Sanmiao tribe
Sanmiao was a legendary tribal confederation or state said to exist in ancient China. It was formed by the descendants of the Jiuli tribe, dismantled after the Battle of Zhuolu in 2,500 BC.
Their kingdom consisted of three distinct groups, led by three rulers. It rebelled against several Han emperors. They were persecuted and subjugated by Emperors Yao and Shun, thus being classified as one of the Four Perils and nicknamed with the derogatory term "Miao".
The Sanmiao tribes were officially defeated by Yu the Great during the first rule of the Xia dynasty, in the end of the 20th century BC.
History
The Sanmiao Kingdom was established by Chiyou's descendants in Southern China, near Zishui River, where the Hunan Province is located nowadays. Their territory was composed of the upper Yangtze River, from the Han and Huai Rivers down to Poyang and Dongting Lakes. This is considered the second Hmong Kingdom, arising after the fall of the Jiuli Kingdom in the Battle of Zhuolu in about 2,500 AD.Chiyou himself and Min Miao are considered the founders of the kingdom. It was composed of three distinct groups that were led by three different rulers. Three Sanmiao rulers were Zhu Rong, Gong Gong and Huan Dou.
The Sanmiao kingdom refused to be part of the Han estate since the rule of Kao Hsin and Ti Chih. The name "Miao" itself was a derogatory term used by the Han to refer to them. Yao wanted them to be part of his estate, but his request was denied by the Sanmiao leaders. Yao then sent his successor, Shun, in a military campaign, but he was defeated by Huan Dou. He then sent Chung and Li, finally subjugating them.
When Shun came to the throne, he sent Yu the Great to once again fight the Sanmiao and defeated Huan Dou in about 2,247 BC, making him flee to Shong Shana, nowadays located on Liyang County of Hunan Province. he's also classified them as The Sanmiao were divided in several clans, and a Han official was appointed to "civilize" them. The ones that refused to be civilized had their noses and one or two ears cut off, were castrated, had their faces marked and were banned to Sanwei, near the Wei River. The people from north of Chishui River couldn't be defeated. Shun then classified them as the "Shu-ching" states, under the "barbarous" dominion.
After Shun's death, Yu the Great came into power. He founded the Hsia Dynasty and transformed his kingdom into a slave state. He attacked the Sanmiao kingdom once more under Tian's orders, destroying it once for all. Yu slaughtered the ones that resisted his rule, which were the majority of the Sanmiao. The survivors migrated to the upper and lower valleys of the Yangtze River, stablishing themselves west of Lake Dongting, in the state of Wushi. Two other groups moved to where nowadays are Anhui and Jiangxi.
Their population diminished to almost extinction, and there were no historical records about their presence for the next 1,000 years. No other Hmong kingdom was ever established.