Xun Chen,

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 ...

Youruo, was an official who lived during the late

Eastern Han dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warr ...

of China. Born in the influential Xun family of

Yingchuan Commandery Yingchuan Commandery ( zh, 潁川郡) was a Chinese commandery from the Warring States period to Tang dynasty, located in modern central Henan province. The name referred to the Ying River, which flowed through its territory. The commandery was es ...

(around present-day

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 ...

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 ...

), he was the fourth brother of Xun Yu and a second cousins once removed of

Xun You Xun You (157–214), courtesy name Gongda, was a statesman who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China and served as an adviser to the warlord Cao Cao. Born in the influential Xun family of Yingchuan Commandery (around present-d ...

. He initially served as an adviser to the warlord Han Fu and later to another warlord,

Yuan Shao Yuan Shao (, ; died 28 June 202), courtesy name Benchu (), was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who lived in the late Eastern Han dynasty. He occupied the northern territories of China during the civil wars that occurred to ...

Life

Xun Chen's ancestral home was in Yingyin County (潁陰縣),

(穎川郡), which is in present-day

. He was born in the influential Xun family as the fourth son of Xun Gun (荀緄), who served as the Chancellor (相) of the Jinan State (濟南國) under the Han government. Xun Chen served as an adviser to the warlord Han Fu, who was the Governor (牧) of

Ji Province Ji Province, also known by its Chinese name Jizhou, was one of the Nine Provinces of ancient China. It is referenced in Chinese historical texts such as the ''Tribute of Yu'', '' Erya'' and '' Rites of Zhou''. Rites of Zhou,Offices of Summer (夏 ...

. In 191, the warlord

, acting on advice from Pang Ji, secretly contacted another warlord Gongsun Zan to form an alliance to attack Ji Province and agreed to divide Han Fu's territories between them. Gongsun Zan then attacked Han Fu and defeated him in battle. Yuan Shao then sent his nephew Gao Gan to meet Han Fu's close aides, including

Xin Ping Xin Ping ( 190s–204), courtesy name Zhongzhi, was a Chinese official who served under the warlords Han Fu, Yuan Shao and Yuan Tan during the late Eastern Han dynasty. Life Xin Ping was from Yangzhai County (陽翟縣), Yingchuan Commandery ...

, Xun Chen and Guo Tu, to persuade Han Fu to hand over Ji Province to him to prevent the province from falling into Gongsun Zan's hands. Xun Chen and the others successfully convinced Han Fu to cede control of Ji Province to Yuan Shao, by assuring him that Ji Province would be better in Yuan Shao's hands and that Han Fu himself would remain safe after giving up his governorship. Xun Chen, along with other former subordinates of Han Fu, then joined Yuan Shao and became one of his advisers. In 199, after Yuan Shao defeated Gongsun Zan at the Battle of Yijing and took over his territories, he planned to launch a campaign against 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 (China), grand chancellor of the Eastern Han dynasty, and he amassed immense power in the End of ...

, who controlled the figurehead Han emperor,

Emperor Xian Emperor Xian of Han (2 April 181 – 21 April 234), personal name Liu Xie (劉協), courtesy name Bohe, was the 14th and last emperor of the Eastern Han dynasty in China. He reigned from 28 September 189 until 11 December 220. Liu Xie was a so ...

, and the Han central government. He put his eldest son Yuan Tan in charge of

Qing Province Qingzhou or Qing Province was one of the Nine Provinces of ancient China dating back to BCE that later became one of the thirteen provinces of the Han dynasty (206 BCE–220 CE). The Nine Provinces were first described in the ''Tribute ...

, second son

Yuan Xi Yuan Xi (died December 20711th month of the 12th year of the ''Jian'an'' era, per Emperor Xian's biography in ''Book of the Later Han''. The month corresponds to 7 Dec 207 to 5 Jan 208 in the Julian calendar.), courtesy name Xianyi or Xianyong ...

in charge of

You Province You Prefecture or You Province, also known by its Chinese language, Chinese name Youzhou, was a prefecture (''Zhou (country subdivision), zhou'') in North China, northern China during its imperial era. "You Province" was cited in some ancient so ...

, nephew Gao Gan in charge of Bing Province, and started mobilising troops from his territories in preparation for the campaign. Xun Chen served as a strategist in Yuan Shao's camp during the

Battle of Guandu The Battle of Guandu was fought between the warlords Cao Cao and Yuan Shao in 200 AD in the late Eastern Han dynasty. Cao Cao's decisive victory against Yuan Shao's numerically superior forces marked the turning point in their war. The victory ...

.(出長子譚為青州， ... 又以中子熈為幽州，甥高幹為并州。衆數十萬，以審配、逢紀統軍事，田豐、荀諶、許攸為謀主，顏良、文醜為將率，簡精卒十萬，騎萬匹，將攻許。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 6. Xun Chen's eventual fate is not recorded in history.

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''). * 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:Xun, Chen 2nd-century births Year of death unknown Officials under Yuan Shao Han dynasty politicians from Henan

Life

See also

References