Biography Sun Quan

1 biography

1.1 life
1.2 succeeding sun ce
1.3 battle of red cliffs
1.4 uneasy alliance liu bei
1.5 breaking of alliance liu bei
1.6 reign monarch of eastern wu

1.6.1 reign
1.6.2 middle reign
1.6.3 late reign

biography
early life

sun quan born in 182, while father sun jian still general of han dynasty. after father s death in 191, became charge of brother sun ce. grew up, served brother during conquests of region south of yangtze river. made county magistrate in 196, @ age of 14, , continued rise through ranks brother gave him more , more important tasks.

the records of 3 kingdoms mentioned sun jian descendant of sun wu (better known sun tzu), militarist in spring , autumn period , author of art of war. according later tradition, sun quan born on sunzhou ( sun island , later wangzhou - king s island ), islet @ intersection of fuchun river , 1 of tributaries. local folklore relates story how sun quan s grandfather, sun zhong, melon farmer on islet.

succeeding sun ce

sun ce assassinated in 200 during hunt. on deathbed, knew son still young considered realistic heir, entrusted 18-year-old sun quan faithful subordinates. initially, sun quan mourned brother s death nothing, @ zhang zhao s behest, dressed himself in military uniform , set out visit commanderies under brother s control. many of sun ce s subordinates thought sun quan young sustain sun ce s domain , wanted leave, zhang zhao , zhou yu saw special qualities in young man , chose stay serve sun quan. zhang hong, whom sun ce had earlier sent liaison warlord cao cao, returned cao s domain assist sun quan. (at zhang hong s request, cao cao, in name of emperor xian, commissioned sun quan general attacks barbarians (討虜將軍), title known long time.) listened mother lady wu s encouraging words, , trusted zhang zhao , zhang hong regard civilian affairs , zhou yu, cheng pu, , lü fan regard military matters. sun quan sought out talented young men serve personal advisors, , around time befriended lu su , zhuge jin, later play prominent roles in administration. throughout period , decades come, sun quan s leadership characterised ability find men of character , entrust important matters him, , ability react swiftly events.

for next several years, sun quan largely interested in first defending realm against potential enemies, gradually sought harass , weaken liu biao s key subordinate, huang zu (who controlled northeastern region of liu biao s domain) – particularly because huang zu had killed father in battle. in 208, able defeat , kill huang zu in battle. after, liu biao died while cao cao preparing major campaign subjugate both liu biao , sun quan under control, precipitating major confrontation.

battle of red cliffs


a mural showing chariots , cavalry, dahuting tomb (打虎亭漢墓) of late eastern han dynasty (25-220 ad), located in zhengzhou, henan

after liu biao s death, succession struggle domain came being, between sons liu qi , younger son liu cong, whom liu biao s second wife lady cai favoured (because had married niece). after huang zu s death, liu qi therefore given huang s post governor of jiangxia commandery (around present-day xinzhou district, wuhan, hubei). liu cong therefore succeeded liu biao after death, , liu qi displeased , considered, did not carry out, attack against brother. nevertheless, liu cong, in fear of having fight cao cao , brother on 2 fronts, surrendered cao cao against advice of liu biao s key ally liu bei. liu bei, unwilling submit cao cao, fled south. cao caught him , crushed forces, liu bei escaped life; fled dangyang (當陽, in present-day yichang, hubei). cao cao took on of jing province, , appeared set on unifying empire.

sun quan aware of cao cao s intentions, , entered alliance liu bei , liu qi prepare attack cao. cao cao wrote sun quan letter intending intimidate, , in face of cao s overwhelming force (estimated 220,000 men, although cao claimed 800,000, against sun s 30,000 , lius combined force of 10,000), many of sun s subordinates, including zhang zhao, advocated surrender. sun quan refused, under advice zhou yu , lu su (that cao cao surely not tolerate him if surrendered).

sun quan put zhou yu in charge of 30,000 men, largely stationed on naval ships, , zhou set defensive position in conjunction liu bei, army stationed on land. time, there plague developing in cao cao s forces weakened it. zhou yu set trap pretended punishing subordinate huang gai, , huang pretended surrender cao cao in fear. zhou yu sent ships under huang gai s command pretend surrender and, huang s ships approached cao cao s fleet, set aflame assault cao s fleet, , cao s fleet largely destroyed fire. cao cao led forces escape on land, of force destroyed sun quan , liu bei s land forces.

uneasy alliance liu bei


statue of sun quan.

immediately, after cao cao withdrew, sun quan took on northern half of jing province. liu bei marched south , took on southern half. sun-liu alliance further cemented marriage of sun quan s younger sister, lady sun, liu bei. zhou yu suspicious of liu bei s intentions, however, , suggested sun quan liu seized , put under house arrest (albeit well-treated) , forces merged sun s; sun quan, believing liu bei s forces rebel if did that, declined. sun quan did agree zhou yu s plans consider attacking liu zhang , zhang lu (who controlled modern southern shaanxi) try take on territories, after zhou yu died in 210, plans abandoned. however, sun quan able persuade warlords in present-day guangdong, guangxi, , northern vietnam submit him, , became part of domain. yielded parts of northern jing province liu bei well, agreeing liu south insufficient supply troops.

in 211, sun quan moves headquarters dantu city of moling, , in next year rebuilt walls , renamed city jianye. new location gave him better control of yangtze river , better communications various other commanders. constructed fortresses @ ruxu, since lü meng anticipated invasion there cao cao.

the invasion lü meng expected came @ start of 213. sun quan led army there resist cao cao , relied heavily on fortresses lü meng built give soldiers strong positions defend. @ 1 point, cao cao tried send navy across river break sun quan s lines, sun quan s own ships surrounded them , destroyed them. ultimately, lü meng s defences held , when spring rains came month later, cao cao had pull back.

after cao cao s defeat @ ruxu, many people along yangtze river fled south join sun quan. exception of wan county , immediate area, region became abandoned. in 214, cao cao sent man named zhu guang wan county orders revitalise region , bring under cao cao s control. zhu guang began extensive agricultural projects, , stirred bandits , malcontents rebellion in sun quan s territory. lü meng feared if zhu guang s programmes successful, make cao cao s hold in area unbreakable , urged campaign against huan. sun quan followed lü meng s strategy , used seasonal flooding travel city boat, allowed them attack unexpectedly. rather lengthy siege, lü meng, gan ning , ling tong led quick strike , broke zhu guang s defences, capturing city.

after liu bei s conquest of yi province, able supply troops on own, sun quan sent lu su emissary demand return of jing province, liu bei refused. sun quan sent lü meng , ling tong lead 20,000 men attack southern jing province , succeeded in capturing changsha, guiyang, , lingling commanderies. meantime, lu su , gan ning advanced yiyang (益陽) 10,000 men (to block guan yu) , took on command of army @ lukou (陸口). liu bei went gong county , guan yu led 30,000 men yiyang. when all-out war break out, news cao cao planned attack hanzhong received liu bei, , requested border treaty sun quan became worried cao cao seizing hanzhong. liu bei asked sun quan give him lingling commandery , create diversion cao cao attacking hefei; in return, liu bei ceded changsha , guiyang commanderies sun quan, setting new border along xiang river. sun quan s attack on hefei disastrous - captured on few occasions, if not saved ling tong.

in 217, cao cao brought massive army attack ruxu again. sun quan led 70,000 men defend city, though left actual command of battle lü meng. furious campaign, , after several weeks of gruelling battle, lü meng’s defences held , spring floods forced cao cao retreat once again.

still, not complete victory. of cao cao s army still intact , had huge force under xiahou dun north of sun quan s position. resulted in stalemate in long sun quan kept army in ruxu, xiahou dun not hope invade him; sun quan pulled out of ruxu, xiahou dun break through. xiahou dun s force large , well-entrenched driven away. sun quan had no military options, settled on diplomatic solution. in 217, sun quan allied cao cao, recognising him legitimate representative of han central government. while officially surrender, cao cao knew sun quan not content being treated subject confirmed of titles sun quan had claimed himself , formalised control on lands held. sun quan permitted continue rule independently officially 1 of cao cao s subordinates.

breaking of alliance liu bei

in 219, guan yu advanced north, attacking fancheng, scoring major victory on cao ren. while fancheng did not fall @ time, guan yu put under siege, , situation severe enough cao cao considered moving capital away xu. however, sun quan, resentful of guan yu s prior constant instigation of hostilities (including seizing sun s food supplies use campaign north), took opportunity attack guan rear, , guan s forces collapsed. guan yu captured forces under lü meng , jiang qin; guan yu executed, jing province came under sun s control, , sun-liu alliance ended.

after cao cao s death in 220, cao pi forced emperor xian yield throne him, ending han dynasty , establishing state of cao wei. sun quan did not submit wei or declare independence after cao pi s enthronement, took wait-and-see attitude; contrast, in 221, liu bei declared himself emperor, establishing state of shu han. immediately, liu bei planned campaign against sun quan avenge guan yu. after attempting negotiate peace , receiving no positive response liu bei, fearing attack on both sides, sun quan became vassal of wei. cao pi s strategist liu ye suggested cao pi decline — , in fact attack sun quan on second front, partitioning sun s domain shu, , seek destroy shu well. cao pi declined, in fateful choice historians believe doomed empire ruling northern , central china — , chance not come again. indeed, against liu ye s advice, appointed sun quan king of wu , granted him 9 bestowments.

in 222, @ battle of xiaoting, sun quan s general lu xun dealt liu bei major defeat, stopping shu offensive. shu not again pose threat sun quan point on. later year, when cao pi demanded sun quan send crown prince sun deng wei capital luoyang hostage (to guarantee loyalty), sun quan refused , declared independence (by changing era name), establishing eastern wu independent state. cao pi launched major attack on wu, after wei defeats in 223, became clear wu secure. after liu bei s death later year, zhuge jin s brother zhuge liang, regent liu bei s son , successor liu shan, reestablished alliance sun quan, , 2 states remain allies until shu s eventual destruction in 263.

reign monarch of eastern wu
early reign

sun quan

early in sun quan s reign, wu administration known efficiency, sun showed knack listening correct advice , delegating authorities proper individuals. example, correctly trusted faithful lu xun , zhuge jin, so made duplicate imperial seal , left lu xun; whenever correspond shu s emperor liu shan or regent zhuge liang, deliver letter lu xun first (as lu s post near shu border), , if, in lu s opinion, changes needed, revise letter , restamp sun s imperial seal. further, lu xun , zhuge jin authorised coordinate actions shu without prior imperial approval. sun quan treated high-level officials friends , addressed them accordingly (with courtesy names), , in accordance dedicated effort wu s preservation. knew proper roles officials trusted; example, in 225, when selecting chancellor, while key officials respected zhang zhao , wanted him chancellor, sun quan declined, reasoning while respected zhang greatly, chancellor needed handle affairs of state, , zhang, while capable, had such strong opinions surely in conflict sun quan , other officials @ times. repeatedly promoted official lü fan though, while young, lü fan had informed sun ce improper spending habits, understanding lü did out of loyalty sun ce.

in 224 , 225, cao pi again made attacks on wu, each time wu forces able repel wei s fair ease — cao pi made comment, heaven created yangtze divide north , south. however, sun quan himself equally unsuccessful in efforts make major attacks on wei. after cao pi s death in 226, example, sun quan launched attack on wei s jiangxia commandery (around present-day xinzhou district, wuhan, hubei) forced withdraw wei reinforcements arrived. however, later year, able increase effective control on jiao province (交州, present-day northern vietnam) when general lü dai able defeat warlord shi hui (士徽) , end effective independence shi clan had. in addition, several independent kingdoms in modern cambodia, laos, , southern vietnam became wu vassals well.

mirror immortals , mythical beast. cast in 229, year sun quan declared himself emperor.

the book of liang records arrival in 226 of merchant roman empire (daqin) @ jiaozhi (chinese-controlled northern vietnam). prefect of jiaozhou sent him court of sun quan in nanjing. sun quan requested provide him report on native country , people. expedition mounted return merchant along 10 female , 10 male blackish coloured dwarfs had requested curiosity , chinese officer who, unfortunately, died en route.

the 1 major victory wu have on wei during period came in 228, when, sun quan s approval, general zhou fang pretended surrendering wei after pretending have been punished repeatedly sun quan. tricked wei general cao xiu, led large army south support zhou fang. walked trap set zhou fang , lu xun , suffered major losses, saved total annihilation jia kui.

in 229, sun quan declared himself emperor, damaged alliance shu, many shu officials saw sign of betrayal of han dynasty — shu claimed legitimate successor. however, zhuge liang opposed ending alliance , in fact confirmed formal treaty later year, in 2 states pledged support each other , divide wei equally if conquer it. later year, moved capital wuchang (武昌; in present-day ezhou, hubei) jianye, leaving crown prince sun deng, assisted lu xun, in charge of western parts of eastern wu.

middle reign

in 230, however, first sign of deterioration of sun quan s reign occurred. year, sent generals wei wen (衛溫) , zhuge zhi (諸葛直) navy of 10,000 east china sea seek legendary islands of yizhou (夷洲) , danzhou (亶洲) seek conquer them, despite strenuous opposition of lu xun , quan cong. navy not able locate danzhou located yizhou, , returned in 231 after capturing several thousand men — after 80-90% of navy had died illness. instead of seeing own fault in venture, sun quan executed wei wen , zhuge zhi. perhaps concerned deterioration in sun quan s judgment, sun deng left western empire in lu xun s hands in 232 , returned jianye, , remain @ jianye until own death in 241.

in 232, sun quan had misadventure involving navy — sent generals zhou (周賀) , pei qian (裴濳) nominal wei vassal gongsun yuan, in control of liaodong commandery (present-day central liaoning), purchase horses, against advice of yu fan - , indeed, exiled yu fan desolate cangwu commandery (roughly modern wuzhou, guangxi) punishment. yu fan predicted, however, venture end in failure — zhou , pei qian, on way back, intercepted wei forces , killed. regretting actions, sun quan tried recall yu fan jianye, learn yu had died in exile.

the next year, however, sun quan have yet misadventure in dealings gongsun yuan, gongsun sent messengers him, offering subject. sun quan ecstatic, , appointed gongsun yuan prince of yan , granted him 9 bestowments, , further sent detachment of 10,000 men sea north assist gongsun yuan in campaign against wei, against advice of every single 1 of high-level officials, particularly zhang zhao. once army arrived, however, gongsun yuan betrayed them, killing sun quan s officials zhang mi (張彌) , xu yan (許晏), whom sun had sent grant bestowments , seized troops. once happened, enraged sun quan wanted head north fleet attack gongsun yuan, , initially, not lu xun s opposition able stop him, although calmed down , did not follow through. credit, went zhang zhao s house , apologised him. further, despite deterioration in previous clear thinking, still capable of making proper decisions @ times. example, in 235, when, sign of contempt, wei s emperor cao rui offered horses him in exchange pearls, jade, , tortoise shells, sun quan ignored implicit insult , made exchange, reasoning empire needed horses more pearls, jade or tortoise shells.

in 234, in coordination zhuge liang s final northern expedition against wei, sun quan led major attack against wei s border city hefei, while having lu xun , zhuge jin attack xiangyang, strategy of trying attract wei relief forces , attacking them. however, wei generals correctly saw situation , let sun quan siege hefei. after sun quan s food supplies ran low did cao rui arrive reinforcements, , sun withdrew, did lu xun , zhuge jin.

in 238, when gongsun yuan under attack wei s general sima yi, sun quan, despite prior rage against gongsun, correctly judged situation 1 might able take advantage if sima yi unsuccessful, did not refuse gongsun s request help. however, sima yi able conquer gongsun yuan quickly, sun quan never launched major attack considered if sima got stuck in stalemate gongsun. year, recognised how lü yi, supervisor of audit bureau, had been abusing powers, , had lü yi executed; further confirmed trust in high-level officials writing emotional letter zhuge jin, bu zhi, zhu ran, , lü dai, blaming himself recent problems administration while urging them speak out whenever saw faults in him.

in 241, sun quan launch last major assault against wei of reign, in light of cao rui s death in 239, rejected strategy offered yin zha (殷札) attack wei in coordinated effort shu on 4 different fronts, , campaign ended in failure well.

late reign

later in 241, crown prince sun deng died — event left open issue of succession , appeared mark start of precipitous decline in sun quan s mental health. in 242, appointed son sun he, born consort wang, crown prince. however, favoured son consort wang, sun ba, , permitted sun ba have same staffing level crown prince — move objected number of officials encouraging sun ba compete sun he, sun quan did not listen them. after 245, when sun , sun ba began have separate residences, relationship deteriorated further, , sun ba began scheme @ how seize heir status sun he. fanned gossip daughter sun luban, sun quan blamed sun s mother consort wang — , died in fear. cut off sun , sun ba s access officials supported them in hopes of receiving future favours, not stop sun ba s machinations. indeed, when lu xun tried intervene protect sun he, sun ba falsely accused him of many crimes, , sun quan became provoked repeatedly rebuked lu xun, causing him die in frustration.

in 250, fed sun ba s constant attacks against sun he, sun quan carried out inexplicable combination of actions, forced sun ba commit suicide, while deposing sun (who had not been shown have committed crimes), , instead creating youngest son, sun liang, crown prince replace sun he. move opposed son-in-law zhu ju (the husband of sun quan s daughter sun luyu), zhu ju s pleas not did not sun he, resulted in own death, sun quan forced him commit suicide. many other officials opposed move, officials had supported sun ba, executed.

around time, sun quan had generals destroy number of levees near border wei, creating large areas of flooding, in order obstruct potential attacks wei.

in 251, sun quan created first empress of reign — sun liang s mother consort pan. (previously, had succession of wives, never made of them empress, except favourite, lady bu, created empress posthumously after death in 238.) later year, however, realised sun blameless , wanted recall him exile, persuaded not daughter sun dahu , sun jun, had supported sun liang s ascension. realised getting old (69 point) and, @ sun jun s recommendation, commissioned zhuge jin s son zhuge ke future regent sun liang, though correctly had misgivings how zhuge ke arrogant , had overly high opinion of own abilities. @ time virtually entire empire, awed zhuge s prior military victories, convinced zhuge correct choice regent.

in 252, sun quan neared death, empress pan murdered, how murdered remains controversy. wu officials claimed servants, unable stand temper, strangled while asleep, while number of historians, including hu sanxing, commentator sima guang s zizhi tongjian, believed top wu officials complicit, feared seize power empress dowager after sun quan s death. later year, sun quan died @ age of 70, , sun liang succeeded him. sun quan buried in mausoleum @ purple mountain in present-day nanjing.