Duke Wen of Jin

Returned home after nineteen years in exile and became hegemon after routing Chu at the Battle of Chengpu.

Life

Nineteen Years in Exile

Duke Wen of Jin, personal name Chong'er, was a son of Duke Xian of Jin. When the court turmoil known as the "Li Ji Turmoil" engulfed the princes, he was forced to flee and spent nineteen years in exile, wandering through Di, Qi, Chu, Qin and other states. Despite many hardships, he befriended many able ministers and rulers who would later help him regain his state.

Hegemony at Chengpu

With the support of the State of Qin he finally returned to Jin and seized the throne, then immediately reformed domestic affairs and expanded the army. In 632 BCE, facing pressure from Chu's northward advance, he honored the promise he had made in exile to "retreat three days' march" and then fought a decisive battle with the Chu army at Chengpu. Allied with Qi, Qin and other states, he routed Chu, then held an assembly of the lords at Jiantu, establishing himself as hegemon of the Central Plains.

Legend and history

Although Duke Wen of Jin's hegemony did not last as long as Duke Huan of Qi's, the State of Jin long dominated Central Plains politics thereafter. Episodes from his exile such as "retreating three days' march" and "Jie Zitui cutting flesh from his thigh to feed his lord" became widely known, but many of their details were repeatedly embellished by later literature and folk legend and differ from the accounts in earlier texts such as the Zuo Zhuan.

Legacy

Duke Wen of Jin did not take the throne until he was past sixty, yet in less than ten years of rule he achieved hegemony, laying the foundation for the State of Jin's position as hegemon of the Central Plains for more than a century afterward. His success owed much to able ministers such as Hu Yan and Zhao Cui who had followed him in exile; among them, Zhao Cui and Wei Chou were the ancestors of the later Zhao and Wei houses, linking them to the eventual Partition of Jin by three families. Idioms such as "Retreating Three Days' March" and "Qin–Jin marriage alliance" both stem from his experiences.

Major works & achievements

• Routed Chu at the Battle of Chengpu
• Confirmed his hegemony at the Jiantu assembly
• Expanded to three armies and reformed domestic government
• Sent troops to restore King Xiang of Zhou

Did you know? The Cold Food Festival is traditionally said to have originated with his mourning for Jie Zitui, who burned to death on Mount Mian, but this account first appears only in later texts.

Key dates

• 655 BCEFled during the Li Ji Unrest
• 637 BCEReturned to Jin after nineteen years in exile
• 636 BCEBecame ruler of the State of Jin
• 632 BCERouted Chu at the Battle of Chengpu
• 632 BCEBecame hegemon at the Covenant of Jiantu
• 628 BCEDied