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Later Zhou
Zhou, known as the Later Zhou (; ) in historiography, was a short-lived Chinese imperial dynasty and the last of the Five Dynasties that controlled most of northern China during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. Founded by Guo Wei (Emperor Taizu), it was preceded by the Later Han dynasty and succeeded by the Northern Song dynasty. Founding of the dynasty Guo Wei, a Han Chinese, served as the Assistant Military Commissioner at the court of the Later Han, a regime ruled by Shatuo Turks. Liu Chengyou came to the throne of the Later Han in 948 after the death of the founding emperor, Gaozu. Guo Wei led a successful coup against the teenage emperor and then declared himself emperor of the new Later Zhou on New Year's Day in 951. Rule of Guo Wei Guo Wei, posthumously known as Emperor Taizu of Later Zhou, was the first Han Chinese ruler of northern China since 923. He is regarded as an able leader who attempted reforms designed to alleviate burdens faced by the pea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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 the royal house, surnamed Ji, lasted initially from 1046 until 771 BC for a period known as the Western Zhou, and the political sphere of influence it created continued well into the Eastern Zhou period for another 500 years. The establishment date of 1046 BC is supported by the Xia–Shang–Zhou Chronology Project and David Pankenier, but David Nivison and Edward L. Shaughnessy date the establishment to 1045 BC. During the Zhou dynasty, centralized power decreased throughout the Spring and Autumn period until the Warring States period in the last two centuries of the dynasty. In the latter period, the Zhou court had little control over its constituent states that were at war with each other until the Qin state consolidated power a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary
''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary'' is a large American dictionary, first published in 1966 as ''The Random House Dictionary of the English Language: The Unabridged Edition''. Edited by Editor-in-chief Jess Stein, it contained 315,000 entries in 2256 pages, as well as 2400 illustrations. The CD-ROM version in 1994 also included 120,000 spoken pronunciations. History The Random House publishing company entered the reference book market after World War II. They acquired rights to the ''Century Dictionary'' and the '' Dictionary of American English'', both out of print. Their first dictionary was Clarence Barnhart's ''American College Dictionary'', published in 1947, and based primarily on ''The New Century Dictionary'', an abridgment of the ''Century''. In the late 1950s, it was decided to publish an expansion of the ''American College Dictionary'', which had been modestly updated with each reprinting since its publication. Under editors Jess Stein and Laurence U ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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 the Ten Kingdoms, ending the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. The Song often came into conflict with the contemporaneous Liao, Western Xia and Jin dynasties in northern China. After retreating to southern China, the Song was eventually conquered by the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The dynasty is divided into two periods: Northern Song and Southern Song. During the Northern Song (; 960–1127), the capital was in the northern city of Bianjing (now Kaifeng) and the dynasty controlled most of what is now Eastern China. The Southern Song (; 1127–1279) refers to the period after the Song lost control of its northern half to the Jurchen-led Jin dynasty in the Jin–Song Wars. At that time, the Song court retreated south of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zhao Kuangyin
Emperor Taizu of Song (21 March 927 – 14 November 976), personal name Zhao Kuangyin, courtesy name Yuanlang, was the founder and first emperor of the Song dynasty of China. He reigned from 960 until his death in 976. Formerly a distinguished military general of the Later Zhou dynasty, Emperor Taizu came to power after staging a coup d'état and forcing Emperor Gong, the last Later Zhou ruler, to abdicate the throne in his favour. During his reign, Emperor Taizu conquered the states of Southern Tang, Later Shu, Southern Han and Jingnan, thus reunifying most of China proper and effectively ending the tumultuous Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. To strengthen his control, he lessened the power of military generals and relied on civilian officials in administration. He was succeeded by his younger brother, Zhao Kuangyi (Emperor Taizong). Early life Born in Luoyang to military commander Zhao Hongyin, Zhao Kuangyin grew up excelling in mounted archery. Once, riding an u ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Northern Han
The Northern Han () was a dynastic state of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. 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. 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 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Siege Of Shouzhou
The siege of Shouzhou was a two year long (955-957 AD) siege conducted by the Later Zhou dynasty against Shouzhou, the major fortress of the Southern Tang dynasty above the Yangtze River. The Later Zhou would eventually capture Shouzhou and destroy most Southern Tang armies in the process, severely crippling Southern Tang and ending its short time as one of China's major states. This siege was part of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period of Chinese history. Background With the collapse of the Tang Dynasty in the early part of the 10th century China became split between many states. The majority of the north was controlled by a single state, but that state saw frequent revolutions and changes of leadership. The south meanwhile was split between many feuding kingdoms. By 954 AD, the Later Zhou were the dynasty in the north while in the south the Southern Tang had conquered many of their neighbours and were the second to Later Zhou in power. Prelude For once the north was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Emperor Shizong Of Later Zhou
Chai Rong () (27 October 921 – 27 July 959), later known as Guo Rong (), also known by his temple name as the Emperor Shizong of Later Zhou, was the second emperor of the Later Zhou dynasty of China, during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. He reigned from 954 until his death in 959. He succeeded his uncle-in-law Guo Wei, whose surname he had adopted. Emperor Shizong is considered a highly successful emperor of the Five Dynasties period. He centralized military power by his reforms, and proved his military prowess by a series of victories against Northern Han, Later Shu, Southern Tang, and the Liao dynasty. Although his accomplishments were limited due to his premature death, they paved the way for the eventual unification of large parts of China proper by the Northern Song, founded by his trusted generals Zhao Kuangyin and Zhao Guangyi. Family Parents *Father: Chai Shouli (柴守禮) (biological) Wives *Empress Zhen, of the Liu clan (貞惠皇后 劉氏;?–951 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gaozu Of Later Han
Liu Zhiyuan () (March 4, 895 – March 10, 948), later changed to Liu Gao (), also known by his temple name as the Emperor Gaozu of Later Han (), was the founding emperor of the Shatuo-led Later Han dynasty, the fourth of the Five Dynasties during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period of Chinese history. He was the older brother of the Northern Han founder Liu Min. Background Liu Zhiyuan was born in 895, during the reign of Emperor Zhaozong of Tang, at Taiyuan. His ancestors were of Shatuo extraction. His father Liu Dian () served as an officer under the major late- Tang warlord Li Keyong the military governor of Hedong Circuit (河東, headquartered at Taiyuan). His mother was a Lady An, likely Liu Dian's wife. He had at least one other brother of the same father (and possibly of the same mother), Liu Chong.''New History of the Five Dynasties'', vol. 18. Lady An — likely after Liu Dian's death — bore a son to a man with the surname of Murong. This half-br ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Liu Chengyou
Liu Chengyou () (28 March 931Academia Sinicabr>Chinese-Western Calendar Converter – 2 January 951), also known by his posthumous name Emperor Yin (), was the second and last emperor of imperial China's short-lived Later Han dynasty, during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. He reigned from 948 until his death in 951. Liu Chengyou was only 16 years old when he succeeded his father Liu Zhiyuan, who died abruptly. His reign was marked by the arbitrary killing of his important ministers, which eventually led to his downfall. When he killed the entire family of general Guo Wei without Guo in 951, Guo's army attacked the capital, and Liu Chengyou was killed in the chaos. There is a reference to Liu Chengyou as "Liu Chenghan" in the epitaph of Liu Jiwen, son of his cousin Liu Yun. Liu Chengyou may thus have changed his name on his accession as emperor. Background Liu Chengyou was born in 931 at Yedu (鄴都, in modern Handan, Hebei), at the house of his father Liu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shato
The Shatuo, or the Shatuo Turks (; also transcribed as Sha-t'o, Sanskrit SartZuev Yu.A., ''"Horse Tamgas from Vassal Princedoms (Translation of Chinese composition "Tanghuyao" of 8-10th centuries)"'', Kazakh SSR Academy of Sciences, Alma-Ata, I960, p. 127 (In Russian)) were a Turkic tribe that heavily influenced northern Chinese politics from the late ninth century through the tenth century. They are noted for founding three, Later Tang, Later Jin, and Later Han, of the five dynasties and one, Northern Han, of the ten kingdoms during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. The Northern Han would later be conquered by the Song dynasty. After which, they mostly disappeared as an ethnic group and assimilated into the Han Chinese ethnicity. Origins Chuyue The Shatuo tribe were descended mainly from the Western Turkic Chuyue tribe, who in turn belonged to a group of four Chuy tribes, collectively known as Yueban. The Yueban state survived to the end of the 480s when its inde ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Han Chinese
The Han Chinese () or Han people (), are an East Asian ethnic group native to China. They constitute the world's largest ethnic group, making up about 18% of the global population and consisting of various subgroups speaking distinctive varieties of the Chinese language. The estimated 1.4 billion Han Chinese people, worldwide, are primarily concentrated in the People's Republic of China (including Mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau) where they make up about 92% of the total population. In the Republic of China (Taiwan), they make up about 97% of the population. People of Han Chinese descent also make up around 75% of the total population of Singapore. Originating from Northern China, the Han Chinese trace their cultural ancestry to the Huaxia, the confederation of agricultural tribes living along the Yellow River. This collective Neolithic confederation included agricultural tribes Hua and Xia, hence the name. They settled along the Central Plains around the middle ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Northern Song (960–1127)
The Northern Song (; 4 February 960 – 20 March 1127) was a Chinese imperial dynasty and the first half of the Song dynasty. The dynastic founder, Emperor Taizu, seized the throne of the Later Zhou (the last in a succession of five short-lived dynasties). The Northern Song was ruled by nine emperors for 167 years. In 1127, its capital city Kaifeng fell to Jin invaders from the north, who captured Emperor Qinzong and his family in an event known as the Jingkang Incident, marking the collapse of the Northern Song. It was succeeded by the Southern Song dynasty, which ruled over southern China. The territories of the Northern Song extended to the southeastern coast. Its northern border with the Liao dynasty was the Hai River, Ba Zhou city, Hebei province, and Yanmen Pass, Shanxi (Jin) province, an essential pass of the Great wall. Its reign reached northwest to the Hengshan Mountain in Shaanxi (Shan/Qin), the east of Gansu province, and the Huangshui River of Qinghai, all th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
