According to legend, Queen Bao Si never smiled. King You of the Western Zhou dynasty (about 1046BC-771BC) wanted to amuse her. So he lit the beacon fires – meant to warn of invasion – to make nobles rush to court. They dashed in but found no enemy.
When the Quanrong nomads stormed in from the north, the beacons burned, but no one came. The king died. The dynasty collapsed.
Chinese stories blamed Bao Si for the fall.
But a study published in the journal Communications Earth & Environment shows climate change caused the dynasty’s fall.
Scientists found evidence of a huge climatic event between 820BC and 700BC. Western Zhou was facing severe drought in the north and floods in the southeast.
Since the Quanrong’s pastures were dry, they went south to survive. They fought the Western Zhou, which was struggling with failing harvests.
Even if the story of Bao Si and King You is true, the kingdom was already falling apart when the nomads invaded.
