Dali Kingdom–Song Relations (1120s)

Timeline

1. 1120Eastern Capital, Kaifeng Prefecture · HenanIn the second year of Xuanhe (1120), the Song allied with Jin against Liao and faced pressure on the northern front. Huang Lin, the Guangzhou regional inspector who had earlier introduced Dali's envoy to court, was impeached for corruptly presenting tribute and lightly provoking border conflict, and was punished. The Song court then deliberately grew cold toward Dali, no longer accepting its formal tribute; the tributary relationship became nominal in name only, with only border trade maintained.
2. 1121–1125Lizhou · SichuanAfter official relations were severed, Dali and the Song continued trading horses and local products through the trading markets at Lizhou and Yazhou. Dali urgently needed Song investiture and recognition, while the Song relied on southwestern horse sources; the two sides maintained limited contact through border trade, with no further military conflict.
3. 1126–1127Yangjumié City · YunnanAs the Jin army swept south and the Northern Song fell, the Song was unable to attend to the southwest. Although Dali's Duan Heyu still hoped to maintain a vassal relationship with the Song, the Song court was preoccupied with its own survival, and official relations grew further apart. Dali continued to serve as a southwestern buffer for the Song until the Mongol southern invasion posed a direct threat to the Southern Song.