Jian, King of Qi (; reigned 264–221 BC) was the last king of Qi, one of the seven major states of the

Warring States period The Warring States period () was an era in ancient Chinese history characterized by warfare, as well as bureaucratic and military reforms and consolidation. It followed the Spring and Autumn period and concluded with the Qin wars of conquest ...

of ancient China. His personal name was Tian Jian (田建), ancestral name Gui, and he did not have a

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 ...

because he was the last king of Qi. Jian succeeded his father

King Xiang of Qi King Xiang of Qi (; died 265 BCJohn Knoblock. 1994. ''Xunzi: A Translation and Study of the Complete Works''.) was from 283 to 265 BC king of Qi, one of the seven major states of the Warring States period of ancient China. King Xiang's personal ...

, who died in 265 BC. He reigned for 44 years. At the time he acceded to the throne, there were only a few states left in what is now China. Qi was one of the wealthiest, and it was on the seacoast far from the most aggressive state, Qin. For years, King Jian's mother acted as his advisor. On her deathbed she wanted to tell her son the king which ministers she thought were the best. But when the writing materials arrived she could no longer tell him. After she died, Hou Sheng (后勝) became his prime minister. It was alleged by some sources that Hou Sheng was in the pay of the state of Qin. In Strategies of the Warring States, The Book of Qi One famous anecdote is that after the Battle of Changping in 260 BC, in which, according to the historian Sima Qian, 450,000 soldiers of the

state of Zhao Zhao () 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 Wei, in the 5th century BC. Zhao gained significant strength from the mil ...

were killed by the Qin army, King Jian was advised: "Zhao is a hedge that protects Qi... just as the lips protect the teeth. When the lips are gone, the teeth become cold....Go to the aid of Zhao!" In Strategies of the Warring States, The Book of Qi However, the king did nothing; during his reign he tried to stay out of wars, as the future First Emperor

Qin Shihuang Qin Shi Huang (, ; 259–210 BC) was the founder of the Qin dynasty and the first emperor of a unified China. Rather than maintain the title of "king" ( ''wáng'') borne by the previous Shang and Zhou rulers, he ruled as the First Emperor ( ...

attacked all the states around him. The kingdom of Qi was the only opponent of Qin after

Qin Shi Huang Qin Shi Huang (, ; 259–210 BC) was the founder of the Qin dynasty and the first emperor of a unified China. Rather than maintain the title of " king" ( ''wáng'') borne by the previous Shang and Zhou rulers, he ruled as the First Empero ...

conquered every other state. King Jian and his prime minister Hou Sheng (后勝), a relation of Jian's wife, sent the Qi army to the western border of Qi to protect the country; but Qin general Wang Ben (王賁), son of Wang Jian, attacked Qi from the north instead and conquered it in 221 BC, completing Qin's unification of China. King Jian was captured with his entire court. From

Discourses on Salt and Iron The Discourses on Salt and Iron () was a debate held at the imperial court in 81 BCE on state policy during the Han dynasty in China. The previous emperor, Emperor Wu, had reversed the laissez-faire policies of his predecessors and imposed a wide ...

In one story, the king went to Qin voluntarily, resisting the urging of his loyal counselor, after the defeat, because

, the First Emperor, had promised him a large property of 500 ''li''. Instead, when he arrived in Qin, he was sent to a remote area with his wife and daughter, where he starved to death. The Qi people made a sarcastic ballad to commemorate him. "Oh, pine trees! Oh, cypress trees! Making the king of Qi die in a common village–this was a guest who was good at adapting!" In Strategies of the Warring States, The Book of Qi Later in the

Han dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warr ...

, the official

Wang Mang Wang Mang () (c. 45 – 6 October 23 CE), courtesy name Jujun (), was the founder and the only emperor of the short-lived Chinese Xin dynasty. He was originally an official and consort kin of the Han dynasty and later seized the thron ...

usurped the emperor and took the throne. Wang Mang proclaimed to have descended from Jian of Qi (through from the

Eighteen Kingdoms The historiographical term "Eighteen Kingdoms" ( zh, t=十八國), also translated to as "Eighteen States", refers to the eighteen '' fengjian'' states in China created by military leader Xiang Yu in 206 BCE, after the collapse of the Qin dynasty. ...

) and awarded him the posthumous name King Jing of Qi (齊敬王) and the temple name Emperor Shizu of Xin (新世祖).

Ancestry

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jian of Qi Monarchs of Qi (state) 3rd-century BC Chinese monarchs Chinese kings