Duke Ling of Qin (, died 415 BC) was from 424 to 415 BC the 25th ruler of the

Zhou Dynasty The Zhou dynasty ( ; Old Chinese ( B&S): *''tiw'') was a royal dynasty of China that followed the Shang dynasty. Having lasted 789 years, the Zhou dynasty was the longest dynastic regime in Chinese history. The military control of China by ...

Chinese state of Qin that eventually united China to become the

Qin Dynasty The Qin dynasty ( ; zh, c=秦朝, p=Qín cháo, w=), or Ch'in dynasty in Wade–Giles romanization ( zh, c=, p=, w=Ch'in ch'ao), was the first dynasty of Imperial China. Named for its heartland in Qin state (modern Gansu and Shaanxi), ...

. His ancestral name was Ying ( 嬴), and Duke Ling was his

posthumous title A posthumous name is an honorary name given mostly to the notable dead in East Asian culture. It is predominantly practiced in East Asian countries such as China, Korea, Vietnam, Japan, and Thailand. Reflecting on the person's accomplishments o ...

. Duke Ling's predecessor was his grandfather Duke Huai of Qin. In 425 BC Qin general Chao (鼌) and other ministers attacked and besieged Duke Huai, and Duke Huai committed suicide. As Duke Huai's son Crown Prince Zhaozi (昭子) died early, the ministers installed Duke Ling, Zhaozi's son, on the throne. In 419 BC, the sixth year of Duke Ling's reign, Qin attacked the

State of Wei Wei (; ; Old Chinese: *') was one of the seven major states during the Warring States period of ancient China. It was created from the three-way Partition of Jin, together with Han and Zhao. Its territory lay between the states of Qin and ...

at the city of Shaoliang (少梁, in present-day

Hancheng Hancheng () is a city in Shaanxi Province, People's Republic of China, about 125 miles northeast of Xi'an, at the point where the south-flowing Yellow River enters the Guanzhong Plain. It is a renowned historic city, containing numerous historic ...

Shaanxi Shaanxi (alternatively Shensi, see § Name) is a landlocked province of China. Officially part of Northwest China, it borders the province-level divisions of Shanxi (NE, E), Henan (E), Hubei (SE), Chongqing (S), Sichuan (SW), Gansu (W), N ...

). Duke Ling reigned for 10 years and died in 415 BC. However, the throne was passed to his uncle Duke Jian of Qin, son of Duke Huai and younger brother of Zhaozi. Duke Ling's own son Shixi, later known as Duke Xian, was exiled to the State of Wei. Duke Xian would eventually ascend the throne nearly 30 years later, after Duke Jian's grandson Chuzi II was killed.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ling of Qin, Duke Year of birth unknown Rulers of Qin 5th-century BC Chinese monarchs 415 BC deaths