Zang Ba ( 162–230s),

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 ...

Xuangao, was a military general 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 ...

and

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 of China. He served the warlord Tao Qian initially, followed by

Lü Bu Lü Bu () (died 7 February 199), courtesy name Fengxian, was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of Imperial China. Originally a subordinate of a minor warlord Ding Yuan, he betray ...

and finally

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 ...

and his successors, but for the most part of his career, he remained semi-autonomous over his troops and eastern China. The years of his birth and death are not recorded, but he served the state of

Cao Wei Wei ( Hanzi: 魏; pinyin: ''Wèi'' <

Middle Chinese

: *''ŋjwei^C'' <

in the Three Kingdoms period until the reign of the second Wei emperor,

Cao Rui Cao Rui () (204 or 206 – 22 January 239), courtesy name Yuanzhong, was the second emperor of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period. His parentage is in dispute: his mother, Lady Zhen, was Yuan Xi's wife, but she later remarr ...

. During his life he was granted autonomous power over

Qing The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speaki ...

and Xu provinces. He eventually held the title of marquis of various counties within, but by the time of his death held the appointment Bearer of the Golden Mace (執金吾; i.e., police chief of the imperial capital).

Biography

Zang Ba was originally from Hua County (),

Taishan Commandery Taishan Commandery ( zh, 泰山郡) was a historical commandery of China in present-day Shandong province, existing from Han dynasty to Sui dynasty. Taishan Commandery was created in 122 BC, when the king of Jibei offered the land surrounding Mount ...

, which is around present-day

Fei County Fei County or Feixian falls under the jurisdiction of Linyi, in the south of 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. Shand ...

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 ...

. According to the ''

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– ...

'', Zang Ba's father, Zang Jie (臧戒), who served as a prison warden in Hua County, was displeased with the commandery administrator's abuse of power and stopped obeying the administrator's orders. The administrator, who was greatly angered, had Zang Jie arrested to be sent to the commandery capital. Zang Ba, although only 18 at the time, led a group of some 20 or 30 men to rescue his father. Although there were over 100 soldiers escorting Zang Jie, none of them dared to stop Zang Ba. Henceforth, the Zangs became fugitives, but Zang Ba's bravery became well known. After the

Yellow Turban Rebellion The Yellow Turban Rebellion, alternatively translated as the Yellow Scarves Rebellion, was a List of peasant revolts, peasant revolt in China against the Eastern Han dynasty. The uprising broke out in 184 CE during the reign of Emperor Ling of ...

broke out in the 180s, Zang Ba entered the service of Tao Qian, the Governor of

Xu Province Xuzhou as a historical toponym refers to varied area in different eras. Ordinarily, it was a reference to the one of the Nine Provinces which modern Xuzhou inherited. History Pre-Qin era Xuzhou or Xu Province was one of the Nine Provinces of ...

, who appointed him as Commandant of Cavalry (''qiduwei'', 騎都尉). During his service under Tao Qian, Zang Ba fought against

Yellow Turban Army The Yellow Turban Army, also known as the Yellow Turban Bandits (after the publishing of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms), was a peasant rebel force led by the late Eastern Han Dynasty mystic Zhang Jue from Julu Commandery. The Yellow Turbans lau ...

in 185.

Head of the Taishan bandits

Later in 193, as Tao Qian was repeatedly defeated by the warlord

, Zang Ba gathered adventurers and gangsters and established himself as the leader of the bandit groups of

Mount Tai Mount Tai () is a mountain of historical and cultural significance located north of the city of Tai'an. It is the highest point in Shandong province, China. The tallest peak is the '' Jade Emperor Peak'' (), which is commonly reported as being t ...

with characters like Sun Guan (),

Wu Dun Wu may refer to: States and regions on modern China's territory *Wu (state) (; och, *, italic=yes, links=no), a kingdom during the Spring and Autumn Period 771–476 BCE ** Suzhou or Wu (), its eponymous capital ** Wu County (), a former county ...

(), Yin Li and Chang Xi () within his ranks. However, they did not return to Tao Qian after the campaign and instead camped at Kaiyang County () in the north of

Langya Commandery Langya Commandery ( zh, , ) was a commandery in historical China from Qin dynasty to Tang dynasty, located in present-day southeast Shandong and northeast Jiangsu. The commandery was established in Qin dynasty on the former territories of Qi. Fro ...

. It was around this time that Zang Ba gained the nickname "Outlaw Slave" (奴寇). When

gained control of Xu Province, Zang Ba and his Taishan Bandits attacked Xiao Jian () at

Ju County Ju County or Juxian () is a county of Rizhao City, in the south of Shandong Province, People's Republic of China. As of the end of 2021, the total registered population of Ju County was 1.167 million. It covers an area of . The Fulaishan Scenic ...

and seized his treasury. Lü Bu found issue with this act—according to the '' Yingxiong ji'', he was seeking an alliance with Xiao Jian; the '' Hou Hanshu'' says he expected Zang Ba to turn over the spoils—and personally led his troops to confront Zang Ba, despite opposition from his subordinate

Gao Shun Gao Shun () (died 7 February 199) was a military officer serving the warlord Lü Bu during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. Although he only had 700 men under his command, his unit was nicknamed as the "camp crusher (or formation breaker ...

. Zang Ba heard of Lü Bu's violent and plundering ways, so he remained inside Ju County and put up a firm defence against Lü Bu. Lü Bu was unable to conquer Ju County and returned to Xiapi. Zang Ba later made peace with Lü Bu.(時有東海蕭建為琅邪相，治莒，保城自守，不與布通。布與建書曰：「 ..��與下邳相去不遠，宜當共通。君如自遂以為郡郡作帝，縣縣自王也！ ..可取布書與智者詳共議之。」建得書，即遣主簿齎牋上禮，貢良馬五匹。建尋為臧霸所襲破，得建資實。布聞之，自將步騎向莒。高順諫曰：「將軍躬殺董卓，威震夷狄，端坐顧盼，遠近自然畏服，不宜輕自出軍；如或不捷，損名非小。」布不從。霸畏布鈔暴，果登城拒守。布不能拔，引還下邳。霸後復與布和。) ''Yingxiong Ji'' annotation in ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 7.(時太山臧霸等攻破莒城，許布財幣以相結，而未及送，布乃自往求之。其督將高順諫止曰：「將軍威名宣播，遠近所畏，何求不得，而自行求賂。萬一不剋，豈不損邪？」布不從。旣至莒，霸等不測往意，固守拒之，無獲而還。順為人清白有威嚴，少言辭，將衆整齊，每戰必剋。布性決易，所為無常。順每諫曰：「將軍舉動，不肯詳思，忽有失得，動輒言誤。誤事豈可數乎？」布知其忠而不能從。) ''Houhanshu'' vol. 75. Later in 198, Zang Ba supported Lü Bu with his bandits when the latter was attacked by Cao Cao. However, after Lü Bu's defeat and execution following the

Battle of Xiapi The Battle of Xiapi was fought between the forces of Lü Bu against the allied armies of Cao Cao and Liu Bei from the winter of 198 to 7 February 199 towards the end of the Eastern Han dynasty in China. The battle concluded with victory for C ...

, Zang Ba lost his ally and became a fugitive.

Service under Cao Cao

After Zang Ba was captured, Cao Cao asked for his allegiance made him the chancellor of Langya, while Zang Ba's old friends were also appointed as local administrators. Together, they held sway over the Qing and Xu provinces. Once, Cao Cao ordered Liu Bei (then his subordinate) to ask Zang Ba for the heads of Mao Jun (毛暉) and Xu Xi (徐翕), men who rebelled against Cao Cao and sought refuge with Zang Ba during the war with Lü Bu. However, Zang Ba refused to turn the two men over as he told Liu Bei that the reason he had been able to earn the loyalty of so many people was because he never turned his back on them and further remarking that it would befit a great leader to act magnanimously. Liu Bei relayed Zang Ba's response back to Cao Cao, who praised Zang Ba for his honourable conduct, comparing it to that of ancient heroes, and pardoned the two renegade, making them commandery administrators. As the rest of eastern China plunged into turmoil, the situation in the lands under Zang Ba's influence remained under control. During Cao Cao's battles with

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 ...

in the early 200s, Zang Ba led elite soldiers into

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 ...

, allowing Cao Cao to focus the majority of his soldiers on the main battles at hand, and not having to worry being flanked from the east. Yuan Shao's forces cannot advance to the east due to the strong defense mounted by Zang Ba.After defeating Yuan Shao at 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 ...

in 200, Cao Cao defeated and killed his son

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 ...

in the

Battle of Nanpi The Battle of Nanpi happened in the first month of 205, during the period known as the end of the Han Dynasty. The battle spelled the annihilation of Yuan Tan, one of Yuan Shao's sons vying to succeed their father, by their common enemy Cao Cao ...

. Zang Ba went personally to Cao Cao to congratulate him on his great victory. During the celebration banquet, he offered to move his family to Ye city, Cao Cao's headquarters, effectively as hostages to bound his loyalty. Cao Cao refused, expressing his full confidence in Zang Ba. For his accomplishments in restoring order in the east, Zang Ba was enfeoffed as a marquis of a chief village by and named as general. In 206, Zang Ba put down the rebellion of Chang Xi, his former subordinate, together with

Yu Jin Yu Jin (died 221), courtesy name Wenze, was a Chinese military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He joined Cao Cao in 192 around the start of the civil wars leading to the collapse of the dyna ...

. Some time between 206 and 209, he joined

Xiahou Yuan Xiahou Yuan () (died 219), courtesy name Miaocai, was a Chinese military general and politician serving under the warlord Cao Cao in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He is known for his exploits in western China (in parts of present-day Ga ...

and Lü Qian (呂虔) in the quelling of Yellow Turban remnants led by Xu He () and Sima Ju (). After several engagements and heavy casualties on both sides, the two Yellow Turban rebels were killed. Zang Ba was then formally appointed as the Inspector of Xu Province, and his close comrade Sun Guan became the Inspector of Qing Province.

Campaigns against Sun Quan

After the

Battle of Red Cliffs The Battle of Red Cliffs, also known as the Battle of Chibi, was a decisive naval battle in the winter of AD 208–209 at the end of the Han dynasty, about twelve years prior to the beginning of the Three Kingdoms period in Chinese history. T ...

stopped Cao Cao's southern expansion in 208, Zang Ba led a contingent to join Cao Cao's army as he advanced across the

Huai River The Huai River (), Postal Map Romanization, formerly romanization of Chinese, romanized as the Hwai, is a major river in China. It is located about midway between the Yellow River and Yangtze, the two longest rivers and largest drainage basins ...

to attack the southern warlord

Sun Quan Sun Quan (, Chinese: 孫權) (183 – 21 May 252), courtesy name Zhongmou (), posthumously known as Emperor Da of Wu, was the founder of the Eastern Wu dynasty, one of the Three Kingdoms of China. He inherited control of the warlord regime es ...

north of the

Yangtze River The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ; ) is the longest list of rivers of Asia, river in Asia, the list of rivers by length, third-longest in the world, and the longest in the world to flow entirely within one country. It rises at Jari Hill in th ...

. Zang Ba was the leader in the capture of Juchao (居巢) of Lujiang Commandery (盧江郡). Later, Cao Cao sent two separate forces to suppress Chen Lan () and Mei Cheng (), who rebelled in Lu County (六縣; in present-day

Lu'an Lu'an (), is a prefecture-level city in western Anhui province, People's Republic of China, bordering Henan to the northwest and Hubei to the southwest. As of the 2020 census, it had a total population of 4,393,699 inhabitants whom 1,752,537 liv ...

Anhui Anhui , (; formerly romanized as Anhwei) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the East China region. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze River ...

). Yu Jin and Zang Ba were sent to attack Mei Cheng;

Zhang Liao Zhang Liao () (169–222), courtesy name Wenyuan, was a Chinese military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He served briefly in the state of Cao Wei, founded by Cao Cao's successor Cao Pi, in the ...

, with

Zhang He Zhang He () (died July or August 231), courtesy name Junyi, was a military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He continued serving in the state of Cao Wei under its first two rulers, Cao Pi and ...

and Niu Gai () as his deputies, were to attack Chen Lan. Mei Cheng pretended to surrender to Yu Jin and then led his men to join Chen Lan at Mount Tianzhu as soon as Yu Jin and Zang Ba left. On the other hand, Zhang Liao was worried that Sun Quan would send his general,

Han Dang Han Dang (died 227), courtesy name Yigong, was a military general serving under the warlord Sun Quan during the late Eastern Han dynasty and early Three Kingdoms period of China. He previously served under Sun Quan's predecessors – Sun Jian (Su ...

, with an army to assist Chen in resisting Cao Cao's forces. Han Dang was in charge of defending Huancheng, a major stronghold in Lujiang Commandery at that time, so Zhang Liao sent Zang Ba to ensure that Han Dang could not move to reinforce the rebels. Zang Ba attacked Huancheng, but Han Dang defended the stronghold well and repelled the attack, driving Zang Ba to take refuge in the city of She, north of Juchao. With Zang Ba withdrawing, Sun Quan dispatched some 20,000 to 30,000 soldiers in two separate forces to assist Chen Lan.They avoided engaging Zang Ba, but Zang Ba emerged out of his defences in a forced night march and caught Sun Quan's forces by surprise in the morning. Many soldiers of Sun Quan could not board their ships and were forced into the water and drowned. Without the intervention from Sun Quan, Zhang Liao killed both Chen Lan and Mei Cheng, quelling the rebellion. Later, during the Battle of Ruxu in 216 and 217, Zhang Liao and Zang Ba both led the vanguard in a campaign against Sun Quan. However, their progress was hampered by continuous rainfall which had raised the water level, that allowed Sun Quan's ships to approach. With the soldiers uneasy at the situation, Zhang Liao wanted to retreat, but Zang Ba told him to wait, as he replied to Zhang Liao that "Cao Cao is wise, and (he) will not simply abandon us." The next day, an official order to retreat indeed arrived, and both generals safely returned to safety. Zhang Liao told Cao Cao of what happened, and Cao Cao was greatly impressed. Thereafter, Zang Ba moved to Juchao with

Xiahou Dun Xiahou Dun () (died 13 June 220), courtesy name Yuanrang, was a Chinese military general and politician serving under the warlord Cao Cao during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China.''Sanguozhi'' vol.9. He served for a few months under Cao Cao ...

to maintain pressure on Sun Quan's forces. This and other garrisons in the area pressured Sun Quan to offer Cao Cao a nominal form of submission, and the garrisons were withdrawn in 219 when Sun Quan relieved Cao Cao's forces in the

Siege of Fancheng The Battle of Fancheng or the Battle of Fan Castle was fought between the warlords Liu Bei and Cao Cao in 219 in the late Eastern Han dynasty. It is named after Fancheng in present-day Xiangyang, Hubei, a fortress that played a significant role ...

by killing Liu Bei's general

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 ...

Reign of Cao Pi

When Cao Cao was seriously ill in early 220, Zang Ba sent a detachment to

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 ...

to observe the situation. Upon learning of Cao Cao's death, Zang Ba's troops from Qing Province took leave without permission and refused to take command from

Cao Pi Cao Pi () ( – 29 June 226), courtesy name Zihuan, was the first emperor of the state of Cao Wei in the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the second son of Cao Cao, a warlord who lived in the late Eastern Han dynasty, but the eldest son ...

, Cao Cao's successor. Nevertheless, Cao Pi was successful on stabilising the situation, and formally established the state of

Cao Wei Wei ( Hanzi: 魏; pinyin: ''Wèi'' <

Middle Chinese

: *''ŋjwei^C'' <

with himself as its emperor after usurping the throne from the last 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 ...

. After ascending the throne, Cao Pi promoted Zang Ba along most of the officials. the new emperor placed Zang Ba under the supervision of the general

Cao Xiu Cao Xiu (died 29 September 228?), courtesy name Wenlie, was a Chinese military general of the state of Cao Wei in the Three Kingdoms period of China. A distant younger relative of the warlord Cao Cao, Cao Xiu started his career in the late Easte ...

, who had supreme authority over Qing and Xu provinces. Zang Ba accompanied Cao Xiu in a three-pronged invasion against Wu territories in 222. Zang Ba and

defeated Wu under command of

Lü Fan Lü Fan (died 228), courtesy name Ziheng, was a Chinese military general and politician serving under the warlord Sun Quan during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He continued serving in the state of Eastern Wu during the early Three King ...

Battle of Dongkou The Battle of Dongkou was a naval battle fought between October 222 and January 223 between forces of the state of Cao Wei and the Kingdom of Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. The battle concluded in a Wu victory. Background Af ...

. To take advantage of Lu Fan's defeat after being hit by a storm and retreat south of the river, Zang Ba was sent to attack Xuling (Jingkou) with 500 light boats and 10,000 volunteers but Zang Ba's siege engines were burnt and Wu defenders killed several of his men. Zang Ba attempted to retreat but was pursued by Sun Shao and

Quan Cong Quan Cong (196–247 or 198–249), courtesy name Zihuang, was a Chinese military general of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. Born in present-day Hangzhou towards the end of the Eastern Han dynasty, Quan Cong ...

, thousands of his soldiers killed or captured with subordinate general Yin Lu killed. The campaign would be ended the next year as Cao Pi's forces were stalled and epidemic swept through the land so a retreat was ordered

Later life and death

After the campaign, Zang Ba was summoned back to Luoyang to serve as Bearer of the Golden Mace (執金吾, chief of police in the imperial capital). However, he refused to leave his troops and complained to Cao Xiu that Cao Pi did not make use of his full potential, and claimed that "if he was given 10,000 infantry and cavalry, he would be invincible along the Yangtze River." Cao Xiu reported Zang's speech to Cao Pi. Cao Pi, who still bore a grudge against Zang Ba for his arrogance at Cao Cao's funeral, plotted to strip off his military command. Zang Ba went to Cao Pi's tent to greet him, but the emperor relieved him of his command and sent him to Luoyang. Even though Zang Ba no longer served in the military, Cao Pi still consulted him on military affairs from time to time and treated him respectfully. In 226, following Cao Pi's death,

became the new emperor and he increased the number of taxable households in Zang Ba's marquisate to 3,500, a number higher than other marquises who held key military appointments along Wei's eastern border. (Cao Xiu had 2,500 households while Zhang Liao had 2,600 households in their respective marquisates.) After his death, Zang Ba received the

posthumous title A posthumous name is an honorary name given mostly to the notable dead in East Asian culture. It is predominantly practiced in East Asian countries such as China, Korea, Vietnam, Japan, and Thailand. Reflecting on the person's accomplishments or ...

"Marquis Wei" (威侯; literally "majestic marquis") and was succeeded by one of his sons, Zang Ai. (子艾嗣。) ''Sanguozhi'', vol. 18

Notes

References

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

'' (''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 ...

''.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Zang, Ba Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown Mayors of Luoyang Tao Qian and associates Lü Bu and associates Cao Wei politicians Politicians from Linyi Cao Wei generals Generals under Cao Cao Han dynasty generals from Shandong