The Fractured Peace: Origins of the Song-Liao Conflict The mid-10th century saw an uneasy détente between the Northern Song Dynasty […]
A Throne Built on Ink and Paper In the second year of the Taiping Xingguo era (977 CE), the newly […]
The Rise and Reign of Zhao Pu In August 973, Emperor Taizu of Song, Zhao Kuangyin, made a pivotal decision […]
The Turbulent Backdrop of Five Dynasties Chaos The year 961 marked a pivotal moment in Chinese history when Zhao Kuangyin, […]
The Fragile Landscape of Late 10th Century China In the turbulent final years of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms […]
The Turbulent Landscape of Five Dynasties China The mid-10th century witnessed one of China’s most fragmented periods—the Five Dynasties and […]
The Road to War: Chai Rong’s Southern Ambitions In the winter of 956 CE, Emperor Chai Rong of the Later […]
The Turbulent Backdrop of Five Dynasties China The mid-10th century presented a China fractured by nearly a century of political […]
The Turbulent World of Five Dynasties China The 10th century witnessed one of China’s most chaotic periods – the Five […]
A Kingdom Built on Brutality The Later Han dynasty (947-950) emerged from the ashes of the Khitan-led Liao dynasty’s brief […]
The Fragile Throne: Liu Chengyou’s Precarious Ascension In early 948, the 18-year-old Liu Chengyou inherited the throne of the Later […]
The Ambitious Campaign Against Later Jin In the mid-10th century, Yelü Deguang, the second emperor of the Khitan-led Liao Dynasty, […]
The Precarious Foundations of the Later Jin Dynasty The Later Jin dynasty (936–947) emerged from the ashes of the Later […]
The Rise of an Unlikely Heir In June 942, Shi Chonggui ascended the throne as the second emperor of the […]
The Tumultuous Backdrop of Late Tang Collapse The story of Yang Guangyuan unfolds against the chaotic canvas of the Five […]
The Collapse of the Later Tang and the Rise of Opportunists The fall of the Later Tang dynasty (923-936) created […]
The Fragile Balance of Power in Post-Tang China The early 10th century witnessed the disintegration of the Tang Dynasty’s centralized […]
The Fragile Throne: Li Conghou’s Precarious Ascension In late November 933, Li Conghou received startling news—his elder brother, the Prince […]
The Shatuo Military Machine and Its Meritocratic Culture The Shatuo Turks, a formidable warrior people who established the Later Tang […]
The Fractured Landscape of Late Tang and Five Dynasties The 10th century witnessed one of China’s most turbulent periods—the Five […]
The Shatuo Ascendancy and the Fragile Throne The tumultuous 10th century witnessed the unlikely rise of the Shatuo Turks as […]
The Powder Keg of Late Tang Governance In the winter of 925 AD, the Later Tang dynasty—founded by the once-great […]