# Nanzhao kingdom founded (738 CE)

URL: https://allhistories.com/myanmar/timeline/738-nanzhao-kingdom-founded
Location: Taihe, near Dali, Yunnan
Themes: Nanzhao, Yunnan, China

Nanzhao was founded in 738 when a ruler united the six zhao, or tribal polities, around Lake Erhai in present-day Yunnan and received a Tang title for the state. Its capital was at Taihe, near modern Dali. It began as a Tang ally, but relations soured and war broke out in 750. Nanzhao repelled major Tang invasions in 751 and 754 and joined the Tibetan Empire's campaigns until it broke with Tibet in 794. It then built walled cities in the Hkamti Long area, partly to guard against Tibet and partly to reach the Pyu city-states of the Irrawaddy valley. By 808 its ruler claimed the title of lord of the Pyu, and the kingdom destroyed Halin in 832. Nanzhao ended in 902, when its chief minister murdered the royal family, and successor states followed, including the Dali Kingdom. Its raids weakened the Pyu and cleared a path for Burman settlement, so the kingdom's rise is a precondition for much of the later history of the Irrawaddy valley. At this point in the timeline (738 CE), the Irrawaddy plains had no continuous king list: they were home to the Pyu city-states of Beikthano, Halin and Sri Ksetra, whose rulers are known only from a few inscriptions and Chinese records (c. 200 BCE – c. 846 CE). The main location of this event lies outside present-day Myanmar.

## Why it matters
Nanzhao's rise created the military power that destroyed the Pyu city-states and opened the Irrawaddy valley to Burman settlement.

Ruler at the Time: [Pyu city-states (no continuous king list)](https://allhistories.com/myanmar/rulers/pyu-city-states)

## Sources
- [Wikipedia — Nanzhao](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nanzhao)
- [Wikipedia — Pyu city-states](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyu_city-states)