It is the practice to grant general amnesties on the occasion of a new emperor’s accession, sometimes on the emperor’s birthday, or on other auspicious occasions. This practice is to compensate for unknown injustices. {p 52}.
Such is the gems in this 3rd volume of The History of Imperial China published by Harvard University. All three volumes are written by Mark Edward Lewis. All three volumes display excellent scholarship, rich with quotes, poems and anecdotes.
This 3rd volume is on the Tang dynasty {618 – 907}, considered the apogee of Imperial China. Unlike the earlier two volumes, this volume has an excellent chapter on the Tang emperors.
The dynasty was founded by Li Yuan. He was deposed by his son Li Shimin {known by his posthumous title Emperor Taizong}. The next emperor was Gaozong. Upon his death his empress Wu Zetian seized the throne. The last great emperor was Xuanzong, though he has been critized for neglect resulting in the An Lushan rebellion in 756. {p 31 to 48}. The Tang never recovered from this rebellion and the slow decline began.
NAME two women in the Tang dynasty who are known even to the casual tourists to China.