Guan Zhong

Guan Zhong (zh-Hant 管仲) or Guan Jingzhong (zh-Hant 管敬仲), in the past spelled Kouan Tchong , Kouan Tchoung or Kuan Chung (? - 645 av. J. - C.) was Prime Minister of the State of IQ during the period of the Printemps and the Falls. He undertook reforms which raised the State with the row of most powerful of the time. Zhong was its social Prénom, its first name of origin being Yiwu (zh-Hant 夷吾). It is also called Guanzi (zh-Hant 管子), “main Guan”, owing to the fact that it was regarded a long time as the author of the Encyclopédie Guanzi.

Biography

The principal elements of its biography are primarily in the Guanzi , the Zuo Zhuan , the Entretiens with Confucius and the Shiji , this last making the most alive account.

According to the Shiji , Guan Zhong had been born with Yingshang (zh-Hant 潁上) in the Anhui. Undoubtedly of good family but by no means rich, it would have bound of friendship in its youth with Bao Shuya (zh-Hant 鮑叔牙), more fortunate, another future large officer of IQ. They formed a contrasted couple, the control of Bao Shuya being on any irreproachable occasion, while Guan Zhong failed in all its companies, trade, army, public office, and cut the reputation of freeloader and coward. Nevertheless, Bao Shuya never withdrew its friendship to him. They entered each one the customers brothers of the duke of IQ, Jiu (zh-Hant 糾) (Guan Zhong) and Xiaobai (zh-Hant 小白) (Bao Shuya), which they respectively followed to Lu and Ju (zh-Hant 莒國) when disorders started to rise in the country because of incurie of the duke Xiang (zh-Hant 齊襄公). When this one died in 686 av. J. - C., Xiaobai ends up obtaining the throne and became the duke Huan (zh-Hant 齊桓公). It launched a campaign against Lu. During the battle, Guan Zhong drew an arrow in direction from the duke whose life was saved by a metal ornament that it carried to the belt. IQ obtained the victory and required the setting with dead of Jiu and the extradition of its advisers. They committed suicide rather than to go, decision awaited in their situation, but Guan Zhong, faithful to its reputation of man for whom the honor counted little, decided to try his chance, misant on Bao Shuya to draw it from this bad step. It was not disappointed. His/her friend obtained for him the grace of the duke, and even a place with the palate. In its new functions it was finally the proof of its capacities and the sovereign did not have to regret his leniency.

It is impossible to judge veracity of this history, which still nowadays belongs to the historical legends of old China read by the school ones. It illustrates the direction of the word zhījǐ (zh-Hant 知己) “a friend who knows you as if he had made you”, because at the time of its grace, Guan Zhong would have exclaimed: “My parents gave me the life, but it is Bao Shuya which includes/understands me! ” (zh-Hant 生我者父母知我者鮑叔也)

Reforms

Guan Zhong undertook reforms to modernize the country. The capacity was centralized and the State divided into areas called xiang (zh-Hant 郷) specialized each one in a certain activity. The population was divided into groups of five mutually responsible hearths, system which the legists will take again. The taxes, calculated according to a uniform code, were raised directly by the central capacity near the areas, shorting-circuit the aristocracy. It developed a method of selection of governors who were from now on to be civils servant and not automatically members of the local big families. He encouraged the development of the saltworks and fishing and founded a kind of state monopoly on their production. Its reforms bore their fruits because during its administration the power of IQ believed and the duke Huan became hégémon. Nevertheless, shortly after its death and that of the duke, the situation was degraded and hegemony passed to Jin.

References

See too

  • Encyclopedia Guanzi

Random links:Districts of the Charente-Maritime | Mieszko III the Old man | Melancholy | Harréville-the-singers | Tilda | Momoishi,_Aomori