Helü () or Hellu () was from 514 to 496 BC king of the state of Wu toward the end of the Spring and Autumn period of ancient China. His given name was Guang (); he was initially known as Prince Guang.

Life

Prince Guang was the son of King Yumei, and the nephew of King Liao. He welcomed the Chu exile

Wu Zixu :''Note: names are in simplified characters followed by traditional and Pinyin transliteration.'' Wu Yun (died 484 BC), better known by his courtesy name Zixu, was a Chinese military general and politician of the Wu kingdom in the Spring and Aut ...

into his entourage and, when he sought to usurp the throne of Wu, was introduced by him to

Zhuan Zhu Zhuan Zhu (專諸; died 515 BC) was an assassin in the Spring and Autumn period. As Prince Guang (later King Helü of Wu) wanted to kill King Liao of Wu Liao, King of Wu (; died 515 BC), also named Zhouyu, was king of the state of Wu in the Spri ...

. Zhuan assassinated King Liao in 515BC and the prince became King Helü. The king assigned Wu Zixu to lead the design and building of his "great city," which forms the basis of Suzhou's present old town. In 506 BC, Helü with the help of Wu Zixu and

Sun Tzu Sun Tzu ( ; zh, t=孫子, s=孙子, first= t, p=Sūnzǐ) was a Chinese military general, strategist, philosopher, and writer who lived during the Eastern Zhou period of 771 to 256 BCE. Sun Tzu is traditionally credited as the author of '' The ...

, the author of ''

The Art of War ''The Art of War'' () is an ancient Chinese military treatise dating from the Late Spring and Autumn Period (roughly 5th century BC). The work, which is attributed to the ancient Chinese military strategist Sun Tzu ("Master Sun"), is com ...

'', launched major offensives against the state of Chu. They prevailed in five battles, one of which was the

Battle of Boju The Battle of Boju () was the decisive battle of the war fought in 506 BC between Wu and Chu, two major kingdoms during the Spring and Autumn period of ancient China. The Wu forces were led by King Helü, his brother Fugai, and Chu exile Wu ...

, and conquered the capital

Ying Ying may refer to: People * Yíng (嬴), a Chinese surname, the ancestral name of Qin Shi Huang, first Emperor of China in the Qin Dynasty, and some contemporary rival royal families such as the Zhaos * Yīng (应), a Chinese surname from the Z ...

. During the sack of the capital, Helü attempted to sexually assault the

Dowager Queen A queen dowager or dowager queen (compare: princess dowager or dowager princess) is a title or status generally held by the widow of a king. In the case of the widow of an emperor, the title of empress dowager is used. Its full meaning is clear ...

, but she fought him off with a knife and remonstrated with him, leading to Helü leaving in shame. Chu managed to ask the state of Qin for help, and after he was defeated by Qin, the vanguard general of Wu troops, Fugai, a younger brother of Helü, led a rebellion. After beating Fugai, Helü was forced to leave Chu. Fugai later retired to Chu and settled there. In 496 BC, upon hearing that Yunchang of Yue had died, he launched an invasion of Yue, but was injured and subsequently died from his injuries while telling his son to avenge him. His son,

Fuchai Fuchai (reigned 495–473BC), sometimes also written Fucha, was the last king of the state of Wu during the Spring and Autumn Period of Chinese history. His armies constructed important canals linking the Yellow, Ji, and Huai River systems of t ...

, succeeded him in 495 BC who later annexed Yue and ended up capturing and enslaving their King Goujian. Helü had two other sons named Bo and Shan. Bo was initially his heir but died before him.

Literary sources

Records of the Grand Historian ''Records of the Grand Historian'', also known by its Chinese name ''Shiji'', is a monumental history of China that is the first of China's 24 dynastic histories. The ''Records'' was written in the early 1st century by the ancient Chinese his ...

* ''Gailu'' text presenting the dialogue between Helü and Wu Zixu, one of the 8 texts from the Tomb 247 (202-186 BCE) excavated at Zhangjiashan, Jingzhou, Hubei, in 1983. The text is paralleled by a Dunhuang manuscript which attributes the conversation to

Duke Jing of Qi Duke Jing of Qi (; died 490 BC) was ruler of the State of Qi from 547 to 490 BC. Qi was a major power during the Spring and Autumn period of ancient China. His personal name was Lü Chujiu (呂杵臼), ancestral name Jiang ( 姜), and Duke Jing ...

and

Yan Ying Yan may refer to: Chinese states * Yan (state) (11th century – 222 BC), a major state in northern China during the Zhou dynasty * Yan (Han dynasty kingdom), first appearing in 206 BC * Yan (Three Kingdoms kingdom), officially claimed indep ...

.Olivia Milburn, The Glory of Yue, 2010:57.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Helu Zhou dynasty nobility 496 BC deaths 6th-century BC Chinese monarchs 5th-century BC Chinese monarchs Year of birth unknown Monarchs of Wu (state)