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115-566: The city of Yōng ( 雍 ) located in Fengxiang District, was once the capital of the ancient State of Qin during the Zhou dynasty (1046–256 BCE). As Yong's population expanded over time, the surrounding area became Yong County ( 雍县 ). During the Tang dynasty (618–907 CE), a prefectural seat of government was established and renamed Fengxiang County, although people continued to use the old name. Under

230-494: A 200,000 strong army to attack Chu. Wang Jian claimed that he was ill and retired to recuperate at home. The Qin armies scored initial victories as Li Xin's army conquered Pingyu ( 平輿 ; north of present-day Pingyu County , Henan) while Meng Tian's captured Qinqiu ( 寢丘 ; present-day Linquan County , Anhui). After conquering Yan ( 鄢 ; present-day Yanling County, Henan ), Li Xin headed west to rendezvous with Meng Tian at Chengfu ( 城父 ; east of present-day Baofeng County , Henan). On

345-512: A Zhao minister, to sow discord between King Qian of Zhao ( 趙王遷 ) and Li Mu. The king doubted Li Mu's loyalty and ordered Li Mu to hand over his command of the Zhao army to his deputies, Zhao Cong ( 趙蔥 ) and Yan Ju ( 顏聚 ). When Li Mu defied the order, the king became more suspicious of him and ordered his men to take Li Mu by surprise and arrest him. Li Mu was executed in prison later on King Qian's order. In 228 BC, after learning that Li Mu had been replaced,

460-460: A conflict between Qin and Zhao for control of Shangdang. Qin and Zhao engaged in the three-year-long Battle of Changping , followed by another three-year siege by Qin on Zhao's capital city of Handan . The conflict at Changping was seen as a power struggle, as both sides pitted their forces against each other not only on the battlefield, but also domestically. Although Qin had an abundance of resources and vast manpower, it had to enlist every man above

575-550: A crushing defeat on Chu. In 299 BC, King Huai I was tricked into attending a diplomatic conference in Qin, where he was captured and held hostage until his death. In the meantime, Qin launched several attacks on Chu and eventually sacked the Chu capital city of Chen ( 陳 ; modern Jiangling County , Hubei). The crown prince of Chu fled east and was crowned King Qingxiang of Chu in the new capital city of Shouchun ( 壽春 ; modern Shou County , Anhui). In

690-651: A famine the following year, Duke Hui did not reciprocate, leading to diplomatic deterioration and a war in 645 BC. The war ended with Duke Hui's defeat and capture, but Duke Mu later released him after Jin agreed to cede land and form an alliance. During the battles with Jin, Duke Mu learned that Chong'er, one of Duke Xian's exiled sons, was taking refuge in the state of Chu . After consulting his subjects, Duke Mu sent an emissary to Chu to invite Chong'er and supported him in his challenge against his brother, Duke Hui. After Chong'er defeated Duke Hui to become Duke Wen of Jin , he expressed gratitude to Duke Mu, and relations between

805-645: A fight. The former Qi territories were reorganized to form the Qi and Langya commanderies. In 221 BC, after the conquest of Qi, Ying Zheng declared himself to be Qin Shi Huang —the First Emperor of the Qin dynasty . The Qin Empire was divided into 36 commanderies, with Xianyang (present-day Xi'an ) as the imperial capital. The emperor's expansionist ambitions did not end with

920-467: A forest area of 5.5 ha (14 acres), producing 195,361 tons of food, agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry and fishery output valued at 738.64 million yuan. Main food crops include wheat, with Shaanxi Province is one of the main producing areas; sorghum, corn and beans are followed by other economic crops such as cotton, pepper and tobacco. Farmers in the district has an output of 1,301 yuan per capita net. The district's specialty, Xifeng Jiu baijiu ,

1035-506: A high in July of 24.4 °C (75.9 °F), with 608 mm (23.9 in) in precipitation. Sunlight remains until 21:00 hours, and it has a frost-free period of 209 days. Its soil is small oil-based, and in the vast region of the south, there is deep soil, with good cultivation for major grain and cotton production. The hilly area north of the mountains to the river contains more than 1,000 river valleys with silt soil. As 2020, Fengxiang District

1150-547: A horse-breeder as their ancestor may imply that the Ying family had a partial connection to nomadic tribes. As late as 266 BC, it was remarked by a noble of Wei that they shared customs with the Rong and Beidi tribes; the central plains states seemed to hold Qin culture and other peripheral states like Yan and Chu in low regard, due to the marginal location of their states. Qin was the second state after Zhao to adopt cavalry tactics from

1265-407: A lack of coordination among the five states. In addition to the effects on Qin's military, Shang Yang's reforms also increased labour for numerous public works projects aimed at enhancing agriculture, and enabled Qin to maintain and supply an active military force of more than a million troops. This achievement could not be matched by any other state, except Chu, during that time. Qin's conquests of

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1380-564: A major victory. Duke Mu refused to advance further east after holding a memorial service for those killed in action at the Battle of Xiao and returned to focus on the traditional policy of expanding Qin's dominance in the west. Duke Mu's achievements in Qin's western campaigns and his handling of foreign relations with Jin earned him a position among the Five Hegemons of the Spring and Autumn period. In

1495-543: A plan for conquering the other six states and unifying China, with assistance from Li Si and Wei Liao. In 230, Qin attacked Han , the weakest of the Seven Warring States , and succeeded in conquering Han within a year. Since 236, Qin had been launching several assaults on Zhao , which had been devastated by its calamitous defeat at the Battle of Changping three decades earlier. Although Qin faced strong resistance from

1610-608: A platform for launching attacks on the Chu state, which lies downstream of the Yangtze. During the reign of King Huiwen of Qin , the state of Chu to the southeast became a target for Qin's aggression. Although Chu had the largest operation-ready army of all the Seven Warring States at over a million troops, its administrative and military strength was plagued by corruption and divided among the nobles. The Qin strategist Zhang Yi suggested to King Huiwen to exercise Qin's interest at

1725-583: A series of Legalist reforms in Qin with the support of Duke Xiao, despite facing strong opposition from conservative Qin politicians. Direct primogeniture was abolished, with all commoners granted citizenship rights. Many were resettled in new clusters with a focus on increasing agricultural output. Meritocracy was practiced throughout, especially in the military, with soldiers and officers receiving due rewards according to their contributions, regardless of their backgrounds. However, stringent and strict laws were also imposed, with severe punishments being meted out for

1840-491: A series of military campaigns launched in the late 3rd century BC by the state of Qin against the other six powers remaining in China ;– Han , Zhao , Yan , Wei , Chu and Qi . Between 247 and 221 BC, Qin had developed into one of the most powerful of China's Seven Warring States that coalesced in the wake of the Zhou dynasty 's decline, by now retaining a weak and merely ceremonial position among

1955-457: A speech pronounced on the eve of a major interstate conference of 546 BC, a Jin leader recognized Qin, along with Jin, Chu and Qi, as one of the four pivotal great powers of the current world. In 506 BC, King Helü of Wu defeated Chu at the Battle of Boju and captured the Chu capital, Ying (modern Jingzhou ). Helü's adviser, Wu Zixu , who had previously been forced into exile by the already deceased King Ping of Chu and craved vengeance for

2070-400: A surprise attack. Lord Changping's forces followed suit from behind and joined Xiang Yan's army in attacking Li Xin. Most of Li Xin's forces were destroyed in the battle. Upon learning of Li Xin's defeat, Ying Zheng personally visited Wang Jian, who was in retirement, apologised for not heeding Wang Jian's advice earlier, and invited him back to serve in the army. He put Wang Jian in command of

2185-729: Is divided to 12 towns . The district produces a GDP 1.48251 billion yuan, with total retail sales of 385.41 million yuan, the balance of savings deposits of urban and rural residents of 1.04604 billion yuan. It has a financial income of 43.43 million yuan, with 72.85 million yuan in financial expenditure. Industries include farming machinery manufacturing, breweries, cement, ceramics, chemicals, machine brick, sugar, flour, and food processing. Natural resources include mines, and mineral resources are limestone, fire-resistant stone, calcite, iron, lignite, and so on. The highway network includes 863 km (536 mi) of roads. The district has an agricultural land area of 50,374 ha (124,480 acres), with

2300-758: Is well known at home and abroad. Other handicraft include woodcut New Year pictures, clay sculptures, paper cuttings, fireworks paper guns, lacquer, Fung grass, straw hats, and others. Main tourist attractions include East Lake Park, Gu Cheng, Yin Fung Chi which was built in the Song dynasty, Weeping Willow Lake in Xiangying, beautiful, the tomb of Qin Mugong south of the mound, and three Yong City Qindou sites, all provincial-level key heritage conservation units. The East Lake Park (Donghu Gongyuan) can be dated back to 1062, when Su Shi , who

2415-545: The Liaodong Peninsula towards the west of Lop Nur to prevent the nomadic tribes from returning again. In the south, a Qin army comprising some 500,000 troops attacked Yue and subjugated the Baiyue peoples who inhabited the areas around present-day Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, and Guangdong. During the battle, another project was announced with the construction of a massive canal from the Qin imperial capital, Xianyang, towards

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2530-550: The Liaodong Peninsula . A Qin army led by Li Xin pursued the retreating Yan forces to the Yan River ( 衍水 ; present-day Hun River , Liaoning) and destroyed the bulk of the Yan army. Later, King Xi ordered Crown Prince Dan's execution and sent his son's head to Qin as an "apology" for the assassination attempt. Qin accepted the "apology" and did not attack Yan for the next three years. In 222 BC, Qin forces led by Wang Ben and Li Xin invaded

2645-682: The Quanrong ', modern Li County, Gansu ), and an eastern branch that settled east of the Yellow River in modern Shanxi . The latter became the ancestors of the rulers of the later state of Zhao . The western Ying clan at Quanqiu were lords over the Xichui ('western march ') region west of Mount Long and served as a buffer state for the Shang dynasty against invasions by the Xirong barbarians. One of them, Elai ,

2760-521: The Shangdang region of Han state. The governor of Shangdang refused to surrender and presented it to the King of Zhao. The Qin and Zhao armies were locked in a 2-year siege at Changping , which culminated in a decisive defeat of Zhao by the Qin army. In 257, the Qin army was defeated by the allied force of Zhao, Wei and Chu after failing to capture the Zhao capital at Handan . At the time of King Nan of Zhou ,

2875-499: The Spring and Autumn period (722–481 BC), the Qin state's interaction with other central Chinese states remained minimal due to their primary concern with the Rong to the west. The exception was their immediate eastern neighbor, Jin , a large vassal of the Zhou. Qin maintained diplomatic relations with Jin through intermarriages between the royal clans, but relations occasionally deteriorated to

2990-533: The Xiongnu in the north, in order to counter the Qin invasion. However, Crown Prince Dan felt that the alliance strategy was unlikely to succeed, so he sent an assassin, Jing Ke , to assassinate King Ying Zheng of Qin . Jing Ke pretended to be an envoy from Yan to Qin and brought along with him a map of Dukang and the head of Fan Wuji, a former Qin general who had since betrayed them. Jing Ke failed and died in his attempt to kill Ying Zheng. In 226 BC, Ying Zheng used

3105-557: The canal was named in honour of Zheng . Qin benefited from the project as it became one of the most fertile states in China due to the efficient irrigation system, and also because it could now muster more troops as a result of increased agricultural yield. In 247, the 13-year-old Ying Zheng became King of Qin following the sudden death of King Zhuangxiang. However, Ying Zheng did not fully wield state power until 238, after eliminating his political rivals, Lü Buwei and Lao Ai . Ying formulated

3220-567: The 2nd-century BC Records of the Grand Historian by Sima Qian , the Qin state traced its origin to Zhuanxu , one of the legendary Five Emperors in ancient times. One of his descendants, Boyi, was granted the family name of Ying by Emperor Shun . During the Xia and Shang dynasties , the Ying clan split into two: a western branch that migrated across the Ordos Plateau to Quanqiu ( 犬丘 'hill of

3335-438: The 400,000 prisoners of war from Zhao to be executed by burying them alive. Subsequently, the Qin forces marched on the Zhao capital city of Handan in an attempt to conquer Zhao completely. However, the Qin troops were unable to capture Handan as they were already exhausted and also because the Zhao forces put up fierce resistance. King Xiaocheng of Zhao offered six cities to Qin as a peace offer, and King Zhaoxiang of Qin accepted

3450-641: The 600,000 troops he had requested earlier, and assigned Meng Wu to serve as Wang Jian's deputy. Wang Jian knew that Ying Zheng did not fully trust him because he could easily turn against Qin with such a massive army under his command. Thus, in order to reduce the king's suspicions, he frequently sent messengers to maintain contact with the king, and request that the king reward his family after he had conquered Chu for Qin. In 224 BC, Wang Jian's army passed through Chen ( 陳 ; present-day Huaiyang County , Henan) and made camp at Pingyu ( 平輿 ; north of present-day Pingyu County , Henan). The Chu army led by Xiang Yan assaulted

3565-465: The 600,000-strong army as he had requested and ordered Wang to lead another attack on Chu. Wang scored a major victory against the Chu forces in 224, and Xiang Yan was killed in action. The following year, Qin pushed on and captured Chu's capital city of Shouchun , bringing an end to Chu's existence. In 222, the Qin army advanced southward and annexed the Wuyue region (modern Zhejiang and Jiangsu). By 221, Qi

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3680-553: The Chu side, the Chu general Xiang Yan ( 項燕 ) had been avoiding using the bulk of the Chu army to resist the Qin invaders while waiting for an opportunity to launch a counterattack. During this time, a Qin noble with ties to the related to the Chu royal family named Lord Changping incited a rebellion in a city previously conquered by Li Xin. Changping also had begun preparing a surprise attack on Li Xin that would follow. The Chu army led by Xiang Yan secretly followed Li Xin's army at high speed for three days and three nights before launching

3795-611: The Grand Historian with corrections by Han Zhaoqi: Qin is represented by two stars, Theta Capricorni ('first star of Qin') and 30 Capricorni ('second star of Qin'), in Twelve States asterism. Qin is also represented by the star Delta Serpentis in the Right Wall asterism, part of the Heavenly Market enclosure (see Chinese constellation ). Qin%27s wars of unification Qin's wars of unification were

3910-497: The King of Dai. In 222 BC, Dai was conquered by the Qin army led by Wang Jian's son, Wang Ben . Prince Jia was taken captive. Han was the weakest of the seven states and had previously been attacked several times by Qin. In 230 BC, the Qin army led by Neishi Teng ( 內史騰 ) moved south, crossed the Yellow River , and conquered Zheng ( 鄭 ; present-day Xinzheng , Henan), the capital of Han, within one year. King An of Han surrendered and Han came under Qin control. The territory of Han

4025-584: The Liaodong Peninsula and destroyed the remnants of Yan forces, and captured King Xi. Former Yan territories were partitioned and reorganized to form the Yuyang , Beiping , Liaoxi and Liaodong commanderies of the Qin Empire. In 225 BC, a 600,000-strong Qin army led by Wang Ben conquered more than ten cities on the northern border of Chu as a precautionary move to guard the flank from Chu attacks while Qin

4140-540: The Qi chancellor , to dissuade the Qi state from helping the other states while they were being attacked by Qin. By 221 BC, Qi was the only state yet to be conquered by Qin. Even though its troops were not well-equipped and morale was low, Qi hurriedly mobilized them to the western border to guard against a Qin invasion. In the same year, Ying Zheng used Qi's rejection of a meeting with a Qin envoy as pretense for an attack. The Qin army led by Li Xin avoided direct confrontation with

4255-417: The Qi forces stationed on their western border, and advanced into the Qi heartland via a southern detour from the former Yan state. The Qin forces encountered little resistance as they passed through Qi territories and eventually showed up at the gates of Linzi (north of present-day Zibo , Shandong), the Qi capital. Caught off guard, Tian Jian heeded Hou Sheng's advice and surrendered to Qin without putting up

4370-514: The Qin army to attack the Wuyue region (covering present-day Zhejiang and Jiangsu ), which was inhabited by the Baiyue , and captured the descendants of the royal family of the ancient state of Yue . The conquered Wuyue territories became the Qin Empire's Kuaiji Commandery . In 264 BC, Tian Jian became King of Qi . However, as he was too young to rule, his mother, the Queen Dowager, became his regent. The Qin state bribed Hou Sheng ( 後勝 ),

4485-493: The Qin army, led by Wang Ben , invaded Wei and besieged Wei's capital city of Daliang for three months. Wang directed the waters from the Yellow River and the Hong Canal to flood Daliang ; King Jia of Wei surrendered, and Wei was conquered. In 224, Qin prepared for an attack on Chu , its most powerful rival among the six states. During a discussion between Ying Zheng and his subjects, the veteran general Wang Jian claimed that

4600-453: The Qin camp but failed to push back the Qin forces. When the Chu army tried to lure the Qin forces to attack them, Wang Jian ordered his troops to hold their positions and forbid them from attacking the enemy. After some time, Xiang Yan gave up and ordered the Chu army to retreat. Wang Jian then seized the opportunity to order his troops to launch an all-out offensive while the Chu army was retreating, taking them completely by surprise and routing

4715-500: The Qin dynasty, and became the first sovereign ruler of a united China. Before Qin unified China, each state had its own customs and culture. According to the Yu Gong or Tribute of Yu , composed in the 4th or 5th century BC and included in the Book of Documents , there were nine distinct cultural regions of China, which are described in detail in this book. The work focuses on the travels of

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4830-532: The Qin forces attacked, defeated the Zhao army and conquered Dongyang ( 東陽 ; located east of the Taihang Mountains ). Zhao Cong was killed in action while Yan Ju escaped after his defeat. Seven months later, Qin forces occupied Handan and captured King Qian, bringing an end to Zhao's existence. Prince Jia , King Qian's brother, escaped from Handan and retreated to Dai (around present-day Yu County, Hebei ). With help from some Zhao remnants, he declared himself

4945-401: The Qin forces besieged and captured Langmeng ( 狼孟 ; present-day Yangqu County , Shanxi), and soon afterwards proceeded to attack Fanwu ( 番吾 ; present-day Lingshou County , Hebei), but were once again defeated by the Zhao army led by Li Mu. However, sources claims that after this battle, the Zhao forces also sustained heavy losses and could only retreat to defend Handan and its nearby areas. In

5060-441: The Qin government's direct administration. King Zhaoxiang's foreign adviser, Fan Sui, counselled the king to abandon these fruitless campaigns against distant states. King Zhaoxiang heeded this advice and altered Qin's foreign policy to foster good diplomatic relations with the distant states of Yan and Qi), while focusing on attacking the nearby Zhao, Han, and Wei. As a result, Qin began to launch constant attacks on Han and Wei over

5175-432: The Qin to an end. Some of the victorious rebels claimed to be restoring the former states that had been conquered by Qin, and numerous pretenders to the vacant thrones began to emerge. That same year, while still under occupation by Liu Bang, the city of Xiangyang was attacked and overrun by the forces of Xiang Yu , who was a descendant of the Chu general Xiang Yan. Xiang and Liu proceeded to struggle for control over China in

5290-488: The Rong and recovered their lost patrimony, formerly held by the deceased branch of the Ying clan. King Xuan formally awarded them the territory of Quanqiu. Duke Zhuang then moved his seat from Qinyi to Quanqiu and had three sons. When Duke Zhuang died in 778 BC, his eldest son Shifu chose to continue fighting the Xirong and avenge their grandfather, turning down the succession. As a result, his second son, Duke Xiang , ascended as

5405-556: The Rong but was released a year later. In 771, the Marquess of Shen , in collaboration with the state of Zeng and the Quanrong nomads, attacked and sacked the Zhou capital Haojing , killing King You of Zhou and ending the Western Zhou . Duke Xiang led his troops to escort King You's son, King Ping , to Luoyi (modern Luoyang ), where the new capital city of the Eastern Zhou dynasty

5520-481: The Rong tribes that were occupying it. Encouraged by this promise, the following generations of Qin rulers launched several military campaigns against the Rong, eventually expanding their territories far beyond the original lands lost by the Western Zhou dynasty. The Qin state therefore viewed the Zhou rulers King Wen and Wu as their predecessors and themselves as the legitimate inheritors of their legacy. During

5635-559: The Tang, it also served as Xidu ( 西都 ), the "Western Capital" of the empire. Fengxiang was the capital of the Qi Kingdom (907–924). The district is between 1,000 and 1,600 metres (3,300 and 5,200 ft) above sea level. It is located in a sub-humid climate to temperate zones. The annual average temperature is 11.8 °C (53.2 °F), with a low of −1.5 °C (29.3 °F) in January, and

5750-410: The Xirong state of Yiqu . After the last horizontal alliance to punish Qi ended in 284, Qin fought multiple wars against the northern state of Zhao in 283, 269, and 265 BC. In 269 BC, Fan Sui became chief advisor to Qin. He advocated authoritarian reforms, irrevocable expansion and an alliance with distant states to attack nearby states. In 265, King Zhaoxiang of Qin made the first move by attacking

5865-487: The Yue state. It was a major key to victory for the Qin conquest of the southern kingdom, and the Yue state became a vassal of the Qin Empire for over a decade. After these two victorious battles, Qin Shi Huang was able to create a centralized empire that would become the bedrock of future Chinese dynasties. Although the Qin dynasty lasted only 15 years, its influence on Chinese history lasted for centuries to come. In 209 BC, during

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5980-505: The Zhao forces, led by General Li Mu , it still managed to defeat the Zhao army by using a ploy to sow discord between King Qian of Zhao and Li Mu, leading King Qian to order Li Mu's execution and replace Li with the less competent Zhao Cong. Zhao eventually fell to Qin in 228 after the capital city of Handan was taken. However, a Zhao noble managed to escape with remnant forces and proclaim himself King in Dai. Dai fell to Qin six years later. After

6095-517: The Zhou dynasty to an end more than eight centuries after their overthrow of the Shang . In 238 BC, King Ying Zheng of Qin took the reins of power after eliminating his political rivals in Lü Buwei and Lao Ai . With help from Li Si , Wei Liao , and others, Ying Zheng formulated a plan for conquering the other six major states and unifying China. The plan, which focused on annexing each state individually,

6210-480: The affairs of the Zhou world in the 5th and the early 4th century BC considerably diminished. Another research also finds that Qin was strong and explains the weak influence on the Central Plain by the Qin isolationist policy. Initially, Qin avoided involvement using its protective geography and, responding to growing external threats, gradually turned to intervention in the manner of "defensive imperialism." During

6325-422: The age of 15 for war-related duties, ranging from front-line service to logistics and agriculture. King Zhaoxiang even personally directed his army's supply lines. Qin's eventual victory in 260 BC was attributed to its use of schemes to stir up internal conflict in Zhao, which led to the replacement of Zhao's military leaders. Following the Qin victory at the Battle of Changping, the Qin commander, Bai Qi , ordered

6440-476: The assassination attempt as a casus belli to order Wang Jian and Meng Wu to lead the Qin army to attack Yan. The Qin forces defeated the Yan army and Yan's reinforcements from Dai in battle on the eastern bank of the Yi River ( 易水 ; in present-day Yi County, Hebei ) and pressed on to conquer Ji ( 薊 ; present-day Beijing ), the Yan capital. King Xi of Yan, Crown Prince Dan and the surviving Yan forces retreated to

6555-436: The attack on Handan, meanwhile Qin general Li Xin led two forces from Taiyuan and Yunzhong to attack Dai County in the north. On the Zhao side, Li Mu and Sima Shang ( 司馬尚 ) were put in command of the Zhao army. Li Mu ordered his troops to build defensive structures and avoid direct confrontation with the enemy. The Qin forces were unable to advance further and both sides reached a stalemate. The Qin state bribed Guo Kai ( 郭開 ),

6670-426: The brutal execution of his father and brother, exhumed King Ping's corpse and posthumously lashed it. This was a great humiliation for the Chu state. Consequently, Shen Baoxu, a Chu official and a former friend of Wu Zixu, travelled to the Qin court and pleaded for assistance from Duke Ai of Qin to recover the capital. After Duke Ai initially refused to help, Shen spent seven days crying in the palace courtyard. Duke Ai

6785-514: The city walls. The Wei troops used the opportunity to strengthen their fortifications and defenses. Wang Ben came up with the idea of directing the waters from the Yellow River and the Hong Canal to flood Daliang. His troops labored for three months to redirect the water flow while maintaining the siege on Daliang, and succeeded in their plan. Daliang was heavily flooded and over 100,000 people died, including civilians. King Jia of Wei ( 魏王假 ) surrendered and Wei came under Qin control. Qin established

6900-399: The clan leader. In 777 BC, Duke Xiang married his younger sister, Mu Ying, to a Rong leader named King Feng ( 豐王 ) in an apparent attempt to make peace. The following year, he moved the Qin capital eastward from Quanqiu to Qian ( 汧 ; modern Long County, Shaanxi ). However, Quanqiu soon fell to the Rong again after he left. His older brother Shifu, who led the defense of Quanqiu, was captured by

7015-486: The commanderies of Dang and Sishui in the former Wei territories. In 226 BC, Qin forces led by Wang Ben attacked Chu and conquered 10 Chu cities. Two years later, King Ying Zheng of Qin , called for a meeting with his subjects to discuss the Qin invasion of Chu. Wang Jian felt that they needed at least 600,000 troops for the campaign, while Li Xin claimed that 200,000 men would suffice. Ying Zheng dismissed Wang Jian's idea and ordered Li Xin and Meng Tian to lead

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7130-518: The common enemies of Qin against one another. In 316 BC, Qin expanded south towards the Sichuan Basin by conquering the states of Ba and Shu . In 278, the Qin under general Bai Qi attacked Chu from land they had recently conquered land in what is now Sichuan. The Chu capitals of Ying and Chen ( 陳 ) were captured, and all of Chu's possessions west of the Han River were lost. In 272, Qin conquered

7245-417: The core philosophies of Legalism. Following these reforms, Qin rose to prominence in the late fourth century BC and emerged as the dominant superpower among the Seven Warring States . In 364 BC, Qin defeated the combined armies of Wei and Han, and King Xian of Zhou , the nominal ruler of China, declared Duke Xian the Hegemon (ba) of China (Sima Qian 4:160). His successor, Duke Xiao , who ascended

7360-407: The dominant powers among the Seven Warring States . It unified the seven states of China in 221 BC under Qin Shi Huang . This unification established the Qin dynasty , which, despite its short duration, had a significant influence on later Chinese history. Accordingly, the Qin state before the Qin dynasty was established is also referred to as the "predynastic Qin" or "proto-Qin". According to

7475-541: The early Warring States period , its neighbours in the Central Plains began rapidly developing. The Wei state , formed from the partition of Jin , became the most powerful state on Qin's eastern border. Qin largely relied on natural defences such as the Hangu Pass (northeast of modern Lingbao, Henan ) and Wu Pass (modern Danfeng County ) in the east, to protect its Guanzhong heartland. Between 413 and 409 BC, during

7590-422: The enemy. The Qin forces pursued the retreating Chu forces to Qinan ( 蕲南 ; northwest of present-day Qichun County , Hubei) and defeated them. Xiang Yan was killed in action. In 223 BC, Qin forces conquered Shouchun ( 壽春 ; present-day Shou County , Anhui), the Chu capital. Lord Changping , the King of Chu, was killed by Meng Wu and Chu was completely subjugated by Qin. The following year, Wang Jian and Meng Wu led

7705-457: The execution of the duties of their position. Its courts and bureaus functioned without delays and with such smoothness that it was as if there were no government at all." In his Petition against driving away foreigners ( 諫逐客書 ), Li Si mentioned that the guzheng and percussion instruments made of pottery and tiles were characteristic of Qin music. List of Qin rulers based on the Records of

7820-483: The expense of Chu. Over the following years, Zhang engineered and executed a number of diplomatic plots against Chu, supported by the constant military raids on Chu's north-western border. Chu suffered many defeats in battles against Qin and was forced to cede territories to Qin. King Huai I of Chu was furious and ordered a military campaign against Qin, but he was tricked by Zhang Yi into breaking diplomatic ties with his allies, and his angered allies joined Qin in inflicting

7935-408: The fall of Zhao, Qin turned its attention towards Crown Prince Dan of Yan, who had sent Jing Ke to assassinate Ying Zheng, but the assassination attempt failed, and Qin used that as a pretext to attack Yan. Yan lost to Qin at a battle on the eastern bank of the Yi River in 226, and King Xi of Yan fled with remnant forces to Liaodong . Qin attacked Yan again in 222 and annexed Yan completely. In 225,

8050-665: The first sovereign over a unified China under the imperial Qin dynasty . Over the course of the Warring States period , and especially following Shang Yang 's administrative reforms during the mid-4th century BC, the state of Qin had grown to become the most powerful of the Seven Warring States that remained in China. The others repeatedly adopted a policy of "vertical alliance" ( 合縱 ; hézòng ) where they all joined in as allies against Qin. However, Qin sometimes maneuvered itself into alliances of its own among these states, forging "horizontal alliances" ( 連橫 ; liánhéng ) that pitted

8165-609: The five decades following King Huiwen's death, King Zhaoxiang of Qin shifted his focus to the central plains after victories in the south against Chu. In the early years of King Zhaoxiang's reign, the Marquis of Rang ( 穰侯 ) served as Qin's chancellor and actively advocated for military campaigns against the state of Qi in the far eastern part of China. However, the marquis had personal motives, intending to use Qin's formidable military to secure his own fief in Qi territories, as these lands were not directly linked to Qin and would not be under

8280-480: The following two years, Zhao was struck by two natural disasters — an earthquake and a severe famine. In 229 BC, Qin took advantage of the situation to launch a pincer attack from the north and south on Handan, the Zhao capital. Three Qin armies embarked from Shangdi ( 上地 ; present-day Shaanxi), Jingxing ( 井陉 ; present-day Jingxing County , Hebei) and Henei (present-day Xinxiang , Henan), respectively led by Wang Jian, Qiang Lei/Hui ( 羌瘣 ) and Yang Duan He, to coordinate

8395-420: The greedy will abandon their general to give chase. We can then capitalize on this opportunity by hunting each group down individually and then capturing the generals that have been isolated. Finally, we must array our army to ambush their commander. According to Wu, the character of the populace is a consequence of the government, which in turn is a result of the ruggedness of the terrain. Wu expounds upon each of

8510-410: The invasion force needed to be at least 600,000 strong, but the younger general Li Xin thought that 200,000 men would suffice. Ying Zheng put Li Xin in command of the Qin army to attack Chu. The Chu defenders, led by Xiang Yan, took Li Xin's army by surprise and defeated the Qin invaders. The defeat was deemed the greatest setback for Qin in its wars to unify China. Ying Zheng put Wang Jian in command of

8625-512: The king harboured a personal grudge against Shang, as he had been severely punished for a minor infraction during his adolescence under Shang's reformed system. Despite this, King Huiwen and his successors maintained the reformed systems, which laid the foundation for Qin's eventual unification of China under the Qin dynasty in 221 BC. Shang Yang's theories were later expanded upon by Han Fei , another Legalist scholar. Han Fei amalgamated Shang's ideas with those of Shen Buhai and Shen Dao , forming

8740-508: The kings of Zhou dynasty had lost almost all political and military power, their remaining crown land was split into two states: West Zhou, centered in Wangcheng , and East Zhou, centered at Chengzhou . Qin forces conquered West Zhou in 256 BC, claiming the Nine Cauldrons and thereby symbolically becoming The Son of Heaven. In 249, the new Qin king Zhuangxiang conquered East Zhou, bringing

8855-470: The kings of Qin, but de facto Qin remained hegemonic until its universal conquest in 221 BC. It seldom suffered defeats and repeatedly crashed other states in at least 15 major campaigns. Memorial on the Abolition of Feudal Lords by Qin official Li Si , dated to 246 BC, described: Through military victories, Qin has, "in the time of the last six kings," that is from Xiao in 361 BC to the First Emperor, brought

8970-621: The lords of equal rank to its court." By the late 4th century BC, other states in China became alarmed by the Qin power and began forming anti-hegemonic alliances, called Perpendicular (Sima Qian 5:208; 6:279). Qin repeatedly clashed with these alliances. This pattern continued during the last century of the Warring States. The success of Qin is attributed to the industriousness of its people. The Qin kings authorised numerous state development projects, including significant public works such as irrigation canals and defensive structures. One of

9085-465: The middle of the 3rd century, Zheng Guo , a hydraulic engineer from the state of Han, was dispatched to Qin to advise King Zhaoxiang on the construction of irrigation canals. Qin had a predilection for constructing large-scale canals, as evidenced by its irrigation system for the Min River . King Zhaoxiang approved Zheng Guo's proposal to construct an even larger canal. The project was completed in 264 and

9200-402: The most evident outcomes of the reforms was the transformation in Qin's military. Previously, the army was under the control of Qin's nobles and comprised feudal levies. Following Shang Yang's reforms, the aristocracy system was abolished and replaced by a meritocracy, in which ordinary citizens had the same opportunities as the nobles to be promoted to high ranks. Additionally, military discipline

9315-427: The neighbouring state of Jin. In 842 BC, nobles revolted against the corrupt King Li of Zhou in a coup known as the 'countrymen's riot' ( 國人暴動 ). They overthrew him the following year, leading the country into political turmoil. The Xirong tribes seized this opportunity to rebel against the Zhou dynasty, attacking and exterminating the senior branch of the Ying clan at Quanqiu. This left the cadet branch at Qinyi as

9430-415: The neighbouring states of Wei and Chu . Wei was hesitant to help Zhao initially but launched an attack on Qin after seeing that Qin was already exhausted after years of war. The Qin forces crumbled and retreated, and Zheng Anping surrendered. The combined forces of Wei and Chu continued to pursue the retreating Qin army, and Wei managed to retake part of its original lands that were lost to Qin earlier. In

9545-602: The nomads. Following the collapse of the Zhou dynasty, the Qin state absorbed cultures from two of the Four Barbarians from the west and north, which made the other warring states see their culture in low esteem. However, the Qin state was sensitive to the cultural discrimination by the Central Plains states and attempted to assert their Huaxia identity. In Qin law, mixed-ethnicity offspring were categorised as Huaxia, as well as in their preference for importing recruits from

9660-454: The offer after being persuaded by Fan Sui. Within Zhao, many officials strongly opposed King Xiaocheng's decision to give up the cities, and subsequent delays caused the siege on Handan to be prolonged until 258 BC. Meanwhile, Bai Qi was consecutively replaced by Wang Xi, Wang Ling, and Zheng Anping as the Qin commander at the siege. In 257 BC, Qin was still unable to penetrate Handan after besieging it for three years, and Zhao requested aid from

9775-521: The only surviving Ying clan in the west. After King Xuan of Zhou ascended the throne in 827 BC, he appointed Qin Zhong , Feizi's great-grandson, as the commander of his forces in the campaign against the Xirong. In 822 BC, Qin Zhong was killed in battle and succeeded by his eldest son, Duke Zhuang . To commemorate Qin Zhong's loyalty, King Xuan summoned Duke Zhuang and his four younger brothers and gave them 7,000 soldiers. The Qin brothers successfully defeated

9890-509: The other states "into submission." Already by the 240s BC, other states "yielded obeiscence to Qin as if they were its commanderies and prefectures." Sima Qian (6:282) confirmed and dated the beginning of the Qin hegemonic policy already from the reign of Xiao's predecessor, Xian (384-361 BC): Since his reign, Qin "gradually swallowed up the six states until, after 100 years or so," the First Emperor conquered them. "For more than one hundred years [before 221 BC], Qin commanded Eight lands and brought

10005-617: The point of armed conflict. In the early reign of Duke Mu of Qin , the Jin state, under the leadership of Duke Xian of Jin , was a formidable power. However, after Duke Xian's death, Jin descended into internal conflict as Duke Xian's sons fought for succession. Duke Hui of Jin , one of the contenders, emerged victorious. However, Jin was struck by a famine in 647 BC, and Duke Hui requested aid from Qin. Duke Mu of Qin, married to Duke Hui's half-sister, sent relief food supplies and agricultural equipment to Jin out of goodwill. However, when Qin experienced

10120-453: The recaptured capital. Mozi (460–390 BC) did not list Qin among the powerful states. However, other scattered information of its military exploits indicates that Qin remained a powerful polity ever since Lord Mu. Its armies acted, even if infrequently, in the eastern and southeastern parts of the Chinese world, occasionally against great power Wu. Although not weak, the overall impact of Qin on

10235-709: The reign of Duke Jian of Qin , the Wei army, led by Wu Qi and supported by Zhao and Han , attacked Qin and conquered some Qin territories west of the Yellow River . In 362 BC, Qin defeated Wei and Han . Following these victories, the Qin rulers actively pursued legal, economic, and social reforms. In 361 BC, Duke Xiao ascended the throne of Qin. He issued an announcement inviting men of talent (including scholars, administrators, theorists, and militarists) from other states to enter Qin and assist him with his reforms, promising rewards of high offices and lands in return. Among these foreign talents, Shang Yang successfully conducted

10350-496: The reign of Qin Er Shi , Chen Sheng and Wu Guang staged an uprising to overthrow the Qin dynasty due to the Qin government's brutal and oppressive policies. Although the revolt was crushed by Qin imperial forces, several other rebellions erupted throughout the Qin Empire over the next three years. Ziying of Qin would be the third and final Qin emperor; he surrendered to a rebel force led into Xianyang by Liu Bang in 206, bringing

10465-442: The slightest of offences, and even the nobility and royalty were not exempt. After decades, the reforms strengthened Qin economically and militarily, and transformed it into a highly centralised state with an efficient administrative system. Following the death of Duke Xiao, King Huiwen ascended as the new ruler of Qin. He executed Shang Yang by tearing him apart with chariots, citing charges of treason. However, some speculated that

10580-534: The southern states of Ba and Shu (modern Sichuan ) also provided Qin with significant strategic advantages. The lands in the new territories were highly fertile and served as a "backyard" for supplies and additional manpower. It was difficult for Qin's rivals to attack Ba and Shu, as the territories were located deep in the mountains upstream of the Yangtze . Simultaneously, Qin's strategic position in Ba and Shu provided it with

10695-798: The states in this manner. Following a visit to Qin in 264, the Confucian philosopher Xun Kuang observed that Qin society was "simple and unsophisticated", and its people held their officials in awe but were entirely devoid of Confucian literati. Despite being disliked by many Confucians of its time for "dangerously lacking in Confucian scholars", Confucian Xun Kuang wrote of the later Qin that "its topographical features are inherently advantageous", and that its "manifold natural resources gave it remarkable inherent strength. Its people were unspoiled and exceedingly deferential; its officers unfailingly respectful, earnest, reverential, loyal, and trustworthy; and its high officials public-spirited, intelligent, and assiduous in

10810-457: The subsequent decades, conquering several territories in its campaigns. By then, Qin's territories had expanded beyond the eastern shore of the Yellow River , and Han and Wei were reduced to the status of "buffers" for Qin against the other states in the east. Starting from 265 BC, Qin launched a massive invasion on Han and forced Han to cede its territory of Shangdang ( 上黨 ; modern Shanxi). However, Han offered Shangdang to Zhao instead, leading to

10925-492: The terrain they live in. Of Qin, he said: The nature of Qin's troops is to disperse so that each unit fights their own respective battles. The people of Qin are ferocious by nature and their terrain is treacherous. The government's decrees are strict and impartial. The rewards and punishments are clear. Qin soldiers are brave and high in morale so that they are able to scatter and engage in individual combat. To strike at Qin's army, we must entice various groups with small benefits;

11040-411: The throne in 361 BC, was also appointed Hegemon (Sima Qian 7:203). The Guanzi defines the status of hegemon as intermediate between king and emperor. A text from the late Warring States period describes hegemon as controlling military forces and commerce of the states under the hegemony and using court visits as a means of supervision. After Xiao, the status of hegemon was not officially granted to

11155-502: The titular sage, Yu the Great , throughout each of the regions. Other texts, predominantly military, also discussed these cultural variations. One of these texts was the Wuzi , written in response to a query by Marquis Wu of Wei on how to cope with the military threat posed by competing states. Wu Qi , the author of the work, declared that the government and nature of the people were reflective of

11270-472: The two states improved. With stability on his eastern front, Duke Mu seized the opportunity to launch military campaigns against the Rong tribes in the west. In 630 BC, Qin and Jin agreed to wage war on the state of Zheng , but Duke Mu was lobbied by the Zheng emissary to abandon the alliance. In 627 BC, Duke Mu planned a covert attack on Zheng, but the Qin army retreated after being deceived into believing that Zheng

11385-504: The unification of China. In 215, he ordered Meng Tian to lead more than 300,000 troops to march towards the steppe to drive away the Xiongnu, who had been encroaching territory throughout the Warring States period . Following a major victory against the Xiongnu under Touman , Qin forces reinforced and built a fortification, which became the Great Wall of China , stretching across the east from

11500-474: The warring states. In 230 BC, King Ying Zheng of Qin began the sequence of campaigns that would bring the Warring States period to a close, setting out to conquer each remaining sovereign one by one. This was completed in 221 BC with the fall of Qi, leaving the former Zhou sphere unified under a more centralized Qin control. Ying Zheng declared himself the First Emperor , or Qin Shi Huang —becoming

11615-614: Was a judge in Fengxiang at the time, had a drinking water pond dredged out, creating the East Lake Park. The park has a similar pedestrian causeway as the famous Hangzhou West Lake , which was also created by him. The park has an area of 200,000 m (49 acres) and is home to several historic buildings and sculptures. 34°33′36″N 107°25′14″E  /  34.56000°N 107.42056°E  / 34.56000; 107.42056 Qin (state) Qin ( / tʃ ɪ n / , or Ch'in )

11730-435: Was already prepared for Qin's invasion. By that point, Duke Wen had died and his personal alliance with Duke Mu no longer stood, and his successor Duke Xiang ordered an ambush for the retreating Qin army. The Qin forces were defeated at the Battle of Xiao (near modern Luoning County , Henan) and suffered heavy casualties, and all three of its generals were captured. Three years later, Qin attacked Jin for revenge and achieved

11845-495: Was an ancient Chinese state during the Zhou dynasty . It is traditionally dated to 897 BC. The Qin state originated from a reconquest of western lands that had previously been lost to the Xirong . Its location at the western edge of Chinese civilisation allowed for expansion and development that was not available to its rivals in the North China Plain . After extensive reform during the 4th century BC, Qin emerged as one of

11960-426: Was attacking Yan, Qin used the opportunity to send two separate forces to invade Zhao. The Qin army led by Wang Jian conquered the Zhao territories of Eyu ( 閼與 ; present-day Heshun County , Shanxi) and Liaoyang ( 撩陽 ; present-day Zuoquan County , Shanxi), while the other Qin army under the command of Huan Yi , Qiang Lei and Yang Duanhe ( 楊端和 ) captured Ye and Anyang . Zhao lost nine cities and its military prowess

12075-458: Was awarded a separate fief in the valley of Qin (modern Qingshui and Zhangjiachuan in Gansu) northeast of Quanqiu, and his seat was named Qinyi (modern Qintingzhen). Both branches of the western Ying clan lived in the midst of the Rong tribes, sometimes fighting their armies and sometimes intermarrying with their kings. Scholars such as Annette Juliano and Arthur Cotterel have suggested that having

12190-485: Was based on " allying with distant states and attacking nearby ones ", one of the Thirty-Six Stratagems . Its key steps were to ally with Yan and Qi , deter Wei and Chu , and conquer Han and Zhao . From 283 to 257 BC, Qin and Zhao had engaged in bloody warfare against one another, and Zhao's defeat in the Battle of Changping in 260 BC had severely weakened their ability to fight. In 236 BC, while Zhao

12305-419: Was established. In gratitude for Duke Xiang's service, King Ping formally enfeoffed Duke Xiang as a feudal lord and elevated Qin from an 'attached state' ( 附庸 ; fùyōng , a minor state with limited self-rule under the authority of another liege-lord) to a major vassal state with full autonomy. He further promised to permanently grant Qin the lands west of Qishan , the former heartland of Zhou, if Qin could expel

12420-461: Was eventually moved by his devotion and agreed to send troops to assist Chu. The famous poem, "No Clothes" ( Chinese : 無衣 ; pinyin : Wú Yī ), recorded in the Classic of Poetry , was a battle hymn personally composed by Duke Ai to boost the morale of the Qin troops. In 505 BC, the Qin and Chu armies jointly defeated Wu in several battles, allowing King Zhao of Chu to be restored and return to

12535-495: Was invading Wei . Wang Ben then led his forces north to attack and besiege Daliang ( 大梁 ; northwest of present-day Kaifeng ), the Wei capital. As Daliang was situated at the concourse of the Sui and Ying rivers and the Hong Canal ( 鴻溝 ), its geographical location gave it a natural defensive advantage. Besides, the moat around Daliang was vast and all the city's five gates had drawbridges, making it even more difficult for Qin forces to breach

12650-530: Was killed defending King Zhou of Shang during the rebellion led by Ji Fa that established the Zhou dynasty. The Ying clan was, however, allied with the politically influential marquesses of Shen , whom the Zhou monarch relied upon heavily to manage the Rong people and was thus allowed to retain their lands and continued serving as an attached vassal under the Zhou dynasty. Feizi , a younger son of Elai's fourth-generation descendant Daluo, impressed King Xiao of Zhou so much with his horse breeding skills, that he

12765-402: Was killed in action. In 233 BC, Huan Yi's army crossed Mount Taihang and conquered the Zhao territories of Chili ( 赤麗 ) and Yi'an ( 宜安 ), both located southeast of present-day Shijiazhuang , Hebei. Then, the Qin army under Huan Yi engaged the Zhao army commanded by General Li Mu at the Battle of Fei in which the Qin sustained a massive defeat and nearly lost all their forces. In 232 BC,

12880-429: Was reorganized to form the Qin Empire's Yingchuan Commandery , with the commandery capital at Yangdi ( 陽翟 ; present-day Yuzhou, Henan ). In 228 BC, after the fall of Zhao, Wang Jian led the Qin army stationed at Zhongshan ( 中山 ; around present-day central Hebei ) to prepare for an offensive on Yan . Ju Wu ( 鞠武 ), a Yan minister, proposed to King Xi of Yan to form alliances with Dai, Qi and Chu, and make peace with

12995-433: Was strictly enforced, and the troops were trained to adapt more effectively to various battle situations. Qin's military strength increased significantly with the full support of the state. In 318 BC, the states of Wei , Zhao, Han , Yan, and Chu formed an alliance and attacked Qin, but failed to advance beyond Hangu Pass , and were defeated by counter-attacking Qin forces. The alliance crumbled due to mistrust, suspicion, and

13110-465: Was the only rival state left. Qin advanced into the heartland of Qi via a southern detour, avoiding direct confrontation with the Qi forces on Qi's western border and arrived swiftly at Qi's capital city of Linzi. The Qi forces were taken by surprise and surrendered without putting up resistance. Following the fall of Qi in 221 BC, China was unified under the rule of Qin. Ying Zheng declared himself " Qin Shi Huang " (meaning "First Emperor of Qin"), founded

13225-426: Was weakened. Two years later, Qin planned to attack Han but feared that Zhao might support Han, so the Qin general Huan Yi was ordered to lead an army to attack the Zhao territories of Pingyang ( 平陽 ; southeast of present-day Ci County , Hebei) and Wucheng ( 武城 ; southwest of present-day Ci County, Hebei). More than 100,000 soldiers were killed in the battle. The Zhao army was defeated and its commander, Hu Zhe ( 扈輒 ),

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