Yizhou (益州), Yi Province or Yi Prefecture, was a '' zhou'' (province) of

ancient China The earliest known written records of the history of China date from as early as 1250 BC, from the Shang dynasty (c. 1600–1046 BC), during the reign of king Wu Ding. Ancient historical texts such as the '' Book of Documents'' (early chapt ...

. Its capital city was

Chengdu Chengdu (, ; simplified Chinese: 成都; pinyin: ''Chéngdū''; Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: ), alternatively romanized as Chengtu, is a sub-provincial city which serves as the capital of the Chinese provin ...

.de Crespigny, p. 256. During the

Han dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Emperor Gaozu of Han, Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by th ...

, it included the commanderies

Hanzhong Hanzhong (; abbreviation: Han) is a prefecture-level city in the southwest of Shaanxi province, China, bordering the provinces of Sichuan to the south and Gansu to the west. The founder of the Han dynasty, Liu Bang, was once enfeoffed as ...

, Ba, Guanghan, Shu, Wenshan, Jianwei, Zangke, Yuexi, Yizhou and Yongchang. It was bordered in the north by

Liang Province Liang Province or Liangzhou () was a province in the northwest of ancient China, in the approximate location of the modern-day province of Gansu. It was bordered in the east by Sili Province. History Establishment The province was first con ...

and

Yong Province Yong Province or Yongzhou was the name of various regions and provinces in ancient China, usually around the Wei River or the imperial capital. Geographical region In the '' Book of Documents'', Yongzhou is mentioned as one of the legendary ...

. At its greatest extent, Yi covered present-day central and eastern

Sichuan Sichuan (; zh, c=, labels=no, ; zh, p=Sìchuān; alternatively romanized as Szechuan or Szechwan; formerly also referred to as "West China" or "Western China" by Protestant missions) is a province in Southwest China occupying most of t ...

Chongqing Chongqing ( or ; ; Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), alternately romanized as Chungking (), is a municipality in Southwest China. The official abbreviation of the city, "" (), was approved by the State Co ...

, southern

Shaanxi Shaanxi (alternatively Shensi, see § Name) is a landlocked province of China. Officially part of Northwest China, it borders the province-level divisions of Shanxi (NE, E), Henan (E), Hubei (SE), Chongqing (S), Sichuan (SW), Gansu (W), N ...

and parts of

Yunnan Yunnan , () is a landlocked province in the southwest of the People's Republic of China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 48.3 million (as of 2018). The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders the ...

and

Guizhou Guizhou (; Postal romanization, formerly Kweichow) is a landlocked Provinces of China, province in the Southwest China, southwest region of the China, People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Guiyang, in the center of the pr ...

History

During the First Great Qiang Rebellion (107–118) in

,de Crespigny, p. 10–11. unrest also spread to the Hanzhong and Wudu commanderies. In 188, Liu Yan was appointed governor of Yi Province. Upon his death in 194, Yi passed to his son Liu Zhang. In 213, warlord

Cao Cao Cao Cao () (; 155 – 15 March 220), courtesy name Mengde (), was a Chinese statesman, warlord and poet. He was the penultimate grand chancellor of the Eastern Han dynasty, and he amassed immense power in the dynasty's final years. As one o ...

conquered the city of Hanzhong from the Taoist cult leader Zhang Lu, and threatened the rest of Yi. Liu Zhang requested the help of warlord

Liu Bei Liu Bei (, ; ; 161 – 10 June 223), courtesy name Xuande (), was a warlord in the late Eastern Han dynasty who founded the state of Shu Han in the Three Kingdoms period and became its first ruler. Although he was a distant relative of the ...

, a relative of his, but the latter turned against Zhang, conquered most of Yi Province, and proclaimed the Kingdom of Shu.de Crespigny, p. 472. During the subsequent Hanzhong Campaign (217–219), Liu Bei was able to conquer Hanzhong from Cao Cao and thus complete his control over Yi Province. In 221, Liu Bei assumed the title of emperor.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yi Provinces of Ancient China