The Anshi Rebellion () occurred in China, during the Tang Dynasty, from 756 to 763. It is also known as the Tianbao Rebellion (天寶之亂), because An Lushan started it in the 14th year of the namesake era. The alternative term An Lushan Rebellion neglected the participation of Shi Siming , a subordinate of An Lushan and later leader of the rebellion after murdering An Lushan's son An Qingxu .

The rebellion spanned the reigns of three emperors. The first emperor, Xuanzong, escaped to Sichuan. Xuanzong's army demanded the death of an official, Yang Guozhong, and his cousin, Lady Yang. Emperor Suzong , (3rd or 4th) son of Xuanzong, was proclaimed emperor by the accompanying army and eunuchs while another group of local officials and Confucian literati proclaimed another prince at Jinling (today Nanjing).

The rebellion was suppressed during the reign of Daizong by generals Guo Ziyi and Li Guangbi (李光弼). Although successful at suppressing the rebellion, the Tang Dynasty was badly weakened by it and in its remaining years was troubled by persistent warlordism. The death toll of the rebellion according to various sources, including suppression and famine, is estimated to be about 36 million.

External links and references

• Tang (618 - 907) " The An Lushan Rebellion had its roots in the behavior of one of the great emperors of Chinese history, Xuanzong. Until he fell in love with a young concubine named Yang Guifei, he had been a great ruler, and had brought the Tang to its height of prosperity and grandeur. He was so infatuated with Yang that the administration of the government soon fell into decay, which was not made any better by the fact that Yang took advantage of her power to stuff high administrative positions with her corrupt cronies. She also took under her wing a general named An Lushan, who quickly accumulated power."

• chinaknowledge.de "From the first years of the reign period Tianbao 天寶 "Heavenly jewels" (741-757) on Li Linfu 李林甫 served as chancellor. After Li Linfu's death in 752, his opponent Yang Guozhong 楊國忠 became counsellor-in-chief and dominated the court until the rebellion of An Lushan. An Lushan himself, half of Turkish origin, had been installed as military commissioner of Pinglu 平盧, Fanyang 范陽 (around modern Beijing) and Hebei 河北, three regions in the northeast, where he was responsible of the military and civil administration of one of the most important economic zones in Tang China."