Jin (Chinese State)
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Jin (,
Old Chinese Old Chinese, also called Archaic Chinese in older works, is the oldest attested stage of Chinese language, Chinese, and the ancestor of all modern varieties of Chinese. The earliest examples of Chinese are divinatory inscriptions on oracle bones ...
: ''*''), originally known as Tang (唐), was a major
state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...
during the middle part of the
Zhou dynasty The Zhou dynasty ( ) was a royal dynasty of China that existed for 789 years from until 256 BC, the longest span of any dynasty in Chinese history. During the Western Zhou period (771 BC), the royal house, surnamed Ji, had military ...
, based near the centre of what was then China, on the lands attributed to the legendary
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 ...
: the southern part of modern
Shanxi Shanxi; Chinese postal romanization, formerly romanised as Shansi is a Provinces of China, province in North China. Its capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-level cities are Changzhi a ...
. Although it grew in power during 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 ...
, its aristocratic structure saw it break apart when the duke lost power to his nobles. In 403BC, the Zhou court recognized Jin's three successor states: Han, Zhao, and Wei. The Partition of Jin marks the end of the Spring and Autumn period and the beginning of the
Warring States period The Warring States period in history of China, Chinese history (221 BC) comprises the final two and a half centuries of the Zhou dynasty (256 BC), which were characterized by frequent warfare, bureaucratic and military reforms, and ...
.


Geography

Jin was located in the lower
Fen River The Fen River drains the center of Shanxi Province, China. It originates in the Guancen Mountains of Ningwu County in northeast Shanxi, flows southeast into the basin of Taiyuan, and then south through the central valley of Shanxi before turni ...
drainage basin on the Shanxi plateau. To the north were the Xirong and Beidi peoples. To the west were the
Lüliang Mountains The Lüliang Mountains are a mountains of China, mountain range in central China, dividing Shanxi's Fen River valley from the Yellow River. The range forces the Yellow River southwards on the eastern side of the Ordos Loop but tapers off to the so ...
and then the
Loess Plateau The Loess Plateau is a plateau in north-central China formed of loess, a clastic rock, clastic silt-like sediment formed by the accumulation of Dust#Atmospheric, wind-blown dust. It is located southeast of the Gobi Desert and is surrounded by t ...
of northern Shaanxi. To the southwest the Fen River turns west to join the south-flowing part of the
Yellow River The Yellow River, also known as Huanghe, is the second-longest river in China and the List of rivers by length, sixth-longest river system on Earth, with an estimated length of and a Drainage basin, watershed of . Beginning in the Bayan H ...
which soon leads to the
Guanzhong Guanzhong (, formerly romanization of Chinese, romanised as Kwanchung) region, also known as the Guanzhong Basin, Wei River Basin, or uncommonly as the Shaanzhong region, is a historical region of China corresponding to the crescentic graben str ...
, an area of the Wei River Valley that was the heartland of the
Western Zhou The Western Zhou ( zh, c=西周, p=Xīzhōu; 771 BC) was a period of Chinese history corresponding roughly to the first half of the Zhou dynasty. It began when King Wu of Zhou overthrew the Shang dynasty at the Battle of Muye and ended in 77 ...
and later of the Qin. To the south are the Zhongtiao Mountains and then the east–west valley of the Yellow River which was the main route to the Wei Valley to the west. To the east were the
Taihang Mountains The Taihang Mountains () are a Chinese mountain range running down the eastern edge of the Loess Plateau in Shanxi, Henan and Hebei provinces. The range extends over from north to south and has an average elevation of ; its principal peak is ...
and then the
North China Plain The North China Plain () is a large-scale downfaulted rift basin formed in the late Paleogene and Neogene and then modified by the deposits of the Yellow River. It is the largest alluvial plain of China. The plain is bordered to the north by th ...
. This location gave ambitious Jin dukes the opportunity to move north to conquer and absorb the Xirong tribes, move southwest to fight Qin, and move southeast to absorb the many smaller Zhou states. Also important to the region were the large states of Chu to the south in the Yangtze and
Huai River The Huai River, formerly romanized as the Hwai, is a major river in East China, about long with a drainage area of . It is located about midway between the Yellow River and Yangtze River, the two longest rivers and largest drainage basins ...
regions and Qi to the east in
Shandong Shandong is a coastal Provinces of China, province in East China. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilization along the lower reaches of the Yellow River. It has served as a pivotal cultural ...
. Jin had multiple capitals. The first capital of Jin was Tang (唐). The capital was later moved to E ( ), then Jiang ( ), then Xintian (新田). From 746 to 677 BC, Quwo (曲沃) was the capital of a fragment of Jin.


Western Zhou (1046-771BC)

When the Zhou Dynasty was founded, the conquered lands were given to Zhou relatives and ministers as hereditary fiefs. King Cheng of Zhou, the second Zhou king, gave the land called Tang (唐), west of modern Yicheng County in
Shanxi Shanxi; Chinese postal romanization, formerly romanised as Shansi is a Provinces of China, province in North China. Its capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-level cities are Changzhi a ...
, to his younger brother, Tang Shuyu (唐叔虞) with the rank of a marquis. Tang Shuyu's son and successor, Marquis Xie of Jin (晉侯燮), changed the name of Tang to Jin. There is little information about Jin for this period beyond a list of rulers.


Spring and Autumn period

In 771BC the Quanrong nomads drove the Zhou out of the Wei River valley and killed the king. Marquis Wen of Jin, the eleventh marquis of Jin, supported King Ping of Zhou by killing his rival, King Xie of Zhou, an act that King Ping heavily rewarded him for.


The breakaway state of Quwo (745-677BC)

When Marquis Zhao of Jin (745-739BC) acceded to the throne, he gave the land of Quwo to his uncle Chengshi who became Huan Shu of Quwo. In 739BC, an official named Panfu (潘父) murdered Marquis Zhao and invited Huan Shu to take the throne. Huan Shu entered Jin but was driven out by the people and retreated to Quwo. All three Quwo rulers, Huan Shu (745–731), Zhuang Bo (731–716) and Duke Wu (716–678) made attempts to take over Jin. In 678BC, Duke Wu of Quwo conquered Jin and killed Marquis Min of Jin (704–678). One year later, after receiving gifts from Duke Wu, King Xi of Zhou made Duke Wu the legal ruler of Jin, who became known as Duke Wu of Jin (679–677).


Ascendency

With the establishment of the Quwo line, Jin became the most powerful state for three generations and remained powerful for a century or more after that. Duke Wu died soon after gaining control of Jin. He was followed by Duke Xian of Jin (676-651BC). Xian broke with Zhou feudalism by killing or exiling his cousins and ruling with appointees of various social backgrounds. He annexed 16 or 17 small states in Shanxi, dominated 38 others, and absorbed a number of Rong tribes. Some of the states conquered were Geng (耿), Huo (霍), old Wei (魏), Yu (虞) and
Western Guo Western Guo () was a vassal state in China during the Zhou dynasty. "Guo" was a kinship group that held at least five pieces of territory within the Zhou realm at various times. After King Wu of Zhou destroyed the Shang dynasty in 1046 BCE, hi ...
. His death led to a succession struggle which ended with the enthronement of Duke Hui of Jin (650–637). In 646BC, Duke Hui was captured by Qin and restored as a vassal. Another son of Duke Xian was Duke Wen of Jin (636–628), who spent 19 years exile in various courts. He came to the throne in 636 escorted by the troops of his father-in-law, Duke Mu of Qin. Duke Wen quickly established himself as an independent ruler by driving the Di barbarians west of the Yellow River. In 635BC he supported King Xiang of Zhou against a rival and was rewarded with lands near the royal capital. In 633BC, he confronted the rising power of the southern state of Chu which was then besieging
Song A song is a musical composition performed by the human voice. The voice often carries the melody (a series of distinct and fixed pitches) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs have a structure, such as the common ABA form, and are usu ...
. Instead of directly assisting Song, he attacked two vassals of Chu, Cao and Wei. The following year, he formed a military alliance with Qin, Qi and Song that defeated Chu at the Battle of Chengpu, perhaps the largest battle in the Spring and Autumn period. Shortly after the battle, he held an interstate conference at Jitu (踐土) with King Xiang of Zhou and the rulers of six other states. He affirmed the lords' loyalty and received from the King the title of "ba" or
hegemon Hegemony (, , ) is the political, economic, and military predominance of one state over other states, either regional or global. In Ancient Greece (ca. 8th BC – AD 6th c.), hegemony denoted the politico-military dominance of the ''hegemon'' ...
. At some point, there was a war with Qin, which ended in peace. Duke Wen erected monuments to the fallen on both sides. The Chinese proverb "The Friendship of Qin and Jin", meaning an unbreakable bond, dates from this period. Over the next century, a four-way balance of power developed between Qin (west), Jin (west-center), Chu (south) and Qi (east), with a number of smaller states between Jin and Qi. In 627BC, Jin defeated Qin while it was attacking Zheng. Jin invaded Qin in 625BC and was driven back the following year. In 598BC, Chu defeated Jin at the Battle of Mi. In 589BC, Jin defeated Qi at the Battle of An, which had invaded Lu and Wey. About this time, Jin began to support the southeastern state of Wu as a means of weakening Chu. Duke Li of Jin (580–573) allied with Qin and Qi to make an east–west front against the threat of Chu from the south. In 579BC, a minister of the state of Song arranged a four-power conference in which the states agreed to limit their military strength. Four years later, fighting broke out again; Jin and its allies defeated Chu at the battle of Yingling. Duke Dao of Jin (572–558) strengthened the state by internal improvements rather than external wars. He absorbed a number of Rong tribes and was recognized as Hegemon.


Decline and fall

In 607BC, Duke Ling of Jin (620–607) was killed by Zhao Chuan (趙穿) under the orders of his uncle Zhao Dun. Prince Heitun was placed on the throne as Duke Cheng of Jin (606–600). This was the beginning of the slow shift of power from the Jin dukes to the ministerial clans. Duke Li of Jin (580–573), the grandson of Duke Cheng, tried to break the power of the clans by fostering conflicts between them. In 573BC, he was killed by the Luan (欒氏) and Zhonghang (中行氏) clans. Duke Dao of Jin (572–558) strengthened the ducal power, but could not eliminate the power of the other aristocratic families. After the reign of Duke Zhao of Jin (531–526), the Jin dukes were figureheads and the state was controlled by six clans: Fan (范), Zhonghang (中行), Zhi (智), Han (韓), Zhao (趙) and Wei (魏). The clans soon began to fight among themselves. During the time of Duke Ding of Jin (511–475), the Fan and Zhonghang clans were eliminated by Xiangzi of Zhi. By about 450BC, the Zhi were dominant and began demanding territory from the other clans. When Zhao resisted, Zhi attacked Zhao and brought along Han and Wei as allies. After a long siege at
Taiyuan Taiyuan; Mandarin pronunciation: (Jin Chinese, Taiyuan Jin: /tʰai˦˥ ye˩˩/) is the capital of Shanxi, China. Taiyuan is the political, economic, cultural and international exchange center of Shanxi Province. It is an industrial base foc ...
, Han and Wei switched sides and the three weaker clans annihilated the Zhi. They then divided the Zhi lands, as well as most of the rest of Jin, among themselves. When Duke You of Jin (433–416) came to the throne, the three clans had taken over much of the remaining Jin lands, leaving the dukes only the area around Jiang and Quwo. From then on, the three clans were known as the "Three Jins" (三晉). In 403BC, during the reign of Duke Lie of Jin (415–389), King Weilie of Zhou recognized Marquis Jing of Han, Marquis Wen of Wei and Marquess Lie of Zhao, as marquises of Han in the south, Wei in the center and Zhao in the north, completing the partition of Jin. The state of Jin still nominally existed for several decades afterwards. The ''
Bamboo Annals The ''Bamboo Annals'' ( zh, t=竹書紀年, p=Zhúshū Jìnián), also known as the ''Ji Tomb Annals'' ( zh, t=汲冢紀年, p=Jí Zhǒng Jìnián), is a chronicle of ancient China. It begins in the earliest legendary time (the age of the Yellow E ...
'' mentions that in the 20th year of Duke Huan's reign (369 BC), Marquess Cheng of Zhao and Marquess Gong of Han moved Duke Huan to Tunliu, and after that there were no more records of Duke Huan or any other Jin ruler. Modern historians such as Yang Kuan, Ch'ien Mu, and Han Zhaoqi generally consider 369 BC the final year of Jin's existence.


Military forces

Jin united civil and military authority. Traditionally, Jin had three armies: the upper army, the central army and the lower army. Three more armies were added in 588 BC. Each army contained 12500 soldiers. According to the convention of Zhou dynasty, a large fiefdom like Jin was allowed to have as many as three armies. However, Jin originally had only one army: the limitation was imposed by the Zhou dynasty king in order to observe the rite of Zhou. In 679 BCE, Duke Wu of Quwo assassinated Marquis Xiaozi of Jin and became the ruler of Jin. Quwo was a cadet branch of Jin's ruling house; Ji clan descended from Shu Yu of Tang. The Zhou court, which regarded the lineal legitimacy as an extremely important matter, could not agree with such an usurpation. As a consequence, the king revoked Jin's permission to have three armies. In 661 BCE, Duke Xian of Jin lifted this prohibition by establishing the upper army; led by himself and the lower army; commanded by his son Shengshen. Jin's central army was established in the year of 633 BCE by Duke Wen of Jin. In 634 BCE, Duke Wen additionally formed three "ranks" (三行) with the purpose of defending against a Beidi invasion. The three ranks were later redeployed into the "New armies" (新軍). The new armies were largely dependent on the actual military necessity instead of being permanent units. Due to their flexibility, the new armies were sometimes omitted. According to Tang dynasty scholar Kong Yingda, The central army was the most prestigious army among Jin's three armies. Its commander ''Zhongjunjiang'' (中軍將) also governs the state of Jin as ''Zhengqing'' (正卿)----Jin's prime minister. Commander of the upper army (''Shangjunjiang'', 上軍將) and commander of the lower army (''Xiajunjiang'', 下軍將) did not have the access of political influence in Jin's court and were merely military staffs. Every commander (''Junjiang'') of an Jin army was accompanied by a ''Junzuo'' (軍佐) who was the assistant of ''Junjiang'' (軍將). Other posts in the Jin army were ''Junsima'' (軍司馬) and ''Junwei'' (軍尉), both of which were subordinated under ''Junjiang'' and ''Junzuo''.


Military ranks

The main military ranks were: *'' Zhongjunjiang'' (中軍將), also known as ''Yuanshuai'' (元帥), ''Jiangjun'' (將軍) and ''Zhengqing''; Prime minister of Jin. *''Zhongjunzuo'' (中軍佐) *''Zhongjunwei'' (中軍尉), when the country is not at war, ''Zhongjunwei'' is in charge of the actual affairs of the central army. *''Shangjunjiang'' (上軍將) *''Shangjunzuo'' (上軍佐) *''Shangjunwei'' (上軍尉), when the country is not at war, ''Shangjunwei'' is in charge of the actual affairs of the upper army. *''Xiajunjiang'' (下軍將) *''Xiajunzuo'' (下軍佐) *''Zhongjunsima'' (中軍司馬) *''Shangjunsima'' (上軍司馬)


Rulers

List of Jin rulers based on the '' Records of the Grand Historian'' and the ''Bamboo Annals''. The original branch: The Quwo branch, replacing the original branch in 678BC: The '' Records of the Grand Historian'' (''Shiji'') also has another Duke Jing after Duke Xiao. However, ''Shiji's'' account of the last rulers of Jin is often self-contradictory, and is further contradicted by the ''Bamboo Annals'', which does not mention any Jin ruler after Duke Huan of Jin.'' Annals of Wei'', ''
Bamboo Annals The ''Bamboo Annals'' ( zh, t=竹書紀年, p=Zhúshū Jìnián), also known as the ''Ji Tomb Annals'' ( zh, t=汲冢紀年, p=Jí Zhǒng Jìnián), is a chronicle of ancient China. It begins in the earliest legendary time (the age of the Yellow E ...
''.
Historians such as Yang Kuan, Ch'ien Mu, and Han Zhaoqi generally regard the ''Bamboo Annals'' as more reliable, as it was unearthed from the tomb of King Xiang (died 296 BC) of the
State of Wei Wei (; ) was one of the seven major State (Ancient China), states during the Warring States period of ancient China. It was created from the three-way Partition of Jin, together with Han (Warring States), Han and Zhao (state), Zhao. Its territo ...
, one of the three successor states of Jin. Duke Huan is therefore generally considered the final ruler of Jin.


Later tradition


Claimed descendants

The
Sui dynasty The Sui dynasty ( ) was a short-lived Dynasties of China, Chinese imperial dynasty that ruled from 581 to 618. The re-unification of China proper under the Sui brought the Northern and Southern dynasties era to a close, ending a prolonged peri ...
Emperors were from the northwest military aristocracy, and emphasized that their patrilineal ancestry was ethnic Han, claiming descent from the Han official Yang Zhen. and the New Book of Tang traced his patrilineal ancestry to the
Zhou dynasty The Zhou dynasty ( ) was a royal dynasty of China that existed for 789 years from until 256 BC, the longest span of any dynasty in Chinese history. During the Western Zhou period (771 BC), the royal house, surnamed Ji, had military ...
kings via Ji Boqiao (姬 伯僑), who was the son of Duke Wu of Jin. Ji Boqiao's family became known as the "sheep tongue family" ( 羊舌氏). The Yang clan of Hongnong ( 弘農楊氏) were asserted as ancestors by the Sui Emperors like the Li clan of Longxi were asserted as ancestors of the Tang Emperors. The Li of Zhaojun and the Lu of Fanyang hailed from Shandong and were related to the Liu clan which was also linked to the Yang clan of Hongnong and other clans of Guanlong. Duke Wu of Jin was claimed as the ancestors of the Hongnong Yang. The Yang clan of Hongnong, Jia clan of Hedong, Xiang clan of Henei, and Wang clan of Taiyuan from the Tang dynasty were claimed as ancestors by Song dynasty lineages. There were Dukedoms for the offspring of the royal families of the Zhou dynasty, Sui dynasty, and Tang dynasty in the Later Jin (Five Dynasties).


Astrology

Jin is represented by the star 36 Capricorni (b Capricorni) in the asterism ''Twelve States'', ''Girl'' mansion. Jin is also represented by the star Kappa Herculis in asterism ''Right Wall'', Heavenly Market enclosure (see Chinese constellation).AEEA (Activities of Exhibition and Education in Astronomy) 天文教育資訊網 2006 年 6 月 24 日


References


External links



{{DEFAULTSORT:Jin (State) States and territories established in the 11th century BC 11th-century BC establishments in China 349 BC States and territories disestablished in the 4th century BC 4th-century BC disestablishments in China Ancient Chinese states States of the Warring States period States of the Spring and Autumn period