Hao or Haojing (), also called Zongzhou (), was one of the two settlements comprising the capital of the

Western Zhou The Western Zhou ( zh, c=, p=Xīzhōu; c. 1045 BC – 771 BC) was a royal dynasty of China and the first half of the Zhou dynasty. It began when King Wu of Zhou overthrew the Shang dynasty at the Battle of Muye and ended when the Quanrong noma ...

dynasty (1066–770 BCE), the other being Fēng or Fēngjīng (). Together they were known as

Fenghao Fenghao () is the modern name of the twin city formed by the Western Zhou dynasty, Western Zhou capitals of Feng and Haojing, Hao on opposite banks of the Feng River near its confluence with the Wei River in Shaanxi, China. History As King Wen o ...

and stood on opposite banks of the Feng River (): with Feng on west bank and Hao on the east bank. Archaeological discoveries indicate that the ruins of Haojing lie next to the Feng River around the north end of Doumen Subdistrict () in present-day

Xi'an Xi'an ( , ; ; Chinese: ), frequently spelled as Xian and also known by #Name, other names, is the list of capitals in China, capital of Shaanxi, Shaanxi Province. A Sub-provincial division#Sub-provincial municipalities, sub-provincial city o ...

Shaanxi Province 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), Ningx ...

. It was the center of government for

King Wu of Zhou King Wu of Zhou () was the first king of the Zhou dynasty of ancient China. The chronology of his reign is disputed but is generally thought to have begun around 1046 BC and ended three years later in 1043 BC. King Wu's ancestral name was ...

(r. 1046-1043 BCE).

History

King Wen of Zhou King Wen of Zhou (; 1152–1050 BC, the Cultured King) was Count of state of Zhou, Zhou during the late Shang dynasty in ancient China. Although frequently confused with his fourth son Duke of Zhou, also known as "Lord Zhou", they are different hi ...

(r. 1099-1056 BCE) moved the Zhou capital eastward from Qíyì () to Fēngjīng; his son King Wu later relocated across the river to Haojing, next to a certain lake Hao (鎬池). Fēngjīng became the site of the Zhou ancestral shrine and gardens whilst Haojing contained the royal residence and government headquarters. The settlement was also known as Zōngzhōu to indicate its role as the capital of the vassal states. During the reign of

King Cheng of Zhou King Cheng of Zhou (), personal name Ji Song (姬誦), was the second king of the Chinese Zhou dynasty. The dates of his reign are 1042–1021 BCE or 1042/35–1006 BCE. His parents were King Wu of Zhou and Queen Yi Jiang (邑姜). King Cheng w ...

(r. 1042–1021 BCE), the

Duke of Zhou Dan, Duke Wen of Zhou (), commonly known as the Duke of Zhou (), was a member of the royal family of the early Zhou dynasty who played a major role in consolidating the kingdom established by his elder brother King Wu. He was renowned for acting ...

built a second settlement at

Luoyi Luoyang is a city located in the confluence area of Luo River and Yellow River in the west of Henan province. Governed as a prefecture-level city, it borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to the east, Pingdingshan to the southeast, Nanyang ...

, also known as Chengzhou (), in order to reinforce control of the eastern part of the kingdom. From then on, although King Cheng was permanently stationed in Chengzhou, Haojing remained the main operations center. At the time of

King Zhao of Zhou King Zhao of Zhou (), personal name Jī Xiá, was the fourth king of the Chinese Zhou dynasty. He ruled from 977/75 BC until his death twenty years later. Famous for his disastrous war against the Chu confederation, his death in battle ended th ...

(r. 996–977 BCE), further reinforcement of the eastern part of the Zhou kingdom took place thus Chéngzhōu became the major center of operations. In

King You of Zhou King You of Zhou (; 795–771 BC), personal name Ji Gongsheng, was the twelfth king of the Chinese Zhou dynasty and the last of Western Zhou Dynasty. He reigned from 781 to 771 BC. History In 780 BC, a major earthquake hit Guanzhong. A soothsa ...

's reign (r. 781–771 BCE), the

Marquess of Shen The Marquess of Shen (Chinese: , p ''Shēnhóu''; d. 771 BCE) was a Qiang ruler of Shen during China’s Zhou dynasty. A vassal state of the Zhou, Shen state covered the area of modern-day Nanyang in Henan. One of the Marqu ...

with support from

Quanrong The Quanrong () or Dog Rong were an ethnic group, classified by the ancient Chinese as " Qiang", active in the northwestern part of China during and after the Zhou dynasty (1046–221 BCE). Their language or languages are considered to have been mem ...

nomads from the west overran Hàojīng heralding the end of the Western Zhou dynasty. All the royal buildings in the settlement were razed to the ground although it is not known if those in Fēngjīng survived the conflagration. The newly enthroned

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 ...

(r. 770-720 BCE) thereafter had no choice but to move the capital east to Chéngzhōu. For sometime after, there were still people who referred to themselves as "Western Zhou" and to Chéngzhōu as Zōngzhōu.Zheng Zhu (郑注), "

Classic of Rites The ''Book of Rites'', also known as the ''Liji'', is a collection of texts describing the social forms, administration, and ceremonial rites of the Zhou dynasty as they were understood in the Warring States and the early Han periods. The ''Book ...

· Unified Sacrifices'' (礼记·祭统》）

References

{{coord missing, Shaanxi History of Xi'an Zhou dynasty Archaeological sites in China Former cities in China

History

See also

References