In 295 BC, a shocking tragedy occurred in the state of Zhao. King Zhao Wuling, the most famous king at that time, was besieged in the palace by his own son for three months. As the food in the palace was eaten up, King Zhao Wuling was finally starved to death. As one of the most famous monarchs of the Warring States Period, how could King Zhao Wuling end up so miserable? Why was he put to death by his own son's own hands? What's even more puzzling is that after the death of King Wuling of Zhao, the once powerful Zhao State collapsed and gradually lost its sense of existence among the Seven Heroes of the Warring States. What is the inevitable connection between the decline of the Zhao state and the death of King Wuling of Zhao? How will these puzzling mysteries be solved?
Antecedents to the death of King Wuling of Zhao
The expansion of the Zhao State began in the late Spring and Autumn Period. With the development of iron-smelting technology, the level of productivity has increased significantly, and the original social system of slavery has not adapted to the new situation of productivity. In the face of the tide of social change, the far-sighted Zhao Liehou promptly appointed Xiangguo Gongzhonglian to carry out reforms on Zhao.
The reform of the Gongzhong Company focused on personnel appointments and financial expenditures, and tried to improve the operational mechanism of Zhao Guo. Unfortunately, he failed to get to the point and fundamentally overturn the old hierarchy. At the same time, Li Kui of Wei achieved great success in reforming the law, which made Wei quickly strong and became the first overlord in the early Warring States period.
Although Zhao also carried out reforms, due to the deviation of ideas and paths, it failed to reverse the trend of gradual decline of national power. In the generation of King Zhao Wuling's grandfather, Zhao not only fell into difficulties in internal governance, but also suffered defeats in foreign wars one after another. In the most appalling time, the state of Zhao was captured by the state of Wei, and the state of Qi could only barely keep the territory by asking for help.
This shame woke up Zhao Guo, and institutional reform was urgent. However, Zhao was already at a deep impasse. Without reform, it will continue to decline, and if it is needed, it will be difficult to cope with external threats and stubborn internal resistance. This dead knot made Zhao Guo helpless.
It wasn't until King Zhao Wuling's father took power that there was an opportunity to make a breakthrough. After the Battle of Maling, Wei lost its overlord throne, and Zhao gained a respite. However, due to the deep-rooted roots of its own system, no matter how hard it tries, it will not be able to completely reverse the decline. On his deathbed, King Wuling of Zhao finally realized that reform was the only way out for Zhao.
The succession of King Wuling of Zhao and his path to "classical militarism".
When King Wuling of Zhao succeeded to the throne at a young age, the state of Zhao was in danger of internal and external troubles. There are strong neighbors on the outside, and there are old ministers on the inside who obstruct the change. In the face of many difficulties, Zhao Wuling Wang resolutely chose a development route of "classical militarism".
He first concentrated the strength of the whole country, pressed the border with a large army, and expanded outward. Relying on the mobility advantage of elite cavalry, he attacked year after year and established a base of Zhao in the Hebei region. Subsequently, King Wuling of Zhao vigorously promoted the construction of farmland and water conservancy, encouraged the population to move to the frontier, and consolidated the foundation of Zhao's rule in the north.
In terms of foreign relations, King Wuling of Zhao abandoned the traditional single-handedness style of the Zhao State. He communicated with Korea, Wei, Chu and other states, formed alliances, placed Zhao at the center of the princes, and curbed the expansionist ambitions of Qin and other powers.
With strong military means and ingenious diplomatic strategies, during the reign of King Wuling of Zhao, the state of Zhao was once as strong as the former state of Wei. However, this development model of "classical militarism" also set up many obstacles for King Zhao Wuling's later reform.
The construction of farmland and water conservancy and the reclamation of frontiers increased the financial burden of Zhao; Frequent foreign wars cost Zhao a lot of manpower and material resources; Sooner or later, the strife with the other countries will lead to greater wars. The most important thing is that King Wuling of Zhao relied too much on force and neglected the reform of the institutional level, which laid the foundation for the long-term peace and stability of the Zhao state.
A new attempt at change during the reign of King Wuling of Zhao
Despite being once strong, King Wuling of Zhao was well aware that in order to be truly strong, the state of Zhao had to undergo a thorough reform at the institutional level. As a result, he began to draw on the concepts and practices of the most advanced Qin State Shang Yang Reform Law at that time, and vigorously promoted a new round of reform in the Zhao State.
The first is the military sphere. King Wuling of Zhao learned from the Qin State, comprehensively implemented the nationalization of the army, abolished the hereditary warlords, and implemented a direct link between military merit and official rank. At the same time, he strengthened the centralization of power and organized the armies of each county into a national standing army, which effectively improved the military strength of Zhao.
Then there is the agricultural sector. King Wuling of Zhao followed the example of the Qin State of "ornamental farming" system and implemented the self-cultivation and self-defense of the Zhao farmers, which greatly stimulated the peasants' enthusiasm for production. At the same time, he vigorously built water conservancy, which greatly developed agricultural production in the arid areas of northern Zhao.
In addition, King Wuling of Zhao also carried out drastic reforms in the field of education. He promoted the casting of a unified system of weights and measures throughout the country, and set up the Guozijian to recruit talents from all over the world as teachers and train professionals for Zhao Guo.
It can be said that during his reign, King Wuling of Zhao touched almost every aspect of the reform of the Zhao State, and his courage and determination are worthy of admiration. However, the road to change has not been smooth. There was a threat from strong enemies such as Qin, stubborn resistance from conservatives inside, and Zhao's backward foundation, so the reform efforts were really limited.
Gradually, King Zhao Wuling became a little discouraged by the radical change. He turned to the old path of "classical militarism", built a large number of buildings, and erected ruins to show the strength of the Zhao State. It is a pity that this short-sighted approach did not solve the fundamental contradiction of Zhao, but increased the consumption of national strength.
The rebellion of King Huiwen of Zhao and the death of King Wuling of Zhao
In his later years, the contradiction between King Wuling of Zhao and his eldest son, King Zhao Huiwen, deepened. As the crown prince, King Zhao Huiwen was supposed to inherit the throne, but he was quite critical of King Zhao Wuling's reform measures and advocated conservatism, which was in obvious opposition to the progressive and reforming King Zhao Wuling.
The two argued, and the atmosphere became more and more tense. Finally in 295 BC, King Huiwen of Zhao led his cronies to besiege the palace where King Wuling of Zhao was located, and asked King Wuling of Zhao to make Xian. King Wuling of Zhao might have refused, but considering that the civil war would be a fatal blow to Zhao's already crippled national strength, he finally chose to compromise and prepared to abdicate.
However, King Zhao Huiwen did not get his wish. For some unknown reason, he violated the courtesies of the monarch and insisted on not withdrawing the troops besieging the palace. In this way, the king of a country was placed under house arrest by his own son for three whole months.
Three months later, the palace was finally exhausted. King Wuling of Zhao dragged down his healthy body, could no longer support it, and died in 295 BC at the age of 82. The most famous monarch in the history of Zhao was thus starved to death in his palace surrounded by his son.
King Zhao Huiwen couldn't wait to ascend the throne, but his actions left an irreparable scar on Zhao. The coup d'état by force, coupled with the shameless methods of the king's imprisonment, has completely shaken the foundations of the Zhao state. What's even more terrifying is that he completely deviated from the concept of King Zhao Wuling, and once again threw Zhao back into the quagmire of conservatism and obsolescence.
The final decline of the Zhao State and the end of the Warring States pattern
After King Zhao Huiwen ascended the throne, he did not follow the will of King Wuling of Zhao, but completely dragged the state of Zhao into a conservative quagmire. He saw the previous reforms as a flood and tried to push everything back to the old ways. Under his rule, the state of Zhao was once again plunged into turmoil and decay.
The Zhao State, which was plagued by internal and external troubles, gradually lost its influence during the Warring States Period. To the northwest, the threat from Qin was growing; In the southeast, the princes of Yan and Korea are also looking for opportunities to fight back. Even the states of Wei and Chu, which had been allied with Zhao, began to distance themselves from Zhao and instead sought cooperation with other countries.
In the later years of King Zhao Huiwen, Zhao Guo had become a lonely man with empty territory. The entire Warring States pattern is changing drastically. The Qin state completed its internal unification and began to expand outward. The cunning Shang Ying even carried out radical changes in the Qin State, which made the Qin State's national strength grow rapidly.
In contrast, the state of Zhao under the leadership of King Zhao Huiwen appeared weak. After years of internal friction, Zhao Guo's strength was left with little left. Finally, in 228 BC, the state of Zhao was completely annexed by the state of Qin, and since then it has completely disappeared from the princes of the Warring States.
In this way, the State of Zhao, once one of the Seven Heroes of the Warring States, went to the road of destruction. Although the reforms during the reign of King Wuling of Zhao still left some light for the Zhao state, in general, the decline of the Zhao state was doomed to be irreversible. In the final analysis, the last drop of blood of King Zhao Huiwen who starved King Zhao Wuling to death doomed the decline of the Zhao State.
The demise of the Zhao State also heralded the end of the Warring States Period. With the eventual unification of the Central Plains by the Qin state, a new imperial era began. But the legend of King Zhao Wuling's life, as well as his determination and courage to implement change, will forever be remembered on the monument of history.