| Conflict: | Chen Sheng and Wu Guang uprising |
| Date: | August or September 209 BC[1] – January 208 BC[2] |
| Place: | Henan, China |
| Result: | Qin victory |
| Combatant1: | Rebel forces |
| Combatant2: | Qin empire |
| Commander1: | |
| Commander2: | Zhang Han |
| Strength1: | 900 |
| Strength2: | Unknown |
The Chen Sheng and Wu Guang uprising, August 209 B.C.– January 208 B.C.,[3] [4] was the first uprising against the Qin dynasty following the death of Qin Shi Huang. Led by Chen Sheng and Wu Guang, the uprising was unsuccessful.
It is also called the Dazexiang uprising[5] as the uprising started in Dazexiang (大泽乡), which translates into "Big Swamp Village".
Chen Sheng and Wu Guang were both army officers who were ordered to lead their bands of commoner soldiers north to participate in the defense of Yuyang (Chinese: s=渔阳|t=漁陽). However, they were stopped halfway in present-day Anhui province by flooding from a severe rainstorm. The harsh Qin laws mandated execution for those who showed up late for government jobs, regardless of the nature of the delay. Figuring that they would rather fight than accept execution, Chen and Wu organized a band of 900 villagers to rebel against the government. The current emperor, Hu Hai, had killed his brother Fusu, who was known for his benevolence, to take the throne, so they rose up in Fusu's name.
There are two stories for this uprising. To convince people to support this uprising, Chen Sheng and Wu Guang wrote "King Chen Sheng" on a piece of silk, and placed it in the belly of a fish. A man in this army bought the fish and was surprised to find the message. They also taught animals to say "Da Chu flourishes, King Chen Sheng" to make people believe in them.[6]
With Chen's men declaring him king of the former Kingdom of Chu, he and Wu became the centre of armed uprisings all over China. Over the course of just a few months, their strength grew to around ten thousand men, a force composed mostly of discontented peasants. However, in less than a year, their uprising faced serious trouble; their force was no match for the highly skilled battlefield tactics of the professional Qin soldiers and both Chen and Wu were assassinated by their own men.
While their insurrection was ultimately unsuccessful, Wu and Chen set up the example that was to be followed by Liu Bang and Xiang Yu. Their spirit can be summed up in Chen's quote "" (traditional Chinese: Chinese: 王侯將相寧有種乎, pinyin: Chinese: wáng hóu jiàng xiàng nìng yǒu zhǒng hū; "Are kings and nobles given their high status by birth?"), meaning that every human, regardless of birth, can become something great if he applies himself.
There is a biography of Chen Sheng and Wu Guang, which is called aristocratic family of Chen Sheng, in Records of the Grand Historian. The main points of the passage are as follows. Chen Sheng was a tenant who was born in Henan province and Wu Guang was his townsman. When Chen Sheng was young, he used to plow with some peasants. One day, he felt tired, then he stopped working and went to a hill for a rest.
At that time, he said to his companions "If someone among us rises to power and position, please don't forget us." ("")
His companions laughed at him and said "You are a tenant, how can you be rich and powerful?" ("")
Chen Sheng sighed and said "How can a sparrow comprehend the ambition of a swan?" ("")
Later on, Chen Sheng became an army officer, and led the uprising with Wu Guang, his deputy. Wu Guang was a kind and influential man, but nothing more could be found about him from the history records.