Khitan Intervention in Central Plains Politics

Timeline

1. 936Taiyuan · ShanxiLater Tang general Shi Jingtang, suspecting the court, rose in rebellion from Taiyuan, sending envoys to Liao emperor Taizong Yelü Deguang for aid, promising to cede the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun and acknowledge Liao as a father state.
2. 936Yanmen Pass · ShanxiYelü Deguang led his army south, broke through Yanmen Pass, and with Shi Jingtang's allied forces defeated the Later Tang main army; Liao forces entered the North China heartland in large-scale operations for the first time.
3. 936–937Luoyang · HenanLater Tang's last emperor Li Congke was defeated and burned himself to death, ending the Later Tang. Shi Jingtang, with Khitan support, took the throne and founded the Later Jin, completing a regime change in the Central Plains under Liao military intervention.