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Sun Quan,courtesy name Zhongmou (仲謀),posthumously known as Emperor Da of Wu,was the founder of the Eastern Wu dynasty,one of the Three Kingdoms of China. He inherited control of the warlord regime established by his elder brother,Sun Ce,in 200. He declared formal independence and ruled from November 222 to May 229 as the King of Wu and from May 229 to May 252 as the Emperor of Wu. Unlike his rivals Cao Cao and Liu Bei,Sun Quan was much younger than they were and governed his state mostly separate of politics and ideology. He is sometimes portrayed as neutral considering he adopted a flexible foreign policy between his two rivals with the goal of pursuing the greatest interests for the country.
Zhang Liao,courtesy name Wenyuan,was a Chinese military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He served briefly in the state of Cao Wei,founded by Cao Cao's successor Cao Pi,in the early Three Kingdoms period before his death. Formerly a subordinate of other warlords such as Ding Yuan,Dong Zhuo and LüBu,Zhang Liao joined Cao Cao around 198 after LüBu's downfall at the Battle of Xiapi. Since then,he participated in many of Cao Cao's military campaigns,including those against Yuan Shao's heirs and the Wuhuan tribes from 201 to 207. He is best known for his pivotal role in the Battle of Xiaoyao Ford in 214–215,in which he successfully defended Hefei from the forces of the warlord Sun Quan.
Wei (220–266),known as Cao Wei 曹魏or Former Wei in historiography,was a dynastic state of China and one of the three major states that competed for supremacy over China in the Three Kingdoms period. With its capital initially located at Xuchang,and thereafter Luoyang,the state was established by Cao Pi in 220,based upon the foundations laid by his father,Cao Cao,towards the end of the Eastern Han dynasty. The name "Wei" first became associated with Cao Cao when he was named the Duke of Wei by the Eastern Han government in 213,and became the name of the state when Cao Pi proclaimed himself emperor in 220. Historians often add the prefix "Cao" to distinguish it from other Chinese states known as "Wei". The authority of the ruling Cao family dramatically weakened in the aftermath of the deposing and execution of Cao Shuang and his siblings,the former being one of the regents for the third Cao Wei emperor,Cao Fang,with state authority gradually falling into the hands of Sima Yi,another Cao Wei regent,and his family,from 249 onwards. The last Wei emperors would remain largely as puppet rulers under the control of the Simas until Sima Yi's grandson,Sima Yan,forced the last Wei ruler,Cao Huan,to abdicate the throne and established the Western Jin dynasty.
Yue Jin,courtesy name Wenqian,was a military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He was noted as much for his short stature as for his valour and ferocity on the battlefield. Yue Jin participated in most of Cao Cao's early military exploits,and gained multiple successes in the campaigns against LüBu,Liu Bei,remnants of the Yellow Turban rebels,and Yuan Shao and his associates. He was particularly praised as a capable vanguard,but his most famed accomplishment came with his supporting role in the defence of Hefei against Sun Quan's forces at the Battle of Xiaoyao Ford of 214–215.
Cao Xiu,courtesy name Wenlie,was a Chinese military general of the state of Cao Wei in the Three Kingdoms period of China. A distant younger relative of the warlord Cao Cao,Cao Xiu started his career in the late Eastern Han dynasty as a military officer under Cao Cao. In the early stages of the Hanzhong Campaign of 217–219,he outwitted Zhang Fei and defeated his subordinate officer Wu Lan (吳蘭). Later in his career,he became a provincial-level military commander and fought in various battles against Wei's rival state,Eastern Wu. He died in 228 shortly after the Wei defeat at the Battle of Shiting.
Man Chong,courtesy name Boning,was a Chinese military general and politician of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He previously served under the warlord Cao Cao during the late Eastern Han dynasty. He is best known for defending the city of Hefei from a series of invasions by Wei's rival state,Eastern Wu,between 230 and 235.
Meng Da,courtesy name Zidu,was a military general of the state of Cao Wei during the early Three Kingdoms period of China. He previously served the warlords Liu Zhang and Liu Bei during the late Eastern Han dynasty before defecting to Wei. In Wei,he served under the first two rulers,Cao Pi and Cao Rui. Around late 227,he started a rebellion in Wei and aimed to rejoin the Shu-Han but the revolt was swiftly suppressed by the Wei general Sima Yi. Meng Da was captured and executed for treason.
Zang Ba,courtesy name Xuangao,was a military general who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty and Three Kingdoms period of China. He served the warlord Tao Qian initially,followed by LüBu and finally Cao Cao and his successors,but for the most part of his career,he remained semi-autonomous over his troops and eastern China. The years of his birth and death are not recorded,but he served the state of Cao Wei in the Three Kingdoms period until the reign of the second Wei emperor,Cao Rui.
Sun Liang,courtesy name Ziming,was the second emperor of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the youngest son and heir of Sun Quan,the founding emperor of Wu. He is also known as the Prince of Kuaiji or Marquis of Houguan (候官侯),which were his successive titles after he was deposed in November 258 by the regent Sun Chen. He was succeeded by his brother Sun Xiu,who managed to oust Sun Chen from power and kill him. Two years after Sun Liang's dethronement,he was falsely accused of treason and demoted from a prince to a marquis,after which he committed suicide.
Sun Hao,courtesy name Yuanzong,originally named Sun Pengzu with the courtesy name Haozong,was the fourth and last emperor of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was a son of Sun He,a one-time heir apparent of the founding emperor Sun Quan. He ascended the throne in September 264 after the death of his uncle,Sun Xiu,in light of the desire of the people to have an older emperor,considering the recent destruction of Wu's ally state Shu Han. However,he turned out to be a most unfortunate choice,as his cruelty,extravagance and inability to handle domestic matters doomed Wu,which was eventually conquered by the Jin dynasty in 280,ending the Three Kingdoms period.
The Empty Fort Strategy is the 32nd of the Chinese Thirty-Six Stratagems. The strategy involves using reverse psychology to deceive the enemy into thinking that an empty location is full of traps and ambushes,and therefore induce the enemy to retreat. Some examples are listed in the following sections.
Liu Shao,courtesy name Kongcai,was an official of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He often provided advice to the emperor Cao Rui,and was praised by Cao Rui for his good advice,even though Cao Rui did not frequently actually act on the advice. He also wrote poems to try to discourage Cao Rui from military and palace-building projects. When Sun Quan,the emperor of Wei's rival state Eastern Wu,led an army to attack the Wei stronghold at Hefei in 234,Liu Shao suggested to Cao Rui to send his forces to cut off Sun Quan's supply route rather than engage Sun Quan directly –a strategy that forced Sun Quan to withdraw.
Wang Chang,courtesy name Wenshu (文舒),was a Chinese military general and politician of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China.
Zhang Te,courtesy name Zichan,was a military general of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He is best known for resisting an invasion by Wei's rival state,Eastern Wu,at the Battle of Hefei in 253.
Sun Deng,courtesy name Zigao,was an imperial prince of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the eldest son of Sun Quan,Eastern Wu's founding emperor,and was crown prince from 229 until his death in 241.
Wang Ling,courtesy name Yanyun,was a Chinese military general and politician of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China.
The Battle of Hefei was fought between the contending states of Cao Wei and Eastern Wu in 233 during the Three Kingdoms period of China.
The Battle of Hefei,also known as the Battle of Hefei Xincheng,was fought between the contending states of Cao Wei and Eastern Wu from roughly June to September 234 during the Three Kingdoms period of China.
The Battle of Hefei,also known as the Battle of Hefei Xincheng,was fought between the contending states of Cao Wei and Eastern Wu from roughly April to August 253 during the Three Kingdoms period of China.
The Battle of Quebei was a military offensive launched in 241 by the state of Eastern Wu against its rival state,Cao Wei,during the Three Kingdoms period of China. The campaign was initiated by Wu's founding emperor,Sun Quan,two years after the death of the second Wei emperor,Cao Rui. The campaign ended with an overall failure. Despite its name,Quebei being the location where most of the fighting took place,the campaign was actually a two-front attack and covered a wide area in Anhui and Hubei.
References
- Chen, Shou. Records of the Three Kingdoms (Sanguozhi).
- Pei, Songzhi. Annotations to Records of the Three Kingdoms (Sanguozhi zhu).
- Sima, Guang. Zizhi Tongjian .