Qiuliju, and he was well-known for his wisdom, command skills, strength and ferocity among the Wuhuan people. After Qiuliju died sometime in the early 190s, Tadun succeeded him as the new Wuhuan leader because Qiuliju's son, Louban (樓班), was too young at the time. Tadun not only ruled over the Wuhuan tribes in
Liaoxi Commandery (遼西郡; around present-day
Lulong County,
Hebei
Hebei is a Provinces of China, province in North China. It is China's List of Chinese administrative divisions by population, sixth-most populous province, with a population of over 75 million people. Shijiazhuang is the capital city. It bor ...
), but also those in
Youbeiping (右北平; around present-day
Tangshan, Hebei),
Yuyang (漁陽; around present-day
Miyun District,
Beijing
Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...
) and
Shanggu (上谷; around present-day
Yanqing District, Beijing) commanderies.
Throughout the 190s, Tadun supported the 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 tow ...
in his power struggle against
Gongsun Zan for supremacy in northern China. In return for Tadun's support, Yuan Shao awarded imperial seals and honours to Tadun and the Wuhuan chieftains in the name of
Emperor Xian, the figurehead emperor of the Eastern Han dynasty. After Louban had grown up, Tadun gave the reins of power to him but continued to remain in charge of the Wuhuan tribes in Liaoxi Commandery. The other Wuhuan chieftains, such as Nanlou (難樓), Supuyan (蘇僕延) and Wuyan (烏延), pledged allegiance to Louban as their new leader.
Following Yuan Shao's death in 202, his son and successor
Yuan Shang continued maintaining friendly ties with the Wuhuan. When Yuan Shang was defeated by his father's rival
Cao Cao
Cao Cao (; ; ; 15 March 220), courtesy name Mengde, was a Chinese statesman, warlord, and poet who rose to power during the end of the Han dynasty (), ultimately taking effective control of the Han central government. He laid the foundation f ...
and forced to flee further north, he took shelter under Tadun and the Wuhuan tribes. Tadun attempted to help Yuan Shang regain control over the territories in northern China but to no avail. In 207, Cao Cao personally led his forces on a campaign against Yuan Shang and the Wuhuan tribes. By the time the Wuhuan realised that Cao Cao was on his way to attack them, it was a little too late but they still managed to muster thousands of horsemen to fight the enemy. Both sides clashed at the
Battle of White Wolf Mountain near Liucheng (柳城; southwest of present-day
Chaoyang, Liaoning). During the battle, Tadun was captured by the "Tiger and Leopard Cavalry" (虎豹騎) unit led by Cao Cao's cousin
Cao Chun and was later executed by
Zhang Liao, a general under Cao Cao.
[(從征袁尚於柳城，卒與虜遇，遼勸太祖戰，氣甚奮，太祖壯之，自以所持麾授遼。遂擊，大破之，斬單于蹋頓。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 17.]
See also
*
Lists of people of the Three Kingdoms
References
*
Chen, Shou (3rd century). ''
Records of the Three Kingdoms
The ''Records of the Three Kingdoms'' is a Chinese official history written by Chen Shou in the late 3rd century CE, covering the end of the Han dynasty (220 CE) and the subsequent Three Kingdoms period (220–280 CE). It is regard ...
'' (''Sanguozhi'').
*
Pei, Songzhi (5th century). ''
Annotations to Records of the Three Kingdoms'' (''Sanguozhi zhu'').
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tadun
2nd-century births
207 deaths
2nd-century Chinese people
3rd-century Chinese people
People during the end of the Han dynasty
Wuhuan
Executed Han dynasty people
People executed by the Han dynasty