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| Gongsun Zan | |
|---|---|
| Warlord | |
| Born | ? |
| Died | 199 |
| Names | |
| Simplified Chinese | 公孙瓒 |
| Traditional Chinese | 公孫瓚 |
| Pinyin | Gōngsūn Zàn |
| Wade-Giles | Kungsun Ts'an |
| Courtesy name | Bogui (伯珪) |
- This is a Chinese name; the family name is Gongsun (公孫).
Gongsun Zan (? - 199), styled Bogui (伯珪). A native of Liaoxi (遼西), he was a warlord with fierce reputation during the late Eastern Han Dynasty era of China.
Contents |
Life
Not much is known of his early life but that he studied under Lu Zhi with his future ally Liu Bei. He was deployed by He Jin to quash a rebellion of Zhang Yan in the north which he did successfully. After He Jin's death Dong Zhuo rose to the fore and Gongsun Zan joined other leaders in the fight against him. Following the break up of the alliance he returned to his power base at Beiping.
Following a misunderstanding with his lord, Liu Yu, he attacked him, winning and taking control of the surrounding area. Contrary to popular belief he was never formally given the title Prefect. During this time his former class mate Liu Bei came to serve him and he got allocated the city of Pingyuan to defend.
Two cousins now formed the power in China, Yuan Shao in the north in direct competition with Gongsun Zan and Yuan Shu. Following a disagreement between the two, Gongsun Zan formed an alliance with Yuan Shu and when he attacked Liu Biao, an ally of Yuan Shao, he sent his brother Gongsun Yue to help. Gongsun Yue died fighting in the campaign.
Following this Gongsun Zan fought against Yuan Shao after a plan to gain Han Fu's lands went ary. However Gongsun Zan eventually lost this and committed suicide killing also his wife and son Gongsun Xu.
In Romance of the Three Kingdoms
He was commander of a cavalry force and served on the northern and eastern frontiers of the Han Dynasty empire fighting against various non-Chinese peoples. In 191, Gongsun enlisted as part of the coalition against Dong Zhuo, the warlord who had seized power in Luoyang and held the emperor hostage, but used the opportunity to enlarge his territories. In late 191, Gongsun Zan appointed the later great Shu Han general, Zhao Yun. Zhao Yun later joined another member of the attack on Dong Zhuo, Liu Bei who also served him at one point along with his comrades Guan Yu and Zhang Fei. Gongsun Zan and Liu Bei had known each other for years having studied together in their younger days. Throughout the 190s he fought a series of battles with the warlord Yuan Shao for control of north China, starting with the Battle of Jieqiao. He was defeated by Yuan in 199 in the Battle of Yijing and committed suicide by burning the pagoda he was on.
Gongsun Zan was known as the General of Baima and renowned for his brigade of elite cavalry from Baima, made up completely of horses of pure white (Bai Ma means white horse in Chinese). It seems he hit on the tactic of using all white horses in battle when he learned the barbarians he was then fighting against considered the animals sacred and would run from them instead of fighting.
Personal information
- Son
- Cousin
See also
- Three Kingdoms
- Personages of the Three Kingdoms
- Records of Three Kingdoms
- Romance of the Three Kingdoms
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