Royals › Monarch / Emperor
Zhao Dun (Emperor Guangzong of Song)
Emperor Guangzong, third ruler of the Southern Song and third son of Emperor Xiaozong, who took the throne in 1189 and was forced to abdicate to his son Zhao Kuo in 1194 after failing to attend his father or mourn him.
In a side chamber of a palace, a yellow ceremonial robe embroidered with a dragon hangs on a wooden stand, its hem worked with waves and rocks, before a carved folding screen, while a black lacquer chest sits on a low table by a lattice window and no person is in view.
Also known as Song Guangzong
- Roles
- Monarch / Emperor
Zhao Dun, Emperor Guangzong, was the third emperor of the Southern Song and the third son of Emperor Xiaozong. He came to the throne in 1189 when Xiaozong abdicated, and took the era name Shaoxi. Dominated by his empress Li Fengniang and in poor health, he long refused to visit his retired father at the Chonghua Palace, and when Xiaozong died in 1194 he could not leave the palace to conduct the mourning. Grand Empress Dowager Wu, with Zhao Ruyu and Han Tuozhou, then had him abdicate in favour of his son Zhao Kuo (Emperor Ningzong), and he became Retired Emperor. He died in 1200. His annals are in the Song Shi.
Life and times
Dates 1147 CE–1200 CE