The Zhou Dynasty (周朝, Zhōu Cháo, Western period 1046 BC – 771 BC and Eastern period 770 BC – 256 BC) is the third Chinese dynasty after the Xia Dynasty and Shang Dynasty. It lasted longer (790 years, counting both periods) than any other dynasty.
The surname of kings of the dynasty is 'Jī' (姬). Perhaps better remembered for events and people at the beginning and towards the end of the period and their influence on later Chinese culture than for anything the dynasty actually did. The Zhou gradually became feudal since the Zhou kings were nominally rulers of a pretty large territory, but only directly ruled a relatively small royal domain, with everything else farmed out to de facto independent, but related feudal dukes. Later in the Dynasty, Zhou kings opted to install Ur-Example of Feudalism by appointing dukes themselves. By the time of Eastern Zhou, many of these former dukes outright proclaimed themselves as Kings, whereas the Zhou rulers retained the title "son of heaven", which carried a more symbolic than practical significance.
According to tradition, the foundations of the Zhou state were laid by King Wen; his son King Wu then defeated the Shang and established the Zhou Dynasty. Both kings were regarded as "sage kings" by later Confucians. While not a king himself, Duke Dan (the younger son of King Wen and thus brother of King Wu) was also regarded as a sagely ruler due to his regency when his nephew King Cheng was a minor. Dan is also a Chinese culture hero credited with writing the I Ching (易經/易经) and the Classic of Poetry (詩經/诗经), establishing the 'Rites of Zhou' (周禮/周礼), and creating the yǎyuè (雅樂/雅乐, lit. "elegant music") of Chinese classical music. The concept of the "Son of Heaven" (天子, Tiānzǐ) appeared during this dynasty. One reason for Confucius's respect towards Duke Dan was that Duke Dan's descendants became the Dukes of Lu.note
This era began with government official positions being hereditary in nature; by the middle part of the Warring States, almost every state had abolished this nature, although the replacement system differed from state to state. The state of Qin awarded positions based on merit earned during battles (essentially the number of heads submitted for counting); this ruthless system encouraged the demonisation of the Qin army as "armies of tigers and wolves" (虎狼之師/虎狼之师, hǔ láng zhī shī).
In 771 BC, the capital moved from Haojing (also known as Zongzhou, near present-day Xi'an) to Chengzhou (near present-day Luoyang), which demarcates the Western and Eastern periods. According to tradition, this was due to the incompetence of King You, which allowed a vassal, the Marquess of Shen, and his allies to invade Haojing.
The Eastern period is further subdivided into 2 periods:
- Spring and Autumn Period (722 BC – 481 BC): The period's name derives from the Spring and Autumn Annals, a chronicle of the state of Lu between 722 and 479 BC. The supremacy of the central Zhou government goes into terminal decline. Being the golden age of Chinese philosophy (the so-called "Hundred Schools of Thought"), the period gave us Confucius (traditionally attributed as the author of the Annals mentioned above), allegedly Laozi (founder of Taoism), Sunzi (author of The Art of War), and many other thinkers. A turbulent period when 148 regional rulers (many connected to the royal family) and their petty dukedoms (mostly city-states) contested with one another for influence and hegemony.
- Warring States Period (403 BC – 221 BC): The feudal system broke down entirely and, as the name indicates, the seven strongest states went into constant war. Eventually, the state of Qin united the land in 221 B.C. and a new dynasty began. Many historians believe that Laozi really lived at this time if he existed at all. Zhuangzi definitely did. The period started when the state of Jin was carved up between three families, who later formed the states of Han, Zhao and Wei. States pro and against Qin made alliances known as the horizontal and vertical alliances (合縱連橫/合纵连横, hé zòng lián héng) with the School of Diplomacy dominating the stage. In 256 B.C., the last king of Zhou was deposed by the state of Qin. Legalism saw its development during this period; thinkers of the school include Shang Yang, Han Fei and Li Si.
Of the 24 Histories, Shǐjì covers the Zhou era. Other sources include Zuǒ Zhuàn (左傳/左传, "The Zuo Tradition" or "The Commentary of (Master) Zuo"), and Zhànguó Cè (戰國策/战国策, "Strategies of the Warring States" or "Annals of the Warring States").
Notable monarchs
- Ji Chang, King Wen of Zhou (1075 BC – 1046 BC): the Civilizing King. Actually not a king and only posthumously named so by his son. He is praised a lot in the Classic of Poetry
as a model ruler.
- Ji Gongnienote , King You of Zhou (795 BC –771 BC): Legends say that he repeatedly sent false alarms to his vassals just to make his queen laugh. When actual enemies came, the vassals ignored him and thus the capital was sacked. This disaster prompted the Eastern Zhou period and the steady decline of Zhou authority.
- The Five Hegemons: "Vassals" who, at different times during the Spring and Autumn period, managed to consolidate power and coax other lords into an alliance. Their attitude toward the Zhou kings varied among loyalty, defiance, lip service and thinly-veiled ambition. The dominance of their state usually didn't outlive them for long.
- King Goujian of Yue: Or Yue Wang Gou Jian, a tenacious king from the Yue state during the Spring & Autumn period famous for his story of enduring humiliation and revenge and being a Magnificent Bastard. Of all things, he managed to defend his land from an impossible battle against King Helu of Wu (who had Sun Tzu as his minister at that time), but was forced to surrender into servitude by Helu's successor Fuchai. Not willing to give up, he endured his humiliating state while building up power base with his minister Fan Li, and weakening the Wu state via sabotaging, rumormongering or sending out the first of the Four Beauties of Ancient China, Xi Shi (西施), against Fuchai, and finally after all those, succeeding to liberate his own state. Also has a Cool Sword with his name engraved on it.
Depictions in fiction
- Emperor: Rise of the Middle Kingdom
- The Emperor and the Assassin
- Hero (2002)
- Jiang Ziya
- Kingdom
- The King's Woman
- Little Big Soldier (Film)
- My Vow To My Liege
- The Qin Empire
- A Step Into The Past
