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The Three Kingdoms from 220 to 280 AD was the tripartite division of China among the states of Wei, Shu, and Wu. The Three Kingdoms period started with the end of the Han dynasty and was followed by the Jin dynasty. The short-lived Yan kingdom in the Liaodong Peninsula, which lasted from 237 to 238, is sometimes considered as a "4th kingdom".
Sun Quan, courtesy name Zhongmou (仲謀), formally known as Emperor Da of Wu, was the founder of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period. He inherited control of the warlord regime established by his elder brother, Sun Ce, in 200. He declared formal independence and ruled from 222 to 229 as the King of Wu and from 229 to 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.
Cao Cao, courtesy name Mengde, was a Chinese warlord, statesman and poet. He was the penultimate grand chancellor of the Eastern Han dynasty who rose to great power in the final years of the dynasty. As one of the central figures of the Three Kingdoms period, he laid the foundations for what was to become the state of Cao Wei and ultimately the Jin dynasty, and was posthumously honoured as "Emperor Wu of Wei" although he never was an emperor during his lifetime. He remains a controversial historical figure, and is often portrayed as a cruel and merciless tyrant in subsequent literature; however, he has also been praised as a brilliant ruler and military genius with unrivalled charisma who treated his subordinates like his family.
Cao Pi, courtesy name Zihuan, was the first emperor of the state of Cao Wei in the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the second son of Cao Cao, a warlord who lived in the late Eastern Han dynasty, but the eldest son among all the children born to Cao Cao by his concubine, Lady Bian. According to some historical records, he was often in the presence of court officials in order to gain their support. He was mostly in charge of defence at the start of his career. After the defeat of Cao Cao's rival Yuan Shao at the Battle of Guandu, he took Yuan Xi's widow, Lady Zhen, as a concubine, but in 221 Lady Zhen died and Guo Nüwang became empress.
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The Battle of Dongkou was a naval battle fought between October 222 and January 223 between forces of the state of Cao Wei and the Kingdom of Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. The battle concluded in a Wu victory.
During the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history, Cao Pi, the first emperor of the state of Cao Wei, invaded the rival state of Eastern Wu thrice during his reign between 222 and 225. The casus belli for the attack was the Wu leader Sun Quan's refusal to send his son Sun Deng as a hostage to the Wei court, under which Wu was a nominal vassal at the time. The invasions were separated into two parts. The first attack occurred in the years 222–224 before Cao Pi ordered total retreat. The second and last part was fought in 225.
The Battle of Jiangling was fought between the forces of the state of Wei and the Kingdom of Wu in the early Three Kingdoms period of China. The battle, which took place around present-day Jiangling County, Hubei, was an integral part of the Wei emperor Cao Pi's three-pronged campaign against the Wu leader Sun Quan. It spanned a period of about six months from October 222 to April 223. Of the three fronts, the most critical Wei attacks were concentrated against the Wu fortress at Jiangling.
The Incident at Guangling was a military confrontation that took place from late 224 to early 225 between the state of Cao Wei and the kingdom of Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. Although the conflict was considered a naval battle, no fighting officially occurred.
References
- ↑ Generals of the South. " Further upstream, at Ruxu, the defence was under the command of Zhu Huan."
- ↑ De Crespigny, Rafe. "Online Publications" (PDF). Asian Studies. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 June 2011. Retrieved 9 April 2012.
This, of course, meant war, and war came very quickly. In the ninth month, Cao Pi gave orders for three armies to move south against the Yangzi.
- ↑ de Crespigny, Rafe (2007). A biographical dictionary of Later Han to the Three Kingdoms (23–220 AD). Brill. p. 46. ISBN 978-90-04-15605-0.
- Chen Shou. Records of the Three Kingdoms (Sanguozhi).
- Rafe de Crespigny. Generals of the South, Chapter Seven: Claim to the Mandate 222-229.
- Rafe de Crespigny. (2007). A biographical dictionary of Later Han to the Three Kingdoms (23–220 AD).
Coordinates: 31°38′7.22″N117°53′20.29″E / 31.6353389°N 117.8889694°E