Tang of Shang Overthrows Xia

After more than 400 years, the Xia state had weakened by the reign of its last ruler, Jie. Tradition says Jie was extravagant and cruel, taxed the people heavily, built lavish palaces, drank and feasted all day and harmed the people by force, so that they cursed him, even crying out, “When will this sun perish? We will die with you!” Meanwhile the Shang tribe, active in eastern Henan and southern Hebei, was growing stronger. Its leader Tang employed able ministers such as Yi Yin, first eliminated some of Xia's vassal states to build his strength, then rallied neighboring tribes to attack Jie. The two sides fought a decisive battle at Mingtiao (said to be east of Fengqiu, Henan, or near Yuncheng, Shanxi); Jie was routed and fled, and died at Nanchao, ending the Xia. About 1600 BC Tang founded the Shang dynasty with its capital at Bo. This change of dynasty was later called the “Tang Revolution,” and the Book of Changes says that “Tang and Wu's revolutions obeyed Heaven and answered the people.” Learning from the fall of the Xia, Tang employed the talented, treated the people leniently and developed agriculture, crafts and trade, restoring the economy, and the Shang soon grew strong. Archaeologists found the earliest Shang city, the Yanshi Shang City, in Yanshi, Henan, and the larger early Shang capital, the Zhengzhou Shang City, in Zhengzhou. Many experts believe Yanshi Shang City may be the “Western Bo” and Zhengzhou Shang City the Bo of the texts, providing important evidence for early Shang history.