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 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
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 with its capital located at
Taiyuan. 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 res ...
) to the south. It also shared a border with the
Tangut kingdom of
Western Xia.
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 Si ...
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 res ...
by his death in 976. His younger brother, Emperor
Taizong wished to emulate his older brother's successes.
Wuyue 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