Ge Congzhou

Ge Congzhou (died 916 ), courtesy name Tongmei , formally the Prince of Chenliu , was a general serving under Zhu Wen (Zhu Quanzhong) while Zhu Quanzhong was a warlord and military officer (Xuanwu jiedushi, seat in Bianzhou) late in the Tang dynasty. Ge's health problems later forced him into retirement, but he remained in honored status after Emperor Taizu established Later Liang.

Background It is not known when Ge Congzhou was born, but it is known that he was from Pu Prefecture (濮州, in modern Heze, Shandong). All that are recorded in traditional histories about his great-grandfather Ge Ruan , grandfather Ge Yuxian , and father Ge Jian are their names. It is said that Ge Congzhou, in his youth, was decisive and intelligent. At one point, he became a follower of the agrarian rebel Huang Chao and became a key officer in Huang's army during the time that Huang claimed the title of Emperor of Qi.

In 884, by which time Huang was near total defeat under attack by Tang forces, Huang was attacking a former subordinate who had turned Tang general — Zhu Quanzhong, then the military governor (jiedushi) of Xuanwu Circuit (宣武, headquartered, in modern Kaifeng, Henan), but was crushed by the joint forces of Zhu and Li Keyong the military governor of Hedong Circuit (河東, headquartered in modern Taiyuan, Shanxi). In the aftermaths of the defeat, Ge, along with other Qi officers Li Dang , Huo Cun , Zhang Guiba , and Zhang's brother Zhang Guihou , surrendered to Zhu and became officers in his army. (Allies this time, Zhu and Li Keyong would soon turn mortal enemies after a failed attempt by Zhu to assassinate Li Keyong after Li Keyong insulted him.)

Ge apparently did not initially achieve a high position in the Xuanwu army. However, later that year, when Zhu was engaging Qin Zongquan — a former Tang military governor of Fengguo Circuit (奉國, headquartered in modern Zhumadian, Henan) who had turned against Tang and was pillaging nearby circuits — Zhu became trapped after his horse fell with Qin's soldiers pursuing him. Ge helped Zhu back onto a horse, while he himself battled the soldiers chasing Zhu. He suffered wounds to his face, his hips were hit by arrows, and he was speared several times, but he fought Qin's soldiers off and saved Zhu's life. Subsequently, both he and Zhu were saved by the officer Zhang Yanshou . As a result of the battle, Zhu demoted a number of officers but promoted both Ge and Zhang.

In spring 888, when Qin Zongquan sent his general Shi Fan to pillage Chen (陳州, in modern Zhumadian) and Bo (亳州, in modern Bozhou, Anhui), Zhu Quanzhong sent Zhu Zhen and Ge to engage him; they defeated and captured him.

In late 890, Zhu requested permission from Luo Hongxin the military governor of Weibo Circuit (魏博, headquartered in modern Handan, Hebei) to allow his forces through Weibo to attack Hedong and to contribute food and horses to the effort. Luo refused. Zhu thereafter sent Ding and Ge to attack Weibo. They took several Weibo cities quickly, and Zhu himself followed up with a larger force and defeated Luo in several battles. Luo, in fear, submitted a tribute and sought peace. Zhu agreed to peace, and thereafter Weibo became a vassal to Zhu.

In late 895, Zhu Quanzhong sent Ge to attack Zhu Jin's capital Yan Prefecture , and he himself followed and put Yan under siege. Zhu Quanzhong soon thereafter left Yan and left Ge in charge of the siege. Zhu Jin initially defended the city and refused to engage Ge, so Ge spread rumors that relief forces from Hedong and Tianping were arriving and that he was going to engage them. Hearing the news, Zhu Jin, believing that Ge's elite forces would have left to fight Hedong and Tianping forces, attacked Ge's siege camp at night. Ge surprised him and defeated him, capturing his officer Sun Hanyun . Ge, however, subsequently ended the siege of Yan and returned to Xuanwu.

In summer 896, Ge was apparently attacking Tianping's capital Yun Prefecture when Li Keyong, whose request to Luo to allow his forces through to relieve Tianping and Taining was rebuffed, attacked Weibo. Luo sought aid from Zhu Quanzhong, and Zhu recalled Ge from Yun to aid Weibo. Ge dug many pits on the battlefield and, as the armies engaged, Li Keyong's son Li Luoluo fell into one of the pits along with his horse. When Li Keyong tried to personally save Li Luoluo, he also fell into a pit and was nearly captured by the Xuanwu/Weibo forces. Li Luoluo, however, was captured. Li Keyong offered to ransom Li Luoluo, but Zhu instead delivered Li Luoluo to Luo, who executed him. Li Keyong, after the defeat, was forced to withdraw, leaving Tianping and Taining without hope of aid from him. Ge thereafter returned to Yun and continued his siege against Yun.

Having seized Tianping and Taining, Zhu Quanzhong turned his attention against Huainan in fall 897. He gathered his available forces and sent Pang with 70,000 soldiers from Xuanwu and Ganhua (感化, headquartered in modern Xuzhou) Circuits to Qingkou (清口, in modern Huai'an, Jiangsu), posturing to head toward Huainan's capital Yang Prefecture ; Ge with the forces from Tianping and Taining Circuits to Anfeng (安豐, in modern Lu'an, Anhui), posturing to head to Shou Prefecture (壽州, in modern Lu'an); and Zhu Quanzhong himself with his main forces to Su Prefecture (宿州, in modern Suzhou, Anhui). The people of Huainan Circuit was greatly shocked and dismayed by Zhu's forces. However, Pang, because he had such an impressive force, underestimated Yang Xingmi's army. Yang Xingmi had Zhu Jin serve as his advance commander, and Zhu constructed a dam on the Huai River. When Yang Xingmi attacked Pang, Zhu released the waters to flood Pang's army, and then attacked Pang with Yang. Pang's army was crushed by the waters and the Huainan forces, and Pang was killed. Yang's officer Zhu Yanshou also defeated Ge's army. Hearing that both of his generals had been defeated, Zhu Quanzhong also retreated. The Battle of Qingkou thus affirmed Yang's control of the territory between the Huai and the Yangtze Rivers.

Meanwhile, Li Keyong tried to aid Liu Rengong and Liu Shouwen by having Li Sizhao attack Ming Prefecture to divert Zhu's forces. He was able to capture Ming, but Ge then engaged and defeated him, forcing him to withdraw. Ge subsequently put Yan under siege, but with Liu treating his family well, Ge did not dare to attack with great fervor. After Wang suffered repeated defeats and decided to resubmit to Zhu, however, Liu surrendered to Ge. Ge treated him well and sent Liu to Bian to meet with Zhu; Zhu, impressed by how Liu had taken Yan, made Liu a major general.

Meanwhile, Ge continued to suffer from his illness, so Zhu decided to relieve him of his command at Taining; Zhu replaced him with Kang Huaizhen. After Emperor Taizu was assassinated in 912 and subsequently succeeded by his son Zhu Youzhen, Ge was given the title of military governor of Zhaoyi (an honorary title, as Zhaoyi was then under the control of Jin (which was then ruled by Li Keyong's son and successor Li Cunxu the Prince of Jin)) and created the Prince of Chenliu, but he remained in retirement at home. Ge died in 916 and was given posthumous honors.