Jin dynasty (1115–1234)
The Jin dynasty (/dʒɪn/, [tɕín]; Chinese: 金朝; pinyin: Jīn cháo), officially known as the Great Jin (大金; Dà Jīn), was an imperial dynasty of China that existed between 1115 and 1234. Because the Wanyan clan that founded the dynasty were of Jurchen descent, it is also sometimes called the Jurchen dynasty or the Jurchen Jin.
Great Jin 大金 | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| 1115–1234 | |||||||||||||||||||||
Location of Jin dynasty (blue ) c. 1141
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Circuits of Jin | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Capital |
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| Common languages | Middle Chinese (later Old Mandarin), Jurchen, Khitan | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Religion | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Government | Monarchy | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Emperor | |||||||||||||||||||||
• 1115–1123 | Taizu (first) | ||||||||||||||||||||
• 1161–1189 | Shizong | ||||||||||||||||||||
• 1234 | Modi (last) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Historical era | Medieval Asia | ||||||||||||||||||||
• Founded by Aguda | 28 January 1115 | ||||||||||||||||||||
• Destruction of the Liao dynasty | 1125 | ||||||||||||||||||||
• Capture of Bianliang from the Northern Song dynasty | 9 January 1127 | ||||||||||||||||||||
• Mongol invasion | 1211 | ||||||||||||||||||||
• Fall of Caizhou to the Mongol Empire | 9 February 1234 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Area | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 1142 est. | 3,610,000 km2 (1,390,000 sq mi) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 1186 est. | 4,750,000 km2 (1,830,000 sq mi) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Population | |||||||||||||||||||||
• 1186 est. | 53,000,000 | ||||||||||||||||||||
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| Today part of |
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| Part of a series on the |
| History of China |
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The Jin dynasty emerged from Wanyan Aguda's rebellion against the Liao dynasty (916–1125), which held sway over northern China until being driven by the nascent Jin to the Western Regions, where they would become known in Chinese historiography as the Western Liao. After conquering the Liao territory, the Jin launched a century-long campaign against the Song dynasty (960–1279) based in southern China, and whose rulers were ethnically Han Chinese. Over the course of the Jin's rule, their emperors adapted to Han customs, and even fortified the Great Wall against the ascendant Mongol Empire. The Jin also oversaw a number of internal cultural advancements, such as the revival of Confucianism.
After spending centuries in vassalage under the Jin, the Mongols under Genghis Khan invaded in 1211, inflicting several crushing defeats upon Jin armies. After a sequence of defeats, revolts, defections, and coups over a span of 23 years, the Jin were ultimately conquered by the Mongols in 1234.