Ji () was an ancient state in northern China during the Shang and

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 n ...

dynasties from at least the 11th century to the 7th century BC. The state was based in the walled City of Ji, or Jicheng, located in the modern day Guang'anmen neighborhood of southwestern

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

. Around 7th century BC, Ji was conquered by the larger

State of Yan Yan (; Old Chinese pronunciation: ''*'') was an ancient Chinese state during the Zhou dynasty. Its capital was Ji (later known as Yanjing and now Beijing). During the Warring States period, the court was also moved to another capital at Xiadu ...

, which took the City of Ji as its capital. The city remained the primary urban center in the area until the 13th century, when Kublai Khan built the larger city of Dadu to the northwest, which eventually absorbed the City of Ji.(Chinese
"《北京传统文化便览》--北京燕山出版社"
2004-03-23

History

Ji was a small state during the

Shang Dynasty The Shang dynasty (), also known as the Yin dynasty (), was a Chinese royal dynasty founded by Tang of Shang (Cheng Tang) that ruled in the Yellow River valley in the second millennium BC, traditionally succeeding the Xia dynasty and ...

that was inhabited by a tribe that was said to have descended from the

Yellow Emperor The Yellow Emperor, also known as the Yellow Thearch or by his Chinese name Huangdi (), is a deity ('' shen'') in Chinese religion, one of the legendary Chinese sovereigns and culture heroes included among the mytho-historical Three Soverei ...

, and became one of the vassal states 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 ...

. According to Sima Qian's ''

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 ...

'', King Wu of Zhou, in the 11th year of his reign, deposed

King Zhou of Shang King Zhou (; ) was the pejorative posthumous name given to Di Xin of Shang () or King Shou of Shang (), the last king of the Shang dynasty of ancient China. He is also called Zhou Xin (). In Chinese, his name Zhòu ( 紂) also refers to a horse cr ...

and conferred titles to nobles within his domain, including the rulers of the city states Ji and

Yan Yan may refer to: Chinese states * Yan (state) (11th century – 222 BC), a major state in northern China during the Zhou dynasty * Yan (Han dynasty kingdom), first appearing in 206 BC * Yan (Three Kingdoms kingdom), officially claimed indepe ...

. According to the ''

Book 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 ...

'', King Wu of Zhou was so eager to establish his legitimacy after his battle victory over the Shang that before dismounting from his wagon, he named the descendants of the Yellow Emperor to the State of Ji. This was the first mention of Ji in history. The 11th year of the reign of King Wu of Zhou approximates to 1045 BC. The Beijing Municipal Government designates 1045 BC as the first year of the city's history.蓟城纪念柱
/ref> The capital of the state was the walled City of Ji or Jicheng (t 薊城, s 蓟城, ''Jìchéng''). The city was located in the southwestern part of present-day Beijing, just south of Guang'anmen in Xicheng and Fengtai Districts. At about the 7th century BC, Ji was absorbed by neighboring

, which made the City of Ji, its capital.

References

{{Zhou Dynasty topics History of Beijing Ancient Chinese states 11th-century BC establishments in China 7th-century BC disestablishments in China Yan (state)

History

See also

References