kingdom · China, Tibet and Mongolia

State of Jin

1033 BCE – 376 BCE (approx.) · capital Jiang

The dominant northern power of the Spring and Autumn period, whose hegemon Duke Wen defeated Chu at Chengpu and whose break-up in 403 BCE opened the Warring States era.

Origins

King Cheng of Zhou enfeoffed his younger brother Tang Shu Yu in the Fen River valley of southern Shanxi, among Rong and Di peoples. The early Jin rulers' cemetery at Beizhao near Tianma-Qucun has confirmed the location. In 678 BCE a junior branch of the house, from Quwo, seized power, and Duke Xian later made Jiang its capital.

Rule and society

Duke Xian expanded Jin by conquering neighbours such as Western Guo and the State of Yu, and Duke Wen, the long-exiled Chong'er, became hegemon after defeating the State of Chu at Chengpu in 632 BCE. Jin dominated the north for a century and a half, but its dukes barred their own kinsmen from office and power passed to ministerial lineages commanding the state's armies.

Decline and legacy

After the ministerial families of Han, Zhao and Wei destroyed the Zhi clan in 453 BCE, they divided Jin among themselves and were recognised as rulers by the Zhou king in 403 BCE, creating the State of Han, the State of Zhao and the State of Wei. The last Jin dukes were stripped of their remaining lands in 376 BCE.

Connections (7)

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Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). State of Jin. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/state-of-jin
MLA
“State of Jin.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/state-of-jin. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “State of Jin.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/state-of-jin.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘State of Jin’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/state-of-jin (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻