Origin and first realms of the Tangut people - Foundation of the Western Xia empire - Tangut roots and Chinese habits - The Mongol invasion Origin and first realms of the Tangut people The Tanguts (Chinese: Dangxiang 黨項, older: Tangwu 唐兀, Tangwushang 唐兀愓, or Tanggu 唐古) are one part of the Qiang 羌 ethnicity, relatives to the Tibetians - and descendants of the Xianbei-Tuoba 鮮卑拓跋 tribe according to their own genealogy, and roamed the area of modern Qinghai Province as nomadic pasture farmers. In the 6th and 7th centuries, heads of Tangut tribes were rewarded by the Chinese emperors for their submissive gesture with titles like general-in-chief (da jiangjun 大將軍), regional inspector (cishi 刺史) of subordinated prefectures (jimizhou 羈縻州), or commander-in-chief (dudu 都督). The chieftain Tuoba Chidi 拓跋赤敵 was bestowed the surname Li 李 and thus made a relative of the Tang 唐 emperors. After the empire of Tubo 吐蕃 (not Tufan!; modern Tibet) destroyed the Tuyuhun 吐谷渾 (not Tuguhun!) confederation of the Xianbi 鮮卑 (not Xianbei!) in 609, the Tangut tribes gradually advanced into Chinese territory inside the area of modern Gansu and northern Sichuan. Most of them dwelled in the area of the prefecture Xiazhou 夏州 (north of modern Shaanxi, just within the great Yellow River bend, the Ordos plateau). Tuoba Shouji 拓跋守寂 took part in the abatement of the An Lushan 安錄山 rebellion and was rewarded with the title of Duke of Xiping 西平, his grandson Tuoba Sigong 拓跋思恭 (Li Sigong 李思恭) who contributed in the suppression of the Huang Chao 黃巢 rebellion was bestowed the title of Duke of Xia 夏國 in 890. His descendants were loyal subjects to the later Tang and the Five Dynasties (Wudai 五代) and acted as military commissioner (jiedushi 節度使) of the region of northern Shaanxi. Li Yichao 李彝超 was able to defend the kingdom of Xia against the Later Tang Dynasty 後唐 and was therefore acknowledged as the supremate head of all Tangut tribes in th 930s. Li Yichao’s brother Li Yiyin 李彝殷 assisted the Later Jin 後晉 empire in their war against the Khitan (Chinese: Qidan 契丹) Liao 遼 empire in 944. After the foundation of the Song Dynasty 宋, the Song emperors were able to control the successing weak rulers of the Tanguts and even took them as hosts to the capital in Bianliang 汴梁 (modern Kaifeng 開封/Henan). Li Jiqian 李繼遷 decided to resist the mighty Song empire and began a rebellion in 984. He forged an alliance with the Liao empire in the northeast and obtained military support. 997 Li Jiqian could arrange a peace agreement with the Song emperor, but he broke this agreement himself. His son Li Deming 李德明 made new agreements with Liao and Song, was installed as military commissioner and King of Great Xia 大夏. Instead of intruding Song territory, he conquered land in the west, defeated the Tubo army and the Qaghan (Khan; Chinese: Kehan 可汗) of the Turkish Oghuz federation (Chinese: Huihu 回鶻, not Huigu!). Foundation of the Western Xia empire From his capital in Xingzhou 興州 (modern Yinchuan 銀川/Ningxia 寧夏) Li Deming started to rule a relatively peaceful empire, profiting from the location along the trade routes to Inner Asia. His son Li Yuanhao 李元昊 was quite conservative and tried to go back to the roots of the Tangut people. He rearranged the military organisation, had created an own Tangut script based on the shape of Chinese characters, he promulgated laws that called for traditional costumes and hairstlyes (short hair or bold heads instead of the long, knotted Chinese hairstyle), he changed his surname in the Tangut name "Weiming" 嵬名 (this is, of course, Chinese pronunciation) and renamed the capital in Xingqing 興慶. After some victorious combats against the Song, Tubo and Oghuz he proclaimed himself emperor of Xia (Western Xia, Xixia 西夏; or “White Superior Country”, Tangut-Chinese: Bangniding 邦泥定, Chinese: Baishangguo 白上國) in 1038. Some years later, he even broke his arrangement with Liao. From then on, three empires ruled in China: Xia, Liao, and Song. The official Chinese historiography has never accepted Western Xia as an independent state, hence there is no official dynastic history for the Western Xia empire. Tangut roots and Chinese habits The next century in the history of Western Xia is characterized by power struggles between the family of the emperors and the consorts, and by the question of following which customs and political-ritual arrangements, either Chinese or Tangut. To enhance the power of the imperial family and the central government, the emperor had to rely on a Chinese-patterned administration and bureaucracy, and on the other side, he had to gain the support of the mighty Tangut clans by supporting Tangut customs and habits. Li Yuanhao (posthumous Xixia Jingzong 西夏靖宗 - see titles of emperors) was assassinated by his brother-in-law Mozang Epang 沒藏訛龐 who could control the court under the minor emperor Weiming Liangzuo 嵬名諒祚 (Li Liangzuo 李諒祚). Li Liangzuo (posthumous Xixia Yizong 西夏毅宗) could eliminate Mozang Epang and the empress dowager and installed his own brother-in-law, Liang Yimai 梁乙埋 as chancellor who reintroduced Tangut customs and rituals at the court. Li Liangzuo’s son Li Bingchang 李秉常 (posthumous Xixia Huidi 西夏惠帝) relied on Chinese customs but faced harsh opposition among the Tangut gentry, especially from the clan of his mother, Liang 梁. Emperor Li Qianshun 李乾順 (posthumous Xixia Chongzong 西夏崇宗) finally could eredicate the power of the mightiest Tangut clans related to the imperial family. After some desastrous military defeats by the Liao and Song empires since 1114, he saw that it was necessary to construct an effectful civil and military adminstration that could only be established by Confucian-trained scholar officials. This politics was continued by his son Li Renxiao 李仁孝 (posthumous Xixia Renzong 西夏仁宗), whose mother was a Chinese. His most important improvements are the erection of a state academy and the installation of state examinations for officials. These loyal officials should replace the Tangut aristocracy. The Mongol invasion At the end of Li Renxiao's reign, many natural desasters lead to the rebellion of exploited peasants, discontent soldiers and unsatisfied Tangut aristocrats under the leadership of Ren Dejing 任得敬. In the years 1205-06 the Mongols for the first time invaded the Xia empire, destroyed cities and abducted people and cattle. From now on, it was impossible to keep a working central government intact, and every few years the emperor of Xia was replaced by a relative. During the years 1216 to 1232 when emperor Li Zunxu 李遵頊 (posthumous Xixia Shenzong 西夏神宗) escaped from the intruding Mongols his son Li Deren 李德任 hold the fort at the capital Xingqing (renamed to Zhongxing 中興). Western Xia forged an alliance with Jin 金, the succession state of Liao, but in vain: In 1227 Li Xian 李睍, the Last Emperor (Xixia Modi 西夏末帝), submitted to the Mongols and was killed on the way to their headquarters. Note: The short-lived Eastern Xia empire (Dongxia 東夏) was founded by a sideline of the Silla (Chinese: Xinluo 新羅) empire in Korea and occupied the territory of modern Jilin province. It has nothing to do with the Tangut Western Xia empire.

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