The Battle of Mount Qi was a military conflict which took place around Mount Qi (祁山; the mountainous regions around present-day Li County,

Gansu Gansu (, ; alternately romanized as Kansu) is a province in Northwest China. Its capital and largest city is Lanzhou, in the southeast part of the province. The seventh-largest administrative district by area at , Gansu lies between the Tibet ...

) between the states of

Cao Wei Wei ( Hanzi: 魏; pinyin: ''Wèi'' <

Middle Chinese

: *''ŋjwei^C'' <

and

Shu Han Han (; 221–263), known in historiography as Shu Han ( ) or Ji Han ( "Junior Han"), or often shortened to Shu (; pinyin: ''shŭ'' <

Three Kingdoms The Three Kingdoms () from 220 to 280 AD was the tripartite division of China among the dynastic states of Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu. The Three Kingdoms period was preceded by the Han dynasty#Eastern Han, Eastern Han dynasty and wa ...

period of China. It was also the most vigorous of the five Shu invasions of Wei, resulting in thousands of deaths on both sides. Although Zhuge Liang was able to make significant achievement in the beginning of the battle, the battle finally concluded with a strategic Wei victory due to the insufficient food supply for the

Shu Han Han (; 221–263), known in historiography as Shu Han ( ) or Ji Han ( "Junior Han"), or often shortened to Shu (; pinyin: ''shŭ'' <

Li Yan. The Shu regent,

Zhuge Liang Zhuge Liang ( zh, t=諸葛亮 / 诸葛亮) (181 – September 234), courtesy name Kongming, was a Chinese statesman and military strategist. He was chancellor and later regent of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period. He is r ...

, spent three years recuperating before launching another invasion on Wei in 234.

Background

In 217,

Liu Bei Liu Bei (, ; ; 161 – 10 June 223), courtesy name Xuande (), was a warlord in the late Eastern Han dynasty who founded the state of Shu Han in the Three Kingdoms period and became its first ruler. Although he was a distant relative of the H ...

's strategist,

Fa Zheng Fa Zheng (176–220), courtesy name Xiaozhi, was a key adviser to the warlord Liu Bei in the late Eastern Han dynasty. Born in a family of high social status and of noble descent, Fa Zheng travelled to Yi Province (covering present-day Sichuan ...

, proposed that Hanzhong Commandery could be used as an operational base to either attack the heartland of Wei or ingest the far-left-hook of Wei's Liang and Yong provinces. Since then, Fa Zheng's plan became a blueprint for Zhuge Liang's campaigns against Wei. Zhuge Liang had attempted to invade the Wei territories via Mount Qi in his first expedition but to no avail; he then changed targets to Chenchang (陳倉; east of present-day

Baoji () is a prefecture-level city in western Shaanxi province, People's Republic of China. Since the early 1990s, Baoji has been the second largest city in Shaanxi. Geography The prefecture-level city of Baoji had a population of 3,321,853 accordin ...

Shaanxi Shaanxi (alternatively Shensi, see #Name, § Name) is a landlocked Provinces of China, province of China. Officially part of Northwest China, it borders the province-level divisions of Shanxi (NE, E), Henan (E), Hubei (SE), Chongqing (S), Sichu ...

), a bridgehead fortress guarding the city of

Chang'an Chang'an (; ) is the traditional name of Xi'an. The site had been settled since Neolithic times, during which the Yangshao culture was established in Banpo, in the city's suburbs. Furthermore, in the northern vicinity of modern Xi'an, Qin Shi ...

. However, after a previous failed attempt to capture Chencang, Zhuge Liang switched to another attack route in the west. In early 231, Zhuge Liang assembled troops to conquer Longyou, setting Mount Qi as his immediate target. Before Zhuge Liang marched towards Mount Qi, he sent emissaries to meet the

Xianbei The Xianbei (; ) were a Proto-Mongolic ancient nomadic people that once resided in the eastern Eurasian steppes in what is today Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, and Northeastern China. They originated from the Donghu people who splintered into the ...

and

Qiang people The Qiang people ( Qiangic: ''Rrmea''; ) are an ethnic group in China. They form one of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognised by the People's Republic of China, with a population of approximately 310,000 in 2000. They live mainly in a ...

s and incite them to create disturbances in Wei territory. At the same time, he also invented the " wooden oxen and flowing horses", a mechanical device which greatly improved the transportation of supplies.

Battle

The goal of seizing Longyou was not easily achievable, because Wei had prepared for a probable Shu invasion in the region – Jia Si () and Wei Ping () were stationed at Mount Qi and formed an initial defence for

Tianshui Commandery Tianshui Commandery ( zh, 天水郡), known as Hanyang Commandery ( zh, 漢陽郡) during the Eastern Han dynasty, was a historical commandery of China in eastern Gansu. The modern city of Tianshui receives its name from the commandery. History Th ...

, while Dai Ling () and

Fei Yao Fei Yao ( 220–231) was a military general of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. Life Little information about Fei Yao is recorded in history; unlike other notable figures of the late Eastern Han dynasty and Three ...

stationed their crack troops in the heartland of Tianshui. Zhuge Liang had sought aid from a

tribal chief,

Kebineng Kebineng (died 235) was a Xianbei chieftain who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty and Three Kingdoms period of China. He rose to power during the late Eastern Han dynasty after the warlord Cao Cao defeated the Wuhuan tribes in northern C ...

, who went to

Beidi Commandery Beidi Commandery ( zh, c=北地郡, l=Northern Land) was a commandery of the Qin and Han dynasties of China, located in what is now Ningxia. Its seat was Maling (馬領) during the Western Han period and Fuping (富平, near modern Wuzhong, Ningxia ...

(北地郡; around present-day central

) to rally the locals to support the Shu forces. The offensive began with a minor clash at Mount Qi, giving the Wei general

Cao Zhen Cao Zhen (died April or May 231), 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 l ...

the impression that the attack was a diversion to mask a major offensive through the

Qin Mountains The Qinling () or Qin Mountains, formerly known as the Nanshan ("Southern Mountains"), are a major east–west mountain range in southern Shaanxi Province, China. The mountains mark the divide between the drainage basins of the Yangtze and Yellow ...

aimed at Chang'an. Cao Zhen thus gathered the majority of the defence forces inside Chang'an before

Sima Yi Sima Yi ( ; 179 CE – 7 September 251 CE), courtesy name Zhongda, was a Chinese military general, politician, and regent of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He formally began his political career in 208 un ...

came to replace him as the overall commander of Wei's military forces in Yong and Liang provinces. The Wei generals

Zhang He Zhang He () (died July or August 231), 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 ...

, Fei Yao, Dai Ling, and

Guo Huai Guo Huai (died 23 February 255), courtesy name Boji, was a military general of the state of Cao Wei (or Wei) during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He started his career towards the end of the Eastern Han dynasty under the warlord Cao Cao ...

served as Sima Yi's subordinates. Sima Yi then ordered Dai Ling and Fei Yao to protect Shanggui County (上邽縣; in present-day Tianshui, Gansu) with 4,000 elite troops and set out with the rest of his men westward to relieve the mountainous battlefield. Zhang He advised Sima Yi to send separate forces to Yong () and Mei () counties as backup, but Sima Yi said, "I believe that the vanguard can hold. General, what you've said is right. If the vanguard cannot hold, we'll split into front and rear. This was how Qing Bu defeated the three armies of Chu." The Wei army then advanced towards Yumi County (隃麋縣; east of present-day

Qianyang County Qianyang County () is a county in the west of Shaanxi province, China, bordering Gansu province to the north. It is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Baoji () is a prefecture-level city in western Shaanxi province, Peo ...

). When Zhuge Liang heard that the Wei army had arrived, he ordered his troops to harvest the wheat in Shanggui County. Without good coordination, Zhang He defied Sima Yi's order to defend his position; a detachment of the Wei army went to attack the Shu forces but were defeated. After getting the enemy out of the way, Zhuge Liang foraged for the early spring wheat that was available in the vicinity. Sima Yi's subordinates feared losing the wheat, but Sima Yi said, "Zhuge Liang thinks too much and makes too little decisions. He'll definitely fortify his camp and defences first before coming to harvest the wheat. Two days is sufficient for me (to reach Shanggui County)." He then led his troops and travelled overnight to Shanggui County. Zhuge Liang retreated after seeing Sima Yi's approach. Sima Yi commented, "I'm weary from traveling day and night. This is because I know what militarists covet. Zhuge Liang does not dare to remain near the

Wei River The Wei River () is a major river in west-central China's Gansu and Shaanxi provinces. It is the largest tributary of the Yellow River and very important in the early development of Chinese civilization. The source of the Wei River is close to ...

. This is easy for me." Initially, the Wei emperor

Cao Rui Cao Rui () (204 or 206 – 22 January 239), courtesy name Yuanzhong, was the second emperor of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period. His parentage is in dispute: his mother, Lady Zhen, was Yuan Xi's wife, but she later remarr ...

wanted to supply Sima Yi's army with the wheat in Shanggui County and had rejected a proposal to transport grain from Guanzhong to the frontline. However, Zhuge Liang's movements turned out to be quicker than Cao Rui anticipated; only a portion of the wheat produced in Shanggui County was left after the Shu army's harvesting. The Wei general Guo Huai then asserted his influence over local nomadic tribes and forced them to produce food supplies for the Wei army. The Wei army was thus able to gain access to food supplies without assistance from the central government in

Luoyang Luoyang is a city located in the confluence area of Luo River (Henan), Luo River and Yellow River in the west of Henan province. Governed as a prefecture-level city, it borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to the east, Pingdingshan to the ...

. After harvesting the wheat from Shanggui County, Zhuge Liang and the Shu forces retreated but encountered a Wei army led by Sima Yi at Hanyang (), located to the east of Shanggui County. Sima Yi then ordered his army to get into formation while sending his subordinate

Niu Jin Niu Jin () ( 208–238) was a military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He continued serving in the state of Cao Wei, founded by Cao Cao's successor Cao Pi, during the Three Kingdoms period ...

to lead a lightly-armed cavalry force to lure the Shu forces to move towards Mount Qi. After the Shu vanguard commander Ma Dai briefly fought with Niu Jin, Zhuge Liang ordered a general retreat towards the eastern side of the Mount Qi ridges, where the Shu army made camp at Lucheng (). Using the river as a natural barrier, Zhuge Liang ordered his troops to position on the two hills on either side of Lucheng and pitch "covering camps" near the riverbank to take complete control of the water passage. Sima Yi's subordinates urged him to attack on numerous occasions, but Sima Yi was hesitant to do so upon seeing Zhuge Liang's arrangement. Nevertheless, faced with intensive criticism and ridicule from both the enemy and subordinates, Sima Yi eventually relented. In May 231, Sima Yi sent an eager Zhang He to attack the Shu southern camp guarded by Wang Ping, while he personally led a frontal assault against Lucheng from the central avenue. Zhuge Liang ordered

Wei Yan Wei Yan () (died October 234), courtesy name Wenchang, was a Chinese military general and politician of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period of China. Originally a subordinate of the warlord Liu Bei in the late Eastern Han dyna ...

Wu Ban Wu Ban ( 221–239), courtesy name Yuanxiong, was a Chinese military general of the state of Shu Han in the Three Kingdoms period of China. Life Wu Ban was a son of Wu Kuang (吳匡), an official who served under the general He Jin during the r ...

, and Gao Xiang to resist the enemy outside Lucheng, where the Wei forces suffered an unexpected and tremendous defeat: 3,000 soldiers were killed, and 5,000 suits of armour and 3,100 sets of hornbeam crossbows were seized by Shu forces. Even though the losses were heavy, Sima Yi still retained a sizable army, which he led back to his camp. Despite the victory, Zhuge Liang could not press his advantage with a major offensive due to a dwindling food supply. Adverse weather prevented Shu's logistics from delivering matériel on schedule. Li Yan, the Shu general responsible for overseeing the transportation of food supplies to the frontline, falsely claimed that the emperor

Liu Shan Liu Shan () (207–271), courtesy name Gongsi, was the second and last emperor of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period. As he ascended the throne at the age of 16, Liu Shan was entrusted to the care of the Chancellor Zhuge Lia ...

had ordered a withdrawal. The ''

Book of Jin The ''Book of Jin'' is an official Chinese historical text covering the history of the Jin dynasty from 266 to 420. It was compiled in 648 by a number of officials commissioned by the imperial court of the Tang dynasty, with chancellor Fang X ...

'' claimed that Sima Yi launched an attack on Shu garrisons at this juncture and succeeded in capturing the Shu "covering camps". Zhuge Liang abandoned Lucheng and retreated under the cover of night, but Sima Yi pursued him and inflicted roughly 10,000 casualties on the Shu army. This account from the ''Book of Jin'' is disputed by historians and is not included in the 11th-century outstanding chronological historical text ''

Zizhi Tongjian ''Zizhi Tongjian'' () is a pioneering reference work in Chinese historiography, published in 1084 AD during the Northern Song dynasty in the form of a chronicle recording Chinese history from 403 BC to 959 AD, covering 16 dynast ...

''. In any case, according to ''

Records of the Three Kingdoms The ''Records or History of the Three Kingdoms'', also known by its Chinese name as the Sanguo Zhi, is a Chinese historical text which covers the history of the late Eastern Han dynasty (c. 184–220 AD) and the Three Kingdoms period (220– ...

'' and ''

'', Zhuge Liang retreated to the Shu because of lack of supply, not defeat, and the Wei forces pursued him. The pursuit did not go completely smoothly for Wei. Sima Yi ordered

to further pursue the enemy in an attempt to capitalize on their momentum. The ''

Weilüe The ''Weilüe'' () was a Chinese historical text written by Yu Huan between 239 and 265. Yu Huan was an official in the state of Cao Wei (220–265) during the Three Kingdoms period (220–280). Although not a formal historian, Yu Huan has been h ...

'' mentioned that Zhang He refused to obey Sima Yi's order and argued that, according to classical military doctrine, one should refrain from pursuing an enemy force retreating to its home territory. However, Sima Yi refused to listen and forced Zhang He to carry out this order. Indeed, Zhang He fell into an ambush at Mumen Trail (木門道; near present-day Mumen Village, Mudan Town,

Qinzhou District Qinzhou (), formerly romanized as Tsinchow, is a district and the seat of the city of Tianshui, Gansu province, China. It is named for its former position as the seat of the medieval Chinese province of Qinzhou. Before 2005 it was called Qincheng ...

, Tianshui, Gansu), where Zhuge Liang had ordered crossbowmen to hide on high ground and fire at approaching enemy forces when they entered a narrow defile. Zhang He died after a stray arrow hit him in the thigh. Unlike ''Book of Jin'' records, Wei's army suffered a great deal of damage from Shu's army, which was retreating while chasing after them.(魏略曰：亮軍退，司馬宣王使郃追之，郃曰：「軍法，圍城必開出路，歸軍勿追。」宣王不聽。郃不得已，遂進。蜀軍乘高布伏，弓弩亂發，矢中郃髀。) ''Weilüe'' annotation in ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 17.

Aftermath

When Zhuge Liang returned to Hanzhong Commandery, he received a letter from Li Yan informing him that the food supply was ready and asking why he had retreated. At the same time, Li Yan sent Liu Shan a memorial which said that "the army feigned retreat in order to lure the enemy to do battle" in the hope that Zhuge Liang would resume the war so his failure to transport rations would go unnoticed. However, Zhuge Liang decided to return to the Shu capital,

Chengdu Chengdu (, ; Simplified Chinese characters, simplified Chinese: 成都; pinyin: ''Chéngdū''; Sichuanese dialects, Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: ), Chinese postal romanization, alternatively Romanization of Chi ...

, and show Liu Shan the handwritten letters of Li Yan, so the latter could not deny the fault. At Chengdu, Zhuge Liang asked the emperor to strip Li Yan of all his titles and official posts and exile him to Zitong Commandery.

References

{{Reflist * Chen, Shou. ''

'' (''Sanguozhi''). * Fang, Xuanling. ''

'' (''Jin Shu''). * Pei, Songzhi. ''

Annotations to Records of the Three Kingdoms Annotations to Records of the Three Kingdoms () by Pei Songzhi (372-451) is an annotation completed in the 5th century of the 3rd century historical text ''Records of the Three Kingdoms'', compiled by Chen Shou. After leaving his native land, Pei ...

'' (''Sanguozhi zhu''). * Sima, Guang. ''

''. 231 Mount Qi 231 Military history of Gansu 230s conflicts