Reign

Left to deal with the Jin invasion by himself, Emperor Qinzong appointed the general Li Gang (李綱) to lead the Song military to fend off the invaders. However, Emperor Qinzong was not a decisive leader and often made poor judgments. Eventually, he removed Li Gang from his appointment in the hope of starting peace talks with the Jin Empire and sent his younger brother Zhao Gou to negotiate but he was captured and ransomed. This may contribute to Emperor Gaozong's decision to not rescue Qinzong. The first siege of Bianjing ended after Qinzong gave a city to the Jurchens and paid them annual tribute. Emperor Huizong returned after hearing that the siege was over.

Causes of the Second Siege of Bianjing

Despite this, almost as soon as the Jin armies had left Kaifeng, Emperor Qinzong reneged on the deal and dispatched two armies to repel the Jurchen troops attacking Taiyuan and bolster the defenses of Zhongshan and Hejian. An army of 90,000 soldiers and another of 60,000 were defeated by Jin forces by June. A second expedition to rescue Taiyuan was also unsuccessful. Emperor Qinzong rejected an proposal to reinforce the northern borders reasoning that they may never come back and sent his generals to other parts of the country. The Jin imperial court sent two ambassadors to Song. The two ambassadors were nobles from the former Liao dynasty. Emperor Qinzong misjudged the situation and believed that they could be used to turn against the Jin ruler, Emperor Taizong. Emperor Qinzong sent a coded letter which was sealed in candle wax, inviting them to join Song to form an Anti–Jin alliance but the ambassadors handed the letter to Emperor Taizong and in retaliation, accused Emperor Qinzong for violating the peace treaty and sent an even bigger army against the Song.

Capture

Since Qinzong mistakenly removed the army to post in different parts of the country, the Jin forces eventually breached the walls of the Song capital, Bianjing, in 1127 and occupied the city in an event historically known as the Jingkang Incident ("Jingkang" was the era name of Emperor Qinzong.) Emperor Qinzong, along with his father Emperor Huizong and the rest of their family, were taken prisoner by Jin forces, marking the end of the Northern Song. Qinzong's brother Zhao Gou managed to escape to southern China, where he reestablished the empire as the Southern Song dynasty and became historically known as Emperor Gaozong.

Life in the Jin Dynasty

Emperor Qinzong and his father were demoted to the status of commoners on 20 March 1127 and deported to Huining Prefecture, the Jin capital, on 13 May 1127. In 1128, the two former Song emperors were forced to wear mourning dresses and pay homage to the ancestors of the Jin Emperors at their ancestral temple in Huining Prefecture. Furthermore, the Jurchen ruler, Emperor Taizong, gave the two former Song emperors contemptuous titles to humiliate them: Emperor Qinzong was called "Marquis Chonghun" (重昏侯; literally "Doubly Muddle-headed Marquis") while Emperor Huizong was called "Duke Hunde" (昏德公; literally "Muddle-headed Duke").

In 1141, as the Jin Empire normalised relations with the (Southern) Song Empire, the Jurchens renamed Emperor Qinzong's title to the more neutral-sounding "Duke of Tianshui Commandery" (天水郡公), which is based on a commandery located in the upper reaches of the Wei River. A few months later, the former emperor started receiving a stipend due to his nobility status. He lived the rest of his life as a captive in the Jin Empire, which used him as a hostage to put pressure on the Song Empire.

In 1142, Emperor Gaozong signed the Treaty of Shaoxing which made peace with the Jin Dynasty. This destroyed Qinzong's chance of returning.

In 1156, in an act of humiliation, the Jin Emperor who at the time was the Prince of Hailing ordered him and the former Emperor Tianzuo of Liao to compete in a match of polo. Emperor Qinzong was weak and frail, thus quickly fell off the horse. Emperor Tianzuo himself despite being very old, was more familiar to horse riding, tried to escape but was shot to death by Jurchen archers.

Emperor Qinzong died as a sick and broken man in 1161 having spent two-thirds of his life in the Jin Dynasty. He was 61. His temple name means "Venerate Ancestor".

Family

Consorts and Issue:

• Empress Renhuai, of the Zhu clan (仁懷皇后 朱氏; 1102–1127)

　• Zhao Chen, Crown Prince (皇太子 趙諶; 1117–1128), first son

　• Princess Roujia (柔嘉公主; b. 1121)

• Defei, of the Zhu clan (慎德妃 朱氏; 1110–1142)

　• Zhao Jin (趙謹; b. 1127), second son

　• A daughter (b. 1130)

• Cairen, of the Zheng clan (才人 鄭氏), personal name Qingyun (慶雲)

　• Zhao Xun (趙訓; b. 1129), third son

• Cairen, of the Di clan (才人 狄氏; b. 1114), personal name Yuhui (玉輝)

　• A daughter (b. 1129)

Ancestry

生平經歷

靖康之恥

元符三年（1100年）四月十三日，生于坤寧殿。七月，賜名亶、授檢校太尉、山南東道節度使、封韓國公，建中靖國元年（1101年）六月，遷興德軍節度使、開府儀同三司、進封京兆郡王。崇寧元年（1103年）二月甲午，賜名烜，十一月丁亥，賜名桓。大觀二年（1108年）正月，遷司空、武昌軍節度使、進封定王。政和元年（1111年）三月，講學于資善堂。三年（1113年）正月，加太保。四年（1114年）二月癸酉，在文德殿加冠。五年（1115年）二月乙巳，立為皇太子，大赦天下。丁巳，謁太廟。詔乘金輅，設鹵簿，如至道、天禧故事，宮僚參謁、稱臣，都辭讓。六年（1116年）六月癸未，納朱氏為太子妃。宣和七年（1125年）十二月，除開封府牧。

北宋末年，金朝南侵。趙桓受父宋徽宗禪讓後即位為皇帝，是為宋欽宗，改元靖康。徽宗稱太上皇，率親信蔡京、童貫等人逃奔江南。欽宗即位後立刻貶被稱為奸臣的蔡京、童貫等人，然後重用李綱抗金，一度令金軍有北返之意。後來欽宗聽從奸臣讒言，罷免了李綱，向金朝求和，加上在背後受徽宗牽制，作用有限。欽宗裝作恭順迎接太上皇回京後即貶去太上皇左右，軟禁太上皇于龍德宮，因為對太上皇懷有戒心，甚至在太上皇過壽時連太上皇敬的酒都不喝，氣得太上皇哭著回宮。欽宗亦將蔡京、童貫等「六賊」皆貶殺。

但欽宗在抗金時戰和不定，又寫密信交給金使蕭仲恭意圖策反降金的原遼將耶律余睹，給了金朝再度發難的理由。金朝趁此機會再次南下渡黃河再次包圍宋京東京（今開封）。宋欽宗誤信宰相何慄、樞密使孫傅，以為無賴郭京可以用神兵退敵，提拔郭京，並撤去東京外城守備讓郭京用神兵退敵，郭京大敗，金軍趁機攻破東京外城，同時又放言和談讓欽宗心存幻想。欽宗率大臣親赴金營和談，金軍趁機派蕭慶入住北宋尚書省。欽宗在上表投降稱藩及同意召在外的皇弟康王趙構回京並廢除其大元帥頭銜等條件後被放回，蕭慶則以北宋朝廷名義搜刮錢物滿足金軍所需。靖康二年（1127年）正月，欽宗再赴金營求和，被扣押，金軍以放回欽宗為條件繼續向北宋索要財物，宋將范瓊等將太上皇、欽宗太子趙諶及后妃、親王、公主等交給金軍作為抵債，史稱靖康之變。

北宋靖康二年（金朝天會五年）二月初六（1127年3月20日），金太宗下詔廢徽、欽二帝，貶為庶人，強行脫去二帝龍袍，隨行的李若水抱著欽宗身體，嚴斥金人為狗賊之輩，金人將其割喉殘忍殺害，並冊封張邦昌為帝，國號大楚，他成為亡國之君，立國一百六十八年的北宋滅亡。

金國拘禁

七月，二帝被俘北上，遷到燕京，天會六年（1128年）八月二十一日抵達金上京會寧府。二十四日，二帝著素服跪拜金太祖廟，行「牽羊禮」，在乾元殿拜謁金太宗完顏吳乞買。金太宗封宋徽宗為昏德公，欽宗為重昏侯，十月，二帝遷往韓州（吉林省梨樹縣北偏臉城）。天會八年（1130年）七月，又將二帝遷到五國城（今黑龍江省依蘭縣城北舊古城）軟禁。

八年後，天會十三年（紹興五年，1135年）四月，徽宗病死於五國城。

天眷三年（1140年），金主戰派完顏宗弼率領金國軍隊南侵，先在開封正南的順昌敗于劉錡所部的「八字軍」，再于開封西南的郾城和潁昌，在金國女真精銳部隊所拿手的騎兵對陣中兩次敗于岳飛的岳家軍，只在開封東南面的淮西亳州、宿州一帶戰勝了宋軍中最弱的張俊一軍，在宋高宗以「十二道金牌」敕召回岳家軍前，金軍已被壓縮到汴梁東部和北部。完顏宗弼開始轉向接受與宋議和。

皇統元年（1141年） 二月，金熙宗為與南宋達成完顏宗弼期望中的和議，將死去的徽宗追封為天水郡王，將欽宗封為天水郡公。第一提高了級別，原來封徽宗為二品昏德公，追封為王升為一品，原封欽宗為三品重昏侯，現封為公升為二品。第二是去掉了原封號中的侮辱含義。第三是以趙姓天水郡望作為封號，以示尊重。同時南宋朝廷解除了岳飛、韓世忠、劉錡、楊沂中等將的兵權，為《紹興和議》做好了準備。十一月間，宋、金為《紹興和議》達成書面協議。十二月末除夕夜（1142年1月27日），宋高宗在餘杭風波亭賜死了岳飛，據《宋史》記載是為了滿足議和所設前提。

紹興十二年（1142年）三月，宋金《紹興和議》徹底完成所有手續。夏四月丁卯（1142年5月1日），宋高宗生母韋賢妃同徽宗棺槨歸宋。離行時，欽宗挽住她的車輪，請她轉告高宗，若能回去，他絕對不爭權，不當皇帝，只要當個「太乙宮」之主就滿足了。韋賢妃哭著說，如果我看不到你回來，我寧願眼睛瞎掉算了。宋高宗曾提出欽宗南歸，金朝也答應了，高宗令臨安府為欽宗修宮殿；但金朝出現政局變動，執政者完顏兀朮等反悔。紹興十六年（1146年）即皇統六年，何鑄出使金朝請求放回欽宗及宗室，亦遭拒絕。兀朮臨終說：一旦對宋作戰不利，可以讓天水郡公坐鎮汴京，那時作為弟弟的高宗就沒有與兄長爭位的道理，金朝也可以打著輔佐欽宗的名義討伐高宗。而韋太后晚年果真因眼疾而雙目俱盲，後遇道人治癒一眼，另一眼則因道人曰：「后以一目視，足矣。以一目存誓，可也。」而未獲醫治。

去世

南宋紹興二十六年（金朝正隆元年，1156年）六月，宋欽宗去世。關于死因眾說紛紜，有指欽宗是病死。另據《大宋宣和遺事》記載，金朝皇帝完顏亮叫57歲的欽宗和81歲的遼天祚帝耶律延禧去比賽馬球，宋欽宗從馬上跌下來，被馬亂踐而死。

宋紹興三十一年（金正隆六年，1161年），欽宗的死訊才傳到南宋，宋高宗發喪。欽宗死後，高宗再無後顧之憂，因而翌年傳位于宋孝宗。

人物評價

• 元朝官修正史《宋史》脫脫等的評價是：「帝在東宮，不見失德。及其踐阼，聲技音樂一無所好。靖康初政，能正王黼、朱勔等罪而竄殛之，故金人聞帝內禪，將有卷甲北旆之意矣。惜其亂勢已成，不可救藥，君臣相視，又不能同力協謀，以濟斯難，惴惴然講和之不暇。卒致父子淪胥，社稷蕪茀。帝至于是，蓋亦巽懦而不知義者歟！享國日淺，而受禍至深，考其所自，真可悼也夫！真可悼也夫！」

• 《靖康稗史》金國方面所記錄的俘虜供詞：二王令成棣譯詢宮中事：……少帝賢，務讀書。不邇聲色。受禪半年，無以備執事，乃立一妃、十夫人，僅三人得幸。自余儉德，不可舉數。

家庭成員

祖先

妻妾

• 朱皇后，原為皇太子妃，因自殺而被金世宗追封為靖康郡貞節夫人，後被宋寧宗追封為皇后。

• 朱慎德妃，僅見於《靖康稗史箋證》。

• 才人鄭慶雲，被押運到金國後因其懷孕而發還給欽宗。

• 才人韓靜觀，被押運到金國時已懷孕，後入寶山大王寨成為完顏斜保的姬妾。

• 才人劉月娥

• 才人盧順淑，入寶山大王寨成為完顏斜保的姬妾。

• 才人何風齡

• 才人狄玉輝，被押運到金國後因其懷孕而發還給欽宗。

子女

• 皇太子趙諶，母為朱皇后

• 趙謹，建炎元年九月初六日生，母慎德妃（《靖康稗史箋証·呻吟語》）。

• 趙訓，建炎三年七月初六日生于金國，母鄭夫人（《靖康稗史箋証·呻吟語》），「訓乃北地所生」（《宋史·宗室》）。

• 柔嘉公主，靖康之難隨欽宗到五國城

• 趙氏，生于金國，母才人狄玉輝

• 趙氏，生于金國，母慎德妃（《靖康稗史箋証·呻吟語》）

授予官職

宰相

• 何慄

• 張邦昌

女官

• 夫人⁹

　• 戚小玉

　• 劉月宮

　• 蔣長金

　• 鮑春蝶

• 內宰

　• 宋淑媛。

• 副宰

　• 田蕓芳。

• 內史

　• 曹妙婉。

　• 卜女盂

　• 席進士

　• 程巧

　• 俞玩月

　• 黃勤

• 尚儀

　• 徐金五

• 許春雲

• 尚服

　• 周男兒

　• 徐寶蓮

• 尚食

　• 何紅梅

　• 楊調兒

• 尚寢

　• 方芳香

　• 陳文婉

• 尚功

　• 沈知禮

　• 葉壽星

• 宮正

　• 華正儀

• 使令

　• 呂吉祥

　• 褚月奴

　• 駱蝶兒

　• 顧頑童

　• 芮秀

　• 嚴鶯簧

　• 姜田田

　• 衛貓兒

影視形象

• 1986年《盜日英雄傳》新加坡製作30集電視劇（安哲明飾）。

• 2013年《精忠岳飛》鞠覺亮執導電視劇（程武飾）。

註釋