Meng Zhixiang (874–934) was a Chinese general and later founder of the Later Shu

Later Shu

Later Shu was one of the Ten Kingdoms during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period in China from 907 to 960. It was located in present-day Sichuan with its capital in Chengdu.-Founding:...

 kingdom, one of the Ten Kingdoms of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period, in 934.

Service under the Later Tang

Meng Zhixiang was an army commander under the Later Tang Dynasty

Later Tang Dynasty

The Later Tang Dynasty was a short-lived dynasty that lasted from 923 to 937 one of the five dynasties during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. It was also the first in a series of three dynasties ruled by the Shatuo Turks...

 (923–936), which was in control of northern China

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

. He commanded the forces that overthrew the Shu

Former Shu

Great Shu called in retrospect Former Shu was one of the Ten Kingdoms formed during the chaotic period between the rules of the Tang dynasty and the Song dynasty...

 Kingdom in 925, incorporating the kingdom into the Later Tang

Later Tang Dynasty

The Later Tang Dynasty was a short-lived dynasty that lasted from 923 to 937 one of the five dynasties during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. It was also the first in a series of three dynasties ruled by the Shatuo Turks...

. Meng remained in Chengdu

Chengdu

Chengdu , formerly transliterated Chengtu, is the capital of Sichuan province in Southwest China. It holds sub-provincial administrative status...

 as the military governor, all the while plotting the overthrow of Later Tang

Later Tang Dynasty

The Later Tang Dynasty was a short-lived dynasty that lasted from 923 to 937 one of the five dynasties during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. It was also the first in a series of three dynasties ruled by the Shatuo Turks...

 authority and naming himself emperor.

Founder of the Later Shu

Meng Zhixiang got his chance to realize his ambitions as the Later Tang Dynasty

Later Tang Dynasty

The Later Tang Dynasty was a short-lived dynasty that lasted from 923 to 937 one of the five dynasties during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. It was also the first in a series of three dynasties ruled by the Shatuo Turks...

 was going through a period of decline in the mid-930s. The Later Tang

Later Tang Dynasty

The Later Tang Dynasty was a short-lived dynasty that lasted from 923 to 937 one of the five dynasties during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. It was also the first in a series of three dynasties ruled by the Shatuo Turks...

’s relations with the Khitan

Liao Dynasty

The Liao Dynasty , also known as the Khitan Empire was an empire in East Asia that ruled over the regions of Manchuria, Mongolia, and parts of northern China proper between 9071125...

 had soured and in general, domestic governance within the dynasty had declined. In 934, Meng declared himself emperor, restoring the Shu

Later Shu

Later Shu was one of the Ten Kingdoms during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period in China from 907 to 960. It was located in present-day Sichuan with its capital in Chengdu.-Founding:...

 Kingdom that he helped to overthrow less than a decade earlier.

Legacy

Although Meng Zhixiang did not reign long as emperor as he died the following year, his son, Meng Chang

Meng Chang

Meng Chang was Emperor of Later Shu , one of the Ten Kingdoms located in the Sichuan basin.-Accession to the Throne:Meng Chang, posthumously known as Houzhu was the son of Meng Zhixiang, the founder of the Later Shu kingdom. When his father died in 934, he named himself emperor of the...

 reigned very ably for three decades until the Song Dynasty

Song Dynasty

The Song Dynasty was a ruling dynasty in China between 960 and 1279; it succeeded the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period, and was followed by the Yuan Dynasty. It was the first government in world history to issue banknotes or paper money, and the first Chinese government to establish a...

 incorporated the Later Shu

Later Shu

Later Shu was one of the Ten Kingdoms during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period in China from 907 to 960. It was located in present-day Sichuan with its capital in Chengdu.-Founding:...

 into its domains during the process of reunifying the Chinese realm. Chengdu

Chengdu

Chengdu , formerly transliterated Chengtu, is the capital of Sichuan province in Southwest China. It holds sub-provincial administrative status...

 became a center of art and culture, especially the Amidst the Flowers Anthology and its importance in the development of ci

Ci (poetry)

Ci is a kind of lyric Classical Chinese poetry using a poetic meter based upon certain patterns of fixed-rhythm formal types. For speakers of English, the word "ci" is pronounced somewhat like "tsuh"...

(lyric poetry).