Following Chancellor Fan Ju’s doctrine of “Ally with the Distant, Attack the Nearby” (Yuan Jiao Jin Gong), King Zhaoxiang of Qin strengthened ties with Qi and Chu while turning his armies toward neighboring states – starting with Han.
Qin’s strategy unfolds
In 261 BCE, he dispatched General Wang He to invade Han state. Qin forces swiftly captured Yewang (Yewangcheng, Yewang City, modern Qinyang, Henan), severing the vital link between Shangdang (in modern Changzhi, Shanxi) and Han’s capital at Xinzheng. Cut off and isolated, the Shangdang garrison became a stranded army.
Its commander, Feng Ting, convened his officers:
“Better to surrender to Zhao than to Qin. If Zhao takes Shangdang, Qin will surely attack – and Zhao will be forced to ally with Han against them.”
The plan was unanimously approved. Feng Ting sent envoys bearing maps of Shangdang to Zhao state, now ruled by King Xiaocheng, son of the late King Huiwen. With Lin Xiangru retired due to illness, the influential Lord Pingyuan (Zhao Sheng) served as chancellor.
Delighted, King Xiaocheng dispatched Lord Pingyuan with 50,000 troops to accept Shangdang and confirmed Feng Ting as its governor. Before departing, Feng Ting warned:
“Qin will come for this land. Urge the king to send reinforcements – immediately!”
But back in Handan, the Zhao court celebrated with feasts and wine, forgetting the looming war.
The siege begins
True to prediction, Wang He soon surrounded Shangdang. For two months, Feng Ting held out – but no Zhao relief arrived. Desperate, soldiers and civilians fled eastward toward Changping Pass.
There, they met General Lian Po, leading 200,000 Zhao troops – but it was too late. Shangdang had fallen.
Lian Po joined forces with Feng Ting and prepared to counterattack – only for Qin’s army to arrive and crush Zhao’s forward units.
Recognizing the danger, Lian Po fell back, ordering his men to fortify positions, deepen trenches, and prepare for a protracted defense.
Wang He repeatedly challenged Zhao to open battle – but Lian Po refused. For over four months, the stalemate dragged on. Concerned about supply lines, Wang He reported to King Zhaoxiang of Qin:
“Lian Po won’t fight. If this continues, our grain reserves will run dry.”
A plot of deception
King Zhaoxiang consulted Fan Ju, who proposed a cunning solution:
“To defeat Zhao, we must first remove Lian Po.”
“How?” asked the king.
“Leave it to me,” Fan Ju replied.
Soon, rumors spread through the Zhao court:
“Lian Po is too old and timid! Send Zhao Kuo – young, bold, and brilliant – and Qin’s army would scatter like autumn leaves in a gale!”
King Xiaocheng, swayed by flattery, summoned Zhao Kuo – a theorist famed for debating military classics but never tested in real war. When asked if he could defeat Qin, Zhao Kuo boasted:
“If Bai Qi commanded, I’d think twice. But Wang He? He’s no match for me!”
Ecstatic, the king appointed Zhao Kuo supreme commander.
Warnings Ignored
Lin Xiangru, gravely ill, rose from his sickbed to plead:
“Zhao Kuo knows only books – not the chaos of battle. Do not trust him!”
The king ignored him.
Even Zhao Kuo’s mother submitted a petition:
“His father, General Zhao She, warned on his deathbed: ‘Zhao Kuo treats war like a game. If made general, he’ll destroy the state!’ Please, do not send him!”
King Xiaocheng dismissed her:
“My decision is final.”
Zhao Kuo marched west with another 200,000 men, joining Lian Po’s forces for a total of over 400,000 soldiers.
Upon arrival in 260 BCE, he took command, dismissed Lian Po’s defensive strategy, and issued orders:
“When Qin attacks, charge! Pursue until not a single enemy remains!”
Feng Ting urged caution, explaining Lian Po’s plan to wear down Qin through attrition. Zhao Kuo scoffed:
“What does that old man know?”
The trap springs
In Qin, Fan Ju received word: Zhao Kuo had replaced Lian Po. He immediately sent Bai Qi, Qin’s greatest general (secretly titled Lord Wu’an), to take command.
Bai Qi feigned retreat, luring Zhao Kuo into pursuit. Then, in a masterstroke, he cut off Zhao’s supply lines and encircled the entire army. Trapped in a mountainous pocket, the Zhao forces became a starving, leaderless horde.
For 46 days, they held out – no food, no hope. Finally, Zhao Kuo was shot dead by arrows while leading a desperate breakout. Feng Ting committed suicide. The army collapsed.
Bai Qi displayed Zhao Kuo’s head and demanded surrender. Exhausted and demoralized, 400,000 men laid down their arms.
The burial pit of Changping
That night, Qin soldiers delivered beef and wine to the Zhao camps, announcing:
“Tomorrow, we’ll reorganize your ranks. The old, weak, and unwilling to go to Qin may return home.”
The prisoners rejoiced, feasted, and slept soundly.
But Bai Qi had already given secret orders to his ten division commanders:
“These men surrendered only because they’re desperate. They’ll rebel the moment they can. Kill them all tonight.”
Under cover of darkness, Qin troops bound the unarmed Zhao soldiers, marched them to massive pits, and buried them alive – one of the most horrific massacres in ancient history.
Only 240 young soldiers were spared – to return to Handan and spread terror.
Aftermath and Diplomatic Rescue
When the survivors reached Zhao, the entire state erupted in wailing. Qin seized 17 cities in Shangdang and the nearby areas and prepared to march on Handan itself.
Panic gripped the Zhao court – until Su Dai, a Yan diplomat and relative of the famed strategist Su Qin, stepped forward. Staying with Lord Pingyuan, he volunteered to negotiate with Fan Ju in Qin.
Fan Ju, wary of Bai Qi’s growing power and aware that Qin’s own armies were exhausted, agreed to intervene. He persuaded King Zhaoxiang of Qin to accept territorial concessions from Han and Zhao in exchange for peace.
The king consented. Bai Qi was ordered to withdraw – though he reportedly lamented:
“Zhao could have been finished today!”
Thus, through deceit, arrogance, and ruthless calculation, the Battle of Changping sealed Zhao’s decline – and paved the way for Qin’s ultimate unification of China.
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