The Northern Han () was a
dynastic state of the
Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period
The Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period (), from 907 to 979, was an era of political upheaval and division in 10th-century Imperial China. Five dynastic states quickly succeeded one another in the Central Plain, and more than a dozen conc ...
. 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 Later Han (後漢) may refer to two dynastic states in imperial China:
*Eastern Han (25–220), the second period of the Han dynasty, also called Later Han
* Later Han (947–951), a dynasty during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period
See al ...
fell in 950 because of
Guo Wei
Guo Wei () (10 September 904 – 22 February 954According to Guo Wei's biography in "Old Histories of the Five Dynasties", he died between 9am and 11 am on the ''renchen'' day of the 1st month of the 1st year of the ''Xiande'' era of his reign ...
, 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 Later Han (後漢) may refer to two dynastic states in imperial China:
*Eastern Han (25–220), the second period of the Han dynasty, also called Later Han
* Later Han (947–951), a dynasty during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period
See al ...
. Liu Min immediately restored the traditional relationship with the
Khitans
The Khitan people (Khitan small script: ; ) were a historical nomadic people from Northeast Asia who, from the 4th century, inhabited an area corresponding to parts of modern Mongolia, Northeast China and the Russian Far East.
As a people desce ...
, who had founded the
Liao dynasty
The Liao dynasty (; Khitan: ''Mos Jælud''; ), also known as the Khitan Empire (Khitan: ''Mos diau-d kitai huldʒi gur''), officially the Great Liao (), was an imperial dynasty of China that existed between 916 and 1125, ruled by the Yelü ...
.
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
Shanxi (; ; formerly romanised as Shansi) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region. The capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-lev ...
with its capital located at
Taiyuan
Taiyuan (; ; ; Mandarin pronunciation: ; also known as (), ()) is the capital and largest city of Shanxi Province, People's Republic of China. Taiyuan is the political, economic, cultural and international exchange center of Shanxi Province. ...
. Shanxi had been a traditional base of power since the fading days of the
Tang Dynasty
The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...
in the late ninth century and early tenth century. It was wedged between the two major powers of the day, the Liao Dynasty to the north and the Later Zhou (then
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 ...
) to the south. It also shared a border with the
Tangut kingdom of
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 ...
.
Wedge between Liao and Song
The existence of the Northern Han was one of the two major thorns in relations between the Liao Dynasty and Later Zhou's successor Northern Song, the other being the continued possession of the
Sixteen Prefectures
The Sixteen Prefectures () comprise a historical region in northern China along the Great Wall in present-day Beijing, Tianjin, and northern Hebei and Shanxi.
Name
It is more specifically called the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun or the Six ...
by the Liao Dynasty. The Northern Han had placed itself under the protection of the Liao.
[''History of the Five Dynasties'', vol. 59.]
Emperor
Taizu of Song was successful in nearly completing the incorporation of the southern kingdoms into 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 ...
by his death in 976. His younger brother, Emperor
Taizong
Taizong is the temple name used for several Chinese sovereign, monarchs of China. It may refer to:
* Tai Jia ( 16th-century BC), king of the Shang dynasty
* Emperor Wen of Han, Liu Heng (202 BC–157 BC, reigned 180 BC–157 BC), also known as E ...
wished to emulate his older brother's successes.
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 t ...
was brought into the realm in 978.
Fall of the Northern Han
Emboldened by his success to the south, Emperor Taizong decided to embark on a campaign to finally destroy the Northern Han. Leading the army himself, he brought his forces to the Northern Han capital of Taiyuan, which was laid under siege in June. An initial relief force sent by the Liao was easily defeated by Song. After a two-month siege of the capital, the emperor of the Northern Han surrendered and the kingdom was incorporated into the Northern Song.
Rulers
The family tree of the Later Han and Northern Han rulers
- Later Han emperors; - Northern Han emperors
Notes
References
Citations
Sources
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Han
Later Han (Five Dynasties)
Dynasties in Chinese history
Former countries in Chinese history
Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms
951 establishments
10th-century establishments in China
970s disestablishments
10th-century disestablishments in China
States and territories established in the 950s
States and territories disestablished in the 970s
Northern China
Former kingdoms