Yang Xingmi

Yang Xingmi was a military commander and the founder of the State in Southern China in the final years of the Tang Dynasty, leading to the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period of Chinese history.

Founder of Wu

Yang Xingmi was regional inspector of Lanzhou prior to being named the military governor in 892. He was named Prince of Wu by the faltering Tang Dynasty in 902.

Reign

Guangling, now known as Yangzhou, was the capital of the State. It occupied parts of present-day Jiangsu and Anhui. Upon being declared the Prince of Wu by the Tang court, he set to work on repairing a faltering economy. However, his reign was very brief as he died in 905, three years into his rule. He would posthumously be given the title of Wu Taizu ,founding emperor of Wu, after the Tang Dynasty finally collapsed in 907.