The reasons for King Wu’s victory in conquering Zhou

King Wu’s attack on Zhou refers to the fact that around 1046 BC, King Wu of Zhou, Ji Fa, led the Zhou and other princes’ coalition forces to attack Emperor Xin (Zhou) of Shang. , a historical event that ultimately established the Zhou Dynasty and destroyed the Shang Dynasty.

According to the unearthed inscription of Li Gui of the Western Zhou Dynasty, "King Wu conquered the merchants, but the Jiazi Dynasty, Sui Ding, Kehun Su had merchants." King Wu defeated Zhou and destroyed the merchants overnight. On the morning of Jiazi Day, when the stars were in the sky, we occupied Chaoge. The inscription of Li Gui in the Western Zhou Dynasty clarified the specific date of King Wu's defeat of Zhou, and confirmed the correct record in ancient books that "the country of Zhou was defeated in one day of fighting."

Result:

After King Wu defeated Zhou, Ji Fa granted the Yin Shang remnants to Wu Geng, the son of Emperor Xin. Because the world was initially settled and not yet at peace, King Wu of Zhou sent his younger brothers Guan Shuxian and Cai Shudu to assist Wu Geng in governing Yin. Then he ordered Duke Zhao to release Jizi from prison. He ordered Bi Gong to release the people from prison and set up a sign on Shang Rong's gate to commend him. Nangong Kuo was ordered to distribute the money gathered in Lutai and the food in Juqiao to help the poor savages and untouchables. Nangong Kuo and Shi Ji were ordered to remove the Jiuding and Baoyu belonging to the Yin people. Hongyao was ordered to build a tomb for Bigan's tomb. Mingzong wished that the sacrifices would be enjoyed in the army. Then withdrew troops back to the west. Ji Fa went on a hunting tour, recorded his political affairs, and wrote the chapter "Wucheng". He granted the title to the princes and distributed the sacrificial vessels of Yin's ancestral temples, and wrote the chapter "Dividing the Utensils of Yin".

Ji Fa recalled the ancient holy kings, so he bestowed upon the descendants of Shennong Yu Jiao, the descendants of Huangdi Yu Zhu, the descendants of Emperor Yao Yu Ji, the descendants of Emperor Shun Yu Chen, and the descendants of Dayu Yu Qi. . Then the meritorious officials and counselors were granted the title. Jiang Shang was the first to be granted the title. He was granted the title of Yingqiu as Qi; Zhou Gongdan was granted the title of Lu in Qufu; Zhao Gongshi was granted the title of Yan; Uncle Xian was granted the title of Guan; Uncle Du was granted the title of Cai; others were also awarded the title in turn. King Wu of Zhou summoned the chiefs of the nine states, climbed to the high ground of Bin, and looked at the capital of Shang in the distance.

King Zhou Wu stayed up all night after returning to Zhou Dynasty. Zhou Gongdan came to his residence and asked: "Why don't you sleep?" The king said: "I tell you, just because God does not accept Yin's sacrifice, from me It has been sixty years since I was born, and the outer suburbs are full of elk and flying insects. Because God did not accept Yin's sacrifice, I have achieved today's success. One hundred and sixty people, but they are not reused, so there is today’s result. I haven’t really received God’s blessing, so how can I have time to sleep?”

Then he said: “If I want to truly receive God’s blessing! , we must rely on Taishi Mountain to find out all the evildoers, depose them, and suffer the same crime as the King of Yin. We must comfort the people day and night, stabilize our west, and promote our duty until our moral education spreads all over Luoshui. From the bend to the bend of Yishui, there is a flat place where people settled. This is the activity center of Xia people. You can see Santu Mountain to the south and Taihang Mountain to the north. It is backed by the Yellow River, Luoshui and Yishui, and is far away from Taishi Mountain. It's close." So he built Zhoucheng in Luoyi (now Luoyang, Henan) and left. Put the horses in the south of Huashan Mountain, put the cattle in the fields with peach trees, put away the weapons, reorganize the army, disarm, and show to the world that they will no longer use troops.

Influence:

King Wu’s defeat of Zhou was an epoch-making event in Chinese history and a great revolution in the history of Chinese civilization. It was the turning point of the decline of Shang and the rise of Zhou. After the Battle of Muye, victory in one battle ended the rule of the Shang Dynasty, which played a positive role in promoting the progress of Chinese history. It marked the progress and development of history. After the successful defeat of Zhou, the Western Zhou Dynasty began to implement the feudal system, and China was established The Zhou Dynasty lasted for 800 years. The economic, cultural, and productivity levels of the Zhou Dynasty were higher than those of the Shang Dynasty, and it cultivated the civilization of the Chinese nation. More than five hundred years after King Wu conquered Zhou, Confucius, a descendant of the Shang clan, faced the glorious Zhou Dynasty and expressed his approval of the Zhou Dynasty that destroyed his ancestral country: "Yu Yu is very literary, I follow Zhou!"

Evaluation:

There are many opinions on the reasons for King Wu's victory in conquering Zhou. Some say it is because King Wu of Zhou had a sophisticated crusade strategy when he conquered the Shang Dynasty, and some say it is due to the Zhou tribes. It is said that the reason why King Wu succeeded in defeating Zhou was because of the favorable conditions of the right time, place and people.

But the main reason was that the conflicts within the Shang Dynasty's ruling group became intensified and the people's morale was lost. The soldiers of the Shang Dynasty had no intention of fighting and turned against each other. King Wu of Zhou, Jiang Shang and others seized this favorable opportunity and took advantage of the opportunity to attack Zhou on a large scale. After the Battle of Muye, they won in one battle and ended the rule of the Shang Dynasty.