The Duke of Qi was killed by King Yi of Zhou, and this incident was a major event in Western Zhou. And this incident also caused great harm to the state of Qi. Forced the State of Qi to experience three generations of internal strife.
【Unjustly Killed Duke qi lai】
It all started with the death of Qi Aigong. The interpretation of the "Records of History" is that Ji Hou made a rumor to the King of Zhou, so he unjustly killed the Duke of Qi.
However, this explanation was actually said by Qi Guo himself, and was accepted by Sima Qian. The other two participants, King Zhou and Ji Guo, both perished early or lost their right to speak. So their positions and reasons are not recorded
In fact, there was a reason for qi aigong's death, and the impact of his cause of death on future generations was also very large.
【Why was the Duke of Qi affiliated】
In the middle and late Western Zhou Dynasty, there was a general trend among local princes. That is enclosure expansion.
When the princes established the state in the early years of the Western Zhou Dynasty, their territory was extremely limited. Moreover, due to the dual restrictions of the ceremonial system and the King of Zhou, from the middle and late period onwards, they were able to occupy the land and buy and sell freely.
This was allowed from the decree of the King of Zhou. So the princely states began to expand rapidly. In the middle of this there are the State of Qi and the State of Ji.
The historical evaluation of the Duke of Qi ai is "The Duke of Qi is desolate and promiscuous, and the history of the country is also a poem to stab it." ”
Obscene characters mean preference, saying that Qi Aigong likes to go to the wilderness to play and ignore the government.
This is likely to mean that the Duke of Qi ai vigorously expanded the barren land, expanded the territory of the State of Qi, and did not return to the capital for a long time.
As a result, there was a territorial dispute between the State of Qi and the neighboring State of Ji, and the Duke of Qi had some disrespectful remarks toward the King of Zhou, such as calling himself the Fifth Dynasty Qi Hou, the King of Zhou the Seventh Generation of the King of Zhou, and himself the elder of the King of Zhou.
Therefore, there was a scene of Ji Houjin's rumors and the death of qi aigong.
【Supporting Qi Wait】
In fact, the fundamental reason for the murder of Qi Aigong was his "absurd field tour". There are many barbarians near the State of Qi, and there is a lot of room for expansion. This expansion of the territory made the Zhou royal family also feel the strength and threat of the State of Qi.
The situation was similar for the other princes of the same period. Therefore, King Yi of Zhou established the State of Qi as a negative model, and deterred the princes by killing the Duke of Qi and curbing the territorial expansion of the princes.
After killing Qi Aigong, the matter was not over. In order to control this eastern power, King Yi of Zhou fostered Lü Jing, the younger brother of the Duke of Qi, to become the monarch of the State of Qi. That is, Qi Hugong. This also directly caused the rebellion of the Third Dynasty of the State of Qi.
【Brothers cannibalism】
After the Duke of Qi Hu came to power, on the one hand, he wanted to be obedient to the Zhou royal family. On the other hand, it is necessary to guard against the threat of Ji Guo.
Therefore, the foreign policy of The Duke of Qihu should be very conservative, and for this reason he also moved the capital of the State of Qi from Yingqiu (Linzi) to Bogu (fifty miles northwest of Linzi). This brought the expansion of the State of Qi to a standstill, or even backwards.
The reign of the Duke of Qihu caused dissatisfaction among vested interests, and a conspiracy began to brew.
Lü Shan, the half-brother of the Duke of Qi'ai, was a representative who inherited the ideas and policies of the Duke of Qi'ai and pursued the political ideology of territorial expansion.
Therefore, Lü Shan rebelled with the private party and killed his brother Qi Hugong. Established himself as the monarch of the country and became the Duke of Qi.
【Revenge of Hu Gong】
The first thing Qi Xiangong did after he ascended the throne was to move the capital back to Yingqiu and change his name to Linzi.
Qi Xiangong's ascension to power shows that Qi Aigong's policy has returned. However, the Zhou royal family did not have the strength and opportunity to cook and kill Qi Waiting again.
Duke Xian of Qi reigned for nine years, and after his death his son Duke Wu succeeded to the throne. In the ninth year of the Duke of Wu, there was a rebellion among the people in the Zhou royal family, and King Li of Zhou fled. The Zhou royal family had no way to deal with the State of Qi.
During the reign of Duke Wu, Hu Gong's sons were expelled, and there was no way to avenge their father, but only to accumulate strength.
Later, after the death of Duke Wu, Duke Li succeeded to the throne. By this time, it was the third generation of the Qi Dynasty.
【Revenge Result】
Duke Li of Qi was said to be tyrannical, causing dissatisfaction among the ministers and the people, so Duke Hu's sons returned to the State of Qi.
The battle for revenge was fierce, and although Hu Gong's sons killed their titular nephew, Qi Ligong. However, Hu Gong's sons were also killed in battle, and the final result was that they were both defeated and injured.
The son of Duke Li was eventually succeeded to the throne, which was Duke Wen of Qi. Qi Xiangong's side finally won the victory.
Qi Wengong killed more than seventy people involved in the revenge war and ended the civil unrest.
The shock, triggered by the death of Duke Qi Ai, lasted three generations and two monarchs died. This ended in the hands of the fourth generation of Qi Wengong.
【Qi Guo Hegemony】
After some internal struggle, the direction of the development of the State of Qi returned to the territorial expansion determined during the time of the Duke of Qi.
At this time, the Zhou royal family was already crumbling, the Western Zhou was coming to an end, and the Spring and Autumn period was about to begin.
The State of Qi, on the other hand, became a territorial, military power because of its early expansion.
After further using the killing of Duke Ai of Qi as an excuse to annex the State of Ji, the State of Qi had become a behemoth in the East.
This also laid a solid foundation for the Duke of Qi Huan to later be able to dominate the Central Plains and establish a hegemonic system in the Spring and Autumn Period.