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Tan Daoji () (before 404 - April 9, 436) was a high level general of the
Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...
dynasty
Liu Song Song, known as Liu Song (), Former Song (前宋) or Song of (the) Southern Dynasty (南朝宋) in historiography, was an imperial dynasty of China and the first of the four Southern dynasties during the Northern and Southern dynasties period. ...
. He was one of the most respected generals during the
Southern and Northern Dynasties The Northern and Southern dynasties () was a period of political division in the history of China that lasted from 420 to 589, following the tumultuous era of the Sixteen Kingdoms and the Eastern Jin dynasty. It is sometimes considered as ...
era. Because of this, however, he was feared by Emperor Wen and even more so by Emperor Wen's brother, the prime minister
Liu Yikang Liu Yikang (劉義康) (409–451), nickname Chezi (車子), was an imperial prince of the Chinese Liu Song dynasty. He was a son of Emperor Wu (Liu Yu) and served as prime minister during the reign of his brother Emperor Wen. He was considered ...
the Prince of Pengcheng, and during an illness of Emperor Wen, Liu Yikang had Tan arrested and executed on false accusations of treason.


During Jin Dynasty

It is not known when Tan Daoji was born, but what is known is that he lost his parents early, and was said to be appropriate in his deeds even as a young orphan, being respectful to his older brothers and sisters. One of his older brothers, Tan Shao (), was also later a general. When warlord
Huan Xuan Huan Xuan (桓玄) (369 – 19 June 404), courtesy name Jingdao (敬道), nickname Lingbao (靈寶), formally Emperor Wudao of Chu (楚武悼帝), was a Jin Dynasty warlord who briefly took over the imperial throne from Emperor An of Jin and de ...
seized the Jin throne from
Emperor An of Jin Emperor An of Jin (; 383 – 28 January 419), personal name Sima Dezong (), was an emperor of the Eastern Jin Dynasty (266–420) in China. He was described as so developmentally disabled that he was unable to speak, clothe himself, or be able to ...
in 403, Liu Yu rose against him in 404, and Tan joined Liu Yu's army and served as his assistant. When Huan Xuan was killed late in 404 but his nephew Huan Zhen () continued to resist Liu's army, Tan killed Huan Zhen in battle. For this achievement, he was created the Marquess of Wuxing. He continued to participate in various campaigns, including assisting Liu Yu's brother Liu Daogui () against invading
Later Qin The Later Qin (; 384–417), also known as Yao Qin (), was a state ruled by the Qiang ethnicity of the Sixteen Kingdoms during the Jin dynasty (266–420) in China. The Later Qin is entirely distinct from the Qin dynasty, the Former Qin and the We ...
and
Western Shu Qiao Zong () (died 413) was a Han Chinese military leader in present-day Sichuan province in China during the Eastern Jin Dynasty. He proclaimed himself the Prince of Chengdu (成都王 Chéngdū Wáng) in 405 and was given the title "Prince of ...
forces commanded by Gou Lin () and Huan Xuan's cousin Huan Qian () in 410 and battling Xu Daofu (), the brother-in-law of the warlord Lu Xun (). For this, he was created the Baron of Tang. (This might seem a demotion, but Liu Yu was reorganizing noble titles at the time, and while it was technically a demotion, he gave Tan a larger fief.) When Liu Yu launched a major attack against Later Qin in 416, Tan was his forward commander, and he made major contributions in contributing the important cities
Xuchang Xuchang (; postal: Hsuchang) is a prefecture-level city in central Henan province of China, province in Central China. It borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to the northwest, Kaifeng to the northeast, Zhoukou to the east, Luohe to the s ...
and
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 Later Qin's capital
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 ...
fell in 417, he became the general in charge of protecting Liu Yu's
heir apparent An heir apparent, often shortened to heir, is a person who is first in an order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person; a person who is first in the order of succession but can be displaced by the b ...
Liu Yifu.


During Emperor Wu's reign

After Liu Yu seized the throne from
Emperor Gong of Jin Emperor Gong of Jin (; 386 – October or November 421), personal name Sima Dewen (), was the last emperor of the Eastern Jin Dynasty (266–420) in China. He became emperor in 419 after his developmentally disabled brother Emperor An was killed ...
in 420, ending Jin and establishing Liu Song (as Emperor Wu), he created Tan the Duke of Yongxiu. When Emperor Wu grew ill in 422, he entrusted Liu Yifu to
Xu Xianzhi Xu Xianzhi (徐羨之) (364 – 8 February 426), courtesy name Zongwen (宗文), was a high-level official of the Chinese dynasty Liu Song, who, along with his colleagues Fu Liang and Xie Hui, deposed Emperor Shao after the death of Emperor Wu ( ...
,
Fu Liang Fu Liang (傅亮) (374–426), courtesy name Jiyou (季友), was a high-level official of the Chinese dynasty Liu Song, who, along with his colleagues Xu Xianzhi and Xie Hui, deposed Emperor Shao after the death of Emperor Wu (Liu Yu) due to th ...
,
Xie Hui Xie Hui (謝晦) (390–426), courtesy name Xuanming (宣明), was a high-level general of the Chinese Liu Song dynasty, who, along with his colleagues Xu Xianzhi and Fu Liang, deposed Emperor Shao after the death of Emperor Wu (Liu Yu) due to ...
and Tan, and he died soon after. Liu Yifu succeeded him as Emperor Shao.


During Emperor Shao's reign

Unlike Xu, Fu, and Xie, however, Tan did not remain at the capital Jiankang or involve himself with the operations of the imperial government, but became the governor of Southern Yan Province (南兗州, modern central
Jiangsu Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, Postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an Eastern China, eastern coastal Provinces of the People's Republic of China, province of the China, People's Republic of China. It is o ...
). When rival
Northern Wei Wei (), known in historiography as the Northern Wei (), Tuoba Wei (), Yuan Wei () and Later Wei (), was founded by the Tuoba (Tabgach) clan of the Xianbei. The first of the Northern and Southern dynasties#Northern dynasties, Northern dynasties ...
launched a major attack on Liu Song later in 422 in light of Emperor Wu's death, seeking to capture the Liu Song provinces just south of the
Yellow River The Yellow River or Huang He (Chinese: , Standard Beijing Mandarin, Mandarin: ''Huáng hé'' ) is the second-longest river in China, after the Yangtze River, and the List of rivers by length, sixth-longest river system in the world at th ...
, Tan Daoji commanded an army to try to save those provinces. He was able to save Qing Province (青州, modern central and eastern
Shandong Shandong ( , ; ; alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the East China region. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilizati ...
), but could not also save Si (司州, central
Henan Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is al ...
) and Yan (兗州, modern western Shandong) provinces. In 424, Xu, Fu, and Xie, dissatisfied with Emperor Shao's tendencies to trust people lacking virtues and believing him to be unfit to be emperor, resolved to depose him. Because they were apprehensive about the powerful armies that Tan and Wang Hong had, they summoned Tan and Wang to the capital and then informed them of the plot. They then sent soldiers into the palace to arrest Emperor Shao, after first persuading the imperial guards not to resist. Before Emperor Shao could get up from bed in the morning, the soldiers were already in his bedchamber, and he made a futile attempt to resist, but was captured. He was sent back to his old palace. The officials then, in the name of Emperor Shao's mother Empress Dowager Zhang, declared Emperor Shao's faults and demoted him to Prince of Yingyang, offering the throne to his younger brother Liu Yilong the Prince of Yidu instead. Liu Yilong, after some hesitation, took the throne as Emperor Wen.


During Emperor Wen's reign

Emperor Wen tried to pacify the officials who made him emperor by giving them greater titles and fiefs, and he tried to create Tan the Duke of Wuling (a commandery, as opposed to the county that he was the duke of), but Tan insisted on refusing, and returned to his post at Guangling (廣陵, in modern
Yangzhou Yangzhou, postal romanization Yangchow, is a prefecture-level city in central Jiangsu Province (Suzhong), East China. Sitting on the north bank of the Yangtze, it borders the provincial capital Nanjing to the southwest, Huai'an to the north, Yan ...
,
Jiangsu Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, Postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an Eastern China, eastern coastal Provinces of the People's Republic of China, province of the China, People's Republic of China. It is o ...
). Emperor Wen, angry that Xu, Fu, and Xie had, immediately after they deposed Emperor Shao, assassinated both Emperor Shao and another brother of his, Liu Yizhen () the Prince of Luling, had Xu and Fu arrested and killed in 426, and declared Xie, then the governor of Jing Province (荊州, modern
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 ...
) a renegade. Believing that neither Tan nor Wang Hong was involved in the plot to depose and kill Emperor Shao, he summoned them to the capital, and he put Tan in charge of the army to attack Xie. Xie, while a talented strategist, was unaccustomed to commanding large armies, and Tan defeated him; he was subsequently captured and executed. In light of his victory, Emperor Wen promoted Tan to greater titles and made him the governor of Jiang Province (江州, modern
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 ...
and
Fujian Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its capi ...
). When Emperor Wen launched a major campaign against Northern Wei in 430 to try to regain provinces south of the Yellow River, Tan was not in command of the army—Dao Yanzhi () was. Dao was initially able to recover the provinces, as Northern Wei chose to abandon them temporarily, waiting for winter to counterattack. When it did so in winter 430, Dao retreated after
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 ...
and
Hulao Hulao Pass () is a choke point northwest of Xingyang, Henan province, China in the foothills of Mount Song. It is the site of many historical battles, being the eastern guard for the capital Luoyang for several dynasties. With Mount Song to the s ...
fell, leaving Huatai (滑台, in modern
Anyang Anyang (; ) is a prefecture-level city in Henan province, China. The northernmost city in Henan, Anyang borders Puyang to the east, Hebi and Xinxiang to the south, and the provinces of Shanxi and Hebei to its west and north respectively. It had a ...
,
Henan Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is al ...
) and its commanding general Zhu Xiuzhi () under Northern Wei siege and totally without support. Emperor Wen replaced Dao with Tan in spring 431, requesting that he try to advance to Huatai to save it. Tan was initially successful in his attempts to advance toward Huatai, winning several battles against Northern Wei forces. However, after he reached Licheng (歷城, in modern
Jinan Jinan (), Postal Map Romanization, alternately romanization of Chinese, romanized as Tsinan, is the Capital (political), capital of Shandong province in East China, Eastern China. With a population of 9.2 million, it is the second-largest city i ...
,
Shandong Shandong ( , ; ; alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the East China region. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilizati ...
), his supply route was cut off by the Northern Wei general Yizhan Jian (), and he was no longer able to reach Huatai. Huatai soon fell, Zhu was captured, and Tan retreated. On the way, Northern Wei forces became aware that Tan was out of food, and so trailed him, ready to attack. Tan then used a trick that made him famous in Chinese history—at night, he had the soldiers pretend that sand was grain and yell out the measurements, and then covered the sand with grain. In the morning, when Northern Wei forces saw the pile of sand covered with grain, they mistakenly thought that Tan's forces did not lack food at all, and therefore decided not to pursue him further. Tan was able to withdraw his forces without major losses. Emperor Wen gave him greater titles and returned him to Jiang Province. However, because of Tan's abilities and because his sons and subordinates were also all capable, he eventually became suspected by Emperor Wen and his brother, the prime minister Liu Yikang, particularly because Emperor Wen was ill for several years. Liu Yikang, who presumed that he would be
regent A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...
if Emperor Wen were to die, was particularly concerned that he would be unable to control Tan. In late 435, when Emperor Wen became very ill, Liu Yikang summoned Tan to Jiankang, and despite misgivings by Tan's wife, Tan went to Jiankang anyway. He remained about a month, and as Emperor Wen grew better, he considered ordering Tan to return to Jiang Province or to put him in charge of another army against Northern Wei, but then suddenly grew sicker. At that time, Tan was already on the dock ready to depart for Jiang Province, and Liu Yikang summoned him back to Jiankang and arrested him. Emperor Wen then issued an edict falsely accusing Tan of preparing treason and executed him with his sons, but spared his grandsons. Emperor Wen also killed two of Tan's trusted generals, Xue Tong () and Gao Jinzhi (), who were capable soldiers and compared by their admirers to
Guan Yu Guan Yu (; ), courtesy name Yunchang, was a Chinese military general serving under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. Along with Zhang Fei, he shared a brotherly relationship with Liu Bei and accompanied him on ...
and
Zhang Fei Zhang Fei () (died July or August 221 AD), courtesy name Yide, was a military general serving under the warlord Liu Bei in the late Eastern Han dynasty and early Three Kingdoms period of China. Zhang Fei and Guan Yu, who were among the earlies ...
. When Tan was arrested, he angrily threw his scarf on the ground and stated bitterly, "You have destroyed your
Great Wall The Great Wall of China (, literally "ten thousand Li (unit), ''li'' wall") is a series of fortifications that were built across the historical northern borders of ancient Chinese states and Imperial China as protection against Eurasian noma ...
."(脱帻投地曰:“乃复坏汝万里之长城!”) ''Song Shu'', vol.41 When Northern Wei officials heard of Tan's death, they celebrated. In 450, when Northern Wei made a major incursion into Liu Song and destroyed six provinces, Emperor Wen lamented that if Tan were still alive, he would have prevented Northern Wei advances. Tan was said to have had 36 military strategies—although it was later semi-derogatorily noted by the
Southern Qi Qi, known in historiography as the Southern Qi ( or ) or Xiao Qi (), was a Chinese imperial dynasty and the second of the four Southern dynasties during the Northern and Southern dynasties era. It followed the Liu Song dynasty and was succeede ...
general Wang Jingze (), that of Tan's best strategies, "Retreat" was the last and best strategy—because the people had satirized Tan's retreat from Northern Wei forces after Huatai's fall.


References

* ''
Book of Song The ''Book of Song'' (''Sòng Shū'') is a historical text of the Liu Song Dynasty of the Southern Dynasties of China. It covers history from 420 to 479, and is one of the Twenty-Four Histories, a traditional collection of historical records. I ...
'', vol. 43. * ''
History of Southern Dynasties The ''History of the Southern Dynasties'' () is one of the official Chinese historical works in the ''Twenty-Four Histories'' canon. It contain 80 volumes and covers the period from 420 to 589, the histories of Liu Song, Southern Qi, Liang dy ...
'', vol. 1

* ''
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 ...
'', vols. 115, 117, 118, 119, 120, 121, 122, 123,
135 135 may refer to: * 135 (number) * AD 135 * 135 BC * 135 film, better known as 35 mm film, is a format of photographic film used for still photography *135 (New Jersey bus) 135 may refer to: * 135 (number) * AD 135 * 135 BC * 135 film, better know ...
. {{DEFAULTSORT:Tan, Daoji 436 deaths Jin dynasty (266–420) generals Liu Song generals Year of birth unknown Liu Song politicians Politicians from Zhenjiang Generals from Jiangsu Ancient Chinese military writers