Wei (state)
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The following details the state of Wei of the Warring States Period. Refer to Ran Min for his state of Wei during the Sixteen Kingdoms. For more information, see Kingdom of Wei.
The state reached its height during the reigns of its first two rulers, Marquess Wen of Wei and Marquess Wu of Wei. King Hui of Wei, the third ruler, concentrated in economical developments including irrigation projects at the Yellow River. Nevertheless its slow decline began with King Hui. Wei's advancement in the east was checked several times in series of battles including the Battle of Maling in 341 BC. In the west it lost the Hexi region (a pastoral and strategic area on the west bank of the Yellow River at the border of today Shanxi and Shaanxi province) to Qin, continuously under invasions from Qin thereafter.
Military prowess of Qin broke the coalition forces of the states of Wei and Han at the Battle of Yique in 293 BC.
The Wei surrendered to the Qin in 225 BC, after the Qin general Wang Fen flooded Daliang with water from the Yellow River.
Wei produced some fine generals and politicians, including Li Li, a reformer and Prime Minister of Wei, Yue Yang, ancestor of Yue Yi and conqueror of the state of Zhongshan, and Pang Juan, who conquered many places but lost to Tian Ji and Sun Bin at Maling.