kingdom · China, Tibet and Mongolia

Northern Liao

1122 CE – 1123 CE · capital Yanjing

A rump Liao regime proclaimed at Yanjing (Beijing) in 1122 while the last Khitan emperor was in flight, which repelled the Song but fell to the Jurchen within the year.

Origins

In 1122, as the Jurchen of the Jin dynasty (1115-1234) overran the Liao dynasty and Emperor Tianzuo fled into the western steppe, Khitan and Chinese officials at Yanjing enthroned Yelü Chun, an imperial kinsman, as emperor, in effect deposing Tianzuo.

Rule and society

The regime held the Yanjing region and the passes to the north. Yelü Chun died within months, and his widow Xiao Defei governed as empress dowager. With commanders such as Yelü Dashi, its army defeated two Song Dynasty attempts to take Yanjing in 1122, revealing Song weakness to the Jurchen.

Decline and legacy

At the end of 1122 the Jurchen ruler Aguda took Yanjing with little resistance; Xiao Defei fled and was later killed by Tianzuo. Some followers set up a short-lived Xi kingdom in 1123. Yelü Dashi went on to found the Qara Khitai.

Lineage

Liao dynasty 916 CE – 1125 CENorthern Liao

Connections (1)

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Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Northern Liao. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/northern-liao
MLA
“Northern Liao.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/northern-liao. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Northern Liao.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/northern-liao.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Northern Liao’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/northern-liao (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻