Jiedushi

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The Jiedushi (Traditional Chinese: 節度使; Simplified Chinese: 节度使) were regional military governors in China during the Tang Dynasty and the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. Originally set up to counter external threats, the jiedushi were given enormous power, including the ability to maintain their own armies, collect taxes, and pass their titles on hereditarily.

Powerful jiedushi eventually eclipsed the power of the central government; a famous early example would be that of An Lushan, who was appointed Jiedushi of three regions and was able to start the An Lushan Rebellion that abruptly ended the golden age of the Tang Dynasty. Even after the difficult suppression of that rebellion, the jiedushi retained their powers and quickened the disintegration of the Tang Dynasty. Eventually the jiedushi ushered in the political division of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period, a period marked by continuous infighting among rival kingdoms, dynasties, and regional regimes established by rival jiedushi.

[edit] Fanzhen

Fanzhen (in Mandarin Chinese 藩镇 ) name for the renegade military governors of border provinces during the Tang Dynasty, particularly during and after the An Shi Rebellion. An important example is An Lushan, the provincial governor and military commander who started the An Shi Rebellion against the Tang emperor Xuanzong in 755 CE. An Lushan proclaimed himself emperor in 756, but was killed by his son in the following year. Tang power was re-established by 763, when the rebellion was quelled.

The An Shi Rebellion allowed many Jiedushi on the outskirts of the Tang Empire to gain significant autonomy. Many became virtual warlords. Subsequent Tang emperors were unsuccessful in curtailing the power of the Fanzhen. In particular, Emperor Dezong (780-805) was driven from his capital, Chang An, after an unsuccessful attempt to subjugate the Fanzhen. The Emperor Xianzong (805-820) experienced some success against the Fanzhen, but at the cost of further empowering the eunuchs who had come to dominate the life of the Imperial Court. Xianzong died in 820, perhaps as the result of court intrigue, and his successors were unable to stop the dynasty's decline. The ambitions of the Jiedushi, in tandem with the corruption of the Imperial Court eunuchs, who dominated the central civil administration and even attained high military command under the later Tang, contributed to the eventual disintegration of the Tang monarchy. A brief resurgence under the Emperors Wuzong and Xuānzong failed to halt the eventual decline of the dynasty, which collapsed following a further series of revolts that included the Wang Xianzhi and Huang Chao rebellions.

Parallels are evident between the rise of the Fanzhen in Tang China and the rise of feudalism in medieval Europe following the decline of the Carolingian Empire.