Ju Shou was from Guangping County (廣平縣), Julu Commandery (鉅鹿郡), which is in present-day Quzhou County, Hebei. He was allegedly a descendant of Ju Song (沮誦), who served as a historian under the mythical Yellow Emperor. Known for being ambitious since he was a child, he was particularly interested in strategy. He started his career as an Attendant Officer (別駕) under Han Fu, the Governor of Ji Province, probably sometime in the reign of Emperor Ling (r. 168–189). During this time, he was nominated as a maocai (茂才; outstanding civil service candidate) and held office as the Prefect (令) of two counties in Ji Province. Han Fu later recommended him to be a Cavalry Commandant (騎都尉).
In 191, Ju Shou came to serve the warlord Yuan Shao after Han Fu relinquished his governorship of Ji Province to Yuan Shao. He proposed to Yuan Shao a grand plan: conquer Ji, Qing, You and Bing provinces in northern China, recruit all the talents in these four provinces, and bring the figurehead Emperor Xian (r. 189–220) to Ji Province. Yuan Shao was so pleased that he appointed Ju Shou as an Army Supervisor (監軍) and General of Vehement Might (奮威將軍).
In 195, when Emperor Xian was in Luoyang, Ju Shou advised Yuan Shao to welcome the emperor to Ye city, the capital of Ji Province, and use him as a "trump card" against rival warlords. Just when Yuan Shao was about to follow Ju Shou's advice, some of his other advisers (e.g. Guo Tu) argued that the emperor would be a "burden" rather than a "trump card" because they would have to directly take orders from him and have less autonomy. Yuan Shao thus decided not to bring Emperor Xian to Ji Province. In the following year, Yuan Shao's rival Cao Cao brought Emperor Xian to his base in Xu (許; present-day Xuchang, Henan) and established the new imperial capital there.
In the late 190s, Yuan Shao wanted to divide his territories among his three sons by putting each son in charge of one province and assess their capabilities. However, Ju Shou strongly objected to this idea and argued that it would sow the seeds for internal conflict later. Yuan Shao ignored him and went ahead by putting his eldest son Yuan Tan in charge of Qing Province, his second son Yuan Xi in charge of You Province, his maternal nephew Gao Gan in charge of Bing Province, while his third son Yuan Shang would succeed him as the Governor of Ji Province. Ju Shou's prediction came true as conflict broke out between Yuan Tan and Yuan Shang almost immediately after Yuan Shao's death in 202.
In 199, after Yuan Shao eliminated his northern rival Gongsun Zan and gained complete control over the four provinces in northern China, he planned to attack Cao Cao in the south. Ju Shou and Tian Feng, another of Yuan Shao's advisers, urged him to adopt a slow, steady and step-by-step approach towards attacking Cao Cao because it was to their advantage. However, Yuan Shao did not heed Ju Shou and Tian Feng's advice and prepared for an all-out invasion, which led to the Battle of Guandu in 200. Before Yuan Shao embarked on his campaign against Cao Cao, Ju Shou gathered all his family members and relatives and told them to divide the family fortune and disperse, because he knew that the Ju family would be in trouble if Yuan Shao lost the battle. Ju Shou's younger brother, Ju Zong (沮宗), disagreed that Yuan Shao would lose, but Ju Shou insisted that he was right.
In 200, before the Battle of Boma (a prelude to the Battle of Guandu), Ju Shou warned Yuan Shao not to put Yan Liang in charge of leading the attack on Cao Cao's garrison at Boma (白馬; near present-day Hua County, Henan) because Yan Liang was petty and narrow-minded. Yuan Shao ignored him and sent Yan Liang anyway. Yan Liang was killed in action. Before Yuan Shao's main army crossed the Yellow River, Ju Shou advised Yuan Shao to remain at Yan Ford (延津) and send detachments to attack Cao Cao's camp at Guandu (官渡) instead of going all-out to attack Guandu. When Yuan Shao did not heed his advice, Ju Shou sighed, claimed that he was ill and refused to meet anyone. Yuan Shao became very unhappy with Ju Shou and he gave command of Ju Shou's units to Guo Tu instead.
After Yuan Shao lost the Battle of Yan Ford (a follow-up to the Battle of Boma), Ju Shou urged him to change strategy and fight a long-term war with Cao Cao so as to gradually wear down Cao Cao's forces over time. However, Yuan Shao refused to listen and insisted on sending his troops on an all-out confrontation with Cao Cao. In the initial stages of the Battle of Guandu, after Cao Cao's forces attacked one of Yuan Shao's supply convoys, Yuan Shao ordered his general Chunyu Qiong to take charge of transporting supplies and defend the supply depot at Wuchao (烏巢). When Ju Shou advised Yuan Shao to send Jiang Qi (蔣奇) to lead a unit to escort the supply convoy, Yuan Shao ignored him again. Yuan Shao ultimately lost the Battle of Guandu against Cao Cao when the latter led a successful raid on Wuchao and destroyed all of Yuan Shao's supplies.
Ju Shou was captured by Cao Cao's men while Yuan Shao's forces were retreating after their defeat. When he was brought before Cao Cao, he remained stubborn and refused to surrender. Cao Cao not only did not harm him, but also treated him well even though he was a prisoner-of-war. Ju Shou was later killed by Cao Cao's men while attempting to escape and return to Yuan Shao.
Family
Ju Shou had a son, Ju Hu (沮鵠), who served under Yuan Shang after the latter succeeded his father as the Governor of Ji Province. Ju Hu was killed in action during the Battle of Ye in 204 against Cao Cao's forces.
Cao Cao, courtesy name Mengde, was a Chinese statesman, warlord and poet. He was the penultimate grand chancellor of the Eastern Han dynasty, and he amassed immense power in the dynasty's final years. As one of the central figures of the Three Kingdoms period, Cao Cao laid the foundations for what became the state of Cao Wei, and he was posthumously honoured as "Emperor Wu of Wei", despite the fact that he never officially proclaimed himself Emperor of China or Son of Heaven. Cao Cao remains a controversial historical figure—he is often portrayed as a cruel and merciless tyrant in literature, but he has also been praised as a brilliant ruler, military genius, and great poet possessing unrivalled charisma, who treated his subordinates like family.
The Battle of Guandu was fought between the warlords Cao Cao and Yuan Shao in 200 AD in the late Eastern Han dynasty. Cao Cao's decisive victory against Yuan Shao's numerically superior forces marked the turning point in their war. The victory was also the point at which Cao Cao became the dominant power in northern China, leading to the establishment of the state of Cao Wei in the Three Kingdoms period.
Zhang He, courtesy name Junyi, was a military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He continued serving in the state of Cao Wei under its first two rulers, Cao Pi and Cao Rui, during the Three Kingdoms period until his death.
Xu Huang, courtesy name Gongming, was a Chinese military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He later served in the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period under the first two rulers, Cao Pi and Cao Rui, before his death at the start of Cao Rui's reign. Xu Huang is best noted for breaking the siege at the Battle of Fancheng in 219 by routing the enemy commander Guan Yu on the field.
Yuan Shao, courtesy name Benchu (本初), was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who lived in the late Eastern Han dynasty. He occupied the northern territories of China during the civil wars that occurred towards the end of the Han dynasty. He was also an elder half-brother of Yuan Shu, a warlord who controlled the Huai River region, though the two were not on good terms with each other.
Yan Liang was a military general serving under the warlord Yuan Shao during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He was slain by Guan Yu at the Battle of Boma.
Chunyu Qiong, courtesy name Zhongjian, was a military officer serving under the warlord Yuan Shao during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He played a significant part in the Battle of Guandu in 200.
Tian Feng, courtesy name Yuanhao, was a Chinese politician serving under the warlord Yuan Shao during the late Eastern Han dynasty.
The end of the Han dynasty was the period of Chinese history from 189 to 220 CE, roughly coinciding with the tumultuous reign of the Han dynasty's last ruler, Emperor Xian. During this period, the country was thrown into turmoil by the Yellow Turban Rebellion (184–205). Meanwhile, the Han Empire's institutions were destroyed by the warlord Dong Zhuo and fractured into regional regimes ruled by various warlords, some of whom were nobles and officials of the Han imperial court. One of those warlords, Cao Cao, was gradually reunifying the empire, ostensibly under Emperor Xian's rule; the Emperor and his court were actually controlled by Cao Cao himself, who was opposed by other warlords.
Xu You, courtesy name Ziyuan, was an adviser during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He served under the warlord Yuan Shao from 191 to 200 and then under the warlord and Grand chancellor of the Han Cao Cao from 200 until he was executed by the latter in 204 during the End of the Han dynasty.
Guo Tu, courtesy name Gongze, was an official and adviser serving under the warlords Yuan Shao and Yuan Tan during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China.
Xun Chen, courtesy name Youruo, was an official who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. Born in the influential Xun family of Yingchuan Commandery, he was the fourth brother of Xun Yu and a second cousins once removed of Xun You. He initially served as an adviser to the warlord Han Fu and later to another warlord, Yuan Shao.
Shen Pei, courtesy name Zhengnan, was a Chinese military general and politician serving under the warlord Yuan Shao during the late Eastern Han dynasty. Xun Yu, an official serving under Yuan Shao's rival Cao Cao, once said that Shen Pei was "strong of will but without tact".
Yan Rou was a military general of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He previously served under the warlord Cao Cao in the late Eastern Han dynasty.
Chen Lin, courtesy name Kongzhang (孔璋), was an official, scholar and poet who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He was one of the "Seven Scholars of Jian'an". He later served as Military Advisor to Cao Cao.
Zhu Ling , courtesy name Wenbo, was a Chinese military general of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He previously served under the warlords Yuan Shao and then Cao Cao during the late Eastern Han dynasty.
Xin Ping, courtesy name Zhongzhi, was a Chinese official who served under the warlords Han Fu, Yuan Shao and Yuan Tan during the late Eastern Han dynasty.
Gao Gan, courtesy name Yuancai, was a minor warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He was a maternal nephew and subordinate of the warlord Yuan Shao.
The Battle of Boma or Battle of Baima was the first of a series of battles that led to the decisive Battle of Guandu between the warlords Yuan Shao and Cao Cao in northern China in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. Although Cao Cao won the battle and Yuan Shao lost his elite general Yan Liang, Cao eventually abandoned his position in Boma to entrench at the strategically important Guandu.
The Battle of Yan Ford took place along the southern banks of the Yellow River in the late Eastern Han dynasty. The battle was closely preceded by the Battle of Boma, and was part of a series of engagements leading to the decisive confrontation between the rival warlords Yuan Shao and Cao Cao at the Battle of Guandu in 200. Following the death of one of Yuan Shao's elite generals, Yan Liang, in the previous battle, the death of another famed general Wen Chou in this battle greatly demoralised Yuan's army, which was heading towards Guandu.
References
↑ Ju Shou died soon after the Battle of Guandu ended, which was in Nov 200. Thus, he likely died in late Nov or early Dec 200
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
