Shang Yang facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Shang Yang |
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Statue of pivotal reformer Shang Yang
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| Chinese | 商鞅 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Shang Yang (Chinese: 商鞅; around 390 – 338 BC) was an important Chinese thinker and politician. He was also known as Wei Yang (Chinese: 衞鞅). His original family name was Gongsun.
Shang Yang was born in the state of Wei during the Warring States period. This was a time when many small states in China were fighting each other. He became a statesman, a top government official called a chancellor, and a reformer. He worked for the State of Qin. His ideas and changes helped make Qin very strong. These changes set up the way Qin was run, its economy, and its government. Because of his work, Qin was able to conquer the other states. This led to China being united for the first time under the Qin dynasty. Many experts believe that Shang Yang and his followers wrote The Book of Lord Shang. This book is a key text for a way of thinking called Chinese legalism.
Contents
Shang Yang's Life Story
Shang Yang was born into the ruling family of a small state called Wey (衞). His mother was a concubine. His family name was Gongsun, and his personal name was Yang. Because he was part of the Wei family, people also called him Wei Yang.
When he was young, Yang studied law. He got a job working for Prime Minister Shuzuo in the state of Wei (魏). This Wei was a different state from his birth state. Later, with help from Duke Xiao of Qin, Yang left his low-ranking job. He became the main adviser in the state of Qin.
His many changes helped turn Qin from a less important state into a very strong kingdom. It became powerful in its military and had a strong central government. Changes to Qin's laws helped the state become rich. These laws were said to be based on Li Kui's Canon of Laws. Shang Yang also made the government better by choosing people for jobs based on their skills, not their family. This made the power of the old noble families weaker.
In 341 BC, Qin attacked the state of Wei. Shang Yang himself led the Qin army to defeat Wei. After the defeat, Wei gave up land west of the Yellow River to Qin. For his success in the war, Yang received 15 cities in a place called Shang. This became his personal land. He then became known as the lord of Shang (Shang Jun) or Shang Yang.
According to the Records of the Grand Historian, Shang Yang used his old connections from his time in Wei. He invited Gongzi Ang, a Wei general, to talk about a peace treaty. As soon as Ang arrived, he was captured. The Qin army then attacked and won easily.
Shang Yang also oversaw the building of the city of Xianyang. This city later became the capital of Qin.
Shang Yang's Major Reforms
Han Fei, a famous Legalist thinker, said that Shang Yang created two main ideas:
- "fixing the standards" (Chinese: 定法): This meant making clear and unchanging rules for everyone.
- "equality before the law" (Chinese: 一民): This meant that everyone, no matter how important, was treated the same under the law.
Shang Yang believed in the rule of law. He thought that loyalty to the state was more important than loyalty to one's family. He brought in two main sets of changes to the State of Qin.
The first set of changes happened in 356 BC:
- He put Li Kui's Book of Law into practice. He added a new rule: if you knew about a crime but didn't tell the government, you would get the same punishment as the person who committed the crime. He made sure these changes became official laws that everyone had to follow. These laws were very strict, and the punishments were harsh.
- Soldiers were given land based on how well they did in battle. Noble families who refused to fight lost their land rights. The army was divided into twenty military ranks, based on how much they achieved on the battlefield. These military changes made Qin citizens want to join the army. This helped Qin build the strong military it needed to unite China.
- Qin needed more people to work. So, Shang Yang encouraged people to farm unused lands and empty areas. He also encouraged people from other states to move to Qin. He favored agriculture (farming) over expensive commerce (buying and selling goods). However, he also recognized successful merchants.
Shang Yang introduced his second set of changes in 350 BC. These included a new, standard way of giving out land. He also made changes to how taxes were collected.
Many of Shang Yang's changes were ideas that had been used in other states. But Shang Yang's reforms were much more complete and extreme. They put all the power to make decisions in the hands of the ruler. Under his leadership, Qin quickly caught up with and passed other states in its reforms.
Changes to Daily Life
Shang Yang made many changes to how people lived and worked.
- He changed land ownership. Land became private property. Farmers who grew more crops than required were rewarded. Farmers who didn't meet their goals could become state-owned workers. These workers could then be given as rewards to those who followed government rules.
- Qin needed more people compared to other states. So, Shang Yang made rules to increase the number of people. As Qin farmers joined the military, he encouraged peasants from other states to move to Qin to work. This helped Qin get more workers and also made Qin's rivals weaker. Shang Yang made laws that forced people to marry at a young age. He also created tax laws to encourage families to have many children. He even made rules to free convicts if they worked to clear unused land for farming.
- Shang Yang partly ended primogeniture. This was a tradition where the oldest son inherited everything. He also put a double tax on families that had more than one son living in the same house. This was to break up large family groups into smaller, nuclear families.
- Shang Yang moved the capital city from Yueyang to Xianyang. This was done to reduce the influence of noble families on the government. Xianyang remained Qin's capital until it fell in 207 BC.
Shang Yang's Death
The noble families in Qin strongly disliked Shang Yang. He became vulnerable after Duke Xiao died. The next ruler, King Huiwen, ordered the nine familial exterminations against Shang Yang and his family. This meant that Shang Yang and his entire family, including distant relatives, would be executed. The reason given was that Shang Yang was trying to start a rebellion. Shang Yang had previously embarrassed the new duke by making him punished for a mistake as if he were an ordinary person.
According to Zhan Guo Ce, Shang Yang tried to hide. At one point, he was refused a room at an inn. This was because one of his own laws said that guests could not be admitted without proper identification.
Shang Yang and his whole family were executed. However, even after his death, King Huiwen kept the important changes that Shang Yang had put in place.
There are a few different stories about Shang Yang's death. According to Sima Qian in his Records of the Grand Historian, Shang Yang first escaped to Wei. But people there hated him for betraying General Gongzi Ang earlier. So, he was forced to leave Wei. Shang Yang then fled to his own land, where he gathered a rebel army. But he was killed in battle.
How People Saw Shang Yang
A. F. P. Hulsewé called Shang Yang the "founder of the school of law." He thought that Shang Yang's most important contribution was making punishments the same for everyone. This meant that anyone who disobeyed the king's orders, no matter how important they were, would face the same death penalty.
In Stories and Popular Culture
- He was played by Shi Jingming in The Legend of Mi Yue (2015). His execution was shown.
- He was played by Wang Zhifei in the TV series The Qin Empire as a main character.
See also
In Spanish: Shang Yang para niños
- Shizi
