Kang Chengxun

Kang Chengxun , courtesy name Jingci, title the Duke of Fufeng, was a Chinese general of the Tang Empire. He is most well known for his failures against incursions from the Nanzhao Kingdom of Dali and his successes against the rebel Pang Xun, accomplished with the assistance of the Shatuo chieftain Zhuye Chixin.

Life Early years Kang Chengxun was born under the Tang dynasty, possibly in 808. His grandfather was the general Kang Rizhi , who served under Emperor Dezong and bore the title of Prince of Kuaiji . His father was Kang Zhimu , who also served as an imperial general and bore the title of Duke of Kuaiji . Kang Chengxun himself became a general in the imperial guards.

During the reign of Emperor Dezong's great-great-grandson Emperor Xuanzong (r.846859), he was made the commander of the northern border base of Tiande in modern Bayan Nur, Inner Mongolia. It was said that the army at Tiande lacked horses at the time and therefore was repeatedly suffering defeats at the hands of the northern nomads. Kang reduced the budgets in areas that he felt were unnecessary in order to bolster the number of horses the base could afford. After he did so, the Tiande garrison had more success. Dangxiang tribesmen had previously captured the nearby bases of Shediao and Luoyuan and taken captives but, when they heard of Kang's strengthening of his force, they did not dare to attack Tiande and returned their captives to him. Kang was thus given an honorary ministerial title, created the Baron of Kuaiji , and soon thereafter made military governor of Yiwu around modern Baoding, Hebei.

After Kang arrived at Yongzhou, the Nanzhao attacks intensified, so Emperor Yizong further mobilized troops from eight other areasZhongwu around modern Xuchang, Henan; Yicheng around modern Anyang, Henan; Pinglu around modern Weifang, Shandong; Xuanwu around modern Kaifeng, Henan; Yanhai around modern Jining, Shandong; Tianping around modern Tai'an, Shandong; Xuanshe around modern Xuancheng, Anhui; and Zhenhai around modern Zhenjiang, Jiangsuto reinforce him. Kang, however, did not set up a proper scouting system. As Nanzhao's forces approached Yongzhou, Kang sent his troops to engage them using local Liao tribesmen as guides. The Liao led the Tang army into a Nanzhao ambush, annihilating most of them. Only the men from Tianping, who were late by one day, escaped the ambush. Afterward, Kang was incapacitated by fear, and the defense of Yongzhou was actually undertaken by his deputy Li Xingsu . As part of Kang's commission, Emperor Yizong also created him Duke of Fufeng.

In the winter of 868, Kang arrived at Xinxing in modern Bozhou, Anhui. He had only a little more than 10,000 men, and Pang's subordinate Yao Zhou , who was at nearby Liuzi in modern Suzhou, Anhui. When Yao challenged him, he withdrew his men to Songzhou in modern Shangqiu, Henan. Meanwhile, the rebels continued to expand their territory, largely unchecked. By the spring of 869, however, Kang had gathered over 70,000 soldiers and stationed his army just west of Liuzi. Many of the rebels began to become fearful. One who was notWang Hongli attacked Kang and Zhuye only to be defeated. From that point on, rebels who did not wholeheartedly support the uprising started surrendering immediately upon engaging the imperial army. Kang attacked and captured Liuzi, forcing Yao to flee. Yao was subsequently killed by another rebel commander, Liang Pi .

In 873, Emperor Yizong died. His son Emperor Xizong recalled Kang to again serve as a general of the imperial guards, but Kang apparently died soon thereafter.