CHINESE WARRING STATES
475BC-221BC
Around 475BC a long series of wars began, which resulted in the emergence
and consolidation of a smaller number of states.
Chinese historians refer to this period as the Warring States Period.
The 7 major states that eventually rose to prominence during the climactic second
half of this period were the
Qi, CHU, YAN, HANN, ZHAO, WEI, and QIN.
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The Warring States period is usually interpreted as a time of endless brutal wars
that came as a result of friction among the 7 states. This unfortunate state of affairs could only end
with one state bringing together the other states as
'All Under Heaven'
Everything was not totally as bleak as believed. This was also a time of great intellectual development.
The Confucian philosophers Mencius, and of course Hsun-tzu taught and wrote
during this period.
it can be said that the formation of the empire came not as a result of anarchy but as a result
of greed and drive for power.
This was a period of advances in military technology, that gave superiority to larger states which
had the resources to take advantage of the newer technology. This included the
casting of individual weapons which allowed the arming of foot soldiers. In the previous era the
fighting was mainly done by aristocrats in chariots, so participation in earlier battles was always limited
to a small proportion of the population. But with the development of the casting of individual
weapons, and mass production of such new weapons as the crossbow, there was a marked
advantage to states with the economic resources to produce the weapons and the
population to provide large armies to use these weapons. Thus military technology made the
consolidation of smaller states into larger states an inevitability.
As it turned out it was the state of Qin in the northwest that finally emerged victorious. The
Kingdom of Qin finally conquered the southeastern kingdom of Chu in 223 BC.
The last opponents were conquered 2 years later in 221BC, thus creating the Empire of Qin.
This dynasty did not last long.
After the death of Shihuangdi, The first Emperor, in 210 BC his successor held the QIn Empire
together for only three more years.
The ruling family of Han then took control of the former Qin Empire which became the
Han Empire.
THE SEVEN MAJOR WARRING STATES
I've put together some information from various resources to give a basic background to each
of the seven major states. My apologies to historians, or anyone offended by my assumptions.
Hopefully it is a starting point and will inspire further detailed research into the period.
Please feel free to send in corrections and improvements.
THE STATE OF QI
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ancient chinese symbol for Qi
Flag Colours: ?
Qi was a relatively powerful state during the earlier Spring And Autumn Period,
and also during the warring states period.
Its Capital was at Linzi.
It was initially ruled by the Jiang family for hundreds of years, but were violently replaced
by the Tian family in 384 BC.
Its ability to defeat its larger rivals, made it a major force and in 288 BC, the leader of Qi
Minwang was declared Emperor of the East.
with the ruler of the state of Qin being considered the Emperor of the West.
The State was finally conquered in 221 BC by Qin, and its defeat resulted in the complete
unification of China.
Army Characteristics:
The Qi army was believed to be unreliable, as the government was corrupt and inspired little loyalty.
THE STATE OF CHU
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ancient chinese symbol for CHU
Flag Colours: WHITE
CHU was a powerful state during the earlier Spring And Autumn Period,
and also during the warring states period. At the height of its power, the Chu empire
occupied vast areas of land, that covered most of Southern China.
The CHU Capital was at Yingdu.
In 447 BC the state of CHU overran the smaller state of Cai to its North, and in 333 BC along with
the state of QI annexed the coastal state of Yue.
By the late Warring States period CHU's prominent status had fallen into decay.
As a result of this weakness an alliance and several invasions headed by the state of Zhao and Qin
further weakened its power.
In 278 BC the Qin general Bai Qi marched on the capital Yingdu.
Following the fall of the Chu capital, the states capital was moved to Shouchun.
Specialist Units:
There was a CHU elite infantry Guard Unit, who were heavily armoured crossbowmen
who were trained for 7 years and it was said could march 100 miles 'without resting'.
Army Characteristics:
The army of CHU was not highly thought of. The land was rich, but despite being able to
afford good armour and weapons, the fighting ability was low.
THE STATE OF YAN
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ancient chinese symbol for Yan
Flag Colours: ?
Yan was the most northeastern of all the Chinese States during this period, and suffered many
invasions from the barbarians in the north.
Its Capital was at Ji (nowadays Beijing)
The states of Zhao and Qi were its main enemies, and Zhao in particular launched several invasions.
The strongest opposition came from the QI state. In 314 BC taking advantage of a succession crisis
within the Yan state, Qi invaded and in several months practically conquered the whole state. However
due to the misconduct of Qi troops during the conquest of Yan a revolt eventually drove them away.
Yan's new King then plotted with the states of Qin, Hann and Wei for a joint
expedition against the Qi. Led by the brilliant tactician YUE YI, it was highly successful and within a year
most of the Qi's seventy walled cities had fallen. However with the death of the King of Yan, and the
expulsion of YUE YI by the new King, the Qi general TIAN SHAN managed to recapture all the cities.
Yan managed to survive throughout most of the Warring States period.
But in 227 BC , the Yan Prince Dan sent an assassin named Jing Ke to kill King SHI HUANGDI of QIN,
without success.
Enraged, the King of Qin, called upon his generals to destroy the state of Yan.
In 222 BC Yan was totally conquered by the QIN.
Army Characteristics:
YAN soldiers weredescribed as 'stupid and honest', knowing nothing of strategy and preferring the defensive.
THE STATE OF HANN
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ancient chinese symbol for HANN
Flag Colours: early period Yellow, later Red
The territory of the HANN directly blocked the passage of the state of QIN into the North China Plain,
thus becoming a frequent target for the QIN state.
Despite several attempts at self strengthening reforms, it would never overcome the QIN.
It was the first of the six states to be conquered by the QIN.
Army Characteristics:
despite its reforms, which meant that the armies of HANN were well organised, they were war weary
and their officers were badly paid and so of poor quality.
THE STATE OF ZHAO
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ancient chinese symbol for ZHAO
Flag Colours: ?
The state of ZHAO bordered the territory of the Xiong Nu barbarians, and also the states of
QIN, WEI and YAN.
Its Capital was at Handan.
At the beginning of the Warring States period, the state of ZHAO was one of the weakest states.
Under the rule of King WULING, the ZHAO began to gain strength, mainly due to the adoption of
horseback riding from their Xiong Nu neighbours. Eventually , cavalry accounted for a significant
portion of the troops of ZHAO.
They also benefited from a series of brilliant military commanders.
LIAN PO was instrumental in defending against the QIN.
ZHAO SHE was most active in the east, and led the invasion of the YAN state.
LI MU was responsible for defending against the Xiong Nu.
Towards the end of the Warring States period, ZHAO was the only state strong enough to oppose the
mighty QIN. An alliance with WEI begun in 287 BC against the QIN, ended in 273BC with a defeat at Huayang.
The Battle of Changping in 260 BC saw the bloodiest battle of the whole period, and although the forces of
WEI saved the capital Handan from a follow up siege by the victorious QIN, the kingdom of ZHAO would
never recover from the huge loss of men from this battle.
In 228 BC, King Qian was captured and the state of ZHAO was conquered. The Prince Jia, the step
brother of King Qian, was proclaimed King at Dai. He led the ZHAO armies against the QIN, untill he was
also captured in 222BC.
THE STATE OF WEI
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ancient chinese symbol for WEI
Flag Colours:?
The territory of WEI lay between the states of QIN and QI.
Its Capital was originally at Anyi, but later moved to Daliang.
The state of WEI reached its height during the reigns of its first two rulers, the Marquess Wen and the
Marquess Wu of WEI. The third ruler King Hui of WEI concentrated on economic developments,
including irrigation projects at the Yellow river. Nevertheless its slow decline began at this point.
Its advancement in the east was checked several times in a series of battles including the
Battle of Maling in 341 BC. In the west it lost the Hexi region to the state of QIN, and was
continuously under invasion from the QIN thereafter.
The military prowess of QIN went on to break the coalition forces of WEI and HANN at the battle
of Yique in 293 BC.
The WEI surrendered to the QIN in 225 BC, after the QIN general Wang Fen flooded the capital
Daliang with water from the Yellow river.
Army Characteristics:
The state of WEI produced some fine generals, but in the end were war-weary.
THE STATE OF QIN
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ancient chinese symbol for QIN
Flag Colours: Black
The state of QIN was for a long time the most powerful state in China for centuries before it eventually
brought all of the seven states together.
The continued growth of the state of QIN was owed to the extraordinary industriousness of its people. The
QIN Dukes put in place many projects to enhance their state including many large public works such as
irrigation canals and large defensive walls. In addition the QIN were a semi-barbarian people, believed to
be descended from the non-Chinese Jong tribe of the steppes. These factors caused a distinct unease
amongst the fully Chinese states and from the beginning the QIN found itself faced by potential enemies
on all sides.
The most significant event in the history of the QIN state prior to the third century BC was the advent of
Shang Yang. He was a firm believer in the philosophies of Han Fei Zi who is believed to have first
proposed the ideology known as Legalism. Legalism advocates the belief that all people are
fundamentally equal and that stringent laws and harsh punishments are required to keep them in order.
Shang Yang became prime minister of the QIN state under the rule of Duke Xiao, and gradually
began transforming the state into a vigorously regulated machine, the sole purpose of which
was the elimination of all rivals. Shang Yang swept away the aristocracy and implemented a meritocracy-
only those who achieved could reach high places and birth privilege was reserved exclusively
for the ruler of the state. In doing this Shang Yang made many enemies and after the death of Duke Xiao
he was killed. However Shang Yang's legalist reforms had obvious virtues and no subsequent ruler
was foolish enough to undo the changes.
One of the most obvious results of this program of reform was in the military.
Previously the army had been controlled by nobles and consisted of feudal levies. Now generals could come
from any part of society providing they had sufficient skill. In addition troops were highly trained
and disciplined. Most of all, QIN's army instantly swelled to enormouse size and had the full
backing of the state.
The result of numerous public works projects aimed at boosting agriculture had made it possible for the
QIN to maintain and supply a standing force of over one million troops. This was a feat that no other
state could match. Wielding this massive force the QIN gradually subjugated the smaller
neighbouring states and their rulers took the title of King rather than Duke.
In 260BC a horrified China realised the full magnitude of the QIN reforms to the very nature
of warfare. All vestiges of aristocratic pleasantry had vanished in favour of raw efficiency.
After the Battle of Changping the QIN generals ordered the execution of over 400,000 POW's
from the neighbouring kingdom of Zhao.
In 221 BC, after the QIN had defeated the last state, King Zheng of QIN declared not only that he
was the ruler of China, but that he would take the title of Emperor of China.
Army Characteristics:
"The Qin forces were brave, but lacked discipline, as everyone fought for their own profit.
They were best dealt with by luring them into a pursuit and ambushing them. This is supported
by other sources which describe QIN soldiers as charging fanatically, even
throwing off their armour in a kind of berserk rage!"