The Zhou Dynasty is the longest surviving dynasty in Chinese history, lasting more than 800 years. What is the reason why it has been able to last so long?In general, the reason why the Zhou Dynasty was able to last so long was partly due to the possibilities given by the historical stage in which it was locatedOn the other hand, the establishment of the Zhou Dynasty system played an important role in its continuation. Strictly speaking, the Western Zhou period from King Wu's invasion to King Ping's eastward migration was only more than 200 years, but this period of time has been quite long. As for the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, although it is still known as the Zhou Dynasty in history, it has actually existed in name only, somewhat similar to the reign of Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty, which was still regarded as the Eastern Han Dynasty, but in fact it was the Three Kingdoms era. Mr. Su Bingqi, a well-known scholar in the field of Chinese archaeology, believes that two key issues in ancient Chinese history are: first, the formation process of early Chinese society;The second is how China gradually developed from a clan society to a country. Based on the rich archaeological results of the Paleolithic and Neolithic periods, he proposed that China went through a process from a clan society to an ancient state, then to a fang state, and finally to an empire.
According to his research, about 4,000 years ago, ancient Chinese civilization entered the stage of Central Plains civilization from the state of "starry sky", that is, the ancient kingdom period. This time node is consistent with the beginning of the Xia Dynasty recorded in the historical records. After hundreds of years of Shang Dynasty, the Zhou Dynasty became the heyday of the Fang Kingdom and what some scholars call the "Kingdom". During the Shang Dynasty, the political geography included the three levels of Wangji, Situ and Sizhi. "Huainanzi Tai Ethnic Training" said: "The land of the East China Sea on the left, quicksand on the right, Jiaozhi in the front, and the secluded capital in the back." This indicates that its sphere of influence roughly covers the seaside in the east, Gansu in the west, Wuling in the south, and Yanshan in the north. This may be the sphere of influence of Shang culture, and its actual control may be smaller. According to historical records, the territory of Xia was smaller, and although the Yin Shang expanded, the scale was still not large, which indicates that the ancient kingdom was still in the stage of development and growth at that time. However, by the time of the Zhou Dynasty, the territory area expanded rapidly.
At the beginning of the Western Zhou Dynasty, the territory of the Zhou Dynasty reached the Shandong Peninsula in the east, the upper reaches of the Han River in the south, the lower reaches of the Yangtze River and the Taihu Lake Basin in the southeast, the Bashu area in the southwest, the upper reaches of the Weihe River in Gansu in the west, the Huoshan area in the Fenhe River Basin in the northwest, and the Kazuo and Chaoyang areas in Liaoning in the north. The Chengkang period of the Western Zhou Dynasty was the most powerful period of the Western Zhou Dynasty, and its territory was vast, reaching the Liaodong Peninsula in the east, the southern part of Shaanxi in the west, and the Yangtze River in the south, far exceeding the Xia and Shang periods. Professor Li Ling pointed out that the Western Zhou Dynasty was the first dynasty in Chinese history to achieve "great unification". This build-up of national and military strength is based on the further development of the productive forces. During the Yin Shang period, bronze was used more as a "ritual vessel", although it was used as a tool. In the Western Zhou Dynasty, bronze was widely used for agricultural tools. It has been said that what matters is not what people produce, but what tools they use to produce it. Zhouyuan is located in a remote area, but the land here is fertile and located on the east-west transportation artery, which facilitates the exchange of metallurgical and agricultural technology.
In the situation map of the Shang Dynasty, without these conditions, it is impossible to compete with the Shang Dynasty, which has lived in the Central Plains for a long time, let alone to win. Although there is no record in history, it is certain that the Western Zhou royal family must have carefully studied its most powerful opponent before defeating the Shang Dynasty, and summarized the shortcomings of the Shang Dynasty to improve its own political system. This can be seen from the "Edict" and "Oath" of the "Book of Shang". The biggest mistake of the Shang Dynasty was that it did not resolutely implement the patriarchal system of "father dies and son succeeds". The Shang clan moved their capitals frequently, mainly because of the internal power struggles of the royal family, and the root cause of these civil strife was "brother to brother". Therefore, the most important thing at the beginning of the establishment of the Western Zhou Dynasty was to clarify its own patriarchal system, the core of which was male inheritance and succession from father to son. Wang Guowei pointed out in "The Theory of the Yin and Zhou Systems": "If the state does not inherit the status of the monarch according to the bloodline or aristocratic system, it will cause disputes in the world. He believed that the rule of the monarch must be carried out according to the system of blood or nobility. The Western Zhou Dynasty implemented a sub-feudal system.
On the basis of the patriarchal system, the Western Zhou Dynasty adopted three major strategies: first, "feudal relatives", that is, dividing the children of the same surname and intermarital relatives and letting them manage the vassal states. Soon after the founding of the country, it divided 55 countries with the surname Ji and 16 countries with foreign relatives. The second is to "rise and fall and succeed in extinction", that is, to inherit and end the country and cultivate outstanding talents. It is said that among the princes sealed by the Western Zhou Dynasty, there are descendants of the Yellow Emperor, descendants of Tang Yao, descendants of Yu Shun, descendants of Xia Yu and descendants of Chengtang. Through this method of pacification, the Western Zhou regime successfully avoided the rebellion of the old and the young. Secondly, the Western Zhou Dynasty implemented a foreign policy of "Rouyuan Nengren", that is, Huairou distant ethnic groups and friendly neighbors, and this policy continued to the Han and Tang dynasties. This series of measures ensured the stability of the Western Zhou regime for hundreds of years. It is generally believed that the beginning of the Western Zhou Dynasty was the defeat of King Wu of Zhou in the fourth year (1046 BC).In the first year of King Ping of Zhou (770 BC), King Ping moved eastward, marking the end of the Western Zhou Dynasty and the beginning of the Eastern Zhou DynastyIn the 59th year of King Zhou (256 BC), King Zhaoxiang of Qin moved to Jiuding, which is regarded as the end of the Eastern Zhou regime.
Although the Eastern Zhou Dynasty lasted longer than the Western Zhou Dynasty, there were few political achievements, and the state government did not go out of Wangji, and the Zhou king needed to accommodate the wishes of the powerful princes, in addition to giving the princes official titles, that is, constantly giving tribute. The Five Hegemons of the Spring and Autumn Period and the Seven Heroes of the Warring States Period had not yet been able to replace Zhou Tianzi's position, so they regarded Zhou Tianzi as a symbol and went their own way. Therefore, the reason for combining the Western Zhou and the Eastern Zhou Dynasty for eight hundred years seems far-fetched. The strength of the Western Zhou Dynasty lasted for more than two hundred years. Why is that?Because the production relations and superstructure of the Western Zhou Dynasty were compatible with the level of social development at that time. Evidence of the strength of the Western Zhou Dynasty is rare in the documents of the Western Zhou Dynasty, which is precisely because the Zhou Dynasty was so powerful that all government decrees, documents, and cultural classics were stored in the palace, even including the doctrines and private schools of thought. Subsequently, productivity was further developed. Not only did the Zhou Dynasty develop internally, but the nomads outside also grew, and their strength increased, frequently attacking and harassing the Western Zhou Dynasty, and even causing the Dog Rong to break through the Zhou capital, and King Ping had to move the capital.
Internally, the development of the productive forces has concentrated wealth in the princes, land development has increased, and the princes no longer abide by the principle of "the world is for the public". During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, Zhou Tianzi had lost his actual power, and the princes began to compete with each other for hegemony, which led to chaos during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. It was in this chaos that China's leap to the imperial stage was born. Ultimately, the roots of everything can be traced back to economic development. Economic development will inevitably bring about changes in the superstructure. Therefore, we should not believe the exaggeration of the "three dynasties", especially the Western Zhou Dynasty, which began to circulate in Confucianism in the Han Dynasty.