Five Dynasties · Official and Statesman

Guo Chongtao 郭崇韜

Died AD 926

Passages
152
Chapters
17
Histories
2

Overview

The translated histories identify Guo Chongtao as a general, official, and statesman. This record brings together 152 passages from 17 chapters across 2 histories, with names, dates, relationships, offices, and events preserved as source-backed claims.

Names

TypeEnglishChinesePinyin
Personal Guo Chongtao 郭崇韜 Guo Chongtao
Courtesy name Anshi 安時 Anshi
Title Chief Councilor 侍中
Given name Chongtao 崇韜 Chongtao
Given Chongtao 崇韜 Chongtao
Alternate Chongtao 崇韜 Chongtao
Personal Chongtao 崇韜 Chongtao
Personal name Chongtao 崇韜 Chongtao
Title Duke of Zhao 趙郡公
Surname Guo 郭 Guo
Personal name Guo Chongtao 郭崇韜 Guo Chongtao
Personal name Guo Chongtao 郭崇韜 Guō Chóngtāo
Title Lord Guo 郭公
Title Palace Attendant 侍中
Nickname that Guo fellow 郭漢子
Given 崇韜 Chongtao
Surname 郭 Guo

Identity

Historicity
Historical
Identification
Named
Sex
Male

Roles

  • General
  • Official
  • Statesman

Life and dates

Death

Attested activity

Family

Immediate source-linked family. Drag to pan, scroll or pinch to zoom, and select a person to open their record.

  • Descendant of Guo Ziyi (郭子儀)
    Kinship Term: four generations from the Prince of Fenyang / 去汾陽王四世 · Generation Distance: 4
  • Kin of Li Cunyi (李存乂)
    Kinship Term: son-in-law / 壻 · Subject Role: son-in-law · Object Role: father-in-law · Intermediary Person Ids: Daughter of Guo Chongtao (郭崇韜女)
  • Parent of Daughter of Guo Chongtao (郭崇韜女)
    Kinship Term: daughter / 女 · Parentage: biological · Subject Role: father · Object Role: daughter
    Kinship Term: father / 父 · Parentage: biological · Subject Role: father · Object Role: daughter
  • Child of Guo Hongzheng (郭宏正)
    Kinship Term: father / 父 · Parentage: biological · Subject Role: father · Object Role: son
  • Parent of Second son of Guo Chongtao (郭氏次子)
    Kinship Term: second son / 次子 · Parentage: biological · Subject Role: father · Object Role: son · Object Birth Order: 2
  • Parent of Guo Tingrang (郭廷讓)
    Kinship Term: son / 子 · Parentage: biological · Subject Role: father · Object Role: son
  • Parent of Guo Tingshuo (郭廷說)
    Kinship Term: son / 子 · Parentage: biological · Subject Role: father · Object Role: son
  • Parent of Guo Tinghui (郭廷誨)
    Kinship Term: son / 子 · Parentage: biological · Subject Role: father · Object Role: son
  • Parent of Guo Tingxin (郭廷信)
    Kinship Term: son / 子 · Parentage: biological · Subject Role: father · Object Role: son
  • Parent of Guo Tingyi (郭廷議)
    Kinship Term: son / 子 · Parentage: biological · Subject Role: father · Object Role: son
  • Kin of Guo Congqian (郭從謙)
    Kinship Term: uncle / 叔父 · Parentage: claimed · Subject Role: nephew · Object Role: uncle
  • Spouse of Lady Zhou (周氏)
    Kinship Term: wife / 妻 · Union Category: marriage · Subject Role: husband · Object Role: wife

Origins and identity

  • Statement: Claimed descent four generations from Guo Ziyi, Prince of Fenyang; genealogies lost in wartime chaos. · Ancestor Person Id: Guo Ziyi (郭子儀) · Generation Distance: 4
    Explicit · jiuwudaishi:057:s0181

Career and standing

  • Label: trusted confidant in Li Kexiu's entourage / 李克修帳下親信
    Explicit · jiuwudaishi:057:s0003
  • Label: campaign commissioner / 招討使 · Action: appointed · Date Context: Source Date: Text: 同光三年 · Western Year: AD 925
    Explicit · jiuwudaishi:051:s0048
  • Label: Vice Commissioner of the Inner Gate / 中門副使 · Action: appointed · Date Context: Source Date: Text: 天祐十四年 · Western Year: AD 917
    Explicit · jiuwudaishi:057:s0008
  • Label: Pacification Commissioner / 招討使 · Action: appointed · Date Context: Source Date: Text: 是歲 · Western Year: AD 925
    Explicit · jiuwudaishi:057:s0121
  • Label: Acting Minister of War / 守兵部尚書 · Action: appointed
    Explicit · jiuwudaishi:057:s0023
  • Label: Bureau Commissioner / 樞密使 · Action: appointed
    Explicit · xinwudaishi:038:s0119
  • Label: Chief Privy Commissioner / 樞密使 · Action: appointed
    Explicit · jiuwudaishi:057:s0023
  • Label: Honorary Grand Mentor / 檢校太保 · Action: appointed
    Explicit · jiuwudaishi:057:s0023
  • Label: Master of Ceremonies / 典謁 · Action: appointed
    Explicit · jiuwudaishi:057:s0005
  • Label: military governor of Zhen and Ji / 鎮、冀州節度使 · Action: appointed
    Explicit · jiuwudaishi:057:s0061
  • Label: Palace Attendant and Commissioner of Military Affairs / 侍中兼樞密使 · Action: appointed
    Explicit · jiuwudaishi:057:s0061
  • Label: provisional head of Secretariat affairs / 權行中書事 · Action: appointed
    Explicit · jiuwudaishi:057:s0060
  • Label: Training Commissioner / 教練使 · Action: appointed
    Explicit · jiuwudaishi:057:s0005
  • Label: Bureau of Military Affairs commissioner / 樞密使 · Action: held · Date Context: Source Date: Text: 同光二年 · Western Year: AD 924
    Explicit · jiuwudaishi:031:s0095
  • Label: Commissioner of the Bureau of Military Affairs / 樞密使 · Action: held · Date Context: Source Date: Text: 同光元年 · Western Year: AD 923
    Explicit · jiuwudaishi:072:s0100
  • Label: campaign commissioner / 招討使 · Action: held
    Explicit · jiuwudaishi:062:s0115
  • Label: director of the Bureau of Military Affairs / 樞密使 · Action: held
    Explicit · jiuwudaishi:073:s0106
  • Label: official in the Secretariat / 中書 · Action: held · Source Date: Text: 唐同光四年 · Western Year: AD 926
    Explicit · jiuwudaishi:148:s0070
  • Label: concurrent military governorship / 兼領節鉞 · Action: resigned · Date Context: Source Date: Text: 三年 · Western Year: AD 925
    Explicit · jiuwudaishi:057:s0101
  • Title: Duke of Zhao / 趙郡公 · Fief: two thousand households / 邑二千戶 · Action: granted
    Explicit · jiuwudaishi:057:s0061
  • Label: iron certificate absolving ten capital offenses / 賜鐵券，恕十死 · Action: granted
    Explicit · jiuwudaishi:057:s0061
  • Title: Duke of Zhao Commandery / 趙郡公 · Action: enfeoffed
    Explicit · jiuwudaishi:057:s0061
  • Status: property-confiscated · Action: suffered · Date Context: Source Date: Text: 四年 · Western Year: AD 926
    Explicit · jiuwudaishi:057:s0173

Places and affiliations

Works and attributed material

Events and relationships

Assessments and attributes

Source notes

References in the histories

Open any source group to read the Chinese and English passage in context.

Old History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 31Volume 31 Book of Later Tang 7: Zhuangzong Annals 5 · 3 passages
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Old History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 51Volume 51 Book of Later Tang 27: Biographies 3: Imperial Family · 4 passages
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Old History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 57Volume 57 Book of Later Tang 33: Biographies 9: Gao Chongtao · 67 passages
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初收汴、洛，稍通賂遺，親友或規之，崇韜曰：「餘備位將相，祿賜巨萬，但偽梁之日，賂遺成風，今方面藩侯，多梁之舊將，皆吾君射鉤斬祛之人也。 After the capture of Bian and Luoyang, he allowed some exchange of gifts and bribes. When friends and relatives counseled him against it, Guo Chongtao said, "I occupy the rank of general and minister, with emoluments in the tens of thousands. Yet under the false Liang, bribery was endemic; most of the frontier lords today are former Liang commanders—men our lord once had reason to kill but chose to spare.
即令宮苑使經營之，猶慮崇韜有所諫止，使謂崇韜曰：「今年惡熱，朕頃在河上，五六月中，與賊對壘，行宮卑濕，介馬戰賊，恒若清涼。 He immediately ordered the Director of Palace Parks to begin construction. Still concerned that Guo Chongtao might object, he had someone say to him, "The heat this year is unbearable. When I was on the Yellow River recently, fighting the enemy through the fifth and sixth months from a damp, low camp, riding into battle in armor always felt refreshingly cool.
初，崇韜與李紹宏同為內職，及莊宗即位，崇韜以紹宏素在己上，舊人難製，即奏澤潞監軍張居翰同掌樞密，以紹宏為宣徽使。 Earlier, Guo Chongtao and Li Shaohong had both served in the inner administration. After Zhuangzong's accession, Guo Chongtao—finding that Li Shaohong had always outranked him and that an old associate was difficult to manage—petitioned to have Zhang Juhán, military commissioner of Ze and Lu, share control of Military Affairs, while appointing Li Shaohong Commissioner of the Palace Secretariat.
崇韜自以有大功，河、洛平定之後，權位熏灼，恐為人所傾奪，乃謂諸子曰：「吾佐主上，大事了矣，今為群邪排毀，吾欲避之，歸鎮常山，為菟裘之計。」 Believing his achievements unrivaled, Guo Chongtao after the pacification of the river lands and Luoyang wielded power so conspicuously that he feared rivals would bring him down. He told his sons, "I have served the emperor well and the great work is finished. Now the wicked circle against me. I mean to withdraw to my post at Changshan and seek a quiet place to live out my days."
時明宗為諸道兵馬總管當行，崇韜自以宦者相傾，欲立大功以製之，乃奏曰：「契丹犯邊，北面須藉大臣，全倚總管鎮禦。 At the time Li Siyuan, as overall commander of the armies of all circuits, was slated to lead the campaign. Guo Chongtao, knowing the eunuchs were working against him, sought a great victory with which to restrain them. He memorialized: "The Khitans are raiding the frontier; the northern line must rest on a senior minister—the overall commander is needed there to hold the defense.
莊宗令內官李廷安、李從襲、呂知柔為都統府紀綱，見崇韜幕府繁重，將吏輻輳，降人爭先賂遺，都統府唯大將省謁，牙門索然，由是大為詬恥。 Emperor Zhuangzong appointed the eunuchs Li Ting'an, Li Congxi, and Lü Zhirou as disciplinarians of the overall command headquarters. They saw Guo Chongtao's headquarters thronged with officers and clerks, with surrendered men vying to offer bribes, while the prince's own headquarters received only the chief generals on formal visits and its gate stood empty. They were deeply shamed.
延嗣奏曰：「臣問蜀人，知蜀中寶貨皆入崇韜之門，言崇韜得金萬兩，銀四十萬，名馬千匹，王衍愛妓六十，樂工百，犀玉帶百。 Yansi reported, "I questioned people in Shu and learned that the region's treasures had all passed through Guo Chongtao's hands. They say he took ten thousand liang of gold, four hundred thousand of silver, a thousand fine horses, sixty of Wang Yan's favorite concubines, a hundred musicians, and a hundred rhinoceros-horn and jade belts.
Old History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 62Volume 62 Book of Later Tang 38: Biographies 14: Meng Fangli, Zhang Wenli, Dong Zhang · 2 passages
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Old History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 68Volume 68 Book of Later Tang 44: Biographies 20: Xue Tinggui, Cui Yi, Liu Yue, Liu Ye, Feng Shunqing, Dou Mengzheng, Li Baoyin, Gui Ai, Kong, Miao, Zhang Wenbao, Chen Yi, Liu Zan · 3 passages
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Old History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 69Volume 69 Book of Later Tang 45: Biographies 21: Zhang Xian, Wang Zhengyan, Hu Zhuang, Cui Yisun, Meng Hu, Sun Yue, Zhang Yanlang, Liu Yanhao, Liu Yanlang · 7 passages
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Old History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 70Volume 70 Book of Later Tang 46: Biographies 22: Yuan Xingqin, Xia Luqi, Yao Hong, Li Yan, Li Renju, Kang Sili, Zhang Jingda · 1 passage
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Old History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 71Volume 71 Book of Later Tang 47: Biographies 23: Ma Yu, Si Kongting, Cao Tingyin, Xiao Xifu, Yao Zongzhi, Jia Fu, Ma Gao, Luo Guan, Chun Yuyan, Zhang Ge, Xu Ji, Zhou Xuanbao · 4 passages
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Old History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 72Volume 72 Book of Later Tang 48: Biographies 24: Zhang Chengye, Zhang Juhan, Ma Shaohong, Meng Hangqiong · 5 passages
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Old History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 73Volume 73 Book of Later Tang 49: Biographies 25: Mao Zhang, Nie Yu, Wen Tao, Duan Ning, Kong Qian, Li Ye · 11 passages
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Old History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 74Volume 74 Book of Later Tang 50: Biographies 126: Kang Yanxiao, Zhu Shouyin, Yang Li, Dou Tingwan, Zhang Qianzhao, Yang Yanwen · 8 passages
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俄而董璋率兵之遂州，遇延孝不謁，延孝怒，謂諸校曰：「南平梁汴，西定巴邛，畫策之謀，始於郭公，而汗馬之勞，力摧強敵，即吾也。 Soon afterward Dong Zhang marched to Suizhou and, meeting Yanxiao on the road, failed to pay his respects. Yanxiao raged at his officers. "We pacified Liang and Bian in the south and secured Ba and Qiong in the west. Lord Guo drew up the plans, but the hard fighting and the breaking of strong enemies — that was my work.
Old History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 148Volume 148: Treatises 10 Selection of Officials · 4 passages
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比者郭崇韜在中書日，未詳本朝故事，妄被閑人獻疑，點檢選曹，曲生異議，或告赤欠少，一事闕違，保內一人不來，五保即須並廢，文書一紙有誤，數任皆不勘詳。 When Guo Chongtao served in the Secretariat, ignorant of court precedent, idle advisers led him to scrutinize the Selection Bureau with perverse strictness: a short household register, one lapse, or one missing guarantor could void an entire five-household group; one document error could invalidate several terms of service.
New History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 26Volume 26 Later Tang Biographies 6: Fu Xi, Wu Zhen, Kong Qian, Zhang Yanlang, Li Yan, Li Renju, Mao Zhang · 7 passages
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New History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 37Volume 37 Biographies 17: · 11 passages
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New History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 38Volume 38 Biographies 18: Zhang Chengye, Zhang Juhan · 5 passages
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New History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 44Volume 44 Miscellaneous Biographies 24: Liu Zhijun, Ding Hui, He Delun, Yan Bao, Kang Yanxiao · 9 passages
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New History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 69Volume 69: Hereditary House of Nanping · 1 passage
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莊宗果欲留之，郭崇韜諫曰：「唐新滅梁得天下，方以大信示人，今四方諸侯相繼入貢，不過遣子弟將吏，而季興以身述職，為諸侯率，宜加恩禮，以諷動來者。 Zhuangzong did intend to detain him, but Guo Chongtao remonstrated: "Tang has just overthrown Liang and won the realm. We are trying to show the world that we govern by trust. The regional lords are sending tribute one after another, but only through sons, officers, or deputies. Jixing has come in person to report for duty and has set an example for them all. We should honor him generously to encourage others to follow.