The Shang Dynasty consisted of 31 kings and seven different capitals. The King, or wang, had control over everything and everyone else. He was both the political leader as well as the religious leader.
The Emperor's of The Shang Dynasty
Cheng Tang, 1675 – 1646 BCE
Wai Bing, 1646 – 1644 BCE
Zhong Ren, 1644 – 1640 BCE
Tai Jia, 1535 -1523 BCE
Wo Ding, 1523 – 1504 BCE
Tai Geng, 1504 – 1479 BCE
Xiao Jia, 1479 – 1462 BCE
Yong Ji, 1462 – 1450 BCE
Tai Wu, 1450 – 1375 BCE
Zhong Ding, 1375 – 1364 BCE
Wai Ren, 1364 – 1349 BCE
He Dan Jia, 1349 – 1340 BCE
Zu Yi, 1340 – 1321 BCE
Zu Xin, 1321 – 1305 BCE
Wo Jia, 1305 – 1280 BCE
Zu Ding, 1368 – 1336 BCE
Nan Geng, 1336 – 1307 BCE
Yang Jia, 1307 – 1290 BCE
Pan Geng, 1290 – 1262 BCE
Xiao Xin, 1262 – 1259 BCE
Xiao Yi, 1259 – 1250 BCE
Wu Ding, 1250 – 1192 BCE
Zu Geng, 1192 – 1165 BCE
Zu Jia, 1165 – 1138 BCE
Lin Xin, 1138 – 1134 BCE
Kang Ding, dates of reign?
Wu Yi, 1147 – 1112 BCE
Wen Ding, 1112 – 1102 BCE
Di Yi, 1101 – 1076 BCE
Di Xin, 1075 – 1046 BCE
According to legend, the Shang Dynasty was founded sometime around 1600 BCE by a virtuous man named Cheng Tang, who overthrew the evil king of the legendary Xia. The Shang Dynasty was a monarchy governed by a series of kings, 29 or 30 in total, over the course of almost 600 years. The king was served by officials who held specialized positions of authority and function; and the officials belonged to a hereditary class of aristocrats, usually related to the king himself. While the king lived in and ruled from a capital city, it wasn’t always the same city. Although historical records mention many different Shang capitals, only a few have actually been confirmed with archaeological evidence. No one knows exactly why a king would move the capital but some scholars think it had to do with internal power struggles within the royal family. Cheng Tang is said to have established the dynasty’s first capital at a town called Shang (near modern-day Zhengzhou), but later kings moved the capital many more times, the last being a place called Yin (near modern-day Anyang).
Government type
The Shang political system was organized into a hierarchy,meaning that it had many levels of rank and many specialized functions and jobs, all passed down within a noble family. Shang society was also hierarchical with many different levels of social rank. The invention of writing had a profound effect on Shang government and its ability to rule. It increased the government’s ability to organize on a large scale, whether it be to oversee a hierarchical administration, rule the state’s many territories, or organize the mining of large quantities of ore for bronzework.