Xu (state)

State of Xu
徐國/徐国
Unknown–512 BC
Xu at its greatest extent in the mid 8th century BC. 1) dark red: Xu heartland; 2) red: Xu-led Huaiyi confederation; 3) pink: Xu allies or under Xu influence.
Capital		Xizhou / Pizhou
Languages		Old Chinese (lingua franca) Local languages
Religion		Chinese folk religion
Government		Monarchy
zǐ (子)
•	c. 944 BC	Yan of Xu
•	c. 535 BC	Yichu of Xu
•	?–512 BC	Zhangyu of Xu
Historical era		Western Zhou period Spring and Autumn period
•	Established	Unknown
•	Rebellion of the Three Guards	c. 1042–1039 BC
•	Zhou–Huaiyi War	c. 944–943 BC
•	War of Ehou the Border Protector	c. 850 BC
•	Battle of Loulin	644 BC
•	Conquered by Wu	512 BC
Preceded by Succeeded by Dapeng (state) Wu (state) Chu (state)
Today part of		China

The State of Xu (simplified Chinese: ; traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: Xú Guó) (also called Xu Rong (徐戎) or Xu Yi (徐夷) by its enemies) was an independent Huaiyi state of the Chinese Bronze Age that was ruled by the Ying family (嬴) and controlled much of the Huai River valley for at least two centuries. With its capital at Xizhou and its ritual center at Pizhou, Xu's heartland was northern Anhui, northwestern Jiangsu, and the Lower Huai River valley.

An ancient but originally minor state that already existed during the late Shang dynasty, Xu was subjugated by the Western Zhou dynasty around 1039 BC, and was gradually sinified from then on. It eventually regained its independence and formed a confederation of 36 states that became powerful enough to challenge the Zhou empire for supremacy over the Central Plain. Able to consolidate its rule over a territory that stretched from Hubei in the south, through eastern Henan, northern Anhui and Jiangsu, as far north as southern Shandong, Xu's confederation remained a major power until the early Spring and Autumn period. It reached its apogee in the mid 8th century BC, expanding its influence as far as Zhejiang in the south. By that time, however, Xu's confederation began to break up as result of internal unrest. As its power waned, Xu was increasingly threatened by neighboring states, losing control over the Huai River to Chu. Reduced to its heartland, Xu was eventually conquered by Wu in 512 BC.