| Viscount Xiang of Zhi 知襄子 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leader of Zhi clan | |||||||||
| Predecessor | Viscount Xuan of Zhi (知宣子) | ||||||||
| Successor | None | ||||||||
| Died | 453 BC | ||||||||
| Issue | Zhi Yan (知顏) | ||||||||
| |||||||||
| House | Zi | ||||||||
| Father | Viscount Xuan (Zhi Shen) | ||||||||
Zhi Yao (Chinese: 知瑤 or 智瑤), also known as Xun Yao (Chinese: 荀瑤) or Yao, Count of Zhi (Chinese: 知伯瑤 or 智伯瑤), also known by his posthumous name as the Viscount Xiang of Zhi, was the last leader of the Zhi clan in the Jin state. He was the son of Zhi Shen (Viscount Xuan). He was the last zhongjunjiang of Jin before the state's partition.
Zhi Yao's dramatic death was a significant event in Chinese history. As the ruler of the dominant vassal state, he asked Viscount Kang of Han (韓康子), Viscount Huan of Wei, and Viscount Xiang of Zhao to cede their lands to the Zhi clan. Han and Wei complied, but Zhao refused to do so. In response to Zhao's refusal, Zhi Yao led his army, along with armies from Han and Wei, in laying siege to the Zhao capital Jinyang (modern-day Taiyuan). The siege lasted two years before it came to a dramatic end. Zhao conspired with the Han and Wei rulers so that Zhi Yao was betrayed by his own allies and defeated. Zhao decapitated Zhi Yao and massacred his entire family of over 200 members. After the fall of the Zhi clan, no vassals in Jin could once again match the power of the Zhao, Han, and Wei clans. The Duke of Jin was consequently only a figurehead with no real political power. This eventually led to the Partition of Jin and the establishment of Han, Zhao and Wei as independent vassal states formally acknowledged by the Eastern Zhou dynasty. The Partition of Jin marks the end of the Spring and Autumn period and the beginning of the Warring States period of Chinese history.[1]