![Yongyu, Emperor Shenzong's Tomb - 10](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/Yongyu%2C_Emperor_Shenzong%27s_Tomb_-_10.jpg)
Emperor Shenzong of Song (25 May 1048 – 1 April 1085), personal name Zhao Xu, was the sixth
emperor
An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereignty, sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), ...
of the
Song dynasty
The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...
of
China. His original personal name was Zhao Zhongzhen but he changed it to "Zhao Xu" after his coronation. He reigned from 1067 until his death in 1085.
Reign
During his reign in 1068, Emperor Shenzong became interested in
Wang Anshi
Wang Anshi ; ; December 8, 1021 – May 21, 1086), courtesy name Jiefu (), was a Chinese economist, philosopher, poet, and politician during the Song dynasty. He served as chancellor and attempted major and controversial socioeconomic reforms k ...
's policies and appointed Wang as the
Chancellor. Wang implemented his famous
New Policies
Late Qing reforms (), commonly known as New Policies of the late Qing dynasty (), or New Deal of the late Qing dynasty, simply referred to as New Policies, were a series of cultural, economic, educational, military, and political reforms implemen ...
aimed at improving the situation for the peasantry and unemployed. These acts became the hallmark reform of Emperor Shenzong's reign.
Emperor Shenzong sent failed campaigns against the
Vietnamese
Vietnamese may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia
** A citizen of Vietnam. See Demographics of Vietnam.
* Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam
** Overse ...
ruler
Lý Nhân Tông of the
Lý dynasty in 1076.
Emperor Shenzong's other notable act as emperor was his attempt to weaken the
Tangut-led
Western Xia
The Western Xia or the Xi Xia (), officially the Great Xia (), also known as the Tangut Empire, and known as ''Mi-nyak''Stein (1972), pp. 70–71. to the Tanguts and Tibetans, was a Tangut-led Buddhist imperial dynasty of China tha ...
state by invading and expelling the Western Xia forces from Qing prefecture (庆州, today
Qingyang,
Gansu Province
Gansu (, ; alternately romanized as Kansu) is a province in Northwest China. Its capital and largest city is Lanzhou, in the southeast part of the province.
The seventh-largest administrative district by area at , Gansu lies between the Tibeta ...
). The Song army was initially quite successful at these campaigns, but during the battle for the city of Yongle (永乐城), in 1082, Song forces were defeated. As a result, Western Xia grew more powerful and subsequently continued to be a thorn in the side of the Song Empire over the ensuing decades.
Emperor Shenzong hired Muslim warriors from Bukhara to fight against Khitan Liao dynasty. 5,300 Muslim men from Bukhara were encouraged and invited to move to China in 1070 by the Song emperor Shenzong to help battle the Liao empire in the northeast and repopulate areas ravaged by fighting.
The emperor hired these men as mercenaries in his campaign against the Liao empire. Later on these men were settled between the Song capital of Bianliang (today Kaifeng) and Yenching (modern Beijing). The circuits (道) of the north and north-east were settled in 1080 when 10,000 more Muslims were invited into China.
During Emperor Shenzong's reign,
Sima Guang
Sima Guang (17 November 1019 – 11 October 1086), courtesy name Junshi, was a Chinese historian, politician, and writer. He was a high-ranking Song dynasty scholar-official who authored the monumental history book ''Zizhi Tongjian''. Sima was ...
, a minister interested in the history of the previous 1000 years, wrote a very influential history book, the ''
Zizhi Tongjian
''Zizhi Tongjian'' () is a pioneering reference work in Chinese historiography, published in 1084 AD during the Northern Song (960–1127), Northern Song dynasty in the form of a chronicle recording Chinese history from 403 BC to 959&n ...
'' or ''A Comprehensive Mirror for Aid in Government''. This book records historical events from the
Zhou dynasty
The Zhou dynasty ( ; Old Chinese ( B&S): *''tiw'') was a royal dynasty of China that followed the Shang dynasty. Having lasted 789 years, the Zhou dynasty was the longest dynastic regime in Chinese history. The military control of China by ...
to the Song dynasty. Another notable literary achievement which occurred during his reign was the compilation of the
Seven Military Classics
The Seven Military Classics () were seven important military texts of ancient China, which also included Sun-tzu's ''The Art of War''. The texts were canonized under this name during the 11th century AD, and from the time of the Song dynasty, we ...
, including the alleged forgery of the ''
Questions and Replies between Tang Taizong and Li Weigong
''Questions and Replies between Emperor Taizong of Tang and Li Weigong'' () is a fictional dialogue between Emperor Taizong (AD 599–649) of the Tang Dynasty and Li Jing (571-649 AD), a prominent Tang general. It discusses matters of milita ...
.''
Aside from the ancient
Roman embassies to
Han
Han may refer to:
Ethnic groups
* Han Chinese, or Han People (): the name for the largest ethnic group in China, which also constitutes the world's largest ethnic group.
** Han Taiwanese (): the name for the ethnic group of the Taiwanese p ...
and
Three-Kingdoms era China, contact with Europe remained sparse if not nonexistent
before the 13th century. However, from Chinese records it is known that
Michael VII Doukas
Michael VII Doukas or Ducas ( gr, Μιχαήλ Δούκας), nicknamed Parapinakes ( gr, Παραπινάκης, lit. "minus a quarter", with reference to the devaluation of the Byzantine currency under his rule), was the senior Byzantine e ...
(Mie li yi ling kai sa 滅力伊靈改撒) of Fo lin (i.e. the
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
) dispatched a diplomatic mission to China's Song dynasty that arrived in 1081, during the reign of Emperor Shenzong.
Emperor Shenzong died in 1085 at the age of 36 from an unspecified illness and was succeeded by his son,
Zhao Xu who took the throne as
Emperor Zhezong
Emperor Zhezong of Song (4 January 1077 – 23 February 1100), personal name Zhao Xu, was the seventh emperor of the Song dynasty of China. His original personal name was Zhao Yong but he changed it to "Zhao Xu" after his coronation. He reig ...
.
Emperor Zhezong
Emperor Zhezong of Song (4 January 1077 – 23 February 1100), personal name Zhao Xu, was the seventh emperor of the Song dynasty of China. His original personal name was Zhao Yong but he changed it to "Zhao Xu" after his coronation. He reig ...
was underage and so Shenzong’s mother
Empress Gao ruled as regent until her death.
Family
Consorts and Issue:
*
Empress Qinsheng, of the Xiang clan (; 1046–1101)
** ''Princess Shuhuai'' (; 1067–1078), first daughter
*
Empress Qincheng
Empress Qincheng (欽成皇后) was the concubine of Emperor Shenzong of Song (Zhao Xu) and the mother of Emperor Zhenzong, Emperor Zhenzong of Song (Zhao Yong).
Life
She was born in Kaifeng (Present day Kaifeng, Henan, Henan Province). Her bir ...
, of the Zhu clan (; 1052–1102)
**
Zhao Xu, Zhezong (; 1077–1100), sixth son
** Zhao Shi, Prince Churongxian (; 1083–1106), 13th son
** Princess Xianjing (; 1085–1115)
*** Married Pan Yi () in 1104, and had issue (two sons)
* Empress Qinci, of the Chen clan (; 1058–1089)
**
Zhao Ji, Huizong (; 1082–1135), 11th son
* ''Noble Consort'', of the Xing clan (; d. 1103)
** ''Zhao Jin, Prince Hui'' (; 1071), second son
** ''Zhao Xian, Prince Ji'' (; 1074–1076), fifth son
** ''Zhao Jia, Prince Yudaohui'' (; 1077–1078), seventh son
** ''Zhao Ti, Prince Xuchonghui'' (; 1078–1081), eighth son
* ''Noble Consort'', of the Yang clan ()
* ''Noble Consort'', of the Song clan (; d. 1117)
** ''Zhao Yi, Prince Cheng'' (; 1069), first son
** ''Zhao Jun, Prince Tang'aixian'' (; 1073–1077), third son
** Princess Xianxiao (; d. 1108), fourth daughter
*** Married Wang Yu () in 1097
* ''Pure Consort'', of the Zhang clan (; d. 1105)
** ''Princess Xianke'' (; d. 1072), second daughter
* Virtuous Consort, of the Zhu clan ()
** ''Princess Xianmu'' (; d. 1084)
* ''Worthy Consort'', of the Wu clan (; d. 1107)
** Zhao Bi, Prince Wurongmu (; 1082–1106), ninth son
** ''Princess Xianhe'' (; d. 1090)
* ''Worthy Consort'', of the Lin clan (; 1052–1090), personal name Zhen ()
** Zhao Yu, Prince Yan (; 1083–1127), 12th son
** ''Princess Xianling'' (; d. 1084)
** Zhao Cai, Prince Yue (; 1085–1129), 14th son
* ''Cairen'', of the Guo clan ()
** ''Zhao Wei, Prince Yi'' (; 1082), tenth son
* ''Furen'', of the Xiang clan ()
** ''Zhao Shen, Prince Bao'' (; 1074), fourth son
* Unknown
** Princess Xianmu (; d. 1111), third daughter
*** Married Han Jiayan (; d. 1129)
** ''Princess Xiankang'' (; d. 1085)
** ''Princess Xianyi'' (; d. 1085)
Ancestry
See also
#
Chinese emperors family tree (middle) This is a family tree of Chinese monarchs from the Northern and Southern dynasties period to the collapse of the Southern Song dynasty.
Southern and Northern Dynasties
Liu Song
Southern Qi
Liang dynasty and Western Liang
Chen dynasty
Nor ...
#
List of emperors of the Song dynasty
The Song dynasty (960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that succeeded the period referred to as Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period (907–960) and preceded the Yuan dynasty (1271–1368), which conquered the Song dynasty in 1279. T ...
#
Architecture of the Song dynasty
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Culture of the Song dynasty
The Song dynasty (960–1279 AD) was a culturally rich and sophisticated age for China. It saw great advancements in the visual arts, music, literature, and philosophy. Officials of the ruling bureaucracy, who underwent a strict and extensive exa ...
#
Economy of the Song dynasty
The economy of the Song dynasty (960–1279) in China was the wealthiest economy in the world during its time. The dynasty moved away from the top-down command economy of the Tang dynasty (618-907) and made extensive use of market mechanisms as na ...
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History of the Song dynasty
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Society of the Song dynasty
Chinese society during the Song dynasty (960–1279) was marked by political and legal reforms, a philosophical revival of Confucianism, and the development of cities beyond administrative purposes into centers of industry and of maritime and r ...
#
Technology of the Song dynasty
The Song dynasty (; 960–1279 CE) invented some technological advances in Chinese history, many of which came from talented statesmen drafted by the government through imperial examinations.
The ingenuity of advanced mechanical engineeri ...
#
Wang Anshi
Wang Anshi ; ; December 8, 1021 – May 21, 1086), courtesy name Jiefu (), was a Chinese economist, philosopher, poet, and politician during the Song dynasty. He served as chancellor and attempted major and controversial socioeconomic reforms k ...
#
Shen Kuo
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shenzong Of Song
1048 births
1085 deaths
Northern Song emperors
11th-century Chinese monarchs
People from Kaifeng
Chinese reformers