Song Taizong
Zhao Jiong (20 November 939 – 8 May 997), known as Zhao Guangyi from 960 to 977 and Zhao Kuangyi before 960, also known by his temple name Taizong after his death, was the second emperor of the Song dynasty of China. He reigned from 976 to his death in 997. He was a younger brother of his predecessor Emperor Taizu, and the father of his successor Emperor Zhenzong. Why Emperor Taizong succeeded his brother rather than Emperor Taizu's grown sons (Zhao Dezhao and Zhao Defang, who both died in their twenties during his reign) is not entirely understood by later historians. According to official history, his succession was confirmed by Emperor Taizu on their mother Empress Dowager Du's deathbed as a result of her instruction. A popular story dating back from at least the 11th century suggests that Emperor Taizong murdered his brother in the dim candlelight when the sound of an axe was allegedly heard. Whatever the truth, Zhao Guangyi had been prefect of the Song capital Kaifeng s ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Zhao (surname)
Zhao (; ) is a Chinese-language surname, means “walk quickly” and “jump” in ancient Chinese, and is the 1st surname in the famous Hundred Family Surnames – the traditional list of all Chinese surnames – because it was the emperor's surname of the Song Dynasty (960–1279) when the list was compiled. The first line of the poem is in the line 趙錢孫李 (Zhao, Qian, Sun, Li). Zhao is now ranking as the 7th most common surname in China and carried mainly by people of Mandarin-speaking regions. Zhao may be romanized as "Chiu" from the Cantonese pronunciation, and is romanized in Taiwan and Hong Kong as " Chao" as in the Wade–Giles system. It is cognate with the Vietnamese family name " Triệu" and with the Korean family name most commonly romanized as " Cho" (조). A 2013 study found it to be the 9th most common surname, shared by 26,700,000 people or 2.000% of the population, with the province with the most being Henan. The romanization is shared with the m ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Tang Dynasty
The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. Historians generally regard the Tang as a high point in Chinese civilization, and a golden age of cosmopolitan culture. Tang territory, acquired through the military campaigns of its early rulers, rivaled that of the Han dynasty. The Lǐ family () founded the dynasty, seizing power during the decline and collapse of the Sui Empire and inaugurating a period of progress and stability in the first half of the dynasty's rule. The dynasty was formally interrupted during 690–705 when Empress Wu Zetian seized the throne, proclaiming the Wu Zhou dynasty and becoming the only legitimate Chinese empress regnant. The devastating An Lushan Rebellion (755–763) shook the nation and led to the decline of central authority in the dynasty' ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Irredentism
Irredentism is usually understood as a desire that one state annexes a territory of a neighboring state. This desire is motivated by ethnic reasons (because the population of the territory is ethnically similar to the population of the parent state) or by historical reasons (because the territory formed part of the parent state before). However, difficulties in applying the concept to concrete cases have given rise to academic disputes about its precise definition. Disagreements concern whether either or both ethnic and historical reasons have to be present, whether non-state actors can also engage in irredentism, and whether attempts to absorb a full neighboring state are also included. Various scholars discuss different types of irredentism. One categorization distinguishes between cases in which the parent state exists before the conflict and cases in which a new parent state is formed by uniting an ethnic group spread across several countries. Another distinction concerns wheth ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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China Proper
China proper, Inner China, or the Eighteen Provinces is a term used by some Western writers in reference to the "core" regions of the Manchu-led Qing dynasty of China. This term is used to express a distinction between the "core" regions populated by the dominant Han population and the "frontier" regions of China, sometimes known as "Outer China". There is no fixed extent for China proper, as many administrative, cultural, and linguistic shifts have occurred in Chinese history. One definition refers to the original area of Chinese civilization, the Central Plain (in the North China Plain); another to the Eighteen Provinces of the Qing dynasty. There is no direct translation for "China proper" in the Chinese language due to differences in terminology used by the Qing to refer to the regions. The expression is controversial among scholars, particularly in China, due to issues pertaining to territorial integrity. Outer China usually includes the geographical regions of Dzunga ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Northern Han
The Northern Han () was a dynastic state of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. It was founded by Liu Min (), formerly known as Liu Chong (), and lasted from 951 to 979. Founding of the Northern Han The short-lived state of Later Han fell in 950 because of Guo Wei, a powerful military governor's ''de facto'' coup. Liu Min founded the Northern Han Kingdom, sometimes referred to as the Eastern Han, in 951 claiming that he was the legitimate heir to the imperial throne of Later Han. Liu Min immediately restored the traditional relationship with the Khitans, who had founded the Liao dynasty. Sources conflict as to the origin of the Later Han and Northern Han emperors; some indicate sinicized Shatuo ancestry while some traditional historical sources claims that the emperors claimed patrilineal Han Chinese ancestry. Territorial extent The Northern Han was a small kingdom located in Shanxi with its capital located at Taiyuan. Shanxi had been a traditional base of ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Qian Chu
Qian Chu (September 29, 929 – October 7, 988, courtesy name Wende), known as Qian Hongchu before 960, was the last king of Wuyue, reigning from 947 until 978 when he surrendered his kingdom to the Song dynasty. Life Qian Chu came to power after his brother, Qian Zong, was deposed in a coup d'état. At the time, Wuyue was at its largest territorial extent, ruling 13 in modern-day Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Shanghai, and Fujian. Throughout its history, Wuyue maintained a policy of nominally submitting to the successive dominant northern regimes. Unlike the other small states in the south, the Wuyue kings never declared themselves Emperor. In return, the northern regimes respected Wuyue's autonomy and conferred upon its kings high honours, one of which was the title of "Commander of All Horses and Soldiers Under Heaven". Indeed, Qian Chu changed his name from the original Qian Hongchu, because the character ''hong'' was barred by taboo (as the name of Emperor Taizu of Song's father was ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Wuyue
Wuyue (; ), 907–978, was an independent coastal kingdom founded during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period (907–960) of Chinese history. It was ruled by the Haiyan Qian clan (海盐钱氏), whose family name remains widespread in the kingdom's former territory. Founding Beginning in 887, the Qian family provided military leaders (or ''jiedushi'') to the Tang dynasty. Qian Liu was named Prince of Yue in 902, with the title of Prince of Wu added two years later. In 907, when the Tang dynasty fell and was replaced in the north by the Later Liang, military leaders in the south formed their own kingdoms. Qian Liu used his position to proclaim himself the King of Wuyue. This signaled the beginning of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period which would last until the founding of the Song dynasty in 960. Origin of name The name Wuyue comes from the combination of Wu Kingdom and Yue Kingdom, two ancient kingdoms during the Spring and Autumn period from 770 to 4 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Chen Hongjin
Chen Hongjin () (914–985), courtesy name Jichuan (), formally Duke Zhongshun of Qi (), was a warlord late in the Chinese Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period, who controlled Qingyuan Circuit (headquartered in modern Quanzhou, Fujian). After a series of conquests by the Song dynasty, Chen, who was a vassal to Song, believed that it would be wise for him to surrender his realm, and did so. He subsequently remained honored as a Song general until his death. Background and service under Liu Congxiao Chen Hongjin was born in 914.'' History of Song'', vol. 483. His ancestors were said to be originally from Linhuai (臨淮, in modern Suqian, Jiangsu), but had relocated south and settled at Xianyou (仙遊, in modern Putian, Fujian), and thus Chen was said to be from Xianyou.''Spring and Autumn Annals of the Ten Kingdoms''vol. 93 Chen was said to be ambitious and studious in his youth, particularly spending attention to military strategies. When he grew older, he was known for ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Qingyuan Jiedushi
''Qingyuan Jiedushi'' () (i.e., the ''Jiedushi'' of Qingyuan Circuit) was a military/governance administrative unit ( circuit) late in China's Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period, later renamed to ''Pinghai Jiedushi'' (). It was an office created in 949 by Southern Tang's second emperor Li Jing for the warlord Liu Congxiao, who nominally submitted to him but controlled Quan (泉州, in modern Quanzhou, Fujian) and Zhang (漳州, in modern Zhangzhou, Fujian) Prefectures in ''de facto'' independence from the Southern Tang state.''Zizhi Tongjian'', vol. 288. (Zhang Prefecture was, at times during the circuit's existence, also known as Nan Prefecture ()'' History of Song'', vol. 483. Starting in 960, in addition to being nominally submissive to Southern Tang, the Qingyuan Circuit was also nominally submissive to the Song, which had itself become Southern Tang's nominal overlord.'' Xu Zizhi Tongjian'', vol. 1. After Liu's death, the circuit was briefly ruled by his biologic ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Grand Councilor
The grand chancellor (''zaixiang, tsai-hsiang''), also translated as counselor-in-chief, chancellor, chief councillor, chief minister, imperial chancellor, lieutenant chancellor and prime minister, was the highest-ranking executive official in the imperial Chinese government. The term was known by many different names throughout Chinese history, and the exact extent of the powers associated with the position fluctuated greatly, even during a particular dynasty. During the Six Dynasties period, the term denoted a number of power-holders serving as chief administrators, including ''zhongshun jian'' (Inspector General of the Secretariat), ''zhongshu ling'' (President of the Secretariat), ''shizhong'' ( Palace Attendant), ''shangshu ling'' and ''puye'' (president and vice-president of the Department of State Affairs). History In the Spring and Autumn period, Guan Zhong was the first chancellor in China, who became chancellor under the state of Qi in 685 BC. In Qin, during the War ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Official History
An official history is a work of history which is sponsored, authorised or endorsed by its subject. The term is most commonly used for histories which are produced for a government. The term also applies to commissions from non-state bodies including histories of commercial companies. An official biography (one written with the permission, cooperation and sometimes the participation of its subject or heirs) is an authorised biography. Official histories frequently have the advantage that the author has had access to archives, been allowed to interview subjects and use other primary sources closed to independent historians. Because of the close relationship between author and subject, such works may be (or be perceived to be) partisan in tone and to lack historical objectivity. Such bias varies and some official histories have been called exercises in propaganda; in other cases the authors have retained a measure of independence. Early official histories There is a tradition of hi ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |