J Jin (Chin) dynasty The people who ruled the Jin dynasty were called Jurchen; their language belonged to the Tungustic family related to Manchu and they were the first among the Tungustic people to form a major dynastic state Their original homeland was in present day Jilin (Kirin) province in northern Manchuria, where they hunted, fished, raised livestock, and also farmed living in semisubterranean log cabins Jurchen were organized into tribes, which were subdivided into clans Early accounts call them fierce warriors, heavy drinkers, and believers in shamanism As with many other tribal peoples in eastern Asia, a man married his father’s widows (other than his own mother) and also his brothers’ widows After the 10th century some Jurchen moved to southern Manchuria and became vassals to the Song (Sung) dynasty and the Liao dynasty These Jurchen began to learn from the more advanced culture of the Khitan (Liao) and Chinese and were called “civilized Jurchen” as opposed to their northern kin, who were called “wild Jurchen.” JURCHEN TREATY WITH THE SONG DYNASTY In the early 12th century Jurchen erupted to power under Wanyan Aguda (Wan-yen A-ku-ta), 1068–1123 He raided Liao frontier posts and defeated Liao forces sent against him Emboldened, he announced the creation in 1115 of a dynastic state called Jin, which means gold, after a river of that name He then sent envoys to negotiate a treaty with the Song government, his nominal overlord, jointly to attack Liao, their common enemy, until its destruction, and then to divide the spoils Under the terms Song would get the 16 prefectures in northeastern China that they had failed to win in previous wars against Liao and would pay to Jin annually the 200,000 ounces of silver and 300,000 bolts of silk it had been paying to Liao The war began with Song armies attacking from the south and Jurchen from the northeast While Song armies did not well against Liao on the southern front, Jin forces advanced relentlessly, taking Liao capitals and capturing the last Liao emperor in 1225, ending that dynasty Jin turned over to Song the 16 prefectures, which included a Liao capital in present-day Beijing But their alliance soon collapsed Jin forces advanced on Song territory until reaching its capital, Kaifeng (K’ai-feng) The inept and unprepared Emperor Huizong (Huitsung) then abdicated, leaving his son Qinzong (Ch’intsung) to cope After sustaining a long siege and out of food and supplies, Qinzong capitulated and agreed to Jin’s harsh terms in 1125 When the Song government was unable to meet the demands for payment, Jin resumed its attack in 1126 until Kaifeng surrendered unconditionally After thoroughly pillaging the city, Jin forces carried Huizong, Qinzong, and 3,000 members of their family and court as prisoners to northern Manchuria The debacle ended the first part of the Song dynasty, retroactively called Northern Song, whereas the period 1127–1279 is called Southern Song One of Huizong’s younger sons escaped, rallied Song troops, and continued to fight, finally establishing 221