Jing Ke (pronounced Jing-Kerh; ) was a guest residing in the estates of Dan, crown prince of Yan and renowned for his failed
assassinationAn Assassination is the targeted killing of a public figure.Assassinations may be prompted by ideological, political, or military reasons. Additionally, assassins may be motivated by financial gain, revenge, personal public recognition, or mental illness....
of the Chinese emperor
Qin Shi HuangQin Shi Huang , personal name Ying Zheng , was king of the Chinese State of Qin from 246 BCE to 221 BCE during the Warring States Period. He became the first emperor of a unified China in 221 BCE. He ruled until his death in 210 BCE at the age of 50.Qin Shi Huang remains a controversial figure in...
who reigned from 221 BC to 210 BC. His story is told in the chapter entitled
Biography of the Assassins (刺客列傳) in
Sima QianSima Qian was a Prefect of the Grand Scribes of the chinese Dynasty. He is regarded as the father of Chinese historiography because of his highly praised work, Records of the Grand Historian , a "Jizhuanti" style general history of China covering more than two thousand years from the Yellow...
's
Records of the Grand HistorianThe Records of the Grand Historian, also known in English by the Chinese name Shiji , written from 109 BC to 91 BC, was the magnum opus of Sima Qian, in which he recounted Chinese history from the time of the Yellow Emperor until his own time. The Records of the Grand Historian, also known in...
, or
Shiji.
Jing Ke was introduced by Tian Guang to Dan the
crown princeA Crown Prince or Crown Princess is the heir or heiress apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The wife of a crown prince is also titled crown princess....
of
YanYan was a state during the Western Zhou, Spring and Autumn and Warring States Periods in China. Its capital was Ji...
. Jing Ke was originally from Wei (衛, not 魏), which he left because he was not being recognized by the King of Wei.
Jing Ke (pronounced Jing-Kerh; ) was a guest residing in the estates of Dan, crown prince of Yan and renowned for his failed
assassinationAn Assassination is the targeted killing of a public figure.Assassinations may be prompted by ideological, political, or military reasons. Additionally, assassins may be motivated by financial gain, revenge, personal public recognition, or mental illness....
of the Chinese emperor
Qin Shi HuangQin Shi Huang , personal name Ying Zheng , was king of the Chinese State of Qin from 246 BCE to 221 BCE during the Warring States Period. He became the first emperor of a unified China in 221 BCE. He ruled until his death in 210 BCE at the age of 50.Qin Shi Huang remains a controversial figure in...
who reigned from 221 BC to 210 BC. His story is told in the chapter entitled
Biography of the Assassins (刺客列傳) in
Sima QianSima Qian was a Prefect of the Grand Scribes of the chinese Dynasty. He is regarded as the father of Chinese historiography because of his highly praised work, Records of the Grand Historian , a "Jizhuanti" style general history of China covering more than two thousand years from the Yellow...
's
Records of the Grand HistorianThe Records of the Grand Historian, also known in English by the Chinese name Shiji , written from 109 BC to 91 BC, was the magnum opus of Sima Qian, in which he recounted Chinese history from the time of the Yellow Emperor until his own time. The Records of the Grand Historian, also known in...
, or
Shiji.
Biography
Jing Ke was introduced by Tian Guang to Dan the
crown princeA Crown Prince or Crown Princess is the heir or heiress apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The wife of a crown prince is also titled crown princess....
of
YanYan was a state during the Western Zhou, Spring and Autumn and Warring States Periods in China. Its capital was Ji...
. Jing Ke was originally from Wei (衛, not 魏), which he left because he was not being recognized by the King of Wei. After travelling around, he arrived at Yan and made friends with
Gao JianliGao Jianli was a citizen of Yan, a Chinese state during the Warring States Period, and a player of the zhu . After Jing Ke was killed in his assassination attempt on Qin Shi Huang, Gao changed his name and became an assistant in a wine shop as Qin Shi Huang retaliated against all friends of Jing Ke...
and a butcher of dogs. Together they passed the days drinking and having fun.
Dan was a friend of Zheng (who later became Qin Shi Huang) when they were both hostages in the
State of ZhaoZhao was a Chinese state during the Warring States Period. Zhao was a significant state in the period, along with six others. At the beginning of the Warring States Period, the state of Zhao was one of the weakest states but gained strength during the reign of King Wuling of Zhao...
. When Dan escaped from Zhao back to Yan,
QinQín or Ch'in , was a state during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States Periods of China. It eventually grew to dominate the country and unite it in 221 BC, after which it is referred to as the Qin Dynasty...
's army moved towards the border with Yan. Yan's army was too weak to fight off the army of Qin. Instead of going to battle, Dan consulted with Tian Guang on a course of action, and decided to assassinate the king of Qin. Tian Guang, who was a friend of Jing Ke, recommended him to Dan to carry out the assassination.
A Qin army general (
Fan Yu QiFan Yuqi , who lived during the Warring States period, was said to be a Qin general who betrayed his state. He escaped to the state of Yan and later committed suicide to aid the famous assassin Jing Ke in succeeding his assassination of Ying Zheng, the king of Qin.In the TV drama series...
), who had lost favor with the king of Qin, was a guest at Dan's residence at that time. Having learned of his whereabouts, Jing Ke persuaded the general to commit suicide, as the king of Qin wanted his head. Together with the head and a map of
YanYan was a state during the Western Zhou, Spring and Autumn and Warring States Periods in China. Its capital was Ji...
, Jing Ke had enough reasons to approach the king of Qin.
Off onto his mission, at the river of Yi (the border of Zhao), Jing Ke reportedly shouted out this impromptu poem after a cup of wine with friends: "Piercing wind, freezing river of Yi. The hero fords,
and he never returns!" (風瀟瀟兮，易水寒，壮士一去不復返!) This heroism, which reflects the general ideology of the society at that time, is recorded in Shiji.
Armed with a poisoned
daggerA dagger is a typically double-edged blade used for stabbing or thrusting. They often fulfill the role of a secondary defense weapon in close combat...
hidden inside the rolled-up map scroll, Jing Ke and Qin Wu Yang represented Yan and met with the King of Qin in his palace at the capital of Qin. Qin Wu Yang was carrying the map case while Jing Ke was holding the head of general Fan. Upon entering the throne room, Qin Wu Yang became nervous and his face turned white, this almost gave away the plot as it aroused the suspicions of the king and the ministers present. But Jing Ke calmed them by calling Qin Wu Yang a rustic unused to the splendors of the palace. Jing Ke then took the map case from Qin Wu Yang and laid it on the table before the king. He unrolled the map scroll, he seized the dagger and plunged it towards the King of Qin while grasping his sleeve.
Jing Ke missed and in the struggle, the sleeve was torn off and the King of Qin escaped. As Jing Ke chased the King around the audience hall, the King of Qin tried to pull out his sword which was slung at his side; however this was a ceremonial weapon which had been made especially long to impress onlookers and the King was unable to unsheathe it. After being advised by a court official, who mimed the slinging of the sword across the back and the drawing of it across the shoulder, the King of Qin finally managed to draw his sword and stabbed Jing Ke with it nine times. Knowing that his chance was slipping away, Jing Ke threw the dagger at the King but missed. Finally guards, which out of the King's paranoia over having armed men in his presence had been posted at a great distance and barred from entering the hall without orders, arrived and killed the assassin. Jing Ke was then burned and the box in which the rest of the fire which burned him were put in the king's closet.
Jing Ke in Fiction
- The Chinese
China is a cultural region, an ancient civilization, and, depending on perspective, a national or multinational entity extending over a large area in East Asia....
filmFilm encompasses individual motion pictures, the field of film as an art form, and the motion picture industry. Films are produced by recording images from the world with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects....
The Emperor and the AssassinThe Emperor and the Assassin is a 1999 Chinese historical romance film. The movie was directed by Chen Kaige and stars Gong Li, Zhang Fengyi, Li Xuejian, and Zhou Xun . The movie was very well received critically and won the Technical Prize at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival. It was the most...
(1999), featuring Gong LiGong Li is a China-born film actress with current nationality in Singapore. Gong first came into international prominence through close collaboration with Chinese director Zhang Yimou and is credited with helping bring Chinese cinema to Europe and the United States.She has twice been awarded the...
and others, is based on these events. Jing Ke does not appear in the films The Emperor's ShadowThe Emperor's Shadow is a 1996 film made in the People's Republic of China by the Xi'an Film Studio. It was directed by Zhou Xiaowen, with script written by Lu Wei...
(1996), directed by Zhou XiaowenZhou Xiaowen is a Chinese filmmaker. He graduated from the Cinematography Department of the Beijing Film Academy in 1975 and is part of the so-called Fifth Generation of Chinese filmmakers..-Selected filmography:- External links :...
, or Hero, also about the attempted assassination of Qin Shi HuangQin Shi Huang , personal name Ying Zheng , was king of the Chinese State of Qin from 246 BCE to 221 BCE during the Warring States Period. He became the first emperor of a unified China in 221 BCE. He ruled until his death in 210 BCE at the age of 50.Qin Shi Huang remains a controversial figure in...
, but both films adapt elements from his story.
- A fictionalized version of Jing Ke appears in the film Highlander: Endgame
Highlander: Endgame is a fantasy film originally released on September 1, 2000. It is the fourth theatrical release in the Highlander film series, and it serves as both a continuation of the Highlander films and the Highlander television series...
(2000), played by wuxiaWuxia or Wǔxiá is a broad genre of Chinese fiction concerning the adventures of martial artists set in ancient China. Although Wuxia is traditionally a form of literature, it is now found in art, comics, films, television, theatre and video games...
actor and martial artist Donnie YenDonnie Yen Chi-Tan is a Hong Kong martial artist, actor, film director, fight choreographer, and producer. He is a well known film and television actor in Hong Kong and, more recently, in the West, having been featured in many movies with prominent, internationally known actors such as Jackie...
. In the film, Jing Ke is, like the other principal characters, an immortalImmortality is the concept of living in a physical or spiritual form for an infinite or inconceivably vast length of time....
warrior living in the present. The film alters the spelling of Jing Ke's name to "Jin Ke," and makes reference to his historical association with Qin Shi Huang.
- The character Tsing Yi in John Woo
John Woo Yu-Sen is a Chinese film director and producer from Hong Kong. Recognized for his stylized films of highly choreographed action sequences, Mexican standoffs, and use of slow-motion, Woo has directed several notable Hong Kong action films, among them, A Better Tomorrow, Hard Boiled, and...
's Last Hurrah for ChivalryLast Hurrah for Chivalry is a 1979 Hong Kong wuxia film directed by John Woo, and starring Damian Lau and Wei Pai. The film is a precursor to Woo's Heroic bloodshed films.- Plot :...
is inspired by Jing Ke, as the director proclaimed.
- A Chinese
China is a cultural region, an ancient civilization, and, depending on perspective, a national or multinational entity extending over a large area in East Asia....
TV series called Assassinator Jing Ke-The Revenge (荆轲传奇) was produced in 2004, depicting a fictionalised biography of Jing Ke, starring Liu YeLiu Ye is a Chinese film and television actor.Beginning his acting career when he was a 20 year old student majoring in performing arts at the Central Academy of Drama in Beijing, Liu Ye's talent in acting was apparent very early on...
, Wang Yanan and Peter HoPeter Ho is an American and Taiwanese singer and actor.Since his debut in 1998, he has released seven albums and has starred in over 25 films and TV dramas, such as Wind and Cloud, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon , One meter Sunshine and The Young Warriors.He also appears in the tokusatsu movie...
.
- Jing Ke is a great spy in the computer game Civilization IV: Beyond the Sword
Civilization IV: Beyond the Sword is the second official expansion pack of the critically-acclaimed turn-based strategy video game Civilization IV...