The Late Zhou period is increasingly characterized…

The Late Zhou period is increasingly characterized by destruction, as warfare among the semiautonomous Zhou vassals becomes endemic from the fifth century BCE.

China’s so-called “Spring and Autumn Period” ends and the Warring States period begins as the belligerent vassals form alliances with one another to increase their power and gain more land.

This is nevertheless a time of great intellectual achievement, China's "Golden Age".

The endemic warfare results in increased centralization and administrative efficiency within each state.