Kosenshi - Kosenshi

A military commander in the prosperous Tang Dynasty of China. A descendant of the Goguryeo people who surrendered to the Tang Dynasty, he served in the military on the western border of the Tang Dynasty since his father's generation. At the end of the Kaiyuan era (713-741), he became deputy governor of Anxi and commander of the four districts. In 747, he led 10,000 infantry and cavalry across the Pamirs to fight against Tibet, crossing the Pamir Mountains and invading Xiaobo Lu (on the western border of Tibet), capturing its king and returning in triumph. As a result, more than 70 countries west of Central Asia, including Futsin and Daji, submitted to the Tang Dynasty, greatly enhancing the prestige of the country, and he was promoted to governor of Anxi and commander of the four districts. In 750, he attacked the Central Asian state of Shi and took its king prisoner, but the following year, he was defeated in a battle on the Talas River by the allied forces of the Sogdian states, supported by the emerging Abbasid Caliphate. This led to the Tang power in Central Asia being overwhelmed by Islam. He was executed for his poor defensive performance during the An Lushan Rebellion.

[Atsushi Ikeda]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

中国、盛唐の武将。唐に降(くだ)った高句麗(こうくり)人の後裔(こうえい)で、父の代から唐の西辺で軍務に従った。開元（713～741）末年、安西(あんせい)副都護、四鎮(しちん)都知兵馬使となり、吐蕃(とばん)と対抗して747年、歩騎1万の兵を率いてパミールを越え、小勃律(しょうぼつりつ)（チベット西辺）に遠征し、その王を捕らえ凱旋(がいせん)した。これにより中央アジア以西の払菻(ふつりん)、大食(タージー)など70余国が唐に帰順し、大いに国威を輝かし、安西都護、四鎮節度使に栄進した。750年中央アジアの石国を討ち王を捕虜としたが、翌年、新興アッバース朝に援護されたソグディアナ諸国の連合軍とタラス河畔に会戦して大敗した。これにより中央アジアにおける唐勢力はイスラムに圧せられるようになった。安史の乱に際し守備の不手際を理由に処刑された。

［池田　温］

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