The Liao Dynasty, founded by the Khitan people, was a dynasty in Chinese history that had nine emperors and lasted 218 years. In 907, Emperor Taizu of Liao, Yelu Abaoji, became khagan of the Khitan. In 916, he began using an era name, established the state under the name "Khitan," and made Shangjing Linhuang Prefecture its capital (in present-day Balin Left Banner, Chifeng, Inner Mongolia). In 947, Emperor Taizong of Liao, Yelu Deguang, led his army south into the Central Plains and captured Bianjing (present-day Kaifeng, Henan). He ascended the throne and proclaimed himself emperor there, changing the country's name to "Great Liao." This book begins in 901, when Yelu Abaoji served as yiliyijin of the Yila tribe, one of the eight Khitan tribes, and ends in February 1125, when Emperor Tianzuo, Yelu Yanxi, the ninth emperor of Liao, was captured. In chronological order and in an accessible style, it recounts the founding, development, rise to power, decline, and eventual fall of the Liao Dynasty. The book has twelve chapters: Chapter One: Taizu Founds the Dynasty; Chapter Two: Taizong Expands Southward; Chapter Three: Emperor Shizong; Chapter Four: The Sleeping King, Muzong; Chapter Five: Jingzong's Revival; Chapter Six: The Song-Liao War; Chapter Seven: The Empress Dowager Takes the Reins; Chapter Eight: The Treaty of Chanyuan; Chapter Nine: Shengzong Takes Power; Chapter Ten: The Height of Prosperity and the Beginning of Decline; Chapter Eleven: The Foolish Emperor Daozong; Chapter Twelve: The Fall of the Liao Dynasty.
