kingdom · China, Tibet and Mongolia

Chen dynasty

557 CE – 589 CE · capital Jiankang

The last of the Southern Dynasties, ruling the lower Yangtze from Jiankang until the Sui conquest of 589 reunited China after nearly three centuries of division.

Origins

The Liang dynasty collapsed in the 550s under the Hou Jing rebellion and northern invasions. The general Chen Baxian, who had defeated Hou Jing, gained control of Jiankang and in 557 accepted the abdication of the boy Emperor Jing of Liang, founding Chen with himself as Emperor Wu.

Rule and society

Chen was the smallest of the southern states, having lost Sichuan and the lands north of the Yangtze, and it relied on local strongmen as much as on the old émigré aristocracy. Jiankang remained a centre of Buddhist learning and courtly poetry. Emperor Xuan recovered the Huai river region in 573 but lost it again to Northern Zhou by 579.

Decline and legacy

The last ruler, Chen Shubao, became a byword for frivolous palace life. In 589 Sui armies crossed the Yangtze and took Jiankang with little resistance; Chen Shubao was taken to Chang'an and lived out his life in comfortable captivity. China was united again under the Sui Dynasty.

Lineage

Liang dynasty 502 CE – 557 CEChen dynasty

Connections (1)

Chen dynasty was conquered by Sui Dynasty589 CE

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Cite this page

APA: The Epoch Institute. (2026). Chen dynasty. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/chen-dynasty
MLA: “Chen dynasty.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/chen-dynasty. Accessed .
Chicago: The Epoch Institute. “Chen dynasty.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/chen-dynasty.
Harvard: The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Chen dynasty’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/chen-dynasty (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻