Warlords: History & Biographies

The Kingdom of Wei

Location
The ancient Kingdom of Wei occupied the lands around the Yellow River where it makes its great loop, roughly equating to the southern portions of modern Shanxi province and northern Henan province.

Pre-Qin Empire
Wei was established as a formidable kingdom after it had absorbed many of the lands controlled by the Kingdom of Jin during the Warring States period. When the Zhou Dynasty finally ceased to exist, Wei attempted to set itself up as a new dynasty, but suffered from its central location, being attacked by Qi, Hann, Zhao and Qin in succession. As Qin and Chu became more powerful, Wei slowly lost its standing as a powerful kingdom, slowly becoming subordinate to the Kings of Qin. Ruled by King Wei Jia, Wei was finally conquered by the Qin General Wang Ben after having had disastrous flooding in 225 BC.

Post-Qin Empire
When the Qin Empire began to fail in 209 BC and Chen She began his rebellion, a descendent of Wei Jia, Wei Jiu, was set up as the new King of Wei by the Chen She’s general Zhou Shi. Wei Jiu’s reign would be short, ending when the Qin Supreme Commander Zhang Han marched out of Qin and destroyed his armies. Jiu, in attempt to have his people spared, committed suicide.

A year later Wei was freed from Qin domination by the Chu General Xiang Yu, and Wei Jiu’s brother Wei Bao inherited the throne. When the war between Liu Bang and Xiang Yu started, Wei Bao took Liu Bang’s side, but his courage failed him after a crushing rout at the hands of Xiang Yu in Chu, and he fled back to Wei, where he closed his borders and attempted to remain neutral. Liu Bang overran Wei, and after removing Wei Bao as king, made Peng Yue king of Wei for his good service. After the conclusion of the war, Peng Yue was also granted the title of King of Liang, but his extensive lands made him a target for Liu Bang’s ever-suspicious court. Peng Yue was captured and executed for treason three years after Xiang Yu’s defeat, and Liu Bang split Wei into several provinces with their own governors, unwilling to have powerful Kings in position to rebel against him.

Kings Wei Jiu Wei Bao Peng Yue	Major Officers Zhou Shi
Minor Officers Hu Zhe Huang Xin Wei Wuzhi Wu Pu Yong Chi

All information derived from the Burton Watson translation of Sima Qian's Records of the Grand Historian

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