Guo Yuan (died 202) was a Chinese military general and politician serving under the warlord

Yuan Shang Yuan Shang (died December 207), courtesy name Xianfu, was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He was the third son and successor of the warlord Yuan Shao. In the 14th-centu ...

in the late

Eastern Han dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Emperor Gaozu of Han, Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by th ...

of China.

Life

Guo Yuan was a maternal nephew of

Zhong Yao Zhong Yao (151 – April or May 230), also referred to as Zhong You, courtesy name Yuanchang, was a Chinese calligrapher and politician who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty and Three Kingdoms period of China. He served in the state of ...

. He was a subordinate of the warlord

. In 202, when the warlord

Cao Cao Cao Cao () (; 155 – 15 March 220), courtesy name Mengde (), was a Chinese statesman, warlord and poet. He was the penultimate grand chancellor of the Eastern Han dynasty, and he amassed immense power in the dynasty's final years. As one o ...

led his forces to attack Yuan Shang and his brother

Yuan Tan Yuan Tan (died 205), courtesy name Xiansi, was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who was the eldest son of Yuan Shao, a warlord who occupied much of northern China during the late Eastern Han dynasty. After Yuan Shao's death, Y ...

at the

Battle of Liyang The Battle of Liyang, fought between October 202 and June 203 in the late Eastern Han Dynasty, was an invasion attempt by the warlord Cao Cao against the brothers Yuan Shang and Yuan Tan, the sons of Cao's rival Yuan Shao. The battle in Octob ...

, Yuan Shang ordered

Gao Gan Gao Gan () (died 206), courtesy name Yuancai, was a minor warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He was a maternal nephew and subordinate of the warlord Yuan Shao. Life Gao Gan was from an influential family in Yu Count ...

, Guo Yuan and

Huchuquan Huchuquan was the last chanyu () of the Southern Xiongnu during the late Eastern Han dynasty and Three Kingdoms period of China. He was a younger brother of the Xiongnu chanyu in exile, Yufuluo. History After his brother died in 195, Huchuqu ...

to lead troops to attack

Hedong Commandery Hedong Commandery () was a historical region in the Qin and Han dynasties of ancient China. Hedong was located to the east of the Yellow River in Shanxi (around present-day Yuncheng). History Hedong Commandery was established by the Qin state ...

(河東郡; around present-day

Xia County Xia County or Xiaxian () is a county in the southwest of Shanxi province, People's Republic of China, bordering Henan Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is o ...

Shanxi Shanxi (; ; formerly romanised as Shansi) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region. The capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-leve ...

), which was guarded by Jia Kui, an official under Cao Cao. Jia Kui could not hold up against the attack, so the people in Hedong Commandery offered to surrender to Guo Yuan on the condition that he would not harm Jia Kui. Guo Yuan agreed and captured Hedong Commandery, after which Yuan Shang appointed him as the commandery's Administrator (太守). When Jia Kui refused to surrender to Guo Yuan, the latter wanted to kill him but the people of Hedong Commandery helped Jia Kui escape. In the meantime, Cao Cao ordered

to recruit forces from Liang Province to deal with Guo Yuan and Gao Gan.

Ma Teng Ma Teng () (died June or July 212), courtesy name Shoucheng, was a Chinese military general and warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He controlled Liang Province (涼州; covering parts of present-day Shaanxi and Gansu ...

, a warlord in Liang Province, responded to Zhong Yao's call and sent his son

Ma Chao Ma Chao () (176–222), courtesy name Mengqi, was a Chinese military general and warlord who lived in the late Eastern Han dynasty and early Three Kingdoms period of China. A descendant of the general Ma Yuan, Ma Chao was the eldest son of Ma ...

and an officer

Pang De Pang De () (died 219), courtesy name Lingming, was a Chinese military general who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty. He started his career under the warlord Ma Teng, who was based in Liang Province. In 211, Ma Teng's son Ma Chao, along ...

to assist Zhong Yao in attacking Guo Yuan and Gao Gan at Pingyang County (平陽縣; west of present-day

Linfen Linfen is a prefecture-level city in the southwest of Shanxi province, China, bordering Shaanxi province to the west. It is situated along the banks of the Fen River. It has an area of and according to the 2020 Census, a population of 3,976, ...

). Pang De led the vanguard, slew Guo Yuan in the midst of battle and took his head, without knowing that the man he killed was Guo Yuan. After the battle, when Zhong Yao's men searched the battlefield, they found Guo Yuan's headless body. Shortly after, Pang De went to meet Zhong Yao and he threw Guo Yuan's head in front of him. Zhong Yao cried when he recognised Guo Yuan's head because Guo Yuan was his maternal nephew. Pang De immediately apologised to Zhong Yao, who replied, "Even though Guo Yuan was my nephew, he was an enemy of the state. Why do you apologise?"(魏略曰：德手斬一級，不知是援。戰罷之後，眾人皆言援死而不得其首。援，鍾繇之甥。德晚後於鞬中出一頭，繇見之而哭。德謝繇，繇曰：「援雖我甥，乃國賊也。卿何謝之？」) ''Weilue'' annotation in ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 18.

References

* Chen, Shou (3rd century). ''

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� ...

'' (''Sanguozhi''). * Pei, Songzhi (5th century). ''

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''). {{DEFAULTSORT:Guo, Yuan 202 deaths 2nd-century births 3rd-century Chinese people Chinese duellists Deaths by decapitation Generals under Yuan Shao Han dynasty generals from Shanxi Han dynasty people killed in battle Han dynasty politicians from Shanxi Officials under Yuan Shao Political office-holders in Shanxi

Life

See also

References