State Of Shen
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The State of Shen () 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
Zhou dynasty The Zhou dynasty ( ; Old Chinese ( B&S): *''tiw'') was a royal dynasty of China that followed the Shang dynasty. Having lasted 789 years, the Zhou dynasty was the longest dynastic regime in Chinese history. The military control of China by th ...
(1046 – 221 BCE) ruled by the Jiāng family (姜) as an earldom. At the beginning of 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 ...
the State of Shen was annexed by 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 ...
and became one of its counties.


Territory

Located around the states of Chén and Zhèng, the State of Shēn lay to the south of modern-day Huáiyáng and Xīnzhèng counties in
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 ...
. The state's capital stood in Wăn County (宛县) , Nányáng bordered to the north by the Míngè Pass (冥厄關/冥厄关) and to the south by the
Huai River The Huai River (), Postal Map Romanization, formerly romanization of Chinese, romanized as the Hwai, is a major river in China. It is located about midway between the Yellow River and Yangtze, the two longest rivers and largest drainage basins ...
.


History

The history of the State of Shen began with the bestowal of the Earldom of Shēn (later a Marquessate) which descended from the matriarchal line of the Zhōu Kings. During the reign of King Xuān of Zhōu (reigned 827 – 782 BCE), the Earl of Shēn was granted the title and lands of King Xuān's maternal uncle in the former State of Xiè (謝國/谢国). ”Book of Songs” Da Ya (大雅) The enfeoffed territory of the State of Shen acted as a strategic southern gateway to the lands controlled by the Zhou Kings. King Xuan dispatched Hŭ, the Earl of
Shao Shao (; Cantonese Romanisation: Shiu; Gwoyeu Romatzyh: Shaw) is a common Chinese family name. It is the 86th most populous family name in China. It corresponds to last name So in Korean; "Thiệu" or "Thiều" in Vietnamese; “Zau” in Wu Chines ...
(召伯虎), to Shen to negotiate with the Earl of Shēn and obtain part of their land for use in the public fields system (公田). The King also sent his close aide Fù Yù (傅御) to relocate the population (the Earl of Shēn's former subjects) in order to rapidly consolidate his control over the area. King Yōu ascended the throne of Zhōu in 781 BCE. His queen and first wife was the daughter of the Marquess of Shēn. The king's
concubine Concubinage is an interpersonal and sexual relationship between a man and a woman in which the couple does not want, or cannot enter into a full marriage. Concubinage and marriage are often regarded as similar but mutually exclusive. Concubi ...
Bāo Sì wanted to oust Crown Prince Yíjiù (宜臼) and replace him with her own son Bófú (伯服) thereby arousing the fury of the Marquess of Shēn. As a result, in 771 BCE the Marquess of Shēn allied with the State of Zēng (繒/缯) along with Quănróng nomads (犬戎) and attacked the Zhōu capital at Hàojīng (鎬京/镐京). King Yōu lit beacons to summon his nobles in defence but none came and he was subsequently killed at the foot of Líshān near modern-day Xī’ān (西安). Thereafter the Marquesses of Shēn and (鲁) together with Marquess Wén of (许文公) enthroned Yíjiù as
King Ping of Zhou King Ping of Zhou (; died 720 BC), personal name Ji Yijiu, was the thirteenth king of the Zhou dynasty and the first of the Eastern Zhou dynasty.Sima Qian. ''Records of the Grand Historian'', "Zhou Dynasty Annals". History He was the son of Kin ...
in the State of Shēn thereby ushering in 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 ...
. In 761 BCE, another daughter of the Marquess of Shēn called Wǔjiāng () married Duke Wǔ of Zhèng (鄭武公/郑武公). She subsequently gave birth to two sons, the elder of whom, Wùsheng (寤生) would succeed his father as Duke Zhuāng of Zhèng. During the early years of the Spring and Autumn period the State of Chŭ began to expand. In 688 BCE King Wén of Chŭ (楚文王) dispatched an army to attack the State of Shen. According to the Zuo Zhuan, as the troops passed through the State of Dèng, Marquess Qí of Dèng remarked: ''King Wén of Chu is the son of my sister.'' As a result, Marquess Qí allowed him to stop in the State of Shen and provided a feast and entertainment. The officials Zhuīshēng (騅甥/骓甥), Dānshēng (聃甥) and Yǎngshēng (養甥/养甥) asked Marquess Qí to kill King Wén but he would not hear of it whereupon the three officials replied: :''This man will be responsible for the death of the State of Dèng. Up to now he has overthrown the State of Shēn and when he returns he will destroy Dèng. It seems like he is biting at our navel and it is too late to form a conspiracy to deal with him. Now is the time to kill King Wen.'' After King Wén suppressed the State of Shēn using armed force he became caught up in a war between the State of Deng and the
State of Ba Ba () was an ancient state in eastern Sichuan, China. Its original capital was Yicheng (Enshi City), Hubei. Ba was conquered by Qin in 316 BC. The historical Bo people and the modern Tujia people trace some of their origins back to the people of ...
. What happened to the State of Shēn after this suppression is not clear. The "'' Zuo Zhuan • Fourteenth Year of Duke Ai''" traces the establishment of the counties of Shēn and Xī (息), dating the overthrow of the State of Xī to 680 BCE. As a result, the destruction of the State of Shēn must have taken place around the same time – somewhere between 688 and 680 BCE. After its absorption into the State of Chǔ, Shēn became an important northern county. At the Battle of Chéngpú, Chǔ Prime minister Chéng Déchén (成得臣) did not lead the main Chǔ army but a smaller force composed of troops from the counties of Shēn and Xī. As a result, Chéng Déchén lost the battle whereupon King Chéng of Chŭ said ''If you return home, what will the elders of the counties of Shēn and Xī do?'' In 594 BCE, King Zhuāng of Chŭ agreed to confer territory in the counties of Shēn and on Zĭchong (子重). The king's senior official Wū Chén (巫臣) remonstrated with him: :''Xī and Lŭ are important Chŭ strategic northern frontier areas and a recruitment base for troops. If you confer these territories on Zĭchong you will no longer have direct control of the area and forfeit your military capability; the States of
Jìn Shanxi (; ; formerly romanised as Shansi) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region. The capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-level ...
and Zhèng will undoubtedly break through the Chŭ frontier and attack our hinterland in the Han River Basin''. In the sixth year of Duke Cheng of Lu (585 CE), the State of Jìn attacked the State of Cài. Chǔ sent troops from Shēn and Xī to assist Cài. The high-ranking military leaders of Jìn knew that if they won this battle it would only mean the defeat of Shēn and Xī counties, not the entire State of Chǔ – if they lost it would be a major humiliation so the army decided to retreat. Academic
Gu Jiegang Gu Jiegang (8 May 189325 December 1980) was a Chinese historian best known for his seven-volume work '' Gushi Bian'' (, or ''Debates on Ancient History''). He was a co-founder and the leading force of the Doubting Antiquity School, and was hig ...
points out that since the two counties of Shēn and Xī had enough troops and were sufficiently powerful to deal with the State of Jin's army, it is clear that the counties were both rich and populous. Later on, in 529 CE,
King Ling of Chu King Ling of Chu was king of the State of Chu between 540 and 529 BC. His birth name was Xiong Wei () and before ascending the throne he was known as Prince Wei (). Taking the throne Wei was the second son of King Gong of Chu, younger brothe ...
died and
King Ping of Chu King Píng of Chu (, died 516 BC). During the Spring and Autumn period of ancient China, he was king of the State of Chu from 528 BC to 516 BC. He was a son of King Gong of Chu and his consort (a sibling of King Zi'ao). Born Xiong Qiji (), P ...
ascended the throne. During the reign of King Ling, after he had overthrown the State of Cài he had annexed the states of ,
In Hopi and Zuni dance rituals, Hú, also known as Huhuwa and Tithu, is the Kachina of the hummingbird. The hummingbird was, and is, an important bird in puebloan cultures. Hopi legend speaks of the hummingbird as intervening on behalf of the Hopi ...
(胡国), Shĕn (沈国), Dào, Fáng (房国) and Shēn, bringing them within the borders of his territory. After King Ping took over the throne of Chŭ, he restored the states of Chén and Cài so that they once more became small countries.


Records of bronze artifact inscriptions

In the 1980s, archaeological excavations around the former Shēn capital of
Nanyang Nanyang is the romanization of two common Chinese place names. It may refer to: Written as 南洋 (Southern Ocean) * Nanyang (region), a Chinese term denoting the Southeast Asian lands surrounding the South China Sea ;China * Nanyang Fleet, Qing ...
uncovered a number of the state's bronze artifacts. These included a bronze sacrificial vessel inscribed with text that scholar
Li Xueqin Li Xueqin (, 28 March 1933 – 24 February 2019) was a Chinese historian, archaeologist, and palaeographer. He served as Director of the Institute of History of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Professor of the Institute of Sinology of T ...
has deciphered as ''Count of Southern Shen'' (南申伯). Li further infers that the nobleman referred to is one of those mentioned in the Daya (大雅) section of the Book of Songs in the poem entitled ''Song Gao'' (崧高).Li Xueqin, ''Treatise on Shen Sacrificial Vessels'', Cultural Relics of Central China, Henan Museum, April 1984


See also

*
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 ...
*
State of Deng The State of Deng () was a Chinese vassal state during the Shang and Zhou Dynasties and the Spring and Autumn period (c. 1200 – 475 BCE) ruled by the Màn family (曼). Territory Sources conflict as to whether the State of Deng was situated in ...
* State of Xi


Notes


References

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Shen (State) History of ancient China Zhou dynasty Ancient Chinese states