The retired emperor lives at Shoukang Palace in Lin'an, frail and often ill; the histories say his mind gave way after the death of his favourite Consort Huang in 1190, a death they lay at the empress's door.
He refused to attend his father Xiaozong's funeral in 1194, which gave the palace party its excuse to move him aside. Empress Li Fengniang, the daughter of a general's family, was famous for her jealousy and her quarrels with Xiaozong and with the Empress Dowager Wu. Both die in 1200: she on 16 July, he on 17 September. They have no say in affairs.
Who he is
- Name
- Zhao Dun (temple name Guangzong, fixed on 21 December 1200)
- Title
- Retired emperor (Taishang huangdi), styled Shengan Shouren in the chronicle
- Since
- 24 July 1194 (abdicated)
- Born
- 30 September 1147
- Family
- Wife: Empress Li Fengniang (b. 1144 or 1145, d. 16 July 1200), titled Shouren taishang huanghou, posthumous Ciyi. Sons: Zhao Ting (eldest, died young) and Zhao Kuo (the present emperor). The favourite Consort Huang died in 1190, after which his mind broke.
- Confidence
- high
zh.wikipedia on Song Guangzong; Song shi quan wen juan 29 shang for the death dates.
Overlord
His son the emperor, nominally; in practice he is a patient in his palace.
What it holds
- Shoukang Palace at Lin'an and the household of the retired emperor
- A court of palace servants and doctors
How it was acquired
By retirement in July 1194.
Allies and rivals
Estranged from Xiaozong's memory; the court shields him. His son visits every few days (the chronicle says at first every five days).
How things stand that morning
Alive, ill and powerless. The chronicle gives the exact days of both deaths.
Wealth
The upkeep of a retired emperor's household from the state.
Threats
- Illness; both die in 1200
What the year holds
What happened next, if nothing in play changes it. Each event carries what it depends on and what would stop it.
In 1200
- 16 July 1200 (6th month, wuzi)Empress Li dies; her posthumous name Ciyi is conferred on 22 September 1200 (8th month, bingshen), she is laid in a temporary tomb at the Xiuji temple on the South Mountain at Lin'an on 29 September (guimao), and her tablet enters the ancestral temple on 11 October (9th month, yimao).Depends on: Her illness.
- 17 September 1200 (8th month, xinmao)Guangzong dies at Shoukang Palace.Depends on: His illness.
- 21 December 1200 (11th month, bingyin)Posthumous title Xianren Shengzhe Cixiao and temple name Guangzong.Depends on: The court.
Later, on the likely course
- 15 January 1201 (12th month, xinmao)Temporary burial at Yongchong; the tablet enters the ancestral temple on 27 January 1201 (guimao).Depends on: The court.
Places of note
- Shoukang Palace: The retired emperor's palace
Where the sources disagree
- The Song shi quan wen says Empress Li died in the 6th month; the campaign board has no note. The brief says Guangzong 'dies in 1200 (check the date)': 17 September 1200 (Julian), the 8th month, day xinmao.
Evidence: Exact days from the chronicle, converted by me.
"The campaign board" is OMNIA's working map. These notes record where its earlier claims were checked against the sources.
On the map: A palace within the capital; no separate ground drawn.
Primary sources for Southern Song
Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.
- Continuation of the Comprehensive Mirror for Aid in Government, Bi Yuan (畢沅), completed by Feng Jiwu after his death (late eighteenth century, finished after 1801, from Song and Yuan sources). A Qing scholar's continuous month-by-month chronicle of the Song and Yuan centuries, compiled from the Song shi, the Liao, Jin and Yuan histories, Li Tao, Li Xinchuan and other Song sources. Read online
- Outline and Details of Two Reigns (thirteenth century, after 1224). A Song outline-and-detail chronicle of exactly the two reigns around 1200, drawn from the court's daily records. Read online
- Annals of the Western Xia, Wu Guangcheng (吳廣成) (1825 to 1827, compiled from Song, Liao, Jin and Yuan sources). A Qing scholar's year-by-year reconstruction of Tangut history from the Chinese histories, since the Xia left no surviving annals of their own in Chinese. Read online
- History of the Song, Toqto'a (脫脫) and the Yuan history office (1343 to 1345, from the Song veritable records, state histories and the Huiyao). The official history of the Southern Song, which ruled from Lin'an (Hangzhou) in 1200. Read online
- History of Song, chapters 488 and 489: Jiaozhi, Dali, Champa, Zhenla, Pagan, Srivijaya, Java, Brunei, Chola and Tambralinga, Toqto'a (Tuotuo) and the Yuan history office, from the Song court records (1343 to 1345, from Song veritable records and court diaries). The Chinese court's record of its southern neighbours, compiled from Song archives. Read online
- History of the Jin, Toqto'a (脫脫) and the Yuan history office, with Ouyang Xuan among the chief compilers (1343 to 1344, from the Jin veritable records and the Jin national history). The official history of the Jurchen empire that ruled north China and Manchuria in 1200. Read online
- History of the Song, the chapters on Xia and on foreign states, Toqto'a (脫脫) and the Yuan history office (1343 to 1345). The Song court's accounts of its neighbours, each arranged as an annal of embassies and wars. Read online
- Record of the Great Jin State, Attributed to Yuwen Maozhao (宇文懋昭); the attribution is doubtful (preface dated 1234; probably assembled in the Southern Song from Song and Jin material, with later accretions). A Song-side history of the Jin, with annals for each emperor and chapters on institutions, customs, the capitals and the Jurchen way of life. Read online
12 more in the sources library for South China.
Sources and studies
- Songshi quanwen (Song shi quan wen), juan 29 shang, Ningzong annals Qingyuan 1 to 6 (zh.wikisource, Siku edition)
- zh.wikipedia, Song Guangzong
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.