Yang of Sui

Yang Guang (commonly known as Yang of Sui, Yangdi of Sui, or Sui Yangdi) (569 AD-618 AD) was the second emperor of the Sui Dynasty and is widely considered to be one of the most infamous Chinese emperors in history.

Yang Guang was born in 569 AD to Emperor Wendi of Sui. It is commonly believed that to ascend the throne, he plotted to murder his father and older brother in 604 AD. As emperor, Yangdi ordered the construction of many grand and lavish projects, such as the Beijing-Hangzhou canal as well as a reconstruction of the Great Wall. During this, over six million workers were killed, the nation was bankrupt, and taxes were increased to fill his own pockets. Yangdi also ordered the conquest of Champa (Vietnam) and Goguryeo (Korea), where thousands of soldiers died from malaria. Many political opponents were tortured and executed during his short but brutal reign. He also Northern China was in turmoil and civil unrest and bloody uprisings among the population occurred. Eventually, Yangdi was assassinated in a coup by some of his generals in Danyang (modern-day Nanjing).

After his death, the Sui Dynasty soon collapsed and was replaced by the more prosperous Tang Dynasty. Yangdi would go down in history as one of the cruellest and most tyrannical emperors in Chinese history.