Zhou Dynasty
Confucius and the Warring States
Heaven's Mandate
the Zhou invent the idea that power must be earned — then spend eight centuries proving it
~1046–1000 BCE
The Ritual State
music, ceremony, and the well-field system — the Western Zhou at its height
~1000–850 BCE
The Mandate Slips
tyranny, exile, and the fall of the western capital
~850–771 BCE
The Eastern Zhou
the Zhou king becomes a figurehead as powerful states compete for dominance
~770–650 BCE
The Hundred Schools
Confucius, Laozi, and Mozi — the Axial Age in China
~650–450 BCE
The Warring States
mass armies, iron weapons, crossbows, and the Art of War
~450–350 BCE
Thinkers and Legalists
Mencius, Zhuangzi, Han Feizi — and the intellectual blueprint for empire
~350–256 BCE
The Iron States
cast iron, the Dujiangyan irrigation system, silk to Athens, and the infrastructure of empire
~600–256 BCE
The Last Zhou King
the Battle of Changping, the surrender of the ritual vessels, and the Zhou legacy
~260–256 BCE