Editing Western Xia (section)

=== Origins ===
{{Further|Dingnan Jiedushi|Guiyi Circuit|Ganzhou Uyghur Kingdom}}

The Tanguts originally came from the [[Qinghai]]-[[Sichuan]]-[[Tibet]] region, whose home originally was in the highlands of western Sichuan.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://depts.washington.edu/silkroad/exhibit/tanguts/essay.html |title=The Tanguts |last=Waugh |first=Daniel C. |author-link=Daniel Waugh (historian) |date=<!--Not stated--> |website=depts.[[University of Washington|washington.edu]] |access-date=March 24, 2023}}</ref> According to Chinese records, which called them the Dangxiang, the Tanguts were descended from the Western [[Qiang (historical people)|Qiang]] people, and occupied the steppes around [[Qinghai Lake]] and the mountains to its south.{{sfn|Twitchett|1994|p=156}}

In 608, the Tanguts helped the [[Sui dynasty]] defeat the [[Tuyuhun]], however they were betrayed by the Sui forces, who took the chance to loot the Tanguts. In 635, they were requested to serve as guides for [[Emperor Taizong's campaign against Tuyuhun]], but the Tang forces double crossed them in a surprise attack and seized thousands of livestock. In retaliation, the Tanguts attacked the Tang and killed thousands of their soldiers.{{sfn|Wang|2013|p=226-227}}

By the 650s, the Tanguts had left their homeland to escape pressure from the [[Tibetans]] and migrated eastward, to what are now parts of [[Shanxi]] and [[Shaanxi]]. In 584-5 Tuoba Ningzong led the first group of Tanguts to submit to the Sui. In 628-629 another group under the leadership of Xifeng Bulai surrendered to the Tang. After the Tuyuhun were defeated in 635, the Tanguts under Tuoba Chici also surrendered. The 340,000 Tanguts were divided into 32 ''[[jimi system|jimi]]'' prefectures under the control of Tangut chieftains appointed as prefects. Another wave of Tanguts entered Tang territory in 692, adding as many as 200,000 persons to the population in [[Lingwu|Lingzhou]] and [[Xià Prefecture|Xiazhou]]. In 721–722, Tuoba Sitai, a descendant of Tuoba Chici, aided the Tang in putting down a [[Sogdians|Sogdian]]-led revolt in [[Shuofang]].{{sfn|Twitchett|1994|p=157-159}} By the time of the [[An Lushan Rebellion]] in the 750s, the Tanguts had become the primary local power in the [[Ordos region]] in northern Shaanxi. In the 760s, the military commander, Ashina Sijian, harassed six Tangut tribes and took their camels and horses. The Tanguts fled west across the [[Yellow River]] and started working for the Tibetans as guides on raiding expeditions. In 764, the Tanguts joined the Tibetans and [[Uyghurs]] in supporting the Tang rebel [[Pugu Huaien]].{{sfn|Wang|2013|p=226-227}} After the Tang reasserted their authority, a descendant of Tuoba Chici, Tuoba Chaoguang, was put in charge of the loyal Tanguts. The Yeli, Bali, and Bozhou clans continued to side with the Tibetans, however the Tanguts also came under Tibetan predation, and frontier settlements continued switching between Tang and Tibetan control for many years.{{sfn|Twitchett|1994|p=161}} In 806, the Acting Minister of Works, Du You, admitted that they treated the Tanguts badly:

{{blockquote|In recent years, corrupt frontier generals have repeatedly harassed and mistreated [the Tanguts]. Some profited from [unfair trading in] their fine horses; some seized their sons and daughters. Some accepted their local products as bribes, and some imposed corvée on them. Having suffered so much hardship, the Tanguts rebelled and fled. They either sent envoys to contact the Uighurs or cooperated with the Tibetans to raid our borders. These are the consequences of [Tang frontier generals’ wrong] deeds. We must discipline them.{{sfn|Wang|2013|p=277}}|Du You}}

In 814 the Tang appointed a Commissioner for Pacifying the Tanguts to Youzhou (modern [[Otog Banner]]), however this did not resolve the Tangut problem. In 820 the Tanguts were subjected to the tyranny of a local governor, Tian Jin. They retaliated by joining the Tibetans in raids on Tang garrisons. Sporadic conflict with the Tanguts lasted until the 840s when they rose in open revolt against the Tang, but the rebellion was suppressed. Eventually the Tang court was able to mollify the Tanguts by admonishing their frontier generals and replacing them with more disciplined ones.{{sfn|Wang|2013|p=227-228}} The Tanguts also fought against the Uyghurs after the collapse of the [[Uyghur Khaganate]] because they both wanted to monopolize the horse trade which passed through Lingzhou.{{sfn|Twitchett|1994|p=162}}

====Dingnan Jiedushi====
{{see also|Song–Xia wars}}
In 873, the senior Tangut leader at Xiazhou, [[Li Sigong|Tuoba Sigong]], occupied [[Otog Banner|Youzhou]] and declared himself prefect. When [[Chang'an]] fell to [[Huang Chao]] in 880, Sigong led a Chinese-Tangut army to assist Tang forces in driving out the rebels. For his service, he was granted in 881 control of Xiazhou, Youzhou, [[Sui Prefecture (Shaanxi)|Suizhou]], [[Yin Prefecture|Yinzhou]], and later also [[Jingbian County|Jingbian]]. Together the territory was called [[Dingnan Jiedushi]], also known as Xiasui, centered on modern [[Yulin, Shaanxi|Yulin]], [[Shaanxi]]. After the Huang Chao rebellion's defeat in 883, Sigong was granted the dynastic surname Li and enfeoffed as "Duke of Xia". In 878, the [[Shatuo]] chieftain [[Li Guochang]] attacked the Tanguts but was repelled by a [[Tuyuhun]] intervention.{{sfn|Twitchett|1994|p=163}}

[[File:Xixia Wanling Museum - 22912002356.jpg|thumb|Xixia stone inscriptions]]
Sigong died in 886 and was succeeded by his brother [[Li Sijian|Sijian]]. In 905 [[Li Keyong]]'s independent regime allied with the [[Khitan people|Khitans]], which pushed the Tanguts into an alliance with [[Later Liang (Five Dynasties)|Later Liang]], which awarded the Dingnan rulers with honorary titles. Sijian died in 908 and was succeeded by his adopted son [[Li Yichang|Yichang]], who was murdered by his officer Gao Zongyi in 909. Gao Zongyi was himself murdered by soldiers of Dingnan and was replaced by Yichang's uncle, [[Li Renfu|Renfu]], who was a popular officer in the army. In 910 Dingnan came under a monthlong siege by the forces of [[Qi (Li Maozhen's state)|Qi]] and [[Jin (Later Tang precursor)|Jin]] but was able to repel the invasion with the aid of Later Liang. In 922 Renfu sent 500 horses to [[Luoyang]], perhaps to aid the Later Liang in fighting the Shatuo. In 924 Renfu was enfeoffed as "Prince of Shuofang" by [[Later Tang]]. When Renfu died in 933, Later Tang tried to replace his son, [[Li Yichao|Yichao]], with a Sogdian governor, An Congjin. An Congjin besieged Xiazhou with 50,000 soldiers, but the Tanguts mounted a successful defensive by rallying the tribes and stripping the countryside of any resources. The Later Tang army was forced to retreat after three months. Despite Later Tang aggression, Yichao made peace with them by sending 50 horses as an offering.{{sfn|Twitchett|1994|p=164-165}}

Yichao died in 935 and was succeeded by his brother [[Li Yixing|Yixing]]. Yixing discovered a plot by his brother, Yimin, to overthrow him in 943. Yimin fled to Chinese territory, but was returned to Xiazhou for execution. Over 200 clan members were implicated in the plot, resulting in a purge of the core ranks. Yimin's post was taken by a loyal official, Renyu. Not long afterward, Renyu was killed by the Yemu [[Qiang (historical people)|Qiang]], who departed for Chinese territory. In 944 Yixing may have attacked the [[Liao dynasty]] on behalf of the [[Later Jin (Five Dynasties)|Later Jin]]. The sources are not clear on the event. In 948 Yixing requested permission to cross the border and attack the Yemu Qiang but was refused. Instead Yixing attacked a neighboring circuit under encouragement from the rebel [[Li Shouzhen]], but retreated upon encountering an imperial force. In 952 the Yeji people north of [[Qìng Prefecture|Qingzhou]] rebelled, causing the Tanguts significant difficulty. Honorary titles were given out by the [[Later Han (Five Dynasties)|Later Han]] to appease local commanders, including Yixing. In 960 Dingnan came under attack by [[Northern Han]] and successfully repelled invading forces. In 962 Yixing offered horses as tribute to the Song dynasty. Yixing died in 967 and was succeeded by his son, Kerui.{{sfn|Twitchett|1994|p=165-167}}

Kerui died in 978 and was succeeded by Jiyun. Jiyun ruled for only a year before dying in 980. His son was still an infant, so Jiyun's brother, Jipeng, assumed leadership. Jipeng did not go through the traditional channel of acquiring consent from the elders, which caused dissent among the Tangut elites. The Tangut prefect of Suizhou challenged Jipeng's succession. In 982 Jipeng fled to the Song court and surrendered control of Dingnan Jiedushi. His brother or cousin, [[Li Jiqian|Jiqian]], did not agree to this and refused to submit to Song administration. Jiqian led a group of bandit holdouts and resisted Song control. In 984, the Song attacked his camp and captured his mother and wife, but he narrowly escaped. He rebounded from this defeat by capturing [[Yin Prefecture|Yinzhou]] the next year.{{sfn|Twitchett|1994|p=170}} Along with Yinzhou, Jiqian captured large amounts of supply, allowing him to increase his following. In 986, Jiqian submitted to the Khitans and in 989, Jiqian married into Khitan nobility.{{sfn|Mote|2003|p=173}} Jiqian also made symbolic obeisance to the Song, but the Song remained unconvinced of his intentions. Jipeng was sent by the Song to destroy Jiqian, but he was defeated in battle on 6 May 994, and fled back to [[Xià Prefecture|Xiazhou]]. Jiqian sent tribute on 9 September as well as his younger brother on 1 October to the Song court. [[Emperor Taizong of Song]] was receptive of these gestures, but Jiqian returned to raiding Song territory the next year. In April 996, Taizong sent troops to suppress Jiqian, who raided Lingzhou in May and again in November 997. For a brief period after 998, Jiqian accepted Song suzerainty, until the fall of 1001 when he began raiding again. Jiqian died on 6 January 1004 from an arrow wound. His son and successor, [[Li Deming|Deming]], proved to be more amicable towards the Song than his predecessor.{{sfn|Lorge|2015|p=243-244}}