Taishang Huang in the context of "King Zhuangxiang of Qin"

Emperor Huizong of Song (7 June 1082 – 4 June 1135), personal name Zhao Ji, was the eighth emperor of the Song dynasty of China and the penultimate emperor of the Northern Song dynasty. He was also a very well-known painter, poet and calligrapher. Born as the 11th son of Emperor Shenzong, he ascended the throne in 1100 upon the death of his elder brother and predecessor, Emperor Zhezong, because Emperor Zhezong's only son died prematurely. He lived in luxury, sophistication and art in the first half of his life. In 1126, when the Jurchen-led Jin dynasty invaded the Song dynasty during the Jin–Song Wars, Emperor Huizong abdicated and passed on his throne to his eldest son, Zhao Huan while Huizong assumed the honorary title of Taishang Huang (or "Retired Emperor"). The following year, the Song capital, Bianjing, was conquered by Jin forces in an event historically known as the Jingkang Incident. Emperor Huizong and Emperor Qinzong and the rest of their family were taken captive by the Jurchens and brought back to the Jin capital, Huining Prefecture in 1128. The Emperor Taizong of Jin, gave the former Emperor Huizong a title, Duke Hunde (literally "Besotted Duke"), to humiliate him. After Zhao Gou, the only surviving son of Huizong to avoid capture by the Jin, declared himself as the dynasty's tenth emperor as Emperor Gaozong, the Jurchens used Huizong, Qinzong, and other imperial family members to put pressure on Gaozong and his court to surrender. Emperor Huizong died in Wuguocheng after spending about nine years in captivity. He, along with his successors, were blamed for the Song dynasty's decline.

Although he wasn't a competent administrator, Emperor Huizong was known for his promotion of Taoism and talents in poetry, painting, calligraphy and music. He sponsored numerous artists at his imperial court, and the catalogue of his collection listed over 6,000 known paintings.

Emperor Qinzong of Song (23 May 1100 – 14 June 1161), personal name Zhao Huan, was the ninth emperor of the Song dynasty of China and the last emperor of the Northern Song dynasty.

Emperor Qinzong was the eldest son and heir apparent of Emperor Huizong. His mother was Emperor Huizong's empress consort, Empress Wang. In 1126, when the forces of the Jurchen-led Jin dynasty invaded the Northern Song dynasty beginning the first siege of Bianjing. Frightened, Emperor Huizong intended to flee but was convinced by his officials to abdicate first and then flee. Huizong then abdicated and passed on his throne to Emperor Qinzong, and then assumed the title Taishang Huang ("Retired Emperor") himself and fled to the countryside. After the fall of Kaifeng that marked the end of the Northern Song and Qinzong and his father's subsequent capture by the Jin forces, they, along and his half-brother and their successor, Emperor Gaozong, were blamed for the Song dynasty's decline.

The Jingkang Incident (Chinese: 靖康事變; pinyin: Jìngkāng shì biàn), also known as the Humiliation of Jingkang (靖康之恥; Jìngkāng zhī chǐ) and the Disorders of the Jingkang Period (靖康之亂; Jìngkāng zhī luàn), was an episode of invasions and atrocities that took place in 1127 during the Jin–Song Wars when the troops of the Jurchen-led Jin dynasty besieged and sacked the imperial palaces in Bianjing (present-day Kaifeng), the capital of the Han-led Northern Song dynasty. The Jin forces captured the Northern Song ruler, Emperor Qinzong, along with his father, the retired Emperor Huizong, and many members of the imperial family of Emperor Taizong's bloodline and officials of the Song imperial court. The ordinary Song civilians of Bianjing living in the non-imperial quarter were left alone after being forced to pay huge ransoms to the Jin.

This event marked the collapse of the Northern Song dynasty that originally controlled most of China proper. Many members of the Song imperial family, most notably Zhao Gou (later Emperor Gaozong), managed to escape to southern China, where they reestablished the Song dynasty (known in historiography as the Southern Song dynasty) in the new capital, Lin'an (present-day Hangzhou). This event also greatly contributed to the return of the descendants of Emperor Taizu to the line of succession, as most of Emperor Taizong's descendants were abducted; Emperor Gaozong himself failed to produce an heir as well. This event is known as the "Jingkang Incident" because it took place during the Jingkang era of the reign of Emperor Qinzong.

Empress (Dowager) Feng (馮皇(太)后) (442 – 17 October 490), formally Empress (Dowager) Wenming (文明皇后, literally "the civil and understanding empress") was an empress of the Xianbei-led Northern Wei dynasty of China. Her husband was Emperor Wencheng. After her husband's death in 465, she overthrew the autocratic regent Yifu Hun in 466 and became regent over her stepson Emperor Xianwen and remained as such until his adulthood in 467. She subsequently had a falling-out with Emperor Xianwen (who had then become retired emperor) over his execution of her lover Li Yi (李奕), and she assassinated him and resumed regency over his son Emperor Xiaowen in 476. While Emperor Xiaowen assumed imperial powers upon adulthood, he remained very deferential to her, and she was highly influential until her death in October 490. An enduring legacy of her regency was a series of reforms that led to political recentralization for Northern Wei and future imperial dynasties.

Emperor Qinzong of Song (23 May 1100 – 14 June 1156), personal name Zhao Huan, was the ninth emperor of the Song dynasty of China and the last emperor of the Northern Song dynasty.

Emperor Qinzong was the eldest son and heir apparent of Emperor Huizong. His mother was Emperor Huizong's empress consort, Empress Wang. In 1126, when the forces of the Jurchen-led Jin dynasty invaded the Northern Song dynasty beginning the first siege of Bianjing. Frightened, Emperor Huizong intended to flee but was convinced by his officials to abdicate first and then flee. Huizong then abdicated and passed on his throne to Emperor Qinzong, and then assumed the title Taishang Huang ("Retired Emperor") himself and fled to the countryside. After the fall of Kaifeng that marked the end of the Northern Song and Qinzong and his father's subsequent capture by the Jin forces, they, along and his half-brother and their successor, Emperor Gaozong, were blamed for the Song dynasty's decline.

Emperor Gaozong of Song (12 June 1107 – 9 November 1187), personal name Zhao Gou, courtesy name Deji, was the tenth emperor of the Chinese Song dynasty and the first of the Southern Song dynasty, ruling between 1127 and 1162 and retaining power as retired emperor from 1162 until his death in 1187. The ninth son of Emperor Huizong and a younger half-brother of Emperor Qinzong, Zhao Gou was not present in the capital of Bianjing (the modern day Kaifeng) when it fell to the Jurchen-led Jin dynasty in 1127 during the beginning of the Jin-Song Wars. Narrowly avoiding capture by Jin forces, he escaped first to Yangzhou and then Lin'an (the modern day Hangzhou), assuming the throne and re-establishing the Song court. Despite initial setbacks, including Jin invasions and a brief deposition in 1129, Emperor Gaozong consolidated his political position and presided over the continued military conflict with Jin. Prior to 1141, military commanders including Han Shizhong and Yue Fei reconquered portions of the Central Plains while chancellors like Lü Yihao, Zhao Ding, Zhang Jun, and Qin Hui managed the civil bureaucracy.

In 1141, Gaozong collaborated with Qin to pursue a peace settlement with Jin. Although the resulting Treaty of Shaoxing ceded the Central Plains and formally established Song as a Jin tributary, it ensured two decades of uninterrupted peace, allowing the Southern Song state to achieve internal stability and open a lucrative trade with Jin. Furthermore, it served to preclude the return of Emperor Qinzong, who remained in captivity in Jin and whose release could have jeopardized Gaozong's claim to the throne. Gaozong and Qin then secured court control over the military, forcing Han Shizhong and the general Zhang Jun into retirement and executing Yue Fei on trumped-up charges. Despite his successes as emperor, Gaozong's treatment of Yue, who was remembered as a culture hero, and his surrender of over half of Song China to the enemy, marred his reputation in both traditional historiography and popular memory. Gaozong, along his father and half-brother, were blamed for the Song dynasty's decline.