Taiyuan in the context of "Fen River"

Shanxi is a province in North China. Its capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-level cities are Changzhi and Datong. Its one-character abbreviation is 晋 (Jìn), after the state of Jin that existed there during the Spring and Autumn period (c. 770 – c. 481 BC).

The name Shanxi means 'west of the mountains', a reference to its location west of the Taihang Mountains. Shanxi borders Hebei to the east, Henan to the south, Shaanxi to the west and Inner Mongolia to the north. Shanxi's terrain is characterised by a plateau bounded partly by mountain ranges. Shanxi's culture is largely dominated by the ethnic Han majority, who make up over 99% of its population. Jin Chinese is considered by some linguists to be a distinct language from Mandarin and its geographical range covers most of Shanxi. Both Jin and Mandarin are spoken in Shanxi.

The Jin–Song Wars were a series of conflicts between the Jurchen-led Jin dynasty (1115–1234) and the Han-led Song dynasty (960–1279). In 1115, Jurchen tribes rebelled against their overlords, the Khitan-led Liao dynasty (916–1125), and declared the formation of the Jin. Allying with the Song against their common enemy the Liao dynasty, the Jin promised to cede to the Song the Sixteen Prefectures that had fallen under Liao control since 938. The Song agreed but the Jin's quick defeat of the Liao combined with Song military failures made the Jin reluctant to cede territory. After a series of negotiations that embittered both sides, the Jurchens attacked the Song in 1125, dispatching one army to Taiyuan and the other to Bianjing (modern Kaifeng), the Song capital.

Surprised by news of an invasion, Song general Tong Guan retreated from Taiyuan, which was besieged and later captured. As the second Jin army approached the capital, Song emperor Huizong abdicated and fled south. Qinzong, his eldest son, was enthroned. The Jin dynasty laid siege to Kaifeng in 1126, but Qinzong negotiated their retreat from the capital by agreeing to a large annual indemnity. Qinzong reneged on the deal and ordered Song forces to defend the prefectures instead of fortifying the capital. The Jin resumed war and again besieged Kaifeng in 1127. They captured Qinzong, many members of the imperial family and high officials of the Song imperial court in an event known as the Jingkang Incident. This separated north and south China between Jin and Song. Remnants of the Song imperial family retreated to southern China and, after brief stays in several temporary capitals, eventually relocated to Lin'an (modern Hangzhou). The retreat divided the dynasty into two distinct periods, Northern Song and Southern Song.

Stone lanterns (灯籠/灯篭/灯楼; Chinese: dēnglóng; Japanese: tōrō, meaning 'light basket', 'light tower') are a type of traditional East Asian lantern made of stone, wood, or metal. Originating in China, stone lanterns spread to Japan, Korea and Vietnam, though they are most commonly found in both China – extant in Buddhist temples and traditional Chinese gardens – and Japan. In Japan, tōrō were originally used only in Buddhist temples, where they lined and illuminated paths. Lit lanterns were then considered an offering to Buddha. Their use in Shinto shrines and also private homes started during the Heian period (794–1185).

Stone lanterns have been known in China as early as the Han dynasty (202 BCE–220 CE), and prevailed from the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties all the way up to the Tang Dynasty, when they were introduced to Japan. The earliest known extant stone lantern in China is the Northern Qi (550-577) stone lantern in the remains of Tongzi Temple in Taiyuan, Shanxi. Other early stone lanterns which date from the Tang Dynasty (618-907) remain extant in several temples around China, such as the stone lantern in Faxing Temple in Zhangzi, Shanxi which was built in 773.

Yan Xishan (Chinese: 閻錫山; pinyin: Yán Xīshān; Wade–Giles: Yen Hsi-shan; 8 October 1883 – 23 May 1960; also romanized as Yen Hsi-shan) was a Chinese warlord who served in the government of the Republic of China from June 1949 to March 1950 as its last premier in mainland China and first premier in Taiwan. He effectively controlled the province of Shanxi from the 1911 Xinhai Revolution to the 1949 Communist victory in the Chinese Civil War. He maintained an ambivalent attitude towards the Communists until 1939, and participated in the Second United Front against the Japanese from 1937. He subsequently negotiated with the Japanese from 1940 to 1943, and allied himself with the Japanese against the Communists from 1944 until fleeing Shanxi in 1949. The resistance of his well-armed forces in Taiyuan posed a major obstacle to Communist victory in the Civil War.

As the leader of a relatively small, poor, remote province, he survived Yuan Shikai, the Warlord Era, the Nationalist Era, the Japanese invasion of China and the subsequent civil war, being forced from office only when the Nationalist armies with which he was aligned had completely lost control of the Chinese mainland, isolating Shanxi from any source of economic or military supply. He has been viewed by Western biographers as a transitional figure who advocated using Western technology to protect Chinese traditions, while at the same time reforming older political, social and economic conditions in a way that paved the way for the radical changes that would occur after his rule.

Changzhi (Chinese: 长治; pinyin: Chángzhì) is a prefecture-level city in the southeast of Shanxi Province, China, bordering the provinces of Hebei and Henan to the northeast and east, respectively. Historically, the city was one of the 36 administrative areas (see Administrative Divisions of Qin Dynasty) extant under the reign of Qin Shi Huang.

Changzhi is a transportation centre in Shanxi. Transportation is facilitated by four controlled-access highways (Taiyuan-Changzhi, Changzhi-Jincheng, Changzhi-Linfen, and Changzhi-Handan); two railways (Taiyuan–Jiaozuo Railway and Handan–Changzhi Railway); three national highways (China National Highway 207, 208 and 309); and Changzhi Wangcun Airport (ITAT Code: CIH, ICAO Code: ZBCZ). Internal transportation also includes a bus and taxi network.

Emperor Taizong of Tang (28 January 598 – 10 July 649), previously Prince of Qin, personal name Li Shimin, was the second emperor of the Tang dynasty of China, ruling from 626 to 649. He is traditionally regarded as a co-founder of the dynasty for his role in encouraging his father Li Yuan (Emperor Gaozu) to rebel against the Sui dynasty at Jinyang in 617. Taizong subsequently played a pivotal role in defeating several of the dynasty's most dangerous opponents and solidifying its rule over China proper.

Taizong is considered to be one of the greatest emperors in China's history, and henceforth his reign became regarded as the exemplary model for which all future emperors were measured. His era, the "Reign of Zhenguan" (Chinese: 貞觀之治; pinyin: Zhēnguàn Zhī Zhì) is considered a golden age in ancient Chinese history and was treated as required studying material for future crown princes. Taizong continued to develop imperial examination systems. He asked his officials to be loyal to policies, not people, in order to eliminate corruption. Under the Zhenguan era, Tang China flourished economically and militarily. For more than a century after his death, China enjoyed prosperity and peace brought about by the solidification of imperial protection over the Chinese regions. In territorial extent, it covered most of the territories previously held by the Han dynasty as well as parts of modern-day Korea, Vietnam, Russia, Mongolia, Xinjiang, and Central Asia. This era of consolidation and conquest laid the foundation for Xuanzong's reign, which is considered to be the height of the Tang dynasty.

Bingzhou, or Bing Province, was a location in ancient China. According to legend, when Yu the Great (c. 2200 BC–2100 BC) tamed the flood, he divided the land of China into the Nine Provinces. Historical texts such as the Rites of Zhou, and "Treatise on Geography" section (volume 28) of the Book of Han, recorded that Bingzhou was one of the Nine Provinces. Bingzhou covered roughly the areas around present-day Baoding, Hebei, and Taiyuan and Datong in Shanxi.