Kingdom of Dali
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dali or
Great Li (
simplified Chinese:
大理国;
traditional Chinese:
大理國;
pinyin:
Dàlǐguó) was a
Bai kingdom centred in what is now
Yunnan Province of
China. Established by
Duan Siping in 937, it was ruled by a succession of 22 kings until the year 1253, when it was conquered by an invasion of the
Mongol Empire. The capital city was at
Dali.
History
The Kingdom of Dali was preceded by the
Nanzhao Dynasty, which was overthrown in 902. Three dynasties followed in quick succession, until
Duan Siping seized power in 937 and established Dali.
[1] Gao Shengtai forced the puppet king
Duan Zhengming to abdicate and become a monk in 1095, and renamed the state
Dazhong. He returned the power to the Duan family upon his death.
Duan Zhengchun renamed the state
Hou Li (lit. "Later Li") in the next year.
The 11th king of Nanzhao established
Buddhism as the
state religion. Ten of the 22 kings of Dali gave up the throne and became
monks.
[2]
It is claimed that despite their military prowess and superior numbers, the Mongols could not breach the defenses of the
Erhai valley,
which was so suited to defense that even just a few defenders could
hold out for years. It is said that the Mongols found a traitor who led
them over the
Cangshan
mountains along a secret path, and only in this way were they able to
penetrate and overrun the Bai defenders. Thus ended three centuries of
independence. In 1274 the Province of
Yunnan was created, and thus the region has since been incorporated within China as the result of the expansion of the
Mongol Empire at the beginning of the
Yuan Dynasty.
References
External links
Media related to
Kingdom of Dali at Wikimedia Commons
