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147-578: The Duke Yansheng , literally "Honorable Overflowing with Wisdom", sometimes translated as Holy Duke of Yen , was a Chinese title of nobility . It was originally created as a marquis title in the Western Han dynasty for a direct descendant of Confucius . From the Western Han dynasty to the mid- Northern Song dynasty , the title underwent several changes in its name, before it was finally settled as " Duke Yansheng" in 1005 by Emperor Renzong of

294-510: A Chenggu -style dagger-axe at Xiaohenan demonstrates that even at this early stage of Chinese history, there were some ties between the distant areas of north China. The Panlongcheng site in the middle Yangtze valley was an important regional centre of the Erligang culture. Accidental finds elsewhere in China have revealed advanced civilisations contemporaneous with but culturally unlike

441-654: A princess or gōngzhǔ (公主), and incorporated her associated place into her title if she had one. Besides the systematized ranks listed above, there were also other familial appellations used as titles, e.g. Bo (伯; such as Bo Qin of Lu, later, its usage changed to titles for hegemony and countship ), Zhong (仲; such as Guo Zhong  [ zh ] , younger brother of King Wen of Zhou), Shu (叔; such as several younger brothers of King Wu of Zhou, Guanshu Xian , Wei Kangshu , etc.), and Ji (季; such as Ranji Zai  [ zh ] ), birth order terms meaning "eldest," "second eldest," "third eldest," and "youngest" ( Shu

588-492: A Kong faction which opposed him to petition to emperor-khan with a genealogy asserting that Confucius's dizhang (mainline) descendant was Kong Sihui instead of Kong Sicheng. The Yuan emperor khan then removed the title from Kong Sicheng and gave it to Kong Sihui in 1316 after reviewing the genealogy he was presented and agreeing with it. Kong Sicheng and Kong Sihui were both from the branch of the Kong family descended from Kong Fu, who

735-481: A White Cloud 白雲宗 group. In 1134 東家雜記 Dongjia zaji was written by 孔傳 Kong Chuan. In the temple in Qufu an image on a stele was set up by the scion in the 48th generation Kong Duanyou. The temple contained the small portrait of Yan Hui and Confucius as recorded by Kong Zonghan. A cadet branch scion in the 49th generation 孔瑀 Kong Yu in 118 patronized the construction of the portrait on a second stele. 孔宗壽 Kong Zong scio,

882-725: A black bird and subsequently gave birth miraculously to Xie . Xie is said to have helped Yu the Great to control the Great Flood and for his service to have been granted a place called Shang as a fief. The period before the Shang dynasty was established is known as the " Predynastic Shang " (or "Proto-Shang"). In the Annals of the Yin , Sima Qian writes that the dynasty was founded 13 generations after Xie, when Xie's descendant Tang overthrew

1029-851: A cadet branch of the Han dynasty. When Cao Wei defeated the Shu Han Emperor Liu Shan , he and his family were granted noble titles under the new regime. When the Eastern Wu was defeated by the Western Jin dynasty , the Jin Emperor granted the Eastern Wu Emperor Sun Hao the title of "Marquis of Guiming". Sun Hao's sons were made junior officials in the Jin government. A number of outgoing emperors during

1176-502: A date first established by Sima Qian . Attempts to establish earlier dates have been plagued by doubts about the origin and transmission of traditional texts and the difficulties in their interpretation. More recent attempts have compared the traditional histories with archaeological and astronomical data. At least 44 dates for the end of the dynasty have been proposed, ranging from 1130 to 1018 BC. The oldest extant direct records date from c.  1250 BC at Anyang, covering

1323-431: A few hundred humans and horses as well to accompany the king into the afterlife, in some cases even numbering four hundred. Finally, tombs included ornaments such as jade, which the Shang may have believed to protect against decay or confer immortality. The Shang religion was highly bureaucratic and meticulously ordered. Oracle bones contained descriptions of the date, ritual, person, ancestor, and questions associated with

1470-472: A fief of ten households and rank of 崇聖大夫 Grandee who venerates the sage was bestowed on 孔乘 Kong Sheng who was Confucius's scion in the 28th generation in 472 by Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei. In the Sui dynasty , Emperor Wen (r. 581–604) awarded the title "Duke of Zou" ( 鄒國公 ) to Confucius's descendants, but Emperor Yang (r. 604–618) downgraded and renamed the title to "Marquis Shaosheng" ( 紹聖侯 ). During

1617-479: A force of about a thousand troops at his capital and would personally lead this force into battle. A rudimentary military bureaucracy was also needed in order to muster forces ranging from three to five thousand troops for border campaigns to thirteen thousand troops for suppressing rebellions. The earliest records are the oracle bones inscribed during the reigns of the Shang kings from Wu Ding . Oracle bone inscriptions do not contain king lists, but they do record

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1764-462: A height of 8 m (26 ft), and formed a roughly rectangular wall 7 km (4 mi) around the ancient city. The rammed earth construction of these walls was an inherited tradition, since much older fortifications of this type have been found at Chinese Neolithic sites of the Longshan culture ( c.  3000  – c.  2000 BC }. In 2022, excavation of an elite tomb inside

1911-473: A large labour force that could handle the mining, refining, and transportation of the necessary copper, tin, and lead ores. This in turn created a need for official managers that could oversee both labourers and skilled artisans and craftsmen. The Shang royal court and aristocrats required a vast number of different bronze vessels for various ceremonial purposes and events of religious divination. Ceremonial rules even decreed how many bronze containers of each type

2058-526: A noble of a certain rank could own. With the increased amount of bronze available, the army could also better equip itself with an assortment of bronze weaponry. Bronze was also used for the fittings of spoke-wheeled chariots , which appeared in China around 1200 BC. The Shang dynasty entered into prolonged conflicts with northern frontier tribes called the Guifang . Bronze weapons were an integral part of Shang society. Shang infantry were armed with

2205-595: A particular achievement, with or without executive portfolio following the granting of the title, and might truly be titles outside the executive government structure, even when words used in their phrasing would otherwise imply executive office, e.g., Protector General (都護; Duhu) – for example, Ban Chao . On the other hand, victorious generals were often granted official praise-names or names implying particular old and new duties or some combination of these, which would be quasi-executive or fully executive titles honored as much like peerage as like actual military rank, as in

2352-611: A permanent division between north and southern lineages that lasted into the Qing and never was fixed over. The Yansheng Dukes gained more power in the Jin than their situation in the previous Song. In the 1140s the Jin reverted Qufu back to its original name from Xianyuan while the Duke Yansheng once again held the position of magistrate of Qufu. The position of Qufu magistrate was granted to Duke Yansheng Kong Yuancuo in 1197 after he became duke in 1191. The dual holding of both positions

2499-470: A quintessential part of the late Shang ritual complex. Chinese historians were accustomed to the notion of one dynasty succeeding another, and readily identified the Erligang and Erlitou sites with the early Shang and Xia dynasty of traditional histories. The actual political situation in early China may have been more complicated, with the Xia and Shang being political entities that existed concurrently, just as

2646-499: A result with power divided out. Renovations to carry out repairs to the temple and construction of a stele with an inscription by Kong Yuancuo over the renovation of Qufu's Contemplation Hall in 1245 recorded the appointment of Kong Xi as proxy duke. Kong Xi holding the title as proxy was also referred to in a 1239 inscription. While Kong Yuancuo was in the Mongol court serving in posts he wanted in Qufu to project an image of power by using

2793-489: A scion in the 46th generation in 1096 in the temple in Qufu installed a tablet depicting a portrait of 10 disciples with Confucius which Kong Zonghan mentioned. The portrait was included in the genealogy Kongshi zuting guangji of Kong Yuancuo. Another image was not redrawn by Kong Yuancuo by was mentioned by Kong Zongyuan, which showed all 72 disciples with Confucius. In the Quzhou temple Kong Chuan and Kong Duanyou patronized

2940-614: A small army. According to these legends, he founded a state known as Gija Joseon in northwest Korea during the Gojoseon period of ancient Korean history. However, scholars debate the historical accuracy of these legends. Before the 20th century, the Zhou dynasty (1046–256 BC) was the earliest that could be verified from its own records. However, during the Song dynasty (960–1279), antiquarians collected bronze ritual vessels attributed to

3087-485: A state stipend. Holders of the highest ranks also received fiefs and the honorific title Jun (君, lord), such as Lord Chunshen . The full systematization of ranks pioneered by the Qin dynasty took a bit longer to overcome Chu's distinct culture, such that the Han founder Liu Bang , being of Chu origin, also awarded distinctly Chu titles. Other titles might be tailored down to a single individual being officially honored for

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3234-584: A stone carved image of Confucius. From 1127 up to the Mongol -led Yuan dynasty , there were two Duke Yanshengs – one in Quzhou , Zhejiang (in the south) and the other in Qufu , Shandong (in the north). In 1233, Ögedei Khan (r. 1229–1241) granted the Duke Yansheng title to Kong Yuancuo ( 孔元措 ), a 51st-generation descendant of Confucius from the northern branch. Kublai Khan (r. 1260–1294) originally wanted to merge

3381-560: A successful invasion from the south of Shandong by Song armies in 1225. Kong Yuangong took control of the city as Song armies renamed Qufu back to Xianyuan and granted both the office of magistrate of Xianyuan and title of Duke Yansheng to Kong Yuanyong. Meanwhile, the Song also kept the titles of the Quzhou-based Duke Yansheng leading there to be two Duke Yanshengs under the Song, one in Quzhou and one in Qufu, showing that

3528-449: A term for king or prince, although the sovereignty of such relatives was limited. Local tribal chiefs could also be termed "king" of a particular territory ranging from vast to tiny, using convenient terms of the form "(locality)" + "king" such as Changshawang, "King of Changsha ". Changsha was briefly recognized as a kingdom, but was usually a political subunit. " Barbarian " leaders could also be referred to by names such as Yiwang, "king of

3675-627: A title and fiefs by the Shang King in Qi ( 杞 ) and Zeng . When the Shang dynasty was overthrown by the Zhou dynasty , the Zhou King granted a Shang royal scion the title Gong and fief of Song . In 220 CE , Emperor Xian of Han abdicated his throne to Cao Pi , who granted the previous emperor the title Duke of Shanyang (山陽公). His line persisted until 309. The Emperors of Shu Han came from

3822-533: A variety of stone and bronze weaponry, including spears, pole-axes, pole-based dagger-axes, composite bows, and bronze or leather helmets. Although the Shang depended upon the military skills of their nobility, Shang rulers could mobilise the masses of town-dwelling and rural commoners as conscript labourers and soldiers for both campaigns of defence and conquest. Aristocrats and other state rulers were obligated to furnish their local garrisons with all necessary equipment, armour, and armaments. The Shang king maintained

3969-559: A woman was the actual power behind the imperial throne . Hou ( 后 : Empress, Queen, Empress Consort) was a title granted to an official primary spouse of the polygynous male Chinese Emperor. It was also used for the mother of the Emperor, typically elevated to the rank of Empress Dowager ( 太后 : Tai Hou , "Grand Empress") regardless of which spousal ranking she bore prior to the emperor's accession. In practice, many Chinese Empresses Dowager wielded great power— either as official regent for

4116-490: A young sovereign or with the influence of position within family social ranks. From Empress Lü of Han ( r.   195 BCE – 180 BCE ) to Empress Dowager Cixi of Qing ( r.   CE 1861–1908), some women unquestionably reigned supreme. Imperial Consorts, ranking below Empress, aren't often distinguished in English from imperial Concubines , the next lower rank, but these were also titles of significance within

4263-497: Is Xiang Yu (d. 202 BCE ), who styled himself Xīchǔ Bàwáng, Hegemon of Chu . It was a custom in China for the new dynasty to ennoble and enfeoff a member of the dynasty which they overthrew, so that they could maintain sacrifices to their ancestors. This practice was referred to as "the two crownings and three respects." It is said that when the purported Xia dynasty was overthrown by the Shang dynasty , Xia descendants were given

4410-453: Is the earliest dynasty of traditional Chinese history firmly supported by archaeological evidence. Excavation at the last Shang capital Yinxu , near modern-day Anyang , uncovered eleven major royal tombs and the foundations of palaces and ritual sites, containing weapons of war and remains from both animal and human sacrifices. Tens of thousands of bronze, jade , stone, bone, and ceramic artifacts have been found. The Anyang site has yielded

4557-410: Is unknown what criteria the diviners used to determine the response, but it is believed to be the sound or pattern of the cracks on the bone. The Shang also seem to have believed in an afterlife, as evidenced by the elaborate burial tombs built for deceased rulers. Often "carriages, utensils, sacrificial vessels, [and] weapons" would be included in the tomb. A king's burial involved the burial of up to

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4704-679: The Record of Music . 禮記正義 was compiled by Kong Yingda. Kong Yingda wrote a new edition of the Shijing. Confucius' scion in the 32nd generation Kong Yingda wrote interpretations of the Confucian 5 Classics called the 五經正義 Wujing zhengyi. A description was written by Kong Yingda on the Di sacrifice. Zhaomu were also mentioned by Kong. In 1055, Emperor Renzong , changed the "Duke Wenxuan" title to "Duke Yansheng" ( 衍聖公 ) to avoid naming taboo associated with

4851-655: The State of Lu in the Spring and Autumn period of ancient China. He was a descendant of the royal family of the Shang dynasty (c. 1558–1046 BC) through the dukes of the State of Song (11th century – 286 BC). During the reign of Qin Shi Huang (r. 247–210 BC), the First Emperor of the Qin dynasty , Kong Fu ( 孔鮒 ), a ninth-generation descendant of Confucius, was awarded the title "Lord Wentong of Lu " ( 魯國文通君 ) and

4998-466: The Western Zhou period, ranks were not systematized. There were titles that indicated political authority as well as those concerned with seniority in the ancestral temple. These were not mutually exclusive, and the names of some ranks could also be used as generic terms of respect to varying degrees in different circumstances. The most common titles were as follows: As central authority crumbled,

5145-593: The posthumous names of the earlier emperors. The title "Duke Yansheng" was then awarded to Kong Zongyuan ( 孔宗願 ), a 46th-generation descendant of Confucius. It was later changed to "Duke Fengsheng" ( 奉聖公 ) but was quickly restored back to "Duke Yansheng", and has since then been known as "Duke Yansheng". Confucius' house was built over by the Confucius temple with things like the Apricot Altar remaining from his house where Confucius lectured disciples. During

5292-433: The primogeniture of rank and succession of other siblings. The eldest son of the consort would inherit the title and retained the same rank within the system. Other sons from the consort, concubines and mistresses would be given titles one rank lower than their father. As time went by, all terms had lost their original meanings nonetheless. Qing (卿), Daifu (大夫) and Shi (士) became synonyms of court officials. In

5439-478: The wars between the Song dynasty and Jurchen -led Jin dynasty (1115–1234) , the Song capital, Kaifeng , was conquered by Jin forces in 1127. Remnants of the Song dynasty retreated south and established the Southern Song dynasty, with Emperor Gaozong (r. 1127–1162) as their ruler. Kong Duanyou ( 孔端友 ), who then held the Duke Yansheng title, also moved to the south and settled in Quzhou , Zhejiang, where

5586-535: The 3rd century AD, "Yin" has been frequently used to refer specifically to the latter half of the Shang. It is also the name predominantly used for the dynasty in Japan, Korea, and Vietnam, being rendered as In , Eun and Ân in Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese respectively. The name seems to have originated during the subsequent Zhou dynasty ; it does not appear in oracle bone inscriptions—which refer to

5733-491: The 49th generation) introduction. Kongshi zuting guangji shows pictures of the Song and Jin dynasty era temple of Confucius. Quzhou was where the Gaozong followers from the Kong family evacuated to. The Quzhou temple is home to a rubbed Confucius portrait while the Qufu one has a tablet made out of stone with a rubbed portrait of Yan Hui and Confcuius while the Qufu temple has another Confucius icon. 孔清覺 Kong Qingjue led

5880-793: The Confucius family at Quzhou During the Yuan dynasty, one of Confucius' descendants, who claimed to be one of the Duke Yansheng Kong Huan's 孔浣 sons, named Kong Shao 孔紹, moved from China to Goryeo era Korea and established a branch of the family there after wedding a Korean woman (Jo Jin-gyeong's 曹晉慶 daughter) during Toghon Temür 's rule. This branch of the family called the Gong clan of Qufu received aristocratic rank in Joseon era Korea. 曲阜孔氏 (朝鲜半岛) 곡부 공씨 The Liyang Kongs were descendants of Confucius who lived in southern China during

6027-554: The Confucius family was a separate branch from the line that held the title of Marquis of Fengsheng village and later Duke Yansheng. This practice was referred to as 二王三恪 . During the Three Kingdoms period, the state of Cao Wei (220–265) renamed the title "Marquis Baocheng" ( 褒成侯 ) to "Marquis Zongsheng" ( 宗聖侯 ). The Jin (266–420) and Liu Song (420–479) dynasties changed the title to "Marquis of Fengsheng Village" ( 奉聖亭侯 ). The Northern Wei dynasty (386–535) changed

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6174-518: The Ducal title of the northern lineage to another branch so from the 1300s to 1900s all Dukes would be descended from Kong Sihui. However, in Qufu the position of county magistrate continued to be divided and not in the hands of the Duke as Kong Sicheng and his descendants would be Qufu county magistrates for the rest of the Yuan dynasty and the magistracy would henceforth be in the hands of other Kong were not

6321-598: The Duke Yansheng came with the southern Song. The Kongs in Qufu had a genealogy compiled during the Northern Song which described disciples with Confucius images. A pavilion was built by the Jin in the 1190s in the Confucius temple of Qufu over a Song dynasty era dais constructed in 1022. The dias built by the Song and modified by the Jin was depicted in the 1242 Kongshi zuting guangji genealogy written by Kong Yuancuo. The genealogy written by Kong Yuancuo contains Kong Chuan's 祖庭廣記 Zuting zaji with 孔瓌 Kong Gui's (scion in

6468-505: The Duke Yansheng line. In 1307, shortly after his enthronement, Külüg Khan (r. 1307–1311) awarded the posthumous honorary title "Prince Dacheng Zhisheng Wenxuan" ( 大成至聖文宣王 ) to Confucius. The Song gave him a Quzhou-based fief and manor where his descendants reigned in the Southern Song. Meanwhile, Kong Duanyou's younger brother Kong Duancao was appointed as duke Yansheng in 1128 by the Jin dynasty in Xianyuan back north. This resulted in

6615-415: The Duke Yansheng title from the southern Song. The Southern Song invaded Shandong by moving north while the Jin itself was invaded by Mongols from the north. This led to the Duke Yansheng under the Jin, Kong Yuancuo to be dislocated from Qufu as his promotion in the jin government to higher and higher offices led him to relocated to what is now modern Beijing, then also the Jin capital. In 1214 after it fell to

6762-531: The Duke of Song , with its capital at Shangqiu . This practice was known as 'enfeoffment of three generations for two kings'. The dukes of Song would maintain rites honouring the Shang kings until Qi conquered Song in 286 BC. Confucius was possibly a descendant of the Shang Kings through the Dukes of Song. The Eastern Han dynasty bestowed the title of Duke of Song and 'Duke Who Continues and Honours

6909-441: The Duke. It also had the Dukes barred from bureaucratic positions while they held the title. This increased the power of the duke but these privileges were blunted when the Song made the position of Duke an elected position voted on by Kong notables and granted to a qualified member of the Kong family. Kong Ruoxu became Duke after being elected in 1098. He was previously Hezhou's Gui'an County's assistant magistrate. Election meant that

7056-462: The Dukes meant that the office of county magistrate was given to other members of the Kong family but not the duke so that the Duke's only job would be to carry out Confucian rituals in Qufu instead of projecting political power. However the wars between the Jin and Song that saw the Jin taking over and ruling northern China changed the situation and power of the Duke. The Kongs became ideological and political symbols and military assets and allies between

7203-701: The Eastern Yi ", while in other cases terms such as tusi ( 土司 , "native chief") might be used for the same office. Family members of individual sovereigns were also born to titles – or granted them – largely according to family tree proximity. This included blood relatives and affinal relatives. Frequently, the parents of a founding dynast would be posthumously elevated to honorary sovereignty. Titles translated in English as "prince" and "princess" were generally immediate or recent descendants of sovereigns, with increasing distance at birth from an ancestral sovereign in succeeding generations resulting in degradations of

7350-533: The Grand Historian . According to the Records of the Grand Historian , the Shang moved their capital five times, with the final move to Yin in the reign of Pan Geng inaugurating the golden age of the dynasty. Di Xin, the last Shang king, is said to have committed suicide after his army was defeated by Wu of Zhou . Legends say that his army and his equipped slaves betrayed him by joining the Zhou rebels in

7497-714: The Mongols and Kong Yuancuo was let out. Yan Shi the Shandong warlord under the Yuan who had marriage ties to Kong Yuancuo, may have helped him get his ducal title in Qufu back. Kong Yuancuo wrote the family genealogy "Kong shi zuting guangji" (Expanded Record of the Ancestral Court of the Kong Clan) excluding the Quzhou-based southern branch, intended as a rebuttal to a Southern Song dynasty commissioned work about

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7644-483: The Mongols. The Jin Xuanzong emperor evacuated toward Kaifeng, the Jin southern capital with Duke Kong Yuancuo. Kong Yuancuo's location with the Jin emperor as the Jin state fell apart across northern China led to a new third Duke arising in Qufu. Another member of the Kong family from a cadet branch, a son of Kong Fu named Kong Yuanyong carried out rituals in Qufu in the temple when Jin defense in Shandong fell leading to

7791-436: The Northern Song dynasty. Kong Zongyuan , a 46th-generation descendant of Confucius, became the first person to hold the title "Duke Yansheng". The dukes enjoyed privileges that other nobles were denied, such as the right to tax their domain in Qufu while being exempt from imperial taxes. Their dukedom had its own judicial system and the legal capacity to mete out capital punishment, although such sentences had to be ratified by

7938-666: The Republic of China . In 2008, with permission from the Kong family, the political office became an unpaid one which is purely ceremonial in nature. It is currently held by Kung Tsui-chang , a 79th-generation descendant of Confucius. There are also similar political offices for the descendants of the other notable members of the Confucian school (the Four Sages ), such as "Ceremonial Official to Mencius ", "Ceremonial Official to Zengzi ", and "Ceremonial Official to Yan Hui ". In

8085-432: The Shang King in exchange for military aid and augury services. However these alliances were unstable, as indicated by the frequent royal divinations about the sustainability of such relations. The existence of records regarding enemy kills, prisoners and booty taken point to the existence of a proto-bureaucracy of written documents. Shang religious rituals featured divination and sacrifice. The degree to which shamanism

8232-632: The Shang era, some of which bore inscriptions. In 1899, several scholars noticed that Chinese pharmacists were selling "dragon bones" marked with curious and archaic characters. These were finally traced back in 1928 to what is now called Yinxu , north of the Yellow River near Anyang , where the Academia Sinica undertook archaeological excavation until the Second Sino-Japanese War in 1937. Archaeologists focused on

8379-592: The Shang joined the Rebellion of the Three Guards against the Duke of Zhou , but the rebellion collapsed after three years, leaving Zhou in control of Shang territory. After the collapse of the Shang dynasty, Zhou's rulers forcibly relocated "Yin diehards" and scattered them throughout Zhou territory. Some surviving members of the Shang royal family collectively changed their surname from the ancestral name Zi to

8526-414: The Shang kings were viewed as the best qualified members of society to offer sacrifices to their royal ancestors and to the high god Di, who in their beliefs was responsible for the rain, wind, and thunder. The King appointed officials to manage certain activities, usually in a specified region. These included agricultural official, pastors, dog officers, and guards. These officers led their own retinues in

8673-484: The Song dynasty viewed them as vital military allies to control the region. Whoever could become duke in Qufu was determined by military force at this time. The local warlords and the dynastic state armies were the allies who the Dukes sought out. Kong Zhiyuan was given ranks, titles and enfeoffment as duke in 1226 by the Mongols when they came to Qufu. But in 1233 Kong Zhiquan had to cede the title of Duke to Kong Yuancuo after he came back to Qufu once Kaifeng surrendered to

8820-569: The Tang dynasty and Song were also the Qufu county magistrates but the Renzong emperor set out parameters for ducal authority, removing the position of magistrate from the duke and ordering that the Qufu magistrate position be filled with a member of the Kong family who was not the duke at the same time. The ducal title was held by Kongs who were appointed to political offices in places other than Qufu. These policies which were supposed to attack and weaken

8967-484: The Tang dynasty did, but at the same time said the Kong family's various titles all tied them to a specific fief. The following Zhenzong Emperor also redefined the authority of the Duke besides the Renzong emperor changing his title from Wenxuan to Yansheng. The Song Zhenzong emperor who was a Daoist decided to build Daoist temples in Qufu and change its name to the Daoist name Xianyuan. The Kong dukes before this time, during

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9114-419: The Tang dynasty granted the same title of Wenxuan Duke to the descendants to match Confucius's title Wenxuan King, this blurred the noble office and ritual together which Zu condemned. Zu also criticized earlier dynasties after the Han for giving the descendants of Confucius various irregular titles. The Song Renzong Emperor said that it was indeed wrong to give the same title to Confucius and his descendants which

9261-527: The Yellow River valley in Henan as the most likely site of the states described in the traditional histories. After 1950, the remnants of the earlier walled settlement of Zhengzhou Shang City were discovered within the modern city of Zhengzhou . It has been determined that the earth walls at Zhengzhou, erected in the 15th century BC, would have been 20 m (66 ft) wide at the base, rising to

9408-402: The Yin' upon Kong An, because he was part of the legacy of the Shang. This branch of the Confucius family is a separate branch from the line that held the title of Marquis of Fengsheng village and later Duke Yansheng. Another remnant of the Shang established the vassal state of Guzhu (present-day Tangshan ), which Duke Huan of Qi destroyed. Many Shang clans that migrated northeast after

9555-496: The Yuan court to remove the ducal title from Kong Zhen, leading Kong Yuanyong's branch under Kong Zhi to take full control of county administration and the temple. Kong Zhi was proxy for offering sacrifices as the temple and Qufu magistrate for three decades as the ducal title lay vacant when the Yuan court finally granted the Duke Yansheng title to Kong Zhi in 1295. The county administration, ducal title and northern Kong lineage fell under Kong Yuanyong's branch again. Non-Han rule led to

9702-490: The Yuan dynasty's final years. 孔克齊 Kong Keqi or 孔齊 Kong Qi was a scion of the 55th generation. An account was written by Kong Qi on this era. The Kong became a reluctant part of the Ming after collaborating very closely with the Mongols in the 14th century. In Qufu, the dukedom and county magistracy become the two focal competing centers of power around which the various Kong parties coalesced around leading to Qufu seeing an end to

9849-399: The afterlife. Perhaps for the same reason, hundreds of commoners, who may have been slaves, were buried alive with the royal corpse. A line of hereditary Shang kings ruled over much of northern China, and Shang troops fought frequent wars with neighbouring settlements and nomadic herdsmen from the inner Asian steppes. The Shang king, in his oracular divinations, repeatedly showed concern about

9996-558: The appointment of shaofu ( 少傅 ). In 190 BC, Emperor Gao of the Han dynasty awarded the title "Lord Fengsi" (奉祀君; "Ceremonial Officer") to Kong Teng ( 孔騰 ), Kong Fu's younger brother. During the reign of Emperor Yuan (r. 48–33 BC), Kong Ba ( 孔霸 ), a 13th-generation descendant of Confucius, was granted the title "Lord Baocheng" ( 褒成君 ). In addition, the income gained from the 800 taxable households in Kong Ba's fief were used to finance

10143-475: The aristocracy found itself needing to signal who had more land, power, and resources. During this time the titles they had been using started to take on a more systematized structure. After a few hundred years, political thinkers saw this emergent structure and projected it idealistically and anachronistically backwards into a past where it had not actually held. This was called Wǔděngjuéwèi ( 五等爵位 ), five (aristocratic) peerage ranks (abbreviated Wǔjué ) below

10290-489: The barbarians living outside of the civilised regions, which made up the centre of Shang territory. In particular, the group living in the Yan Mountains were regularly mentioned as hostile to the Shang. Apart from their role as the head military commanders, Shang kings also asserted their social supremacy by acting as the high priests of society and leading the divination ceremonies. As the oracle bone texts reveal,

10437-541: The case of Liu Bei promoting Guan Yu to a rank phrased as General Who Exterminates Bandits (蕩寇將軍) during the active course of Guan Yu's military career. In Dutch East Indies (modern-day Indonesia), the Dutch authorities appointed Chinese officers to the colonial administration to oversee the governance of the colony's Chinese subjects. These officials bore the ranks of Majoor , Kapitein or Luitenant der Chinezen , and had extensive political and legal jurisdiction over

10584-459: The central plain states, including the nobility system. The royal ancestral temple kinship group surnamed Xiong and its branch lineages of Qu, Jing, and Zhao formed the main nobility of Chu. Within the elite, Chu's early period mirrored that of Predynastic Zhou , the aristocratic ancestral temples and clan lineages sufficing to determine social position, without an additional expressly political dimension. Chu's formal system of rank appeared around

10731-610: The city walls yielded over 200 artefacts, including a gold face covering measuring 18.3 by 14.5 cm (7.2 by 5.7 in). In 1959, the site of the Erlitou culture was found in Yanshi, south of the Yellow River near Luoyang . Radiocarbon dating suggests that the Erlitou culture flourished c.  2100 BC to 1800 BC. They built large palaces, suggesting the existence of an organised state. In 1983, Yanshi Shang City

10878-425: The conduct of their duties, and some grew more independent and emerged as rulers of their own. There was a basic system of bureaucracy in place, with references to positions such as the "Many Dog officers", "Many horse officers", the "Many Artisans", the "Many Archers" or court titles like "Junior Servitor for Cultivation" or "Junior Servitor for labourers". Members of the royal family would be assigned personal estates;

11025-508: The connotations of the respective titles. Three levels of sovereignty could be distinguished: supreme rule over the realm , relatively autonomous local sovereignty, and tributary vassalage. The supreme sovereign is the only office translated into English as the term " emperor ". An emperor might appoint, confirm, or tolerate sub-sovereigns or tributary rulers styled kings . As a title of nobility, Ba Wang , hegemon , denoted overlordship of several subordinate kings while refraining from claiming

11172-408: The creation of a Confucius image. 46th generation descendant 孔宗翰 Kong Zonghan wrote in 1085 a new genealogy. Confucius portraits were spread around in Qufu by Confucius's scions. A genealogy was written in 1085 by Kong Zonghan which described disciples and Confucius images. The genealogy of Kong Yuancuo contained one of the images which also appeared in the temple in Qufu and according to Kong Chuan it

11319-641: The decisive Battle of Muye . According to the Yi Zhou Shu and Mencius the battle was very bloody. The classic Ming dynasty novel Investiture of the Gods retells the story of the war between Shang and Zhou as a conflict with rival factions of gods supporting different sides in the war. After the Shang were defeated, King Wu allowed Di Xin's son Wu Geng to rule the Shang as a vassal kingdom. However, Zhou Wu sent three of his brothers and an army to ensure that Wu Geng would not rebel. After Zhou Wu's death,

11466-454: The divination. Tombs displayed highly ordered arrangements of bones, with groups of skeletons laid out facing the same direction. Chinese bronze casting and pottery advanced during the Shang, with bronze typically being used for ritually significant, rather than primarily utilitarian, items. As early as c.  1500 BC , the early Shang dynasty engaged in large-scale production of bronzeware vessels and weapons. This production required

11613-529: The dynasty's collapse were integrated into Yan culture during the Western Zhou period. These clans maintained an elite status and continued practising the sacrificial and burial traditions of the Shang. Both Korean and Chinese legends, including reports in the Book of Documents and Bamboo Annals , state that a disgruntled Shang prince named Jizi , who had refused to cede power to the Zhou, left China with

11760-422: The earliest known body of Chinese writing , mostly divinations inscribed on oracle bones —usually turtle shells or ox scapulae . More than 20,000 were discovered in the initial scientific excavations during the 1920s and 1930s, and over four times as many have been found since. The inscriptions provide critical insight into many topics from the politics, economy, and religious practices to the art and medicine of

11907-586: The earliest layers of the Wucheng culture predating Anyang have yielded pottery fragments containing short sequences of symbols, suggesting that they may be a form of writing quite different in form from oracle bone characters, but the sample is too small for decipherment. The earliest securely dated event in Chinese history is the start of the Gonghe Regency in 841 BC, early in the Zhou dynasty,

12054-586: The early Tang dynasty , the title was renamed to "Marquis Baosheng" ( 褒聖侯 ). In the Kaiyuan era (713–741) of the reign of Emperor Xuanzong , the emperor posthumously honoured Confucius as "Prince Wenxuan" ( 文宣王 ) and promoted the "Marquis Baosheng" title to "Duke Wenxuan" ( 文宣公 ). Duke Wenxuan Kong Renyu lived during the Later Tang dynasty. A line in the Book of Rites had an interpretation written by Kong Yingda . Kong Yingda wrote some interpretations on

12201-599: The early Zhou , who established the successor state of the Shang, are known to have existed at the same time as the Shang. It has also been suggested the Xia legend originated as a Shang myth of an earlier people who were their opposites. The Erligang culture centred on the Zhengzhou site is found across a wide area of China, even as far northeast as the area of modern Beijing, where at least one burial in this region during this period contained both Erligang-style bronze utensils and local-style gold jewellery. The discovery of

12348-740: The early stages of Chinese history. Several of the Chinese classics discuss the history of the Shang, including the Book of Documents , the Mencius and the Zuo Zhuan . From the sources available to him, the Han dynasty historian Sima Qian assembled a chronological account of the Shang as part of the Shiji ( c.  91 BC ) official history. Sima describes some Shang-era events in detail, while others are only mentioned as taking place during

12495-413: The first king of the Shang dynasty , and granted him the èrwáng-sānkè    [ simple ; zh ] ( 二王三恪 ) ceremonial privilege. During the reign of Emperor Ping (r. 1 BC – 6 AD), granted the title "Marquis Baocheng" ( 褒成侯 ) to Kong Jun ( 孔均 ), a 16th-generation descendant of Confucius. Emperor Ming (r. 58–75 AD) awarded Kong Juan ( 孔損 ), an 18th-generation descendant of Confucius,

12642-673: The full unification of early China under the Qin dynasty , the first empire whose realm would subsequently be considered to extend broadly enough to be national in the context of the territorial concept of China, the Zhouli , Rites of Zhou were subsequently canonized by Confucius among his Confucian Chinese classics as a model precedent in principles of government, so ranks of nobility in later regimes both in periods of unified sovereignty and of competing smaller states would typically draw from its catalog of peerage. From Zhouli, later Confucian political philosophy and government publications, and from

12789-456: The great families, the imperial house, the ministerial and mercantile classes, and other stakeholders in the political economy of the times. After the Song dynasty , most bureaucratic offices were filled through the imperial examination system , undermining the power of the hereditary aristocracy. Historians have noted the disappearance by 1000 CE of the powerful clans that had dominated China. The last, well-developed system of noble titles

12936-438: The hands of court factions, eunuchs , the bureaucracy or noble families. The title of emperor was usually transmitted from father to son . Most often, the first-born son of the primary wife inherited the office, failing which the post was taken up by the first-born son of a concubine or consort of lower rank, but this rule was not universal and disputed succession was the cause of a number of civil wars. The emperor's regime in

13083-514: The imperial court. In 1935, the Nationalist government of the Republic of China converted the Duke Yansheng title to a political office, "Dacheng Zhisheng Xianshi Fengsi Guan" ( 大成至聖先師奉祀官 ), which simply means " Ceremonial Official to Confucius ". This political office is not only hereditary, but also had the same ranking and remuneration as that of a cabinet minister in the government of

13230-518: The imperial household. The Rites of Zhou states that Emperors are entitled to the following simultaneous spouses: Sovereigns styled Ba or Bawang ( 霸王 , hegemon -protector), asserted official overlordship of several subordinate rulers while refraining from claiming the royal title. This practice began in the Spring and Autumn period , spurred by a royal house too militarily weak to defend its own lands, in combination with an aristocracy flexing its power in novel ways. A later example of this title

13377-546: The impious and cruel final Xia ruler in the Battle of Mingtiao . The Records of the Grand Historian recount events from the reigns of Tang, Tai Jia , Tai Wu , Pan Geng , Wu Ding , Wu Yi and the depraved final king Di Xin , but the rest of the Shang rulers are merely mentioned by name. In the last century, Wang Guowei demonstrated that the succession to the Shang throne matched the list of kings in Sima Qian's Records of

13524-581: The increase of power and political influence of Confucius's descendants, as the Mongols and Jurchens needed to support Confucianism and the Confucius family for political legitimacy. The war situation also led to a military character being acquired by the Kong Dukes. Kong Ruogu 孔若古 aka Kong Chuan( 孔傳 ) 47th generation was claimed to be the ancestor of the Southern branch after Kong Zhu died by Northern branch member Kong Guanghuang. The Southern Branch of

13671-607: The instability and the dukedom's power and character becoming clearly defined and lasting stably in that manner until the 1900s. The Duke Kong Sicheng from Kong Yuanyong's branch was removed and ousted by Kong Sihui in 1316 from another branch of the family and Kong Sihui successfully acquired enough power into the ducal office to make it permanently stay in his branch of the family so other rival Kong branches could not take it away. The Yuan court helped Kong Sihui in this. Kong Sicheng became magistrate of Qufu and Duek Yansheng in 1307 after inheriting it from his father Kong Zhi but this led to

13818-451: The invention of many musical instruments and celestial observations of Mars and various comets by Shang astronomers. Their civilisation was based on agriculture and augmented by hunting and animal husbandry. In addition to war, the Shang practised human sacrifice . The majority of human sacrifice victims mentioned in Shang writings were war captives taken from the Qiang people, who lived to

13965-518: The kaleidoscopic Six Dynasties period were enfeoffed by their overthrowers and subsequently killed anyway. This specific vicissitude was shared by Emperor Gong of Jin , Emperor Shun of Liu Song , Emperor He of Southern Qi , and Emperor Jing of Liang , representing consecutive dynasties between 421 and 558. The child emperor Gao Heng of the Northern Qi dynasty experienced a similar narrative arc two decades later. This practice continued all

14112-417: The king provided them with pre-determined public works such as walling cities in their regions, distributed materials and issued commands to them. In turn, their estates belonged ultimately to the king's land, and they paid tribute to the king as well as reporting to him about conquered lands. More distant rulers were known by titles translated as marquess or count, who sometimes provided tribute and support to

14259-421: The late Spring and Autumn period, similar to the remainder of the Zhou confederation, but with different titles such as Tonghou (通侯, marquis-peer), Zhigui (執珪, jade scepter bearer), Zhibo (執帛, silk bearer). Their political offices also differed in name even where scope of responsibilities did not. Noble ranks, bestowed primarily as reward for military and civil service, and not in principle heritable, came with

14406-508: The local Chinese community. Their descendants bore the hereditary title of Sia , and constituted the Cabang Atas or the Chinese gentry of colonial Indonesia. Shang dynasty The Shang dynasty ( Chinese : 商朝 ; pinyin : Shāng cháo ), also known as the Yin dynasty ( 殷代 ; Yīn dài ), was a Chinese royal dynasty that ruled in the Yellow River valley during

14553-563: The main palatial complex, there were underground pits used for storage, servants' quarters, and housing quarters. Many Shang royal tombs had been tunnelled into and ravaged by grave robbers in ancient times, but in the spring of 1976, the discovery of Tomb 5 at Yinxu revealed a tomb that was not only undisturbed, but one of the most richly furnished Shang tombs that archaeologists had yet come across. With over 200 bronze ritual vessels and 109 inscriptions of Fu Hao 's name, Zheng Zhenxiang and other archaeologists realised they had stumbled across

14700-469: The military and political power. Kong Yuanyong became the Yanzhou prefect's administrative assistant and communications military commissioner as well as jizhou controller-general. His son Kong Zhiquan succeeded him to the magistracy and ducal title in 1226 when Kong Yuanyong went on a military campaign north with the Song armies. Kong Yuanyong and his branch's hold over the ducal title was by military power as

14847-468: The name of their fallen dynasty, Yin. The family retained an aristocratic standing and often provided needed administrative services to the succeeding Zhou dynasty. King Wu of Zhou ennobled Lin Jian ( 林堅 ), the son of Prince Bigan , as the Duke of Bo'ling. The Shiji states that King Cheng of Zhou , with the support of his regent and uncle, the Duke of Zhou , enfeoffed Weiziqi ( 微子啟 ), a brother of Di Xin, as

14994-510: The northern China region. The right to tax a fixed amount of farming households and noble titles were conferred upon Confucius's descendants by Chinese imperial states starting from the Han dynasty but the specific Duke Yansheng title was granted in the 11th century. Fan Zhongyan 's policies led to a reform promoting antiquarianism by emulating ancient sages and one of Fan's comrades, the Taichang Boshi Zu Wuze in 1055 attacked

15141-455: The northern branch is seen as a shu (offshoot) branch. The Kong family held their office and title for the most continuous and longest time out of all families in China's history. They were granted the title Duke Yansheng by the Song dynasty in 1055 and were symbolically and military important to the Song, Jin and Yuan dynasties in their wars over northern China as they symbolized Confucianism and served as military agents of those dynasties in

15288-474: The northwest of the Shang. Using skeletal isotope analysis, a group of Shang sacrifice victims at the Zhengzhou site was also found to most likely have been war captives. Skulls of sacrificial victims have been found to be similar to modern Chinese ones (based on comparisons with remains from Hainan and Taiwan ). Cowry shells were also excavated at Anyang, suggesting trade with coast-dwellers, but there

15435-500: The oracle bones by posthumous names . The last character of each name is one of the 10 celestial stems , which also denoted the day of the 10-day Shang week on which sacrifices would be offered to that ancestor within the ritual schedule. There were more kings than stems, so the names have distinguishing prefixes such as da ('greater', 大 ), zhong ('middle', 中 ), xiao ('lesser', 小 ), bu ('outer', 卜 ), and zu ('ancestor', 祖 ), as well as other, more obscure ones. The kings, in

15582-588: The particular grade of prince or princess, eventually to nullity. Rulers of smaller states were typically styled with lesser titles of aristocracy, which could be upgraded or downgraded with or without royal assent. Sometimes such an alteration in grade reflected real power dynamics; in other cases it was merely an act of public relations. Also known as Tianzi , "The Son of Heaven " the Chinese emperor wielded varying degrees of power between different emperors and different dynasties, with some emperors being absolute rulers and others being figureheads with actual power in

15729-636: The political theory of Heaven's mandate allowed for a change in dynasty, and an emperor could be replaced by a rebel leader. The overthrow of an imperial house was sufficient evidence of the loss of the Mandate. It was generally not accepted for a female to succeed to the throne as a sovereign regnant in her own right , rather than playing the role of a sovereign's consort or regent for a sovereign during his age of minority. Official Chinese histories list only one reigning empress, Empress Wu of Tang . However, there have been numerous cases in Chinese history where

15876-479: The power of the Duke Yansheng were later overturned in the following three decades. The Song official Sima Guang and a member of the Kong family, Kong Zonghan 孔宗翰 who served as an official had the Duke's powers given back. He became the magistrate of Xianyuan county and later became Chaoyi Dafu and honglu Qing. He had the title change of Yansheng Duke to Fengsheng Duke, made the title a position held for life and had servant households, more land and stipends granted to

16023-642: The power sharing arrangement between Kong Sihui's branch which were Dukes and Kong Sicheng's branch which were county magistrates in 1340 in his "A Record of the Great Yuan Dynasty's Offerings in the Temple of the First Sage", praising the Yuan dynasty for enfeoffing the main branch as Duke and cadet branch as county magistrate. Chinese nobility The concepts of hereditary sovereignty, peerage titles, and noble families existed as early as

16170-401: The proxy. The use of a proxy Duke led to bureaucrats objections since the proxy duke just became a sinecure carrying out ancillary rituals. An election system to elect Dukes was proposed by Wang Yun (1227-1304) instead of using proxy dukes when the actual Duke was in the capital holding administrative positions. Kong Yuancuo could not suppress Kong Yuanyong's branch in Qufu entirely. Kong Zhiquan,

16317-592: The reformation of the law in 2009, "Ceremonial Official to Mencius " and "Ceremonial Official to Zengzi " would become unpaid honorable titles as well once the incumbent officials decease. The tombs of the Dukes Yansheng of the Ming and Qing dynasties are located at the Cemetery of Confucius in Qufu , Shandong. Kong Qiu (551–479 BC), better known as Confucius , was a teacher, politician and philosopher of

16464-619: The reign of a particular king. A slightly different account of the Shang is given in the Bamboo Annals , a text whose history is complex: while originally interred in 296 BC, the authenticity of the manuscripts that have survived is controversial. Throughout history, the Shang have also been referred to as "Yin" ( 殷 ). The Shiji and the Bamboo Annals each use this name for both the dynasty, as well as its final capital. Since Huangfu Mi 's Records of Emperors and Kings in

16611-441: The reigning Duke. Cao Yuanyong, a Yuan court official presented in Qufu for a sacrifice wrote an inscription in 1320 about the division between the ducal title and magistracy within the Kong family. The Mongol darugachi was also present in Qufu with the magistrate and Duke. The division of the magistracy from the dukedom institutionalized the power sharing arrangement between Kong Sicheng's branch and Kong Sihui's branch. Kong Sicheng

16758-430: The reigning king. Some clans even took them as lineage names . Gongzi eventually evolved into the generic honorific for all young gentry. Today it is either used as a flattering way to address an interlocutor's son, or a pejorative term for a wealthy man. Wangzi , on the other hand, is used today as the generic translation for the sons of a foreign monarch. The southern state of Chu had a notably distinct culture from

16905-421: The reigns of the last nine Shang kings. The Shang had a fully developed system of writing, preserved on bronze inscriptions and a small number of other writings on pottery, jade and other stones, horn, etc., but most prolifically on oracle bones. The complexity and sophistication of this writing system indicates an earlier period of development, but direct evidence of such is still lacking. Other advances included

17052-417: The royal ranks. This idealized structure was later implemented as policy during the early imperial period. Much later English translators attempted to map European-style feudal titles onto these. Titles of female members of the aristocracies varied in different dynasties and eras, each having unique classifications for the spouses of the emperor. Any female member excluding a spouse of an emperor can be called

17199-433: The sacrifices to previous kings and the ancestors of the current king, which follow a standard schedule that scholars have reconstructed. From this evidence, scholars have assembled the implied king list and genealogy, finding that it is in substantial agreement with the later accounts, especially for later kings. According to this implied king list, Wu Ding was the twenty-first Shang king. The Shang kings were referred to in

17346-451: The second millennium BC, traditionally succeeding the Xia dynasty and followed by the Western Zhou dynasty. The classic account of the Shang comes from texts such as the Book of Documents , Bamboo Annals and Shiji . Modern scholarship dates the dynasty between the 16th and 11th centuries BC, with more agreement surrounding the end date than beginning date. The Shang dynasty

17493-566: The semi-mythical and early historical periods, but the systems of enfeoffment and establishment only developed in the Zhou dynasty , by the end of which a clear delineation of ranks had emerged. This process was a function of the interface between the ancient patriarchal clan system , an increasingly sophisticated apparatus of state, and an evolving geopolitical situation . In the subsequent millennia , this system retained its essential character, albeit with modifications in titles and their relative rankings, and fluctuating power dynamics between

17640-513: The settlement at Anyang, such as the walled city of Sanxingdui in Sichuan . Western scholars are hesitant to designate such settlements as belonging to the Shang. Also unlike the Shang, there is no known evidence that the Sanxingdui culture had a system of writing. The late Shang state at Anyang is thus generally considered the first verifiable civilisation in Chinese history. In contrast,

17787-547: The son of Kong Yuanyong still had the power to force Kong Yuancuo to let Kong Zhiquan hold the magistracy while he surrendered the title of Duke to Kong Yuancuo. He stayed as magistrate until the Mongols promoted him to be the local circuit's brigade commander in 1252. Kong Zhen, the son of Kong Zhigu, a nephew of Kong Yuancuo, succeeded Kong Yuancuo as Duke Yansheng in 1251. Meanwhile, Kong Zhiyuan's son Kong Zhi succeeded him as county magistrate of Qufu after he became military brigade commander. Opponents of Kong Zhen in 1258 pressured

17934-526: The southern branch at Quzhou was politically weak. There were three Duke Yansheng in China at the same time from Confucius's descendants, one in Qufu with the Kong temple, one in south China at Quzhou and one in Kaifeng with the Jin dynasty. Kong Yuancuo in Kaifang was descended from Kong Duancao, younger brother of Kong Duanyou, the ancestor of the south branch. It was Kong Yuanyong of the Qufu branch which had

18081-429: The southern branch of Confucius's descendants was created. Kong Duancao ( 孔端操 ), Kong Duanyou's brother, remained in Qufu , Shandong, where he called himself the "acting Duke Yansheng". Later on, the Jin dynasty recognised Kong Duancao's legitimacy. This resulted in a north–south split among the descendants of Confucius. Historians regarded the southern branch as the di (legitimate) successor to Confucius's line, while

18228-414: The southern branch. It backed Kong Yuancuo's claim to the ducal title and control over the county. The 75-year-old Kong Xi, a 50th generation descendant of Confucius was appointed as quan (proxy) duke to stand in place of Kong Yuancuo and carry out rituals while Kong Yuancuo was away from Qufu serving in the Mongol court where he was promoted to the top. The Kong Qufu administration became extremely complex as

18375-445: The state as "Shang" ( 商 ), and to its capital as "Great Settlement of Shang" ( 大邑商 ; Dàyì Shāng ) —nor does it appear in any bronze inscriptions securely dated to the Western Zhou ( c.  1046  – 771 BC). The founding myth of the Shang is described by Sima Qian in the Annals of the Yin . In the text, a woman named Jiandi , who was the second wife of Emperor Ku , swallowed an egg dropped by

18522-408: The states as the Song warred with rival Jin and Yuan dynasties over northern China. The Kong Dukes gained military authority and their power stemmed from their military control, no longer just symbolically doing rituals for the dynasty. The Kong family divided into two when the Jin took over the northern China and the Song evacuated to south and moved their capital to Hangzhou from Kaifeng. Kong Duanyou,

18669-475: The surrounding historical literature of particular individuals, localities and events, the following social classifications have been attested. The social system of the Zhou dynasty is sometimes referred to as the Chinese feudalism and was the combination of fengjian (enfeoffment and establishment) and zongfa (clan law). Male subjects were classified into, in descending order of rank: Zongfa (宗法, clan law), which applied to all social classes, governed

18816-470: The title "Marquis of Bao Village" ( 褒亭侯 ). Emperor An (r. 106–125 AD) gave the title "Marquis of Fengsheng Village" ( 奉聖亭侯 ) to Kong Yao ( 孔曜 ), a 19th-generation descendant of Confucius. The title of Duke of Song and "Duke Who Continues and Honours the Yin" ( 殷紹嘉公 ) were bestowed upon Kong An ( 孔安 (東漢) by the Eastern Han dynasty because he was part of the Shang dynasty's legacy. This branch of

18963-562: The title of emperor. Sovereigns holding the title of king of an individual state within and without the shifting borders of the Chinese political realm might be fully independent heads of foreign states, such as the King of Korea . In some cases, they could be subordinate to foreign emperors just as territorial or tribal sovereign Mongol khans might be subject to one of several Khagans or Great khans . Some Chinese emperors styled many or all close male relatives of certain kinds such as wang ,

19110-399: The title the descendants of Confucius held at that time, granted by the Tang dynasty during the Kaiyuan reign (713-741) when the title Wenxuan King was granted to Confucius but the same Wenxuan title was granted to the descendants. Confucius's descendants and Confucius himself were accorded different titles before the Tang dynasty with the descendants holding the title Baosheng Marquis but since

19257-574: The title to "Marquis Chongsheng" ( 崇聖侯 ) while the Northern Qi dynasty (550–577) called it "Marquis Gongsheng" ( 恭聖侯 ). Under the Northern Zhou dynasty (557–581), the title was promoted from a marquis title to a ducal title, "Duke of Zou" ( 鄒國公 ). A fief of 100 households and the rank of 崇聖侯 Marquis who worships the sage was bestowed upon a Confucius descendant, Yan Hui's lineage had 2 of its scions and Confucius's lineage had 4 of its scions who had ranks bestowed on them in Shandong in 495 and

19404-403: The title would not automatically transfer from father to son. However the title was changed back to Yansheng duke and the election system was abolished to be replaced by a purely hereditary one in 1105. This meant the scope, powers and appointment of the Duke Yansheng title changed constantly over the northern Song and was not constant or fixed. The Northern Song's attempt at curtailing the power of

19551-469: The tomb of Fu Hao, Wu Ding's most famous consort also renowned as a military general, and mentioned in 170 to 180 oracle bone inscriptions. Along with bronze vessels, stoneware and pottery vessels, bronze weapons, jade figures and hair combs, and bone hairpins were found. The archaeological team argue that the large assortment of weapons and ritual vessels in her tomb correlate with the oracle bone accounts of her military and ritual activities. The capital

19698-467: The two Duke Yanshengs under the southern one by making Kong Zhu ( 孔洙 ), the southern branch's leader, the legitimate successor to the Duke Yansheng line. However, since Kong Zhu declined the offer, Kublai Khan abolished the southern Duke Yansheng title and appointed Kong Zhu as the jijiu ( 祭酒 ) of the Imperial Academy . Since then, the northern branch has remained as the "legitimate" heir to

19845-614: The way through the Xinhai Revolution of 1911, when the Republic of China allowed the last Qing Emperor to stay in the Forbidden City and keep his title, treating him as a foreign monarch until 1924. The descendants of Confucius were maintained in the title of Duke Yansheng until 1935 when the title was changed to Sacrificial Official to Confucius (大成至聖先師奉祀官), which remains as a position to this day, currently held by Kung Tsui-chang . The Zhou dynasty not only preceded

19992-414: The worshipping of Confucius. Kong Ba also instructed his eldest son, Kong Fu ( 孔福 ), to return to their ancestral home to serve as a ceremonial official to their ancestor. The title "Marquis Yinshaojia" ( 殷紹嘉侯 ) was conferred on Kong Ji ( 孔吉 ), a 14th-generation di descendant of Confucius, by Emperor Cheng (r. 33–7 BC). The emperor also allowed Kong Ji to perform ritual sacrifices to Cheng Tang ,

20139-411: Was a central aspect of Shang religion is a subject of debate. There were six main recipients of sacrifice: The Shang believed that their ancestors held power over them and performed divination rituals to secure their approval for planned actions. Divination involved cracking a turtle carapace or ox scapula to answer a question, and to then record the response to that question on the bone itself. It

20286-557: Was apparently occupied for less than a century and destroyed shortly before the construction of the Yinxu complex. Between 1989 and 2000, an important Shang settlement was excavated near Xiaoshuangqiao , about 20 km (12 mi) northwest of Zhengzhou. Covering an intermediary period between the Zhengzhou site and the late capitals on the Huan River , it features most prominently sacrificial pits with articulated skeletons of cattle,

20433-593: Was descended from Kong Ruoyu according to the genealogy, the third son of the first Duke Yansheng Kong Zongyuan after Kong Ruomeng and the elected Duke Kong Ruoxu. Kong Sihui also started the story of the Five dynasties era usurpation by Kong Mo in his Queli zong zhi tu ji (record of the Diagram of the Queli Genealogy). The 1316 accession of Kong Sihui to the title Duke Yansheng led to the newest and final transfer of

20580-508: Was discovered 6 km (3.7 mi) north-east of the Erlitou site in Yanshi's Shixianggou Township. This was a large walled city dating from 1600 BC. It had an area of nearly 200 ha (490 acres) and featured pottery characteristic of the Erligang culture . The remains of a walled city of about 470 ha (1,200 acres) were discovered in 1999 across the Huan River from the well explored Yinxu site. The city, now known as Huanbei ,

20727-443: Was drawn by Qu Daozi. 孔氏祖庭廣記 Kongshi zuting guangji was compiled by 孔元措 Kong Yuancuo. Kong Chuan's genealogy was succeeded in 1242 the publishing of the 1227 genealogy written by the Jin dynasty Duke Yansheng of the 51st generation 孔元措 Kong Yuancuo. The Quzhou-based scion in the 53rd generation during the Yuan dynasty 孔濂 Kong Lian wrote commentary on a stele at Quzhou which said that Kong Chuan and his nephew Kong Duanyou created

20874-478: Was established under the final imperial dynasty, the Qing . The Republican Revolution of 1911 ended the official imperial system. Though some noble families maintained their titles and prestige for a time, new political and economic circumstances forced their decline. Today, this class has virtually disappeared. The apex of the nobility is the sovereign . The title of the sovereign has changed over time, together with

21021-570: Was granted to the dukes when they became 17 and was known as shixi (hereditary entitlement). The Jin needed the Kongs as vital allies as they faced the Mongol threat from the north and therefore conceded to them their hereditary control over the office of magistrate of Qufu and made it official and institutionalized. The Mongol war against the Jin led to the Kong lineage once again facing the possibility of dividing into even more factions. Kong Duanyou's descendants up to Kong Zhu in Quzhou continued to receive

21168-463: Was later used by extension to denote a father's younger brother); and Jiu (舅, maternal uncle). Sons of kings who did not receive other titles were generically called Wangzi (王子, king's son), and their children Wangsun (王孫, royal scion). Similarly, sons and grandsons of dukes and lords were called Gongzi (公子, duke's son) and Gongsun (公孫, noble descendant). These honorifics occasionally became heritable titles, no longer indicating relation with

21315-535: Was succeeded by his uncle Kong Ji who was his father Kong Zhi's younger brother then Kong Ji's son succeeded him in 1322, then in 1333, Kong Keqin, the son of kong Sicheng succeeded him then in 1352, Kong Xida, the son of Kong Keqin succeeded him then Kong Xizhang, the younger brother of Kong Xida succeeded him in 1363 and Kong Xida became magistrate again in 1368 upon the Ming conquest. The Hanlin Academy Historical Bureau editor Zhou Boqi mentioned

21462-422: Was the centre of court life. Over time, court rituals to appease spirits developed, and in addition to his secular duties, the king would serve as the head of the ancestor worship cult. Often, the king would even perform oracle bone divinations himself, especially near the end of the dynasty. Evidence from excavations of the royal tombs indicates that royalty were buried with articles of value, presumably for use in

21609-774: Was very limited sea trade since China was isolated from other large civilisations during the Shang period. Trade relations and diplomatic ties with other formidable powers via the Silk Road and Chinese voyages to the Indian Ocean did not exist until the reign of Emperor Wu during the Han dynasty (202 BC – 221 AD). At the excavated royal palace in Yinxu, large stone pillar bases were found along with rammed earth foundations and platforms, which according to Fairbank, were "as hard as cement". These foundations in turn originally supported 53 buildings of wooden post-and-beam construction. In close proximity to

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