(Photo: Chun Tao)
King of Chu (05) Chu Xiongai: Monarch of the State of Chu during the Western Zhou Dynasty, reigned from 1006 BC to 981 BC
Yu Dazhong
Chu Xiong Ai, son of Chu Xiong. Monarch of the State of Chu during the Western Zhou Dynasty, reigned for 25 years from 1006 BC to 981 BC.
According to the Chronicle of the Bamboo Book chronicle written by the historians of the Jin Dynasty during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Wei State Historians of the Warring States Period, the fourth monarch of the Zhou Dynasty, Ji Zhao, the son of King Ji Zhao of Zhou Kang, had three successively cut down "Chu". King Kang of Zhou reigned from 997 BC to 977 BC, corresponding to the monarch of the State of Chu, Chu Xiong Ai and his son Chu Xiongyi.
The Bamboo Book Chronicle records that in 985 BC, King Zhao of Zhou "cut down Chu, wade into Han, and encountered a great concubine" for the first time. When King Zhao of Zhou led his army across the Han River, he also encountered the "Great Bull" (rhinoceros).
In 982 BC, King Zhao of Zhou sent the priest and Xin Bo to attack "Chu" for the second time, "The heavens are great, the pheasants and rabbits are all shocked, and the sixth division is lost in Han." "When crossing the Han River, the wind suddenly rose, the climate was harsh, the soldiers were terrified, and the army suffered serious losses.
The third time, in 977 BC, "Honglu summoned (Zhao) King, Guangxuan Jingchu, and only hunted south." This year is also "the last year of King Zhao, the night is clear, the five colors of light penetrate the purple micro, and the king does not return to the south." But as a result, the whole army was destroyed, and King Zhou Zhao himself was killed and "did not return to the south."
There are two main views on the "Chu" of The Zhou Zhao King:
The first view is that king Zhao of Zhou cut down "Chu", and it was the State of Chu that King Cheng of Zhou divided, but all of them were defeated by Chu Xiong Ai. This shows that this is the turning point of the Zhou Dynasty from prosperity to decline, and it is also a sign that the Chu State is strong enough to compete with the Zhou Dynasty. At the same time, it shows that during the Chu Xiong'ai period, the Chu state began to become stronger.
The second view is that the King of Zhou Zhao's "Chu" was not the Chu State that King Zhou Cheng had divided, but the "Chu Man" that stood side by side with the Chu State. If King Zhou Zhao really died because of his southern conquest of the State of Chu, then Zhou and Chu would be insoluble mortal enemies, and it would be impossible for King Zhou Zhao's son, Ji Man, the King of Zhou Mu, not to take revenge, and it would be even more impossible for the State of Chu to participate in the "Battle of Huaxu" as a feudal state of the Zhou Dynasty in the fourteenth year of King Zhou Mu. At that time, the State of Chu and Chu Man intersected, and during the period of King Zhou Zhao, Chu Man had a vast territory and occupied the main copper mine production area - Patina Mountain, so it became the object of Zhou Zhao's southward conquest. It was not until the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, when the State of Chu rose and annexed Chu Man, that the State of Chu and Chu Man were mixed together.
I prefer the second view.
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