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31-589: Under general Meng Tian , the Qin captured the area of Zhongwei and established the Beidi Commandery . In 205 BC a city built at the current location of Zhongwei urban area, which would grow as irrigation systems were built to allow farming. In 1226 Genghis Khan captured Zhongwei; and in 1403 the city was named Zhongwei, part of Shaanxi . In 1920 Zhongwei was struck by the Haiyuan earthquake ; and in 1926

62-717: A door god in Chinese and Taoist temples , usually paired with Fusu . He is one of the 32 historical figures who appear as special characters in the video game Romance of the Three Kingdoms XI by Koei . He also appears as a non-playable character in Prince of Qin . In the manga series Kingdom , Meng Tian is known as "Mou Ten", a Qin General and the eldest son of Great General Mou Bu (Meng Wu). He looks different from his father and his younger brother Mou Ki. He has

93-514: A 600,000 Qin army in order to finally achieve the conquest of Chu. By the time the Qin state conquered the other six states and began its reign over a unified China in 221 BC, the nomadic Xiongnu had grown into a powerful invading force in the north and started expanding both east and west. Qin Shi Huang , the first emperor of the Qin dynasty, sent a 300,000-strong army headed by Meng Tian to drive

124-538: A feminine appearance, with shoulder length black orange hair and a pink robe over his armor. He usually leads his forces alongside Wang Ben/Ou Hon and Li Xin/Ri Shin , but his tactical expertise is higher and better known due to him being a graduate of the Strategist Academy and the top student under Lord Changping 's school. He acts as a referee or peacekeeper for Wang Ben /Ou Hon and Li Xin /Shin, who are shown to despise each other and argue constantly in

155-416: A little over several months practically conquered the country. However, due to the misconduct of Qi troops during the conquest of Yan a revolt eventually drove them away and the borders of Yan were restored. Yan's new king, King Zhao of Yan then plotted with the states of Zhao, Qin , Han and Wei for a joint expedition against Qi. Led by the brilliant tactician Yue Yi , it was highly successful and within

186-535: A year most of Qi's seventy walled cities had fallen, with the exception of Zimu and Lu. However, with the death of King Zhao and the expulsion of Yue Yi to Zhao by the new king, King Wei of Yan, General Tian Dan managed to recapture all of the cities from the 5 kingdoms. Despite the wars, Yan survived through the Warring States period. In 227 BC, with Qin troops on the border after the collapse of Zhao, Crown Prince Dan sent an assassin named Jing Ke to kill

217-413: Is also traditionally, if erroneously, credited with having invented the " Ink brush " (毛筆) and is specially remembered at the " Huzhou Pen Festival", which developed from festivities at his ancestor temple. Meng Tian is also credited with inventing the guzheng ( 筝 ), a bridge zither with twelve or thirteen strings. When Fusu , Qin Shi Huang's eldest son and the crown prince , was exiled to work at

248-470: Is that these nine regions are unified into one state by the travels of the eponymous sage, Yu the Great and by sending each region's unique goods to the capital as tribute. Other texts also discussed these regional variations in culture and physical environments. One of these texts was The Book of Master Wu , written in response to a query by Marquis Wu of Wei on how to cope with the other states. Wu Qi ,

279-599: The "Heavenly Market" enclosure . Before the state of Qin unified China in 221 BC, each region had its own unique customs and culture, although all were dominated by an upper class that shared a largely common culture. In the Yu Gong (Tribute of Yu), a section of the Book of Documents which was most likely composed in the 4th century BC, the author describes a China that is divided into nine regions, each with its own distinctive culture and products. The core theme of this section

310-584: The Ordos Loop . A drum tower is located in the city center. Zhongwei is located on the northern banks of the Yellow River and bordered directly by the Tengger Desert in the north. The city has been battling desertification since the 1950s. Using straw checkerboard patterns the advance of sand dunes is stopped. Meng Tian Meng Tian (c. 250 BC – c. August or September 210 BC )

341-736: The Qin Empire . Yan experienced a brief period of independence after the collapse of the Qin dynasty in 207 BC, but it was eventually absorbed by the victorious Han . During its height, Yan stretched from the Yellow River to the Yalu River and from the mountains of Shanxi to the Liaodong Peninsula . As the northernmost of all the Chinese states during this time period, Yan faced incursions from steppe nomads and as such, built great walls. According to Sima Qian 's Records of

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372-577: The Grand Historian , King Wu of Zhou deposed King Zhou of Shang at the Battle of Muye ( c.  1046 BC ) and conferred titles to nobles within his domain, including the rulers of the Yan. In the 11th century BC, Yan's capital was based in what is now Liulihe Township , Fangshan District , Beijing , where a large walled settlement and over 200 tombs of nobility have been unearthed. Among

403-577: The King of the Eastern Nomads ( Donghu ) until his death. In the meantime, Yan came under direct control of the Han dynasty and was treated as a princely appanage . Yan is represented by the star Zeta Capricorni in the "Twelve States" asterism , part of the lunar mansion " Girl " in the " Black Tortoise " symbol . Yan is also represented by the star Nu Ophiuchi in the "Left Wall" asterism in

434-686: The Xiongnu northward for 1,000 li (about 416 km) and began work on what has become known as the Great Wall to guard against invasion. The defensive works he began were said to extend over 10,000 li (4,158 km) "from Lintao to Liaodong and even extended across the Yellow River and through Yangshan and Beijia.", that is, from the southwest corner of the Ordos Loop to the Yellow Sea. Yangshan and Beijia are hard to locate, but

465-566: The author of the work, declared that the government and nature of the people were reflective of the terrain they live in. Of Yan, he said: Yan's defensive formations are solid but lack flexibility(燕陳守而不走). and: The Yan are a sincere and straightforward people. They act prudently, love courage and esteem righteousness while rarely employing deception. Thus they excel in defensive positions, but are immobile and inflexible. To defeat them, immediately apply pressure with small attacks and retreat rapidly. When they turn to face our attacks, we should keep

496-461: The defense against the Donghu. The Central Plains states seemed to hold Yan culture and other peripheral states like Qin in low regard. Archaeological discoveries in the state of Yan have uncovered ornaments that, while inscribed with Chinese writing, were close in style to that of the northern nomadic tribes. The currency of Yan was crafted into the shape of a knife, a form closely associated with

527-677: The early first millennium BC. After the authority of the Zhou king declined during the Spring and Autumn period in the 8th century BC, Yan survived and became one of the strongest states in China. During the Warring States period from the 5th to 3rd centuries BC, Yan was one of the last states to be conquered by the armies of Qin Shihuang : Yan fell in 222 BC, the year before the declaration of

558-491: The highway from Lanzhou to Zhongwei opened. Zhongwei's main attraction is Gao Miao, a temple that has hosted Confucian , Buddhist , and Taoist ceremonies. A bomb shelter was also built beneath the temple during the Cultural Revolution . It has since been converted into a rendition of a Buddhist hell. The prefecture is also the location of the beginning of the northern bend in the Yellow River that produces

589-497: The king of Chu , in his war against Qin. When Zang Tu returned, Han Guang was ordered to become King of Liaodong instead. When Han Guang refused, Zang Tu killed him and declared himself King of both Yan and Liaodong. Zang Tu submitted Yan to the Han dynasty during the war between Han and Chu in order to keep his title, but once the war was finished he revolted. Liu Bang (later Emperor Gaozu of Han ) sent Fan Kuai and Zhou Bo to put down

620-567: The king of Qin (later Qin Shi Huang ), hoping to end the Qin threat. The mission failed, with Jing Ke dying at the hands of the King of Qin in Xianyang . Surprised and enraged by such a bold act, the king of Qin called on Wang Jian to destroy Yan. Crushing the bulk of the Yan army at the frozen Yi River , Ji fell the following year and the ruler, King Xi, fled to the Liaodong Peninsula. In 222 BC, Liaodong fell as well, and Yan

651-574: The most significant artifacts from the Liulihe Site is a bronze ding with inscriptions that recount the journey of the eldest son of the Duke of Yan, who delivered offerings to the King of Zhou in present-day Xi'an and was awarded a position in the king's court. Some time during the 7th century BC in the late Western Zhou or early Eastern Zhou , Yan absorbed the State of Ji , a smaller kingdom to

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682-539: The nomads. This form of currency might have been specially made for trade with the nomads, demonstrating the importance of commercial relations with them. The strongest opposition came from the Qi, one of the strongest states in China. A succession crisis started in Yan in 325 BC when king Zikuai symbolically resigned his throne in favor of his minister Zizhi to prove his humility; the minister took advantage and seized power. While this crisis happened, in 314 BC Qi invaded and in

713-412: The north and moved its capital to that of Ji in modern-day Xicheng District , Beijing. To the south, the bordering states of Zhao and Qi were Yan's main rivals. The mountainous border in the west between Zhao and Yan became the area in which their armies often clashed. Despite this, the war between Zhao and Yan usually dragged on into a stalemate, requiring the help of other kingdoms to conclude. At

744-405: The northern border for disputing his father's policies, Meng Tian was ordered to assist the prince — a task he had accomplished loyally. When Qin Shi Huang died, Meng Tian's death was caused by Zhao Gao who forged a letter from Qin Shi Huang. He was forced to commit suicide in prison, and his family was killed. Three years after his death, the Qin dynasty collapsed. Meng Tian sometimes appears as

775-477: The rebellion, and they captured and executed Zang Tu. His son Zang Yan fled to exile among the Xiongnu . Lu Wan became the new King of Yan and reigned there for most of Liu Bang's life, until the emperor discovered that he had sent officials to the courts of the rebel Chen Xi and the Xiongnu chanyu Modu . Summoned to the imperial court, Lu Wan feigned illness and then fled to the Xiongnu, who honored him as

806-518: The series. Yan (state) Yan ( Chinese : 燕 ; pinyin : Yān ; Old Chinese pronunciation: * ʔˤe[n] ) was an ancient Chinese state during the Zhou dynasty . Its capital was Ji (later known as Yanjing and now Beijing ). During the Warring States period, the court was also moved to another capital at Xiadu at times. The history of Yan began in the Western Zhou in

837-505: The turn of the 3rd century BC, General Qin Kai launched a series of campaigns against the Donghu and Gojoseon , expanding the kingdom's frontiers nearly one thousand kilometers east to northwestern Korean Peninsula . A Great Wall was constructed on Yan's new northern borders, and five commanderies , Shanggu , Yuyang , Youbeiping , Liaoxi and Liaodong , were subsequently established for

868-577: The wall ran along the Yellow River and included all of the Ordos Loop. Meng Tian's ingenuity can be seen in the efficient (though inhumane) building policy, the consideration of topography, and the utilisation of natural barriers. Meng Tian supervised the construction of a road system linking the former Yan , Qi , Wu and Chu areas, as well as a number of roads especially for imperial use. The system eventually formed played an extremely important role in ancient transportation and economic exchanges. He

899-465: Was a Chinese inventor and military general of the Qin dynasty who distinguished himself in campaigns against the Xiongnu and in the construction of the Great Wall of China . He was the elder brother of Meng Yi . He descended from a great line of military generals and architects. His grandfather, Meng Ao  [ zh ] , was a general from the era of King Zhao ; and his father, Meng Wu ,

930-564: Was also a general who served as a deputy to Wang Jian . In 224 BC, having recently conquered Wei , the Qin king Ying Zheng appointed Li Xin as commander-in-chief and Meng Tian as his vice-general to lead a 200,000 strong army in an assault against Chu . The invasion was successful at first, Meng Tian's army took Qigui but then, both Li Xin's and Meng Tiang's armies were effectively annihilated by Chu troops under Xiang Yan and Lord Changping . Following this defeat, Ying Zheng appointed Qin generals Wang Jian and Meng Wu as commanders of

961-528: Was overrun by Qin. Yan was the third to last state to fall, and with its destruction the fates of the remaining two kingdoms were sealed. In 221 BC, Qin conquered all of China, ending the Warring States period and founding the Qin dynasty . In 207 BC, the Qin dynasty collapsed and China resumed a state of civil war . King Wu Chen of Zhao eventually sent General Han Guang to conquer Yan for Zhao, but upon his conquest, Han Guang appointed himself King of Yan. Han Guang had sent General Zang Tu to assist Xiang Yu ,

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