The drama is based on the historical Dowager Queen Empress Cheonchu of the Goryeo, who fought against the Liao Dynasty in order to achieve her Grandmother's personal dream of reclaiming old lands lost over the years to other associated tribes and countries such as the Khitans and some Jurchens.
Haixi Jurchens, group of the Jurchens as identified by the Chinese of the Ming Dynasty
According to a famous tale, the ancestors of Irgen Gioros were the Emperor Huizong, Qinzong and other royal family members of Song Dynasty who was captured by the Jurchens in the Jingkang Incident of the Jin–Song wars.
Various ethnic groups and their respective kingdoms, including the Sushen, Donghu, Xianbei, Wuhuan, Mohe, Khitan and Jurchens have risen to power in Manchuria.
Taking advantage of the situation, Myo Cheong purposed to attack the Jurchens and that moving the capital to Pyongyang would assure success.
Wushi was fascinated by Chinese classics, and collected a large library when Jurchens seized and looted the capital of the Northern Song Dynasty, Pianjing (now Kaifeng), in the Jin–Song wars.
The bureaucracy system created by Kublai Khan reflected various cultures in the empire, including that of the Han Chinese, Khitans, Jurchens, Mongols and Tibetan Buddhists.