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Warring
States Era (476 BC to 221 BC)
Basically
this period began with the downfall of the Jau(Zhou) dynasty. Without an
Emperor to control them, the leaders of the various areas under the
control of the Jau ended up calling themselves kings (essentially
warlords) and started to create armies of their own. Soon, after
fighting amongst themselves for power and land, seven countries or
states, formed. They were the Yin and Jiu states to the north, the Chun
to the west, the Chor to the south, the Chai to the northeast, the Ngai
to the northwest and the Hon to the southwest of the center of China.
(Called the Seven Males of the Warring States) The various kings of
these seven states continued to struggle with each other for dominance
over the rest.
The
kingdom that were to be the victorious one would be the Chun. In the
beginning, they were not even considered to be a threat to the other six
states. They were a barbaric race who weren't even Chinese. The
technological capabilities of the people there were not as advanced as
the others. Yet they proved themselves capable in terms of military
strength. Over the course of years, they slowly conquered the other six
states and succeeded in unifying China under one leader, ending the era
of the Warring States. This period wasn't only punctuated by periods of strife and warfare. It also marked the beginnings of various schools of thought, which included Confucius. *As far as I know, Sun Ling Gwan [see episode 14] of the Ngai state was an actual historical figure. Although not mentioned much, I believe he was someone who wanted to prevent the Chun from attacking his state and led an army to stop them.
A man hated by many for his cruetly. Yet one who manged to be the first to unify China under one fule. The young leader of a small state who no one ever though would be able to defeat them. The man behind such projects like the unification of the Great Wall and the burning of hundreds of invaluable books. He is all these things, but who is he really? Born in 259 BC, Died in 210 BC at the age of 49. He was the son of Chun Seung Wong (Qin Xiang Wang) and Jiu Gei (Zhao Ji) with the name Ying Jing (Ying Zheng). *Before I go on, there's something I want to mention. Some people also believe that he might have been the son of Lui Bat Wai (Lu Bu Wei) and Jiu Gei. She was his favorite mistress and was given as a gift to Chun Seung Wong. Some history books record that they continued their relationship even after her marriage to the king... whether that's true or not, we'll never know.* At the age of 13, his father died. He ascended the throne, but not the power it holds. That was in the hands of prime minister Lui, who would return the power he held back to him when he was 21. After getting the full reigns of power, he started his plan of conquering the other six states who started to worry about the power the Chun had. They began to mobilize against him, but he slowly defeated all of them. When all of the states were under his control, he proclaimed himself the 'first emperor' of a unified empire. (Remember that China as we know it didn't appear in this time.) He used the title Chi Wong Dai (Shi Huang Di), which was previously reserved for deities or gods. During his reign, there were many taxes leveled onto his subjects to help pay for his campaigns against his 'enemies'. The taxes also paid for his extravagant projects such as the Great Wall and the building of his tomb. These projects and taxes heavily burdened the people, who were tired of all the wars and problems. They became restless and uneasy, which would later prove to be the Chun dynasty's mistake and the cause of their downfall. Chi Wong Dai was also a Legalist, which might explain some of his cruel ways towards people as a whole. The Legalist idea first appeared during the Warring States era, but wasn't very popular. It used strict and sometimes rather cruel ways of establishing control over others. Due to his beliefs, he thought that the other schools of thought, such as Taoism, Confuciusism, and Buddhism (which had just appeared in China) as heresay and had all books which had the teachings of these religions burned publically. Not just that, any books that aren't useful or say bad things about the government were burned as well. Luckily some brave souls managed to save a few of them, and they managed to live to this day. Throughout his life, Chi Wong Dai was obsessed with dying. Not dying itself, but preventing it from happening to him. Why, he died while on a journey, looking for a cure. He constantly sent people all over the known world, looking for that 'elixir of life'. One of the many legends that arose from his search was that once, he sent a group of people to look for that elixir with the message, 'if you fail to find it, do not return to me'. The group, finding nothing (why am I not surprised?), knew that death would come to them if they returned to China. They decided to go to a group of islands and settled there. The islands? Japan. It is said that when he died, his ministers tried to hide the fact because they were afraid of uprisings from the people. They decided to return to the capital, ASAP, without anyone knowing. Unfortunately, the body stank so much that the secret was soon out. He was buried in a tomb with several thousand warriors to protect him in death near the city of Si On (Xi An). His son also succeeded him to the throne. Unfortunately, the dynasty he created did not last long after his death. It fell, and a new dynasty was put up in its place: the Hon (Han). Chi Wong Dai is considered by many to be an important part of Chinese history. Why, even the English name 'China' is derived from the word Chun (Qin/Chin). Although not as popular among the people as future emperors like Tong Tai Jung aka Lei Sai Man(Tang Tai Zong aka Li Shih Min), his achievements definitely has made an impact on the Chinese. |
