China

The history of the Zhou (1046–256 bce)

The vast time sweep of the Zhou dynasty—encompassing some eight centuries—is the single longest period of Chinese history. However, the great longevity of the Ji lineage was not matched by a similar continuity of its rule. During the Xi (Western) Zhou (1046–771 bce), the first of the two major divisions of the period, the Zhou court maintained a tenuous control over the country through a network of feudal states. This system broke down during the Dong (Eastern) Zhou (770–256 bce), however, as those states and new ones that arose vied for power. The Dong Zhou is commonly subdivided into the Chunqiu (Spring and Autumn) period (770–476 bce) and the Zhanguo (Warring States) period (475–221 bce), the latter extending some three decades beyond the death of the last Zhou ruler until the rise of the Qin in 221.

Zhou dynasty: jianCeremonial bronze jian, Dong (Eastern) Zhou dynasty (770–256 bce); in the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Minneapolis, Minnesota.Courtesy of the Minneapolis Institute of Arts

The origin of the Zhou royal house is lost in the mists of time. Although the traditional historical system of the Chinese contains a Zhou genealogy, no dates can be assigned to the ancestors. The first ancestor was Houji, literally translated as “Lord of Millet.” He appears to have been a cultural hero and agricultural deity rather than a tribal chief. The earliest plausible Zhou ancestor was Danfu, the grandfather of Wenwang. Prior to and during the time of Danfu, the Zhou people seem to have migrated to avoid pressure from powerful neighbours, possibly nomadic people to the north. Under the leadership of Danfu, they settled in the valley of the Wei River in the present province of Shaanxi. The fertility of the loess soil there apparently made a great impression on these people, who had already been engaged in farming when they entered their new homeland. A walled city was built, and a new nation was formed. Archaeological remains, including ruins of courtyards surrounded by walls and halls on platforms, confirm literary evidence of a Zhou state.