Emperor Taizu
(noun)
Personal name Zhao Kuangyin; he was the founder and first emperor of the Song dynasty in China.
Examples of Emperor Taizu in the following topics:
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Origins of the Song Dynasty
- Zhao Kuangyin, later known as Emperor Taizu (r. 960–976), usurped the throne from the Zhou with the support of military commanders in 960, initiating the Song dynasty.
- A court painting of Emperor Taizu of Song (r. 960–976), who founded the Song dynasty and unified China.
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The Northern Song Era
- Emperor Taizu of Song (r. 960–976) had unified the empire by conquering other lands during his reign, ending the upheaval of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period.
- Emperor Taizu also promoted groundbreaking scientific and technological innovations by supporting such works as the astronomical clock tower designed and built by the engineer Zhang Sixun.
- From its inception under Taizu, the Song dynasty alternated between warfare and diplomacy with the ethnic Khitans of the Liao dynasty in the northeast and with the Tanguts of the Western Xia in the northwest.
- With the backing of Emperor Shenzong (1067–1085), Wang Anshi severely criticized the educational system and state bureaucracy.
- However, the poor performance and military weakness of the Song army was observed by the Jurchens, who immediately broke the alliance, beginning the Jin–Song Wars of 1125 and 1127; during the latter invasion, the Jurchens captured not only the capital, but also the retired Emperor Huizong, his successor Emperor Qinzong, and most of the imperial court.
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Decline of the Tang Dynasty
- The rebellion spanned the reigns of three Tang emperors before it was finally quashed, and involved a wide range of regional powers; besides the Tang dynasty loyalists, others involved were anti-Tang families, especially in An Lushan's base area in Hebei, and Arab, Uyghur, and Sogdian forces or influences, among others.
- Political and economic control of the northeast region became intermittent or was lost, and the emperor became a sort of puppet, set to do the bidding of the strongest garrison.
- In 907 the Tang dynasty was ended when Zhu Wen, now a military governor, deposed the last emperor of Tang, Emperor Ai of Tang, and took the throne for himself.
- A year later the deposed Emperor Ai was poisoned by Zhu Wen, and died.
- Zhu Wen was known posthumously as Emperor Taizu of Later Liang.
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Rise of the Ming Dynasty
- The Ming dynasty (January 23, 1368 – April 25, 1644), officially the Great Ming, founded by the peasant rebel leader Zhu Yuanzhang (known posthumously as Emperor Taizu), was an imperial dynasty of China.
- The last Yuan emperor fled north into Mongolia and Zhu declared the founding of the Ming dynasty after razing the Yuan palaces in Dadu (present-day Beijing) to the ground.
- Although the White Lotus had fomented his rise to power, the emperor later denied that he had ever been a member of their organization and suppressed the religious movement after he became emperor.
- Zhu Yuanzhang, later Hongwu Emperor, was the founder and first emperor of China's Ming dynasty.
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The Mongal Invasions
- Some of the Mongolian Emperors of the Yuan mastered the Chinese language, while others only used their native language, Mongolian.
- The dynasty was established by Kublai Khan, yet he placed his grandfather Genghis Khan on the imperial records as the official founder of the dynasty as Taizu.
- In addition to Emperor of China, Kublai Khan also claimed the title of Great Khan, supreme over the other successor khanates: the Chagatai, the Golden Horde, and the Ilkhanate.
- However, while the claim of supremacy by the Yuan emperors was at times recognized by the western khans, their subservience was nominal and each continued their own separate development.
- Khublai evoked his public image as a sage emperor by following the rituals of Confucian propriety and ancestor veneration, while simultaneously retaining his roots as a leader from the steppes.
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"Emperor of the French"
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The Five Emperors
- One of them—Huangdi, or the Yellow Emperor—is sometimes said to be the ancestor of all Chinese people.
- Emperor Ku ruled from 2412 BCE to 2343 BCE.
- Emperor Yao reigned from approximately 2317 BCE to 2234 BCE.
- Emperor Shun ruled from 2233 BCE to 2205 BCE.
- The Yellow Emperor as depicted in a tomb from the mid second century AD.
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The Mythical Period
- It encompassed the legends of Pangu, and the rule of the Three Sovereigns, and the Five Emperors.
- The Three Sovereigns and the Five Emperors, a series of legendary sage emperors and heroes, helped create man.
- The Five Emperors began with Huangdi, or the Yellow Emperor, whose reign is believed to be from 2698-2599 BCE.
- Little is known about Emperor Ku's reign, believed to be from 2412-2343 BCE.
- Emperor Yao, whose reign was from 2317-2234 BCE, was credited with being a role model in dignity and diligence to future emperors, and was the inventor of the game "weiqi" (also known as "Go").
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The Nerva-Antonine Dynasty
- As such, the second through sixth Nerva-Antonine emperors are also called Adoptive Emperors.
- It was common for patrician families to adopt, and Roman emperors had adopted heirs in the past: The Emperor Augustus had adopted Tiberius and the Emperor Claudius had adopted Nero.
- On the same day, Nerva was declared emperor by the Roman Senate.
- Trajan was Roman emperor from 98 CE until his death in 117 CE.
- Hadrian was Roman Emperor from 117 to 138 CE.
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The Eastern Han Period
- A new Han emperor, Emperor Guangwu, took control and ruled from Luoyang, in eastern China; thus began the Eastern Han period, which lasted from 25-220 CE.
- Under Emperor Guangwu, the empire was strengthened considerably.
- Emperor Guangwu was succeeded by Emperor Ming, followed by Emperor Zhang.
- Taxes were reduced, Confucian ideals were encouraged, and the emperors appointed able administrators.
- After Cao Cao's death, his son Cao Pi forced Emperor Xian to give up his throne to him.