Yuan Shao
Portrait of Yuan Shao in a Qing Dynasty edition of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms
Warlord
Born	(Unknown)
Died	June 28, 202
Names
Simplified Chinese	袁绍
Traditional Chinese	袁紹
Pinyin	Yuán Shào
Wade-Giles	Yuan Shao
Style name	Benchu (本初)

Yuan Shao (died June 28, 202)^[1][2] was a warlord during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He occupied the northern territories of China during the civil war that occurred towards the end of the Han Dynasty and the beginning of the Three Kingdoms era. He was also the older half-brother of Yuan Shu, a warlord who controlled the Huai River region, though the two were not on good terms with each other.

One of the most powerful warlords of his time, Yuan Shao spearheaded a coalition of warlords against Dong Zhuo, who held Emperor Xian hostage in the capital Luoyang, but failed due to internal disunity. In 200, he launched a campaign against his rival Cao Cao but was defeated at the Battle of Guandu. He died of illness two years later in Ye. His eventual failure despite his powerful family background and geographical advantages was commonly blamed on his indecisiveness and inability to heed the advice of his advisors.

Biography[link]

Family background[link]

A local of Ruyang County, Yuan Shao was born in a family with many members who had been in prominent positions in the civil bureaucracy of the Han Dynasty since the first century AD. Descended from Yuan An, who served during the reign of Emperor Zhang, Yuan Shao's exact parentage was the source of controversy and the major cause of dispute between him and Yuan Shu. Yuan Shao was a son of Yuan Feng (袁逢) and an older half-brother of Yuan Shu. Both Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu were great-grandsons of Yuan An, as recorded in Wang Chen (王沈)'s Book of Wei (魏書). Yuan Shao's mother was originally a servant maid of Yuan Feng, and since Yuan Feng lacked male children, the birth of Yuan Shao elevated his mother's status from a maid to a concubine. Chen Shou's Records of Three Kingdoms claimed that Yuan Shao was an older cousin of Yuan Shu. The reason for this was that Yuan Feng's older brother also lacked male children, so Yuan Shao was adopted by Yuan Feng's older brother. The adoption infuriated Yuan Shu, because his mother had a higher status than Yuan Shao's mother, even though she was also a concubine of Yuan Feng. Yuan Shao's adoption by their uncle meant that Yuan Shao would become the eldest male child in their clan, and would enjoy more privileges than Yuan Shu. When Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu became involved in disputes later, Yuan Shu would use Yuan Shao's mother as an excuse to claim that Yuan Shao was not a true son of the Yuan family. As compared to Yuan Shu, Yuan Shao had a more serious appearance and he respected men of talent regardless of their background. As such, he was welcomed by many since his childhood, including Cao Cao and Zhang Miao.

Service under the Han Dynasty[link]

When Yuan Shao was young, he participated in saving some of the "partisans" from death or other terrible fates during the second of the Disasters of Partisan Prohibitions. After he entered into government service, Yuan Shao initially served as an aide to General-in-Chief He Jin and was heavily trusted by the latter. After the death of Emperor Ling in 189, He Jin and Yuan Shao plotted to eliminate the eunuch faction, headed by the Ten Attendants, but Empress Dowager He was against their idea. He Jin then summoned Dong Zhuo to lead troops into the capital Luoyang to pressure the empress dowager. The eunuchs became fearful and they forged an edict in the empress dowager's name, summoning He Jin into the inner palace. Yuan cautioned He Jin, reminding him that he should order an attack on the eunuchs instead of entering the palace. After He Jin refused to accept his advice thrice, Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu led 200 elite troops to wait outside. Inside the palace, He Jin was ambushed and assassinated by the eunuchs, who tossed his severed head over the wall. He Jin's angered followers set fire to the palace and charged in, slaughtering every person (except females) without a moustache or beard; to the extreme that many young men without facial hair had to show their genitals to avoid being mistaken for eunuchs and killed.^[3] Over 2,000 people were killed in the massacre, while the young Emperor Shao and Prince of Chenliu (future Emperor Xian) escaped during the chaos. The resulting power vacuum provided Dong Zhuo, who found and rescued the emperor and prince, with an opportunity to seize control of the capital city when he arrived.

Dong then discussed with Yuan about his plan to depose Emperor Shao and replace him with the Prince of Chenliu, but Yuan disagreed. Relations between the two deteriorated and Yuan fled from Luoyang to Ji Province (present day southern Hebei). At the time Yuan just got out of the city gate, Dong thought about sending men after him, but Zhou Bi, Wu Qiong and He Yong secretly helped Yuan by convincing Dong to let him go. As suggested by the three men, Dong appointed Yuan as Governor of Bohai Commandery (near present day Cangzhou, Hebei) in a bid to appease the latter.^[3]

Coalition against Dong Zhuo[link]

Sun Jian's advancement[link]

By early 190, however, Yuan became openly hostile. A coalition of regional officials and commanders from the eastern provinces, including Cao Cao, Yuan Shu, Han Fu, Zhang Miao and Bao Xin, formed up behind him in a campaign to oust Dong Zhuo. Yuan Shao declared himself "General of Chariots and Cavalry" (車騎將軍) and camped at Henei (河內), near a ford on the Yellow River just north of Luoyang. Dong ordered the execution of all members of the Yuan clan in Luoyang, and sent out emissaries with imperial edict to order the regional officials to disband. However, members of the coalition listened to Yuan Shao, and had all the emissaries executed instead (except Han Rong). Dong then sent Hu Zhen, Lü Bu, and Hua Xiong to deter the coalition vanguard led by Sun Jian. Despite initial success, Sun was able to capitalize on the internal conflict between Hu and Lü, and had them defeated at Yangren. After that loss, Dong decided to move the capital to Chang'an, where his home base of Liang Province was nearby. A year later, Dong burned Luoyang to the ground and withdrew to the west with the mass of refugees. Although lacking a logistic base, Sun Jian and Cao Cao requested to pursue Dong's retreating force, but Yuan and other members largely disagreed with their opinion.^[4][5] Sun was ordered to rendezvous with Yuan Shu, so Cao led his own men to go on the pursuit alone, and was soundly defeated by Dong's subordinate, Xu Rong.

Dissolution[link]

During this time, Yuan and Han Fu had intended to establish the legitimacy of the coalition by making Liu Yu, governor of You Province (present day northern Hebei), the emperor. However, believing that it would be faithless to Emperor Xian for him to accept, Liu Yu declined the offer. When the scene of the ruined capital coming into their eyes, the disunited leaders of the coalition realized the Han Dynasty was coming to an end, and started planning on strengthening their position, and soon returned to their respective home base.

However, Yuan's army had had been joined by volunteer troops around the country, and Bohai Commandery would be far from sufficient to supply his army. Thus, his strategist, Pang Ji suggested him to form a secret alliance with the warlord Gongsun Zan and incite the latter to attack Han Fu's Ji Province.^[6] Facing an imminent attack from Gongsun, Han was terrified, and listened to Yuan's lobbyists, Gao Gan and Xun Chen, to give up the governorship to Yuan in order to drive the invader back. Yuan then began to build a warlord state from the capital city of Ji Province, Ye. In order to curtail Yuan Shu's sphere of influence, Yuan Shao formed an alliance with Cao Cao and Zhang Miao, and named his follower, Zhou Yu (周喁) as Inspector of Yu Province, a title to which Sun Jian had already been entitled, and sent him to attack Sun Jian's territories in Yu province while the latter was on his way back from Luoyang. In response, Yuan Shu allied with Gongsun and Tao Qian, and ordered Sun Jian to fight his half-brother. Although Zhou was able to defeat the forces of Gongsun in the Battle of Yangcheng, he was defeated by Sun Jian in the following battles. The first battles between the brothers ended in Yuan Shu's favour: he had engaged and defeated Yuan Shao's forces in both Yangcheng and Jiujiang, restored the position in Yingchuan Commandery under Sun, and eliminated Zhou as a threat once and for all although Jiujiang was not yet conquered. For Yuan Shao, on the other hand, the situation was extremely difficult: besides the failure in the south, he was also under threat from Gongsun Zan, who held Yuan Shao responsible for the death of his younger brother, Gongsun Yue, in battle and formally declared war against him, rejecting all of Yuan Shao's protestations of goodwill.^[7] This led to the clash between Yuan Shao and Gongsun in the Battle of Jieqiao. The Battle of Yangcheng, being the first moves in the struggle between the two Yuan, marked the beginning of a new stage in the confusion of wars which brought the end of the Han Dynasty, and confirmed the death of the alliance against Dong Zhuo as the warlords of the North China Plain started to battle each other for the ultimate dominion of China.

Unifying northern China[link]

In order to focus on the conflicts with Gongsun Zan, Yuan Shao entered into a general alliance with Liu Biao against Yuan Shu. In the winter of that year, Yuan Shao defeated the cavalry forces of Gongsun at the Battle of Jieqiao with the use of massed crossbowmen. An imperial edict requiring Yuan and Gongsun to cease fire was sent, and to eradicate the Heishan bandits, Yuan returned to Ye with his army. With the short-term help from Lü Bu, Yuan Shao managed to defeat numerous units of the bandits, yet heavy casualties were incurred on both sides.^[6] Anyway, the threat the Heishan bandits posted to his western flank was drastically reduced. Despite warnings from his advisor Ju Shou that the move could sow seeds for future trouble, Yuan Shao insisted on sending his first-born Yuan Tan away to "govern" Qing Province (present day eastern Shandong), while the Yuan forces only controlled the city of Pingyuan in the province.

In subsequent years, Yuan Shao achieved considerable success in consolidating his domain and his oldest son, Yuan Tan, was exceptionally successful on his expansion in Qing Province;^[3] in 195, Ju Shou suggested that he welcome Emperor Xian to his province so that he could effectively be in control of the imperial government, but the other strategists Guo Tu and Chunyu Qiong opposed — under the faulty logic that if he did, he would have to yield to Emperor Xian on key decisions. Yuan listened to Guo and Chunyu and gave up the opportunity to welcome the emperor to Cao Cao.

In 196 his prominent position in northern China was recognized by the imperial court, which was controlled by Cao Cao at the time, as the position of General-in-Chief and the title of Marquis of Ye were granted to him, but Yuan Shao turned them down. In 198 Yuan Shao advanced against Gongsun Zan and encircled his remaining force at Yijing (present day Xiongxian County, Hebei). By early 199 Gongsun Zan had been defeated for good at the Battle of Yijing and Yuan Shao held absolute power over the four provinces north of the Yellow River. Then, after establishing alliance with the Wuhuan tribes on the northern frontier, Yuan Shao eventually turned his attention to Cao Cao, who had been consolidating his power south of the Yellow River.

Battle of Guandu[link]

Both sides made preparations for a decisive battle, which would come to be known as the Battle of Guandu. Towards the end of 199 skirmishes were already being fought at Liyang (northwest of present-day Xun County, Henan), a major crossing point of the Yellow River. Cao Cao prepared his defenses around Guandu (northeast of present day Zhongmu County, Henan), slightly south of the river. When Liu Bei defected from Cao Cao in the first month of 200 and planted a foothold in Xu Province, Cao left his northern front exposed to Yuan and turned east to deal with Liu's rebellion. Tian Feng urged Yuan to attack Cao while he was away, but Yuan refused to launch an all-out offensive, instead he sent small detachments to harass his enemy, but was daunted by Yu Jin, the defender of Yan Ford (see Battle of Dushi Ford).

Shortly after Cao Cao returned to Guandu, Yuan had Chen Lin draft a document condemning Cao in what was essentially a declaration of war, and marched his main army toward the forward base of Liyang north of the river. At the time, Yuan's army boasted of numbers over 100,000. Heavily outnumbering Cao and holding large cavalry force, Yuan's initial attacks almost overwhelmed his enemy's positions. It is recorded in the Records of Three Kingdoms that Cao Cao on several occasions considered relinquishing his position, and consulted his chief strategist, Xun Yu on that decision, which Xun strongly opposed and further encouraged Cao to hold on. Following an unexpected defection of one of Yuan Shao's strategists and personal friends, Xu You, Cao Cao received confidential information on the whereabout of Yuan Shao's food storage. A strike led by Cao Cao and Yue Jin at Yuan's supply depot in Wuchao in late 200 burned down most of the grains available to Yuan Shao's army, thus brought the northern army to a collapse. Zhang He and Gao Lan immediately defected once they got wind of what happened in Wuchao, and many generals followed suit, Yuan Shao was unable to stop the trend and fled north across the Yellow River with only hundreds of loyaltists.

Yuan's first major defeat was also a decisive one. Thereafter, he lost the advantage over Cao Cao and never regained it. In 201, his force was again defeated by Cao, this time at the Battle of Cangting (in present day Yanggu County, Shandong), and many cities formerly controlled by the Yuan family switched allegiance to Cao Cao.

Futile effort to turn the tide and death[link]

After the battle of Cangting, Cao Cao's troops were exhausted and returned south for a rest. Meanwhile, Yuan was able to reorganize his defeated armies to settle the rebellions in his own domain, soon reestablishing order and restored the status quo ante.^[8] Yuan Shao had three sons, and he favored his third son, Yuan Shang, due to his good look, and both Yuan Tan and Yuan Shang were his choice for succession.^[3] However, Yuan was never able to finalize on his decision regarding who should inherit his legacy before he died in the fifth lunar month of 202, leaving his domain to be contested by his sons and Cao Cao.

Immediately after Yuan Shao's death, Shen Pei and Pang Ji, two influential advisors, supported Yuan Shang and pushed for him to succeed Yuan Shao, despite opposition from Yuan Tan.^[3] Yuan Shao's wife, Lady Liu, supported Yuan Shang, and Yuan Tan could not do anything to change the outcome when he rushed back from Qing Province. Then, Lady Liu, having the power now, killed Yuan Shao's other five consorts out of jealousy and disfigured them. True to Ju Shou's previous warning, chaos ensued within Yuan's forces, and Cao Cao was able to manipulate this internal turmoil, and by 207 had defeated the remnants of Yuan's forces.

Cao Cao paid his respects at Yuan Shao's tomb after annexing the Yuan's headquarters in Ye in 204. Cao wept bitterly for his former friend in front of his followers and gave Yuan Shao's family consolatory gifts and a government pension.^[9]

Cause of Yuan Shao's downfall[link]

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Yuan Shao's defeat at the Battle of Guandu is cited as an excellent example of how superior tactics and strategy can be used to defeat much larger forces. By using feints, counterattacks and strategic withdrawals, Cao Cao managed to render Yuan Shao's vastly superior manpower useless. It can be said Yuan Shao was simply outsmarted by his former friend Cao Cao. According to some sources, however, his defeat can be attributed to his failure to listen to his advisor Tian Feng. It is said that he lost his chance to defeat Cao Cao early on when he refused to mobilise his army, claiming his son was ill with a toothache.

Some believe Yuan Shao's defeat was caused by senility. They argue that it would explain how a man who managed to become for a good period of time the dominant force in China could suddenly fail so completely. It is possible that it was a combination of senility, inability to listen to advice and his unfortunate luck in finding such a cunning foe that was Yuan Shao's downfall.

Cao Cao had once analyzed Yuan Shao before the Battle of Guandu. Cao Cao said: Yuan Shao will be defeated during the war.

1. He is arrogant, self-centered, and senile;
2. His advisers fight against each other;
3. His generals have brawn but no brain, Yan Liang and Wen Chou were valiant but unskilled in terms of using tactics;
4. His sons' rivalry: All three brothers appear to be disunited
5. He did not respect his followers or troops

Yuan Shao was defeated not long after this analysis.

Family[link]

• Ancestors:
  • Yuan An, great-great-grandfather, served as Excellency over the Masses, and Excellency of Works
  • Yuan Jing (袁京), great-grandfather, served as Excellency of Works
  • Yuan Tang (袁湯), grandfather, served as Excellency over the Masses, Excellency of Works, and Grand Commandant

• Father: Yuan Feng (袁逢), served as Excellency of Works

• Siblings:
  • Yuan Ji (袁基), older half-brother, served as Minister Coachman
  • Yuan Shu, younger half-brother, warlord, declared himself Emperor of Zhong later

• Spouses:
  • Principal wife, bore Yuan Tan and Yuan Xi
  • Lady Liu (劉夫人), bore Yuan Shang
  • Five other concubines, all killed by Lady Liu

• Children:
  • Yuan Tan, oldest son, waged war on Yuan Shang after his father's death, killed by Cao Cao
  • Yuan Xi, second son, moved to You Province after Yuan Shao's death, later fled to Liaodong with Yuan Shang, killed by Gongsun Kang
  • Yuan Shang, third son, Yuan Shao's successor, waged war on Yuan Tan after his father's death, fled to Liaodong with Yuan Xi, killed by Gongsun Kang
  • Yuan Mai (袁買)

• Relatives:
  • Yuan Wei (袁隗), uncle, served as Excellency over the Masses, and Grand Tutor
  • Yuan Cheng (袁成), uncle
  • Yuan Yi, older cousin, served as Prefect of Chang'an, and Inspector of Yang Province
  • Yuan Xu (袁敘), younger cousin
  • Yuan Yin, younger cousin, served as Administrator of Danyang
  • Yuan Manlai (袁滿來), cousin
  • Yuan Yida (袁懿達), cousin
  • Yuan Renda (袁仁達), cousin
  • Gao Gan, nephew

Modern references[link]

Yuan Shao is featured as a playable character in Koei's Dynasty Warriors and Warriors Orochi video game series. He also appears in all 11 installments of Koei's Romance of the Three Kingdoms strategy game series. He also has a minor role in Koei's Kessen II.

See also[link]

• List of people of the Three Kingdoms
• List of Dynasty Warriors characters

Notes[link]

References[link]

• Chen Shou (2002). Records of Three Kingdoms, Volume 6, Biography of Yuan Shao. Yue Lu Shu She. ISBN 978-7-80665-198-8. 
• Fan, Ye. Book of the Later Han.
• de Crespigny, Rafe (1990), Generals of the South: The foundation and early history of the Three Kingdoms state of Wu, Canberra: Australian National University, http://www.anu.edu.au/asianstudies/decrespigny/gos_index.html . Internet Edition.

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Yuan Shao

Cao Cao
Ming Dynasty block print portrait of Cao Cao from Sancai Tuhui
King of Wei
Born	155 Bozhou, Anhui, China
Died	March 15, 220 (aged 64–65) Luoyang, Henan, China
Successor	Cao Pi
Names
Simplified Chinese	曹操
Traditional Chinese	曹操
Pinyin	Cáo Cāo
Wade-Giles	Ts'ao2 Ts'ao1
Style name	Mengde (孟德)
Posthumous name	King Wu (武王) Emperor Wu (武帝)
Temple name	Taizu (太祖)
Other names	Infant names A'man (阿瞞) Jili (吉利)

Cao Cao (Mandarin pronunciation: [tsʰɑ̌ʊ tsʰɑ́ʊ]; 155 – March 15, 220)^[1] was a warlord and the penultimate chancellor of the Eastern Han Dynasty who rose to great power during the dynasty's final years. 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 was posthumously titled Emperor Wu of Wei. Although often portrayed as a cruel and merciless tyrant, Cao Cao has also been praised as a brilliant ruler and military genius who treated his subordinates like his family. He was also skilled in poetry and martial arts and wrote many war journals.

Biography[link]

Early life[link]

Cao was born in the county of Qiao (present day Bozhou, Anhui) in 155. His father Cao Song was a foster son of Cao Teng, who in turn was one of the favorite eunuchs of Emperor Huan. Some historical records, including the Biography of Cao Man, claim that Cao Song's original family name was Xiahou.

Cao was known for his craftiness as an adolescent. According to the Biography of Cao Man, Cao's uncle complained to Cao Song about Cao Cao's indulgence in hunting and music with Yuan Shao. In retaliation, Cao Cao feigned a fit before his uncle, who immediately rushed to inform Cao Song. When Cao Song went to see his son, Cao Cao behaved normally. When asked, Cao Cao replied, "I have never had a fit, but I lost the love of my uncle, and therefore he deceived you." Afterwards, Cao Song ceased to believe his brother regarding Cao Cao, and thus Cao Cao became even more blatant and perseverant in his wayward pursuits.

At that time, a man living in Runan named Xu Shao was famed for his ability to evaluate one's potentials and talents. Cao paid him a visit in hopes of receiving an evaluation that would help him politically. At first, Xu refused to make a statement; however, under persistent questioning, he finally said, "You would be a capable minister in peaceful times and an unscrupulous hero in chaotic times."^[2] Cao laughed and left. It is worth noting that there are two other versions of the comment in other unofficial historical records: "capable minister in peaceful times, unrighteous hero in chaotic times" and "sinister foe in peaceful times, great hero in chaotic times."^{[citation needed]}

Statue of Cao Cao

At the age of 20, Cao was appointed district captain of Luoyang. Upon taking up the post, Cao placed rows of multicolored stakes outside his office and ordered his deputies to flog those who violated the law, regardless of their status. An uncle of Jian Shuo, one of the most powerful and influential eunuchs under Emperor Ling, was caught walking in the city after the evening curfew by Cao's men and was flogged. This prompted Jian Shuo and other higher authorities to ostensibly promote Cao to the post of governor of Dunqiu County while actually moving him out of the imperial capital. Cao remained in this position for little more than a year, being dismissed from office in 178 for his distant family ties with the disgraced Empress Song.^[3] Around 180, Cao Cao returned to court as a Consultant (議郎) and presented two memoranda against the eunuchs' influence in court and government corruption during his tenure, to limited effect.^[4]

When the Yellow Turban Rebellion broke out in 184, Cao was recalled to Luoyang and appointed "Captain of the Cavalry" (騎都尉) and sent to Yingchuan to suppress the rebels. He was successful and was sent to Ji'nan (濟南) as Chancellor (相) to prevent the spread of Yellow Turban influence there. In Ji'nan, Cao Cao aggressively enforced the ban on unorthodox cults, destroyed shrines, and supported state Confucianism. He offended the local leading families in the process, and resigned on grounds of poor health around 187, fearing that he had put his family in danger.^[5] He was offered the post of Administrator of Dong Commandery (東郡), but he declined and returned to his home in Pei county. Around that time, Wang Fen (王芬) tried to recruit Cao Cao to join his coup to replace Emperor Ling with the Marquis of Hefei, but Cao Cao refused. The plot came to nothing, and Wang Fen killed himself.^[6]

Alliance against Dong Zhuo[link]

After eighteen months in retirement, Cao Cao returned to the imperial capital in 188. That year, he was appointed Colonel Who Arranges the Army (典軍校尉), fourth of eight heads of a newly established imperial army, the corps of the Western Garden (西園軍). The effectiveness of this new force never became known, since it was disbanded the next year.^[7]

In 189, Emperor Ling died and was succeeded by his eldest son (Emperor Shao), although state power was mainly in the hands of Empress Dowager He and others. The empress dowager's brother, General-in-Chief He Jin, plotted with Yuan Shao to eliminate the Ten Attendants (a group of influential eunuchs in the imperial court). He Jin summoned Dong Zhuo, a seasoned general of Liang Province, to lead his army into Luoyang to pressure the empress dowager to surrender power, despite accusations of Dong's "infamy". Before Dong arrived, He Jin was assassinated by the eunuchs and Luoyang was thrown into chaos as Yuan Shao's supporters fought the eunuchs. Dong's army easily rid the palace grounds of opposition. After he deposed Emperor Shao, Dong placed the puppet Emperor Xian on the throne, as he deemed that Emperor Xian was more capable than the original puppet Emperor Shao.

After rejecting Dong Zhuo's appointment, Cao left Luoyang for Chenliu (southeast of present day Kaifeng, Henan, Cao's hometown), where he built his army. The next year, regional warlords formed a military alliance under Yuan Shao against Dong. Cao joined them, becoming one of the few actively fighting members of the coalition. The coalition fell apart after months of inactivity, and China fell into civil war while Dong was killed in 192 by Lü Bu.

Securing the emperor[link]

Through short-term and regional-scale wars, Cao continued to expand his power. In 193, Cao massacred thousands of civilians in Xu Province to avenge his father's death.

In 196, Cao joined Emperor Xian and convinced him to move the capital to Xuchang as suggested by Xun Yu and other advisors, as Luoyang was ruined by war and Chang'an was not under Cao's military control, and he was appointed chancellor. Cao became commander-in-chief (大將軍) and Marquis of Wuping (武平侯), though both titles had little practical implication. While some viewed the emperor as a puppet under Cao's control, Cao adhered to a strict personal rule to his death that he would not usurp the throne. Later, when he was approached by his advisors to overthrow the Han Dynasty and start his own dynasty, he replied, "If heaven bestows such a fate upon me, let me be King Wen of Zhou."^[8]

To maintain a good relationship with Yuan Shao, who had become the most powerful warlord in China when he united the northern four provinces, Cao lobbied to have Yuan appointed Minister of Works. However, this had the opposite effect, as Yuan believed that Cao was trying to humiliate him, since Minister of Works technically ranked lower than Commander-in-chief, and thus refused to accept the title. To pacify Yuan, Cao offered his own position to him, while becoming Minister of Works himself. While this temporarily resolved the conflict, it was the catalyst for the Battle of Guandu later.

Uniting the North[link]

In 200, Yuan Shao amassed more than 100,000 troops and marched southwards on Xuchang in the name of rescuing the emperor. Cao gathered 20,000 men in Guandu, a strategic point on the Yellow River. The two armies came to a standstill as neither side was able to make much progress. Cao's lack of men did not allow him to make significant attacks, and Yuan's pride forced him to meet Cao's force head-on. Despite his overwhelming advantage in terms of manpower, Yuan was unable to make full use of his resources because of his indecisive leadership and Cao's position.

Besides the middle battleground of Guandu, two lines of battle were present. The eastern line with Yuan Tan of Yuan Shao's army against Zang Ba of Cao's army was a one-sided battle in favor of Cao, as Yuan Tan's poor leadership was no match for Zang's local knowledge of the landscape and his hit-and-run tactics. On the western front, Yuan Shao's nephew, Gao Gan, performed better against Cao's army and forced several reinforcements from Cao's main camp to maintain the western battle. Liu Bei, then a guest in Yuan Shao's army, suggested that he instigate rebellion in Cao's territories as many followers of Yuan were in Cao's lands. The tactic was initially successful but Man Chong's diplomatic skills helped to resolve the conflict almost immediately. Man had been placed as an official there for this specific reason, as Cao had foreseen the possibility of insurrection prior to the battle.

Finally, a defector from Yuan Shao's army, Xu You, informed Cao of the location of Yuan's supply depot. Cao broke the stalemate by sending a special group of soldiers to burn all the supplies of Yuan's army, thus winning a decisive and seemingly impossible victory. Yuan Shao fell ill and died shortly after the defeat, leaving two sons – the eldest son, Yuan Tan and the youngest son, Yuan Shang. As he had designated the youngest son, Yuan Shang, as his successor, rather than the eldest as tradition dictated, the two brothers fought each other, as they fought Cao. Cao used the internal conflict within the Yuan clan to his advantage and defeated the Yuans easily. Cao assumed effective rule over all of northern China. He sent armies further out and expanded his control across the Great Wall into present-day Korea, and southward to the Han River.

The Three Kingdoms[link]

Traditional site of the Red Cliffs, north of Wulin

However, Cao's attempt to extend his domination south of the Yangtze River was unsuccessful. He received an initial success when Liu Biao, Governor of Jing Province, died, and his successor, Liu Cong surrendered to Cao without resistance. Delighted by this, he pressed on despite objections from his military advisors and hoped the same would happen again. His forces were defeated by a coalition of his arch-rivals Liu Bei and Sun Quan (who later founded the states of Shu Han and Eastern Wu respectively) at the Battle of Red Cliffs in 208.

In 213, Cao was titled "Duke of Wei" (魏公), given the nine bestowments, and given a fief of ten cities under his domain, known as Wei. In 216, Cao was promoted to "King of Wei" (魏王). Over the years, Cao, as well as Liu Bei and Sun Quan, continued to consolidate their power in their respective regions. Through many wars, China became divided into three powers – Wei, Shu and Wu, which fought sporadic battles without the balance tipping significantly in anyone's favor.

In 220, Cao died in Luoyang at the age of 65, having failed to unify China under his rule. His will instructed that he be buried near Ximen Bao's tomb in Ye without gold and jade treasures, and that his subjects on duty at the frontier were to stay in their posts and not attend the funeral as, in his own words, "the country is still unstable".

Cao's eldest surviving son Cao Pi succeeded him. Within a year, Cao Pi forced Emperor Xian to abdicate and proclaimed himself the first emperor of Cao Wei. Cao Cao was then posthumously titled "Grand Ancestor Emperor Wu of Wei" (魏太祖武皇帝)

Cultural legacy[link]

A mask of Cao Cao in Chinese opera.

While historical records indicate Cao as a brilliant ruler, he was represented as a cunning and deceitful man in Chinese opera, where the character of Cao is given a white facial makeup to reflect his treacherous personality. When writing the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Luo Guanzhong took much of his inspiration from the opera.

As a result, unscrupulous depictions of Cao have become much more popular among the common people than his real image. There have been attempts to revise this depiction.^[9][10]

As the Romance of the Three Kingdoms has been adapted to modern forms of entertainment, so has its portrayal of Cao. Given the source material upon which these adaptations are founded, Cao continues to be characterised as a prominent villain.

Through to modern times, the Chinese equivalent of the English idiom "speak of the Devil" is "Speak of Cao Cao and Cao Cao arrives." (Chinese: 說曹操，曹操到; pinyin: Shuō Cáo Cāo, Cáo Cāo dào).

After the Communists won the Chinese Civil War in 1949, many people in China began to believe that there were many similarities between Cao Cao and the Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party, Mao Zedong. Because of this perceived similarity, Party propagandists began a long-term, sustained effort to improve the image of Cao Cao in Chinese popular culture. In 1959, Marshal Peng Dehuai wrote a letter to Mao in which he compared himself to Zhang Fei: because of Mao's popular association with Cao, Peng's comparison implied that he had an intuitively confrontational relationship with Mao. Mao had the letter widely circulated in order to make Peng's attitude clear to other Party members, and proceeded to purge Peng, eventually ending Peng's career.^[11]

Agriculture and education[link]

While waging military campaigns against his enemies, Cao did not forget the bases of society – agriculture and education.

In 194, a locust plague caused a major famine across China. According to the Records of the Three Kingdoms, the people ate each other out of desperation. Without food, many armies were defeated without fighting. From this experience, Cao saw the importance of an ample food supply in building a strong military. He began a series of agricultural programs in cities such as Xuchang and Chenliu. Refugees were recruited and given wasteland to cultivate. Later, encampments not faced with imminent danger of war were also made to farm. This system was continued and spread to all regions under Cao as his realm expanded. Although Cao's primary intention was to build a powerful army, the agricultural program also improved the living standards of the people, especially war refugees.

By 203, Cao had eliminated most of Yuan Shao's force. This afforded him more attention on construction within his realm. In autumn of that year, Cao passed an order decreeing the promotion of education throughout the counties and cities within his jurisdiction. An official in charge of education was assigned to each county with at least 500 households. Youngsters with potential and talents were selected for schooling. This prevented a lapse in the output of intellectuals in those warring years and, in Cao's words, would benefit the people.

Poetry[link]

Cao Cao was an accomplished poet, as were his sons Cao Pi and Cao Zhi. Cao Cao was also a patron of poets such as Xu Gan.^[12] Of Cao's works only a remnant remain today. His verses, unpretentious yet profound, helped to reshape the poetic style of his time and beyond, eventually contributing to the poetry styles associated with Tang Dynasty poetry. Cao Cao and his sons Cao Pi and Cao Zhi are collectively known as the "Three Caos". Together with certain other poets, their poetry formed the backbone of what is known as the Jian'an style. Jian'an is the era name for the period from 196 to 220, the final era of the Han Dynasty; however, poets, such as of the Cao family continued to write and develop poetry in this style after the end of the Han and after the founding of the Cao Wei dynasty: these are the "Jian'an" poets. Poetry was affected by civil strife towards the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, contributing to the Jian'an poems' often solemn yet heart-stirring tone, frequently lamenting the ephemeral nature of life. From the early folk songs characteristic of Han poetry, the Jian'an poetry represents a transition towards a more scholarly poetry characteristic of Six Dynasties poetry. Cao Cao and other Jian'an poets were specifically noted for developments to the characteristic Han fu (or yuefu), while keeping some features, the uneven line lengths derived from the folksong or ballad tradition were eliminated, or changed into a regular five-character line-length style—very similar and inspirational to the regular five-character line shi poetry of the Tang Dynasty. Cao Cao himself also was noted for his ballad style verse, which he apparently set to music.^[13]

Cao Cao also wrote verse in the older four-character per line style characteristic of the Shijing "Classic Odes". Burton Watson describes Cao Cao as: "the only writer of the period who succeeded in infusing the old four-character meter with any vitality, mainly because he discarded the archaic diction associated with it and employed the ordinary poetic language of his time."^[14] One of Cao's most celebrated poems is in the old four-character line style: written during the Battle of White Wolf Mountain against the northern Wuhuan in 207, it is titled Though the Tortoise Lives Long (龜雖壽).

Another of Cao Cao's most well known poems, written right before the Battle of Red Cliffs in the winter of 208 AD, is Short Song Style. (短歌行)

Purported discovery of Cao Cao's tomb[link]

The discovery of Cao's tomb in Xigaoxue Village (西高穴村) in Anyang County, Henan was reported by archaeologists in December 2009. Legends tell that the tomb was protected by 72 decoys to keep its location secret, though the recent discovery casts doubt on that legend.^[15] The tomb was unearthed by workers of a nearby kiln when they were digging mud for making bricks, but the discovery was not initially reported to the authorities. Tomb raiding had been carried on since the tomb's initial discovery, until local authorities seized stone tablets carrying inscriptions of "King Wu of Wei" (魏武王) — Cao's posthumous reference — from tomb raiders and brought the tomb to light. Archaeologists began excavating the tomb in December 2008.^[16]

The 740-square-meter tomb, a size appropriate for a king, was determined to have been built at the time of Wei and to be that of Cao. Within the tomb were stone tablets identifying Cao as the owner of the tomb, 250 artifacts including weapons, armour, and pottery,^[17] the remains of a man in his 60s, and the bones of two women in their 50s and 20s.^[15] No luxury items were found in the tomb, which is in accordance to Cao's will that he should be buried simply.^[17] The bodies are believed to be Cao and his wife, along with her female servant.^[15]

Since its discovery, there have been many skeptics and experts who pointed out problems with the discovery and doubt about the tomb's authenticity. For instance, Professor Yuan Jixi of Renmin University's Faculty of Ancient Chinese Study suggests that because this tomb had been greatly disturbed by tomb raiders, the items found in the tomb cannot be guaranteed as original, and the most important evidence carrying inscriptions of "King Wu of Wei" may have been created by modern antique traders.^[18] A total of 23 experts and scholars from across China presented evidence at the National High-Level Forum on Culture of the Three Kingdoms Period held in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province in August 2010 to argue that the findings and the artifacts of the tomb were faked.^[19]

In fiction[link]

Romance of the Three Kingdoms, a historical novel by Luo Guanzhong, was a romanticization of the events that occurred during the Three Kingdoms period. While adhering to historical facts most of the time, the novel inevitably re-shaped Cao dramatically to some extent, so as to portray him as a cruel and suspicious villain. In some chapters, Luo created fictional or semi-fictional events involving Cao. They include:

Planned assassination of Dong Zhuo[link]

While in reality Cao did leave Dong Zhuo, the tyrannical warlord who held Emperor Xian hostage in 190 to consolidate power, Luo Guanzhong took a step further in describing Cao's attempted assassination on Dong:

Dong deposed Emperor Shao, the successor of the late Emperor Ling, and placed Emperor Xian on the throne. His autocratic behavior and acts of brutality against his political opponents and the common people incurred the anger of various court officials. One of them, Wang Yun, called for a secret meeting of the officials under the pretext of his birthday celebration. During the feast, Wang cried upon recalling the cruel deeds of Dong. His colleagues felt the same anguish and joined him in tears.

Cao, however, laughed and said, "All the officials of the court – crying from dusk till dawn and from dawn till dusk – can you make Dong Zhuo die by crying?" Wang met him in private later and lent him the Seven Gems Sword (七星劍) after Cao promised to assassinate Dong Zhuo personally.

The next day, Cao brought the precious sword to see Dong. Having much trust in Cao, Dong received the guest in his bedroom. Lü Bu, Dong's foster son, left the room for the stable to select a better horse for Cao, who complained about his slow ride. When Dong turned away, Cao prepared to unsheathe the sword. However, Dong saw Cao's action through a reflection in the mirror and hastily turned to question Cao's intention. Coincidentally, Lü Bu returned at that moment as well. In desperation, Cao knelt down and claimed that he wanted to present the sword to Dong. Cao seized the opportunity to escape from Luoyang under the pretext of trying a ride on the new horse. Dong realized later that Cao had intended to assassinate him and sent his men to summon Cao back to see him. However, Cao had already escaped and Dong issued an order for Cao's arrest.

Murder of Lü Boshe[link]

Following the escape from Dong Zhuo is a legendary episode aimed at illustrating Cao's near-Machiavellian tendencies for later characterizations of him as a villain. Though never exactly proven, it is said that Cao escaped with Chen Gong, a county magistrate who arrested him earlier and released him out of admiration for Cao's sense of righteousness later. They sought shelter at the home of Lü Boshe, a close friend of Cao's father. Lü promised to protect him and left to purchase some materials in preparation for a feast. Cao and Chen overheard a conversation between Lü's servants about a murder plot. Cao's suspicious nature caused him to jump to the conclusion that Lü Boshe had deceived him and intended to kill him and hand over his corpse to Dong Zhuo for a reward. Cao and Chen burst in and killed everyone in the house, including Lü's wife and children. They discovered later that the servants were actually discussing how to "murder" (slaughter) a pig for the feast.

Cao and Chen fled immediately and ran into Lü Boshe, who had just returned from his errand. When questioned, Cao provided an excuse, saying that he was afraid of being followed, as the reason for his abrupt departure. Cao then asked Lü, "Who's that behind you?" When Lü turned around, Cao stabbed and killed him from behind. Chen was shocked and asked him why he committed that atrocity. Cao explained that it was for their safety, because if Lü went home and saw the ghastly sight, he would report the murder to the authorities and hence create serious trouble for them. Cao then raised his sword and famously said, "I'd rather let the world down than to allow the world to let me down." (寧教我負天下人，休教天下人負我). According to Cao's biography in Records of the Three Kingdoms, Cao said "I'd rather let others down than to allow others to let me down." (寧我負人，毋人負我) with a sense of regret and remorse.^[20] The exact quote was altered in Luo Guanzhong's Romance of the Three Kingdoms, with "world" (天下人; literally: people under Heaven) replacing "others" (人; literally: people). Historian Yi Zhongtian speculated that Cao was probably trying to console himself after mistakenly killing Lü Boshe, by speaking with a sense of remorse. Yi believed that Luo had changed the quote to reflect that Cao had no sense of remorse (because "world" carries greater weight than "others"), so as to enhance Cao's image as a villain in his novel.^[21]

Portrait of Cao Cao from a Qing Dynasty edition of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, the hunched figure clearly portraying him as a villain

Strict disciplinarian[link]

Du Mu's account of Cao's life states that he was such a strict disciplinarian. He cited the example of an incident, in which Cao condemned himself to death for having allowed his horse to stray into a field of grain, violating a military law that dictates any soldier who damages commoners' crops would be executed. However, in lieu of losing his head, he was persuaded to satisfy his sense of justice by cutting off a lock of his hair. "When you pass a law, see that it is not disobeyed; if it is disobeyed, the offender must be punished."^{[citation needed]}

Death of Cao Cao and Hua Tuo[link]

In 220, Cao died in Luoyang due to an unknown illness. Legends contain explanations for the cause of his death. Romance of the Three Kingdoms included some of these legends, as well as Luo Guanzhong's own story about the involvement of Hua Tuo, a renowned Chinese physician.

When Cao started complaining about splitting headaches in the last days of his life, his subjects recommended Hua Tuo, a physician with remarkable healing skills. Upon examination, Hua diagnosed Cao's illness to be a form of rheumatism in the skull. He suggested giving Cao a dose of hashish and then splitting open his skull with a sharp axe to extract the pus within.

Due to an earlier incident with another physician called Ji Ping, who attempted to poison him, Cao grew suspicious of any physician. Cao believed that Hua intended to kill him to avenge the death of Guan Yu. He had Hua imprisoned and Hua died a few days later. Without proper treatment, Cao died soon as well. In another account of Cao's cause of death, it was said that a curse befell him when he tried to cut down a sacred tree and use its wood to build a lavish villa.

Family[link]

• Foster grandfather: Cao Teng, eunuch official, descendant of Cao Shen

• Father: Cao Song, served as Grand Commandant during the reign of Emperor Ling

• Spouses:
  • Lady Bian, Cao Cao's official spouse, bore Cao Pi, Cao Zhang, Cao Zhi, Cao Xiong and Cao Jie
  • Lady Ding (丁夫人), Cao Cao's first wife, fell out with him after Cao Ang's death
  • Lady Liu (劉夫人), Lady Ding's servant, later became Cao Cao's concubine, died of illness at a young age, bore Cao Ang and Cao Shuo
  • Lady Huan (環夫人), bore Cao Chong, Cao Ju (曹據) and Cao Yu
  • Lady Du (杜夫人), bore Cao Lin, Cao Gun and Princess Jinxiang
  • Lady Qin (秦夫人), bore Cao Xuan and Cao Jun (曹峻)
  • Lady Yin (尹夫人), bore Cao Ju (曹矩)
  • Lady Wang (王昭儀), bore Cao Gan
  • Consort Sun (孫姬), bore Cao Shang, Cao Biao and Cao Qin
  • Consort Li (李姬), bore Cao Cheng, Cao Zheng and Cao Jing
  • Consort Zhou (周姬), bore Cao Jun (曹均)
  • Consort Liu (劉姬), bore Cao Ji
  • Consort Song (宋姬), bore Cao Hui
  • Consort Zhao (趙姬), bore Cao Mao
  • Laiying'er (來鶯兒), a prostitute from Luoyang, later fell in love with Cao Cao's bodyguard Wang Tu (王圖)
  • Consort Chen (陳妾)

• Children:
  • Sons:
    • Cao Ang, raised by Lady Ding, killed in action at the Battle of Wancheng
    • Cao Pi, became the first emperor of Cao Wei after forcing Emperor Xian of Han to abdicate. See Cao Pi#Family for details on Cao Pi's family.
    • Cao Zhang, instated as Prince of Rencheng in 223. Fathered Cao Kai (曹楷).
    • Cao Zhi, instated as Prince of Chen in 225. See Cao Zhi#Family for details on Cao Zhi's family.
    • Cao Xiong, died at a young age. Fathered Cao Bing (曹炳).
    • Cao Shuo (曹鑠), died at a young age, posthumously granted title of Prince of Shang by Cao Rui. Fathered Cao Qian (曹潛). Cao Qian fathered Cao Yan (曹偃).
    • Cao Chong, died at a young age
    • Cao Ju (曹據), instated as Prince of Pengcheng in 232. Fathered Cao Cong (曹琮), Cao Fan (曹范) and Cao Chan (曹闡).
    • Cao Yu (曹宇), instated as Prince of Yan in 232. Fathered Cao Huan.
    • Cao Lin (曹林), instated as Prince of Pei in 232. Fathered Cao Wei (曹緯).
    • Cao Gun (曹袞), instated as Prince of Zhongshan in 232. Fathered Cao Fu (曹孚).
    • Cao Xuan (曹玹), instated as Marquis of Xixiang in 211. Fathered Cao Heng (曹恒).
    • Cao Jun (曹峻), instated as Prince of Chenliu in 232. Fathered Cao Ao (曹澳).
    • Cao Ju (曹矩), died at a young age
    • Cao Gan (曹幹), instated as Prince of Zhao in 232
    • Cao Shang (曹上), died at a young age
    • Cao Biao (曹彪), instated as Prince of Chu in 232. Forced to commit suicide in 251 after staging a rebellion with Wang Ling. Fathered Cao Jia (曹嘉).
    • Cao Qin (曹勤), died at a young age
    • Cao Cheng (曹乘), died at a young age
    • Cao Zheng (曹整), instated as Marquis of Mei in 217
    • Cao Jing (曹京), died at a young age
    • Cao Jun (曹均), instated as Marquis of Fan in 217. Fathered Cao Wan (曹琬), Cao Min (曹敏) and Cao Kang (曹抗). Cao Wan fathered Cao Lian (曹廉); Cao Min fathered Cao Kun (曹焜); Cao Kang fathered Cao Chen (曹諶).
    • Cao Ji (曹棘), died at a young age
    • Cao Hui (曹徽), instated as Prince of Dongping in 232. Fathered Cao Xi (曹翕).
    • Cao Mao (曹茂), instated as Prince of Quyang in 232
    • Cao Ping (曹平), instated as Marquis of Wu in 232
  • Daughters:
    • Cao Jie (曹節), empress of Emperor Xian
    • Cao Hua (曹華), concubine of Emperor Xian
    • Princess Anyang (安陽公主), personal name unknown, married Xun Yu's son Xun Yun (荀惲)
    • Princess Jinxiang (金鄉公主), personal name unknown, married He Yan
    • Princess Qinghe (清河公主), personal name unknown, married Xiahou Mao
    • Princess Linfen (臨汾公主), personal name unknown
  • Foster children:
    • Cao Zhen, distant nephew
    • Cao Xian (曹憲), daughter of Lady Huan and her ex-husband Bian Rang (邊讓), concubine of Emperor Xian
    • Qin Lang, son of Lady Du and her ex-husband Qin Yilu (秦宜祿)
    • He Yan (何晏), son of Lady Yin and her ex-husband He Wei (何威)

Appointments and titles held[link]

• Filial and Incorrupt (孝廉) - nominated candidate to be a Gentleman Cadet
• Gentleman Cadet (郎)
• Captain of the North District of Luoyang (洛陽北部尉)
• Prefect of Dunqiu (頓丘令)
• Consultant (議郎)
• Commandant of Cavalry (騎都尉)
• Chancellor of Jinan (濟南相)
• Colonel Who Arranges the Army (典軍校尉)
• Colonel of Valiant Cavalry (驍騎校尉)
• General Who Uplifts the Military (奮武將軍)
• Governor of Yan Province (兗州牧)
• General Who Builds Virtue (建德將軍)
• General Who Guards the East (鎮東將軍)
• Marquis of Fei Village (費亭侯)
• General-in-Chief (大將軍)
• Marquis of Wuping (武平侯)
• Excellency of Works (司空)
• General of Chariots and Cavalry (車騎將軍)
• Imperial Chancellor (丞相)
• Duke of Wei (魏公)
• King of Wei (魏王)

The following two titles were granted to Cao Cao posthumously

• King Wu (武王)
• Grand Ancestor Emperor Wu (太祖武皇帝) - sometimes shortened to "Emperor Wu"

Modern references[link]

Film and television[link]

The "Father of Hong Kong cinema", Lai Man-Wai, played Cao Cao in The Witty Sorcerer, a 1931 comedy film based on the story of Zuo Ci playing tricks on Cao Cao. In the Shaw Brothers film The Weird Man, Cao Cao was seen in the beginning of the film with Zuo Ci. Zuo Ci was playing tricks on him by giving him a tangerine with no fruit inside. This was later referenced in another film titled Five Element Ninjas. Other notable actors who have portrayed Cao Cao in film and television include Bao Guo'an (Romance of the Three Kingdoms), Damian Lau (Three Kingdoms: Resurrection of the Dragon), Zhang Fengyi (Red Cliff), Chen Jianbin (Three Kingdoms), Jiang Wen (The Lost Bladesman), and Chow Yun-fat (The Assassins).

Video games[link]

Cao Cao appears in all 11 installments of Koei's Romance of the Three Kingdoms video game series. He is also featured as a playable character in Koei's Dynasty Warriors and Warriors Orochi series. He also features in Koei's Kessen II as a playable main character.

Other appearances[link]

As with most of the other relevant generals of the period, Cao is portrayed as a young female character in the Koihime Musō franchise. He is also the central character in the Japanese manga series Sōten Kōro. Barry Hughart's novel The Story of the Stone mentions the Seven Sacrileges of Tsao Tsao, most of which involve family.^[22]

See also[link]

Poetry portal

• List of Dynasty Warriors characters
• List of people of the Three Kingdoms

Notes[link]

This article includes a list of references, but its sources remain unclear because it has insufficient inline citations. Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (August 2010)