kingdom · China, Tibet and Mongolia

Northern Yan

407 CE – 436 CE · capital Longcheng

The last of the north-eastern Yan states, ruled from Longcheng first by Gao Yun and then by the Chinese Feng family, until the Northern Wei conquest of 436.

Origins

In 407 the general Feng Ba and Gao Yun, a man of Goguryeo descent adopted into the Later Yan royal family, killed the tyrannical emperor Murong Xi at Longcheng (Chaoyang, Liaoning). Gao Yun became Heavenly King of a new Yan.

Rule and society

After Gao Yun was assassinated in 409, Feng Ba took the throne and ruled moderately, reducing taxes and encouraging farming. Northern Yan kept close ties with Goguryeo and the Rouran Khaganate. Feng Ba's brother Feng Hong seized power in 430 amid family bloodshed, and the state was soon besieged by the Northern Wei.

Decline and legacy

In 436 Northern Wei armies closed on Longcheng and Feng Hong fled to Goguryeo with his people; he was killed there in 438. His granddaughter became Empress Dowager Feng, who later reformed the Northern Wei.

Lineage

Later Yan 384 CE – 407 CENorthern Yan

Connections (1)

Northern Yan was conquered by Northern Wei436 CE

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Cite this page

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

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻