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Four Lords Of The Warring States
The Four Lords of the Warring States were four powerful aristocrats of the late Warring States period of Chinese history who exerted a strong influence on the politics of their respective states in the third century BCE. During this time, the Zhou king was a mere figurehead, and seven states led by aristocratic families competed for real power. Although they were not themselves monarchs, four aristocrats stood out because of their tremendous military power and wealth: Lord Mengchang (d. 279BCE) of Qi, Lord Pingyuan (d. 251BCE) of Zhao, Lord Xinling (d. 243BCE) of Wei and Lord Chunshen (d. 238BCE) of Chu. All four were renowned for their activity in the politics of their era as well as being the persona of their state respectively at the time; they also wielded influence via the cultivation and housing of many talented house-guests, who often included learned men and tacticians. As such, they came to be the most prominent patrons of the ''shi'' () or scholar-knights, stimul ...
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Warring States Period
The Warring States period () was an era in History of China#Ancient China, ancient Chinese history characterized by warfare, as well as bureaucratic and military reforms and consolidation. It followed the Spring and Autumn period and concluded with the Qin's wars of unification, Qin wars of conquest that saw the annexation of all other contender states, which ultimately led to the Qin (state), Qin state's victory in 221 BC as the first unified History of China#Imperial China, Chinese empire, known as the Qin dynasty. Although different scholars point toward different dates ranging from 481 BC to 403 BC as the true beginning of the Warring States, Sima Qian's choice of 475 BC is the most often cited. The Warring States era also overlaps with the second half of the Eastern Zhou Period, Eastern Zhou dynasty, though the Chinese sovereign, known as the king of Zhou, ruled merely as a figurehead and served as a backdrop against the machinations of the warring states. The "Warring St ...
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State Of Qi
Qi, or Ch'i in Wade–Giles romanization, was a state of the Zhou dynasty-era in ancient China, variously reckoned as a march, duchy, and independent kingdom. Its capital was Linzi, located in present-day Shandong. Qi was founded shortly after the Zhou overthrow of Shang in the 11th centuryBC. Its first marquis was Jiang Ziya, minister of King Wen and a legendary figure in Chinese culture. His family ruled Qi for several centuries before it was replaced by the Tian family in 386BC. In 221BC, Qi was the final major state annexed by Qin during its unification of China. History Foundation During the Zhou conquest of Shang, Jiang Ziya, a native of Ju County served as the chief minister to King Wu. After King Wu's death, Ziya remained loyal to the Duke of Zhou during the Three Guards' failed rebellion against his regency. The Shang prince Wu Geng had joined the revolt along with the Dongyi states of Yan, Xu, and Pugu. These were suppressed by 1039 BC and ...
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State Of Qin
Qin () was an ancient Chinese state during the Zhou dynasty. Traditionally dated to 897 BC, it took its origin in a reconquest of western lands previously lost to the Rong; its position at the western edge of Chinese civilization permitted expansion and development that was unavailable to its rivals in the North China Plain. Following extensive "Legalist" reform in the fourth century BC, Qin emerged as one of the dominant powers of the Seven Warring States and unified the seven states of China in 221 BC under Qin Shi Huang. It established the Qin dynasty, which was short-lived but greatly influenced later Chinese history. History Founding According to the 2nd century BC historical text ''Records of the Grand Historian'' by Sima Qian, the Qin state traced its origin to Zhuanxu, one of the legendary Five Emperors in ancient times. One of his descendants, Boyi, was granted the family name of Yíng by Emperor Shun. During the Xia and Shang dynasties, the Yíng clan spl ...
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King Qingxiang Of Chu
King Qingxiang of Chu (, died 263 BC) was from 298 to 263 BC the king of the state of Chu during the Warring States period of ancient China. He was born Xiong Heng () and King Qingxiang was his posthumous title. Xiong Heng's father, King Huai of Chu, was held hostage in 299 BC by King Zhao of Qin when he went to the state of Qin for negotiation. Xiong Heng then ascended the throne and is posthumously known as King Qingxiang of Chu. King Huai managed to escape but was recaptured by Qin. Three years later he died in captivity. King Qingxiang died in 263 BC and was succeeded by his son King Kaolie of Chu. In fiction and popular culture * Portrayed by Su Hang in ''The Legend of Mi Yue ''The Legend of Mi Yue'' () is a 2015 Chinese television series directed by Zheng Xiaolong and based on eponymous historical novel. It stars Sun Li in the title role of Mi Yue. The series aired 2 episodes daily on Beijing TV and Dragon TV from 30 ...'' (2015) References {{DEFAULTS ...
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King Anxi Of Wei
King Anxi of Wei () (died 243 BC), personal name Wei Yu () was King of Wei from 276 BC to 243 BC. He was the son of King Zhao of Wei. He was the older brother of Lord Xinling (Wei Wuji). In 275 BC, after a Han general fled to the Wei capital Daliang, King Anxi began a war against Qin in an alliance with Qi. Qin forces under chancellor Wei Ran and general Bai Qi captured 4 cities, besieged Daliang and killed 40,000 people. In 273 BC, with the assistance of Lord Mengchang of Qi, he began another war in an alliance with Zhao. The war ended with the deaths of 130,000 people. In 257 BC, he assisted Zhao when its capital Handan Handan is a prefecture-level city located in the southwest of Hebei province, China. The southernmost prefecture-level city of the province, it borders Xingtai on the north, and the provinces of Shanxi on the west, Henan on the south and Shando ... was besieged by Qin forces, at the request of Lord Pingyuan of Zhao, who was married to Xinling's older s ...
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State Of Wei
Wei (; ; Old Chinese: *') was one of the seven major states during the Warring States period of ancient China. It was created from the three-way Partition of Jin, together with Han and Zhao. Its territory lay between the states of Qin and Qi and included parts of modern-day Henan, Hebei, Shanxi, and Shandong. After its capital was moved from Anyi to Daliang (present-day Kaifeng) during the reign of King Hui, Wei was also called Liang (). History Foundation Surviving sources trace the ruling house of Wei to the Zhou royalty: Gao, Duke of Bi (), was a son of King Wen of Zhou. His descendants took their surname, Bi, from his fief. After the destruction of Bi, Bi Wan () escaped to Jin, where he became a courtier of Duke Xian's, accompanying his personal carriage. After a successful military expedition, Bi Wan was granted Wei, from which his own descendants then founded the house of Wei. Spring and Autumn period Jin's political structure was drastically changed after the ...
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Mao Sui
Mao Sui (fl. 3rd century BC), was born in the Zhao state (current Hebei province) during the Warring States period. He was a retainer of Lord Pingyuan, namely Zhao Sheng. Mao lived in Zhao for three years but success eluded him. In 257 BC, after the Battle of Changping, Zhao refused to cede territory to the Qin. As a result, Qin attacked Handan, the capital of Zhao. On its part, Zhao sought assistance from the Chu state. Mao Sui recommended himself to the Chu State and was successful in persuading the Chu to assist Zhao. In return, Mao Sui gained fame, and it was widely believed that: "A good tongue of Mao Sui is stronger than a million soldiers." Biography Background Mao Sui was born in Jize. Acknowledged for outstanding intelligence and talent as a young man, he succeeded in both academic and military training. He went to Handan, the capital of Zhao, and was introduced to Lord Pingyuan. Pingyuan had more than 3,000 retainers that had been employed in various capacities, ...
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Zou Yan
Zou Yan (; ; 305 BC240 BC) was a Chinese philosopher and spiritual writer best known as the representative thinker of the Yin and Yang School (or School of Naturalists) during the Hundred Schools of Thought era in Chinese philosophy. Biography Zou Yan was a noted scholar of the Jixia Academy in the state of Qi. The British biochemist and sinologist, Joseph Needham, describes Zou as "The real founder of all Chinese scientific thought." His teachings combined and systematized two current theories during the Warring States period: Yin-Yang and the Five Elements/Phases (wood, fire, earth, metal, and water). All of Zou Yan's writings have been lost and are only known through quotations in early Chinese texts. The best information comes from his brief biography in the ''Records of the Grand Historian'' (1st century BC) by Sima Qian. It describes him as a polymath (philosopher, historian, politician, naturalist, geographer, astrologer) who came from the coastal state of Qi (present d ...
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Yin And Yang
Yin and yang ( and ) is a Chinese philosophy, Chinese philosophical concept that describes opposite but interconnected forces. In Chinese cosmology, the universe creates itself out of a primary chaos of material energy, organized into the cycles of yin and yang and formed into objects and lives. Yin is the receptive and yang the active principle, seen in all forms of change and difference such as the annual cycle (winter and summer), the landscape (north-facing shade and south-facing brightness), sexual coupling (female and male), the formation of both men and women as characters and sociopolitical history (disorder and order). Taiji (philosophy), Taiji or Tai chi () is a Chinese cosmological term for the "Supreme Ultimate" state of undifferentiated absolute and infinite potential, the oneness before duality, from which yin and yang originate. It can be compared with the old ''Wuji (philosophy), wuji'' (, "without pole"). In the cosmology pertaining to yin and yang, the mate ...
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Gongsun Long
Gongsun Long (, BCLiu 2004, p. 336), courtesy name Zibing (子秉), was a Chinese philosopher and writer who was a member of the School of Names (Logicians) of ancient Chinese philosophy. He also ran a school and enjoyed the support of rulers, and advocated peaceful means of resolving disputes in contrast to the wars which were common in the Warring States period. However, little is known about the particulars of his life, and furthermore many of his writings have been lost.McGreal 1995, p. 31 All of his essays—fourteen originally but only six extant—are included in the anthology ''the Gongsun Longzi'' (). In Book 17 of the ''Zhuangzi'' anthology, Gongsun thus speaks of himself: When young, I studied the way of the former kings. When I grew up, I understood the practice of kindness and duty. I united the same and different, separated hard from white, made so the not-so and admissible the inadmissible. I confounded the wits of the hundred schools and exhausted the eloquence ...
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Xun Kuang
Xun Kuang (; BCE), better known as Xunzi (; ), was a Chinese philosopher of Confucianism who lived during the late Warring States period. After his predecessors Confucius and Mencius, Xunzi is often ranked as the third great Confucian philosopher of antiquity. By his time, Confucianism had suffered considerable criticism from Daoist and Mohist thinkers, and Xunzi is traditionally regarded as a synthesizer of these traditions with earlier Confucian thought. The result was a thorough and cohesive revision of Confucianism, which was crucial to the philosophy's ability to flourish in the Han dynasty and throughout the later history of East Asia. His works were compiled in the eponymous '' Xunzi'', and survive in excellent condition. Unlike other ancient compilations, his authorship of these texts is generally secure, though it is likely that Western Han Dynasty historian Liu Xiang organized them into their present form centuries after Xunzi's death. Born in the State of Zhao, Xunz ...
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State Of Zhao
Zhao () was one of the seven major State (Ancient China), states during the Warring States period of ancient China. It was created from the three-way Partition of Jin, together with Han (state), Han and Wei (state), Wei, in the 5th century BC. Zhao gained significant strength from the military reforms initiated during King Wuling of Zhao, King Wuling's reign, but suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of Qin (state), Qin at the Battle of Changping. Its territory included areas now in modern Inner Mongolia, Hebei, Shanxi and Shaanxi provinces. It bordered the states of Qin, Wei and Yan (state), Yan and various nomadic peoples, including the Dunghu people, Hu and Xiongnu. Its capital was Handan, in modern Hebei Province. Zhao was home to Chinese Legalism, administrative philosopher Shen Dao, school of names, sophist Gongsun Long and the Confucian Xun Kuang. Origins and ascendancy The Zhao (surname), Zhao clan within Jin (Chinese state), Jin had accumulated power for centurie ...
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