Du Tao (died 16 September 315?),

courtesy name A courtesy name (), also known as a style name, is a name bestowed upon one at adulthood in addition to one's given name. This practice is a tradition in the East Asian cultural sphere, including China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.Ulrich Theobald ...

Jingwen, was a Chinese rebel leader during the

Jin dynasty (266–420) The Jin dynasty (; ) or the Jin Empire, sometimes distinguished as the (司馬晉) or the (兩晉), was an imperial dynasty of China that existed from 266 to 420. It was founded by Sima Yan (Emperor Wu), eldest son of Sima Zhao, who had pr ...

. In 311, he was proclaimed a leader of an uprising led by Ba and Shu refugees in

Jingzhou Jingzhou () is a prefecture-level city in southern Hubei province, China, located on the banks of the Yangtze River. Its total residential population was 5,231,180 based on the 2020 census, 1,068,291 of whom resided in the built-up (''or metro' ...

and Xiangzhou (湘州; in modern

Hunan Hunan (, ; ) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the South Central China region. Located in the middle reaches of the Yangtze watershed, it borders the province-level divisions of Hubei to the north, Jiangxi to ...

), who were oppressed by the local administrators and populace. Du Tao fought with the Jin forces led by

Wang Dun Wang Dun () (266 – after 8 August 324According to Sima Shao's biography in ''Book of Jin'', Wang Dun died shortly after the ''renshen'' day of the 7th month of the 2nd year of the ''Taining'' era of Shao's reign; the date corresponds to 8 Aug 3 ...

Tao Kan Tao Kan () (259 – 30 July 334According to Emperor Cheng's biography in ''Book of Jin'', Tao Kan died on the ''yimao'' day of the 6th month of the 9th year of the ''Xianhe'' era of his reign. This corresponds to 30 Jul 334 on the Julian calendar.� ...

and Zhou Fang for roughly four years, before he presumably died while fleeing in 315, putting an end to his rebellion.

Life

Brief stint under Luo Shang

Du Tao was from

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 ...

, Yizhou (in present-day

Sichuan Sichuan (; zh, c=, labels=no, ; zh, p=Sìchuān; alternatively romanized as Szechuan or Szechwan; formerly also referred to as "West China" or "Western China" by Protestant missions) is a province in Southwest China occupying most of the ...

) and was the grandson of a famous official in

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. In 300, the official Luo Shang was made Inspector of Yizhou. It was during this time that Du Tao was likely chosen by Luo Shang to be an Abundant Talent candidate. In Yizhou, Luo Shang had an unsteady relationship with a powerful refugee leader named

Li Te Li Te (李特, died 303), courtesy name Xuanxiu (玄休), posthumously King Jing of Chengdu (成都景王) and later Emperor Jing (景皇帝), was the spiritual founder of Cheng Han during the Sixteen Kingdoms period of Chinese history. He was a ...

. Luo Shang was ordered by the court to send the refugees back to

Qinzhou Qinzhou ( postal: Yamchow, , Jyutping: ''Jam1 zau1'' ( Canton) /''Ham1 zau1'' (Local) ) is a prefecture-level city in south-central Guangxi, southern China, lying on the Gulf of Tonkin and having a total population of 3,302,238 as of the 2020 c ...

and

Yongzhou Yongzhou, formerly known as Lingling, is a prefecture-level city in the south of Hunan province, People's Republic of China, located on the southern bank of the Xiang River, which is formed by the confluence of the Xiao and Xiang Rivers, and b ...

, while Li Te, at the behest of the refugees, wanted to lengthen their stay until it was completely safe for them to return. Luo Shang tolerated them at first, but was later determined to carry out his duty. Li Te's envoy, Yan Shi (閻式), managed to persuade Du Tao into helping the refugees by talking his superior into extending their stay. In fact, Du Tao was inclined to give the refugees a year-long extension instead of Yan Shi's initial proposal of extending to winter. However, Luo Shang refused to listen to Du Tao, so in protest, Du Tao returned his Abundant Talent slate and went back home.

Refugee crisis in Jingzhou and Xiangzhou

In 311, Du Tao was forced to migrate to Nanping commandery (南平郡, in present-day

Gong'an County Gong'an County () is a county in southern Hubei province, People's Republic of China, bordering Hunan to the south. It is under the administration of Jingzhou City. History During the Han dynasty and the Three Kingdoms era, Gong'an County was k ...

Hubei Hubei (; ; alternately Hupeh) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, and is part of the Central China region. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Dongting Lake. The prov ...

) due to a recent uprising by a Shu native named Li Xiang (李驤, not to be confused with the

Cheng Han Cheng Han (; 303 or 304 – 347) was a Dynasties in Chinese history, dynastic state of China listed as one of the Sixteen Kingdoms in Chinese historiography. Ruled by the Di (Five Barbarians), Di people, its territory was based in what is modern- ...

general of the same name, Li Xiang). The Administrator of Nanping, Ying Zhan (應詹), had known of Du Tao's talents. Because of this, Ying Zhan welcomed him and appointed him the Prefect of

Liling Liling () is a county-level city and the 12th most populous county-level division in Hunan Province, China; it is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Zhuzhou. Located on the middle eastern margin of the province, the city i ...

. After Li Xiang occupied Lexiang (樂鄉; northeast of present-day

Songzi Songzi () is a city in the southwest of Hubei province, People's Republic of China, located in the middle reach and southern bank of the Yangtze River. It is a county-level city under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Jingzhou, a ...

, Hubei), Du Tao and Ying Zhan attacked and routed him. Later, Li Xiang offered his surrender to the Inspector of Jingzhou,

Wang Cheng Wang Cheng (died 1200), courtesy name Jiping, was a Song dynasty historian who authored the monumental history book '' Dongdu Shilüe''. He also published 4 volumes of poetry which are no longer extant. Biography Wang Cheng's ancestral home was ...

. Wang Cheng tricked Li Xiang by pretending to accept his surrender before killing him and drowning 8,000 of his followers in the

Yangtze The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ; ) is the longest river in Asia, the third-longest in the world, and the longest in the world to flow entirely within one country. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains (Tibetan Plateau) and flows ...

. Resentment grew among the Ba and Shu refugees, who were fleeing their homelands west to avoid the rise of

in Yizhou. They were treated poorly by the local administrators and populace, and the recent actions by Wang Cheng only disturbed them more. Not long after, another native of Shu named Du Chou (杜疇) rebelled. The recent uprisings by Shu refugees were beginning to arouse suspicion among officials in Jingzhou and Xiangzhou. In the end, the Inspector of Xiangzhou, Xun Tiao (荀眺), planned to carry out a mass execution on the refugees. However, his plans leaked out to the public, which caused the refugees to revolt en masse in Jingzhou and Xiangzhou. Because Du Tao was from Shu and a popular figure, the rebels proclaimed him as their leader.

First rebellion

Du Tao agreed to lead the rebellion, declaring himself the Governor of

Liangzhou Liangzhou District () is a district and the seat of the city of Wuwei, Gansu province of the People's Republic of China, bordering Inner Mongolia to the east. Geography Liangzhou District is located in east Hexi Corridor, north to the Qilian Mo ...

and Yizhou. He occupied the city of

Changsha Changsha (; ; ; Changshanese pronunciation: (), Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is the capital and the largest city of Hunan Province of China. Changsha is the 17th most populous city in China with a population of over 10 million, an ...

where Xun Tiao resided, forcing him to retreat to

Guangzhou Guangzhou (, ; ; or ; ), also known as Canton () and alternatively romanized as Kwongchow or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of Guangdong province in southern China. Located on the Pearl River about north-northwest of Hong Kon ...

. The Inspector of Guangzhou, Guo Ne (郭訥), and Wang Cheng sent their generals to quell the rebellion, but Du Tao routed them. Du Tao allowed his men to plunder and pillage, and for a brief while, he surrendered to the Jin general, Shan Jian (山簡) before resuming his revolt. Du Tao killed the newly appointed Inspector of Jingzhou, Guo Cha (郭察), and continued his successes by conquering Lingling,

Guiyang Guiyang (; ; Mandarin pronunciation: ), historically rendered as Kweiyang, is the capital of Guizhou province of the People's Republic of China. It is located in the center of the province, situated on the east of the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau, ...

and

Wuchang Wuchang forms part of the urban core of and is one of 13 urban districts of the prefecture-level city of Wuhan, the capital of Hubei Province, China. It is the oldest of the three cities that merged into modern-day Wuhan, and stood on the ri ...

while killing many officials along the way. The following year, Wang Cheng was dismissed by

Sima Rui Emperor Yuan of Jin (; 276 – 3 January 323), personal name Sima Rui (司馬睿), courtesy name Jingwen (景文), was an emperor of the Jin dynasty and the first emperor of the Eastern Jin. His reign saw the steady gradual loss of Jin territor ...

as Inspector of Jingzhou in favor of Zhou Yi due to as Wang was displayed inefficient leadership and was constantly defeated by Du Tao. Just as Zhou Yi arrived at his base, a refugee from Jianping (建平, in present-day

), Fu Mi (傅密) as well as others rose up in support of Du Tao. Du Tao sent his subordinate Wang Zhen (王眞) to help the rebels by attacking

Mianyang Mianyang (; formerly known as Mienchow) is the second largest prefecture-level city of Sichuan province in Southwest China. Located in north-central Sichuan covering an area of consisting of Jiangyou, a county-level city, five counties, and thre ...

, enveloping Zhou Yi from two sides. With Jin at the brink of losing Jingzhou, the Jin commander, Wang Dun, immediately sent Tao Kan, Zhou Fang and

Gan Zhuo The word Gan or the initials GAN may refer to: Places *Gan, a component of Hebrew placenames literally meaning "garden" China * Gan River (Jiangxi) * Gan River (Inner Mongolia), * Gan County, in Jiangxi province * Gansu, abbreviated ''Gān ...

to support Zhou Yi. In 313, Tao Kan saved Zhou Yi at Xunshui by forcing Du Tao to retreat to Lingkou after Tao sent Zhu Ci to reinforce Zhou. He later predicted that Du Tao would go to Wuchang next, so Tao Kan took many shortcuts to get to the commandery as quick as possible. Du Tao had indeed been planning to go to Wuchang, but as Tao Kan had arrived first, he was defeated by a counterattack which caused him to retreat back to Changsha. Later that year, Du Tao faced Tao Kan and Zhou Fang again, but was once more defeated.

Brief surrender

By 315, Du Tao's forces were beginning to collapse. Continuous defeats against the Jin forces were diminishing his numbers, causing him to ask Sima Rui for surrender. When Sima Rui rejected it, he then wrote a lengthy letter to Ying Zhan, justifying his rebellion by stating the oppression faced by his followers under the Jin regime. Ying Zhan sympathized with him, so he sent the letter to Sima Rui along with his own testimony as to why Du should be pardoned. Sima Rui was impressed by Du's reasonings and sent an official named Wang Yun (王運) to accept his surrender. Along the way, Du Tao was also appointed as Chief of military affairs in Badong commandery (巴東郡; around present-day

Chongqing Chongqing ( or ; ; Sichuanese dialects, Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), Postal Romanization, alternately romanized as Chungking (), is a Direct-administered municipalities of China, municipality in Southwes ...

). However, although Du Tao's surrender was acknowledged by Sima Rui, the Jin generals were eager to claim credit for putting down the rebellion, so they continued relentlessly harassing Du Tao's forces. Du was angered by this and felt that his deal had not been honoured. Therefore, when Wang Yun arrived, Du Tao had him killed and resumed his rebellion.

Second rebellion and fate

Du Tao sent his general Zhang Yan (張彥) to raid Yuzhang commandery (豫章, present-day

Nanchang Nanchang (, ; ) is the capital of Jiangxi Province, People's Republic of China. Located in the north-central part of the province and in the hinterland of Poyang Lake Plain, it is bounded on the west by the Jiuling Mountains, and on the east ...

Jiangxi Jiangxi (; ; formerly romanized as Kiangsi or Chianghsi) is a landlocked province in the east of the People's Republic of China. Its major cities include Nanchang and Jiujiang. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze river in the north int ...

). Zhang Yan burned many of the cities and towns in the commandery, but he was later defeated and killed by Zhou Fang's forces. Later, Zhou Fang attempted to attack Xiangcheng with a navy, but at the same time, Du Tao had sent his general Du Hong (杜弘) to attack Penkou (湓口, in present-day

Jiujiang Jiujiang (), formerly transliterated Kiukiang or Kew Keang, is a prefecture-level city located on the southern shores of the Yangtze River in northwest Jiangxi Province, People's Republic of China. It is the second-largest prefecture-level city ...

, Jiangxi). Zhou Fang turned back to face Du Hong, who he had a back and forth battle with, but was eventually successful in turning him away. Later that year, Du Tao was locked with Tao Kan in a stalemate. In his final battle, Du sent his general Wang Gong (王貢) to lead against Tao Kan. However, Tao managed to convince Wang to defect to his side, which created confusion in Du Tao's army and caused them to scatter. Du Tao also retreated, but what became of him after this was unknown. Three different accounts stated that he either was killed, successfully escaped and disappeared or drowned himself in a river.(城潰，弢投水死) ''The Annals of Han and Jin'' Regardless, the rebellion ended in 315 after Tao Kan recovered Changsha. Du Tao's followers were granted amnesty by Sima Rui after they surrendered.

References

* Fang, Xuanling (ed.) (648). ''

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 ...

'' (''Jin Shu''). * Sima, Guang (1084). ''

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 ...

''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Du, Tao 315 deaths Jin dynasty (266–420) generals Jin dynasty (266–420) rebels Jin dynasty (266–420) people killed in action