Eastern Zhou

According to traditional historical texts, such as the Records of the Grand Historian, in 770 BCE, the Zhou capital was moved from Haojing (Chang'an County in Xi'an City) to Chengzhou, near present-day Luoyang.

In the second year of his reign, he moved the capital east to Luoyi as Quanrong people invaded Haojing, spelling the end of the Western Zhou dynasty.

After he was killed in 750 BCE, there was no officially recognized King of Zhou for 9 more years, until marquis Wen of Jin brought Ping from Shao'e to the Royal Capital (almost certainly referring to Haojing) and enthroned him.

[4][5] The first half of the Eastern Zhou dynasty, from approximately 771 to 476 BCE, was called the Spring and Autumn period, during which more and more dukes and marquesses obtained regional autonomy, defying the king's court in Luoyi, and waging wars amongst themselves.

Chancellor Guan Zhong of Qi initiated a policy "Revere the king, expel the barbarians" (尊王攘夷, see Sonnō jōi).

King Xiang of Zhou turned to Duke Wen of Jin for help, who killed Prince Dai and was rewarded with rule over Henei and Yangfan.

[3] In 606, King Zhuang of Chu inquired for the first time regarding the "weight of the Nine Tripod Cauldrons" only to be rebuffed by the Zhou minister Wangsun Man (王孫滿).

King Nan of Zhou managed to preserve his weakened dynasty through diplomacy and conspiracies for fifty-nine years until his deposition and death by Qin in 256 BCE.

A revolutionary transformation of the society was taking place, to which the patriarchal clan system made by the Zhou Dynasty could no longer adapt.

[8] The period's name derives from the Spring and Autumn Annals, a chronicle of the state of Lu between 722 and 479 BCE, which tradition associates with Confucius.

During this period, the Zhou royal authority over the various feudal states started to decline, as more and more dukes and marquesses obtained de facto regional autonomy, defied the king's court in Luoyi, and waged wars amongst themselves.

Zhou territory during the Eastern Zhou
Map of major states in Eastern Zhou
Map of the Five Hegemons during the Spring and Autumn period of Zhou Dynasty
Gold sword hilt, Eastern Zhou, 6-5th century BCE. British Museum . [ 9 ]
The Taerpo horserider , a Qin terracotta figurine from a tomb in the Taerpo cemetery near Xianyang in Shaanxi , 4th-3rd century BCE. This is the earliest known representation of a cavalryman in China. [ 10 ] The outfit is of Central Asian style, probably Scythian, [ 11 ] and the rider with his large nose appears to be a foreigner. [ 10 ] King Zheng of Qin (246–221 BCE) is known to have employed steppe cavalry men in his army, as seen in his Terracotta Army . [ 12 ]