House of Zhao

The House of Zhao (traditional Chinese: 趙; simplified Chinese: 赵; pinyin: Zhào; Wade–Giles: Chao) was the imperial family of the Song dynasty.

The Zhao family originated from Zhuo Commandery (涿郡; Zhuó Jùn), located near present-day Zhuozhou, Hebei Province, China, and traced its roots back to the Spring and Autumn period (roughly 771–476 BCE). The founder of the Song Empire, Zhao Kuangyin, was born to a military family. His father, Zhao Hongyin was a general in Zhuo Commandery who later moved to Luoyang with his family. Zhao Kuangyin also had an elder brother Zhao Guangji, two younger brothers Zhao Kuangyi and Zhao Guangmei, and two younger sisters.

Zhao Kuangyin initially served in the Later Han military but he subsequently defected to serve under Chai Rong, emperor of Later Zhou, an enemy of the Later Han. He also persuaded his father, a Later Han general, to serve Chai Rong, thus contributing to the decline and collapse of the Later Han. Having gained Chai Rong's trust, Zhao Kuangyin was assigned as guardian to Chai Rong's seven-year-old son, Guo Zongxun, before Chai's death.

Zhao Kuangyin subsequently deposed Guo Zongxun in a bloodless military coup and established the Song dynasty. Following the founding of the dynasty, Zhao Kuangyin conquered the neighbouring states in the south and incorporated them into the fledgling empire. Fearing a military coup such as the one he instigated to depose Guo Zongxun, and to cement civilian power, Zhao Kuangyin dismissed his generals. This inadvertently weakened the military, which would have severe consequences in later years.

Zhao Kuangyin reigned for 17 years and died unexpectedly in 976, at the age of 49. His younger brother, Zhao Kuangyi (Emperor Taizong) succeeded him as the new emperor. It was suspected that Zhao Kuangyi murdered his brother, as well as two nephews, for the throne. The subsequent emperors – Emperor Zhenzong through Emperor Gaozong – were all descendants of Zhao Kuangyi, until Emperor Gaozong passed the throne to Zhao Shen (a descendant of Zhao Kuangyin), and adopted him as his son.

The Song Empire was prosperous during Zhao Kuangyi (Emperor Taizong)'s reign despite the threats posed by the northern nomadic empires, such as the Khitan-led Liao Empire, Jurchen-led Jin Empire and Tangut-led Western Xia. In 1115, the Song aligned themselves with the Jin regime in the hope of capturing the Sixteen Prefectures. However, this alliance allowed the Jurchens to learn of the Song's military weaknesses, namely a lack of capable commanders and armies primarily composed of mercenaries and poorly trained convicts. After the fall of the Liao empire, the Jin invaded Song territory and, on 20 March 1127, captured the Song capital, Bianjing (present-day Kaifeng). The Emperors Huizong and Qinzong, along with many family members, were captured and taken to the Jin capital, Shangjing, in present-day Harbin. This event is historically known as the Jingkang Incident. Many of these nobles died during the journey to, or after arriving in, Shangjing, although some committed suicide to avoid degradation at the hands of the Jurchens.

Emperor Huizong's ninth son, Zhao Gou the future Emperor Gaozong, escaped from Bianjing and fled to southern China, where he reestablished the Song Empire (as the Southern Song dynasty) with its capital at Lin'an (present-day Hangzhou) and himself as the new emperor. As his own son had died prematurely, Emperor Gaozong designated Zhao Shen (Emperor Xiaozong), a descendant of Zhao Kuangyin (Emperor Taizu), as heir thus returning the imperial lineage to Zhao Kuangyin's line.

In 1234, the Song Empire allied with the Mongol Empire against the Jin Empire. While successful at bringing about the downfall of the Jin Empire, the alliance also exposed significant weaknesses in the Southern Song military to the Mongolians. Leading up to the alliance with the Mongol Empire, capable commanders, such as Yue Fei and Han Shizhong, had been able to reform the military in the years following the loss of the northern part of the empire, but imperial distrust hamstrung these commanders. Furthermore, the signing of the Treaty of Shaoxing resulted in the Song Empire becoming a vassal to the Jin Empire as well as the execution of Yue Fei, who commanded the armies that fought the Jin in former northern Song territories. Following the fall of the Jin Empire, the Mongol Empire acquired Chinese siege weaponry, cannons, and gunpowder-related weapons, which they used to further their conquests. The fall of the Jin Empire also ended the Song-Mongol alliance and an outbreak of hostilities between the former allies.