The Uyghur Recapture of Chang'an (757)

In 755 the Tang general An Lushan rebelled, took Luoyang and the capital Chang'an, and proclaimed himself emperor. In desperate straits the Tang asked the Uyghur Khaganate for help, and the Uyghur khagan Bayanchur sent 4,000 horsemen under his son, the yabghu.

In November 757 a great battle was fought south-west of Chang'an, near the Xiangji Temple. The Uyghur cavalry lay hidden on the Tang army's eastern flank, and at the hardest moment of the battle they struck the rebels from behind and won the day. Chang'an was retaken, and Luoyang a few weeks later.

For this help the Tang court promised the Uyghurs large amounts of silk every year, and the Uyghur Khaganate reached the height of its power over China. In 762 the Uyghur khagan Bögü, coming to Luoyang, met Manichaean priests there and later made Manichaeism the state religion.