The Former Qin, also called Fu Qin (苻秦), (351–394) was a dynastic state of the Sixteen Kingdoms in Chinese history ruled by the Di ethnicity. Founded by Fu Jian (

posthumously Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award - an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death * Posthumous publication – material published after the author's death * ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1987 * ''Posthumous'' (E ...

Emperor Jingming) who originally served under the Later Zhao dynasty, it completed the unification of northern China in 376. Its capital was

Xi'an Xi'an ( , ; ; Chinese: ), frequently spelled as Xian and also known by other names, is the capital of Shaanxi Province. A sub-provincial city on the Guanzhong Plain, the city is the third most populous city in Western China, after Chongqi ...

up to the death of the Emperor Xuanzhao in 385. Despite its name, the Former Qin was much later and less powerful than the

Qin dynasty The Qin dynasty ( ; zh, c=秦朝, p=Qín cháo, w=), or Ch'in dynasty in Wade–Giles romanization ( zh, c=, p=, w=Ch'in ch'ao), was the first dynasty of Imperial China. Named for its heartland in Qin state (modern Gansu and Shaanxi), ...

which had ruled all of

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 pop ...

during the 3rd century BC. The adjectival prefix "former" is used to distinguish it from the "

Later Qin dynasty The Later Qin (; 384–417), also known as Yao Qin (), was a state ruled by the Qiang ethnicity of the Sixteen Kingdoms during the Jin dynasty (266–420) in China. The Later Qin is entirely distinct from the Qin dynasty, the Former Qin and the W ...

" (384-417). In 383, the severe defeat of the Former Qin by the Jin dynasty at the Battle of Fei River encouraged uprisings, splitting Former Qin territory into two noncontiguous pieces after the death of Fu Jian. One fragment, at present-day Taiyuan, Shanxi was soon overwhelmed in 386 by the

Xianbei The Xianbei (; ) were a Proto-Mongolic ancient nomadic people that once resided in the eastern Eurasian steppes in what is today Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, and Northeastern China. They originated from the Donghu people who splintered into th ...

under the

Later Yan Yan, known in historiography as the Later Yan (; 384 – 407 or 409) was a dynastic state of China ruled by the Xianbei people, located in modern-day northeast China, during the era of Sixteen Kingdoms. All rulers of the Later Yan declared them ...

and the

Dingling The Dingling ( (174 BCE); (200 BCE); Eastern Han Chinese: *''teŋ-leŋ'' <

Old Chinese

: *''têŋ-rêŋ'') were ancient peopl ...

. The other struggled in greatly reduced territories around the border of present-day

Shaanxi Shaanxi (alternatively Shensi, see § Name) is a landlocked province of China. Officially part of Northwest China, it borders the province-level divisions of Shanxi (NE, E), Henan (E), Hubei (SE), Chongqing (S), Sichuan (SW), Gansu (W), N ...

and Gansu until disintegration in 394 following years of invasions by

Western Qin The Western Qin (; 385–400, 409–431) was a dynastic state of China ruled by the Xianbei ethnicity during the era of Sixteen Kingdoms. All rulers of the Western Qin declared themselves "''wang''", translatable as either "king" or "prince." The ...

and

Later Qin The Later Qin (; 384–417), also known as Yao Qin (), was a state ruled by the Qiang ethnicity of the Sixteen Kingdoms during the Jin dynasty (266–420) in China. The Later Qin is entirely distinct from the Qin dynasty, the Former Qin and the W ...

. In 327, the

Gaochang Gaochang (; Old Uyghur: ''Qocho''), also called Khocho, Karakhoja, Qara-hoja, Kara-Khoja or Karahoja (قاراغوجا in Uyghur), was a ruined, ancient oasis city on the northern rim of the inhospitable Taklamakan Desert in present-day Xinj ...

commandery was created by the Former Liang dynasty under

Zhang Gui Zhang Gui (, 255–314) was the governor of Liang province and first Duke of Xiping under Western Jin. He was the seventeenth generation descendant of King of Changshan Zhang Er from the Chu–Han Contention The Chu–Han Contention ( zh, , ...

. After this, significant ethnic Han settlement occurred, meaning that a major part of the population became Han. In 383, the General Lu Guang of Former Qin seized control of the region.
All rulers of Former Qin proclaimed themselves "

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), ...

", except for Fu Jian (苻堅) (357–385) who instead claimed the title "Heavenly King" (''

Tian Wang Heavenly King or Tian Wang () is a Chinese title for various religious deities and divine leaders throughout history, as well as an alternate form of the term '' Son of Heaven'', referring to the emperor. The Chinese term for Heavenly King consi ...

''). He was nonetheless posthumously considered an emperor by the Former Qin imperial court.

Rulers of the Former Qin

¹ Fu Sheng was posthumously given the title "

wang Wang may refer to: Names * Wang (surname) (王), a common Chinese surname * Wāng (汪), a less common Chinese surname * Titles in Chinese nobility * A title in Korean nobility * A title in Mongolian nobility Places * Wang River in Thai ...

" even though he had reigned as emperor.

Rulers family tree

Notes and references

{{DEFAULTSORT:Qin, Former Dynasties in Chinese history Former countries in Chinese history 351 establishments 394 disestablishments

Rulers of the Former Qin

Rulers family tree

See also

Notes and references