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Cao Cao, courtesy name Mengde, was a Chinese statesman, warlord and poet who rose to power towards the end of the Eastern Han dynasty and became the effective head of the Han central government during that period, the most powerful man in China. He laid the foundation for what was to become the state of Cao Wei (220–265), established by his son and successor Cao Pi, who ended the Eastern Han dynasty and inaugurated the Three Kingdoms period (220–280). Beginning in his own lifetime, a corpus of legends developed around Cao Cao which built upon his talent, his cruelty, and his perceived eccentricities.
Ma Chao (176–222), courtesy name Mengqi, was a Chinese military general and warlord who lived in the late Eastern Han dynasty and early Three Kingdoms period of China. A descendant of the general Ma Yuan, Ma Chao was the eldest son of Ma Teng, a prominent warlord in Liang Province. In 211, he formed a coalition with Han Sui and other northwestern warlords and revolted against the Han central government, which was led by the warlord Cao Cao. The coalition broke up after losing the Battle of Tong Pass against Cao Cao's forces. Ma Chao initially retreated, but later returned to attack and seize control of Liang Province by killing the provincial inspector Wei Kang and forcing Wei Kang's subordinates to submit to him. About a year after Ma Chao started his uprising, Emperor Xian issued an imperial decree ordering the execution of Ma Chao's family members, who were in Ye city at the time. In the meantime, Wei Kang's subordinates, led by Zhao Ang, Yang Fu and others, rebelled against Ma Chao and forced him out of Liang Province. Ma Chao retreated to Hanzhong Commandery, where he borrowed troops from the warlord Zhang Lu, and returned to attack Liang Province but was ultimately defeated and driven back. Ma Chao took shelter under Zhang Lu for a while until around 214, when he heard that the warlord Liu Bei was fighting for control over Yi Province with Yi Province's governor, Liu Zhang. He defected to Liu Bei's side and assisted Liu Bei in capturing Yi Province from Liu Zhang. Ma Chao had served as a general under Liu Bei since then and participated in the Hanzhong Campaign in 219. He died in 222.
Sun Jian (155–191?), courtesy name Wentai, was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He allied himself with Yuan Shu in 190 when warlords from eastern China formed a coalition to oust Dong Zhuo, a tyrannical warlord who held the puppet Emperor Xian in his power. Although he controlled neither many troops nor much land, Sun Jian's personal bravery and resourcefulness were feared by Dong Zhuo, who placed him among Yuan Shao, Yuan Shu and Liu Biao as the most influential men at that time. After the coalition disbanded in the next year, China fell into civil war. In 191, Sun Jian was killed in battle during an offensive campaign against Liu Biao.
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.
Yuan Shu, courtesy name Gonglu, was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty. He rose to prominence following the collapse of the Han central government in 189. He declared himself Emperor of China in 197 under the short-lived Zhong dynasty, two years before his death in 199.
Cao Zhen, courtesy name Zidan, was a military general of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was an adopted son of Cao Cao, a warlord who rose to power in the late Eastern Han dynasty and laid the foundation for Wei. After Cao Cao's death and the end of the Eastern Han dynasty, Cao Zhen served under Cao Pi and Cao Rui, the first two emperors of Wei. He is best known for leading a successful defence of Wei from the first two of a series of invasions by Wei's rival state, Shu Han, between 228 and 229.
Yang Fu, courtesy name Yishan, was a Chinese politician of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He previously served as a regional official in Liang Province during the late Eastern Han dynasty. In the 210s, when the warlord Ma Chao rebelled against the Han central government, occupied Liang Province by force and murdered some of the provincial officials, Yang Fu and his colleagues pretended to submit to Ma Chao. Later, they plotted a revolt against him and succeeded in forcing him out of Liang Province. During the reign of the second Wei emperor Cao Rui, Yang Fu proposed to the emperor to scale down his extravagant construction projects but the emperor ignored him.
Tadun was a leader of the Wuhuan tribes during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He was an ally of the warlord Yuan Shao and Yuan Shao's son and successor Yuan Shang.
Yi Ji, courtesy name Jibo, was a Chinese diplomat and politician serving in the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He previously served under the warlord Liu Biao in the late Eastern Han dynasty before coming to serve Liu Bei, the founding emperor of Shu Han. Yi Ji was known as an excellent debater and helped write the Shu Ke (蜀科), the legal code of Shu, along with Zhuge Liang, Fa Zheng, Li Yan and Liu Ba.
Zhang Miao, courtesy name Mengzhuo, was a Chinese politician and warlord who lived in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China.
Liu Fu, courtesy name Yuanying, was a Chinese politician of the Eastern Han dynasty of China. While serving as the governor of Yang Province from 200 to 208, he relocated the province's administrative centre from Liyang to Hefei. During his tenure, Hefei became a highly militarised and well-defended military stronghold, which later served as a strategic location in several battles between the rival states of Cao Wei and Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period (220–280).
Liu Yao (157–198), courtesy name Zhengli, was a Chinese politician and warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He was a descendant of Liu Fei, the eldest son of the Han dynasty's founding emperor, Liu Bang. When he was 18, he became famous after rescuing a relative who was being held hostage by bandits. He started his career in the Han civil service after being nominated as a xiaolian, and was known for his incorruptibility. In 194, although he was appointed by the Han imperial court as the governor of Yang Province, he barely managed to gain a foothold over his jurisdiction because the warlord Yuan Shu controlled a large part of the territories around the Huai River region in Yang Province. In 195, conflict broke out between Liu Yao and Yuan Shu, who sent his ally Sun Ce to attack Liu Yao. Sun Ce defeated Liu Yao and forced him to retreat south into present-day Jiangxi, where Liu Yao defeated a minor warlord Ze Rong and died of illness shortly later. His elder brother was Liu Dai, another prominent warlord.
The Campaign against Dong Zhuo was a punitive expedition initiated by a coalition of regional officials and warlords against the warlord Dong Zhuo in 190 in the late Eastern Han dynasty. The members of the coalition claimed that Dong had the intention of usurping the throne by holding Emperor Xian hostage and by establishing a strong influence in the imperial court. They justified their campaign as to remove Dong from power. The campaign led to the evacuation of the capital Luoyang and the shifting of the imperial court to Chang'an. It was a prelude to the end of the Han dynasty and, subsequently, the Three Kingdoms period.
Zhou Ang was a Chinese military general and politician serving under the warlord Yuan Shao during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He was from Kuaiji Commandery, which is around present-day Shaoxing, Zhejiang. He had two brothers: Zhou Yu (Renming) and Zhou Xin. He served as the Administrator (太守) of Jiujiang Commandery and as the Inspector (刺史) of Yu Province. In 192, he was defeated in a battle at Yinling County against the forces of Yuan Shao's half-brother and rival Yuan Shu.
Zhou Yu, courtesy name Renming, was a Chinese military general and politician who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He was from Kuaiji Commandery, which is around present-day Shaoxing, Zhejiang. He had two brothers: Zhou Ang and Zhou Xin.
Liu Xun, courtesy name Zitai, was a military general and minor warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China.
Zhou Xin was a Chinese politician who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China.
Qin Yilu was a military officer who served under the general and warlord Lü Bu in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. Allowing for variant writing in the records, Qin Yilu was probably the same person as two others named Qin Yi.
References
- Chen, Shou (3rd century). Records of the Three Kingdoms (Sanguozhi).
- Pei, Songzhi (5th century). Annotations to Records of the Three Kingdoms (Sanguozhi zhu).