 In 367 BC during the reign of King Xian of Zhou, the 2nd duke of West Zhou, Duke Wei (西周威公) died, and one of his younger sons, Lord Gen (公子根), rebelled against his brother Duke Hui (西周惠公) and seceded a portion of his home state centred around Gong (鞏地) with the support of Marquess Cheng of Zhao (趙成侯) and Marquess Gong of Han (韓共侯), naming it the "state of East Zhou" (東周國).This effectively splintered two separate vassal states out of the Eastern Zhou royal court, further decreasing the crown land.In 344 BC, Marquess Hui of Wei gathered other vassal lords to pay a visit to King Xian of Zhou, but instead used the occasion to declare himself king.