Western Zhou - Civil War

Civil War

Few records survive from this early period and accounts from the Western Zhou period cover little beyond a list of kings with uncertain dates.

King Wu died two or three years after the conquest. Because his son, King Cheng of Zhou was young, his brother, the Duke of Zhou assisted the young and inexperienced king as regent. Wǔ's other brothers (Shu Du of Cai, Guan Shu, and Huo Shu), concerned about the Duke of Zhou's growing power, formed an alliance with other regional rulers and Shāng remnants in a rebellion. The Duke of Zhou stamped out this rebellion and conquered more territory to bring other people under Zhōu rule. The Duke of Zhou also formulated the Mandate of Heaven doctrine to counter Shang claims to a divine right of rule and founded Luoyang as an eastern capital. With a feudal fengjian system, royal relatives and generals were given fiefs in the east, including Luoyang, Jin, Ying, Lu, Qi and Yan. While this was designed to maintain Zhou authority as it expanded its rule over a larger amount of territory, many of these became major states when the dynasty weakened. When the Duke of Zhou stepped down as regent, the remainder of Cheng's reign (1042–1021 BCE) and that of his son King Kang of Zhou (1021–996 BCE) seem to have been peaceful and prosperous.