Shang Yang lived from approximately 390 to 338 BCE, a Chinese statesman and legal theorist of the Warring States period who served as chief minister of the State of Qin and is regarded as the founder of the Legalist, or Fajia, school of Chinese jurisprudence. His reforms replaced the older aristocratic order with a system of impartially applied written law, standardized administrative units, and rewards and punishments tied strictly to conduct rather than status, reforms credited with transforming Qin into the state that would later unify China. His teachings survive chiefly in the text known as the Book of Lord Shang.
Facts
RoleChancellor of Qin; founder of the Legalist school of Chinese jurisprudence 1 Nationality / JurisdictionState of Qin (ancient China) 1 Place of Death Classification
Field of LawLegal Philosophy and Jurisprudence 1 Role
Role (category) FAQs
How did Shang Yang's ranks of merit work in Qin?
Qin replaced hereditary aristocratic rank with a ladder of ranks of merit earned mainly in war or by farm output.
Shang Yang introduced a system of ranks of merit, twenty in its full form and fewer at first, to replace Qin's traditional hereditary aristocratic order. The lowest ranks were given for military achievements, particularly decapitating enemy soldiers, or could be bought with extra grain yields. Each rank carried privileges, one example being the right to redeem a mutilating punishment by paying a fine.
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In Legal System
Source Encyclopaedia Britannica
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Sources
1. Encyclopaedia Britannica
Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.https://www.britannica.com/biography/Shang-Yang
Shang Yang was a Chinese statesman and thinker whose successful reorganization of the state of Qin paved the way for the eventual unification of the Chinese empire by the Qin dynasty (221-207 bce).
- In Legal System: Traditional Chinese Legal Tradition
View the Source 2. Wikidata: Shang Yang
Wikidata Q351345, P19 place of birth claim
P19 (place of birth): Puyang
Wikidata Q351345, P20 place of death claim
P20 (place of death): Xianyang
Wikidata Q351345, P1477 birth name claim (zh)
birth name (P1477): 公孫鞅
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