Dong Zhang () (died June 10, 932) was a Chinese military general and politician of the Chinese Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period Later Liang and Later Tang states. After submitting to Later Tang after Later Liang's destruction, he became a general favored by both Later Tang's founding emperor Li Cunxu and Li Cunxu's chief of staff Guo Chongtao, causing Guo to commission Dong as the military governor (Jiedushi) of Dongchuan Circuit (東川, headquartered in modern Mianyang, Sichuan) after Guo's conquest of Former Shu. Because of this, after Li Cunxu's downfall and succession by his adoptive brother Li Siyuan, Li Siyuan's chief of staff An Chonghui came to suspect both Dong and Meng Zhixiang, the military governor of neighboring Xichuan Circuit (西川, headquartered in modern Chengdu, Sichuan). Dong and Meng jointly rebelled against Li Siyuan and were successful military, forcing the imperial government to eventually move into a reconciliatory posture. Dong, however, as his son Dong Guangye () and Dong Guangye's family were slaughtered, refused the imperial overture, and later launched an attack on Meng, as Meng was moving to reconciliation with the imperial government. Meng defeated him, and he was later killed by his own subordinates.
Background
It is not known when or where Dong Zhang was born, but it was known that he, along with later prominent political figures Gao Jixing and Kong Xun, served as servant boys under the merchant Li Rang () of Bian Prefecture (汴州, in modern Kaifeng, Henan). While the late-Tang Dynasty major warlord Zhu Quanzhong (who would later take over the Tang throne and establish Later Liang) served as the military governor of Xuanwu Circuit (宣武, headquartered at Bian Prefecture), Zhu took Li as an adoptive son (changing his name to Zhu Yourang (), and Li's servants thus got the chance to serve in Zhu Quanzhong's army. Dong later was promoted to be an officer in the army.
During Later Liang
As of 923, Zhu Quanzhong's son Zhu Zhen was Later Liang's emperor. That year, Li Jitao (the son Li Sizhao, the deceased cousin of Later Liang's archrival Later Tang's emperor Li Cunxu), who then controlled Anyi Circuit (安義, headquartered in modern Changzhi, Shanxi), in fear that Li Cunxu would eventually act against him, surrendered his circuit to Later Liang. Pei Yue (), the prefect of Ze Prefecture (澤州, in modern Jincheng, Shanxi), which belonged to Anyi, refused to abide by this decision, and instead remained faithful to Later Tang. Zhu sent Dong Zhang to attack Ze, later sending the major general Wang Yanzhang to reinforce his troops. Li Cunxu sent his general Li Shaobin to try to aid Pei, with the explicit instruction to give up Ze to Later Liang, only rescuing Pei. Before Li Shaobin could arrive there, though, Dong had already captured the city, and Pei was killed in the city's fall. Zhu commissioned Dong as the prefect of Ze.
Later in the year, Dong was part of the ambitious plan drafted by the Later Liang major general Duan Ning to launch a four-prong attack on Later Tang to try to reverse years of Later Liang losses to Later Tang's predecessor state Jin:
Dong would head toward the major Later Tang city Taiyuan (formerly Jin's capital). Huo Yanwei would head toward Zhen Prefecture (鎮州, in modern Baoding, Hebei). Wang Yanzhang and Zhang Hanjie () would head toward Yun Prefecture (鄆州, in modern Tai'an, Shandong, recently captured by the Later Tang general Li Siyuan (Li Cunxu's adoptive brother)). Duan himself, along with Du Yanqiu, would confront Later Tang's emperor Li Cunxu near then-Later Tang capital Xingtang (興唐, in modern Handan, Hebei).
Before Duan could launch the plan, however, Li Cunxu crossed the Yellow River and joined Li Siyuan, and then defeated Wang and Zhang. He then headed toward Daliang (i.e., Bian Prefecture), then Later Liang's capital, which was left defenseless by Duan's plan (which required the engagement of the entire Later Liang imperial army). Believing that the situation was hopeless as the Later Tang army approached, Zhu committed suicide, ending Later Liang. Li Cunxu entered Daliang and took over Later Liang's territory.