Discover

'King Gou Jian of Yue' (越王句踐) (reigned 496 BC - 465 BC) was the king of the Kingdom of Yue (present-day Shanghai, northern Zhejiang and southern Jiangsu) near the end of the Spring and Autumn Period, named 'Luo Gou Jian' (雒句踐). Gou Jian was the son of Marquess Yun Chang of Yue.

Contents

War between Wu and Yue

See also

War between Wu and Yue

The war was made up of a number of phases. It was started when a Yue princess, who was married to one of the princes of the neighbouring State of Wu, left her husband and fled back to the country of Yue. This became the spark for the war to come. During the first encounter or phase, the country of Yue won against the country of Wu. The aftermath of the first encounter was the death of the then Wu king, which resulted in the new King Fu Chai of Wu's determination to destroy and conquer Yue. During the second phase, Gou Jian was defeated and captured by King Fu Chai. After three years of servitude and humiliation with his wife in the State of Wu, he gained the trust of King Fu Chai who eventually allowed him to return to his state where he resumed his rule and initiated major reforms. The start of the third phase of the war began during this time, and it consisted in a long period of consolidation of power and resources by the state of Yue to enable it to succeed in a new phases of fighting against the state of Wu. King Gou Jian quickly appointed skilled politicians as advisors, such as Wen Zhong and Fan Li, to help build up the kingdom. During this time, his ministers also worked to weaken the State of Wu internally through bribes and diplomatic intrigue. All the time, whilst ruling his kingdom, Gou Jian never relished in riches as a king, but instead he slept on sticks and eating food suited for peasants. This way, he could remember his humiliations while serving under the State of Wu. There is a Chinese idiom, "Wo Xin Chang Dan" (literally meaning "sleeping on sticks and tasting gall"), which came about because of this and his perseverance. After ten years of economic and political reforms the last phase of the war began, when Gou Jian's state at last became powerful enough to challenge and eventually annex the State of Wu in 478 BC, where King Fu Chai was forced to commit suicide. Later, King Gou Jian met the dukes in Xuzhou and gained hegemony among the states.
King Gou Jian's army was known for forcing their front line to commit suicide by decapitation to scare their enemy before battle. The front line of soldiers were all convicted criminals who were sentenced to be put to death for their crimes, but who were coerced into killing themselves in this manner by threatening their families with death if they did not.

See also

★ Sword of Gou Jian

★ Xi Shi