User:Zrnstnsr/First War of Liang's Succession

The first war of Liang's succession was a civil war between two sons of Emperor Wu of Liang, Xiao Yi and Xiao Ji from 552 to 553, culminating with Xiao Yi's victory. During the war, Western Wei troops seized Chengdu, as Xiao Yi requested Western Wei for reinforcement.

Background
During the late reign of Emperor Wu, his sons, as governors of provinces, became ambitious and coveted the throne, which is a main reason that they did not seek to rescue Jiankang during Hou Jing's Rebellion. One of these sons is Xiao Yi, the govenor of Jing Province and Prince of Xiangdong, who annexed Changsha and forced Xiao Cha, enfeoffed at Xiangyang, to surrender to Western Wei during the rebellion. Xiao Ji, who governed Yi Province for 17 years, was also ambitious and prepared to advance east in December 550, before he was persuaded back to suppress another rebellion in his province.

In May 552, Xiao Ji heard that Xiao Yi had launched an offensive to Hou Jing. Assuming that Xiao Yi was insufficient to suppress the rebellion, he claimed the throne and changed the era name to tianzheng(天正)， unaware that Hou's court had been overthrown a few days before.

War
In Septmeber 552, Xiao Ji began to advance east. Unaware that Hou Jing had died several months before, he declared that he was to crusade against Hou's rebels. Meanwhile, Wang Lin, the governor of Xiang Province(湘州), was arrested by Xiao Yi because Wang Sengbian accused him of looting civilians in Jiankang. Lu Na(陸納), a subordinate of Wang Lin, was unconvinced of the accuse and revolted at Xiang Province, which caused Xiao Yi had to fought on two sides.

During this time, most of Xiao Yi's forces, mainly led by Wang Sengbian, was stationed at Jiankang, before Wang was ordered to march back in February 553. In March 553, panicked by Xiao Ji's advance, Xiao Yi sought Western Wei for help, which sent Yuchi Jiong to attack Yi Province. By June 9, Yuchi had advanced to Chengdu and besieged the city. On the other hand, Xiao Ji was also marching very slowly, only to reach Baling (present-day Chongqing) in June 553, where his crown prince, Xiao Yuanzhao(蕭圓照), was enfeoffed. In order to have his father continue his rebellion, he had been professing that Hou Jing's rebellion had not been suppressed and even seized Jiangling. When Xiao Ji actually arrived Baling, he knew that Hou had been suppressed long before and regret his decision. Xiao Yuanzhao persuaded that Xiao Ji had claimed the throne and was unable to abort, which Xiao Ji approved.

However, By July 553, Xiao Yi had suppressed Lu Na's rebellion by releasing Wang Lin and released Ren Yue(任約), who had been a rebel during Hou Jing's rebellion, to possess more troops. Xiao Yi had promised that Xiao Ji could gain autonomy in Yi Province before, which Xiao Ji had rejected, while he in turn rejected Xiao Ji's request for negotiation, having military superiority. Xiao Ji then built barracks at Xiling (present-day Yichang, Hubei) for a protacted war, but Badong (also known as Baidicheng) located in his rear rebeled and was seized by Xiao Yi's troops. He was then decisively defeated in his barracks, forcing him to flee east, during which he was killed, on August 5, 553. The defenders of Chengdu led by Xiao Yuansu(蕭圓肅) surrendered to Yuchi Jiong on September 1, knowing the death of Xiao Ji.

Aftermath
On December 13, 552, several months after Xiao Ji's revolt, Xiao Yi had claimed the throne. By the end of the civil war, he had defeated all members of the royal family to become the only claimer of the throne. He is consequently recognized as the third legitimate Liang emperor, excluding Xiao Zhengde, Xiao Dong and Xiao Ji.

Even though Xiao Yi had built friendly terms with Western Wei and sought the state for help for multiple times, he asked the state to return Xiangyang to his dynasty, which Western Wei had invaded during Hou Jing's rebellion. The request certainly annoyed the state, and Xiao Yi would be killed in the battle of Jiangling launched by the state later, after which his generals would become new warlords and arise a new series of civil wars, with Liang dynasty remaining only several years to go.