The State of Deng () was a Chinese vassal

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

during the

Shang The Shang dynasty (), also known as the Yin dynasty (), was a Chinese royal dynasty founded by Tang of Shang (Cheng Tang) that ruled in the Yellow River valley in the second millennium BC, traditionally succeeding the Xia dynasty and f ...

and Zhou Dynasties and the

Spring and Autumn period The Spring and Autumn period was a period in Chinese history from approximately 770 to 476 BC (or according to some authorities until 403 BC) which corresponds roughly to the first half of the Eastern Zhou period. The period's name derives fr ...

(c. 1200 – 475 BCE) ruled by the Màn family (曼).

Territory

Sources conflict as to whether the State of Deng was situated in

Dengzhou Dengzhou (), formerly Deng County (), is a city in Nanyang, Henan, China. It has an area of and a population of 1,500,000. The urban area is 35 km², and the urban population is 300,000. The city is located in the southwest of Henan provin ...

(鄧州/邓州),

Henan Province Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is al ...

Xiangfan Xiangyang is a prefecture-level city in northwestern Hubei province, China and the second largest city in Hubei by population. It was known as Xiangfan from 1950 to 2010. The Han River runs through Xiangyang's centre and divides the city no ...

(襄樊),

Hubei Province Hubei (; ; alternately Hupeh) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, and is part of the Central China region. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Dongting Lake. The prov ...

History

Shang dynasty King

Wu Ding Wu Ding (); personal name Zi Zhao, was a king of the Shang dynasty who ruled China around 1200s BC. He is the earliest figure in Chinese history mentioned in contemporary records. The annals of the Shang dynasty compiled by later historians were o ...

(武丁) (reigned 1250–1192 BCE) conferred the lands of the State of Deng on his younger brother Zĭ Màn (子曼) who passed it down to later generations. During the reign of Wú Lí (吾离) Deng became rich and powerful for a time but its influence declined with the rise of the hegemonies during the Spring and Autumn period. In 688 BCE, King Wén of Chǔ had to pass through the State of Deng in order to attack the State of Shēn. Even though Dèng was the native area of Dèng Màn (邓曼), one of the wives of King Wén's father King Wǔ of Chǔ (楚武王), the State of Deng lay on the borders of the

State 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 hea ...

such that its overthrow would prove convenient for the expansion of Chu. Three vigilant chancellors of the State of Deng, Zhuīshēng (騅甥/骓甥), Dānshēng (聃甥) and Yǎngshēng (養甥/养甥) urged their lord to kill King Wén" Zuo Zhuan • Sixth year of

Duke Zhuang of Lu Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ranked ...

". The Marquess of Deng did not listen. King Wén of Chu passed through the State of Deng and attacked the State of Shen. On his return the King attacked Deng. With the annexation of the States of Shen and Deng, the State of Chu extended its territory into the

Nanyang Basin Nanyang Basin is located in Henan, Henan Province of the People's Republic of China, a small part of the Drainage basin, basin is in Hubei, Hubei Province, the southern neighbor of Henan. Its total area is 46291 square kilometers. Drainage basi ...

. In 678 BCE King Wén of Chu overthrew the State of Deng. Afterwards its people adopted the surname Deng (鄧/邓) which is still common today.

References

History of ancient China Zhou dynasty States and territories established in the 12th century BC 7th-century BC disestablishments in China 12th-century BC establishments in China {{China-hist-stub