Ban Zhao
Imaginary image of Ban Zhao by Shangguan Zhou (上官周, b. 1665).
Born	45
Died	116 (aged 70–71)
Spouse	Cao Shishu
Parents	Ban Biao
Relatives	Ban Chao, Ban Gu

Bān Zhāo (45–116 CE) (Chinese: 班昭; Wade–Giles: Pan Chao, fl. 2st century), courtesy name Huiban (惠班), was the first known female Chinese historian. She completed her brother Ban Gu's work as he was imprisoned and executed in the year 92 BCE. because of his association with the family of Empress Dowager Dou. It was said her works could have filled eight volumes. Apart from being interested in history, she also had great interest in astronomy and mathematics.

Family[link]

Ban Zhao was born in Fufenganlin, in what is now Shanxi province. At age fourteen, she married a local resident named Cao Shishu, and was called in the court by the name as Venerable Madame Cao (曹大家). He died when she as still and never remarried, instead devoting her life to scholarship.^[1] She was the daughter of the famous historian Ban Biao and younger sister of the general Ban Chao and of historian Ban Gu. She was also the grandniece of the notable scholar and poet Consort Ban.

Work[link]

Ban Gu was author of the history of the Western Han, a book known in modern times as the Book of Han, which she finished after he died. She added the genealogy of the mother of the emperor, which provided a lot of information which was not usually kept. She also added a treatise on astronomy.^[2]

Ban Zhao also wrote the Lessons for Women. This book generally advised women to be submissive and accept that their husbands can have concubines while as wives they must remain faithful, although the book does indicate women should be as well-educated as her so they can better serve their husbands. With her husband at the top of the pyramid of authority (or her father if she was unmarried), a woman was supposed to accord the appropriate amount of respect to her brothers, brothers-in-law, father, father-in-law and other male relatives. According to her, “Nothing is better than obedience which sacrifices personal opinion". A modern revisionist theory states that the book is a guide to teach women how to avoid scandal in youth so they can survive long enough to become a powerful dowager.This treatise on the education of women was dedicated to the daughters in Ban Zao's family but was circulated immediately at court. It was popular for centuries in China as a guide for women's conduct.^[3]

She also wrote poetry and essays and became China's most famous female scholar.^[4]

She taught Empress Deng Sui and members of the court in the royal library, which gained her political influence.^[5] The Empress and concubines gave her the title Gifted one and the empress made her a Lady-in-waiting. As the Empress became regent for the infant Emperor Shang of Han, she often sought the advice of Ban Zhao. In gratitude, the Empress gave both Ban Zhao's sons appointments as officials.^[6] Ban Zhao was also a librarian at court, supervising the editorial labors of a staff of assistants and training other scholars in her work. In this capacity, she rearranged and enlarged the Biographies of Eminent Women by Liu Hsiang. It is possible that she supervised the copying of manuscripts from bamboo slips and silk onto a recently invented material, paper.^[7]

As Ban Zhao got older, she decided to travel to Chengliu. Both the book she wrote about her traveling as another book, Collected Works of Dagu, compiled by her daughter-in-law Ding, have been lost.

During her life she also wrote poems, commemorative writings, argumentations, commentaries, essays and several longer works,^[8] not all of which survive.

Death[link]

When Empress Dowager Deng Sui heard about Ban Zhao's death at advanced age, she dressed all in white to mourn her.

Legacy[link]

Ban Zhao crater on Venus is named after her.

Family[link]

• Ban Biao (班彪; 3-54; father)
  • Ban Gu (班固; 32-92; eldest brother)
  • Ban Chao (班超; 32-102; second brother)
    • Ban Xiong (班雄; ?-after 107; Ban Chao's eldest son)
    • Ban Shi (班始; ?-130; Ban Chao's second son)
    • Ban Yong (班勇; ?-after 127; Ban Chao's youngest son)

See also[link]

• Book of Han

Notes[link]

Work Referenced[link]

• Bennet Peterson, Barbara (2000). Notable Women of China: Shang Dynasty to the Early Twentieth Century. M.E. Sharpe, Inc. 
• Perkins, Dorothy (2000). Encyclopedia of China: The Essential Reference to China, Its History and Culture. First edition (1999) Dorothy Perkins and Roundtable Press. First paperback edition (2000) Roundtable Press, New York, N.Y. ISBN 0-8160-2693-9 (hc); ISBN 0-8160-4374-4 (pbk).
• Wang, Robin (2003). Images of women in Chinese thought and culture: writings from the pre-Qin. Hackett Publishing Company. 
• Donawerth, Jane (2002). Rhetorical Theory by Women Before 1900. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. pp. 337. ISBN 0-7425-1717-9. 

External links[link]

• Information on Ban Zhao and her family

Zhao Yun
Qing Dynasty illustration of Zhao Yun
General of Shu Han
Born	(Unknown)[1]
Died	229[2]
Names
Simplified Chinese	赵云
Traditional Chinese	趙雲
Pinyin	Zhào Yún
Wade-Giles	Chao Yun
Style name	Zilong (子龍)
Posthumous name	Marquis of Shunping (順平侯)

Zhao Yun (died 229^[2]) was a military general who lived during the late Han Dynasty and early Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history. For most of his career, Zhao served the warlord Liu Bei, playing a part in the establishment of state of Shu Han. In literature and folklore, he is lauded as the third member of the Five Tiger Generals.

Due to limits in historical records, many facts about Zhao's life remain unclear or unknown. The original records in Chen Shou's Records of Three Kingdoms are only a couple of hundred words long. Pei Songzhi's annotations provide a relatively clear, though still incomplete picture of Zhao's life.

Biography[link]

Early life and career[link]

Zhao Yun was born in Zhending, Changshan (south of present-day Zhengding, Hebei). He joined the warlord Gongsun Zan around late 191 or early 192 as a commander of a small group of county volunteers. In 192, he became a subordinate of Liu Bei, who was serving as a major under Gongsun Zan then. Zhao commanded a contingent of several thousand Wuhuan cavalry under Liu Bei. He left Gongsun Zan and Liu Bei to attend his older brother's funeral later.

Zhao Yun rejoined Liu Bei in 200, when Liu was defeated by Cao Cao and was seeking shelter under Yuan Shao. Zhao Yun had a close friendship with Liu Bei, as they shared the same bed while they were living in Ye then. Around the same time, Liu Bei sent Zhao Yun to secretly recruit more men to join his army, while they were both still under Yuan Shao. Zhao Yun succeeded in recruiting a few hundred men, when asked, they all claimed to be Liu Bei's personal militia, and Yuan Shao was unable to know if his men deserted him for Liu. From then on, Zhao Yun followed Liu Bei in his sojourns throughout northern China.

"Zhao Yun's Fight at Changban" inside the Long Corridor on the grounds of the Summer Palace in Beijing, China. The rider in white is Zhao Yun.

In 208, Zhao Yun distinguished himself at the Battle of Changban against Cao Cao's forces. Liu Bei left his family behind while fleeing during the chaos. At the same time, Zhao Yun disappeared to the north, incurring suspicion that he had surrendered to Cao Cao. When someone reported that to Liu Bei, Liu angrily threw a handaxe and said, "Zilong (Zhao Yun's style name) would never desert me". As expected, Zhao Yun returned with Liu Bei's infant son Liu Shan and wife Lady Gan. For his success, Zhao Yun was promoted to "General of the Standard" (牙門將軍).

Efforts in establishing Shu[link]

After the Battle of Red Cliffs, Zhao Yun played a major role in conquering territories in Jiangnan for Liu Bei. He was promoted to Major-General (偏將軍) and appointed Grand Administrator of Guiyang, replacing Zhao Fan, who surrendered the area to Liu Bei's forces.

When Liu Bei entered Yi Province (covering the Sichuan Basin) with his major advisor, Pang Tong, he appointed Zhao Yun as the main officer overseeing his base in Gong'an. Liu Bei's wife, Lady Sun, was the younger sister of the warlord Sun Quan, who was Liu's patron and chief ally. Emboldened by her brother's power and influence, Lady Sun and her militia often ran wild and broke the law. Liu Bei considered Zhao Yun to be serious, firm and unwavering, so he granted Zhao special authority to oversee internal affairs in Gong'an, as well to keep close watch on Lady Sun and her followers. Not long after Liu Bei left Jing Province, Sun Quan secretly summoned his sister back to Jiangdong. Lady Sun wanted to bring the young Liu Shan along with her, but Zhao Yun and Zhang Fei stopped her on the Yangtze River and retrieved their lord's son.

In 214, Liu Bei's invasion of Yi Province, governed by Liu Zhang, faced desperate resistance when he reached the city of Luo (雒; northwest of Chengdu). There, rival generals Liu Xun, Zhang Ren, and Ling Bao played a staunch defense, and Pang Tong was killed in action. Zhao Yun accompanied Zhang Fei and Zhuge Liang to Yi Province to assist in the war.^[3] Zhao Yun held a separate command, with his army marching from Jiangzhou (present-day Chongqing), through Jiangyang (present-day Luzhou) and Jianwei, to enter the region. The arrival of Zhao Yun replenished the tired soldiers who were worn by the three-year campaign, and together they surrounded Chengdu, forcing Liu Zhang to yield. Liu Bei appointed Zhao Yun as "General of the Flying Army" after occupying Chengdu. At that time, many suggested to Liu Bei to grant estates and plantations around Chengdu to his generals for them to settle in. Zhao Yun argued that it was more suitable to return the lands to the locals, and Liu Bei accepted his advice.

Battle of Han River[link]

In 219, Liu Bei and Cao Cao battled for control over Hanzhong in the Hanzhong Campaign. Cao Cao had huge amounts of food supplies stocked up near the north mountain. Zhao Yun sent his soldiers to follow Huang Zhong to attack Cao Cao's army and seize the supplies. When Huang Zhong did not return on time, Zhao Yun brought a dozen men with him to find Huang. They ran into Cao Cao's vanguard army and were preparing for engagement when Cao's main force arrived. The situation became perilous for Zhao Yun as he was vastly outnumbered. Zhao Yun attacked the frontline of Cao Cao's army, surprising the enemy and causing them to momentarily disperse. However, Cao Cao's troops soon regrouped and surrounded Zhao Yun, so Zhao fought his way towards his own camp. When Zhao Yun saw that his subordinate Zhang Zhu was injured and had fallen behind, he turned back to rescue him. Cao Cao's army pursued Zhao Yun back to his camp. Zhang Yi, Administrator of Mianyang, who was stationed in Zhao Yun's camp, thought it would be best to close all the gates. However, upon entering the camp, Zhao Yun ordered all flags and banners to be hidden, all drumming to be stopped, and the gates left completely open. Cao Cao's force feared an ambush in the camp and hastily retreated. Just then, Zhao Yun ordered his drummers to beat the drums loudly and his archers to fire arrows at the enemy. Cao Cao's army was taken by surprise and disintegrated into chaos. Many of Cao Cao's soldiers drowned as they tried to flee towards the Han River to escape.

The following day after the battle, Liu Bei arrived to inspect the battle situation. He praised Zhao Yun for the victory, "Zilong has valor through and through", and threw a feast in honor of Zhao. From then on, Zhao Yun became known as "General of Tiger's Might" (虎威將軍) in Liu Bei's army.

In 221, Liu Bei proclaimed himself Emperor of Shu Han, and declared war on Eastern Wu to avenge the death of Guan Yu and the loss of Jing Province. Zhao Yun attempted to dissuade Liu Bei from waging war on Wu, and advised him to attack Wei first, but Liu Bei ignored his advice. Liu Bei then left Zhao Yun in charge of Jiangzhou, while he personally led an army to attack Wu, but was defeated at the Battle of Xiaoting.

Later life[link]

Liu Bei died in 223 and was succeeded by his son, Liu Shan. In the same year, Zhao Yun was named "South Conquering General" (征南將軍) and "Central-Protector-of-Army" (中護軍), and received the title of "Marquis of Yongchang" (永昌亭侯). He was promoted to "East Guarding General" (鎮東將軍) subsequently. In 227, Zhao Yun followed Zhuge Liang to Hanzhong to prepare for the first Northern Expedition.

Zhao Yun's last battle[link]

During the first expedition, as opposed to what was mentioned in the historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, the honor of being the vanguard did not go to Zhao Yun. Instead, Zhao Yun was sent as a decoy against the main Wei force in Ji Valley, led by Cao Zhen. With Cao Zhen's men mostly tied up by Zhao Yun, Zhuge Liang's army marched without much opposition at first. Upon learning that the Wei emperor Cao Rui dispatched Zhang He as reinforcement, Zhuge Liang promoted Ma Su over more experienced generals such as Wei Yan and Wu Yi (吳懿) to the commander of the vanguard in order to fend off Zhang He at Jieting. Ma Su was defeated by Zhang He and the Shu forces were forced to retreat. Later, Zhuge Liang lamented on his loss in the first Northern Expedition, he pointed out "his huge army at Mount Qi and Zhao Yun's army in Ji Valley, were larger than that of the enemies."^[4] However, his defeat by a smaller force was largely a result of Zhuge Liang's allocation of resources. A log in Records of Three Kingdoms explains why Zhao Yun was defeated—the entry says " (Zhao) Yun and (Deng) Zhi's troops were weak, while the enemy was strong, so they lost at Ji Valley (雲、芝兵弱敵強，失利於箕谷)." From the record, Zhuge Liang had reserved the elite troops for his favorite, Ma Su, and himself; Zhao Yun was given only weaker soldiers.^[5] In the aforementioned dialogue of Zhuge Liang, Zhuge presumed that numbers alone would help him prevail over his rival, without considering giving more power to veteran generals like Zhao Yun, Wei Yan and others; it was only after his failure did Zhuge realize army size alone did not determine the outcome of a battle(今欲減兵省將，明罰思過，校變通之道於將來；若不能然者，雖兵多何益！).

Unable to muster a victory, Zhao Yun managed to minimize his losses by rallying his surviving men to firmly defend their positions, he then personally went to the rear to prevent enemy pursuit, and did not hurry his retreat, so supplies were not lost, and no one was left behind. When he safely returned to Hanzhong, Zhuge Liang was surprised by Zhao Yun's smooth retreat and told Zhao to distribute the excess silk fabrics to his soldiers as a consolation. However, Zhao Yun rebuked his supervisor, and said to the latter, "How can rewards be given when our campaign failed? Please store the silk in a warehouse, and distribute them in October."^[6] Zhuge Liang was delighted when he heard what Zhao Yun said. Zhao Yun was demoted to "General of Peace Maintenance" (鎮軍將軍) as an overall campaign failure, despite his role as a decoy.

Death[link]

Zhao Yun died in 229 in Hanzhong and was granted the posthumous title of "Marquis of Shunping" (順平侯) by Liu Shan in 261.^[7] Liu Shan's order for Zhao Yun to be honoured read, "When Zhao Yun was serving the late emperor (Liu Bei), his contributions were already remarkable. When I was young, I relied on his loyalty to save me from great danger. That is why I am bestowing upon him the honour." Zhao Yun was one of 12 Shu subjects to be granted posthumous titles of nobility.^{[citation needed]}

Zhao Yun had two sons, Zhao Tong (趙統) and Zhao Guang. The latter followed Jiang Wei on the campaigns against Wei, and was killed in action in Tazhong.

Appraisal[link]

Zhao Yun was a disciplinarian who was able to differentiate between personal friendship and official relation. In 202, he participated in the Battle of Bowang against Cao Cao's general Xiahou Dun. In that battle, he captured Xiahou Lan (夏侯蘭), an old acquaintance who was from the same hometown as him. Zhao Yun turned Xiahou Lan in to Liu Bei, despite their close tie, but pleaded for Xiahou's life, to which Liu agreed. Xiahou Lan, as a person who was proficient at laws, became a military judge under Zhao Yun's recommendation; however, Zhao never kept Xiahou close. Such was his carefulness in handling relationships.

Zhao Yun was also able to remain sensible when facing temptation. When Zhao Yun and Zhao Fan got acquainted, the latter proposed a marriage between the former and Lady Fan, the widowed wife of Zhao Fan's older brother, while Zhao Yun politely declined, saying to Zhao Fan, "I share the same surname with you, therefore I regard your older brother as mine." Zhao Yun explained later why he did not agree to the marriage, "Zhao Fan was forced to succumb, his intentions are not yet clear. Besides, there are many other women in this world."^[8] Zhao Fan indeed escaped, indicating he harbored ill intentions. On the other hand, Zhao Yun remained unharmed because of his rationalism.

In fiction[link]

Many of Zhao Yun's actual exploits were highly dramatized in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. In the novel, Zhao Yun is described as being almost perfect, possessing unparalleled physical power as well as unwavering loyalty to his lord, tremendous courage, keen intelligence and serene charisma. These traits have often been reflected in almost all modern material about Zhao Yun to date. The novel portrays him as a courageous, loyal, and heroic warrior, and depicting him surviving insurmountable odds many times single-handedly.

Rescuing Liu Shan in Changban[link]

The novel portrayed Zhao Yun quickly and single-handedly slaying numerous enemy generals as he rode from point to point during the Battle of Changban, while asking civilians the whereabouts of Lady Gan, Lady Mi, and Liu Shan. As proof of his resolve, he stated that he would search everywhere to find them and if he could not, he would die on the battlefield. One of the many generals that fell to Zhao Yun was Xiahou En, who carried one of Cao Cao's prized swords, the "Qinggang" (青釭). The sword was said to be able to cut through metal as if it were mud, and Zhao Yun took it with him after slaying Xiahou En. Upon finally finding Lady Mi and Liu Shan near an old well, Lady Mi, who was injured in the leg, gave the child to Zhao Yun and refused to go with him, saying that she would be a burden to them. With enemy soldiers approaching, the two argued until Lady Mi committed suicide by throwing herself into a nearby well. Zhao Yun strapped the child to his chest and covered him with his breast plate armour and fought his way out through overwhelming encirclement of enemy troops, armed with only a spear and the newly acquired Qinggang sword. Zhao Yun's valor impressed Cao Cao, who ordered his archers not to fire at Zhao, but capture him alive instead in hope that Zhao would surrender to him. Throughout the battle, Zhao Yun charged in and out of the enemy formation seven times, killing over 50 enemy commanders.

Zhao Yun eventually fought his way to Changban Bridge, where he met Zhang Fei, who stayed behind to block the incoming enemy troops. Zhao Yun finally returned to Liu Bei's side, returned Liu Shan to him and expressed remorse for his failure to bring back Lady Mi. Liu Bei threw the infant to the ground, saying that his son was not worth the risk taken by the general to save him. Zhao Yun barely caught the child in his arms.

Rescuing Liu Shan from Lady Sun[link]

In chapter 61 (a fictionalization of a real incident), Lady Sun returned to Jiangdong to visit her ill mother after receiving news from her older brother, Sun Quan. In fact, Sun Quan was lying, as he wanted to trick Lady Sun into bringing Liu Shan along, and hold the boy hostage in exchange for Jing Province from Liu Bei. When Zhao Yun heard that Lady Sun was leaving with Liu Shan, he rushed to the pier and saw that Lady Sun had just boarded the vessel bound for Jiangdong, manned by Zhou Shan.

Zhao Yun boarded a small fishing boat and caught up with the vessel and leapt onto it. Zhao Yun fought his way through and managed to seize back Liu Shan from Lady Sun, but was unable to get off safely. Just then, the vessel was intercepted by a fleet led by Zhang Fei. Zhou Shan attempted to stop them but was slain by Zhang Fei. Lady Sun eventually agreed to let Liu Shan leave with Zhang Fei and Zhao Yun while she returned home alone.

Modern references[link]

Zhao Yun has been featured prominently in Chinese popular culture, literature, art and anecdotes. Zhao Yun was already a relatively well-known hero from the Three Kingdoms period, as folk tales about his heroics have been passed down through centuries. He became a famous household name due to the popularity of the novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Recently, Zhao Yun's popularity has moved beyond Asia and into the Western world, through various media, including the Internet and video games.

Film and television[link]

A dramatised version of Zhao Yun's life story is featured in the 2008 film Three Kingdoms: Resurrection of the Dragon, starring Andy Lau as "Zhao Zilong" (a reference to Zhao Yun by his style name). Hu Jun played Zhao Yun in Red Cliff, another film based on the Three Kingdoms that was released later in the same year. In the 2010 television series Three Kingdoms, directed by Gao Xixi, Zhao Yun was portrayed by Nie Yuan.

Video games[link]

Zhao Yun appears as a playable character in Koei's Dynasty Warriors and Warriors Orochi video game series. He is usually featured prominently on the cover of each title, and is most often used by the developers in screenshots and other promotional materials for upcoming releases. He also appears in all installments of Koei's Romance of the Three Kingdoms strategy game series.

See also[link]

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

Notes[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Zhao Yun

References[link]

• Chen Shou. Records of Three Kingdoms, with annotations by Pei Songzhi.
• Luo Guanzhong. Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
• ""Andy Lau to Star in Two Period Films - Stratege and Zhao Zilong" on MonkeyPeaches". http://www.monkeypeaches.com/0507M.html#02A. Retrieved 2007-03-03.