Spring and Autumn War, Aristocratic War, Etiquette War, War without bloody flavor.

Lead: War is an art, especially in the era of cold weapons. A war is not only a struggle between each other, but also a contest between the two sides, including diplomatic envoys and etiquette. In my eyes, the war in China during the Spring and Autumn Period is a model of thousands of years' war. The hegemony in the Spring and Autumn Period is far from being comparable to the bloody battles in the Warring States and Feudal Period. Confucius once said that in the Spring and Autumn Period, the ceremony collapsed and the music was bad, but in my opinion, the ceremony collapsed and the music was bad at the time when the three religions were divided into Jin, that is, at the beginning of the Warring States Period. The war in the Spring and Autumn Period was more about etiquette. The war between nobles in various countries is less bloody and more etiquette. Every war is like an art, which is worth pondering and watching. The Spring and Autumn War was not a simple killing.

1, battle of prestige

In the war in the Spring and Autumn Period, there was a battle for prestige. Most wars are not to attack land or plunder property, but to compete for a reputation higher than that of the vassal States. In the Western Zhou Dynasty, the Zhou royal family was the nominal Lord of all vassal States, that is, the boss of all vassal States. However, since the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, the decline of the Zhou Dynasty and the decline of the Zhou royal family, although nominally the * * * Lord of the vassal States, the control of the vassal States has been unable to compare with before.

At this time, the vassal States began to compete for hegemony, that is, the new "* * * Lord" after the Zhou royal family, but this * * * Lord still could not replace the status of the Zhou royal family, but it surpassed the Zhou royal family in practical influence. As a result, some powerful vassal States, such as Qin, Jin, Chu and Qi, began to compete for the position of vassal "* * *", annexing neighboring small countries first, and then starting a long-term hegemony war.

In fact, the hegemony war in the Spring and Autumn Period is like many children in the same family vying for the position of the boss. The original family leader declined, and other family leaders began to try their best to compete for this position. Monarchs of various countries carry out reforms at home, strengthen their own strength and fight abroad.

This kind of struggle was rare in the Western Zhou Dynasty, but after the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, the power of the Zhou royal family declined. Although it is still the master of the world, it still has no actual control over the princes. Even began to violate the system, the envoys of Emperor Zhou were snubbed by the vassals, and the vassals stopped paying tribute on time.

2. Warlords strive for hegemony

On the basis of the decline of the Zhou royal family and the growing strength of the vassal state, the hegemony in the Spring and Autumn Period began. The first warlord in power was Qi Huangong. Under the auspices of Qi Huangong, Guan Zhong and others were appointed to implement the system of military and political integration. In addition, Qi was originally a big country in the East and quickly became the largest country in the Central Plains. At the same time, he held high the slogan of "respecting the king and rejecting foreign countries" and made many alliances to lead the vassal States of the Central Plains to fight against the northern minorities. Moreover, in view of the growing strength of the southern Chu State, it joined forces with many countries to conquer the southern Chu State, and forced the Chu State to yield on the grounds that it had not paid tribute to the Zhou royal family for a long time. At this point, Qi established its position as the first vassal state in the Spring and Autumn Period, and initiated an oath system, so that every time a new overlord appeared, an oath would be held.

Since the state of Qi, it has opened up the situation of vassal hegemony. Southern countries such as Song, Jin, Chu, Qi and wuyue all participated in the hegemony of governors. However, because Chu is located in the south, it has been rejected by the governors of the Central Plains, so the rulers of Chu have made great efforts to develop. Chu Zhuangwang even went north to Zhou Wang to ask the size of Jiuding, a symbol of power, which showed the power of Chu.

Warlords fight for hegemony, and wars between countries are inevitable. In the Central Plains, the battle of Qi and Jin, the long spoon of Qilu, the flood of Song and Chu, and the battle of Chengpu; In the south, wuyue fought for hegemony for two generations. In addition to the wuyue War, which eventually led to the demise of Wu, the war for hegemony in the Central Plains was a ritual struggle, and the killing of the war was often the second, and it was more to make the other side submit to themselves through war.

1, aristocratic war

Why is the hegemony war in the Spring and Autumn Period an aristocratic war? Because the Spring and Autumn Period was still a slave society, there were clear class regulations when the Western Zhou Dynasty was enfeoffed. The Emperor of Zhou was the Lord of the vassals, who gave the land to the vassals, and the vassals gave the land to Dr. Qing, who also gave the land to the scholars. The power enjoyed by princes, ministers and scholars is the civilians and slaves in their land.

In the Spring and Autumn Period, it was the nobles who really participated in the war. Therefore, in the Spring and Autumn Period, soldiers had the lowest status, but they were all nobles, while civilians and slaves could only serve as auxiliary soldiers to carry grain and grass and ensure logistics supply. This is very similar to the war situation during the ancient Greek city-state system. Democracy in ancient Greece was actually aristocratic democracy. It is aristocrats who really participate in politics and enjoy rights and interests, so they are also the most important soldiers in the war. Pericles, the archon of Athens, and others personally participated in the war.

Therefore, we will find that there are few large-scale casualties in the war in the Spring and Autumn Period, because the defeated party is often the defeated party, but except the soldiers who died in battle, the rest of the soldiers will be well treated. If the commander is captured, the winner should also get the status and treatment he deserves. In the Spring and Autumn Period, there were no cavalry units, and they often relied on chariots to fight. Moreover, the soldiers are mainly nobles, and the number is small. The number of people who actually participated in each war between the two countries may add up to only a few thousand.

There are three people on a chariot, equipped with a considerable number of infantry. The Book of Songs says: Drive four horses, four horses. The generals sat in the car and the soldiers were under its protection. It is said that infantry fight by chariots. Moreover, at that time, Wancheng was a big country, and its military strength was comparable to that of Zhou, and it was difficult to exceed 100 thousand. Therefore, when the two countries are at war, the number of troops actually involved in the war may be thousands or even hundreds.

2. Etiquette dispute

Confucius said that in the Spring and Autumn Period, the ceremony collapsed and the music was bad, but in fact, compared with the war in the Warring States Period, the war etiquette in the Spring and Autumn Period was maintained to some extent. The first thing is to be famous. Qi Huangong became the first overlord in the Spring and Autumn Period because of its slogan of "respecting the king and rejecting foreign countries". Under this slogan, more and more vassal States recognized the hegemony of Qi. Moreover, Qi Huangong led the allied forces to crusade against Chu, which was also based on the fact that King Chu and Zhou Tianzi did not pay tribute for many years, and that Chu did not observe etiquette and respect Zhou Tianzi. The king of Chu knew that he was indefensible and had to admit the status of Qi.

Moreover, when the two countries are at war and famous, envoys may be sent to submit tactics and the monarch represented by the envoys. Therefore, even if the two sides are enemies, they need to treat each other with courtesy and give them due treatment. Then the two sides agreed on the place and time of the decisive battle. For example, in the battle of Qilu, the two sides began to prepare for the attack after fighting against the long spoon and arranging troops. Moreover, the two sides did not attack directly, beating gongs and drums to boost morale, and finally the two sides attacked.

During the Spring and Autumn War, there was a great relationship between respect and inferiority. When you meet an enemy monarch in the war, you must salute and say hello. Even if you defeat the other side and capture the enemy monarch, you should not be bound. You should still treat him as a monarch. In a war between Jin and Chu, the monarch of Jin met the king of Chu many times and had to stop to say hello to him many times. This strange etiquette now seems ridiculous and difficult to understand.

1, the Spring and Autumn Period is over.

However, this highly ritualized war situation only existed in the Spring and Autumn Period. The so-called hegemony in the Spring and Autumn Period is to compete for hegemony and let countries recognize their influence and leadership. War is just a way to achieve it, even an unimportant way. Because in the eyes of the leaders and nobles in the Spring and Autumn Period, as China people, fighting with each other is a great shame. If you kill too much, it's against etiquette.

However, this state ended with the emergence of the last hegemonic vassal state. Wuyue's hegemony has obviously surpassed the traditional hegemony, and it has a distinct war color. Sima Qian wrote in "As a Mirror" that the Warring States period began when Zhao, Zhao and Wei divided Jin, but I think the annexation war of the Warring States period began when Gou Jian, the king of Yue, destroyed Wu.

Merger is the biggest difference between the Warring States and the Spring and Autumn Period. The Spring and Autumn War was only to achieve hegemony. Generally speaking, the war only occurs in the border areas between the two countries, and even if it breaks into a country, it will not have a great impact on the people. However, the war of annexation in the Warring States period turned into an uncontrollable war of conquest, aiming at destroying other countries and acquiring their land and resources. In the Spring and Autumn Period, war was only a way to achieve hegemony. In the Warring States period, war became the only way. Countries have vigorously developed their military forces, and tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of large-scale operations have occurred from time to time.

2. The end of nobility

One of the important reasons why the war in the Warring States period became bloody was the change of class. The foundation of aristocratic rule in the Spring and Autumn Period was the economic situation formed by the Jingtian system, and it was also the class foundation and the tool of production and survival in the slave period. However, with the disintegration of Jingtian system, the foundation of slave society was broken, the civilian class began to grow, and aristocratic rule naturally began to collapse.

The war between nobles is regulated by courtesy, and every move is in line with etiquette, and arbitrary behavior is not allowed. This situation is similar to the knight duel in medieval Europe. Most of the generals in the Spring and Autumn Period were born in nobility, and few civilians were generals. For example, in the battle of Qi and Jin, the general of the State of Jin, Ke, was born in a noble family of the State of Jin, but his surname was Ji. In the Warring States period, the origin of generals was no longer restricted. Tian Lei, one of the four famous generals in the Warring States Period, rose in the process that the King of Qin used civilians as generals.

Because of the rise of the civilian class, civilians began to become the main force of the army, and aristocratic etiquette no longer applied. Even if the monarch encourages soldiers to learn etiquette, it is difficult to change the character formed at birth. Moreover, during the Warring States period, the military title system was mostly implemented. Only the military industry can promote people and improve their status, and where the military industry comes from, it can only kill people on the battlefield. This is also the reason why wars often occur during the Warring States period. In the battle between Qin and Zhao Changping, 400,000 soldiers of Zhao died in vain, which is extremely tragic.

Summary: The Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period let us see more about what nobility is and what aristocratic spirit is. In their eyes, war is only a way to achieve a certain goal, not the only way. The Zhou dynasty ruled the country by courtesy, and the etiquette system of the Western Zhou dynasty was perfected for hundreds of years, which made the vassal States under it follow the etiquette system. In a war, it is necessary to send envoys to each other, agree on a time and place, and wait until the war is over for the two sides to set up their positions. When one party is defeated and escapes, the chasing party shall not kill at will. Captured people will get preferential treatment from the enemy ... these norms seem trivial and extremely cumbersome. But the aristocratic spirit contained in it never appeared again in the next few thousand years. Noble spirit is not an old-fashioned and paranoid concept, but a mentality of treating people with grace at all times.

reference data

Zuo zhuan

Mandarin

Conspiracy in the warring States period