Abaoji

Abaoji was the founder of the Liao dynasty, a powerful empire in East Asia.

He was a Khitan leader who ruled from 916 to 926. His birth in 872 in Southern Mongolia was marked by many legends. Some stories say his mother dreamt the sun fell into her arms. Others claim he could walk at only three months old. In reality, his early life was very difficult. His grandfather died in a tribal conflict. His father and uncles had to flee for safety. His grandmother even hid him to protect him from harm.

To understand his rise, we must look at the Khitan people's location. They lived on the east slope of the Greater Khingan Mountains. To their west were nomadic tribes like the Shiwei and the Uighurs. To the east and north were the Jurchens. To the south lay the Balhae people, who lived in settled farming societies. For a long time, the Yaonian clan led the Khitan tribes. However, by the late 800s, other groups like the Yila tribe were unhappy with this leadership. Abaoji's father had been the chieftain of the Yila tribe.

Abaoji began his climb to power through military and political skill. He became the chieftain of the Yila tribe in 901. In 903, he was named the Yuyue, the commander of all Khitan military forces. This made him second only to the great khan. In 905, he led 70,000 cavalry into Shanxi to form a brotherhood with a leader named Li Keyong. By 907, he demanded to be named the khagan, or the Khan of khans. He won the support of seven tribal chiefs through his successes against northern groups.

Even after becoming khagan, Abaoji faced many challenges. Between 907 and 916, his own family members tried to rebel against him. He used clever manipulation to turn these enemies into allies. He gave his rivals important positions of influence within his growing state. This helped him stabilize his rule and increase the power of his tribe. In 916, he moved beyond being a khagan and was enthroned as an emperor. He began a new era and claimed the title of Celestial Emperor.

Abaoji introduced several major innovations to govern his diverse lands. His most important creation was a dual administrative system. This system allowed nomadic steppe peoples to follow steppe traditions. At the same time, it allowed settled populations in China and Balhae to follow a civil bureaucracy. This bureaucracy used Han protocols, which are administrative rules from China. This model of governing different types of people became a standard for later steppe empires. He also organized his followers into military units called orda. He eventually joined 12 ordas together to form an administrative district.

He also changed how the Khitan people communicated and ruled. In 920, he ordered the development of a Khitan large script. This writing system looked somewhat like Chinese characters but was not related to them. In 925, his brother Yelü Diela developed a new script based on syllables. These writing tools helped the empire function more effectively. Abaoji also introduced the idea of naming an heir apparent. He named his son, Yelü Bei, as his successor in 916. This was a major change from the traditional Khitan practice of rule by merit.

By the time of his death, Abaoji had transformed the region. He conquered all of Inner Mongolia, northern China, and southern Manchuria. His empire stretched from the Mongolian Plateau to the Yalu and Ussuri rivers. He also captured the entire Balhae state. Abaoji died of typhoid fever on 6 September 926, at the age of 54. His death led to a change in leadership. Although he had named Yelü Bei as his heir, his wife, Empress Shulü Ping, chose his second son, Deguang, to succeed him. Deguang became known as Emperor Taizong.