Emperor Shenzong of Song

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Emperor Shenzong of Song

Birth and death:	May 25, 1048–1 April 1085
Family name:	Zhào (趙)
Given name:	Zhongzhen (仲鍼), later Xu¹ (頊)
Dates of reign:	26 January 1067–1 April 1085
Temple name:	Shénzōng (神宗)
Posthumous name: (short)	Never used short
Posthumous name: (full)	Emperor Tiyuan Xiandao Fagu Lixian Dide Wanggong Yingwen Liewu Qinren Shengxiao² 體元顯道法古立憲帝德王功英文烈武欽仁聖孝皇帝
General note: Dates given here are in the Julian calendar. They are not in the proleptic Gregorian calendar. ——— 1. His name was changed into Xu in 1063 when his father Yingzong ascended the throne. 2. This is the final version of the posthumous name given in 1113.

Emperor Shenzong (May 25, 1048 – April 1, 1085) was the sixth emperor of Song Dynasty China. His personal name was Zhao Xu. He reigned from 1067 to 1085.

The periods within his reign are Xining (熙寧; xi1 ning2) 1068-1077 and Yuanfeng (元豐; yuan2 feng1) 1078-1085.

During his reign, Shenzong noticed Wang Anshi's policy and appointed Wang as Chancellor. Wang implemented his famous reforms aimed at improving the lot of the working class, which some have seen as a forerunner of the modern welfare state. These acts became the hallmark reform of Shenzong's reign.

Shenzong's other notable act as emperor included his attempts to rid the Song empire of the Tangut Empire by invading and expelling the Xixia forces in Qingzhou (today's Gansu). Shenzong was initially quite successful at these campaigns but during the City of Yongle battle of 1082, Shenzong's forces were defeated. As a result, the Xixia forces grew more powerful and would be a thorn on the side of the Song dynasty in the ensuing decades.

In 1080 he renamed Puji Temple on the island of Putuoshan in Zhejiang province from 不肯去观音院 to 宝陀观音寺, and donated lands to support it.

Shenzong died in 1085 and was succeeded by his son. He was 37. His temple name means "Divine Ancestor".