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Huang Chao's Capture of Chang'an

Type Event Region China Time 881

In 881, Huang Chao's rebel army broke through Tong Pass and captured the Tang capital Chang'an, forcing Emperor Xizong to flee west into Sichuan.

Timeline

  1. 880–881Tong Pass · ShaanxiHuang Chao's forces advanced north from the Huai region and defeated Tang troops at the natural stronghold of Tong Pass. The fall of the pass opened the gateway to the capital; the court fled west in haste, Chang'an's defenses collapsed, and conditions were created for the rebel army's entry.
  2. 881Chang'an · ShaanxiIn the first month of the Guangming era, Huang Chao's army entered Chang'an and Xizong fled in panic to Sichuan with the imperial family. The city's officials and people welcomed the rebels, but discipline soon slackened, with massacres and looting occurring from time to time, and popular support gradually waned.
  3. 881–884Chang'an · ShaanxiHuang Chao proclaimed himself emperor at Chang'an, taking the state name Great Qi and the era name Jintong, staffing the bureaucracy with former Tang officials. Yet his regime failed to effectively integrate the regional military governors and Guanzhong's economy; combined with loyalist campaigns by the various commands and internal defections, Great Qi's foundations grew ever more fragile.

Sources