King Xiaocheng of Zhao (; r. 265 BCE – 245 BCEVolume 6 of ''Zizhi Tongjian'' indicated that King Xiaocheng died in the 2nd year of the reign of

Qin Shi Huang Qin Shi Huang (, ; February 25912 July 210 BC), born Ying Zheng () or Zhao Zheng (), was the founder of the Qin dynasty and the first emperor of China. He is widely regarded as the first ever supreme leader of a unitary state, unitary d ...

, who was still King of Qin at the time; this corresponds to 245 BCE in the proleptic Julian calendar. ( ��皇帝二年��孝成王薨，....)), personal name Zhao Dan, was a king of the Zhao state. His reign saw the decline of Zhao military power owing to the catastrophic defeat by the Qin state at the Battle of Changping. King Xiaocheng ascended to the throne in the midst of a military stalemate between the Qin and the Zhao over the status of Shangdang, which the Han state had ceded to Zhao during the reign of King Huiwen. The commander in charge of Zhao forces, Lian Po, opted for a defensive strategy of fort construction. Perhaps due to Qin accusations of Lian Po's cowardice, King Xiaocheng decided in 260 BCE to replace him with Zhao Kuo, regardless of objections from the leading politician

Lin Xiangru Lin Xiangru () (died July 260 BCE) was a politician and general of the Warring States period, who served the state of Zhao. He figures prominently in two stories of the period, namely the episode and the namesake '' chengyu'' of " Returning the J ...

. Zhao Kuo's offensive strategy played right into the hands of Qin general

Bai Qi Bai Qi (; – January 257 BC), also known as Gongsun Qi (), was a Chinese military general of the Qin (state), Qin state during the Warring States period. Born in Mei (present-day Mei County, Shaanxi), Bai Qi served as the commander of the Qin ...

, and ultimately cost Zhao the battle and, with it, Zhao's military pre-eminence. King Xiaocheng died in 245 BCE and was succeeded by his son and heir, King Daoxiang.

Notes and references

* Zhao Guo Shi Gao (Draft History of the Zhao State), Shen Changyun, Zhonghua Book Company, China. {{Monarchs of Zhao (state) Monarchs of Zhao (state) Chinese kings 3rd-century BC Chinese monarchs Zhou dynasty nobility 245 BC deaths