Western Zhou

The first phase of the Zhou dynasty in ancient China, traditionally dated from 1046 to 771 BCE and centered on the Wei River valley. Its kings ruled through a network of regional lords before the court moved east.

Fengjian: A system of hereditary territorial grants through which Zhou kings established regional lords and local lineages. This system organized the Western Zhou realm beyond the royal center.
Shang dynasty: A Bronze Age Chinese dynasty that preceded the Zhou and ruled from the Yellow River region. The Shang was the power the Zhou overthrew and the model against which Zhou legitimacy was argued.
Zhou dynasty: A Chinese dynasty that ruled after the Shang and is conventionally divided into Western and Eastern Zhou periods. Western Zhou is the dynasty’s earlier phase.
Eastern Zhou: The later phase of the Zhou dynasty, beginning after the royal court moved east in 771 BCE. Its weaker royal authority contrasts with the Western Zhou’s earlier political order.
Mandate of Heaven: A political doctrine holding that Heaven grants rulers authority conditionally and may withdraw it for misrule. Zhou rulers used this doctrine to justify replacing the Shang and frame legitimate kingship.
Battle of Muye: The battle in which Zhou forces defeated the Shang, traditionally dated to 1046 BCE. This victory marks the conventional beginning of Zhou rule.
Haojing: The Zhou royal capital near modern Xi’an in the Wei River valley. The Western Zhou court was centered at this western capital.
Quinrong: A group identified in ancient sources with attacks on Zhou territories and the royal center in the late Western Zhou. Their attack on the western court preceded its fall in 771 BCE.
Zhou ritual system: The ceremonies, rank rules, and prescribed conduct that organized elite relationships in Zhou society. Ritual practices expressed and reinforced hierarchy among the king, lords, and lineages.
King Wu of Zhou: The Zhou ruler credited with defeating the Shang and establishing the dynasty. His conquest founded the Western Zhou kingship.

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