore urged Li Kening to go with the idea, causing Li Kening's resolve to support Li Cunxu to be shaken. Further, he was also encountering policy disagreements with Zhang and Li Cunzhang and argued with them frequently. He thereafter killed an officer, Li Cunzhi (李存質), without Li Cunxu's approval, and also requested to be made the military governor of Datong Circuit (大同, headquartered in modern Datong, Shanxi). Li Cunxu agreed.

Despite Li Cunxu's agreement with Li Kening, the conspiracy around Li Kening continued. Li Cunhao specifically planned, with Li Kening's understanding, to seize Li Cunxu when Li Cunxu would visit Li Kening's mansion, deliver Li Cunxu and his mother Lady Dowager Cao to the Later Liang emperor, and take over Hedong Circuit. Li Kening met the officer Shi Jingrong (史敬鎔) to try to get Shi to join the plot and to surveil Li Cunxu. Shi pretended to agree, and then informed the plot to Li Cunxu. Li Cunxu met with Lady Dowager Cao and Zhang and initially offered to resign to try to avoid a conflict, but Zhang persuaded him to act against Li Kening. Zhang summoned Li Cunzhang, Wu Gong, as well as the officers Li Cunjing (李存敬) and Zhu Shouyin to prepare against Li Kening.

On March 25, 908, Li Cunxu held a feast at his own mansion, and all the high-level officers attended. At the feast, soldiers that Li Cunxu had previously hidden seized Li Kening and Li Cunhao, and then executed them.

Meanwhile, the crisis of Lu being under siege continued. However, believing that Lu would fall by itself without aid from the outside in light of Li Keyong's death (particularly because Li Cunxu withdrew Zhou Dewei from the area back to Taiyuan for some time), Zhu Quanzhong left the siege, leaving his generals to continue the siege against Lu. Li Cunxu decided to lead the army himself to try to lift the siege. With he himself attacking the Later Liang forces from one side and Zhou from the other, the surprised Later Liang forces collapsed, ending the siege on Lu.

Li Cunxu thereafter instituted policies that, during the next several years, gradually let Jin regain its strength from the nadir late in the Li Keyong years. As described by the Song Dynasty historian Sima Guang in the Zizhi Tongjian:

Li Cunxu also began to exercise imperial powers, in the name of the Tang emperor (even though there was no Tang emperor at that time any more)—an authority that Emperor Zhaozong had previously granted Li Keyong, but which Li Keyong never exercised. He trusted Zhang Chengye greatly, honoring him as an older brother.

For some time thereafter, Li Cunxu did not wage major campaigns, although he did involve himself in the war between Liu Shouwen and his younger brother Liu Shouguang by aiding Liu Shouguang, after Liu Shouguang had overthrown Liu Rengong and taken over Lulong Circuit. (Liu Shouguang eventually captured Liu Shouwen, uniting Lulong and Yichang under his control.) He also jointly attacked Later Liang with Li Maozhen's Qi state after the major Later Liang general Liu Zhijun submitted to Qi.

Li Cunxu's major opportunity to assert himself against Later Liang came in late 910. Zhu Quanzhong had come to suspect his vassals Wang Rong the Prince of Zhao, who controlled Wushun Circuit (武順, headquartered in modern Shijiazhuang, Hebei), and Wang Chuzhi the military governor of Yiwu Circuit (義武, headquartered in modern Baoding, Hebei), of potentially turning against them, and therefore decided to seize the circuits by trick. As Liu Shouguang was threatening Yiwu at that time, he launched an army north, pretending to be helping Yiwu and Wushun in defending against a potential Liu Shouguang attack, but then seized Wushun's Shen (深州) and Ji (冀州) Prefectures (both in modern Hengshui, Hebei) and slaughtered Wushun's garrison at those prefectures. Wang Rong, surprised by this turn of events, immediately sought aid from both Li Cunxu and Liu Shouguang. Liu Shouguang refused, but Li Cunxu launched armies commanded by Zhou and later, himself. In spring 911, a joint Jin/Zhao/Yiwu army crushed the Later Liang army, commanded by the major Later Liang general Wang Jingren, at Boxiang (柏鄉, in modern Xingtai, Hebei). In the aftermaths of the victory, Li Cunxu decided to advance further, and he briefly put Wei Prefecture (魏州, in modern Handan, Hebei), the capital of Later Liang's important Tianxiong Circuit (天雄), under siege. However, apprehensive that a major Later Liang army under the command of the major general Yang Shihou was approaching, and more apprehensive that Liu Shouguang (who by this point was making noise about joining forces with him but demanding a leadership role in the army) might create trouble for him, he soon gave up the siege on Wei, ending the confrontation with Later Liang for the time being. From this point on, Zhao and Yiwu became effectively independent polities, but in close alliance with Jin, all still using the Tang era name of Tianyou (天佑) to signify opposition against Later Liang.

Conquest of Yan

Meanwhile, Liu Shouguang, believing himself to be strong enough to declare himself emperor, tried to persuade Wang Rong and Wang Chuzhi to honor him as Shangfu (尚父, "imperial father"). Li Cunxu, in order to further encourage Liu into megalomania to be able to defeat him later, thereafter signed a joint petition with Wang Rong, Wang Chuzhi, as well as three other governors under his command—Li Sizhao, Zhou Dewei (whom he had made the military governor of Zhenwu Circuit (振武, headquartered in modern Datong)) and Song Yao (宋瑤) the defender of Tiande Circuit (天德, headquartered in modern Hohhot, Inner Mongolia)—offering Liu the title of Shangfu. Zhu Quanzhong, while knowing that Liu was inflating himself, tried to keep him nominally in the fold by naming him the surveyor of the circuits north of the Yellow River.

All of these honors offered to him, however, did not stop Liu from claiming the title he actually wanted, and in fall 911, he declared himself the emperor of a new state of Yan. He also launched an army to attack Yiwu. When Wang Chuzhi sought aid, Li Cunxu sent Zhou to rendezvous with the Zhao and Yiwu armies, to jointly attack Yan. Zhou was able to advance deep within Yan territory. Li Cunxu himself later also headed to the Yan front. (In his absence, Zhu tried to avenge himself by attacking Jin and Zhao, but his army was tricked into collapsing on itself due to posturing by the Jin generals Li Cunshen (Li Cunxu's adoptive brother), Shi Jiantang (史建瑭) and Li Sigong (李嗣肱) (pretending that a major Jin army was about to attack the Later Liang army under Zhu), and eventually gave up on the idea of aiding Liu.)

While the Yan campaign was going on, in late 912, Zhu Quanzhong was assassinated by his son Zhu Yougui the Prince of Ying, who thereafter declared himself the emperor of Later Liang. The major Later Liang general Zhu Youqian the military governor of Huguo Circuit (護國, headquartered in modern Yuncheng, Shanxi), refused to submit to Zhu Yougui, and instead submitted to Jin, seeking Li Cunxu's aid. When Zhu Yougui subsequently sent the general Kang Huaizhen (康懷貞) to attack Zhu Youqian, Li Cunxu went to Zhu Youqian's aid and repelled Kang's attack, forcing Kang to withdraw. (Zhu Youqian would subsequently return to the Later Liang fold after, in 913, Zhu Yougui's brother Zhu Youzhen the Prince of Jun overthrew Zhu Yougui in a countercoup and became emperor, but would yet later revert to Jin.)

By summer 913, Zhou had put Yan's capital You Prefecture (幽州) under siege. Liu, desperate, claimed that if Li Cunxu himself came to You, he would surrender. When Li Cunxu arrived, however, he did not do so, despite Li Cunxu's assurance that his life would be spared if he surrendered. Li Cunxu subsequently intensified the siege, and You fell. Liu fled with his wives and children, but was subsequently captured. Li Cunxu took him and his family, including his father Liu Rengong (whom he had put under house arrest) back to Taiyuan, and then executed them there. He commissioned Zhou as the military governor of Lulong and added Yan territory to his own. In light of his victory, Wang Rong and Wang Chuzhi offered the title Shangshu Ling (尚書令) to him—a title that no Tang subject had dared to accept because it had been at one point held by Tang's second emperor Emperor Taizong. After initially declining, Li Cunxu accepted the title, and also established a provisional central government, exercising imperial powers in the manner that Emperor Taizong did (while he was still the Prince of Qin under his father, Tang's founder Emperor Gaozu).

Initial campaign against Later Liang

After Yan's destruction, with the fear of a Yan attack no longer in sight, Li Cunxu decided to commence his campaign against archrival Later Liang, in conjunction with Zhao and Yiwu. His initial attack toward Later Liang's Tianxiong Circuit in late 914 was repelled by Yang Shihou (who was then the military governor of Tianxiong).

However, Yang's death in 915 would bring a major opportunity for Jin. Zhu Youzhen—who had changed his name to Zhu Zhen by this point—was apprehensive of the power that the Tianxiong army had, and decided to weaken it by dividing in into two circuits, each with three of the six prefectures that Tianxiong previously possessed, with a smaller Tianxiong Circuit headquartered still at its long-time capital Wei Prefecture (魏州) with He Delun (賀德倫) as its military governor, and a new Zhaode Circuit (昭德) headquartered at Xiang Prefecture (相州, in modern Handan) with Zhang Yun as its military governor. The Tianxiong army was apprehensive and angry about the division, and therefore mutinied under the leadership of the officer Zhang Yan, taking He Delun hostage. When Zhu refused to meet Zhang Yan's demands that the division be cancelled, Zhang Yan forced He Delun to write Li Cunxu, offering to surrender Tianxiong to him. Li Cunxu subsequently arrived at Tianxiong and, after killing Zhang Yan for his violent behavior, assumed the military governorship of Tianxiong himself and incorporated into Jin. Subsequent Later Liang counterattacks commanded by the generals Liu Xun and Wang Tan (王檀) were defeated by Li Cunxu and his generals. (Tianxiong subsequently became a major source of human and material resources for Li Cunxu's campaigns.) Tianxiong's fall to Jin left the other Later Liang circuits north of the Yellow River (Baoyi (保義, headquartered in modern Xingtai, Hebei, which Jin later renamed Anguo, and Shunhua (順化, i.e., Yichang, which Later Liang had taken during the Jin campaign against Yan and renamed, and which Jin later renamed Henghai (橫海)) isolated, and by late 916, they had fallen to Jin as well, leaving a single city (黎陽, in modern Hebi, Henan) north of the Yellow River that was still held by Later Liang.

However, Jin was soon challenged by the Khitan Empire to the north as well, with Khitan's Emperor Taizu (Yelü Abaoji) launching a major attack on Lulong in 917, putting You Prefecture under siege. While Li Cunxu and his generals (his adoptive brothers Li Siyuan and Li Cunshen, as well as Yan Bao (閻寶)) subsequently repelled the Khitan attack, Lulong's vulnerability to Khitan attacks had been exposed, and in the future, there would be recurrent Khitan incursions against Lulong.

In winter 917, Li Cunxu, believing that he was in shape to destroy Later Liang once and for all, gathered all of his major generals, preparing to cross the then-frozen Yellow River and attack Later Liang's capital Daliang. However, he then apparently changed his mind, wanting to destroy the main Later Liang army, which was then under the command of He Gui, first, and he spent several months pillaging the Later Liang territory on the Yellow River. Around new year 919, the two armies met at Huliu Slope (胡柳陂, in modern Heze, Shandong), just south of the Yellow River. Disregarding Zhou Dewei's advice that he should wear out the Later Liang forces first before engaging them, Li Cunxu ordered a direct attack, which was disastrous for the Jin army, with Zhou killed in battle. During the initial rout, however, Li Cunxu took position on a hill and used it to counterattack, inflicting much losses against Later Liang, fighting the battle to an essential draw. It was said that both Jin and Later Liang lost two thirds of their soldiers that day, and both were weakened for quite some time.

Integration of Zhao and Yiwu into Jin

At the same time, a crisis was developing within Jin's ally Zhao. Wang Rong, in his old age, was described to be superstitious and spending much efforts on immortality, not attending to the affairs of his state, and spending much time at his vacation estate. He also greatly trusted the eunuch Shi Ximeng (石希蒙), who encouraged him in such tendencies. In late 920, when he remained for months at his vacation estate and refused to return to Zhao's capital Zhen Prefecture, his military commander Li Ai (李藹) and eunuch Li Honggui (李弘規) felt compelled to mobilize soldiers to force him to return—and the soldiers, in the disturbance, killed Shi. Wang subsequently killed Li Ai and Li Honggui, entrusting the authority of the state to his son and heir Wang Zhaozuo and adoptive son Wang Deming. The remaining soldiers feared that they would also be punished, and, in spring 921, they mutinied and slaughtered Wang Rong and his family, supporting Wang Deming (who then changed his name back to his birth name of Zhang Wenli) as their leader.

Zhang offered to submit as a vassal to Li Cunxu, and Li Cunxu, while greatly saddened by Wang Rong's death, initially commissioned him as the acting military governor of Chengde Circuit (成德, i.e., Zhao). However, Zhang himself was apprehensive of how Li Cunxu viewed him, and therefore made overtures to both Later Liang's emperor Zhu Zhen (premised on the fact that he spared Wang Zhaozuo's wife, who was a sister to Zhu Zhen and who carried the title of Princess Puning), and Khitan's Emperor Taizu. Zhu, however, was dissuaded from aiding Zhang by his associates, despite his chancellor Jing Xiang's advocacy for doing so. Eventually, Li Cunxu, encouraged by the Zhao general Fu Xi (符習), who commanded the Zhao detachment in Li Cunxu's army and who wanted to avenge the Wang family, declared a general campaign against Zhang. Zhang died in shock when the campaign was declared, but under the leadership of his son Zhang Chujin, the Chengde mutineers resisted.

Meanwhile, a similar crisis was developing at another Jin ally, Yiwu Circuit. Wang Chuzhi feared that if Jin conquered Zhao lands, Yiwu would inevitably also be incorporated into Jin territory, and therefore advocated pardoning Zhang Wenli. When his proposal was rebuffed by Li Cunxu, Wang Chuzhi decided to secretly make an overture to Khitan's Emperor Taizu to invite him to invade Jin, through his son Wang Yu (王郁), who was then a Jin officer on the Khitan border. Wang Yu agreed, but extracted a promise from Wang Chuzhi that he be made heir, displacing Wang Chuzhi's adoptive son Wang Du, whom Wang Chuzhi had designated as heir. However, the Yiwu officers did not want to see a Khitan invasion, and Wang Du used this sentiment to lead a coup against Wang Chuzhi. He put Wang Chuzhi and Wang Chuzhi's wife under house arrest, while slaughtering Wang Chuzhi's descendants at Yiwu's capital Ding Prefecture (定州). He then reported what happened to Li Cunxu. Li Cunxu commissioned him as the acting military governor of Yiwu, thus effectively turning Yiwu into a vassal.

Subsequently, the Khitan emperor invaded, enticed by Wang Yu's description of Chengde and Yiwu as rich lands that he could pillage. Li Cunxu, leaving his generals to siege Zhen Prefecture, personally led an army to confront the Khitan army. He defeated the Khitan army, forcing Emperor Taizu's withdrawal and leaving the Chengde mutineers without outside allies.

Despite the seeming inevitability of success, the Jin forces suffered several major losses against the Chengde mutineers:

• Shi Jiantang was killed in battle.

• Yan Bao was defeated and forced to retreat. (Yan subsequently died in shame.)

• Li Sizhao suffered a mortal injury and died from it.

• Li Cunxu's adoptive brother Li Cunjin was also killed in battle.

Meanwhile, Li Cunshen and Li Siyuan fought off a Later Liang army commanded by Dai Siyuan, which tried to take advantage of the situation. Li Cunxu subsequently commissioned Li Cunshen to attack the Chengde mutineers, and Zhen fell to him. Li Cunxu killed Zhang Chujin and his brothers, and incorporated Chengde into his territory.

Li Sizhao's death, however, created another crisis for Li Cunxu, who, at this time, was preparing to claim imperial title. After Li Sizhao's death, his sons, against Li Cunxu's orders to have Li Sizhao's casket escorted to Taiyuan for burial, instead took it back to Lu Prefecture. Thereafter, Li Sizhao's son Li Jitao seized power at Zhaoyi, and Li Cunxu, not wanting to create another disturbance, changed the name of the circuit to Anyi (安義) (to observe naming taboo for Li Sizhao) and commissioned Li Jitao as the acting military governor. However, subsequently, fearing that Li Cunxu would act against him, particularly when Li Cunxu recalled the eunuch monitor Zhang Juhan and the secretary general Ren Huan to his provisional imperial government, Li Jitao submitted Anyi to Later Liang. Zhu Zhen was very pleased, and renamed the circuit to Kuangyi (匡義), commissioning Li Jitao as its military governor.

As Emperor of Later Tang

Conquest of Later Liang

Shortly after, in spring 923, Li Cunxu declared himself emperor of a new Later Tang—using the Tang name for his state to claim legitimate succession from Tang—at Wei Prefecture. He renamed Wei to Xingtang Municipality (興唐) and made it his temporary capital.

At that time, though, the outlook for the new Later Tang state was not a positive one—as it was facing the reality of regular Khitan incursions that laid Lulong bare and Anyi's recent rebellion. However, at that time, the Later Liang officer Lu Shunmi (盧順密) defected to Later Tang, revealing that Later Liang's Tianping Circuit (天平, headquartered in modern Tai'an, Shandong)—south of the Yellow River and deep behind Later Liang lines—was not well-defended and could be taken. Li Cunxu believed that this was an opportunity to change the tide of the war, and put Li Siyuan, who supported the plan, in charge of an army to launch a surprise attack on Tianping's capital Yun Prefecture (鄆州). Li Siyuan was shortly thereafter able to capture Yun in a surprise attack.

Shocked by Yun's fall, Zhu Zhen relieved Dai Siyuan, who was the military governor of Tianping but who was then commanding the main Later Liang army against Later Tang, of his command, and, at Jing Xiang's recommendation, commissioned Wang Yanzhang to replace him. Wang quickly attacked and captured the border fort Desheng (德勝, in modern Puyang, Henan), intending to use it to cut off the supply line between Later Tang proper and Yun. However, his subsequent battles against Li Cunxu himself were indecisive; further, Wang's commission caused much apprehension in the hearts of Zhu's close associates—his brother-in-law Zhao Yan and four brothers/cousins of his late wife Consort Zhang—as Wang had long despised what he saw as their wickedness. Zhao and the Zhangs thus defamed him before Zhu, who then removed him and replaced him with Duan Ning. Meanwhile, Zhu also destroyed the Yellow River levee at Hua Prefecture (滑州, in modern Anyang, Henan), causing a flood area, believing that it would impede further Later Tang attacks.

Duan prepared an ambitious plan for a four-prong counterattack against Later Tang:

• Dong Zhang would head toward Taiyuan.

• Huo Yanwei would head toward Zhen Prefecture.

• Wang and Consort Zhang's brother Zhang Hanjie would head toward Yun Prefecture.

• Duan himself, along with Du Yanqiu, would confront Li Cunxu.

However, the Later Liang officer Kang Yanxiao, at this junction, defected to Later Tang, revealing Duan's plan to the Later Tang emperor and pointing out that the plan left the Later Liang capital Daliang defenseless, and pointing out that Wang's and Zhang Hanjie's army was the weakest of the four prongs and could easily be defeated. Li Cunxu decided to take the risky move himself, and advanced to Yun to join forces with Li Siyuan, and then engage Wang and Zhang Hanjie. He defeated them, capturing both Wang and Zhang Hanjie at Zhongdu (中都, in modern Jining, Shandong), and then headed directly toward the defenseless Daliang. With Duan's army trapped north of the Yellow River and unable to come to his rescue, Zhu saw the situation as hopeless. He ordered his general Huangfu Lin (皇甫麟) to kill him; Huangfu did, and then committed suicide himself. This thus ended Later Liang. Li Cunxu subsequently entered Daliang and claimed all of Later Liang territory.

Governance at Luoyang

Li Cunxu set his capital at Luoyang. He also notified the other main independent states—Wu and Former Shu—of his victory over Later Liang, causing much fear in both of those states. Also shocked by his victory was Qi's prince Li Maozhen, who, in fear that he might be the next target, submitted as a vassal. Li Cunxu accepted Li Maozhen's submission and created him as the Prince of Qin. After Li Maozhen's death in 924, Li Cunxu allowed his son Li Jiyan to inherit Fengxiang Circuit as military governor, but did not bestow Li Jiyan a princely title, and this was thus viewed as the end of Qi as an independent state. The Later Liang military governors all submitted to him, and in effect, he had merged the two states. (That included Li Jitao, although, after he later discovered the Li Jitao was still planning to control his realm independently, he put Li Jitao to death.

However, despite being a capable general, Li Cunxu was not capable at governance. He, and particularly his favorite consort Empress Liu, whom he created empress, were gathering wealth to be stored despite the burden it was creating for the people. He also alienated his army by trusting actors (as he himself had a passion for acting) and eunuchs, such that he made three actors prefectural prefects, while soldiers who had followed him for hundreds of battles were not similarly rewarded. This phenomenon was also observed as such by Wu's emissary to Later Tang, Lu Ping (盧蘋), and a former Later Liang warlord, Gao Jixing the military governor of Jingnan Circuit (荊南, headquartered in modern Jingzhou, Hubei, not the same Jingnan Circuit referred to earlier), who would eventually, after Li Cunxu's death, effectively become independent of Later Tang, as well as Southern Han's emissary He Ci (何詞).

Meanwhile, Li Cunxu planned to conquer Former Shu and, in late 925, put his plans into action. He commissioned his oldest son with Empress Liu, Li Jiji, as the titular commander of the operations, but put his chief of staff, Guo Chongtao, in actual command of the operations as Li Jiji's deputy. The attack caught Former Shu's emperor Wang Zongyan by surprise as he thought that the two states were coexisting peacefully. The Later Tang forces repeatedly defeated the forces Former Shu sent to resist it, and, by the end of 925, the situation had become so desperate that the Former Shu major general Wang Zongbi (Wang Yan's adoptive brother) seized Wang Yan and his family and forced Wang Yan to surrender the Former Shu realm to Later Tang, thus ending Former Shu, whose territory was taken over by Later Tang.

Downfall

After the conquest of Former Shu, however, both Li Cunxu and Empress Liu came to suspect Guo Chongtao of wanting to occupy the Shu lands and rebel. Li Cunxu, however, was unwilling to act against Guo without further proof. However, Empress Liu went ahead and issued an order to Li Jiji, ordering him to kill Guo. Li Jiji did so. With Guo dead, Li Cunxu went ahead and issued an edict condemning him and ordering his sons be killed as well. Subsequently, with the eunuchs and actors accusing the major general Li Jilin of having plotted rebellion with Guo, Li Cunxu killed Li Jilin and his family members as well.

Guo's and Li Jilin's death sent fear and anger throughout the Later Tang army ranks. The situation was aggravated by the fact that the central Later Tang territory was going through a terrible famine at the time, and, with Empress Liu unwilling to release the funds for famine relief, many soldiers' families starved, further causing them to be angry at the emperor and empress. These resentment spawned a number of revolts, the most serious of which were one led by Kang Yanxiao in the Shu lands (as he was one of the generals under Guo in the Former Shu campaign), and one by the soldiers at Yedu (鄴都, i.e., Xingtang). Kang's rebellion was quickly put down by Ren Huan, but the imperial troops under Li Shaorong had difficulty putting down the Yedu rebellion, and it threatened to become even more problematic. When Li Cunxu subsequently sent Li Siyuan to take over the operations, Li Siyuan's own soldiers mutinied and forced him to join the Yedu mutineers. Li Siyuan tried to send messengers to Li Cunxu to explain he had not intended to rebel, but his messengers were intercepted by Li Shaorong. He decided to attack south and occupy Bian Prefecture (汴州, i.e., formerly Daliang), and Li Cunxu mobilized an army to try to intercept him. Bian Prefecture's defender Kong Xun decided to play both sides, and sent emissaries to both of them, welcoming them. When Li Siyuan reached Bian first, Kong welcomed him in, and rejected Li Cunxu. Hearing this, Li Cunxu dejectedly returned to Luoyang. After he returned to Luoyang, the officer Guo Congqian (郭從謙) led a mutiny, and Li Cunxu tried to fight the mutineers. He suffered an arrow wound in the battle and shortly after died from it. Li Siyuan shortly thereafter arrived at Luoyang and, after initially claiming only the title of regent, eventually took the throne. Empress Liu fled Luoyang but was tracked down by Li Siyuan's emissaries and ordered to kill herself. Li Jiji tried to head to Luoyang to contest Li Siyuan's succession, but on the way, his soldiers deserted him, and he committed suicide. Li Cunxu's younger sons later became monks and fled to Meng Zhixiang, who would treat them as his own sons.

Poetry

Li Cunxu's 4 ci poems were preserved in a Song Dynasty book called Zun Qian Ji (尊前集; Collection of Respecting the Old).

Personal information

• Father

　• Li Keyong, Prince of Jin, posthumously honored Emperor Wu

• Mother

　• Lady Cao, initially the Lady of Jin, later the Lady Dowager of Jin, later Empress Dowager (honored 923), posthumously honored Empress Zhenjian

• Wives

　• Lady Han, later imperial consort with the rank Shufei (淑妃)

　• Empress Liu (created 924, killed 926), mother of Prince Jiji

• Major Concubines

　• Lady Yi, later imperial consort with the rank Defei (德妃)

　• Consort Xia, the Lady of Guo, later wife of Li Zanhua

　• Consort Hou, the Lady of Qian

　• Consort Bai, the Lady of Yi

　• Consort Deng, the Lady of Xu

　• Consort Zhang, the Lady of Liang

　• Consort Zhou, the Lady of Song

　• Consort Wu, the Lady of Yanling

　• Consort Wang, the Lady of Taiyuan

　• Consort Han, the Lady of Changli

　• Consort Zhang, the Lady of Qinghe

　• Consort Wang, the Lady of Langye

　• Consort Ma, the Lady of Fufeng

• Children

　• Li Jiji (李繼岌), the Prince of Wei (created 925, committed suicide 926)

　• Li Jitong (李繼潼)

　• Li Jisong (李繼嵩)

　• Li Jichan (李繼蟾)

　• Li Jiyao (李繼嶢)

　• Princess Yining, married Song Tinghao (宋廷浩)

出生日期

《舊五代史》記載：莊宗光聖神閔孝皇帝，諱存勖，武皇帝之長子也。母曰貞簡皇后曹氏，以唐光啟元年歲在乙巳，冬十月二十二日癸亥，生帝于晉陽宮。

《冊府元龜》記載：後唐莊宗以光啟元年十月癸亥生于晉陽宮。

《舊唐書》記載：十二月辛亥朔。

李存勖以唐光啟元年十月二十二日（885年12月2日）生于晉陽宮，而十月二十二日不是癸亥是癸酉，十月十二日才是癸亥。同光元年至三年的萬壽節（李存勖生日）皆在十月二十二日，李存勖的生日就是十月二十二日。光啟元年十月壬子朔，癸亥是十二日，癸酉是二十二日，李存勖若生于十二日何以過二十二日生日，此當是編纂者失察誤抄所致。

生平

少年時代

李存勗是後唐太祖李克用與貞簡皇后曹氏的長子。他自幼擅長騎馬射箭，膽力過人，為李克用所寵愛。少年時隨父作戰，11歲就與父親到長安向唐朝朝廷報功，得到唐昭宗的賞賜和誇獎。

李存勗成年後狀貌雄偉瑰麗，得習《春秋》，豁達而且通大義，並勇敢善戰，熟知戰略要術。他又喜愛音樂、歌舞、俳優之戲，旁人多有異談。當時，軍閥割據混戰、佔據河東的李克用常被控制河南的朱溫牽制圍困，兵力不足，地盤狹小，非常悲觀。李存勗勸說其父：「朱全忠恃其武力，吞滅四鄰，想篡奪帝位，這是自取滅亡。我們千萬不可灰心喪氣，要積蓄力量，等待時機」。李克用聽後大為高興，重新振作起來，與朱全忠對抗。

即位晉王

後梁開平二年(908年)正月，李克用病死，李存勗於同月襲晉王位。但是當時的兵馬大權歸於其叔父李克寧，軍民之事皆由李克寧決定，權柄既重，令眾人皆攀附李克寧。當辦完喪事後，李存勗與張承業、李存璋設計，要除去勢力龐大的叔父李克寧。同年二月二十日，當諸將於府第時，乃伏兵於府中，置酒大會，李克寧既至，於席間擒下李存顥、李克寧二人，李存勗哭著責備李克寧：「姪兒一開始就打算把軍隊、政權都讓給叔父，叔父不願意背棄我父親的遺命，怎麼現在又把我跟我母親丟給豺狼虎豹？叔父怎麼忍心？」李克寧泣對：「這是讒言啊，我還能說甚麼？」當日，李克寧與李存顥俱伏法。

其後，李存勗認為潞州（今山西上黨）是河東屏障，沒有潞州對河東不利，所以他立即率軍從晉陽出發，直取上黨，乘大霧突襲圍潞州的梁軍，大獲全勝。李存勗的用兵之奇使梁太祖朱溫大驚，他說：「生兒子就要生李存勗一樣的兒子，李克用不會滅亡了啊！至於我的兒子，豬狗之輩而已！」

建立後唐

當潞州之圍解決後，河東威振，控制鎮州的王鎔和控制定州的王處直見形勢驟變，也動搖了依附後梁的信心，竟然和李存勗結成聯盟共同對付後梁。後梁為了保護河北之地，不惜一切，出兵再戰，於是雙方在柏鄉又展開了一場血戰。柏鄉之戰中，晉軍有周德威等三千騎兵和鎮州、定州兵；對方梁軍有王景仁率領的禁軍和魏博兵八萬。梁軍守衛柏鄉、以逸待勞，在地形、兵力、裝備幾方面處於優勢；而晉軍是騎兵，機動性和進攻能力大，對梁軍構成威脅。戰役開始，李存勗採用周德威建議，引誘梁兵出城，聚而殲之，晉軍主動後撤。梁軍主將王景仁果然上當，傾巢而出。晉軍抓住機會，以騎兵猛烈突擊梁軍，周德威攻右翼，李嗣源攻左翼，鼓譟而進。這時晉軍李存璋率領的騎兵大隊也趕上，梁軍丟盔棄甲，死傷殆盡。這一仗，使梁軍喪失了對河北的控制權，之後，朱溫一聽晉軍就談虎色變。而李存勗卻進一步安定了河東局勢，他息兵行賞，任用賢才，懲治貪官惡吏，寬刑減賦，一時河東大治。

李克用臨死時，交給李存勗三支箭，囑咐他要完成三件大事：一是討伐劉仁恭，攻克幽州；二是征討契丹，解除北方邊境的威脅；第三件大事就是要消滅世敵朱溫。他將三支箭供奉在家廟裡，每臨出征就派人取來，放在精製的絲套裡，帶著上陣，打了勝仗，又送回家廟，表示完成了任務。其後李存勗達成李克用遺志，打敗契丹，攻破燕地，並且攻滅劉守光與劉仁恭父子割據的桀燕政權，並且於923年，在魏州（河北大名縣西）稱帝，國號為唐，史稱後唐，其後攻滅後梁，統一北方。李存勗還收降了李茂貞建立的岐，並攻滅王建所建立的前蜀。

李存勗以唐朝賜姓為李的合法繼承人身份，打起中興唐朝的旗號，並為唐朝皇帝立廟。又以誅滅唐朝逆臣之名，將後梁宰相敬翔、李振等人滅族，將幫助朱溫篡唐的舊臣11人貶官。

但李存勗到了晚年自認為已經拚命一生，應該好好享樂，遂荒廢朝政。李存勗自幼喜歡看戲、演戲，常粉墨登場，並自號藝名「李天下」。伶人大受皇帝寵幸，以至于伶人景進幹預朝政。士大夫皆氣憤，又不敢出氣。李存勗又派伶人、宦官搶民女入宮，強擄魏博士卒們妻女千餘人，怨聲四起。同光二年，李存勗恢復舊唐宦官的勢力，本來已經消失的監軍又凌駕于藩鎮之上，導致諸將更大的不滿。同光三年（925年），李存勗派遣兒子魏王李繼岌、侍中郭崇韜，攻滅前蜀。但是其後繼岌、崇韜互相猜疑。郭崇韜又得罪宦官，李存勗於是對崇韜起疑，下命孟知祥入蜀，見機行事。翌年，李存勗被宦官的讒言所迷惑，誅殺了朱友謙、李存乂。後唐朝廷人心惶惶。

後唐同光四年（926年），魏博士兵皇甫暉在鄴城叛亂，是為鄴城之亂，李存勗命李紹榮前往討伐，久不能下，無奈命李嗣源攻鄴城，李嗣源命其女婿石敬瑭同征。兵進魏州時，李嗣源卻被叛軍擁戴，恭迎入城，李嗣源百口莫辯，石敬瑭表示就算不造反也無法免責，李嗣源因而擁兵自立，與魏博的叛軍合兵造反。李嗣源占據汴州（今河南開封），進軍洛邑，先鋒石敬瑭則帶兵逼進汜水關（河南滎陽汜水鎮），李存勗決定親征反擊。

興教門之變

這時擔任指揮使的伶人郭從謙不知李存乂已被莊宗殺死，欲奉李存乂之名作亂，火燒興教門。蕃漢馬步使朱守殷見危不救。李存勗當時僅有符彥卿及王全斌等少數將領效忠他。郭從謙率兵攻入皇城。李存勗被流箭射中。王全斌將其扶至絳霄殿。李存勗失血過多，渴懣求飲，經宦官奉進酪漿，喝完一杯，遽爾殞命。王全斌大慟而去。一名伶人揀丟棄的樂器放在李存勗屍體上，點火焚屍。史稱興教門之變。李嗣源入洛陽殺盡叛臣，葬李存勗屍骨于雍陵，進廟號莊宗，李嗣源在汴州稱帝，是為後唐明宗。

評價

李存勗稱帝即位之前，和後梁血戰十餘年，大小百餘戰，作戰英勇異常。但打了天下，卻不懂得治天下，寵幸伶人，重用宦官，又吝於銀錢，不撫恤士卒，三年後因兵變被殺，失敗之速，亦是罕見。

北宋歐陽修寫《新五代史·伶官傳序》便是討論李存勗沉溺逸樂、寵信樂官而致亡國的史實，嘆惜李存勗「方其盛也，舉天下之豪傑複能與之爭；及其衰也，數十伶人困之，而身死國滅，為天下笑。」，說明「憂勞可以興國，逸豫可以亡身」的歷史規律 。

《舊五代史》則稱讚李存勗是「中興之主」，是唐朝的合法繼承者，但語鋒一轉，隨即批評他「忘櫛沐之艱難，徇色禽之荒樂」、「伶人亂政、靳吝貨財、大臣無罪以獲誅、眾口吞聲而避禍」 。

朱溫評價李存勗說「生子當如李亞子，克用為不亡矣！至如吾兒，豚犬耳！」(生兒子就要生像李存勖這樣的，李克用的大業不會滅亡了！至于說我的兒子，豬狗之輩而已！)，

家庭

后妃

• 皇后劉氏，原為妾室，立為皇后。

• 淑妃韓氏，原為正室，冊為淑妃。

• 德妃伊氏，妾室，冊為德妃。

• 昭儀侯氏，封汧國夫人

• 昭容夏氏，封虢國夫人，被後唐明宗賜婚嫁于耶律倍

• 昭媛白氏，封沂國夫人

• 出使美宣鄧氏，封珝國夫人

• 御正楚真張氏，封涼國夫人

• 司簿德美周氏，封宋國夫人

• 侍真吳氏，封延陵郡夫人

• 懿才王氏，封太原郡夫人

• 咸一韓氏，封昌黎郡夫人

• 瑤芳張氏，封清河郡夫人

• 懿德王氏，封琅琊郡夫人

• 宣一馬氏，封扶風郡夫人

• 某氏，莊宗愛姬，有子，為皇后劉玉娘所設計，于同光三年（925年）歸于元行欽

• 郭氏，後梁末帝朱友貞妃，入莊宗後宮，出家為尼，後晉時主持朱友貞之喪

• 李氏，莊宗登基前的側室，後被賜給孟知祥。

• 侯氏，原為符道昭妻，與昭儀侯氏是否為同一人，無考。

兄弟

• 永王李存霸

• 邕王李存美

• 薛王李存禮

• 申王李存渥

• 睦王李存乂

• 通王李存確

• 雅王李存紀

• 李存矩

子女

子

• （佚名）

• （佚名）

• 魏王李繼岌，925年封，926年自殺

• 守王李繼潼

• 光王李繼嵩

• 真王李繼嶦

• 川王李繼嶢

曾孫李佑，宋仁宗天聖四年（1026年）四月由安德節度推官改授西京留守推官。

女

• 義寧公主，嫁光祿大夫、檢校司徒、前房州刺史兼御史大夫、上柱國廣平郡人宋廷浩

外孫宋偓，外孫媳後漢永寧公主劉氏

外曾孫婿宋太祖、張子野、孟隆諗 (後蜀孟玄喆之子)、寇準、韓崇訓、王德用

義子

• 歸德節度使李紹榮（原名元行欽）

• 宣武節度使李紹安（原名袁象先）

• 樞密使李紹宏（原姓馬）

• 鄭州防禦使李紹琛（原名康延孝）

• 盧龍節度使李紹斌（原名趙行實，後名趙德鈞）

• 泰寧節度使李紹欽（原名段凝）

• 保義留後李紹真（原名霍彥威）

• 洺州刺史李紹能（原名米君立）

• 齊州防禦使李紹虔（原名王晏球）

• 河陽節度使李紹奇（原名夏魯奇）

• 南東道節度使李紹珙（原名劉訓）

• 貝州刺史李紹英（原名房知溫）

• 護國節度使李繼麟（原名朱友謙）

• 忠武節度使李紹瓊（原名萇從簡）

• 金槍指揮使李繼璟（原名李從審，為明宗李嗣源長子）

• 匡國節度使李紹沖（原名溫韜）

• 李紹文（原名張從楚）

• 李紹魯（原名白承福）

• 李紹威（原名掃剌）

腳註