This is a timeline of the Song dynasty (960–1279). The Song dynasty was founded by Zhao Kuangyin, posthumously known as Emperor Taizu of Song, who ended the period of division known as the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. The Song dynasty is commonly separated into two historical periods, the Northern Song (960–1127) and the Southern Song (1127–1278), divided by the loss of the north to the Jurchen Jin dynasty (1115–1234). In 1279, the Mongol Yuan dynasty conquered the Song.
10th century
960s Year Date Event 960 February Zhao Kuangyin declares himself Emperor Taizu of Song, replacing Later Zhou 963 Song conquers tang Song dynasty introduces the appointment by protection system, which allows high officials to nominate their sons, grandsons, and nephews for the civil service 965 Song conquest of Later Shu: Song conquers Later Shu Tao Gu provides the first written documentation of using cormorants for fishing 967 Long Yanyao of Nanning, the Yang clan of Bo Prefecture, and the Tian clan of Si Prefecture submit to the Song dynasty in return for their autonomy Song dynasty recognizes the Bole of the Luodian kingdom, the Mangbu of the Badedian kingdom, and the Awangren of the Yushi kingdom 968 Vietnamese king Đinh Bộ Lĩnh of the Đinh dynasty unites the kingdom and renames it to Đại Cồ Việt 969 Gunpowder propelled fire arrows, rocket arrows, are invented by Yue Yifang and Feng Jisheng.
970s Year Date Event 971 Song conquest of Southern Han: Song conquers Southern Han - marks the last time elephants are used in Chinese warfare 972 Emperor Taizu of Song recognized the independence of Vietnamese kingdom Đại Cồ Việt with establishing the nominate tributary relation 974 The earliest natural history of pharmaceuticals, the Kaibao Bencao, is printed The Mo clan of Nandan submits to Song authority 975 Song conquest of Southern Tang: Song conquers Southern Tang Emperor Taizu of Song tries to convince Pugui of the Mu'ege Kingdom situated in northwest, central, east, and southeast Guizhou to acquiesce to Song overlordship 976 14 November Emperor Taizu of Song dies and his brother Zhao Guangyi succeeds him as Emperor Taizong of Song Song dynasty and aboriginal allies in Guizhou attack the Mu'ege Kingdom, forcing them to retreat to Dafang County 977 The price ratio of iron to rice reaches 632:100 978 Song conquers Wuyue 979 Song conquest of Northern Han: Song conquers Northern Han Battle of Gaoliang River: Song dynasty invades Liao dynasty and is defeated
980s Year Date Event 980 Emperor Jingzong of Liao invades the Song dynasty and retakes territory in Hebei Long Yanyao's grandson Long Qiongju presents tribute to the Emperor Taizong of Song 981 Battle of Bạch Đằng (981): Song dynasty invades Đại Cồ Việt (Early Lê dynasty) with initial success but is ambushed and the campaign ends with Lê Hoàn accepting Song suzerainty 982 Jiqian's rebellion: Li Jipeng of the Dingnan Jiedushi surrenders to the Song, but his cousin Li Jiqian rebels 983 The complete 130,000 block print edition of the Tripiṭaka Buddhist Canon, the Kaibao Canon 開寶藏) is finished 984 Qiao Weiyue invents the pound lock 986 Song dynasty attacks the Khitans but is defeated
990s Year Date Event 993 A drought hits Sichuan and peasant rebellions break out 994 Jiqian's rebellion: Song dynasty deposes Li Jiqian Earliest record of promissory note 995 Rebellions in Sichuan are suppressed Long Hanyao of Nanning presents tribute to the Song court 996 Jiqian's rebellion: Li Jiqian rebels with Tanguts and raids Song supplies 997 9 May Emperor Taizong of Song dies and his son Zhao Heng becomes Emperor Zhenzong of Song 998 Khitans invade the Song dynasty Jiqian's rebellion: Song dynasty legitimizes Li Jiqian as governor of Dingnan Jiedushi Long Hanyao of Nanning presents tribute to the Song court
11th century
1000s Year Date Event 1000 Khitan forces retreat from the Song dynasty after failing to take key cities Zhuang rebels attack Yongzhou but the attack is defeated by Zhuang troops of the Song-allied Huang clan Tang Fu demonstrates gunpowder pots and caltrops to the Song court and is rewarded. Chinese discover that magnetic north and true north are not the same 1001 Tanguts capture Ordos Khitans attack the Song dynasty but are repulsed Zhuang rebels calling themselves the Troops of Chen (chenbing) rebel in Yizhou. Their leader, Su Chengzhun, is defeated three months later. 1002 Shi Pu demonstrates fireballs utilizing gunpowder to the Song court and blueprints are created for promulgation throughout the realm. 1003 Khitans invade the Song dynasty and retreat without making permanent gains 1004 Emperor Shengzong of Liao conducts a full-scale invasion of the Song dynasty which ends in stalemate A banquet is held for a Nong chieftain in Song territory, leading to military retaliation from Đại Cồ Việt 1005 January Chanyuan Treaty: The Song dynasty agrees to pay the Khitans an annual tribute of silk and silver 1009 Emperor Zhenzong of Song introduces quotas on degrees awarded Song dynasty modifies the appointment by protection system by requiring candidates to study at the Directorate of Education and sit the examination, which passes at least 50 percent of them
1010s Year Date Event 1010 Tanguts request famine relief from the Song 1012 Song court sponsors the propagation of the early maturing Champa rice, allowing rice to be harvested twice a year 1014 King Lý Thái Tổ of the Lý dynasty that ruled Đại Việt sends 100 Dali horses to Song court as gifts 1016 Locusts plague the Song capital of Kaifeng 1017 Đại Cồ Việt raids the Song dynasty 1018 Yellow River dikes collapse
1020s Year Date Event 1021 Agricultural land reaches 13 percent of Song state territory 1022 23 March Emperor Zhenzong of Song dies and his son succeeds him as Emperor Renzong of Song; Empress Liu becomes regent 1023 Song dynasty establishes a Bureau for Exchange Bills in Chengdu after craftsmen, artisans, and farmers reject the replacement of the smaller copper coins with heavy iron coins Song dynasty starts circulating exchange bills, each worth 1,256,340 strings of cash per 3-year circulation period 1024 Earliest known extant printing block for paper money, the jiaozi 1026 Torrential rains damage the Yellow River dikes and cause widespread flooding in the Song capital of Kaifeng 1027 Repairs on the Yellow River dikes are finished
1030s Year Date Event 1033 Empress Liu's regency ends as she dies Drought hits northern China 1034 Li Yuanhao of the Tanguts raids Song dynasty 1036 Unprecedented spread of literati culture throughout society compels the Song court to promulgate sumptuary regulations for citizens of Kaifeng Song civil service doubles in size All officials, their sons and grandsons, are relieved from obligations to serve as village officers Đại Cồ Việt raids the Song dynasty 1037 Earthquake kills 12,000 people, injures 5,600, and kills or injures 50,000 cattle around Kaifeng 1038 10 November Li Yuanhao declares himself Emperor Jingzong of Western Xia The Meng clan (Zhuang people) in Yizhou of Guangnan West Circuit rebels and is suppressed 1039 Western Xia attacks Song dynasty but is repulsed Famine strikes north China
1040s Year Date Event 1040 Song-Xia War (1040–1044): Western Xia invades Song dynasty 1041 Song-Xia War (1040–1044): Western Xia defeats a Song army and kills 6,000 Movable type is invented by Bi Sheng 1042 Song-Xia War (1040–1044): Western Xia conducts a full-scale invasion of the Song dynasty but is repelled Song-Xia War (1040–1044): Khitans force the Song dynasty to increase annual tribute to 200,000 taels of silver and 300,000 bolts of silk Song dynasty appoints Degai of the Mu'ege Kingdom as regional inspector 1043 The Yao people of Guiyang rebel Emperor Renzong of Song enacts the Confucian Qingli Reforms and schools are established at prefectures with sufficient number of students The School of Four Gates opens - it provides students with a 500-day education, stipends, meals, a place in the dormitory, and exemption from the prefectural examinations 1044 Song-Xia War (1040–1044): Western Xia and Song dynasty cease hostilities Ou Xifan of the Ou clan rebels to the northwest of Yizhou in Guangnan West Circuit. Ou Xifan declares the Great Tang and wages war on the Song. He is caught a year later and executed by vivisection. Rebellions break out in Sichuan The chemical formula for gunpowder appears in the military manual Wujing Zongyao, also known as the Complete Essentials for the Military Classics. "Thunderclap bombs" are mentioned in the Wujing Zongyao. A "triple-bed-crossbow" firing fire arrows is mentioned in the Wujing Zongyao. Earliest recorded use of the compass for navigation 1046 Proportion of jinshi degree holders in the Song dynasty bureaucracy reach a third of all total bureaucratic positions 1047 Drought hits northern China 1048 Wang Ze rebels in Hebei and is suppressed 1049 Nong Zhigao rebellions: Nong Zhigao of the Zhuang people rebels in Guangnan West Circuit Rebellions in Sichuan are suppressed The Iron Pagoda is completed
1050s Year Date Event 1051 The Yao rebellion of Guiyang is suppressed 1053 Nong Zhigao rebellions: Nong Zhigao's rebellion is suppressed 1055 Peng Shixi rebels in Jinghu 1056 Heavy rains overload the Yellow River, causing widespread flooding and a major shift in the river's course 1058 Rebellion breaks out in Yongzhou Peng Shixi's rebellion is suppressed 1059 The Luoyang Bridge (Quanzhou) is completed
1060s Year Date Event 1061 The rebellion in Yongzhou is suppressed 1063 30 April Emperor Renzong of Song dies and his cousin Zhao Zongshi succeeds him as Emperor Yingzong of Song 1064 Yizong raids: Western Xia raids Song dynasty 1065 fall Kaifeng experiences massive floods 1066 Yizong raids: Western Xia raids Song dynasty The Song court starts holding jinshi examinations triennially, a decision that would endure until 1905 1067 25 January Emperor Yingzong of Song dies and his son Zhao Xu succeeds him as Emperor Shenzong of Song Private trade of gunpowder ingredients is banned in the Song dynasty. 1068 Enrollment in the School of Four Gates reaches 900 Huang Huaixin starts planning the construction of dry docks
1070s Year Date Event 1070 Western Xia attacks the Song dynasty The Song court carries out water-control and land reclamation projects which reclaim 38,829,799 acres of agricultural land Annual copper production in the Song dynasty reaches 12,982 tons, more than the total global production in 1800 The first jinshi imperial examinations to emphasize statecraft over poetry are held 1072 Song dynasty starts colonizing the Qinghai region, taking control of Wushengjun 1075 Lý–Song War: Lý Thường Kiệt and Nùng Tông Đán of the Lý dynasty that ruled Đại Việt invade the Song dynasty, capturing Qinzhou, Lianzhou, and destroying Yongzhou before retreating Shen Kuo describes the process of making steel using repeated forging under a cold blast for "partial decarbonization", considered by some historians to be a direct predecessor of the Bessemer process 1076 autumn Lý–Song War: Guo Kui of the Song dynasty invades Đại Việt (Lý dynasty) and pushes to the Cầu River, where the war reaches a stalemate Trade of gunpowder ingredients with the Liao and Western Xia dynasties is outlawed by the Song court 1077 Lý–Song War: Đại Việt (Lý dynasty) becomes a Song tributary in return for the withdraw of Song troops 1078 Annual iron production in the Song dynasty reaches 125,000 tons and becomes the largest iron industry in the world, an achievement that lasts until 1796 during the industrial revolution in England and Wales; per capita iron production reaches 3.1 pound, the world's highest per capita iron production until 1700 in Western Europe 1079 Lý–Song War: Song dynasty gives up claims to Cao Bằng and Lạng Sơn in return for Song captives
1080s