Jin (Later Tang precursor)

History

The Jin rulers Li Keyong and Li Keyong's son Li Cunxu, of Shatuo extraction, claimed to be the rightful subjects of the defunct Tang dynasty (618–907), in a struggle against the usurper state of the Later Liang dynasty.

At the time of the Tang dynasty's fall in 907, the Jin state consisted of most of Shanxi (Linfen, Hezhong, Jincheng, Qinyang were taken by Later Liang) and several parts of Inner Mongolia. In 912, Jin took over Jincheng and in 913, conquered Yan, and eventually expanded to cover all of the territory north of the Yellow River. Eventually, in 923, Li Cunxu, claiming rightful succession to the Tang throne, declared himself emperor, transitioning his state to the Later Tang dynasty, which shortly after destroyed the Later Liang dynasty.