ZHOU DYNASTY 1131 - 221 BC Part IIIAn Xiang |
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http://www.xabusiness.com/china-stamps-1982/t75.htm
The stamps are denominated in Fen =
1/100th Yuan and depict bronzes of the Western Zhou Dynasty
Zhou King Kangwang (Ji Zhao, reign approx 1,078 - 1,052 B.C.)
King Kangwang, during his 40 year reign, had ruled the country in the
spirits of King Wenwang and King Wuwang. Penalization tools were never
called upon to punish the people. King Kangwang asked Duke Bigong dwell in
the east.
Jiang Taigong [l. 1212-1073 per Chu Bosi] died after a life of over 100
years during the 6th year reign of King Kangwang per "Bamboo Annals". Jiang
Taigong was renowned for writing the first military strategy and tactics
books, six volumes of "Liu Tao", a book that future tacticans, like Guan
Zhong, Sun Wu, Wu Qi, Sun Bin, Su Qin, Huang-shi-gong [yellow rock grandpa,
i.e., Zhang Liang's master], Zhang Liang, and Zhuge Liang had inherited.
Zhou King Zhaowang (Ji Xia, reign approx 1,052 - 1,001 B.C.)
King Zhaowang was hated for his lack of so-called 'De', i.e., virtues. He
campaigned in the south. When he crossed the Huai River, sailors
deliberately used rubber to seam the boat for King Zhaowang to use. The
rubber-seamed boat melted mid-stream, and King Zhaowang, Duke Jigong and
entourage all drowned.
Zhou King Muwang (Ji Man, reign approx 1,001 - 946 B.C.)
King Muwang would set up several posts, including the position of 'tai pu',
for sake of restoring Zhou kingdom's prestige and power. Against the advice
of Duke Jigong's counsellor, King Muwang attacked the Rong-di people. Hence,
Rongdi no longer came to pay pilgrimage to Zhou court. King Muwang, after
defeating Quan Rong, exiled Quanrong to Taiyuan of Shanxi Province. Muwang
was said to be indulgent in travelling to the west. In the 17th year of his
reign, he visited the Kun Lun Mountain. When he was toasting with Queen
Mother of the West at Yao-Ci Lake on Mount Kunlun, the Xu statelet rebelled
against Zhou. His chauffeur, Zaofu (or Zao Fu, i.e., Qin's ancestoral
relative), drove him home to quell the rebellion, in an eight horse chariot.
Zhou King Gongwang (Ji Yihu, reign approx 946 - 934 B.C.)
King Wuwang died after a reign of 50 years. King Gongwang visited the Mi-guo
Statelet at Jingzhou Prefecture and saw three beautilful women in Mi-guo
Lord Kanggong's residence. Kanggong's mother asked his son to surrender the
three beauties, but Kanggong refused. One year later, King Gongwang attacked
Mi-guo Statelet and exterminated it.
Zhou King Yiwang (Ji Jian, reign approx 934 - 909 B.C.)
King Yiwang relocated the Zhou capital from Hao (Haojing or Chongzhou) to
Quanqiu (i.e., Feiqiu). Zhou Kingdom degraded in its ruling, and poets began
to record events via poems.
Zhou King Xiaowang (Ji Pifang, reign approx 909 - 894 B.C.)
King Xiaowang ordered Marquis Shen (Shenhou) to attack Quan-Rong around 909
BC. Qin's ancestor, Fei Zi, lived in a place called Quanqiu (a place near
Fufeng of Shenxi), and he was good at raising horses around the Wei-shui
River. Marquis Shenhou, whose daughter married Daluo (Fei Zi's father),
somehow pursuaded Zhou King Xiaowang into bestowing the last name of 'Ying'
on Daluo descendant for sake of pacifying or controlling the Xi Rong or
Western Rong people. (This shows the influence of Daluo descendants in this
barbaric area.)
Marquis Shenhou was quoted to have mentioned to Zhou King Xiaowang that his
ancestor had married their woman to 'Rong Xuxuan' where Rong meant for the
barbarians and 'Xuxuan' was the great grandson of Zhongyan. (In the eyes of
Marquis Shenhou, Qin people might be equivalent to the 'rong' people.)
Shi Ji was ambiguous in this section: Interpretation would be that Daluo
had another son born with Marquis Shenhou's daughter, called 'Cheng'; Fei-zi,
not Cheng, was conferred the ancestral name of 'Ying'. Note my general
designation of 'Daluo descendants' below in lieu of either Fei-zi or Cheng.
Zhou King Xiaowang conferred them the land of Qin (today's eastern Gansu
Province) as a vassal, and hence Daluo's son was know as 'Qin Ying'. Qin
became the vassal which was situated to the western-most part of then China.
History records that two more groups of people dwelled to the west of Qin
and Zhou Chinese, namely, the Western Rong nomads and the Yüeh-chih people.
Zhou King Yi(2)-wang (Ji Xie, reign approx 894 - 878 B.C.)
King Yiwang was another son of King Yiwang. He steam-killed Marquis Qi
Aigong in a bronze utensil called 'ding' or cauldron.
Zhou King Liwang (Ji Hu, reign approx 878 - 827 B.C.)
King Liwang was in reign for over 30 years. He paid attention to material
interests and used a minister called Rongyigong as his prime minister. Duke
Zhaogong (descendant of Zhaokanggong Mugonghu) admonished him by saying that
civilians had complaints. King Liwang then hired a witch from Wey-guo fief
to report on the populace. Liwang killed those who talked about him. Vassals
did not come to Zhou court to show respect. During his 34th reign, people
walking on the streets dared not talk to each other. Liwang gloated, saying
to Zhaogong that nobody dared to villify him any more. Zhaogong cited i)
that controlling the mouth of the populace would be more difficult than
controlling the mountain torrents, ii) that floods could kill lots of
people once a dam was broken, and iii) that the populace would not be kept
under control once their dissatisfaction broke out. King Liwang refused to
take Zhaogong's advice. Three years later, ministers colluded with each
other and attacked King Liwang. King Liwang fled to a place called Zhi (Huoyi
or Yong'an in Shanxi), east of the East Yellow River Bend. Liwang's son fled
to Zhaogong's home for asylum and when being attacked by the Guo-ren or
civilians, Zhaogong said he would be willing to substitute his own son for
the life of the prince because it was his fault that King Liwang did not
take his advice.
While Zhou King Liwang was ruling despotically, the Xi Rong (Xirong or
Western Rong) people had rebelled in the west and killed most of the Daluo
lineage of Qin people. Zhou King Xuanwang conferred Qin Zhong (r. BC 845-822
?) the title of 'Da Fu' and ordered him to quell the Xirong. Qin
Zhong got killed by Xirong after being a ruler for 23 years. Qin Zhong's
five sons, under the elder son (Qin Lord Zhuanggong), would defeat Xirong
with 7000 relief army from Zhou. Qin Lord Zhuanggong (r. BC 821-778) hence
recovered the territories called Quanqiu and enjoyed Zhou court's conferral
of the title of 'Xi Chui Da Fu', i.e., the 'Da Fu' on the
western-most border. (Qin ancestor tombs had been discovered in Li-xian
county of Gansu Prov.)
Interregnum, i.e., Republican Administrative Period (841 - 828 B.C.)
Duke Zhaogong and Duke Zhougong took the regency as "interregnum". During
the 14th of "interregnum", King Liwang passed away in Zhi, east of the
Yellow River. Prince Jing, who spent the years in Zhaogong's home, was
selected as the new Zhou king.
Zhou King Xuanwang (Ji Jing, reign 827 - 782 B.C.)
With two dukes as prime ministers, King Xuanwang renewed the Zhou spirits.
Vassals began to come to show respect. During the 12th year of the reign, Lu
Lord Wugong (r. BC 825-816) came to Zhou court. King Xuanwang, against the
advice of Guo-fief Lord Wengong (descendant of Guo Zhong or Guo-shu, a
brother of King Wenwang), did not take care of the thousand acre royal
field. (This Guo-fief was the so-called West Guo Statelet in Chencang,
Shenxi Prov.) During the 39th year of his reign, King Xuanwang attacked
Jiang-rong barbarians (a race of Xi Yi or western Yi barbarians, said to be
descendants of ancient minister 'Si Yue' or 'four mountains'), but he
was defeated by Jiang Rong and lost his Nan-ren (i.e., soldiers from Nanyang,
Henan Prov) troops. King Xuanwang ordered Bo Yi to attack the west. He made
his brother, Ji You, the inheritor of Zheng (i.e., Zheng Lord Huangong).
King Xuanwang refused to listen to advice from a minister called Zhongshanfu
of Fan-guo fief, and King Xuanwang killed another minister called Du Bo for
no reason. Legends said that three years later, in his 46th reign, King
Xuanwang died of an arrow shot by the ghost of Du Bo.
Zhou King Youwang (Ji Gongnie, reign 781 - 771 B.C.)
During the 2nd year of his reign, the San Chuan area, i.e., three rivers
areas of Jing-Wei-Luo & Yellow River, had a big earthquake. Qishan Mountain
shook during the quake, and rivers dried up. A Zhou minister, Boyangfu,
commented that Zhou Kingdom might have bad fate. King Youwang would use
Guozhifu as his minister. During the 3rd year, Youwang took in Baoshi (a
woman from Shi family, of Xia heritage, who was adopted by people of Bao-guo
fief) as the new queen and then bore a son called Bo-fu. At one time, King
Youwang, for sake of making Bao-shi laugh, would ridicule the vassals by
lighting the fire on the beacon towers that were designed for national
defence. When King Youwang deposed the prince born from the old queen, the
father-in-law, Marquis Shenhou, would invite Quanrong, Zeng-guo fief
(descendants of Lord Yu of Xia Dynasty) and Xi Yi (western Yi barbarians) to
help him in attacking the Zhou king. Since vassals no longer responded to
Youwang's beacon signal as a result of early ridiculing, King Youwang was
killed by Quanrong at Lishan Mountain (today's Lantian, Shenxi). The Rong
people who stayed on in Lishan Mountain areas were called Li-rong, and later
Jinn Principality had married a woman called Li-ji who caused Prince
Chong'er go into exile for 19 years.
Western Zhou Dynasty ended after a
duration of 257 years.