In fact, the eight principalities enfeoffed by King Wu of Zhou all have backgrounds, Yu State is the principality established by King Wen of Zhou, Taibo and Zhongyong; 
Guo State is the uncle of King Wu of Zhou, Guo Zhong and Guo Shu; Song State is the principality established by descendants of the Shang Dynasty; Qi State is the is the Qi State is the Qi State is the html ml1 Dayu controls floods The principality established by the descendants of Dayu; Chen State is the principality established by the descendants of Emperor Shun; Zhu State is the principality established by the descendants of Emperor Yao ; Ji State is the principality established by the descendants of Emperor Yan ; Jiao State is the principality established by the descendants of Emperor Yan .
The vassal states in the early Spring and Autumn Period
The monarchs of these eight countries were all dukes, but as time passed, they were annexed by other countries in the later battle for the vassal states. And those countries whose titles were not as good as them gradually grew into great powers that dominated the country. By the late Warring States Period, only the 800 vassal states enfeoffed by the Zhou Dynasty were Han, Zhao, Wei, Chu, Yan, Qi and Qin.
These seven countries, Han, Zhao, Wei, Yan and Qi, are all marquis countries, Qin is the Count, and Chu ranks are even lower, only Viscount . There is a misunderstanding here, that is, many kings at that time called Duke Duke, such as Duke Wen of Jin, Duke Mu of Qin, and Duke Xiang of Song, etc. Although they were called "Duke", this was not a title, but a title of honor for them by the princes.
Through the above introduction, we know that the highest title of the vassal state is "public", but by the late Warring States Period, the monarchs of the seven kingdoms of and were called "king". Of course, it was also a need for the development of the times. At that time, the weekdays and was in decline and could no longer control them, so they could only let them develop themselves. So do you know who the first person to proclaim the king of each of the seven kingdoms is?
1. Chu State - King Wu of Chu Xiong Tong
Among the seven countries, Chu State has the lowest title, but Chu State is the first to be king. The ancestors of Chu were originally servants to serve King Wen of Zhou, and later served King Wu of Zhou and King Cheng of Zhou. King Cheng of Zhou felt that these ancestors and grandchildren had worked hard to serve them without any contribution, so they were forced to work hard, so they were their descendants, Xiong Yi, to the wild land in the south, and at the same time, they were given the title of viscount with 50 miles of land.
The wild land in the south is incompatible with the Central Plains culture. The ancestors of Chu State began their own pioneering journey in the wild south. When they arrived at the sixth generation of king Xiong Qu, he discovered the decline of the Zhou royal family, vigorously advanced northward, and expanded the territory to the area around the Jianghan Plain. The Chu State gradually became stronger. At this time, Xiong Qu's courage also became bigger and he directly overthrew to the king of his three sons, the eldest son Xiong Wukang was King Jutan, the second son Xiong Zhihong was King E, and the youngest son Xiong held the Tie as King Yuezhang. After King Li of Zhou succeeded to the throne, he was known for his tyranny. Xiong Qu was worried that he would be attacked by the Zhou Dynasty, so he canceled their king's title.
King Wu of Chu
For many years, the monarch of Chu State dared to overthrow the king of kings without authorization, but with the development of Chu State, there are still bold people. After Xiong Tong, the 17th generation Chu Jun ascended the throne, the Chu State successively destroyed some small countries around, and its territory was already the largest among all countries.
As the country's strength increased, Xiong Tong asked the Zhou royal family to raise the name of Chu Jun, but the Zhou emperor refused his request. So in 704 BC, Xiong Tong became king himself, named King Wu of Chu. Xiong Tong's was the first to usurp the princes' claim to be king. At that time, the Zhou royal family declined and had no choice but to do anything to the State of Chu.
Starting from King Wu of Chu, Xiong Tong, the subsequent monarchs of Chu had the title of king. They also maintained a situation of princes competing for hegemony with the Central Plains countries until they were destroyed by Qin in 223 BC. Since King Wu of Chu became king in 704 BC, the State of Chu has maintained the title of king for 481 years.
2, Wei State —— Wei Hui King Wei Qie
The ancestors of Wei State were originally literati of Jin State . In 453 BC, Zhao Xiangzi , Wei Huanzi and Han Kangzi Han Kangzi Han Kangzi together, and 403 BC, Wei, Zhao and Han, were officially named princes by Zhou Weilie , and the three families became marquis at the same time.
Because Wei was in the four battles, two generations of kings, Wei Wenhou and Wei Wuhou , worked hard to govern. Wei had grown into a powerful country in the Central Plains. By the time of the third generation of Wei, King Hui of Wei, he had the ambition to dominate, so he became king in the 26th year of ascending the throne (344 BC), becoming the second country to become king after Chu.
King Hui of Wei
In the 36th year of King Hui of Wei (334 BC), King Hui of Wei and King Wei of Qi met in Xuzhou and recognized each other as kings, which marked the loss of the dominance of Wei State. It was also from this time that the Wei Kingdom began to decline. King Hui of Wei reigned for a total of 51 years and died in 319 BC.
Since King Hui of Wei became king in 344 BC to be destroyed by Qin in 225 BC, Wei has maintained the title of king for 119 years.
3. Qi State - King Wei of Qi Tian Yin Qi
The first ancestor of Qi State was Jiang Ziya, and his title was also a Duke of Qi, so Qi State is a marquis country. Because Qi was located in the prosperous Shandong region in the east, Qi was one of the more powerful among the various vassal states. By , Duke Huan of Qi was already an eastern country with a territorial territorial territorial territorial territorial territorial , Duke Huan of Qi became the leader of the Five Hegemons of the Spring and Autumn Period through ", the King of Kings and the Barbarians ". When
was transmitted to Qikanggong , Qi State doctor Tianhe exiled Qi State to the island and became the king of Qi State. In 386 BC, Tianhe was listed as a prince by Zhou'an King , and Jiang Qi was replaced by Tianqi . Tianhe officially called the marquis and still used the name of Qi State, and was known as "Tianqi ".
When Tian Qi was passed down to Qi Duke Tian Yinqi, in the 23rd year of his ascension, King Wei of Qi and King Hui of Wei met in Xuzhou, and recognized each other as kings, known in history as "King of Xuzhou Prime Minister". King Wei of Qi also became the first king to be king in Qi.
Qi Weiwang
Qi Weiwang was still a relatively wise monarch. During his reign, he targeted the evil of the autocratic power of the ministers and the weak national strength, and appointed Zou Ji as prime minister, Tian Ji as general, Sun Bin as military advisor, carried out political reforms, cultivated the legal system, selected the virtuous and appointed abilities, distinguished rewards and punishments, and strengthened the national strength. After two battles of Guiling and Maling, the Wei army was defeated and began to dominate the princes. He also treated the wise and respected the wise and respected the scholars. He built the Jixia Academy Palace outside Jimen (now northeast of Zibo, Shandong), and recruited wise men from all over the world to discuss politics and give lectures, becoming the academic and cultural center at that time.
Since King Wei of Qi, Qi State has been passed down for four generations until it was destroyed by Qin State in 221 BC. Since King Wei of Qi became king, Qi has maintained the title of king for 113 years.
4, Qin State - King Huiwen of Qin Ying Si
The rise of Qin State can be called a arduous journey. The ancestor of Qin State Qin Feizi was conferred the title of Tianshui area in Gansu by the Zhou emperor for his contribution to raising horses. In 770 BC, Qin Xianggong sent troops to escort King Ping of Zhou moved eastward and was named a prince. At this time, Qin State officially became the vassal state of the Zhou Dynasty.
When Qin Mugong was spread to Duke Mu of Qin, Duke Mu of Qin dominated the Western Rong and became one of the five hegemons in the Spring and Autumn Period. Since then, Qin has been sometimes strong and sometimes weak, but has not been able to advance eastward, and has also experienced a period of decline for a hundred years. After Qin Xiaogong ascended the throne, he worked hard to govern. appointed Shang Yang's reform , enriching the country and strengthening the army, and gradually becoming the most powerful country in the middle and late Warring States Period.
Qin Huiwen King film and television image
After Qin Xiaogong's death, his son Ying Si ascended the throne. In the 14th year of King Huiwen King of Qin (324 BC), he followed the practice of Shandong countries and claimed to be the King of Qin, becoming the first king of Qin to claim his king.
During the reign of Qin Huiwen, King Ying Si, he reused Zhang Yi , Gongsun Yan , 杨小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小小King Huiwen of Qin died in 311 BC at the age of 46.
Several generations of kings after King Huiwen of Qin continued to work hard to govern. By Qin Shihuang , he finally destroyed the six kingdoms in Shandong and unified the world.
5, South Korean ——King Han Xuanhui, Han Kang
In 453 BC, the three families of Han, Zhao and Wei divided the Jin state. In 403 BC, the three doctors of Han, Zhao and Wei were recognized by King Weilie of for 2 weeks, and were officially ranked among the princes and became the marquis. Among the heroes of the Warring States Period, South Korea was an inconspicuous existence. People rarely paid attention to South Korea, but South Korea is located in an important place in the Central Plains and its strategic position is also very important.
In 324 BC, Qin Jun Ying Si openly became king. In order to restrict the development of Qin, King Hui of Wei won over the countries. In May, he met with Han Kang in Wusha and recognized Han Kang as king.
Han Xuanhuiwanghan Kang
In 323 BC, South Korea, Wei Kingdom, plus Zhao Kingdom, Yan Kingdom and Zhongshan Kingdom launched the "Five Kingdom Prime Ministers " campaign under the advocacy of Gongsun Yan, recognizing each other as kings and forming a coalition against Qin. Han Kang officially called the king, which is Han Xuanhui King .
After that, South Korea experienced four generations of kings. In 230 BC, South Korea was destroyed by Qin and became the first country among the six Shandong countries to be destroyed.
6. Yan State - Yan Yi King
Yan State is the country with the closest relationship with the Zhou royal family among the seven countries. After King Wu of Zhou destroyed Shang, he appointed his younger brother Ji Shi in Yan land, which was for Yan Zhaogong, and Yan Zhaogong also became the first generation of monarchs of Yan State.
However, Yan State is located in the northern region and under the conditions at that time, it was considered a barbaric land on the border, so the Central Plains countries generally did not bring him to play when fighting, so Yan State also spent hundreds of years safely. By , the Warring States Period , with the annexation of the Central Plains countries, Yan State had become one of the few seven heroes.
Yinwang film and television image
In 323 BC, Han, Wei, Zhao, Yan and Zhongshan launched the "Five Kingdom Prime Ministers" campaign under the advocacy of Gongsun Yan, recognizing each other as kings. Yan Yi Wang also became the first king of Yan to be king, but he died two years after he became king.
Yan State became king for 101 years, and Yan State was destroyed by Qin State in 222 BC.
7. Zhao State - Zhao Yong, King Wuling of Zhao
Zhao State is the same as Han and Wei State founding. The three families divided the Jin State and were officially named Marquis by King Weilie of Zhou in 403 BC, and officially became the vassal state of the Zhou Dynasty.
The first among the three families of Han, Zhao and Wei was Wei. However, Wei has begun to decline since King Hui of Wei, Xuzhou, and King Xiang of Xuzhou. South Korea has always been a so-called existence. In the early development of Zhao, many things have dragged their backs. It was not until the sixth monarch, King Wuling, that Zhao began to gradually become stronger.
Zhao Wuling King
Zhao Wuling King ascended the throne, through Hu clothing and cavalry, Zhao's military strength became increasingly strong, becoming a powerful country in the middle and late Warring States period, and could even compete with Qin. It can be said that in the late Warring States Period, the two families of Qin and Zhao were basically competing for power.
In 306 BC, King Wuling of Zhao officially became king and became the last country among the seven kingdoms. In order to focus on military and national affairs, King Wuling of Zhao passed the throne to his son Zhao He in his prime, but he could not have expected that four years later, encountered the sand dune chaos. He was surrounded for three months and could not get food in the palace. He finally starved to death in the sand dune palace at the age of 45.
Zhao State was one of Qin's strongest opponents in the late Warring States Period. After destroying South Korea, Qin's military commander pointed directly at Zhao State and destroyed Zhao State in 228 BC.
Summary:
Among the seven heroes of the Warring States Period, the first to be king was Chu, which had the lowest title. The time for the other six countries to be kings was basically not a few years away. Judging from the time they became kings, the various vassal states in the Central Plains were still relatively restricted by the Zhou Li, and the Chu State was far away from the Central Plains for a long time, so naturally they did not follow the Central Plains.
However, by the middle and late Warring States Period, the influence of the Zhou royal family became smaller and smaller. The reason why the princes dared to openly claim to be king was because they saw the decline of the Zhou royal family and no longer took the Zhou royal family seriously, but more of the Zhou royal family as mascots. In 256 BC, King Zhaoxiang of Qin directly destroyed the Zhou royal family, and the Zhou Dynasty, which lasted for 800 years, officially destroyed. In 249 BC, King Zhuangxiang of Qin destroyed Eastern Zhou Dynasty . The East and West Zhous all belonged to the Qin State, and the sacrifices of the Zhou Dynasty were cut off from then on.
