Mingzong of Later Tang

Li Siyuan was emperor of the Later Tang Dynasty from 926 to 936.

Family

Li Siyuan was the adopted son of Li Keyong, a Shatuo Turk who served under the Tang Dynasty and established the State of Jin upon the demise of the Tang Dynasty. With the help of Khitan leader Abaoji, his son, Li Cunxu was able to establish the Later Tang Dynasty in 923.

Ascension to the Throne

Li Cunxu had destroyed the Later Liang Dynasty in 923 and established his capital in Luoyang, to signify a restoration of the Tang Dynasty, called the Later Tang Dynasty. His rule only lasted three years as he was killed during an officer’s rebellion in 926. As Li Keyong’s adopted son, Li Siyuan ascended the throne.

Reign

By the time Li Siyuan had assumed the throne of the Later Tang Dynasty, relations with the powerful Khitan to the north had deteriorated. In accordance with custom, an ambassador was sent to the Khitan Supreme Capital to inform Abaoji of the death of the emperor. However, Abaoji used the occasion to try to gain territory from the Later Tang Dynasty, especially the strategic Sixteen Prefectures, and even briefly imprisoned the envoy.

Though Abaoji soon died, the enmity that had been developing between the two did not fade. However, the major challenges to his rule came from the south and from within.

Li Cunxu had brought the State of Shu into the domains of the Later Tang Dynasty. However, in 935, the kingdom, based in Sichuan in the southwest, reasserted its independence and formed the Later Shu state.

End of the Dynasty

The death knell of the dynasty would come from within with Khitan help. Shi Jingtang, the son-in-law of Li Siyuan himself, launched a rebellion against his rule. With Khitan help, he successfully overthrew the Later Tang throne and established his own dynasty, the Later Jin.

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