Shu (state)
Encyclopedia
The State of Shu was an ancient state in what is now Sichuan
, China
. It was conquered by Qin
in 316 BC
. Shu was based on the Chengdu Plain
, in the western Sichuan basin
with some extension northeast to the upper Han River valley
. To the east was the Ba tribal confederation
. Further east down the Han and Yangtze rivers was the state of Chu
. To the north over the Qinling Mountains
was the state of Qin
. To the west and south were tribal peoples of little military power.
Before 316BC the Sichuan Basin
was isolated from what was then China, which was centered in the Yellow River
basin to the northeast. The discovery of Sanxingdui
in 1987 was a major surprise since it indicated a major semi-Chinese culture that was previously unknown. Circa 2050-1250BC the site of Sanxingdui
40 km north of Chengdu
appears to have been the center of a fairly extensive kingdom. Objects found in two treasure pits are in a style distinct from, but influenced by, the 'Chinese' style that we know from further north. The Shu first appear in the written record in 1046BC when they helped the Zhou overthrow the Shang at the Battle of Muye
. After Muye northern influences seem to have increased and then decreased while the Shu remained culturally distinct. Shu is not mentioned in any of the major texts from the Spring and Autumn Period. The expulsion of the Zhou from the Wei River
valley in 771BC probably increased Shu's isolation. We have a few names of semi-legendary kings, including Dayu (杜宇) who may have been the first or last of a dynasty. In 666BC a man called Beiling founded the Kaiming (開明) dynasty which lasted twelve generations until the Qin conquest. (It is said that when Beiling died in Chu
his body floated upriver to Shu and came back to life. He was successful in managing a flood and Dayu abdicated in his favor.) As the state of Chu
expanded westward up the Han and Yangtze valleys it pushed the Ba peoples
west toward Shu. For the fifth and fourth centuries archaeologists speak of a mixed Ba-Shu culture, although the two peoples remained distinct. There was also some Chu influence on the Shu court. In 474BC Shu emissaries presented gifts to the Qin
court which was the first recorded contact between these two states. In 387 Shu and Qin troops clashed near Hanzhong
on the upper Han river. Some time before this Shu troops had crossed the Qinling Mountains
and approached the Qin capital of Yong. Shu might have continued as a semi-Chinese state like Korea or Vietnam, or it might have been conquered by Chu to the east. Instead it was conquered by Qin.
strengthened the Qin state by centralizing it. In 337 Shu emissaries congratulated King Huiwen of Qin on his accession. At about this time the Stone Cattle Road
was built over the mountains to connect Qin and Shu. About 316 the Marquis of Zu, who held part of the Stone Cattle Road, became involved with Ba and quarreled with his brother, the twelfth Kaiming King. The Marquis was defeated and fled to Ba and then to Qin. Zhang Yi proposed that Qin should ignore these barbarians and continue its eastward expansion onto the central plain. Sima Cuo proposed that Qin should use its superior army to annex Shu, develop its resources and use the added strength for a later attack eastward. Sima Cuo's proposal was accepted and both advisors were sent south as generals. The two armies met near Jaimeng on the Jialing River
in Ba territory. The Kaiming king lost several battles and withdrew southward to Wuyang where he was captured and killed. Qin then turned on its allies and annexed Ba.
in Vietnamese history was a member of the Kaiming family who led his people southward away from the Chinese.)
The conquest had more than doubled Qin's territory and gave it an area safe from the other states except Chu, but the land had to be developed before its taxes could be converted into military strength. Shu was made a "jun" or commandery and became a testing ground for this type of administration. About 311 Chengdu was surrounded by an enormous wall. Land was redistributed and divided into rectangular plots. Tens of thousands of colonists were brought in from the north. Many were convicts or people displaced by the wars further north. They were marched south in columns supervised by Qin officials. The great Dujiangyan Irrigation System
was begun to divert the Min River east to the Chengdu Plain. Qin intervention in Ba was less extensive, apparently to avoid alienating a warlike people on the border of Chu.
During the conquest Chu was still tied up in the east with the annexation of Yue
. In 312 Qin and Chu troops clashed on the upper Han River. Zhang Yi used a mixture of threat and bluff to block any interference from Chu. Later a Chu general named Zhuang Qiao pushed west and occupied the tribal territory south of the Yangtze south of Shu. In 281 Sima Cuo crossed the Yangtze and cut him off from Chu. He responded by declaring himself an independent king and he and his troops gradually blended into the local population. Starting in 280 or before general Bai Qi
pushed down the Han River and took the Chu capital (278). In 277 the Three Gorges area was taken. The effect was to create a new Qin frontier east of Sichuan.
Sichuan remained quiescent during the wars before and after the Qin Dynasty
indicating the Qin policy of assimilation had been successful. Archaeological remains in Shu from this period are very similar to those of northern China, while the Ba area remained somewhat distinct. When Liu Bang launched his campaign to found the Han Dynasty
Sichuan was an important supply base. In 135BC, under the expansionist Emperor Wu of Han
, general Tang Meng, attempting an indirect approach to the Kingdom of Nanyue
, made a push south of the Yangtze River and a little later Sima Xiangru
pushed into the hill country west of Sichuan. These campaigns into tribal territory proved more expensive than they were worth and in 126 they were both cancelled to shift resources to the Xiongnu
wars in the north. In the same year Zhang Qian
returned from the west and reported that it might be possible to reach India from Sichuan. An attempt to do this was blocked by the hill tribes. In 112 Tang Meng resumed his expansionist wars southward. His harsh methods provoked a near mutiny in Sichuan and Sima Xiangru was brought in to enforce a more moderate policy. By this time Chinese expansion across flat agricultural country had reached a natural geographical limit. Expansion into the hill country to the south was west was much slower.
in asterism Right Wall, Heavenly Market enclosure
(see Chinese constellation
).(together with Lambda Serpentis
in R.H.Allen's works).
Sichuan
' , known formerly in the West by its postal map spellings of Szechwan or Szechuan is a province in Southwest China with its capital in Chengdu...
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. It was conquered by Qin
Qin (state)
The State of Qin was a Chinese feudal state that existed during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States Periods of Chinese history...
in 316 BC
316 BC
Year 316 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Rutilus and Laenas...
. Shu was based on the Chengdu Plain
Chengdu Plain
The Chengdu Plain , known as Cuanxi Bazi in Sichuanese, is an alluvial plain located in the western part of Sichuan Basin in Sichuan, China. Chengdu is located on it....
, in the western Sichuan basin
Sichuan basin
The Sichuan Basin is a lowland region in southwestern China. Despite its historical name, it is not only synonymous to Sichuan province, comprising its central and eastern portions as well as part of Chongqing Municipality...
with some extension northeast to the upper Han River valley
Han River (Hanshui)
The Han River is a left tributary of the Yangtze River with a length of 1532 km. Historically it was referred to as Hànshuǐ and the name is still occasionally used today....
. To the east was the Ba tribal confederation
Ba (state)
Ba was an ancient state in eastern Sichuan, China. Its original capital was Yicheng , Hubei. Ba was conquered by Qin in 316 BC. The modern ethnic minority Tujia people trace some of their origins back to the Ba people....
. Further east down the Han and Yangtze rivers was the state of Chu
Chu (state)
The State of Chu was a Zhou Dynasty vassal state in present-day central and southern China during the Spring and Autumn period and Warring States Period . Its ruling house had the surname Nai , and clan name Yan , later evolved to surname Mi , and clan name Xiong...
. To the north over the Qinling Mountains
Qinling Mountains
The Qin Mountains are a major east-west mountain range in southern Shaanxi province, China. The mountains provide a natural boundary between the North and South of the country, and support a huge variety of plant and wildlife, some of which is found nowhere else on Earth.To the north is the...
was the state of Qin
Qin (state)
The State of Qin was a Chinese feudal state that existed during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States Periods of Chinese history...
. To the west and south were tribal peoples of little military power.
Before the Qin Conquest
Sichuan basin
The Sichuan Basin is a lowland region in southwestern China. Despite its historical name, it is not only synonymous to Sichuan province, comprising its central and eastern portions as well as part of Chongqing Municipality...
was isolated from what was then China, which was centered in the Yellow River
Yellow River
The Yellow River or Huang He, formerly known as the Hwang Ho, is the second-longest river in China and the sixth-longest in the world at the estimated length of . Originating in the Bayan Har Mountains in Qinghai Province in western China, it flows through nine provinces of China and empties into...
basin to the northeast. The discovery of Sanxingdui
Sanxingdui
Sanxingdui is the name of an archaeological site and its deduced culture in China, now believed to be the site of an ancient Chinese city. The previously unknown Bronze Age culture was re-discovered in 1987 when archaeologists excavated remarkable artifacts, that radiocarbon dating dated as being...
in 1987 was a major surprise since it indicated a major semi-Chinese culture that was previously unknown. Circa 2050-1250BC the site of Sanxingdui
Sanxingdui
Sanxingdui is the name of an archaeological site and its deduced culture in China, now believed to be the site of an ancient Chinese city. The previously unknown Bronze Age culture was re-discovered in 1987 when archaeologists excavated remarkable artifacts, that radiocarbon dating dated as being...
40 km north of Chengdu
Chengdu
Chengdu , formerly transliterated Chengtu, is the capital of Sichuan province in Southwest China. It holds sub-provincial administrative status...
appears to have been the center of a fairly extensive kingdom. Objects found in two treasure pits are in a style distinct from, but influenced by, the 'Chinese' style that we know from further north. The Shu first appear in the written record in 1046BC when they helped the Zhou overthrow the Shang at the Battle of Muye
Battle of Muye
The Battle of Muye was fought in China perhaps 1046 BC. The battle led to the end of the Shang dynasty, and the beginning of the Zhou dynasty.-Background:...
. After Muye northern influences seem to have increased and then decreased while the Shu remained culturally distinct. Shu is not mentioned in any of the major texts from the Spring and Autumn Period. The expulsion of the Zhou from the Wei River
Wei River
The Wei River is a major river in west-central China's Gansu and Shaanxi provinces. It is the largest tributary of the Yellow River and very important in the early development of Chinese civilization....
valley in 771BC probably increased Shu's isolation. We have a few names of semi-legendary kings, including Dayu (杜宇) who may have been the first or last of a dynasty. In 666BC a man called Beiling founded the Kaiming (開明) dynasty which lasted twelve generations until the Qin conquest. (It is said that when Beiling died in Chu
Chu (state)
The State of Chu was a Zhou Dynasty vassal state in present-day central and southern China during the Spring and Autumn period and Warring States Period . Its ruling house had the surname Nai , and clan name Yan , later evolved to surname Mi , and clan name Xiong...
his body floated upriver to Shu and came back to life. He was successful in managing a flood and Dayu abdicated in his favor.) As the state of Chu
Chu (state)
The State of Chu was a Zhou Dynasty vassal state in present-day central and southern China during the Spring and Autumn period and Warring States Period . Its ruling house had the surname Nai , and clan name Yan , later evolved to surname Mi , and clan name Xiong...
expanded westward up the Han and Yangtze valleys it pushed the Ba peoples
Ba (state)
Ba was an ancient state in eastern Sichuan, China. Its original capital was Yicheng , Hubei. Ba was conquered by Qin in 316 BC. The modern ethnic minority Tujia people trace some of their origins back to the Ba people....
west toward Shu. For the fifth and fourth centuries archaeologists speak of a mixed Ba-Shu culture, although the two peoples remained distinct. There was also some Chu influence on the Shu court. In 474BC Shu emissaries presented gifts to the Qin
Qin (state)
The State of Qin was a Chinese feudal state that existed during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States Periods of Chinese history...
court which was the first recorded contact between these two states. In 387 Shu and Qin troops clashed near Hanzhong
Hanzhong
Hanzhong is a municipality in southwest Shaanxi Province, China, occupying a historically significant valley in the mountains between the Xi'an area, home to many Chinese capitals, and the fertile but isolated Sichuan Basin...
on the upper Han river. Some time before this Shu troops had crossed the Qinling Mountains
Qinling Mountains
The Qin Mountains are a major east-west mountain range in southern Shaanxi province, China. The mountains provide a natural boundary between the North and South of the country, and support a huge variety of plant and wildlife, some of which is found nowhere else on Earth.To the north is the...
and approached the Qin capital of Yong. Shu might have continued as a semi-Chinese state like Korea or Vietnam, or it might have been conquered by Chu to the east. Instead it was conquered by Qin.
Conquest by Qin in 316 BC
About 356-338 Shang YangShang Yang
Shang Yang was an important statesman of the State of Qin during the Warring States Period of Chinese history. Born Wei Yang in the State of Wei, with the support of Duke Xiao of Qin Yang enacted numerous reforms in Qin...
strengthened the Qin state by centralizing it. In 337 Shu emissaries congratulated King Huiwen of Qin on his accession. At about this time the Stone Cattle Road
Stone Cattle Road
The Stone Cattle Road was an ancient Chinese road over the Qinling Mountains used by the state of Qin to conquer the Sichuan in 316 BC.-The story:...
was built over the mountains to connect Qin and Shu. About 316 the Marquis of Zu, who held part of the Stone Cattle Road, became involved with Ba and quarreled with his brother, the twelfth Kaiming King. The Marquis was defeated and fled to Ba and then to Qin. Zhang Yi proposed that Qin should ignore these barbarians and continue its eastward expansion onto the central plain. Sima Cuo proposed that Qin should use its superior army to annex Shu, develop its resources and use the added strength for a later attack eastward. Sima Cuo's proposal was accepted and both advisors were sent south as generals. The two armies met near Jaimeng on the Jialing River
Jialing River
The Jialing River is a tributary of the Yangtze River with its source in Gansu province. It gets its name from its crossing the Jialing Vale in Feng County of Shaanxi. It was once known as Langshui or Yushui .-Overview:...
in Ba territory. The Kaiming king lost several battles and withdrew southward to Wuyang where he was captured and killed. Qin then turned on its allies and annexed Ba.
Sichuan under the Qin and Han
In 314 the late Kaiming king's son was appointed Marquis Yaotong of Shu to rule in conjunction with a Qin governor. In 311 an official named Chen Zhuang revolted and killed Yaotong. Sima Cuo and Zhang Yi again invaded Sichuan and killed Chen Zhuang. Another Kaiming called Hui was made Marquis. In 301 he was involved in an intrigue and chose suicide when confronted with Sima Cuo's army. His son, Wan, the last Kaiming marquis, reigned from 300 until 285 when he was put to death. (Some say that An Duong VuongAn Duong Vuong
An Dương Vương is the title of Thục Phán , who ruled over the ancient kingdom of Âu Lạc from 257 to 207 BCE, after defeating the state of Văn Lang and uniting the two tribes Âu Việt and Lạc Việt...
in Vietnamese history was a member of the Kaiming family who led his people southward away from the Chinese.)
The conquest had more than doubled Qin's territory and gave it an area safe from the other states except Chu, but the land had to be developed before its taxes could be converted into military strength. Shu was made a "jun" or commandery and became a testing ground for this type of administration. About 311 Chengdu was surrounded by an enormous wall. Land was redistributed and divided into rectangular plots. Tens of thousands of colonists were brought in from the north. Many were convicts or people displaced by the wars further north. They were marched south in columns supervised by Qin officials. The great Dujiangyan Irrigation System
Dujiangyan Irrigation System
Dujiangyan is an irrigation infrastructure built in 256 BC during the Warring States Period of China by the Kingdom of Qin. It is located in the Min River in Sichuan province, China, near the capital Chengdu. It is still in use today to irrigate over 5,300 square kilometers of land in the region...
was begun to divert the Min River east to the Chengdu Plain. Qin intervention in Ba was less extensive, apparently to avoid alienating a warlike people on the border of Chu.
During the conquest Chu was still tied up in the east with the annexation of Yue
Yue (state)
Yue was a state in China which existed during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period , in the modern province of Zhejiang. During the Spring and Autumn Period, its capital was in Guiji , near the modern city of Shaoxing...
. In 312 Qin and Chu troops clashed on the upper Han River. Zhang Yi used a mixture of threat and bluff to block any interference from Chu. Later a Chu general named Zhuang Qiao pushed west and occupied the tribal territory south of the Yangtze south of Shu. In 281 Sima Cuo crossed the Yangtze and cut him off from Chu. He responded by declaring himself an independent king and he and his troops gradually blended into the local population. Starting in 280 or before general Bai Qi
Bai Qi
Bái Qǐ was an outstanding military leader of the State of Qin during the Warring States Period of Chinese history. Born in Mei , as commander of the Qin army for more than 30 years, Bai Qi was responsible for the deaths of a total over 890,000 enemy soldiers, earning him the nickname Ren Tu...
pushed down the Han River and took the Chu capital (278). In 277 the Three Gorges area was taken. The effect was to create a new Qin frontier east of Sichuan.
Sichuan remained quiescent during the wars before and after the Qin Dynasty
Qin Dynasty
The Qin Dynasty was the first imperial dynasty of China, lasting from 221 to 207 BC. The Qin state derived its name from its heartland of Qin, in modern-day Shaanxi. The strength of the Qin state was greatly increased by the legalist reforms of Shang Yang in the 4th century BC, during the Warring...
indicating the Qin policy of assimilation had been successful. Archaeological remains in Shu from this period are very similar to those of northern China, while the Ba area remained somewhat distinct. When Liu Bang launched his campaign to found the Han Dynasty
Han Dynasty
The Han Dynasty was the second imperial dynasty of China, preceded by the Qin Dynasty and succeeded by the Three Kingdoms . It was founded by the rebel leader Liu Bang, known posthumously as Emperor Gaozu of Han. It was briefly interrupted by the Xin Dynasty of the former regent Wang Mang...
Sichuan was an important supply base. In 135BC, under the expansionist Emperor Wu of Han
Emperor Wu of Han
Emperor Wu of Han , , personal name Liu Che , was the seventh emperor of the Han Dynasty of China, ruling from 141 BC to 87 BC. Emperor Wu is best remembered for the vast territorial expansion that occurred under his reign, as well as the strong and centralized Confucian state he organized...
, general Tang Meng, attempting an indirect approach to the Kingdom of Nanyue
Nanyue
Nanyue was an ancient kingdom that consisted of parts of the modern Chinese provinces of Guangdong, Guangxi, and Yunnan and northern Vietnam. Nanyue was established in 204 BC at the final collapse of the Qin Dynasty by Zhao Tuo, who was the military commander of Nanhai Commandery at the time, and...
, made a push south of the Yangtze River and a little later Sima Xiangru
Sima Xiangru
Sima Xiangru, also known as Ssu-ma Hsiang-ju was a Chinese writer. He was a minor official of the Western Han Dynasty, but was better known for his poetic skills, jiu business, and controversial marriage to the widow Zhuo Wenjun after both eloped...
pushed into the hill country west of Sichuan. These campaigns into tribal territory proved more expensive than they were worth and in 126 they were both cancelled to shift resources to the Xiongnu
Xiongnu
The Xiongnu were ancient nomadic-based people that formed a state or confederation north of the agriculture-based empire of the Han Dynasty. Most of the information on the Xiongnu comes from Chinese sources...
wars in the north. In the same year Zhang Qian
Zhang Qian
Zhang Qian was an imperial envoy to the world outside of China in the 2nd century BCE, during the time of the Han Dynasty...
returned from the west and reported that it might be possible to reach India from Sichuan. An attempt to do this was blocked by the hill tribes. In 112 Tang Meng resumed his expansionist wars southward. His harsh methods provoked a near mutiny in Sichuan and Sima Xiangru was brought in to enforce a more moderate policy. By this time Chinese expansion across flat agricultural country had reached a natural geographical limit. Expansion into the hill country to the south was west was much slower.
Shu in astronomy
Shu is represented by star Alpha SerpentisAlpha Serpentis
Alpha Serpentis is a triple star system in the constellation Serpens, in its head . Alpha Serpentis has the proper names Unukalhai, from the Arabic عنق الحية ‘Unuq al-Ħayyah "the Serpent's Neck", and Cor Serpentis from the Latin "the Heart of the Serpent"...
in asterism Right Wall, Heavenly Market enclosure
Heavenly Market enclosure
Tian Shi Yuan, the Heavenly Market Enclosure , is one of the San Yuan or Three enclosures. Stars and constellations of this group are visible during late summer and early autumn in the Northern Hemisphere . The summer triangle lies directly to the northwest.-Asterisms:The asterisms are :...
(see Chinese constellation
Chinese constellation
Chinese constellations are the way the ancient Chinese grouped the stars. They are very different from the modern IAU recognized constellations. This is because the IAU was based on Greco-Roman astronomy instead of Chinese astronomy....
).(together with Lambda Serpentis
Lambda Serpentis
Lambda Serpentis is a star in the constellation Serpens, in its head .- Hunt for substellar objects :...
in R.H.Allen's works).
See also
- An Dương VươngAn Duong VuongAn Dương Vương is the title of Thục Phán , who ruled over the ancient kingdom of Âu Lạc from 257 to 207 BCE, after defeating the state of Văn Lang and uniting the two tribes Âu Việt and Lạc Việt...
, founder of Âu Lạc - Jinsha
- SanxingduiSanxingduiSanxingdui is the name of an archaeological site and its deduced culture in China, now believed to be the site of an ancient Chinese city. The previously unknown Bronze Age culture was re-discovered in 1987 when archaeologists excavated remarkable artifacts, that radiocarbon dating dated as being...