At the Battle of Makino, King Wu of Zhou defeated the shang king's army and replaced the Shang dynasty. In the process of replacing the Shang Dynasty, King Wu's two younger brothers, Zhou Gongdan and Zhao Gong, were outstanding in their meritorious service, so King Wu of Zhou gave them axes (symbols of military power and state domination) and let the two establish their own states. Among them, Zhao Gong established the State of Yan, and the capital city was Ji, located in the Liulihe River in fangshan, Beijing.
Although the State of Yan, as a royal relative, has a deep background, its strength is relatively weak. The most powerful time of the Yan state was the reign of King Yan Zhao, who for a time dominated the princes and ranked among the seven heroes of the Warring States. So what are the factors for the eventual demise of the Yan kingdom?
First, Zen makes the country chaotic. This incident occurred during the period of Yan Wangduo. When King Yan was in power, there was a Xiangguo named Zizhi. This man was very ambitious and wanted to be the monarch. He took advantage of the yan king's covetous reputation of Zen ranging, and fooled the yan king into giving zen to the chancellor like Yao Shun.
King Yan was so confused that he actually obeyed and ceded his throne to Xiang Guozizhi. Soon after, Zizhi sent someone to fool King Yan and said that now Zizhi already had the power to exercise, but the ministers were still the princes, in fact, a minister was a prince, nominally Zizhi accepted your Zen concessions, such a situation. For the sake of a good reputation, you might as well give the power to appoint ministers to your son.
For the sake of fame, King Yan put a small stamp in his pocket, all of which were the official seals of officials of more than three hundred stones, packed a bag, and handed it to Zizhi, and he completely ignored the government. After three years of rule by the Son, the world was in chaos, and the governance of the Yan Kingdom was a mess.
The State of Qi saw that the State of Yan was in chaos and took the opportunity to invade, and the Qi army entered the State of Yan and did three things. First, kill people at will; second, destroy the Zongmiao Temple; third, plunder treasures, causing the people of the Yan Kingdom to rebel. The army of the State of Qi stayed in the State of Yan for two years and had to withdraw. The people of the Yan kingdom embraced a new monarch, that is, the famous King of Yan Zhao in history.
After King Yan Zhao ascended the throne, he appointed Le Yi as a general and sent emissaries to lobby the nations to attack the State of Qi together. At that time, the Song state was swallowed up by the Qi family, which caused dissatisfaction in the Three Jins, chu, and Qin. Therefore, in 284 BC, Han Zhao Wei plus Qin, Yan Five Kingdoms attacked the State of Qi, and the State of Qi was defeated.
Exactly five years after the yan state was destroyed, Tian Shan of the state of Qi drove the Yan people out with a fire bull array. This incident shows that the monarch of the State of Yan is actually very confused, because the Qin State attacking Han Zhao Wei is facing a problem, that is, the support of the State of Qi. After this, Qi Guo protected himself and no longer cared. The State of Qin let go of han and Zhao Wei, and in the end, the state of Qin destroyed these three countries first. Han Zhao Wei was destroyed, and the Yan Kingdom was finished.
Therefore, the King of Yan was a monarch without strategic vision, and the destruction of Qi actually weakened himself. Of course, we can't all blame King Yan Zhao, this measure is difficult to grasp. If it is not enough to fight the State of Qi, the State of Qi is a threat, and if it is overdone, the State of Qin is another threat, and it is difficult to grasp it if it is fought just right. Destroying Qi is a double-edged sword, and the day the State of Qi is weakened, the State of Yan will also perish.
The third reason is fatigue and self-weakness. The State of Zhao was the most fiercely attacked by the State of Qin, and the State of Zhao was the only one in the six kingdoms of Shandong in the late Warring States period that could compete with the State of Qin. It was because of the bitter battle of the Zhao State that there was peace between the State of Yan and the State of Qi, and the military and people of the State of Zhao protected the State of Yan and the State of Qi with their own blood and lives. In other words, the Qin state attacked Zhao from a distance, and the Zhao state protected the six kingdoms of Shandong with the strength of one country.
However, the monarch of the State of Yan was very confused, and after the Battle of Changping, in 251 BC, the State of Yan secretly attacked the State of Zhao, resulting in the State of Zhao attacking the State of Yan for three consecutive years in 250, 249, and 248 BC, and the Continuous Fight between Yan and Zhao. This gave Zhao Guo no chance to recuperate after the Battle of Changping.
The Battle of Changping Zhao Lost 450,000 Main Forces, and after the Battle of Changping, the most important of the Zhao State, the first to recuperate, the second to make friends, always ready for another invasion of the Qin State. If the monarch of the Yan state had a strategic vision, he must not harass the Zhao state at this time, so that the Zhao state could not rest. If Zhao Guo does not get rest, he will be tired and will eventually collapse.
After the fall of the Zhao state, the army of the Qin state was displayed on the border of the Yan state. At this time, the monarch of the Yan Kingdom felt that the great difficulty of subjugating the country was coming, but it was too late. The King of Yan fled to Liaodong, and in 222 BC, the Qin army captured Liaodong and captured Wang Xi of Yan, and the State of Yan was completely destroyed.