Goujian, King of YUE

Goujian was the King of Yue State in the late Spring and Autumn Period. He was said to be the descendant of Yu the Great.
In 496 BC, King Goujian defeated the Wu army and King Helu of Wu died of injuries sustained in the battle.
In 495 BC, King Goujian launched another attack against the Wu State. The two armies engaged in fierce fighting in Fujiao Mountain (present-day southwestern Wuxian County of Jiangsu). The Yue army suffered a crushing defeat and retreated to Huiji Mountain (present-day south of Shaoxing in Zhejiang). King Goujian adopted advisor Fan Li's stratagem by negotiating peace and submitting himself to the rule of the Wu State in an attempt to retain the strength of Yue.
After returning to the Yue State, King Goujian went through some self-inflicted hardships by sleeping on sticks and forcing himself to taste bile. That way, he could remember his humiliations while serving under the State of Wu. He also put Fan Li, Wen Zhong and other talent in important positions to help him reform domestic affairs and build up strength.
Later, while King Fu Chai of Wu was vying for hegemony in the north and his state power was weakening, King Goujian launched a surprise attack against the State of Wu and killed the crown prince of Wu. He wiped out the Wu State in 473 BC.
Shortly afterwards, King Goujian pushed his troops northward by boat, with Song, Zheng, Lu, Wei and other states submitting to his rule. He relocated his capital to Langya (present-day south of Jiaonan in Shandong), forming alliances with vassal states such as Qi and Jin. In the end, King Goujian’s hegemony status was officially recognized by King Yuan of Zhou.

Fu Chai...King of WU

King of Wu, Fu Chai, was the second son of King Helu of Wu in the Spring and Autumn Period. Within the same year of ascending the throne, Fu Chai followed the will of his father, who was defeated by King Goujian of Yue, by appointing Bo Pi as Chief Advisor, who was charged with the responsibility of training the army with veteran general Wu Zixu. Fu Chai made the appointment in an attempt to avenge on the State of Yue.
In 494 BC, King Fu Chai put the Yue army to rout in Fujiao and captured the Yue capital Kuaiji (present-day Shaoxing of Zhejiang), compelling the submission of the Yue State to Wu. In 486 BC, King Fu Chai built Canal Han, connecting the Yangtze and Huaihe Rivers. Thus, a waterway leading to the Song and Lu states was opened, making it possible for Fu Chai to push his troops into the Central Plains.
Later, the Wu army defeated the Qi State in Ailing (present-day Tai'an of Shandong). In 482 BC, King Fu Chai achieved the hegemony status over all other states in the vassals' meeting in Huangchi (present-day southwestern Fengqiu of Henan).
The battles for years running led to the weakening of national power. While the elites of the Wu State were away for the Huangchi meeting, only the crown prince and old and weak officials were left behind in charge of the state, providing a good chance for the Yue State. In 473 BC, King Goujian of Yue led his troops to attack the Wu State, which was wiped out in the battle. King Fu Chai killed himself.

Goujian Sword and Fu Chai Spear

In my previous post about the Sword of Goujian and the Spear of Fu Chai, I had mentioned that there will be more updates and photos on the subject of these two treasured artifacts from ancient China. In this and the next few posts I intend to do just that.

To recapitulate, both of the actual artifacts can be viewed at the Hubei Provincial Museum in Wuhan.

Please refer to my earlier post for details of the museum display etc.





This is the famous Sword of Goujian which is more than 2500 years old. Despite the age, the sword is still gleaming and is very sharp.

There is an interesting story of how this particular sword came to be made for King Goujian. But I shall probably cover that in another post.




This is the reputed spear of King Fu Chai of Wu Kingdom who reigned from 495 BC to 473 BC. His father was King Helu who died from injuries he received in a battle against Goujian's Yue forces.

The spear has Fu Chai's name crafted on it.

It existed at the same time as the Sword of Goujian..making it more than 2500 years old too.

If you look closely at the mid section of the spear head, you can clearly see the groove running from the tip to the base of the head. This is what was known as a " blood groove...for the the blood of the victim to flow out after he has been speared.

Manchester Utd vs Inter Milan...Stalemate!

So Arsene Wenger's prediction has not come true. He predicted that all 3 English teams would be victorious against their Italian counterparts.

Early this morning( S'pore time ), Man Utd drew 0-0 with host Inter Milan while Arsenal beat visitors Roma 1-0. Later tonight, Chelsea will host Juventus.

Before the Man Utd game, star striker for Inter Zlatan Ibrahimovic declared that he was anytime a better player than Berbatov and Wayne Rooney combined. Luckily he did not compare himself with C Ronaldo...the World Player of the Year.

Why?

If it was up to me to decide who the top player of each side was after the game...it would have to be Ronaldo for Man Utd and Julio Cesar the goalkeeper for Inter Milan.

Both were in top form. Without a doubt, it was J Cesar who saved the day for Inter and prevented a massacre. Man U was in terrific form even though no goals were scored.

And Ibrahimmovic? I think it was his cousin who turned up...a pale shadow, only one shot at goal which went the way of the crowd in all 93 minutes!

And Adriano..the once deadly Brazillian hitman?

He had his gun but his bullets were rusty and crooked.

So what will happen in the return leg in 2 week's time at Old Trafford?

Anything can happen. If Inter can score a goal then Man U will need to score 2 to go through.

If it ends in a 1-1 draw then Man U will be out on the away goals rule.



Photos from the D Mail.

Top: Ryan Giggs shoots but his shot

was saved by keeper Cesar.

Centre and Bottom:

Adriano found Rio Ferdinand a real stumbling block in the heart of United defence.

European Soccer..England 3 Italy 0 ?

It is now 12.45 am Singapore time. In a little over 3 hours an unusual encounter is taking place in European soccer. By the luck of the draw and by their own superb qualifications, 3 top English teams from the EPL will be meeting their rivals who happen to be the 3 top Italian teams from the Serie A.

The 3 match ups are:-
Manchester Utd vs Inter Milan
Arsenal vs Roma
Chelsea vs Juventus
Arsene Wenger, the Manager of Arsenal has predicted that all 3 English sides will beat their Italian counterparts. History is on the side of the English clubs....mostly.
But, as they say the ball is round and anything can happen. Let's wait and see. I shall be catching the games Live.
Photo: Arsene Wenger, Ronaldo, Lampard, Van Persie

The team from Man United training at the San Siro in Italy yesterday.

Manchester Utd has met Inter Milan in the 1999 season.

Results: Man Utd won 1 and drew 1.

Here is the photo from 1999 when Paul Scholes scored the equaliser with just 2 minutes remaining on the clock...to leave Inter shell-shocked, knocking them out in that quarter-final 2nd leg match in Italy.

United won the 1st home leg.

In that terrific year, they went on to beat Juventus in the Semi-final and captured the European Cup for the 1st time after beating Bayer Munich in that unforgetable grand Final...in the dying moments of the game. That game will be forever remembered by me and others as probably Man Utd's finest hour.

Eric Cantona...Manchester United Legend

One football player I can never forget is Eric Cantona of Manchester United. To hordes of Manchester Utd die-hard fans around the world who are old enough to have seen him in action..he is the top Legend of the club. And mind you, Man Utd have had some of the most illustrious names of the best players in football. Yet, one man stands out. For everything he stood for, for his sublime skills and coolness, his leadership, his courage and for just being himself..there is none but Eric Cantona. I just came across a report from the net that will interest admirers of Cantona. Here is the report.


CANTONA CONFIRMS UNITED AMBITION

Manchester United legend Eric Cantona has reiterated his desire to manage the Red Devils in the future.
The former Leeds striker inspired United to win their first league title in 26 years in 1993, beginning a decade of Premier League dominance at Old Trafford.
And, more than 10 years since he shocked United supporters with his decision to quit the game, he confirmed he now wants to return to the club as manager.
It is not the first time Cantona has stated his intention to coach United and he told French TV station Canal+: "I don't know if I am right, but as a coach I have convictions.
"I would like to coach Manchester United. I claim I have to work with great players. Have a look at (Diego) Maradona.
"As a club coach he got two wins in 25 matches. As Argentina coach, there is a big difference and the results have changed."

Below is a link to a VIDEO showing the Top 10 Goals of Eric Cantona's playing career.
http://vodpod.com/watch/1491906-eric-cantona-top-10

The Incredible GigaPan Epic Camera

A unique robotic camera mount, the GigaPan Epic works with most point and shoot cameras to create multi-gigapixel panoramas. The GigaPan Epic makes it easy to capture incredibly detailed images and works seamlessly with the GigaPan Stitcher and GigaPan.org. The Epic allows your camera to take tens, hundreds, or even thousands of photos. These images are combined into a single gigapixel panorama by the GigaPan Stitcher. You can then view, share, and explore the incredible detail of your panoramas at GigaPan.org. Simply attach your camera to it, then the Epic directs you through the steps to capture a gigapixel image. You set the upper left and lower right corners of your panorama, then the Epic works out how many photos your camera will need to take, hundredA unique robotic camera mount, the GigaPan Epic works with most point and shoot cameras to create multi-gigapixel panoramas.
To see this incredible technology at work click on the link. I have a previous post on this a week ago.
http://gigapan.org/viewGigapanFullscreen.php?auth=033ef14483ee899496648c2b4b06233c