Thursday, February 10, 2011
How did the Song dynasty rise to power and decline in power?
An emperor named Zhao Kuangyin, also known as emperor Taizu began the Song dynasty in 960 after the Tang dynasty lost power in 755. I would bet that Taizu was a confident man. In the early 12th century northern Song was invaded by the evil Jurchens, who destroyed the existing capital city. Consequently, China's land was split into Northern Song and Southern Song and the capital city was moved to Hangzhou. In the devastating year for the people of Song, 1279, an intelligent man named Emperor Kublai Khan destroyed the Song empire and decided to start his own dynasty, the Yuan.