Guo Yunming (郭允明)

Overview

Guo Yunming was an Assassin and Rebel.

PeriodFive Dynasties

IdentityHistorical · Male

Roles

Found in

Life and dates

Death

AD 950 漢隱帝時
Suicide · Cause Took his own life after assassinating the Hidden Emperor
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passage 222

Attested activity

AD 950 乾祐三年十一月；反
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 10, passage 126
AD 950 乾祐三年十一月
Dated from the passage context · New History of the Five Dynasties 11, passages 42, 46, 57
AD 948 to AD 951 乾祐至廣順初
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 18, passages 2, 7
AD 948 to AD 950 帝方與業及聶文進、後贊、郭允明等狎昵
Dated from the passage context · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passages 188, 211, 213
AD 948 to AD 950 後漢隱帝時
Dated from the passage context · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passage 106
AD 950 殺弘肇時
Dated from the passage context · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passages 45-46

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AD 948 to AD 950 漢隱帝時
Dated from the passage context · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passages 215-219
AD 950 漢隱帝時
Dated from the passage context · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passages 220-222
AD 947 to AD 948 漢高祖時
Dated from the passage context · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passage 214

Key source chapters

Career and standing

household steward 廝養
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passage 214
Hanlin Commissioner of Tea and Wine 翰林茶酒使
AD 947 to AD 948 漢高祖時 · Appointed
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passage 214
Dragon Flight Commissioner 飛龍使
AD 948 to AD 950 漢隱帝時 · Promoted
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passage 219
Became
Arrogant unchecked
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passage 215

Places and affiliations

Polity Later Han 後漢 · Relation Served
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passages 188, 214-215
Polity Later Han 漢 · Relation Served
Strongly inferred · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passage 45
At Jingnan 荊南 · Relation Traveled to
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passage 216

Events and relationships

Assassinated
AD 950 漢隱帝時 · Violence · Assassin · With Hidden Emperor (隱帝) · At commoner's house 民舍
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passage 222
Caroused with emperor
Social · Participant · With Li Ye (李業), Hidden Emperor (隱帝), Nie Wenjin (聶文進), Hou Zan (後贊)
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passage 188
Had walls measured to intimidate
Espionage · Instigator · With Gao Baorong (高保融) · At Jingnan 荊南
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passages 217-218
Killed
Assassination · Perpetrator · With Shi Hongzhao (史宏肇)
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passages 45-46
Murdered
Political · Assassin · With Emperor Yin (隱帝)
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 11, passage 53
Personally killed sons of Yang Bin and others
Violence · Killer · With Yang Bin (楊邠) · At western corridor of the court hall 朝堂西廡
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passage 221

Show 8 more source-backed claims

Plotted executions
Political · Conspirator
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 18, passages 6-7
Plotted to kill
AD 950 漢隱帝時 · Political · Conspirator · With Yang Bin (楊邠)
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passage 220
Rotated attendance with Hou Zan
Court · Attendant · With Hou Zan (後贊)
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passage 211
Sent as envoy
AD 948 to AD 950 漢隱帝時 · Diplomatic · Envoy · With Gao Baorong (高保融) · At Jingnan 荊南
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passage 216
Relation Co conspirator of · Person Li Ye (李業)
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passage 220
Relation Favorite of · Person Hidden Emperor (隱帝)
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passage 215
Relation Client of · Person Han High Ancestor (漢高祖)
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passage 214
Relation Favorite of · Person Han High Ancestor (漢高祖)
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passage 214

Assessments and attributes

Assessment brazen and unchecked · Mode historian-judgment
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passage 215
Item rich bribes from Gao Baorong 厚賂 · Relation Received · With Gao Baorong (高保融)
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passage 218

Source notes

Historicity historical
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 30, passages 45, 214

References in the histories

Search passages

History

17 passages

New History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 10Volume 10 Later Jin Annals 1: Gaozu, Emperor Yin · 1 passage

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郭允明反。 Guo Yunming rose in rebellion.

New History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 11Volume 11 Later Zhou Annals 2: Taizu · 1 passage

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郭允明反，弒隱帝於趙村。 Guo Yunming turned traitor and murdered the Hidden Emperor at Zhao Village.

New History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 18Volume 18: The Later Han Imperial Family · 3 passages

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帝年少，數與小人郭允明、後贊、李業等遊戲宮中，後數切責之。 As a youth the emperor often caroused in the palace with Guo Yunming, Hou Zan, Li Ye, and other low companions; the empress scolded him again and again.

其後，帝卒與允明等謀議，遂至於亡。 In time he plotted with Yunming and the rest—and brought ruin on himself.

初，帝與允明等謀誅楊邠、史弘肇等，議已定，入白太后。 When he and Yunming had settled on killing Yang Bin, Shi Hongzhao, and the others, he told the empress dowager.

New History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 30Volume 30 Later Han Biographies 10: Su Fengji, Shi Hongzhao, Yang Bin, Wang Zhang, Liu Zhu, Li Ye, Nie Wenjin, Hou Zan, Guo Yunming · 12 passages

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弘肇等威制人主，帝與左右李業、郭允明等皆患之。 Hongzhao and his faction overawed the throne; the emperor and his intimates—Li Ye, Guo Yunming, and the rest—all hated it.

是時，李業、郭允明、後贊、聶文進等用事，不喜執政。 Li Ye, Guo Yunming, Hou Zan, Nie Wenjin, and others held the court and hated the chief ministers.

而帝方與業及聶文進、後贊、郭允明等狎昵，多為廋語相誚戲，放紙鳶於宮中。 The emperor meanwhile caroused with Ye, Nie Wenjin, Hou Zan, and Guo Yunming—veiled jests, mockery, paper kites in the palace.

邠等死，隱帝悔之，贊與允明等番休侍帝，不欲左右言已短。 Bin and the rest were dead; the Hidden Emperor repented. Zan and Yunming rotated attendance at his side so no courtier could whisper against them.

郭允明 Guo Yunming

郭允明，少為漢高祖廝養，高祖愛之，以為翰林茶酒使。 Guo Yunming had from youth been a steward in the Han High Ancestor’s household. The High Ancestor favored him and made him Hanlin Commissioner of Tea and Wine.

隱帝尤狎愛之，允明益驕橫無顧避，大臣不能禁。 The Hidden Emperor doted on him. Yunming grew brazen and unchecked; the great ministers could not stop him.

允明使荊南高保融，車服導從如節度使，保融待之甚厚。 Yunming went as envoy to Gao Baorong of Jingnan with the carriage, robes, and escort of a military governor. Baorong treated him lavishly.

允明乃陰使人步測其城池高下，若為攻取之計者以動之。 Yunming secretly had men pace the walls and measure their height—as though planning conquest—to frighten him.

已而李業與允明謀殺楊邠等，是日無雲而昏，霧雨如泣，日中，載邠等十餘屍暴之市中。 Li Ye and Yunming plotted to kill Yang Bin and the rest. That day the sky blackened though there were no clouds; misty rain fell like tears. At noon a dozen corpses were hauled into the market and left on display.

允明手殺邠等諸子於朝堂西廡，王章婿張貽肅血流逆註。 Yunming himself killed Bin’s sons and the others in the western corridor of the hall. Wang Zhang’s son-in-law Zhang Yisi bled upward in streams.

隱帝敗於北郊，還至封丘門，不得入，帝走趙村，允明從後追之，弒帝於民舍，乃自殺。 Defeated at the Northern Suburb, the Hidden Emperor reached Fengqiu Gate but could not pass. He fled toward Zhao Village. Yunming ran him down, murdered him in a peasant house, and then took his own life.