The Five Dynasties refer to the five dynasties that emerged in the Central Plains after the fall of the Tang Dynasty: the Later Liang, the Later Tang, the Later Jin, the Later Han, and the Later Zhou. In 907 AD, Zhu Wen was awarded the title of Xuanwu Army Festival Envoy by Tang Xizong for his meritorious service in quelling the Huangchao Uprising, and became the largest feudal town separatist force in the late Tang Dynasty.
Soon, Zhu Wen killed Tang Zhaozong, forced Emperor Tang Ai to take the throne for himself, established himself as emperor, and established Houliang. Since then, the glorious history of the Tang Dynasty has come to an end, and China has entered the period of five dynasties and ten kingdoms.
In 908, in the name of reviving the Tang Dynasty, King Li Ke of the Jin Dynasty broke out a great war with Zhu Wen in Luzhou. After this battle, Li Keyong died of grief, and his son Li Cunmiao led the army to defeat the Later Liang army, Zhu Wen said with emotion that Li Cunmiao was really as brave and good at fighting as he expected.
Then, Li Cunmiao defeated the Later Liang army again in Baixiang, causing heavy losses to the elite forces of the Later Liang, and the Liang Dynasty went into decline from then on. In 912, Zhu Youqi, the second son of Zhu Wen, the Taizu of the Later Liang Dynasty, was dissatisfied with Zhu Wen's desire to appoint his adopted son Zhu Youwen as the crown prince, and bribed the generals of the forbidden army to kill his father Zhu Wen.
Zhu Wen reigned for 5 years, and after that, Zhu Youqi established himself as the emperor and abolished the emperor for the Later Liang. However, Zhu Youju's usurpation of the throne as emperor caused dissatisfaction among Zhu Wen's other sons.
In 913, Zhu Wen's third son, Zhu Youzhen, united with veterans who were dissatisfied with Zhu Youqi, staged a coup d'état, and successfully stormed the palace. Zhu Youqi tried to escape but failed, so he ordered his subordinate Feng Tingge to kill himself at the age of 29.
Zhu Youzhen then established himself as the emperor and was known as the late emperor of the Later Liang Dynasty. However, during Zhu Youzhen's reign, he reused incompetent people such as Zhao Yan and Zhang Hanjie, resulting in more defeats than victories in the Liang-Jin hegemony battle.
In 923, Li Cunqiao, the king of Jin in the name of reviving the Tang Dynasty, was proclaimed emperor in Weizhou, and still used Tang as the country name, and was known as Zhuangzong of the Later Tang Dynasty in history. In the same year, Li Cunqiao launched a full-scale attack on the Later Liang, and the Later Liang army was defeated.
On the eve of the Tang army's invasion of the capital, Zhu Youzhen ordered his confidant Huang Fulin to kill himself at the age of 36. The Later Liang regime perished at this time and enjoyed the country for 10 years. At the same time, Li Cunmiao destroyed the former Shu regime in the same year.
However, although Li Cunmiao can fight the world, he does not know how to govern the world, let alone compensate the soldiers, which causes the generals to deviate from him. In 926, the Later Tang general Huangfuhui launched a rebellion in Weizhou, and Li Cunqiao immediately sent his father Li Keyong's adopted son Li Siyuan to crusade.
However, at the suggestion of his son-in-law Shi Jingjiao, Li Siyuan joined forces with the rebels and returned to attack Li Cunxuan. Li Cunqiao decided to personally conquer Li Siyuan, but before leaving, his favorite minister Guo Congqian launched a mutiny and entered the palace.
Li Cunmiao was shot by an arrow in the melee and died at the age of 42, and the Later Tang Zhuangzong reigned for only 3 years. In the same year, Li Siyuan invaded Luoyang and proclaimed himself emperor after killing all the rebels, which was for the Later Tang Mingzong.
After Li Siyuan ascended the throne, he killed corruption, praised honest officials, and cared about the suffering of the people, which gradually stabilized the society in the Later Tang Dynasty. However, Li Siyuan appeased the feudal town in his later years, causing his adopted son Li Congke and son-in-law Shi Jingjiao to sit on the throne.
In 933, Li Siyuan, the Later Tang Mingzong, died at the age of 67. His son Li Conghou ascended the throne as Emperor Min of the Later Tang Dynasty. After Li Conghou ascended the throne, in order to weaken the strength of Li Congke and Shi Jingjiao's Jiedu envoys, he transferred the Jiedu envoys, but this move provoked Li Congke's rebellion.
In 934, Li Congke raised troops to attack Luoyang on the grounds that the Qing monarch was on the side. Later Tang Emperor Li Conghou was captured by Shi Jingjiao on the way to Weizhou, and sent to Li Congke to be killed, at the age of 20.
In the same year, Li Congke established himself as the emperor, and was the late emperor of the Later Tang Dynasty. After Li Congke ascended the throne, Shi Jingjiao became his biggest threat again. In 936, in order to weaken Shi Jingjiao's military power, Li Congke transferred him to Yunzhou.
Shi Jingjiao had always had the intention of rebellion, and of course refused to be transferred, so Shi Jingjiao listened to the advice of his subordinate Sang Weihan, ceded land to the Liao State, and borrowed troops to rebel. In the same year, Liao Taizong Yelu Deguang canonized Shi Jingjiao as the emperor, and the country name was Jin, known as the Later Jin Dynasty and Jin Gaozu in history.
Li Congke's move angered Shi Jingjiao, who immediately turned against him, and even privately asked the Liao State to help him eliminate Li Congke. In 937, with the help of the Liao army, Shi Jingjiao, the ancestor of the Later Jin Dynasty, invaded Luoyang, the capital of the Tang Dynasty, and Li Congke was killed by Shi Jingjiao on the way to escape at the age of 20.
Since then, the Tang Dynasty, which had enjoyed the country for 14 years, perished. After the war, Shi Jingjiao snubbed Li Congke and Shi Jingjiao in order to weaken their power.
In 959, Chai Rong suddenly fell ill during the Northern Expedition to the Liao Dynasty and died soon after. His son Chai Zongxun ascended the throne and became Emperor Gong of Later Zhou at the age of 7. Empress Dowager Fu listened to the government, while Prime Minister Fan Zhen and others assisted the government.
However, in 960, when the Liao State and the Northern Han Dynasty jointly attacked the Later Zhou, the prime minister Fan Zhen and others did not distinguish the authenticity from the false, and hurriedly sent Zhao Kuangyin to lead the army north to defend against the enemy. However, in Chenqiaoyi, Zhao Kuangyin launched a mutiny, and the yellow robe was added, leading the army back to Kaifeng.
He coerced Chai Zongxun to the throne and easily seized power in the Later Zhou Dynasty. In the same year, Zhao Kuangyin officially ascended the throne as emperor, changed the name of the country to Song, and was known as the Northern Song Dynasty and Song Taizu in history. Since then, the Hou Zhou, which had enjoyed the country for 10 years, perished, and the five dynasties, which had existed for 53 years, also came to an end.