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Zhao, briefly known officially as Wei (衛) in 350 AD, known in historiography as the Later Zhao (; 319–351) or Shi Zhao (石趙), was a dynasty of China ruled by the Shi family of Jie people ethnicity during the Sixteen Kingdoms period. Among the Sixteen Kingdoms, the Later Zhao was the second in territorial size to the Former Qin that once unified northern China under Fu Jian. In historiography, it is given the prefix of "Later" to distinguish it with the Han-Zhao or Former Zhao, which changed its name from "Han" to "Zhao" just before the Later Zhao was founded.
When the Later Zhao was founded by former Han-Zhao general Shi Le,
the capital was at Xiangguo (襄國, in modern Xingtai, Hebei), but in 335 Shi Hu moved the capital to Yecheng (鄴城, in modern Handan, Hebei), where it would remain for the rest of the state's history (except for Shi Zhi's brief attempt to revive the state at Xiangguo). After defeating the Han-Zhao in 329, the Later Zhao ruled a significant portion of northern China and vassalized the Former Liang and Dai; only the Former Yan in Liaoning remained fully out of their control. For roughly twenty years, it maintained a stalemate with the Eastern Jin dynasty in the south before its rapid collapse in 349 following the death of Shi Hu.
By 305, Shi Le had made a name for himself by becoming a bandit, and raised a personal army with his friend, Ji Sang. Taking advantage of growing resentment against the Jin government, the two joined the rebel general Gongshi Fan to avenge the Prince of Chengdu, Sima Ying and later took leadership after Fan’s death, going as far as to sacking the city of Ye in 307. After their defeat, Shi Le led his forces to join the Xiongnu-led Han state in Bing province.
Under Han, Shi Le quickly rose through the ranks, attracting many Jie and hu tribes in Hebei to his cause. Like many rebel generals who joined the state, he had full control over his army as the Han court had little actual power to assert their authority. With his peers, he raided the North China Plain, plundering the local counties and commanderies although never capturing them and staying there for long. In 311, he massacred the 100,000 strong Jin imperial army in the Battle of Ningping, allowing Han forces to capture Luoyang in the Disaster of Yongjia.
Shortly after, Shi Le assassinated his rival peer, Wang Mi, and absorbed his army. The Han court, fearing that he would rebel, could only reprimand and appease him. With Wang Mi’s death, Shi Le essentially controlled the eastern parts of the empire, with the exception of Shandong. In 312, Shi Le departed from his practice of leading a roving army to cultivate a base in Xiangguo. He also expanded his territory by defeating the Jin governors, Wang Jun and Liu Kun. In 318, he joined forces with the prince, Liu Yao, in quelling the coup of Jin Zhun, who massacred the emperor and imperial family in Linfen.
In his early reign, Shi Le expanded eastwards while Liu Yao dealt with matters in the west. By 323, he defeated Duan Pidi, one of the last remaining Jin powers in the north and conquered Shandong from the warlord, Cao Ni. War between the two Zhaos only broke out in 324, and in 328, Shi Le and Liu Yao led their armies to face each other in the pivotal Battle of Luoyang. Liu Yao was captured during the battle and later executed, while the remaining Former Zhao forces was destroyed in 329. Thus, the Later Zhao became the hegemonic power in northern China, though some areas were still out of their control; the Former Liang, Dai and Duan tribe states partially retained their independence through vassalage, while the Xianbei Murong tribe in Liaodong remained loyal to the Eastern Jin dynasty.
To consolidate his rule, Shi Le enacted several policies with the help of Han Chinese ministers such as Zhang Bin. Among others, he re-introduced the Nine-rank system, promoted agriculture and emphasized education. He also continued the separate governance system between the Han Chinese and non-Chinese people from the Han-Zhao. He adopted the Grand Chanyu title, tasked with managing the tribes, while also introducing new offices that specifically dealt with litigations and population movements of the tribes. He banned the word “ hu”, opting to use “ guoren” (國人; countryman) instead, and forbid the tribes from oppressing the Han Chinese scholar-officials. Various ethnic group from conquered places were relocated to live around his capital, as to better control them and restore agricultural output in the north. Buddhism was also given a platform to grow as the Kucha monk, Fotu Cheng, held a high-ranking position within Shi Le's court.
Shi Le and his family had an unusual practice of adopting people into their clan, the earliest example being Shi Hu, a distant cousin who was adopted by Shi Le's father during their tribal years. He continued this practice after taking the throne, and his adopted relatives, especially Shi Hu, became important princes and military commanders. Near the end of his reign, Shi Le prepared his biological son, Shi Hong to take the throne in accordance with the Chinese rule of succession and handpicked his circle of retainers. However, Shi Hu, citing his vast contributions to the state's founding, was angered by Shi Le's decision as he saw himself having more claim to the throne.
Records describe Shi Hu as a violent tyrant who spent his time indulging in women and alcohol. He took on several grand building projects in Ye and greatly expanded his harem at the expense of the common people, who were forced into construction work and often had their women taken away from them. On the other hand, he showed leniency towards his ministers, rarely punishing them to maintain their loyalty. The empire remained largely intact throughout his reign, with rebellions being swiftly dealt with. Shi Hu reaffirmed Buddhism by continuining to show reverence to Fotu Cheng and promoting religious freedom, thus allowing it to flourish in northern China. He also continued Shi Le's policy of relocating people to live around the capital, such as the Di and Qiang people from Guanzhong.
Shi Hu had ambitions to expand the state and heavily conscripted his subjects, but his campaigns yielded very minimal success. In 338, he carried out a joint campaign with the Murong-led Former Yan to conquer the Duan-Liaoxi. After the campaign, he turned on Yan but was defeated in the Battle of Jicheng. In 339, provoked by Eastern Jin movements along the border, he sent his generals to launch an early attack, capturing a few cities before withdrawing. In 346, he invaded the Former Liang but was repelled, although he captured their territory south of the Yellow River.
His reign was also troubled by a succession crisis that would lead to the empire's downfall. On two occasions, his crown princes attempted to kill him and usurp the throne, which led to him executing them in brutal fashion. In 349, shortly before his death, Shi Hu chose his 10-year-old son, Shi Shi to be the new Crown Prince and took the title of Emperor. In addition to the displeasure of his other sons, many of the military generals were also not pleased with his decision as he bestowed power to a regent and the soon-to-be empress dowager.
While controlling Shi Jian, Shi Min survived three attempts on his life, which made him deeply wary of his followers. Seeing that the Jie and other tribespeople in Ye refused to submit, he decreed an infamous culling order, calling on his Han Chinese subjects to kill any hu person they find. Shi Min personally led his army to massacre the tribes in Ye, while also ordering his generals to purge their armies of tribespeople. The Jie and hu were identified by their high noses and full beards, but many of the people killed were also mistakenly-identified Han Chinese. In total, around 200,000 people were killed.
Shi Min killed Shi Jian and declared himself Emperor of Ran Wei in 350, changing his name to Ran Min. In response, Shi Zhi proclaimed himself the new Emperor of Zhao. At this point, the Later Zhao was on the verge of collapse. The Di general, Fu Hong led his forces west to occupy the Guanzhong, where his son Fu Jiàn founded the Former Qin in 351. The Xianbei general, Duan Kan, also founded his short-lived state of Duan Qi in Shandong. From the northeast, the Former Yan began an invasion to establish themselves on the Zhongyuan, while the Eastern Jin launched a series of northern expeditions to reclaim lost territory from the south.
For most of his reign, Shi Zhi was besieged at Xiangguo by Ran Min's army. He was forced to make an alliance with the Former Yan and demoted his own title to King of Zhao. Despite eventually lifting the siege, he and his family were soon betrayed and slaughtered by his general, Liu Xian in 351. The last member of the Shi clan, Shi Kun fled to the Eastern Jin at Jiankang, where he was put to death.
| Gaozu | Ming | Shi Le | 319–333 | Zhaowang (趙王) 319–328 Taihe (太和 Tàihé) 328–330 Jianping (建平) 330–333 |
| – | Shi Hong | 333–334 | Yanxi (延熙) 334 | |
| Taizu | Wu | Shi Hu | 334–349 | Jianwu (建武) 335–349 Taining (太寧) 349 |
| – | Shi Shi | 349 | – | |
| – | Shi Zun | 349 | – | |
| – | Shi Jian | 349–350 | Qinglong (青龍) 350 | |
| – | Shi Zhi | 350–351 | Yongning (永寧) 351 | |
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