The abdicational system () was a historical

Chinese Chinese may refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people identified with China, through nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **Han Chinese, East Asian ethnic group native to China. **'' Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic ...

political system In political science, a political system means the form of Political organisation, political organization that can be observed, recognised or otherwise declared by a society or state (polity), state. It defines the process for making official gov ...

. According to

Chinese mythology Chinese mythology () is mythology that has been passed down in oral form or recorded in literature throughout the area now known as Greater China. Chinese mythology encompasses a diverse array of myths derived from regional and cultural tradit ...

, it was the system used by the

Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors According to Chinese mythology and traditional Chinese historiography, the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors () were a series of sage Chinese emperors, and the first Emperors of China. Today, they are considered culture heroes, but they wer ...

before the switch to hereditary rule in the

Xia dynasty The Xia dynasty (; ) is the first dynasty in traditional Chinese historiography. According to tradition, it was established by the legendary figure Yu the Great, after Emperor Shun, Shun, the last of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, Fiv ...

Emperor Yao Emperor Yao (; traditionally c. 2356 – 2255 BCE) was a legendary China, Chinese ruler, according to various sources, one of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors. Ancestry and early life Yao's ancestral name is Yi Qi () or Qi (), clan ...

abdicated and chose

Emperor Shun Emperor Shun ( zh, c=帝舜, p=Dì Shùn) was a legendary leader of ancient China, regarded by some sources as one of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors being the last of the Five Emperors. Tradition holds that he lived sometime between 229 ...

as his successor."Canon of Shun" (),

Classic of History The ''Book of Documents'' ( zh, p=Shūjīng, c=書經, w=Shu King) or the ''Classic of History'', is one of the Five Classics of ancient Chinese literature. It is a collection of rhetorical prose attributed to figures of ancient China, an ...

(), traditionally first compiled and edited by Confucius (), in about Fifth to Sixth Century BC, in what is now China. (ISBN of original unavailable.) Chinese archaeologist Feng Shi () argues

Qi of Xia Qi () was a Chinese king, the son of Yu the Great and the second sovereign of the Xia dynasty. He ruled for roughly nine to ten years.戴逸, 龔書鐸. 002(2003) 中國通史. 史前夏商西周. Intelligence press. . p. 40. Biography ...

had violently seized power and established a hereditary system after the death of his father

Yu the Great Yu the Great or Yu the Engineer was a legendary king in ancient China who was credited with "the first successful state efforts at flood control", his establishment of the Xia dynasty, which inaugurated Dynasties in Chinese history, dynastic ru ...

, he argues this with traces of violence discovered around that time.Feng, Shi (2009
"A Study of the Pottery Inscription 'Wen Yi 文邑'"
''Chinese Archaeology'', Vol. 9 (Issue 1), pp. 170-177
full text
/ref> The idea was most influential in the

4th century BC The 4th century BC started the first day of 400 BC and ended the last day of 301 BC. It is considered part of the Classical antiquity, Classical era, Epoch (reference date), epoch, or historical period. This century marked the height of Classi ...

and declined in later periods. According to

, following the rule of the Yellow Emperor, chieftains of different tribes in the Yellow River basin, including Yao, Shun, and Yu, came together to create a tribal alliance. Rather than engaging in warfare to establish dominance, these tribes opted for a more peaceful approach by selecting their leaders via an electoral process. This method drew its inspiration from the time-honored military democratic custom. In this system, the head of the tribal coalition was chosen through a democratic procedure involving representatives from each tribe. A well-known instance of this mechanism at work is the resignation of

. As he aged, Yao endeavored to identify a successor who could carry on his legacy. He called upon the chieftains of different tribes and inquired, "Who can assume my role?" A minister recommended the skilled and righteous Shun, who was subsequently assessed and promoted to the rank of

. This method facilitated a nonviolent transition of power, with the leader's role being transferred through dialogue and a democratic approach instead of through conflict and aggression. This system was widespread in ancient China, particularly during the advanced phases of primitive society. A resurgence of curiosity in the abdication system has been sparked by the discovery of four brief texts unearthed in recent Chinese archeological excavations. Although the primary texts were lost in the

burning of books and burying of scholars The burning of books and burying of scholars was the purported Book burning, burning of texts in 213 BCE and live burial of 460 Confucian scholars in 212 BCE ordered by Chinese emperor Qin Shi Huang. The events were alleged to have destroye ...

that took place between 213 and 212 BCE, the concept continued to be a part of political discussions throughout history.

References

{{Reflist Chinese monarchs Ancient Chinese institutions Political history of China Hereditary monarchy Abdication Monarchy Changes in political power Confucianism Chinese culture