Lord Changping (昌平君; died 223 BC) was an important military commander and lord of

Qin Qin may refer to: Dynasties and states * Qin (state) (秦), a major state during the Zhou Dynasty of ancient China * Qin dynasty (秦), founded by the Qin state in 221 BC and ended in 206 BC * Daqin (大秦), ancient Chinese name for the Roman Emp ...

, who later departed from the state of Qin and went to the state of Chu where he became the last king of Chu (223 BC) in the last days of the Chinese

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 ...

Accounts in the Records of the Grand Historian

The deeds of Lord Changping was mainly recorded in Vol. 6: ''Annals of

Qin Shi Huang Qin Shi Huang (, ; 259–210 BC) was the founder of the Qin dynasty and the first emperor of a unified China. Rather than maintain the title of "king" ( ''wáng'') borne by the previous Shang and Zhou rulers, he ruled as the First Emperor ( ...

'' of the ''

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 hist ...

''. In 238 BC, in the State of Qin, a pseudo-eunuch

Lao Ai Lao Ai (; died 238 BCE) was an imposter eunuch and official of the State of Qin during the late Warring States period. Allegedly falsifying his castration in order to gain entry into the court of Qin, he became the favorite of Queen Dowager Zhao, t ...

entered into a relationship with

Queen Dowager Zhao Zhao Ji (;Ji (Zhou dynasty ancestral surname), Ji 姬 was an Chinese surname#Xing, ancestral name of the Zhou dynasty, Zhou royal family, which later evolved to generally mean "lady" in successive eras. But there are no more detailed mentions on ...

and plotted against King Zheng of Qin (who would later ascend to Shi Huang, the First Emperor):

The king found out this fact and ordered the chancellor (
Lü Buwei Lü Buwei (291–235 BCE) was a Chinese merchant and politician of the Qin state during the Warring States period. Originally an influential merchant from the Wei () state, Lü Buwei met and befriended King Zhuangxiang of Qin, who was then a m ...
) to let Lord Changping and lead soldiers and attack Lao Ai. They battled at
Xianyang Xianyang () is a prefecture-level city in central Shaanxi province, situated on the Wei River a few kilometers upstream (west) from the provincial capital of Xi'an. Once the capital of the Qin dynasty, it is now integrated into the Xi'an metrop ...
(the capital of Qin) and killed hundreds f the rebels or this deed,they all received the peerage. Also, all eunuchs who battled gainst Lao Aireceived one higher peerage than before.

Although Lao Ai fled from this battle, he was ultimately captured and executed. In 226 BC, Lord Changping moved to

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 ...

(the capital of Chu). In 224 BC, King Zheng of Qin appointed General Li Xin and his vice-commander General

Meng Tian Meng Tian (c. 250 BC – 210 BC) was a Chinese inventor and military general of the Qin dynasty who distinguished himself in campaigns against the Xiongnu and in the construction of the Great Wall of China. He was the elder brother of Meng Yi. ...

in charge of a 200,000 strong army with the task of conquering the Chu state. After some initial success, the invasion was successfully stopped by both Lord Changping and General , when they managed to wipe out most of the Qin army, killing thousands, as well as some of their top commanders. After this defeat, the Qin King put General Wang Jian in charge of a 600,000 Qin army to finally achieve the conquest of Chu. Wang went on to captured its king (

Fuchu Fuchu, King of Chu (), clan name Xiong, () was from 227 to 223 BC the last king of the state of Chu during the late Warring States period of ancient China (though sources argue that Lord Changping was the last king of Chu). Fuchu was his give ...

) and capital. The remnants, however, continued to resist by adopting Lord Changping as their new king:

, general of Jing (another name of Chu), adopted Lord Changping as the king of Jing and resisted against Qin at
Huainan Huainan () is a prefecture-level city with 3,033,528 inhabitants as of the 2020 census in north-central Anhui province, China. It is named for the Han-era Principality of Huainan. It borders the provincial capital of Hefei to the south, Lu'an ...
. In the 24th year (223 BC), commander in chief General Wang Jian and his vice-commander General
Meng Wu Meng Wu (, 3rd century BCE) was a general in the state of Qin during the Warring States period, who played a major role in the conquest of Chu. He was a son of and the father of Meng Tian and Meng Yi, all Qin generals. Biography The son ...
assaulted Chu and after some major battles they defeated the Chu army led by Lord Changping and General Xiang Yan. Lord Changping was killed by Meng Wu and Xiang Yan finally put an end to himself.

In contrast, Vol. 40: ''House of Chu'' records Fuchu as the last king of Chu and does not mention Lord Changping. Furthermore, the order of events is utterly reversed compared to the accounts in Vol. 6; the army of Qin killed General Xiang Yan in 224 BC and then captured Fuchu in 223 BC.

Other references

His name was not recorded but some archaeologists associate him with a

prime minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

Shao () of Qin. According to the modern historian Li Kaiyuan (), his given name was Qi (), his ancestral name Mi () and his lineage name Xiong () were those of the

kings of Chu Chu, or Ch'u in Wade–Giles romanization, (, Hanyu Pinyin: Chǔ, Old Chinese: ''*s-r̥aʔ'') was a Zhou dynasty vassal state. Their first ruler was King Wu of Chu in the early 8th century BCE. Chu was located in the south of the Zhou he ...

. He was the son of

King Kaolie of Chu King Kaolie of Chu (, died 238 BC) was the king of the state of Chu from 262 BC to 238 BC during the late Warring States period of ancient China. He was born Xiong Yuan () or Xiong Wan (), and King Kaolie was his posthumous title. King Kaolie ...

. Lord Changping's three predecessors were all his brothers: King You, King Ai, and

. He died from an arrow wound.

In popular culture

In the manga series

Kingdom Kingdom commonly refers to: * A monarchy ruled by a king or queen * Kingdom (biology), a category in biological taxonomy Kingdom may also refer to: Arts and media Television * ''Kingdom'' (British TV series), a 2007 British television drama s ...

, he is one of the finest strategists in China and a mighty warrior as well (known under the spelling Shou Hei Kun), he holds the position of 'Chief of Military Affairs' acting as the 'Supreme Commander' of the entire Qin military, he's also the 'Headmaster of the Strategist Academy' (where he has taught

ou Ten

Meng Yi Meng Yi (died 210 BCE) was a Chinese military general and politician. As an official of the Qin dynasty, he served in the court of Qin Shi Huang. He was a younger brother of the general Meng Tian. After Qin Shi Huang's death, Meng Yi and his br ...

ou Kiand Heliao Diao aryo Ten, initially he was one of the "Four Pillars of Lü yo, and in the court he later became the "Chancellor of the Right", then joining with the King's faction, which resulted in the Lü Buwei's yo Fuidisgrace, consequently causing the King to gain the complete dominance over the state of Qin, he's one of the key members providing assistance to king

Yíng Zhèng Qin Shi Huang (, ; 259–210 BC) was the founder of the Qin dynasty and the first emperor of a unified China. Rather than maintain the title of "king" ( ''wáng'') borne by the previous Shang and Zhou rulers, he ruled as the First Emperor ...

(Ei Sei) towards the unification of China. : When he was young he was a brilliant student under (Ko Shou), the only pure natural strategist of the former "Qin Six Great Generals". In Yasuhisa Hara's one shot manga written before Kingdom was serialised, he was referred as a former Qin official and prime minister, until he snapped and defected to Chu when his former homeland was going to be invaded and he cannot pass any tactics to

Ying Zheng Qin Shi Huang (, ; 259–210 BC) was the founder of the Qin dynasty and the first emperor of a unified China. Rather than maintain the title of "king" ( ''wáng'') borne by the previous Shang and Zhou rulers, he ruled as the First Emperor ( ...

. He was killed when his former friend, a Qin general

Meng Wu Meng Wu (, 3rd century BCE) was a general in the state of Qin during the Warring States period, who played a major role in the conquest of Chu. He was a son of and the father of Meng Tian and Meng Yi, all Qin generals. Biography The son ...

fought him.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Changping, Lord 223 BC deaths Qin dynasty generals Monarchs of Chu (state) Deaths by arrow wounds 3rd-century BC murdered monarchs Assassinated Chinese politicians Year of birth unknown People from Xianyang Generals from Shaanxi 3rd-century BC Chinese monarchs