Meng Zhixiang - Background

Background

Meng Zhixiang was born in 874, during the reign of Emperor Yizong of Tang. His family was from Xing Prefecture (邢州, in modern Xingtai, Hebei), and his ancestors had served for generations as army officers at Xing, including his grandfather Meng Cha (孟察) and his father Meng Dao (孟道). His uncle Meng Fangli become military governor (Jiedushi) of Zhaoyi Circuit (昭義, headquartered then in Changzhi, Shanxi), which Xing Prefecture belonged to, late in Tang Dynasty, and later moved the circuit's capital from Lu Prefecture (潞州) to Xing in 882, precipitating a mutiny that led to the division of the circuit in two in 883. After Meng Fangli's subsequent suicide in 889, he was succeeded by his younger brother (Meng Zhixiang's uncle) Meng Qian (孟遷), who subsequently surrendered the parts of Zhaoyi he controlled to the major warlord Li Keyong the military governor of Hedong Circuit (河東, headquartered in modern Taiyuan, Shanxi) in 890.

Li later put Meng Qian back in command of (reunified) Zhaoyi Circuit in 899. However, when Zhaoyi came under attack in 901 by Li's archrival Zhu Quanzhong the military governor of Xuanwu Circuit (宣武, headquartered in modern Kaifeng, Henan), Meng Qian surrendered the circuit to Zhu. Meng Zhixiang's father Meng Dao continued to serve Li, but did not distinguish himself in the Hedong army. Li, however, was impressed with Meng Zhixiang's talent, and eventually gave a daughter of his younger brother Li Kerang (李克讓) to Meng Zhixiang in marriage. (Meng Zhixiang's younger sister later married another younger brother of Li Keyong's, Li Kening.) Meng Zhixiang thereafter became a training officer in the Hedong army.