page_title: Taiyuan
section_title: Song dynasty
hierarchical_section_title: Taiyuan / History / Song dynasty
caption_attribution_description: English: Goddess Temple of Jinci, Taiyuan 中文（简体）‎: 山西太原晋寺圣母殿
context_page_description: Taiyuan is the capital and largest city of Shanxi province, People's Republic of China. It is one of the main manufacturing bases of China. Throughout its long history, Taiyuan was the capital or provisional capital of many dynasties in China, hence the name Lóngchéng.
  Taiyuan is located roughly in the centre of Shanxi, with the Fen River flowing through the central city.
context_section_description: Zhao Kuangyin (Emperor Taizu of Song ) established the Song dynasty and embarked on the campaign of re-unification of China. Using a power struggle at the Northern Han court Taizu moved against it in the late 968.  By early 969 his armies encircled Taiyuan and defeated the reinforcements sent by the Khitan. However, an attempt to flood the city failed. The siege was lifted after three months, as heavy rains caused diseases in the besieging army, the supplies were running low, and another Khitan relief force was advancing towards the city.
  Taizu launched the second invasion of Northern Han
  in September 969, but the armies were recalled after his death (November 14,969).
  Taizu's brother Taizong subjugated the last independent kingdoms in the south of China by 978, and in 979 launched the third campaign
  against the Northern Han and its overlord the Khitan state of Liao. Using the north-western route instead of the southern (used in the previous campaigns) the armies of Taizong  defeated a
  major Liao force. Isolated, the Northern Han resisted for only
  fifteen days before surrendering.  In contrast to the mild policies of his brother, Taizong dealt harshly with the city. He ordered the flooding of Taiyuan by releasing the Fen River, and set the city on fire.  The former capital was downgraded from prefecture to county town status.
  It was not until 982 that a new city was founded on the banks of the Fen River.
  The oldest existing building in Taiyuan today is the Temple of the Goddess (simplified Chinese: 圣母殿; traditional Chinese: 聖母殿) inside the Jin Ci Complex. It was originally built in 1023 and reconstructed in 1102.
  From 1027 one of the two private markets for Tangut goods, particularly salt, operated in Taiyuan.  During the Song period many people, including the family of Wang Anshi,  migrated south.
caption: The hall of the holy mother in Jinci, constructed from 1023 to 1032 during the Song dynasty.
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