Historically, there were two kingdoms that had set the capital in Guangzhou, one was South Vietnam in the late Qin and early Han dynasties, and the other was the Southern Han Dynasty of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms. The Southern Han Dynasty was the most powerful of the Ten Kingdoms, and at its peak it controlled the Liangguang region and called itself "Little Southern Qiang". However, the time when the Southern Han Dynasty developed from weak to extremely large was relatively long. The ancestor of the Southern Han Dynasty was named Liu Qian, and because of his meritorious attack on Huangchao, Tang Zhonghe served as the Assassin of Fengzhou in the third year (883). Fengzhou, in present-day Fengkai County, Zhaoqing City, Guangdong Province, was located at the confluence of the Xijiang and Hejiang rivers, not far west of Wuzhou in Guangxi.
Figure - Schematic map of the situation of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms and the sphere of influence of the Southern Han Dynasty
After Liu Qian's death, the eldest son Liu Yin continued to expand his territory based on Fengzhou. In the third year of Tang Qianning (896), Liu Yin took the important town of Guangzhou in Lingnan. Liu Yin's possession of Guangzhou was tantamount to adding wings to the tiger, although the territory at that time was limited to the areas on both sides of the Xijiang River from Fengkai to Guangzhou.
In 917, Liu Yin's precious brother Liu Yan (formerly known as Liu Zhi, Liu Gong, etc., hereinafter referred to as Liu Yan) was proclaimed emperor in Guangzhou, and the state name was Dayue. Liu Yan felt that the name of the country of Dayue was not atmospheric, and the following year, he changed the name of the country to Han, and the history called the Southern Han. At this time, the territory of the Southern Han Dynasty was much larger than that of Liu Yinshi, and by the standards of present-day Guangdong Province, most of the other areas (including Hong Kong and Macao) were owned by the Southern Han Dynasty, except for LianXian and Yangshan in the northwest, which were owned by the Chu State created by Ma Yin. Interestingly, the border between Guangdong Province and Fujian Province and Jiangxi Province was formed in the early years of the Southern Han Dynasty, and it has basically not changed for more than a thousand years.
Map - Topographic map of Guangdong Province
Present-day Guangxi, at that time, was divided into two, roughly bounded by the Xijiang River, and the northern part of Guangxi belonged to the Chu state, including Guilin, Liuzhou and other important towns. The Southern Han Occupied the area south of the Xijiang River. In addition, the Southern Han controlled the entire Hainan Island, with five prefectures, including Qiongzhou and Yazhou. At that time, the military strength of the Chu State was stronger than that of the Southern Han, and the Southern Han could only passively take a defensive position against the aggressive posture of the Chu State. The eastern front defends the Five Ridges (Yuecheng Ridge, Du Pang Ridge, Mengzhu Ridge, Qitian Ridge, dayu Ridge), and the western front holds the Xijiang River, which basically ensures that Guangzhou is safe. At the same time, in order to stabilize Ma Yin, the carpenter-turned king of chu, Liu Yan also married Ma Yin's daughter. Of course, the princess of the Chu Kingdom married to the Southern Han Dynasty, and Liu Yan could still take her as a hostage...
The Southern Han dynasty was under great pressure from the Chu state in the north, but in the southwest, the Southern Han had great gains. In the third year of the Southern Han Dynasty (930), the Southern Han army eliminated the annam (present-day northern Vietnam) separatist forces founded by Qu Chengyu. However, only a year later, the Twelve Prefectures of Annam, which had not yet been covered by the heat of the Southern Han Dynasty, were all thrown away, and Liu Yan was so angry that he blew his beard.
Figure - Schematic diagram of the Southern Han Dynasty of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms
Within the Southern Han Dynasty, after Liu Yan's death, the brothers fought each other, and Liu Sheng eventually ascended to the throne, known as Emperor Zhongzong of the Southern Han Dynasty. A few years after Liu Sheng's reign, the Chu state also had brotherly cannibalism, allowing Liu Sheng to see the opportunity to expand his territory. In the sixth year of the Southern Han Dynasty (948), the Southern Han sent the eunuch Wu Huai'en and others who could fight to capture He prefecture (Hezhou, Guangxi) and Zhaozhou (Pingle, Guangxi) in the Chu state, which was regarded as a small test of cattle knives.
Three years later, the State of Chu had completely collapsed, and the Southern Han Army had taken guizhou (Guilin, Guangxi) and Liuzhou, a total of twelve prefectures, which were important towns in the southwest of the Chu state. In this way, the northern part of Guangxi was also owned by the Southern Han. At this point, the Southern Han Dynasty can truly be called "spanning two guangzhous". In particular, Guizhou was the residence of the Jingjiang Jiedushi envoy, and the first city in Guangxi during the Ten Kingdoms period at the end of the Tang Dynasty. Taking Guizhou, not only the safety of Guangzhou, but also the area on the north bank of the West River. This is not the end, the Southern Tang Dynasty destroyed Chu, because the Southern Tang Emperor Li Jing self-destructed the Great Wall, the old land of the Chu State became a pot of porridge. A month after Liu Sheng took Guizhou, he sent his army north, crossed the Tianling Mountains, and conquered the important town of Chenzhou in southern Xiangnan.
Figure - Five Generations and Ten Countries Situation Map
In 951 AD, it was the peak of the Southern Han Dynasty, and "Xiao Nanqiang" can be said to be worthy of its name. However, during the Warring States period, the military scientist Wu Qi famously said: "There is no danger in Germany." "The defense system of the Southern Han Dynasty, with the five ridges in the north as a natural danger, and the West River and the East River as a barrier, can be said to be impregnable. However, Liu Sheng was easy to kill, and the successor lord Liu Xun was extremely absurd, and the country's power declined. Since the Zhou Shizong Chai Rong rectified, the Central Plains Dynasty has become more and more powerful. In 971, zhao kuangyin of the Northern Song Dynasty sent the general Pan Mei (Pan Renmei's prototype) to eliminate the Southern Han Dynasty without much effort.