What was the cause of the Tianbao War?

The Tang Dynasty supported Nanzhao and hoped to use it to contain Tubo. After Nanzhao became powerful, the Tang Dynasty tried to control them. The death of the pilot, the conflict over the succession of the throne, and the arrogance, violence, greed, and cruelty of the border officials eventually led to Nanzhao's rebellion against the Tang Dynasty. After the confrontation between the two sides, the Tang Dynasty launched three large-scale wars in an attempt to eliminate Nanzhao in one fell swoop. Nanzhao and the Tibetan army jointly resisted. After the victory in Nanzhao, the Tang army commanded by He Luguang returned, and then the Tang army commanded by Xian Yu Zhongtong and Li Mi failed in Nanzhao. Because they all occurred during the Tianbao period of Tang Dynasty, they were historically known as the Tianbao War, and were also called the Tang Tianbao War. After the war, Nanzhao was subordinate to Tubo. In the second year of Tianbao, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang Dynasty accepted Yang Yuhuan as his concubine. From then on, he began to ignore politics, peace and happiness. The imperial government was successively controlled by Li Linfu and Yang Guozhong, which led to political corruption. At this time, the Nanzhao regime, who was originally a minister of the Tang Dynasty, clashed with the local authorities of the Tang Dynasty, kicking off a bloody war!

The Nanzhao regime was located in the southwest and had close relations with the Tang Dynasty. Li Longji, Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, once awarded the second-class official title to King Piluoji of Nanzhao, and was awarded the title of King of Taiden County, and later was awarded the title of King of Yunnan. With the support of the Tang Dynasty, Nanzhao expelled the Tibetan forces from Yunnan. After Pirog's death, his son Luo Feng inherited his father's throne. When he visited Zhang Qiantuo, the governor of Yunnan in the Tang Dynasty, he was insulted by Tang Dynasty officials. According to historical records, Zhang Qiantuo bribed Ge Luofeng. After being rejected, Qiantuo sent people to scold him and humiliate him, but still secretly played with his sins. Ge Luofeng was very angry when he heard the news, and sent troops to attack and kill Qiantuo, and took away all 32 people from Yaozhou and Xiaoyizhou. If the Tang Dynasty could distinguish right from wrong at this time, there would be no large-scale war, but Prime Minister Yang Guozhong wanted to have the grace and luck to contribute to the border and wanted to build prestige through war.

In the tenth year of Tianbao, Xian Yuzhong, the envoy of Jiannan Festival in the Tang Dynasty, led an army of 80,000 to conquer Nanzhao. Ge Luofeng did not want to go to war with the Tang Dynasty. He sent a messenger to apologize, hoping to send the prisoner back and get a new life in the same city as Yaozhou. But Zhongtong, the fresh fish, was indifferent and took the envoy prisoner into Bobai Jade City. As a result, the Tang army suffered a disastrous defeat at Xi'er River in World War I. Almost all the 80,000-strong army was destroyed, but the commander Xian Yuzhongtong survived. After the failure of the first expedition, Yang Guozhong felt ashamed of Yunnan's futility and lied to the emperor about the military situation, covering up the failure and lying about the victory. After that, Yang Guozhong personally served as the special envoy of Jiannan Festival. He deployed troops, actively recruited troops, and formed an army of more than 100,000 people. Three years later, in the thirteenth year of Tianbao, Li Mi, the minister in charge of royal affairs, led an army of more than 100,000 to recruit Nanzhao again.

This time, Nanzhao adopted the strategy of solidifying the city and clearing the countryside, defending the city dangerously, and avoiding war. It was June, the weather was hot, and most of the Tang army were from the north, so they adapted to the miasma of the dead belonging to the road. In addition, the Tang army had a large number of people and it was very difficult to supply. Although Li Mi reluctantly brought the brigade at the foot of Dahe City to Dahe City, the Tang army was at the end of its rope at this time. At the West Erhe River, Nanzhao fought with the Tang army. Mi Fu was defeated in the north of Dahe City, and 18 or 9 people died. The Tang army was almost completely destroyed, and General Li Mi committed suicide by drowning himself in the river. Since it was the Tianbao period, the war between the Tang Dynasty and Nanzhao was called the Tianbao War by later generations. In the Tianbao War, the Tang Dynasty lost more than 200,000 troops, which was the most disastrous defeat in the Tang Dynasty's foreign wars.