Yang Guangyuan (楊光遠)

Overview

The translated histories identify Yang Guangyuan as a general, military officer, and rebel. This record brings together 23 passages from 8 chapters across 3 histories, with names, dates, relationships, offices, and events preserved as source-backed claims.

Names

Type	English	Chinese	Pinyin
Personal	Yang Guangyuan	楊光遠	Yang Guangyuan
Given name	Guangyuan	光遠
Given	Guangyuan	光遠	Guangyuan
Personal name	Yang Guangyuan	楊光遠	Yáng Guāngyuǎn
Personal name	Yang Guangyuan	楊光遠
Personal name	Yang Guangyuan	楊光遠	Yang Guangyuan

Identity

Historicity: Historical
Identification: Named
Sex: Male

Sex: male
Strongly inferred · jiuwudaishi:070:s0191, liaoshi:076:s0067
Sex: male
Explicit · jiuwudaishi:087:s0092, xinwudaishi:007:s0084, xinwudaishi:049:s0008
Value: male
Explicit · xinwudaishi:008:s0062

Roles

General
Military Officer
Rebel

Life and dates

Death

Manner: killed · Authority Person Id: Li Shouzhen (李守貞) · Source Date: Text: 開運元年十二月丁巳 · Western Year: AD 944 · Provenance: Mode: historian-judgment
Explicit · xinwudaishi:009:s0117, xinwudaishi:009:s0204

Attested activity

Source Date: Text: 出帝 · Western Year: AD 944
Explicit · xinwudaishi:049:s0008
Source Date: Text: 夏五月乙卯 · Western Year: AD 936
Explicit event contextual date · xinwudaishi:007:s0084
Source Date: Text: 天福二年 · Western Year: AD 937
Explicit event contextual date · xinwudaishi:008:s0062, xinwudaishi:008:s0072, xinwudaishi:008:s0081, xinwudaishi:008:s0083, xinwudaishi:008:s0087
Source Date: Text: 天福五年 · Western Year: AD 940
Explicit event contextual date · xinwudaishi:008:s0137
Source Date: Text: 天顯十一年七月 · Western Year: AD 936
Explicit · liaoshi:076:s0067
Source Date: Text: 平盧軍節度使楊光遠反，淄州刺史翟進宗死之 · Western Year: AD 943
Explicit event contextual date · xinwudaishi:009:s0077
Source Date: Text: 從破張從賓、楊光遠 · Western Interval: Start: AD 936 · End: AD 942
Explicit event contextual date · xinwudaishi:050:s0078
Source Date: Text: 清泰三年 · Western Year: AD 936
Explicit event contextual date · jiuwudaishi:070:s0171, jiuwudaishi:070:s0191
Source Date: Text: 鄴都範延光叛 · Western Year: AD 937
Explicit · jiuwudaishi:087:s0092
Source Date: Text: 閏月甲子 · Western Year: AD 936
Explicit event contextual date · xinwudaishi:007:s0099

Family

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

Parent of Yang Chengxun (楊承勛)
Kinship Term: father / 父 · Parentage: biological · Subject Role: son · Object Role: father

Career and standing

Label: grand suppression commissioner for the Wei campaign / 魏府行營都招討使 · Action: appointed
Explicit · xinwudaishi:008:s0081
Label: overall deployment commander of the Wei field armies / 魏府四面行營都部署 · Action: appointed
Explicit · xinwudaishi:008:s0072
Label: military governor of Xuanwu / 宣武軍節度使 · Action: held
Explicit · xinwudaishi:008:s0062

Events and relationships

Kind: military · Role: commander · Action: captured Bozhou
Explicit · xinwudaishi:008:s0083
Kind: military · Role: defeated · Action: defeated-by · Other Person Id: Deposed Emperor of Jin (晋出帝)
Explicit · xinwudaishi:049:s0008
Kind: homicide · Role: killer · Action: killed Grand Preceptor Fan Yanguang · Other Person Id: Fan Yanguang (範延光)
Explicit · xinwudaishi:008:s0137
Kind: military · Role: killer · Action: killed · Other Person Id: Zhang Jingda (張敬達) · Date Context: Source Date: Text: 閏月甲子 · Western Year: AD 936
Explicit · xinwudaishi:007:s0099
Kind: tribute · Role: donor · Action: presented grain
Explicit · xinwudaishi:008:s0087
Kind: tribute · Role: donor · Action: presented money to assist the state
Explicit · xinwudaishi:008:s0062
Kind: military · Role: rebel · Action: rebelled as Pinglu commissioner
Explicit · xinwudaishi:009:s0077
Kind: military · Role: commander · Action: sent-to-suppress · Other Person Id: Fan Yanguang (範延光)
Explicit · jiuwudaishi:087:s0092

Assessments and attributes

Assessment: promised life then killed by order; therefore not written as executed · Provenance: Mode: historian-judgment
Explicit · xinwudaishi:009:s0204

References in the histories

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

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 · 6 passages

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及出幸懷州，以北師不利，乃命思立統駕下騎軍赴團柏穀以益軍勢，俄而楊光遠以大軍降於太原，思立因憤激，疾作而卒焉。 When the emperor visited Huaizhou and the northern army fared poorly, he ordered Sili to lead the cavalry of the imperial escort to Tuanbai Valley to reinforce the army. Soon Yang Guangyuan surrendered his great army at Taiyuan; stirred to fury, Sili fell ill and died.

未幾，晉高祖建義，末帝詔以敬達為北面行營都招討使，仍使悉引部下兵圍太原，以定州節度使楊光遠副焉。 Before long, when the Jin founder rose in revolt, the Last Emperor appointed Jingda overall pacification commissioner of the northern campaign and ordered him to lead all his troops to besiege Taiyuan, with Yang Guangyuan, military governor of Dingzhou, as his deputy.

副將楊光遠、次將安審琦知不濟，勸敬達宜早降以求自安。 The deputy Yang Guangyuan and the second-in-command An Shenqi saw that all was lost and urged Jingda to surrender early and save himself.

光遠、審琦知敬達意未決，恐坐成魚肉，遂斬敬達以降。 Guangyuan and Shenqi saw that Jingda had not made up his mind and feared that if they waited they would become helpless prey. They beheaded Jingda and surrendered.

〈（《契丹國志》：楊光遠謀害張敬達，諸將高行周陰為之備，敬達疏於防禦，推遠行周等。 (From the Khitan State Annals: Yang Guangyuan plotted to kill Zhang Jingda. General Gao Xingzhou secretly prepared against it, but Jingda was lax in his defenses and kept Gao Xingzhou and the others at a distance.

清晨，光遠上謁，見敬達左右無人，遂殺之。）〉） At dawn Guangyuan came to call on him, found no one at Jingda's side, and killed him.)〉

Old History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 87Volume 87 Book of Later Jin 13: Biographies 2: Imperial Family · 1 passage

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未幾，鄴都範延光叛，朝廷遣楊光遠討之，詔前靈武節度使、洛都巡檢使張從賓發盟津屯兵赴鄴下。 Before long Fan Yanguang rebelled at Yedu. The court sent Yang Guangyuan to suppress him and ordered former Lingwu military commissioner and Luoyang patrol commissioner Zhang Congbin to mobilize troops at Mengjin and march to Ye.

History of Liao, Chapter 76Volume 76 Biographies 6: Yelu Jieli, Yelu Balide, Yelu Shuogu, Yelu Lubugu, Zhao Yanshou, Gao Mohan, Zhao Siwen, Yelu Oulisi, Zhang Li · 2 passages

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天顯十一年七月，唐遣張敬達、楊光遠帥師五十萬攻太原，勢銳甚。 In the seventh month of the eleventh year of Tianxian, Tang sent Zhang Jingda and Yang Guangyuan at the head of five hundred thousand men against Taiyuan; their advance was fierce.

會敬瑭自立為晉帝，光遠斬敬達以降，諸州悉下。 When Jingtang declared himself emperor of Jin, Guangyuan killed Jingda and surrendered, and every prefecture fell in line.

New History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 7Volume 7 Later Tang Annals 4: Deposed Emperors · 3 passages

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夏五月乙卯，建雄軍節度使張敬達為太原四面都招討使，義武軍節度使楊光遠為副。 On yimao of the fifth month, in summer, Zhang Jingda of Jianxiong became grand suppression commissioner for Taiyuan on every side, with Yang Guangyuan of Yiwu as his second.

閏月甲子，楊光遠殺張敬達，以其軍叛降於契丹。 On jiazi of the intercalary month Yang Guangyuan murdered Zhang Jingda and took his army over to the Khitan.

敬達不書死之而書「殺」者，敬達大將，宜以義責光遠而誅之，雖不果而見殺，猶為得死，乃諷光遠殺己以叛，故書之如其志。 Zhang Jingda is not said to have died for the cause but to have been “killed.” As a senior general, he should have rebuked Yang Guangyuan on grounds of duty and executed him; even if he had failed and been killed, that would still have been an honorable death. Instead he urged Guangyuan to kill him and rebel, so the text records the death according to his own intention.

New History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 8Volume 8 Later Jin Annals 1: Gaozu · 6 passages

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辛卯，宣武軍節度使楊光遠進助國錢。 On xinmao Yang Guangyuan of Xuanwu offered funds to the treasury.

丁未，楊光遠為魏府四面行營都部署。 On dingwei Yang Guangyuan took overall command of the Wei field armies on four sides.

乙卯，楊光遠為魏府行營都招討使。 On yimao Yang Guangyuan was named grand suppression commissioner for the Wei campaign.

壬申，楊光遠克博州。 On renshen Yang Guangyuan captured Bo prefecture.

九月，楊光遠進粟。 In the ninth month Yang Guangyuan sent grain tribute.

己未，西京留守楊光遠殺太子太師範延光。 On jiwei Yang Guangyuan, regent of the Western Capital, murdered Grand Preceptor Fan Yanguang.

New History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 9Volume 9 Later Jin Annals 2: the Emperor That Fled · 3 passages

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平盧軍節度使楊光遠反，淄州刺史翟進宗死之。 Yang Guangyuan, commissioner of the Pinglu army, rose in revolt; Zhai Jinzong, commissioner of Zi, was killed defending his post.

五月戊寅，李守貞討楊光遠。 On wuyin of the fifth month Li Shouzhen marched against Yang Guangyuan.

丁巳，楊承勳囚其父光遠以降，殺之。 On dingsi, Yang Chengxun seized his father Guangyuan, surrendered, and killed him.

New History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 49Volume 49 Miscellaneous Biographies 29: Di Guangye, Feng Hui, Huang Fuhui, Tang Jingsi, Wang Jin, Chang Si, Sun Fangjian · 1 passage

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出帝已破楊光遠，以光鄴為青州防禦使。 Once the Deposed Emperor had broken Yang Guangyuan, Guangye was made defender of Qing.

New History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 50Volume 50 Miscellaneous Biographies 30: Wang Jun, Wang Yin, Liu Ci, Wang Huan, Zhe Congruan · 1 passage

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從破張從賓、楊光遠，以功遷奉國第一軍都虞候。 He helped break Zhang Congbin and Yang Guangyuan and rose to Nation-Supporting First Army deputy commander.