Dou Jiande (573-3 August 621) was a Chinese agrarian rebel leader who ruled over Hebei during the disintegration of the Sui dynasty. In 621, he went to his ally Wang Shichong's aid when he was attacked by the Tang dynasty, only to be defeated and captured at the Battle of Hulao and subsequently put to death.
Biography[]
Dou Jiande was born in Zhangnan County, Hebei, Northern Qi in 573, and he became known as a virtuous man who once dropped his tilling to help a stranger give his parents a proper burial; when Dou Jiande's own father died, over 1,000 people attended the funeral, and Dou Jiande graciously refused all of their gifts. In 611 AD, when Emperor Yang of Sui decided to invade Goguryeo rather than address floods and poverty at home, Dou Jiande led an agrarian revolt and conquered the Hebei region, declaring himself Prince of Changle and Prince of Xia. In 621, he allied himself with Emperor Wang Shichong of Zheng, fearing that the Tang dynasty would destroy Xia once Zheng was subdued. The two allied warlords were defeated by Li Shimin at the Battle of Hulao in 621 AD, and Emperor Gaozu of Tang had Dou executed.