Fang La

Fang La
Rebel leader
Born	(Unknown)
Died	1121
Names
Traditional Chinese	方臘
Simplified Chinese	方腊
Pinyin	Fāng Là
Wade–Giles	Fang La

Fang La
Water Margin character
First appearance	Chapter 110
Emperor of Fang La forces
Ancestral home / Place of origin	Shezhou (present-day She County, Anhui)
Names
Simplified Chinese	方腊
Traditional Chinese	方臘
Pinyin	Fāng Là
Wade–Giles	Fang La

Fang La (died 1121) was a Chinese Manichaean leader who led a rebellion against the Song dynasty. In the classical novel Water Margin, he is fictionalised as one of the primary antagonists and nemeses of the 108 Liangshan heroes.

Fang La was from Shezhou (歙州), which is in present-day She County, Anhui Province. However, other sources claimed that he was from Qingxi County (清溪縣), Muzhou (睦州), which is in present-day Chun'an County, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province. In 1120, he led an uprising against the Song dynasty in Qixian Village (七賢村), Shezhou. Others claimed that he started the rebellion in Wannian District (萬年鄉), Chun'an County. Fang La's forces captured Hangzhou and subsequently took control over parts of present-day Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui and Jiangxi provinces, with a total of 52 counties and six prefectures.

In 1121, the Song government sent a general, Wang Yuan (王淵), to lead an army to crush the rebellion. Wang Yuan's subordinate, Han Shizhong, disguised himself, infiltrated Qingxi County and captured Fang La. Later, Xin Xingzong (辛興宗), the Song general defending Zhongzhou (忠州), led his troops to block Qingxi County's exit route and regained control of the county. Fang La and 52 of his subordinates were captured and escorted by the general Tong Guan to the imperial capital, Kaifeng. Four months later, Fang La found guilty of treason and executed in Kaifeng.

By 1132–1133 or later, the rebellion was linked to Manichaeism. Though not originally connected, in the public and historical conscience it became confused with the Taizhou unrest of April–June 1121, where Manichaeism was widespread.

The classical novel Water Margin presents a semi-fictional account of Fang La and his battle with the Liangshan outlaws. After granting the outlaws amnesty, Emperor Huizong sends them on military campaigns to suppress rebel forces within the Song Empire and counter invaders from the Liao Empire in the north. Fang La is one of the rebel leaders based in the Jiangnan region.

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