Royals › Monarch / Emperor
King Huan of Zhou
Second Eastern Zhou king, grandson of King Ping, whose campaign against Duke Zhuang of Zheng ended in defeat at Xuge in 707 BC with an arrow in his shoulder
In a side chamber of a palace, a yellow ceremonial robe embroidered with a dragon hangs on a wooden stand, its hem worked with waves and rocks, before a carved folding screen, while a black lacquer chest sits on a low table by a lattice window and no person is in view.
Also known as Ji Lin
- Roles
- Monarch / Emperor
King Huan of Zhou, personal name Lin, was a grandson of King Ping; his father, Crown Prince Xiefu, had died early, so Lin succeeded his grandfather and reigned from 719 to 697 BC, before Zhou kings used reign titles. The Records of the Grand Historian (Shiji) says that when Duke Zhuang of Zheng came to court in the king's third year he was received without courtesy, and relations soured. The Zuo Commentary (Zuozhuan) records that the king traded lands of Su Fensheng, which he did not control, for Zheng towns, and stripped Duke Zhuang of his post as minister at court. In 707 BC he led royal troops with contingents from Chen, Cai and Wey against Zheng; at Xuge the allied wings broke first, the royal army was routed, and the Zheng officer Zhu Dan shot the king in the shoulder, after which Duke Zhuang sent Zhai Zu by night to ask after him. He died in 697 BC and his son Tuo succeeded as King Zhuang.
Life and times
Dates Birth unknown–697 BCE