Guo Ziyi (Kuo Tzu-i; Traditional Chinese: 郭子儀, Simplified Chinese: 郭子仪, Hanyu Pinyin: Guō Zǐyí, Wade-Giles: Kuo1 Tzu3-i2) (697 – July 9, 781), posthumously Prince Zhōngwǔ of Fényáng (汾陽忠武王), was a Chinese military general and politician who ended the An Lushan Rebellion and participated in expeditions against the Uyghur Khaganate and Tibetan Empire. He was regarded as one of the most powerful Tang generals before and after the Anshi Rebellion. After his death he was deified in Chinese folk religion as the God of Wealth and Happiness (Lu Star of Fu Lu Shou). Guo Ziyi is depicted in the Wu Shuang Pu (無雙譜, Table of Peerless Heroes) by Jin Guliang.
Parents
Mother: Unknown
Father: Guo Jingzi 郭敬之
Wives
Lady Wang (王氏), legal wife
Guo Xi (郭晞; 733–794), third son
Guo Wu (郭晤), fifth son
Guo Ai (郭曖), sixth son
Guo Shu (郭曙), seventh son
Guo Ying (郭映), eighth son
Lady Zhang (张氏), concubine
Lady Li (李氏), concubine
Unknown:
Guo Yao (郭曜), first son
Guo Gan (郭旰), second son
Guo Po (郭昢), fourth son
Eight Daughters
Guo Ziyi was born into the family of a middle-class civil servant in Hua Prefecture (華州, present-day Hua County in Shaanxi), he was described as a handsome man and was over 1.9 meters tall.
Around 735 Guo Ziyi was saved from a court martial by the poet Li Bai, who intervened on his behalf with the local commander.
Unlike other members of his family, Guo Ziyi entered political life through the official military examinations instead of a literary exam (for civil servants). He passed the military examinations in 749 and became an officer in the border regions of the Tang Empire and quickly rose through the ranks to become a jiedushi (regional military governor).
An Lushan Rebellion
Limited records exist about Guo Ziyi before the An Lushan Rebellion; it was during the rebellion that he earned his fame. When rebellion broke out in 755, Guo Ziyi was assigned to protect the Tong Pass, a strategic location on the Chinese frontier. A large force of ten thousand rebels were marching toward the pass.