kingdom · China, Tibet and Mongolia
Western Liang (555-587)
Origins
In 554 Western Wei armies captured Jiangling and killed Emperor Yuan of Liang. The following year they installed his nephew Xiao Cha, a grandson of Emperor Wu of the Liang dynasty and a rival of the Jiangling court, as emperor of a rump Liang state confined to the district around the city.
Rule and society
Its emperors kept the full ceremony of a Chinese court, with reign titles and officials, but a Western Wei and later Northern Zhou garrison stood in Jiangling, and the rulers depended entirely on their northern patrons. The territory was only a few prefectures wide. Xiao Kui, the second emperor, was a respected scholar, and his daughter married Yang Guang, the future Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty.
Decline and legacy
In 587 Emperor Wen of Sui summoned the third ruler, Xiao Cong, to Chang'an and abolished the state; some of its officials fled to the Chen dynasty. The Xiao family remained prominent under Sui and Tang thanks to the marriage tie.
Lineage
On the connections map
Open the full map →Connections (2)
- Western Liang (555-587) was a vassal of Western Wei555 CE – 557 CE
- Western Liang (555-587) was a vassal of Northern Zhou557 CE – 581 CE
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Cite this page
- APA
- The Epoch Institute. (2026). Western Liang (555-587). In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/western-liang-555-587
- MLA
- “Western Liang (555-587).” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/western-liang-555-587. Accessed .
- Chicago
- The Epoch Institute. “Western Liang (555-587).” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/western-liang-555-587.
- Harvard
- The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Western Liang (555-587)’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/western-liang-555-587 (Accessed: ).
Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻