Wei Bao (died 204 BC) was the ruler of the Kingdom of Western Wei () of the

Eighteen Kingdoms The historiographical term "Eighteen Kingdoms" ( zh, t=十八國), also translated to as "Eighteen States", refers to the eighteen ''fengjian'' states in China created by military leader Xiang Yu in 206 BCE, after the collapse of the Qin dynasty.� ...

during the

Chu–Han Contention The Chu–Han Contention ( zh, , lk=on) or Chu–Han War () was an interregnum period in ancient China between the fallen Qin dynasty and the subsequent Han dynasty. After the third and last Qin ruler, Ziying, unconditionally surrendered t ...

, an

interregnum An interregnum (plural interregna or interregnums) is a period of discontinuity or "gap" in a government, organization, or social order. Archetypally, it was the period of time between the reign of one monarch and the next (coming from Latin '' ...

between the

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 ...

and

Han Han may refer to: Ethnic groups * Han Chinese, or Han People (): the name for the largest ethnic group in China, which also constitutes the world's largest ethnic group. ** Han Taiwanese (): the name for the ethnic group of the Taiwanese p ...

dynasties of China.

Life

Wei Bao was a descendant of the royal family of the Wei state of the

Seven Warring States The Seven Warring States or Seven Kingdoms () were the seven leading hegemonic states during the Warring States period (c. 475 to 221 BCE) of Ancient China: * Qin (秦) * Qi (齊/齐) * Chu (楚) * Yan (燕) * Han (韓/韩) * Zhao (趙/赵) ...

. His father was King Jingmin, the second last ruler of Wei, and his older brother,

Wei Jia Jia, King of Wei (, died 225 BC?) was the last ruler of the state of Wei during the waning days of the Warring States Period of Chinese history. He ruled the kingdom between 227 BC and 225 BC. Jia was the son of King Jingmin of Wei. He ascen ...

, was the last king of Wei. The Wei state was conquered by the

Qin state 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 ex ...

in 225 BC as part of a series of wars to unify China under Qin rule. Wei Bao and other former Wei royals lived as commoners under the

Qin dynasty The Qin dynasty ( ; zh, c=秦朝, p=Qín cháo, w=), or Ch'in dynasty in Wade–Giles romanization ( zh, c=, p=, w=Ch'in ch'ao), was the first Dynasties in Chinese history, dynasty of Imperial China. Named for its heartland in Qin (state), ...

until 209 BC, when uprisings broke out throughout China to overthrow the Qin Empire. Around this time, Wei Jiu (), another brother of Wei Bao, joined a rebel force led by Chen Sheng and Wu Guang. They managed to seize control of former Wei territories from Qin forces, and Wei Jiu was declared king of a restored Wei state. However, in the following year, Qin forces under Zhang Han defeated the Wei forces in battle. As part of an agreement with Qin forces not to harm his people, Wei Jiu committed suicide by setting himself on fire. Wei Bao escaped to the insurgent

Chu state 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 ...

, where he received military support from Chu forces and managed to recapture the Wei territories. King Huai II of Chu recognised Wei Bao as the new king of Wei. Wei Bao joined the Chu general

Xiang Yu Xiang Yu (, –202 BC), born Xiang Ji (), was the Hegemon-King (Chinese: 霸王, ''Bà Wáng'') of Western Chu during the Chu–Han Contention period (206–202 BC) of China. A noble of the Chu state, Xiang Yu rebelled against the Qin dynas ...

in attacking Qin-controlled territories as they advanced towards the Qin heartland in the

Guanzhong Guanzhong (, formerly romanised as Kwanchung) region, also known as the Guanzhong Basin, Wei River Basin, or uncommonly as the Shaanzhong region, is a historical region of China corresponding to the crescentic graben basin within present-day ce ...

region. After the fall of the Qin Empire in 206 BC, Xiang Yu declared himself Hegemon-King of Western Chu () and divided the former Qin territories into the

. He made Wei Bao the King of Western Wei (), with the Wei capital at Pingyang (; around present-day

Linfen Linfen is a prefecture-level city in the southwest of Shanxi province, China, bordering Shaanxi province to the west. It is situated along the banks of the Fen River. It has an area of and according to the 2020 Census, a population of 3,976,4 ...

Shanxi 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-lev ...

). Around the time, a power struggle broke out between Xiang Yu and

Liu Bang Emperor Gaozu of Han (256 – 1 June 195 BC), born Liu Bang () with courtesy name Ji (季), was the founder and first emperor of the Han dynasty, reigning in 202–195 BC. His temple name was "Taizu" while his posthumous name was Emper ...

, the King of

, for control over the lands of the former Qin Empire. In 205 BC, when the Han army invaded Western Wei, Wei Bao surrendered to Liu Bang and joined him in attacking Xiang Yu. However, after Xiang Yu defeated Liu Bang at the

Battle of Pengcheng The Battle of Pengcheng was fought in Pengcheng (present-day Xuzhou, Jiangsu, China) in April 205 BC between the kingdoms of Western Chu and Han, led by Xiang Yu and Liu Bang respectively. The Han forces were unprepared and suffered heavy losse ...

later that year, Wei Bao lied to Liu Bang that he wanted to visit a sick relative and seized the opportunity to betray Liu Bang and return to Western Wei. Liu Bang sent

Li Yiji Li Yiji (268–204 BC)Note that Li Yiji's given name 食其 is pronounced "Yìjī" and not "Shíqí" in Mandarin. The Chinese character 食, when used in a person's name, is pronounced "Yì". The Chinese character 基 did not exist during the H ...

to persuade Wei Bao to surrender, but Wei Bao refused, saying that Liu Bang was arrogant and disrespectful. Liu Bang then sent

Han Xin Han Xin (; 231/230–196 BC) was a Chinese military general and politician who served Liu Bang during the Chu–Han Contention and contributed greatly to the founding of the Han dynasty. Han Xin was named as one of the "Three Heroes of the ear ...

and

Cao Shen Cao Shen or Cao Can (died 190 BC), courtesy name Jingbo (), was a chancellor of the Western Han dynasty. He participated in the Chu–Han Contention on Liu Bang (Emperor Gaozu of Han)'s side and contributed greatly to the founding of the Han dyna ...

to lead his forces to attack Wei Bao. Han Xin tricked Wei Bao and launched a surprise attack on Anyi (; present-day

Xia County Xia County or Xiaxian () is a county in the southwest of Shanxi province, People's Republic of China, bordering Henan province to the southeast. It is under the jurisdiction of Yuncheng City. History In ancient China, it served as the previous c ...

), where he defeated and captured Wei Bao in battle. The Western Wei territories were then absorbed into the

Han Empire The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warr ...

as its

Hedong Commandery Hedong Commandery () was a historical region in the Qin and Han dynasties of ancient China. Hedong was located to the east of the Yellow River in Shanxi (around present-day Yuncheng). History Hedong Commandery was established by the Qin state ...

. In 204 BC, during the Battle of Xingyang, Liu Bang left Wei Bao to defend Xingyang. When Xiang Yu's forces besieged and attacked the city, Zhou Ke (周苛), another of Liu Bang's officers guarding Xingyang, felt that Wei Bao was not trustworthy given that he had betrayed Liu Bang before. Zhou Ke thus executed Wei Bao.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wei, Bao Chu–Han contention people Date of birth unknown 204 BC deaths Fellows of the American Physical Society