Duke Huan

Ruler of the state of Qi during the Spring and Autumn period in China (reigned 685-643 BC). After the death of his brother, Duke Xiang, he became the Marquis of Qi after competing with his half-brother Jiu for the throne. With the recommendation of Bao Shuya, he employed Jiu's vassal Guan Zhong, and with his cooperation, he became a powerful ruler counted among the Five Hegemons of the Spring and Autumn period. He saved the feudal lords from invasions by foreign tribes in the north and the state of Chu, and established his position as a hegemon by forming an alliance at Kuiqiu (west of Shangqiu city, Henan province) in 651 BC. He later lent his strength to put down the civil war in Lu, and relocated and restored the states of Xing and Wei. In terms of domestic affairs, he was the first country to adopt a policy of enriching the country and strengthening the military, and especially worked to develop handicrafts and commerce. However, he was soon alienated by the feudal lords when he attempted to perform the imperial rite of shan, and after Guan Zhong's death, he disobeyed his will and recalled the vassals he had exiled from the country, which led to them taking away his real power. Even after his death, due to the chaos in Qi, his body was left unburied for two months.

[Ota Yukio]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

中国、春秋時代の斉(せい)国の君主（在位前685～前643）。兄の襄公(じょうこう)の死後、異母兄の糾(きゅう)と位を争ったすえ、斉侯(せいこう)となった。鮑叔牙(ほうしゅくが)の推薦で、糾の臣下であった管仲(かんちゅう)を用い、その協力によって春秋の五覇の一人に数えられる有力君主となった。北方の異民族や楚(そ)の侵入から諸侯を救い、紀元前651年の葵丘(ききゅう)（河南省商丘市の西方）における会盟によって覇者の地位を確立した。その後も魯(ろ)の内乱平定に力を貸したり、邢(けい)、衛(えい)をそれぞれ場所を移して復興させたりした。内政面では富国強兵策を他国に先駆けて採用し、とくに手工業、商業の育成に努めた。しかし、やがて天子の儀礼である封禅(ほうぜん)を行おうとして諸侯から離反され、また、管仲の死後は、その遺言に背いて、かつて国外に追放した家臣を呼び戻したために、彼らに実権を奪われた。死後も斉国内の混乱によって、その遺体は2か月間も葬られることなく放置されたといわれる。

［太田幸男］

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