Zhou Dynasty
Contents |
Zhou Dynasty
Kingdom
←
1045 BC–256 BC
→
Capital Haojing, Luoyang
Language(s) Chinese
Religion Chinese folk religion, Hundred Schools of Thought
Government Monarchy/Feudalism
History
- Battle of Muye 1045 BC
- Disestablished 256 BC
Population
- 273 BC est. 30,000,000
- 230 BC est. 38,000,000
Currency Mostly spade coins and knife coins
Zhou Dynasty
Chinese 周朝
Transliterations
Mandarin
- Hanyu Pinyin Zhōu Cháo
- Wade–Giles Chou Ch`ao
Cantonese
- IPA tʂóu tʂʰɑ̌ʊ
ANCIENT
3 Sovereigns and 5 Emperors
Xia Dynasty 2100–1600 BC
Shang Dynasty 1600–1046 BC
Zhou Dynasty 1045–256 BC
Western Zhou
Eastern Zhou
Spring and Autumn Period
Warring States Period
IMPERIAL
Qin Dynasty 221 BC–206 BC
Han Dynasty 206 BC–220 AD
Western Han
Xin Dynasty
Eastern Han
Three Kingdoms 220–280
Wei, Shu & Wu
Jin Dynasty 265–420
Western Jin 16 Kingdoms
304–439
Eastern Jin
Southern & Northern Dynasties
420–589
Sui Dynasty 581–618
Tang Dynasty 618–907
( Second Zhou 690–705 )
5 Dynasties &
10 Kingdoms
907–960 Liao Dynasty
907–1125
Song Dynasty
960–1279
Northern Song W. Xia
Southern Song Jin
Yuan Dynasty 1271–1368
Ming Dynasty 1368–1644
Qing Dynasty 1644–1911
MODERN
Republic of China 1912–1949
People's Republic
of China
1949–present
Republic
of China
(Taiwan)
1945–present
The Zhou Dynasty (1045-256 BC) followed the Shang Dynasty and was followed by the Qin Dynasty in China. The Zhou dynasty lasted longer than any other dynasty in Chinese history — though the actual political and military control of China by the dynasty only lasted during the Western Zhou period. During the Zhou Dynasty, the use of iron was introduced to China, while this period of Chinese history produced what many consider the zenith of Chinese bronze-ware making. The dynasty also spans the period in which the written script evolved from the ancient stage as seen in early Western Zhou bronze inscriptions, to the beginnings of the modern stage, in the form of the archaic clerical script that emerged during the late Warring States period.
During the Zhou Dynasty, the origins of native Chinese philosophy developed, its initial stages beginning in the 6th century BC. The greatest Chinese philosophers, those who made the greatest impact on later generations of Chinese, were Confucius, founder of Confucianism, and Laozi, founder of Taoism. Other philosophers, theorists, and schools of thought in this era were Mozi, founder of Mohism; Mencius, a famous Confucian who expanded upon Confucius' legacy; Shang Yang and Han Feizi, responsible for the development of ancient Chinese Legalism (the core philosophy of the Qin Dynasty); and Xunzi, who was arguably the center of ancient Chinese intellectual life during his time, even more so than iconic intellectual figures such as Mencius.
History
Early history
According to legend, during the reign of the Emperor Yao (c 2358 - 2258 BC), Jiang Yuan stepped on the footprint of the high god Di and gave birth to Hou Ji, the Lord of Millet, who taught his people to grow crops. His son Buku is said to have lived during the later Xia Dynasty (c 2072-1600 BC). Buku's grandson was Gong Liu and after eight generations comes the semi-historical Gu Gong Danfu, also known as Tai Wang or Great King. At this time, the Zhou clan said to have lived in a place near the Rong and Di barbarians called Bin, which may be near Linfen on the Fen River in Shanxi. Oracle bones mention a state called Zhou near the Fen river that fought the Shang around 1180 BC. Gu Gong Danfu led his people over the mountains to the middle Wei River valley where they built a town near Mount Qi. His son, Jili, fought many wars along the Wei and Fen rivers against the Rong as a vassal of the Shang Dynasty king Wen Ding (1116-1107 or 1112-1102 BC) until the king killed him. Jili's son Chang apparently ruled for a while but was arrested by King Di Xin of Shang and held for seven years. About 1060 BC he was ransomed and given the exclusive right to conduct wars to the west of Shang. About 1053 BC he took the title of King Wen of Zhou and captured the states of Qi or Li near Changzhi and Yu near Qinyang. This gave him control of southeast Shanxi, threatened the Shang capital to the east and made the Yellow River corridor to the south the strategic key. He moved the capital downstream to Fenghao near present Xi'an. He died during or after another campaign probably near Luoyang near the Yellow River and was followed by his son King Wu of Zhou. In a seeming demonstration of strength, King Wu led an army down the south bank of the Yellow River to the Mengjin ford where he met with 800 local lords and then turned back. Two years later, in 1046 BC, he led 45,000 men and 300 chariots down the same route, crossed the Yellow River and conquered the Shang dynasty at the Battle of Muye.
Western Zhou (1046-771 BC)
The dynasty was successful for about seventy-five years and then slowly lost power. The former Shang lands were divided into hereditary fiefs which became increasingly independent of the king. The change from Western to Eastern Zhou came in 771 BC when barbarians fought and drove the Zhou out of the Wei River Valley and real power of the Zhou Dynasty passed from the king to his vassals.
King Wu died two or three years after the conquest. He was followed by his young son King Cheng of Zhou (1042-1021 BC). The regency was taken by Wu's brother Zhou Gong Dan. Wu's other brothers, including Shu Du of Cai, who were ruling the newly conquered lands in the east, rebelled. Zhou Gong Dan defeated the rebellion and continued east bringing a number of other peoples under Zhou rule. Various royal relatives and generals were given fiefs in the east, including Luoyang, Jin, Ying, Lu, Qi and Yan. Many of these became major states when the dynasty weakened. The remainder of his reign and that of his son King Kang of Zhou (1021-996) seems to have been peaceful and prosperous.
The fourth king, King Zhao of Zhou (996-977 BC) led an army south against Chu and was killed along with a large part of the Zhou army. The fifth king, King Mu of Zhou (977-922 BC) is remembered for his legendary visit to the Queen Mother of the West. Territory was lost to the Xu Rong in the southeast. The kingdom seems to have weakened during his long reign. One possible reason is that the fiefs that were originally held by royal brothers were now held by third and fourth cousins. The reigns of kings six through nine (Gong, Yi, Xiao and a second Yi) (922-878 BC) are poorly documented. The eighth king may have been a usurper. The ninth king is said to have boiled the Duke of Qi in a cauldron, which implies that the vassals were no longer obedient. The tenth king, King Li of Zhou (877-841 BC) was forced into exile and power was held for fourteen years by Gong He. Li's overthrow may have been accompanied by China's first recorded peasant rebellion. When Li died in exile Gong He retired and power passed to Li's son King Xuan of Zhou (827-782 BC). Xuan worked to restore royal authority but later in his reign the lords became disobedient. The twelfth and last king of the Western Zhou was King You of Zhou (781-771 BC). When he replaced his wife with the concubine Baosi his father-in-law the Marquess of Shen allied with the Quanrong nomads and attacked the capital Fenghao. The Quanrong sacked the capital and killed King You. Most of the Zhou nobles withdrew from the Wei River valley and the capital was reestablished downriver at the old eastern capital of Chengzhou near Luoyang. This was the start of the Eastern Zhou period.
Western and Eastern Zhou
Initially the Ji family was able to control the country and the people in it firmly. In 771 BC, after King You had replaced his queen with a concubine Baosi, the capital was sacked by a joint force of the queen's father, who was the powerful Marquess of Shen, and a nomadic tribe, the Quanrong. The queen's son Ji Yijiu was proclaimed the new king by nobles from the states of Zheng, Lu, Qin, Xu and Shen. The capital was moved eastward in 770 BC from Haojing to Luoyang in present-day Henan Province. Because of this shift, historians divide the Zhou era into the Western Zhou (Chinese: 西周; pinyin: Xī Zhōu), lasting up until 771 BC, and the Eastern Zhou (simplified Chinese: 东周; traditional Chinese: 東周; pinyin: Dōng Zhōu) from 770 up to 256 BC. The beginning year of the Western Zhou has been disputed; 1122 BC, 1027 BC and other years within the hundred years from late 12th century BC to late 11th century BC have been proposed. Chinese historians take 841 BC as the first year of consecutive annual dating of the history of China, based on the Records of the Grand Historian by Sima Qian. The Eastern Zhou corresponds roughly to two subperiods. The first, from 722 to 481 BC, is called the Spring and Autumn Period, after a famous historical chronicle of the time; the second is known as the Warring States Period (403 to 221 BC), after another famous chronicle and initiated by the partitioning of Jin. The Warring States Period extended slightly past the 256 BC end date of Eastern Zhou; this discrepancy is due to the fact that the last Zhou king's reign ended in 256 BC, 35 years before the beginning of the Qin Dynasty that ended the Warring States period.
The Eastern Zhou period is also designated as the period of the Hundred Schools of Thought. This is a reference to the different schools of historical Chinese intellectual thought. The four main distinct schools were Confucianism, Mohism, Taoism and Legalism, along with a host of others. These schools of thought contributed to social, philosophical and political change which played a large part in the decline of the Zhou dynasty.