Qi (state)

Qi, or Ch'i in Wade–Giles romanization, was a regional state of the Zhou dynasty in ancient China, whose rulers held titles of Hou (侯), then Gong, before declaring themselves independent Kings. Its capital was Linzi, located in present-day Shandong. Qi was founded shortly after the Zhou conquest of Shang, 1046 . Its first monarch was Jiang Ziya (Lord Tai; 1046–1015 ), minister of King Wen and a legendary figure in Chinese culture. His family ruled Qi for several centuries before it was replaced by the Tian family in 386 . Qi was the final surviving state to be annexed by Qin during its unification of China. Western Zhou During the Zhou conquest of Shang, Jiang Ziya, a native of Ju County served as the chief minister to King Wu, the same position he had held in service to King Wu's father. Following the Zhou victory, the lands comprising much of the Shandong peninsula and some nearby surrounds were established as the state of Qi, with Jiang charged with ruling and defending them. After King Wu's death, Ziya remained loyal to the Duke of Zhou's regency during the Three Guards' failed rebellion. The Shang prince Wu Geng had joined the revolt along with the Dongyi polities of Yan, Xu, and Pugu, located within the boundaries of Qi. These were suppressed by 1039 , but the Bamboo Annals suggest that the native people of Pugu continued to revolt for about another decade before being destroyed a second time 1026. Transmitted documents from the Western Zhou period are scant, but it is known that King Yi of Zhou (865–858 ) attacked Qi and boiled Duke Ai to death. During the time of King Xuan of Zhou ( 827–782), there was a local succession struggle. Throughout this period, many of the native Dongyi peoples were absorbed into the Zhou cultural sphere. Spring and Autumn period The succession crisis following the violent death of King You of Zhou led to a dramatic and unrecoverable loss of political and military authority in the Zhou royal court. Under this new geopolitical situation, Qi rose to prominence under Duke Huan of Qi ( 685–643 ).