Wei Zheng - Gichou

A Chinese remonstrant in the early Tang Dynasty. A native of Qucheng (northeast of Ye County, Shandong Province). Orphaned as a child, he devoted himself to reading, and during the upheaval at the end of the Sui Dynasty, he became Li Mi's secretary. When Li Mi surrendered to the Tang Dynasty, he served Li Jiancheng, the eldest son of Li Yuan, the first emperor of the Tang Dynasty, and advised him to remove his younger brother, Li Shimin (Taizong). When Shimin overthrew Jiancheng and took the throne in the Xuanwu Gate Incident, his talent was recognized and he was immediately appointed as the Chief Remonstrant, and he served Taizong as a remonstrant until his death. His remonstrances appear in the "Zhenguan Zheng Yao" (The Essentials of Government in the Zhenguan Period), and the story in which he explains the difficulties of maintaining the emperor's rule is famous. In addition, the "Book of Sui" was compiled by him under imperial decree, and he was also involved in the compilation of the "Book of Liang," "Book of Chen," "Book of Northern Qi," and "Book of Zhou," for which he was praised as a good official. Other books he was involved in include the 20 volumes of the "Ruirei" and the 50 volumes of the "Gunsho Chiyo" (compilation by imperial decree, almost all of which still exists).

[Shuichi Kaneko]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

中国、唐初の諫臣(かんしん)。曲城（山東省掖(えき)県北東）の人。幼少のときに孤児となったが読書に努め、隋(ずい)末の動乱の際には李密(りみつ)の書記となった。李密が唐に降伏すると、唐の高祖李淵(りえん)の長子李建成(りけんせい)に仕え、弟の李世民(りせいみん)（太宗）を除くように勧めた。玄武門(げんぶもん)の変で、世民が建成を倒して帝位につくと、かえってその器量を認められてただちに諫議大夫(かんぎたいふ)に任ぜられ、以後死ぬまで諫臣としてよく太宗に仕えた。その諫言は『貞観政要(じょうがんせいよう)』にみえ、守成の難を説いた話は有名である。また『隋書』は彼の奉勅撰(ほうちょくせん)であり、『梁書(りょうしょ)』『陳書(ちんしょ)』『北斉書(ほくせいしょ)』『周書(しゅうしょ)』の編纂(へんさん)にも携わって良吏と称せられた。ほかに彼の関係した書物には『類礼(るいれい)』20巻、『群書治要(ぐんしょちよう)』50巻（奉勅撰、ほぼ現存）がある。

［金子修一］

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