Duke Xian of Qin (, 725–704 BC) was from 715 to 704 BC the eighth ruler of 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 ...

Chinese state of

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 ...

that eventually united China to become 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 dynasty of Imperial China. Named for its heartland in Qin state (modern Gansu and Shaanxi), ...

. His

ancestral name In some cultures, a surname, family name, or last name is the portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family, tribe or community. Practices vary by culture. The family name may be placed at either the start of a person's full name ...

was Ying ( 嬴), and Duke Xian was his

posthumous title A posthumous name is an honorary name given mostly to the notable dead in East Asian culture. It is predominantly practiced in East Asian countries such as China, Korea, Vietnam, Japan, and Thailand. Reflecting on the person's accomplishments o ...

. His title was recorded as Duke Ning of Qin (秦寧公) in the ''

Records of the Grand Historian ''Records of the Grand Historian'', also known by its Chinese name ''Shiji'', is a monumental history of China that is the first of China's 24 dynastic histories. The ''Records'' was written in the early 1st century by the ancient Chinese his ...

'' by

Han Dynasty 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 ...

historian Sima Qian, but inscriptions on excavated bronzes from the era have proven that "Ning" (寧) was a miscopy of the correct character "Xian" (憲).

Accession to the throne

Duke Xian succeeded his grandfather

Duke Wen of Qin Duke Wen of Qin (, died 716 BC) was the seventh ruler of the Zhou Dynasty state of Qin that eventually united China to become the Qin Dynasty. His ancestral name was Ying (), and Duke Wen was his posthumous title. Reign Duke Wen succeeded his ...

, who ruled for 50 years and died in 716 BC. Duke Xian was made the crown prince after his father predeceased Duke Wen in 718 BC. His father was given the posthumous title Duke Jing of Qin (秦竫公) although he never ascended the throne.

Reign

In 714 BC, the second year of Duke Xian's reign, the Qin capital was moved to Pingyang (平陽, in present-day

Baoji () is a prefecture-level city in western Shaanxi province, People's Republic of China. Since the early 1990s, Baoji has been the second largest city in Shaanxi. Geography The prefecture-level city of Baoji had a population of 3,321,853 accord ...

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 ...

). The next year Qin defeated the

Rong Rong or RONG may refer to: Places China *Rong County, Guangxi, Yulin, Guangxi, China *Rong County, Sichuan, Zigong, Sichuan, China Nepal *Rong, Ilam, a rural municipality in Ilam District, Nepal Norway *Rong, Norway, a village in Øygarden m ...

state of Bo (亳), whose king escaped to the Rong homeland. In autumn 708 BC Qin attacked the minor state of Rui, but was defeated. Qin returned in winter with the army of

King Huan of Zhou King Huan of Zhou (; died 697 BC), personal name Jī Lín (姬林), was the fourteenth king of the Chinese Zhou dynasty and the second of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty (770–256 BC). King Huan’s father was King Ping's son, Crown Prince Xiefu ...

, defeated Rui, and captured Wan, Count of Rui. Chapter IV.

Succession

In 704 BC Qin annexed Bo. Duke Xian died in the same year, aged 21. He had three young sons: the eldest, later known as

Duke Wu of Qin Duke Wu of Qin (, died 678 BC) was from 697 to 678 BC the tenth ruler of the Zhou Dynasty state of Qin that eventually united China to become the Qin Dynasty. His ancestral name was Ying (), and Duke Wu was his posthumous title. Accession to t ...

, was the crown prince. The second son, later known as

Duke De of Qin Duke De of Qin (, 710–676 BC) was from 677 to 676 BC the eleventh ruler of the Zhou Dynasty state of Qin that eventually united China to become the Qin Dynasty. His ancestral name was Ying (), and Duke De was his posthumous title. Duke De was ...

, was born to the same mother, Lu Ji (鲁姬). However, the ministers Fuji and Sanfu deposed the crown prince and installed the youngest son, by Duke Xian's other wife Wang Ji (王姬), on the throne. The boy was only five years old and would become known as Chuzi.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Xian of Qin, Duke Rulers of Qin 8th-century BC Chinese monarchs 725 BC births 704 BC deaths