Zhongyong () was the second ruler of the ancient Chinese

State of Wu Wu (; Old Chinese: ''*'') was one of the states during the Western Zhou dynasty and the Spring and Autumn period. It was also known as Gouwu ( /''*''/) or Gongwu ( /''*''/) from the pronunciation of the local language. Wu was located at the ...

according to traditional Chinese history. 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 Ji (姬), given name was Yong, and Zhong refers to his rank as the second son of King Tai of Zhou. According to traditional Chinese history, the youngest son of King Tai Jili was so renowned for his wisdom that Zhongyong and his elder brother

Taibo Taibo () (circa 1150 BCE), or Wu Taibo, was the eldest son of King Tai of Zhou and the legendary founder of the State of Wu. His exact birth and death dates are unknown. Biography According to Sima Qian, Taibo was the founder of the State of ...

voluntarily renounced their claims to the throne of Zhou and left instead to found the

state of Wu Wu (; Old Chinese: ''*'') was one of the states during the Western Zhou dynasty and the Spring and Autumn period. It was also known as Gouwu ( /''*''/) or Gongwu ( /''*''/) from the pronunciation of the local language. Wu was located at the ...

near the mouth of the

Yangtze The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ; ) is the longest river in Asia, the third-longest in the world, and the longest in the world to flow entirely within one country. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains (Tibetan Plateau) and flows ...

. They settled at

Meili In Norse mythology, Meili (Old Norse: , "the lovely one"Simek (2007:210).) is a god, son of the god Odin and brother of the god Thor. Meili is attested in the '' Poetic Edda'', compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources, and t ...

and improved the agriculture and irrigation systems of the local tribes. Taibo became the first king of Wu, but he left no children and was succeeded by his brother Zhongyong. The future

kings of Wu The King of Wu or Prince of Wu was a title referring to Chinese rulers of the area originally controlled by the Gou Wu tribes around Wuxi on the lower Yangtze, generally known as the Wu region. The title ''wang'' is written identically in Chinese ...

were his descendants.

Sima Qian Sima Qian (; ; ) was a Chinese historian of the early Han dynasty (206AD220). He is considered the father of Chinese historiography for his ''Records of the Grand Historian'', a general history of China covering more than two thousand years b ...

. ''

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 hist ...

''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zhongyong of Wu Monarchs of Wu (state) 12th-century BC Chinese monarchs Shang dynasty people Burials in Suzhou