Dynasties of ChinaNorthern and Southern DynastiesNorthern Wei Dynasty
Xingan and others · Reign 452—465
After the Zong Ai Rebellion, he was supported, restored Buddhism, excavated Yungang Grottoes, rested with the people, and stabilized the turbulent Northern Wei Dynasty.
Tuoba Jun is the eldest son of Jingmu Crown Prince Tuoba Huang. He was loved by his grandfather Emperor Taiwu since he was a child. In 452, Zong Ai killed Emperor Taiwu and Nan King An Tuoba Yu one after another. Yuan He, Lu Li, Liu Ni and other ministers killed Zong Ai and welcomed the thirteen-year-old Tuoba Jun to the throne. After he came to the throne, he issued an edict to restore Buddhism that had been banned by Emperor Taiwu, appointed Gao Yun, Yuan He and other experienced ministers, and reduced the penalties, which eased the tense situation since Emperor Taiwu's later years.
During his reign, he made Feng the empress, and gave Crown Prince Tuoba Hong's biological mother Li Guiren to death according to the old system of "the son dies before the mother dies"; he also conquered Rouran in the north, and supported Tan Yao, the Shaman leader, to dig grottoes in Wuzhou Mountain on the western outskirts of Pingcheng. He died of illness in 465. At the age of twenty-six, Crown Prince Tuoba Hong came to the throne, and Fengtaihou entered the political stage.
PoliticsAll ministers support
After Zong Ai killed Tuoba Yu in Nanking'an, Yuan He, Lu Li, Liu Ni and other ministers led the imperial army to kill Zong Ai, and welcomed the emperor's grandson Tuoba Jun to the throne, changing the Yuan Dynasty to Xing'an.
CultureRevival of Buddhism
Not long after he ascended the throne, he issued an edict to restore Buddhism, allowing each state and county to build a Buddhist temple, allowing the children of the Liang family to become monks, and using the monk Shi Xian of Jibin as the Taoist leader. Buddhism in the north, which had withered after Emperor Taiwu exterminated Buddhism, quickly revived.
PoliticsEstablish a reserve after standing up
Feng was made empress, and in the same year, her eldest son Tuoba Hong was made crown prince. According to the old system of "the son is noble, the mother is dead", his biological mother Li Guiren was given death. Fenghuanghou came to court twice in the future and became a core figure in the political situation of the Northern Wei Dynasty.
MilitaryNorthern Expedition to Rouran
He personally led an expedition of 100,000 cavalry and 150,000 chariots to the north of Rouran and crossed the desert. The Khan of Rouran fled far away, and thousands of other tribes surrendered. Emperor Wencheng carved a stone record of his merits and returned.
CultureExcavation of Tan Yao Five Caves
The monk Tan Yao requested that five grottoes be excavated in Wuzhou Mountain on the western outskirts of Pingcheng, each with a statue of a giant Buddha. The tallest one was seventy feet tall, which is generally believed to symbolize the five emperors since Emperor Daowu.
Lasting legacyTan Yao's five caves are Cave 16 to Cave 20 of Yungang Grottoes today. The Yungang Grottoes were included in the World Heritage List in 2001 and are one of the largest grottoes in China.
PoliticsSouthern Tour engraving monument
The southern tour went to Zhongshan, Xindu and other places. On the way back, a stele "Ode to the Emperor's Southern Tour" was engraved in Lingqiu. The underside of the stele details the official positions and names of the accompanying civil and military officials.
Lasting legacyThe remnants of this stele are now extant in Lingqiu, Shanxi. The inscription on the stele's underside retains a large number of Xianbei official titles and names. It is an important object for studying the official system of the early Northern Wei Dynasty.
SocietyLimit marriage status
The imperial edict was issued to prohibit intermarriage between the royal family, masters, princes, nobles, and families of scholars and craftsmen and those with humble surnames. Violators would be punished, and the boundaries of family status were strengthened in the form of laws.
PoliticsPingcheng died of illness
He died of illness in Pingcheng in May. At the age of 26, Crown Prince Tuoba Hong came to the throne. The powerful minister Yi Hun took advantage of the fact that the new emperor was young and specialized in government affairs, and Fengtaihou immediately intervened in the political situation.
A descendant of the Northern Yan royal family, she was established as queen in 456. Emperor Wencheng was honored as the Empress Dowager after his death. After that, he governed as regent twice and presided over a series of major reforms in the mid-Northern Wei Dynasty.
The son of King Bald Tan of Nanliang was given the surname Yuan by Emperor Taiwu after he surrendered to the Wei Dynasty. In 452, he participated in the annihilation of Zong Ai and supported the establishment of Emperor Wencheng. After that, he guarded the border area for a long time. He once suggested that some of the capital crimes be changed to border guarding in order to soften the punishment and strengthen the border area.
He was originally a monk in Liangzhou, and he adhered to the dharma uniform when Taiwu destroyed the Buddha. Emperor Wencheng was the Shamentong at that time, and he presided over the construction of the five caves of Yungang Tan Yao, and also set up monks and Buddhist households to provide financial resources for the temple.