Li Kui (legalist)

Li Kui (Chinese: 李悝; pinyin: Lǐ Kuī; Wade–Giles: Li K'uei, 455–395 BC) was an ancient Chinese government minister and court advisor to Marquis Wen (r. 403–387 BC) in the state of Wei. In 407 BC, he wrote the Book of Law (Fajing, 法经), which was the basis for the codified laws of the Qin and Han dynasties.

His political agendas, as well as the Book of Law, had a deep influence on later thinkers such as Han Feizi and Shang Yang, who would later develop the philosophy of Legalism based on Li Kui's reforms.

Li Kui was in the service of the Marquis Wen of Wei even before the state of Wei was officially recognised, though little else is known of his early life. He was appointed as Chancellor of the Wei-controlled lands in 422 BC, in order to begin administrative and political reforms; Wei would therefore be the first of the Seven Warring States to embark on the creation of a bureaucratic, rather than a noble-dominated, form of government.

The main agendas of Li Kui's reforms included:

The direct result of these pioneering reform measures was the dominance of Wei in the early decades of the Warring States era. Leveraging its improved economy, Wei achieved considerable military successes under Marquis Wen, including victories against the states of Qin between 413 and 409 BC, Qi in 404 BC, and joint expeditions against Chu with Zhao and Han as its allies.

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