Why did the first power fail to dominate the world?
Map of the belligerents.
Recently, a reader asked me privately: Wei was a big country in the early Warring States period, why didn't it unify the world? Was Wei's failure to unify the world because it was at a disadvantage because it was surrounded by enemies on all sides?
Answer this question in detail today!
01.On the four black wars of Wei.
The geographical environment of Wei was very harsh, and it was surrounded by enemies on all sides.
Wei is located in the Central Plains, rich in natural resources, and its economic strength is unmatched. In the early years, the Wei State also attached great importance to the construction of water wells, and agriculture developed rapidly.
More neighbors does not mean more enemies. Just because there are four wars in a country does not mean that there are wars everywhere.
Wei was not the only warrior among the warring four kingdoms.
For example, Qin has Yiqu in the north, Bashu in the south, and Dali and Sanjin in the east. The Qin State and Yiqu fought for hundreds of years, suffering countless casualties and seriously weakening the national strength.
Opening the history books, it is not difficult for us to find that the Qin State followed Sima Cuo's advice to destroy Shu and destroyed the Shu State. In fact, otherwise, Shu and Qin also fought for more than a hundred years, Shu continued to move north, and Qin and Shu fought for Nanzheng (now Hanzhong), also because you lived and died. The Eastern Three Jins, not to mention the early Warring States period, can basically be said to be the Three Jin Dynasty for hegemony. The Three Jin Dynasty in the East, not to mention the Three Jin Dynasty in the early Warring States Period, can basically be said to be the Three Jin Dynasty contending, but the Qin State can still penetrate deep into the enemy country and defeat the strong enemy in one go, which is the inherent requirement of the correct strategy of the Qin State.
The main problem of Wei was that he was already in the land of four wars, but he was actively attacking from all sides. He attacked Hexi and fought to the death with the Qin state. He fought to the death with the state of Chu and expanded his territory in the Central Plains. He also attacked Chaoguo many times and conquered Handan. He also did not have a good relationship with the state of Qi, which started a war and harmed the state of Wei. Due to annexation and mistakes in diplomatic strategy, the Wei state fell into a serious war.
If it is said that the attack on Hexi and Chu is for the territory of the Central Plains, then the attack on Zhongshan is inexplicable. When Zhao borrowed money, Zhao saw this clearly, because Zhao agreed to lend money to Wei Guohua, then Wei would not be able to rule effectively even if Zhongshan was destroyed. When Wei conquered Zhongshan, there were actually four territories, but they were not connected to each other. Of course, after Wei destroyed Zhongshan, although the crown prince was sent to rule, Zhongshan was eventually restored with the dowry of Zhao.
The attack on Zhao was also even more absurd, although Handan was very close to Wei, it was not so easy to destroy Zhao, not only exhausted the national strength, but also lost a large number of elites, and Wei never recovered after Qin seized the territory of Hexi.
02.Wei's skills.
At the beginning of the Warring States period, Wei was a relatively powerful state, but it was not strong compared to other powers. The strength of Wei is first reflected in the army: the four wars of destroying Hexi, destroying Zhongshan, chasing Chu, and destroying Handan are important symbols of Wei's strength. However, it was these wars that depleted Wei's national strength.
For example, the Wei state was not much stronger than the Qi state. For example, although Qin occupied the territory west of the Wei River, the Qin took the opportunity to attack Wei and gradually recaptured the territory west of the Wei River.
The reason why Wei was strong was because he used a lot of abilities: Li Kui, Wu Qi, Le Yang, Ximen Leopard, Zi Xia, Zhai Huang, etc., were all staunch supporters of Wei.
As I said, an important reason for the weakening of the Wei state was the loss of ability. Wu Qi, Sun Bin, Shang Ying, Zhang Yi, and Fan Sui were all from Wei. Even if Wei exerts half of its capabilities, it will not do anything stupid to conquer the world.
03.A Brief History of the Wei State.
Finally, I would like to briefly introduce the history of the Wei State. Sima Qian's "Records of the Historians" has some inaccuracies in the chronology, and Yang Kuan has done an excellent job of completing and correcting these inaccuracies, giving us a better understanding of the history of Wei today.
1.After a series of attacks and conquests, Wei occupied the area west of the Qin River not far from Yongcheng (Hexi roughly refers to the area between the Yellow River and the Luo River), and Hangu Pass became Wei territory. The Qin State succeeded in destroying Dali, and Dali also became the territory of Wei. At least half of the credit for this should be attributed to Wu Qi.
The Qin State had no choice but to build fortifications outside Luoshui, because after attacking Luoshui, the Qin State would be invincible. Even against Shu, Qin was on the defensive (Qin built fortifications on the site of the current Hanzhong city, which had already been breached by Shu).
In order to consolidate the fruits of victory, Wei built a city in Hexi and built the Great Wall.
2.Wei then turned to Zhongshan. In order to destroy Zhongshan, it is necessary to pass through the Zhao State first, and the Zhao State agrees with the Wei State to go out of the customs. Zhao was defeated and allowed Wei to destroy him. When Wei destroyed Zhongshan, he thought that Zhongshan was an enclave and difficult to rule. After three years of fierce fighting, Zhongshan was destroyed. As Zhao Guo expected, Wei State bit Zhongshan Guo and did not let go. Taking advantage of Wei's wars with other countries, Zhongshan was re-established with the support of Qi and fell victim to the reforms of King Wuling of Zhao and was considered insignificant.
3.At the beginning of the three Jin Dynasty, they often went in and out together. By chance, the Qi Guotian brothers had a conflict and implicated Zhao Guo. The Three Jin Dynasty went to war with the State of Qi, and the State of Qi was defeated. The weapons of the Zhou royal family were not heavy, and seeing that there was still no problem, they quickly recognized the status of the princes of the Three Jin Dynasty.
When Chu, Wei, and Han attacked Zheng, the three Jin joined forces and attacked Chu several times. At the same time, the state of Wei seized the Great Liang from the state of Chu.
During this period, the Three Jin Dynasties arose, and the Chu, Qin, and Qi dynasties were still developing. Smaller neighboring states, such as Wei, Zheng, and Song, suffered even greater losses, losing territory piece by piece like a cake. Wei's territory in the Central Plains was initially small, just an enclave. After many battles, Wei greatly expanded its territory on both sides of the Yellow River.
There was a dispute between the Wei and Chu states, and the two sides talked about Yuguan and other places.
4.The internal interests of Sanjin are unevenly distributed and full of contradictions. Wei and Han expanded their territory in the south. The state of Zhao did not receive any benefit, so he surrendered to the state of Wei. Wei was the younger brother of Wei, and Wei sent troops to fight Zhao. Zhao asked Zhao Hui for help, but Zhao Hui had to swallow the losses of Wei and happily send troops. Wei could not resist the attack of Zhao and Chu from north to south, and shed a lot of blood. In this battle, the geographical disadvantage of Wei became apparent.
5.After the death of Marquis Wu of Wei, there was a political vacuum in Wei, and Zhao and Han sent troops to intervene. Han wanted to divide Wei into two, and Zhao wanted to occupy Wei's territory. In the end, the two sides quarreled endlessly, South Korea withdrew its troops, Wei Zhao singled out, and Zhao's army was obviously defeated. After King Wei Hui ascended the throne, he expanded the territory and built the Great Wall, and the construction of the country was in full swing.
6.Wei dealt with the Central Plains, and Qin slowed down the Western Regions (Xiangong Reform), during which he won a battle with Zheng in Southern Shu, and blocked the Yiqu front line, defeating the Han and Wei coalition forces. Wei was not convinced and demanded a war. The Qin State got its wish and killed 60,000 Wei troops at Shimen, and if it had not saved the Zhao State at a critical moment, the Wei State would have suffered a major defeat for the first time. When the Zhou royal family saw that a strong west wind was blowing in Qin, they rushed to congratulate them.
7.The three concubines were constantly contradictory, and of course Wei couldn't forget the strong interference of Han and Zhao in front of Wei. There was a great battle between Wei, Zhao, and Han, and Wei won. The Three Jin Alliances no longer exist, but the former allies have largely returned to their places.
Qin couldn't miss such a good opportunity, so he hurriedly sent troops to stab Wei in the back and capture Wei Xianggong Sun Yan alive.
8.The state of Wei was in trouble, the three kingdoms of Han, Zhao and Qin were eyeing each other, Anyi was in danger, and King Hui of Wei moved the capital to Daliang to avoid danger. At this time, the three dynasties of the Jin Kingdom have all completed the relocation of their capitals. After moving the capital to Daliang, it was natural to expand the territory. In the area near Handan, Wei bit Zhao and Zhao was defeated. The states of Zhao and Wei exchanged some enclaves and bumpy strips to make the area more manageable. Under pressure from the Wei state, Korea replaced the important transportation artery of the Wei state, ōdō. The state of Wei made great achievements in connecting the territories of the two countries.
9, Wei Guo is Wei Guo's younger brother, Zhao Guo continued to beat him, Wei Guo had a flexible brain, and hurriedly shouted, Brother Zhao Guo, I am your younger brother. Wei Guo is not happy, after all, who is the eldest brother? Song and Wei were the younger brothers in the siege of Handan, and Zhao went to Qi for help. Qi Tianji and Sun Bin surrounded Wei to save Zhao and played with Wei for a while. But in fact, the first siege of Wei to save Zhao was not completely successful, and Handan was still besieged.
10.Seeing that they were fighting inextricably, Qin repeated the old trick and sent troops to stab Wei in the back. Wei was vulnerable, so he had to let Qin stab him in the back and give up the old capital Anyi to Qin. Of course, the state of Chu did not miss the opportunity to help the state of Zhao, and actually came to cut the territory of the state of Wei, and the king of Wei Hui happened to crusade and occupy Handan. So the State of Qi immediately dispatched the Han ** team to defeat the combined forces of Wei and Song (Song Wei is really a model of stonemasons). Qi couldn't support it and asked King Hui to come forward and make peace with Wei.
At this time, Wei was deeply hurt by Qin, and took the initiative to negotiate peace with Zhao and return Handan to Zhao. After Wei defended the Central Plains, he immediately dispatched troops to attack Qin and regain the lost territory. Qin Xiaogong finally met King Wei Hui:"Big brother, let's have a good talk.
At the same time, part of Hexi's territory remained in the hands of Wei. The Wei army was also exhausted from the endless fighting. Fortunately, there are many water conservancy projects in Wei, agriculture is developed, and logistics support is good.
11.Wei attacked Han again, and Han asked Qi for help. Sun Bin was obsessed and let them fight for a year, and finally sent troops, and the Wei State sent the main force to meet it. Everyone knows about the Battle of Maling, needless to say, the Wei State was defeated badly. Korea did not ask for help from any country, and the DPRK, Qin, and Zhi attacked from three sides, and Wei was in trouble and defeated.
Wei and Qin continued to fight, Wei was not convinced, several defeats, each time the lord was captured alive, Gongzi Ang and his lord Wei Er were captured and defected to Qin.
12.Wei was defeated, and Xiangguo adopted Hui Shi's suggestion and made peace with Qi, and Qi and Wei respected each other as kings ("Xuzhou Xiangguo"). Qin and Chu resigned from the throne, and after Xiangguo ascended the throne, he sent troops to attack Wei and Qi. At this time, the Qin state was still fighting against the Wei state, which was not a match for the Qin state and lost most of its territory, while the territory west of Hexi fell into the hands of the Qin state. The state of Qin tasted the sweetness and continued to fight against the state of Wei. The state of Qin tasted the sweetness and continued to attack the state of Wei, launching wave after wave of attacks. The territory east of the river also began to decline. Wei had to cede all fifteen counties of Shang to Qin. The loss of Hexi and the upper reaches meant that the Yellow River was monopolized by the Qin state, and the Wei state was no longer in danger.
13.The state of Qin was strong, and the state of Wei had to unite with other countries to attack Qin. Gongsun Yan implemented the policy of reco-Zhu State, and there was a good situation of the Five Kingdoms attacking Qin, pushing King Chu Huai to the head of the Zhu State (Wei State was no longer the first power). However, Qi and Chu refused to send troops, and the Three Jin sent troops to attack Qin. Sanjin was still defeated by the Qin State, and the Qin State didn't care about his ass, he only cared about his own face.
The Qin State was empty-handed and attacked Yiqu many times. Yiqu's death was approaching, and Qin took Bashu into his arms. Later, the Qin State became stronger and stronger, and the Sanjin sat and watched the Qin State sharpen its sword. The Qin State continued to attack the Three Jins, and the Wei and Han countries could not bear it anymore and had to ask the Qin State for help.
The state of Qin was no longer at war with the Three Jins, and the domestic situation was changing. At the same time, the states of Qi and Chu formed an alliance, and the two military blocs launched an unprecedented war. The Qin army showed strong combat effectiveness and fiercely defeated the Chu army (the state of Chu was more and more defeated, until the generals of the state of Jing were sent, and the clan was willing to give it, and the power of the Shang martingale's change can be seen from here), captured more than 70 Chu generals, blocked the counterattacks of the state of Chu again and again, and seized a large area of territory of the state of Chu.
The Qin State defeated the Qi army in a row, and the Qi general Kuang Zhang returned to the Qi State crying. Of course, Kuang Zhang later took revenge, but that's another story. Han and Wei followed Qin Yan's attack on Chu, and the meat went to Qin's family to drink soup.
During this period, Wei became part of Qin's vassals.
15.Since the state of Chu abandoned the alliance, the three kingdoms of Qi, Wei, and Han formed a new alliance and defeated the Chu army in the Battle of Babel. The process of defeating the state of Chu was not pleasant, and they had to fight hard. The coalition forces attacked Hanguan again. The Qin state was a little overwhelmed, so they cut some meat and returned a large area of territory to the Wei state. The coalition forces pursued the victory, taught the Yan State a lesson, and won a complete victory.
At the same time, Zhao ignored them, but secretly made waves, dominated Zhongshan, and fed on them.
On the 16th, the state of Qin pointed the finger at the state of Chu, which had important territory. The state of Qin broke the alliance between Qi and Chu, and the white-clothed king of Chu, King Huai, foolishly helped the state of Qin once, causing the state of Chu to lose a large amount of territory. The Qin state succeeded in unifying Guanzhong, Hanzhong, and Bashu. The state of Qin insulted the monarch Meng Weijun, Xiaotian submitted to the state of Qi, and the king of Qi Wei led the allied forces of the Han Dynasty to attack the state of Qin, and the war lasted for three years, they attacked the Han pass, and the state of Qin returned some territory to the state of Wei.
The Qin state continued to adhere to the annexation strategy, and Bai Qi beheaded 240,000 Han and Wei people at Yiqu. The Qin State attacked fiercely, occupying the territory of Han and Wei, and capturing 61 cities of the Wei State in one fell swoop. Under the continuous attacks of Qin, Wei ceded a territory of 400 li east of the river to Qin, and Wei's territory was greatly reduced. The Qin State did not give up, and the Wei State hurriedly knelt down to profess itself as a vassal and continued to offer the city to the Qin State. The Khan was not fooled: "If you have land, don't we have it?" He first offered two hundred miles of land, and then gave Yiyang City to the Qin State.
18. The Qin State was too strong, and the five states of Shandong jointly launched an attack on the Qin State, and the five countries each had their own small abacus, and the coalition forces stopped in the Central Plains and did not advance. The abdication of the Qin State is also very reasonable, and it is considered to be the end of the test.
Because of the insidious and cunning of the Qi State, the Qin State organized the Five Kingdoms to jointly attack the Qi State. Wei and Han were overjoyed to see that the spearhead was not for them. The Five Kingdoms defeated the Qi State, and the Yan State almost destroyed the Qi State. The state of Qin in turn beat the state of Chu to the point that it lost the capital, and now it was the turn of the state of Wei to run and hug the thigh of the state of Zhao. Han Xin is still very clear: Boss Qin, I am your person. The combined forces of Zhao and Wei were defeated, and the Qin army killed 150,000 troops of the Zhao and Wei coalition forces in Huayang. Qin led his brother Han to besiege Daliang, and this fortified city could not be conquered.
Qin XIX felt that Zhao Guo was a little interesting. Zhao Hao attacked the Qin State in the city of Yancheng, but it was only a skirmish and there was nothing special. The unprecedented victory of the Qin state at Changping, the burial alive of 400,000 Zhao troops, and the defeat of the Qin army at Handan by reinforcements from the Wei and Chu states, are all well known and I will not go into details.
The Wei State took advantage of the victory to seize the pottery land occupied by the Qin State, and destroyed the Wei State in the process, which can be regarded as a kind of blood tonic. The Qin state soon made a comeback, seizing not only many of Wei's lands, but also the lands that Wei had been destroyed by the Qin state, and establishing the Eastern District on these lands.
The Qin army launched a war of attrition and besieged Daliang, the king of Wei surrendered, and the state of Wei perished.