Duke Xiang of Qi (), personal name Lü Zhu'er, was a ruler of the Qi state. He succeeded his father, Duke Xi, and reigned from 697 BC to 686 BC. Although under Duke Xiang the Qi state conquered the neighbouring state of Ji, its traditional enemy, Duke Xiang is best known for his depravity, having had an incestuous relationship with his sister, Wen Jiang, and murdered his brother-in-law,

Duke Huan of Lu Duke Huan of Lu (, died 14 April 694 BC), personal name Ji Yun or Ji Gui, was a ruler of the Lu state, reigning from 711 to 694 BC. Early life Duke Huan was the son of Duke Hui of Lu and his main wife Zhong Zi (仲子), daughter of Duke Wu of ...

. At the end Duke Xiang was himself murdered by his cousin, Lü Wuzhi, who subsequently usurped the Qi throne.

Murdering Duke Huan of Lu

Duke Xiang succeeded his father

Duke Xi of Qi Duke Xi of Qi (), personal name Lü Lufu, was from 730 BC to 698 BC the ruler of the Qi state. Reign Duke Xi succeeded his father Duke Zhuang I of Qi, who died in 731 BC after a reign of 64 years, as ruler of Qi. In 706 BC, Qi was attacked by ...

, who died in 698 BC after 33 years of reign. Duke Xiang had had an incestuous relationship with his younger half-sister Wen Jiang, who in 709 BC married Duke Huan, ruler of the neighbouring

State of Lu Lu (; 249 BC) was a vassal state during the Zhou dynasty of ancient China located around modern Shandong. Founded in the 11th century BC, its rulers were from a cadet branch of the House of Ji () that ruled the Zhou dynasty. The f ...

. In 694 BC, Duke Huan of Lu visited Qi with his wife, and Duke Xiang and Wen Jiang renewed their sexual liaison. Chapter XII. When Duke Huan found out about the relationship between his wife and her own brother, Duke Xiang ordered his half brother Prince Pengsheng to murder Duke Huan in his carriage after he got drunk. The people of Lu were incensed at Duke Xiang's crime, but could not do anything because Qi was a stronger state. To appease Lu, Duke Xiang had Pengsheng executed as a scapegoat. Duke Zhuang of Lu, the son of Duke Huan and Wen Jiang, subsequently succeeded his father as ruler of Lu.

Marriage

After the death of

, Wen Jiang stayed in Qi and the incestuous relationship between the siblings continued. In 693 BC Duke Xiang married a daughter of the king of Zhou, the nominal ruler of all China, but the Zhou princess died only a year later.

Conquering the State of Ji

In 690 BC the state of Qi conquered its neighbouring state of Ji (紀). Ji had been the enemy of Qi since at least the reign of Duke Ai of Qi about two centuries before Duke Xiang's time. Duke Ai was boiled to death by King Yi of Zhou after being slandered by the Marquis of Ji. In 693 BC, Qi attacked the state of Ji, taking the cities of Ping, Zi, and Wu and expelling their residents. Two years later, a younger brother of the Marquis of Ji defected to Qi with the city of Xi. Unable to resist the aggression of Qi, in 690 BC the Marquis of Ji fled and gave over the state to the younger brother who had already submitted to Qi, effectively surrendering the state to Qi. The Marquis of Ji left in such a haste that he did not even bury his wife, a princess from the state of Lu, who had recently died. Duke Xiang gave the marquise a proper burial. Chapter IV.

Death and succession

In the twelfth month of 686 BC, the twelfth year of his reign, Duke Xiang was killed by his cousin Wuzhi. Wuzhi had been a favoured nephew of Duke Xiang's father Duke Xi and was treated like a crown prince, but when Duke Xiang ascended the throne, he demoted the status of Wuzhi. After Duke Xiang injured his foot on a hunting trip, Wuzhi killed Duke Xiang in his palace with the help of generals Lian Cheng and Guan Zhifu, who had been mistreated by Duke Xiang. Wuzhi usurped the Qi throne after murdering Duke Xiang, but was also killed soon afterward. After a brief struggle between Duke Xiang's two younger brothers Prince Jiu and Prince Xiaobai, Xiaobai would win out and ascend the throne, posthumously known as

Duke Huan of Qi Duke Huan of Qi (), personal name Lü Xiaobai, was a duke of the Qi state, ruling from 685 BC to 643 BC. Duke Huan and his long-time advisor Guan Zhong managed to transform Qi into China's most powerful polity. Duke Huan is commonly listed amo ...

. Qi would grow strong under Duke Huan's rule, and Duke Huan subsequently became the first of the

Five Hegemons The Five Hegemons (), also referred to as the Five Hegemons of the Spring and Autumn period (), refers to several especially powerful rulers of Chinese states of the Spring and Autumn period of Chinese history (770–476 BCE), sometimes alternat ...

of the

Spring and Autumn period The Spring and Autumn period () was a period in History of China, Chinese history corresponding roughly to the first half of the Eastern Zhou (256 BCE), characterized by the gradual erosion of royal power as local lords nominally subject t ...

Family

Wives: * Zhou Wang Ji, of the Ji clan of Zhou (), a daughter of King Huan of Zhou and a younger sister of King Zhuang of Zhou; married in 695 BC Sons: * Prince Ji (), the progenitor of the Qiji () lineage; fled to Chu in 686 BC Daughters: * Ai Jiang (; d. 660 BC) ** Married Duke Zhuang of Lu (706–662 BC) in 670 BC * Shu Jiang () ** Married Duke Zhuang of Lu (706–662 BC) in 670 BC as Ai Jiang's dowry, and had issue ( Duke Min of Lu)

Ancestry

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Xiang of Qi, Duke Year of birth unknown Monarchs of Qi (state) from the House of Jiang 7th-century BC Chinese monarchs 680s BC deaths 7th-century BC murdered monarchs Assassinated Chinese politicians Incest Assassinated Chinese heads of state Ancient assassinated Chinese people