Guo Zongxun () (14 September 953
– 973) or Chai Zongxun (), also known by his
posthumous name
A posthumous name is an honorary Personal name, name given mainly to revered dead people in East Asian cultural sphere, East Asian culture. It is predominantly used in Asian countries such as China, Korea, Vietnam, Japan, Malaysia and Thailand. ...
as the Emperor Gong of Later Zhou (), was the third and last
emperor
The word ''emperor'' (from , via ) can mean the male ruler of an empire. ''Empress'', the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), mother/grandmother (empress dowager/grand empress dowager), or a woman who rules ...
of the Chinese
Later Zhou dynasty, during the
Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. He reigned from July 959, when he succeeded his father
Chai Rong (Emperor Shizong of Zhou), until February 960, when he was overthrown by his general
Zhao Kuangyin (Emperor Taizu of Song), who founded the
Song dynasty
The Song dynasty ( ) was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 960 to 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song, who usurped the throne of the Later Zhou dynasty and went on to conquer the rest of the Fiv ...
.
The Emperor Gong was sent away with his mother to Xijing (西京). Despite assurance by the Emperor Taizu of Song that the Chai family would be treated with respect, the Emperor Gong was killed in 973 by Xin Wenyue, an official trying to gain favour with the emperor. Upon hearing the news, the Emperor Taizu ordered a period of mourning and buried the dethroned emperor next to the Emperor Shizong's tomb.
Notes and references
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953 births
973 deaths
10th-century murdered monarchs
Later Zhou emperors
Murdered emperors of China
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