Duke Ding of Lu (Chinese: 魯定公; pinyin: Lǔ Dìng Gōng, 556 BC – 15 May 495 BC) was a ruler of the State of Lu during the Spring and Autumn period of ancient China. His ancestral name was Ji (姬), given name Song (宋), and Duke Ding was his posthumous title.
Since the reign of Duke Xuan of Lu, The politics of Lu had been dominated by multiple cadet branches of the ducal house, particularly the Three Huan: Jisun (季孫), Shusun (叔孫), and Mengsun (孟孫). Efforts of Confucius, who served as Duke Ding's Minister of Crime (大司寇), to curb the power of the Three Huan were met with failure. Eventual political differences and externally-fomented discord caused Confucius to go on exile, seeking to realize his ambitions elsewhere.
Contents
Accession
Prince Song was a son of Duke Xiang of Lu and a younger brother of Duke Zhao of Lu, who, also being his predecessor, died in exile after being expelled by the Three Huan after a failed coup to remove them from power in 517 BC. Despite the absence of a duke for seven years, the Three Huan only made Prince Song the new duke after Duke Zhao's body arrived at Lu. This was done despite the fact that Duke Zhao had sons of his own and had even designated one of them his heir.
Power Struggle Throughout the Realm
Contention Between Clan Leaders and Retainers
During Duke Ding's period of the Spring and Autumn period, aristocratic clans of some states in the realm had been encroaching on the authority of their rulers much like how these rulers were undermining the authority of the Son of Heaven. Furthermore, these aristocratic clans' authorities were themselves under contention between the heads and their powerful retainers.
On 31 May, 505 BC, Jisun Yiru, the head of the Jisun clan (the leading clan of the Three Huan and, indeed, all of Lu), died while returning home from a tour. On 7 September, Yang Hu, a retainer of the Jisun clan, launched a coup against his master Jisun Si, Viscount Huan of Jisun, imprisoning him. After forcing Jisun Si to banish his political opponents and make a covenant, Yang Hu released Jisun Si, but seized control of the Jisun clan and, by extension, the Lu government.
In winter 504 BC, Jisun Si led an army to lay siege of Yun (鄆), a city that Qi had conquered from Lu in 517 BC and given to Duke Zhao of Lu as a base of operations for his return. Qi surrendered Yun a year later, in spring 503 BC, and Yang Hu occupied it as his own base of power.
In 502 BC, Yang Hu launched a coup against the Three Huan with his political allies, all of whom were disgruntled to some degree:
Ji Wu, younger brother of Jisun Si, the head of the Jisun clan
Shusun Zhe, a son of Shusun Zhouchou, the head of the Shusun clan
Gongchu Ji, a member of the Gongchu clan, a cadet branch of the Jisun clan
Shuzhong Zhi, a son of Shuzhong Xiao, the head of the Shuzhong clan, which was a cadet branch of the Shusun clan
Gongshan Buniu, Yang Hu's fellow retainer of the Jisun clan. Steward of Jisun settlement of Bi (費)
Conflict Between the Duke and the Three Huan
According to the Records of the Grand Historian, Duke Ding made Confucius the governor of a minor town (中都宰) in 501 BC. Confucius quickly rose through the ranks, becoming Minister of Works (司空) and then Minister of Crime (大司寇). Additionally, he took on the duties and responsibilities of a Prime Minister.
In 498 BC, Confucius orchestrated a plan to raze the walls of the seats of power of the Three Huan: Hou (郈) of the Shusun clan, Bi (費) of the Jisun clan, and Cheng (郕) of the Mengsun clan. The Shusun clan, having recently experienced a rebellion making used of the walls of Hou, voluntarily razed them. As the Jisun clan began to raze the walls of Bi, Gongshan Buniu and Shusun Zhe, who had rebelled against the Jisun clan four years prior but managed to flee to Bi, rebelled again in defiance, but were soon defeated and forced to flee to Qi. Then, the walls of Bi were razed as well.
It was then that Gonglian Yang, a Mengsun retainer, advised Zhongsun Heji, the head of the Mengsun clan, that razing the walls of Cheng, which was close to the border with Qi, would certainly attract a Qi invasion and that the safety of Cheng was one and the same as the safety of the Mengsun clan. Zhongsun Heji, following further advice from Gonglian Yang, pretended not to know about the order to raze the walls. A ducal army laid siege to Cheng in order to enforce the order, but the attack failed. Cheng's walls were saved.
Eventually, political disagreements with the Duke and the Three Huan caused Confucius to go on self-exile. According to the Records of the Grand Historian, the leaders of Qi were fearful that Confucius might, after strengthening Lu, may attack or even annex Qi outright. Li Chu, a Qi official, proposed to alienate Duke Ding and Confucius by sending dancing women and beautiful horses to Duke Ding so that he would cease to care about administering his country. After receiving the gift, Jisun Si sent it to the Duke. The plot was successful as intended, and Confucius, disappointed, left Lu. This story is not without dispute, however.
Death and Succession
In summer 495 BC, Duke Ding died and was succeeded by his son, Prince Jiang (將), who would become known as Duke Ai of Lu.