During Emperor Yangs reign

Yang You was born in 605, as a son of Yang Zhao, the son and crown prince of Emperor Yang. His mother was Yang Zhao's wife, Crown Princess Wei. He was probably the youngest of Yang Zhao's three sons—he was clearly younger than Yang Tan, born in 603, and probably younger than Yang Tong, whose birth year is unknown, based the order in which they were eventually created imperial princes. However, under Confucian principles of succession, he would have been considered Yang Zhao's proper heir, as his mother was Yang Zhao's wife, while Yang Tan's and Yang Tong's mothers were concubines.

Yang Zhao died in 606. However, Emperor Yang did not create Yang You or either of his brothers crown prince to replace Yang Zhao, leaving matters ambiguous as to whether one of them, or Yang Zhao's younger brother Yang Jian the Prince of Qi, would inherit the throne eventually. He created the three sons of Yang Zhao imperial princes, and Yang You received the title of Prince of Dai. As Emperor Yang did not often stay in the capital Chang'an, starting 613, he made the eight-year-old Yang You nominally in charge of Chang'an, although he left the official Wei Wensheng (衛文昇) in actual charge of the city. Later that year, when the general Yang Xuangan rebelled and attacked the eastern capital Luoyang, it was Wei who led troops from Chang'an to aid Luoyang's defenses.

In 617, the general Li Yuan, fearful of Emperor Yang because Emperor Yang had become displeased with him over his inability to defend against Tujue attacks and suspicious of him after there had been prophecies that the next emperor would be named Li, rebelled at his headquarters at Taiyuan (太原, in modern Taiyuan, Shanxi). Li, wanting to both distance himself from Emperor Yang while declaring to the Sui forces that he was still loyal to Sui, claimed that his goal was to support Yang You as emperor and to persuade Yang Guang to return from Jiangdu (江都, in modern Yangzhou, Jiangsu) as Taishang Huang (retired emperor). Li proceeded quickly to Chang'an, and during Li's campaign, Wei died. Wei's lieutenants Yin Shishi (陰世師) and Gu Yi (骨儀) were left in charge of the city and guardianship over Yang You.

In winter 617, Li's forces breached Chang'an's defenses. Li took Yang You and declared him emperor (as Emperor Gong), remotely offering Emperor Yang the title of Taishang Huang, but only territory under Li's control recognized Yang You as emperor.

Reign

While Emperor Gong was emperor, the real power was in Li Yuan's hands, and Li had Yang You make him the Prince of Tang. Quickly, the surrounding commanderies, including most of modern Shaanxi, Sichuan, and Chongqing, submitted to Li.

With Luoyang under attack by the rebel leader Li Mi, in spring 618, Li sent troops commanded by his sons Li Jiancheng and Li Shimin there, claiming to be aiding the defense. The Sui forces at Luoyang refused to recognize Li's authority and made no contact with Li Jiancheng's and Li Shimin's forces, which withdrew after brief engagement with Li Mi's forces.

In summer 618, just six months after Yang took imperial title, Li had Yang pass the throne to him, establishing Tang Dynasty as its Emperor Gaozu. Li then killed Yang afterwards.

After reign

The new emperor created the former emperor the Duke of Xi. The duke died in fall 619, and while traditional histories did not directly state so, they implied that he was killed on the Tang emperor's orders. He had no sons, and his title was inherited by a distant nephew, Yang Xingji.

簡介

當生于大業元年（605年），同年，其父楊昭被立為太子。大業二年（606年），父親楊昭逝世。大業三年（607年），初封陳王，後改封代王。後隋煬帝幸江都郡(隋朝)，留其為長安留守。於太原留守的李淵發動晉陽起兵攻克長安之後，被李淵立為傀儡皇帝，尊楊廣為太上皇。618年禪位於李淵，封楊侑為酅國公。唐朝武德二年秋八月丁酉（619年9月14日）去世，終年15歲，死後諡號隋恭帝。葬於陝西省乾縣陽洪鄉乳台村南800米處。

無子，族子楊行基過繼為嗣子，嗣酅國公。

評價

唐魏徵《隋書》評價楊侑年幼遭逢大難，一生受到擺佈，所謂禪讓也是不得之行為：「史臣曰：恭帝年在幼沖，遭家多難，一人失德，四海土崩。群盜蜂起，豺狼塞路，南巢遂往，流彘不歸。既鍾百六之期，躬踐數終之運，謳歌有屬，笙鍾變響，雖欲不遵堯舜之跡，其庸可得乎！」