Overview
Chinese Name: 金朝
English Name: Jin Dynasty, Jin Chao
Other Name：Jin State 金国
Duration: About 1115 AD – 1234 AD
King: Wanyan Aguda 完颜阿骨打, Wanyan Sheng 完颜晟
Brief Introduction
The Jin Dynasty 金朝 (1115-1234) was a feudal dynasty established by the Jurchen nationality 女真族 in Chinese history, which ruled northern and northeastern China. It was established by Wanyan Aguda 完颜阿骨打. It borders Western Xia and Mongolia in the West and confronts the Southern Song Dynasty 南宋 in the south. It was handed down to ten emperors and enjoyed 119 years.
At the peak of the Jin Dynasty, the territory included the northeast, North China, Guanzhong 关中, and the Far East of Russia. It reached the Huai River 淮河 in the South and faced off with the Southern Song Dynasty. Its northwest is connected with the Xia Dynasty. Its northeast reaches the outer Hinggan Mountains 外兴安岭 and faces the sea of Japan to the East.
In the early Jin Dynasty, dual politics was adopted, and then gradually moved towards a single Han system.
The ceramic industry and iron-making industry flourished in the Jin Dynasty. In terms of foreign trade, it controls the economic lifeline of Western Xia. In the Jin Dynasty, the culture was also rapidly sinicized, and Zaju 杂剧 and opera got considerable development in the Jin Dynasty. The Academy of the Jin dynasty laid the foundation for the Zaju of later Yuan opera 元曲.
Major Historical Events
The Rise of Jurchen Nationality 女真族崛起
The Jin Dynasty was founded by the Jurchen nationality in Northeast China, who lived by fishing and hunting. The Wanyan clan 完颜氏 is the royal clan in the Jurchen clan. Before the establishment of the Jin Dynasty, the Jurchen nationality had been ruled by the Liao Dynasty.
In the late Liao Dynasty, the government was chaotic, and Emperor Tianzuo 天祚帝 was fatuous and incompetent. The Liao court kept asking for tribute and squeezing the people of Jurchen nationality. In 1112, Emperor Tianzuo insulted the chiefs wantonly, making Wanyan Aguda determined to resist the Liao Dynasty.
On the new year’s day of the first month of 1115, Aguda claimed the throne in Harbin, Heilongjiang Province 黑龙江哈尔滨, and he was the Emperor Taizu of Jin. He named his country Jin. Emperor Tianzuo of the Liao Dynasty paid attention to this matter until now and ordered conscription. However, the Liao army was defeated by the Jurchen army, and at the same time, the rebellion of Yelv Zhangnu 耶律章奴 and Gao Yongchang 高永昌 occurred in the Liao Dynasty.
The war between Jin and Liao 金辽之战
The rule of Zhenguan was the political clarity, economic recovery, and cultural prosperity during the reign of Emperor Taizong Li Shimin in the early Tang Dynasty.
The war between Jin and Liao refers to the war in which the Jurchen nationality rose in Northeast China and rose up to resist until it defeated the Liao Dynasty. It occurred from one year before the establishment of the Jin Dynasty to three years of the Jin Dynasty Tianhui 金朝天会五年 (1114 ~ 1125).
In the war between Jin Dynasty and Liao Dynasty, Liao was defeated repeatedly. At the same time, a rebellion occurred within the ruling class of the Liao Dynasty. The Jin army seized the victory and occupied the capital of the Liao Dynasty.
In the war between Jin and Liao dynasties, Wanyan Aguda gave full play to the advantage of the rapid mobility of the cavalry of Jin’s army and took the initiative to attack and win by surprise. Every time the Liao army was defeated and fled, the Jin army took advantage of the situation and took the initiative to pursue.
This formed an aggressive trend, causing the Liao army to collapse without war and flee back and forth. Under the situation that the Liao army was defeated repeatedly and the Jin army was victorious in successive battles, the Jin army was finally able to seize the fighters and press forward step by step. Finally, they captured the cities of the Liao Dynasty one by one and finally defeated the Liao Dynasty.
The war between Mongolia and Jin 蒙金战争
After the Jin Dynasty destroyed the Liao Dynasty, it went south to destroy the Song Dynasty. In 1126, Emperor Taizong of the Jin Dynasty 金太宗 wiped out the Song Dynasty, which was called the change of Jingkang 靖康之变 in history.
At that time, Mongolia maintained serious hostility toward the Jin Dynasty and deliberately broke away from its control of Jin. Genghis Khan 成吉思汗 also knew that Wanyan Yongji 完颜永济 was incompetent, and thought that this was a good time to attack and destroy Jin.
Genghis Khan attacked Western Xia first to break up the alliance between Jin and Xia, so as to avoid being pinned down by him during the invasion of the Jin Dynasty. At that time, Western Xia asked for help from the Jin Dynasty, and the king of the Jin Dynasty was happy that his neighbors were attacked and did not help.
Finally, Western Xia surrendered to Mongolia and became affiliated with Mongolia to attack Jin. After eliminating his worries, Genghis Khan broke off diplomatic ties with Jin in 1210.
The following year, the war between Mongolia and Jin was launched, and the Mongolian army then invaded North China and plundered everywhere. Finally, it surrounded the capital of the Jin Dynasty, Zhongdu 中都 (now Beijing 北京). But it retreated because the central capital was strong. In 1212, Genghis Khan once again marched southward to surround the capital of the Jin Dynasty.
Finally, Caizhou city 蔡州城 fell, and Jin Aizong committed suicide. The late emperor died in the chaos and Jin fell.
Important Influences
Unique music and dance drama culture
Dance in the Jin Dynasty originated from ancestors. After the founding of the country, it was basically directly absorbed from the dance of the Northern Song Dynasty. At the same time, it also carried forward the music and dance culture of the Jurchen nationality.
In terms of opera, the Zhugong tune 诸宫调, which was popular in the Northern Song Dynasty, became the main variety of rap in the Jin Dynasty. Dong Jieyuan’s 董解元 West Chamber Zhugong Tune 西厢记诸宫调 is an epoch-making masterpiece with exemplary characteristics in Chinese classical drama. It has broken through the shackles of traditional thought in both thought and art.