Yelü Pusuwan (; died 1177) was regent of the Western Liao dynasty (Qara Khitai) during the minority of her nephew

Yelü Zhilugu Yelü Zhilugu () was the third emperor of the Western Liao dynasty, ruling from 1177 to 1211. He was the final ruler of the Western Liao to come from the House of Yelü, as the throne would be usurped by his son-in-law Kuchlug in 1211. Reign ...

from 1163 to 1177. She was the younger sister of the Western Liao emperor Yelü Yilie (Emperor Renzong).

Reign

She stepped up as regent when her older brother Yelü Yilie died, since his son

was still a minor. In 1165, Masud II pillaged

Balkh Balkh is a town in the Balkh Province of Afghanistan. It is located approximately to the northwest of the provincial capital city Mazar-i-Sharif and approximately to the south of the Amu Darya and the Afghanistan–Uzbekistan border. In 2021 ...

and Andkhoy with Pusuwan's support. After punitive expeditions in 1169 and 1172, Qara Khitai army crushed

Il-Arslan Il-Arslan ("The Lion") (full name: ''Taj ad-Dunya wa ad-Din Abul-Fath Il-Arslan ibn Atsiz'', Persian: تاج الدین ابوالفتح ایل ارسلان بن اتسز) (died March 1172) was the Shah of Khwarezm from 1156 until 1172. He was th ...

, who soon died. His death caused civil war in Khwarazmid realm — his wife Terken Khatun enthroned Sultan Shah, while another son Tekish fled to Qara Khitai and asked for help. Around this time, Mu'ayyid al-Din Ai-Aba sent a tribute to empress. Yelü Pusuwan sent her husband Xiao Duolubu (蕭朵魯不) with a huge army who defeated Sultan Shah, and put Tekish to throne on 11 December 1172. In eastern border, she tried subdue

Naimans The Naiman (; ; Kazakh and , ), meaning The Eight, was a medieval tribe originating in the territory of modern Western Mongolia (possibly during the time of the Uyghur Khaganate), and is one of the 92 tribes of Uzbeks, modern Mongols and in the ...

and Qanglis unsuccessfully by sending her general Erbuz (額兒布思).''

History of Jin The ''History of Jin'' (''Jin Shi'') is a Chinese historical text, one of the '' Twenty Four Histories'', which details the history of the Jin dynasty founded by the Jurchens in northern China. It was compiled by the Yuan dynasty historian and ...

''
vol.121
/ref> After a while, Tekish fed up with growing Qara Khitai demands of tribute and killed an emissary sent by Pusuwan, who was her relative. This caused Pusuwan to favor Sultan Shah. Xiao Duolubu was sent again, this time to dethrone the very man he had crowned. While Duolubu was away, she was infatuated with his brother Xiao Puguzhi (蕭樸古只). She created Duolubu as "Pacifier of East" (東平王) but spent more time lately with her new lover. When her father-in-law Xiao Wolila (蕭斡里剌) found about the relationship, he surrounded the palace and killed both lovers. Her nephew,

, was installed as new emperor.

References

{{Authority control 1177 deaths Emperors of Qara Khitai Pusuwan 12th-century regents 12th-century women regents Chinese princesses 12th-century Khitan women 12th-century Khitan people