Chen Wu (177 - 215),

courtesy name A courtesy name ( zh, s=字, p=zì, l=character), also known as a style name, is an additional name bestowed upon individuals at adulthood, complementing their given name. This tradition is prevalent in the East Asian cultural sphere, particula ...

Zilie, was a military general serving under the warlord

Sun Quan Sun Quan (; 182 – 21 May 252), courtesy name Zhongmou (), posthumous name, posthumously known as Emperor Da of Wu, was the founder of Eastern Wu, one of the Three Kingdoms of China. He inherited control of the warlord regime established by hi ...

in the late

Eastern Han dynasty The Han dynasty was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC9 AD, 25–220 AD) established by Liu Bang and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–206 BC ...

. He previously served under

Sun Ce Sun Ce () () (175 – 5 May 200), courtesy name Bofu, was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He was the eldest child of Sun Jian, who was killed during the Battle of Xian ...

, Sun Quan's elder brother and predecessor.

Life

Chen Wu was from Songzi County (松滋縣), Lujiang

Commandery In the Middle Ages, a commandery (rarely commandry) was the smallest administrative division of the European landed properties of a military order. It was also the name of the house where the knights of the commandery lived.Anthony Luttrell and G ...

(廬江郡), which is in present-day

Susong County Susong County () is a county in the southwest of Anhui Province, situated on the northwest (left) bank of the Yangtze, bordering the provinces of Hubei to the west and Jiangxi to the south. It is located in the southwest of the jurisdiction of t ...

Anhui Anhui is an inland Provinces of China, province located in East China. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze and Huai rivers, bordering Jiangsu and Zhejiang to the east, Jiang ...

. He was seven ''

chi __NOTOC__ Chi may refer to: __NOTOC__ Greek *Chi (letter) (Χ or χ), the twenty-second letter of the Greek alphabet Chinese * ''Chi'' (length) (尺), a traditional unit of length, about ⅓ meter *Chi (mythology) (螭), a dragon * Chi (surname) ...

'' and seven '' cun'' tall (approximately 181–186 cm). When he was about 17 years old, he travelled to Shouchun (壽春; present-day

Shou County Shou County or Shouxian () is a county in the north-central part of Anhui Province, China, and is located on the southern (right) bank of the Huai River. It is the southernmost county-level division of the prefecture-level city of Huainan. It ...

, Anhui) to meet

, who was then a subordinate of the warlord

Yuan Shu Yuan Shu () (155 – 199), courtesy name Gonglu, was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty. He rose to prominence following the collapse of the Han central government in 189. He decla ...

. Chen Wu later accompanied Sun Ce on his conquests in the Jiangdong region in the 190s, and was appointed as a Major of Separate Command (別部司馬) for his contributions in battle. He also followed Sun Ce to attack a minor warlord Liu Xun and helped to recruit many capable men from Lujiang to join Sun Ce's army, with him as their commander. After Sun Ce's death in the year 200, Chen Wu continued serving under

, Sun Ce's younger brother and successor. He was put in command of five regiments. Chen Wu was known to a kind and generous person, and he won the hearts of many people from his hometown and other places. He was deeply favoured by Sun Quan, who visited his house on several occasions. Chen Wu was later promoted to Lieutenant-General (偏將軍) for his achievements. In 215, Chen Wu followed Sun Quan to attack

Hefei Hefei is the Capital city, capital of Anhui, China. A prefecture-level city, it is the political, economic, and cultural center of Anhui. Its population was 9,369,881 as of the 2020 census. Its built-up (or ''metro'') area is made up of four u ...

, a city under the control of a rival warlord

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 ...

, which led to the

Battle of Xiaoyao Ford The Battle of Xiaoyao Ford, also known as the Battle of Leisure Ford, Battle of Hefei, and Hefei Campaign, was fought between the warlords Cao Cao and Sun Quan between 214 and 215 in the late Eastern Han dynasty. The two contending sides were ...

. Sun Quan's forces suffered a disastrous defeat at the hands of Cao Cao's general

Zhang Liao Zhang Liao () (169 – late 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 P ...

, who was defending Hefei. Chen Wu was killed in action. Sun Quan mourned Chen Wu's death and attended the latter's funeral. Sun Quan also had Chen Wu's favourite concubine sacrificed to join Chen in death, and he awarded Chen's family 200 taxable households in their estate. The historian Sun Sheng criticised Sun Quan's act of forcing Chen Wu's concubine to join Chen in death, citing an earlier negative example of

Duke Mu of Qin Duke Mu of Qin (died 621BC), born Ying Renhao, was a duke of the state of Qin. Sometimes considered one of the Five Hegemons of the Spring and Autumn period, Duke Mu greatly expanded the territory of Qin during the reign of King Xiang of Zhou. ...

and a positive example of Wei Ke (魏顆).

Descendants

Chen Wu had two sons – Chen Xiu (陳脩) and Chen Biao. Chen Xiu had a personality which resembled his father's. When he was 19 years old, Sun Quan summoned him and appointed him as a Major of Separate Command (別部司馬) and put him in charge of 500 troops. At the time, many newly recruited soldiers were unwilling to serve in the army so they deserted. However, Chen Xiu treated his men well and not a single soldier under him deserted. Sun Quan was surprised and pleased, so he promoted Chen Xiu to Colonel (校尉). In the late 210s, when Sun Quan granted awards to the descendants of his deceased subjects to honour his subjects for their service, Chen Xiu received the title of a Marquis of a Chief Village (都亭侯) in recognition of his father's contributions. He later became a commander in the ''jiefan'' (解煩) corps, one of the elite units in Sun Quan's military forces. He died in 229, shortly after Sun Quan proclaimed himself emperor and established the state of

Eastern Wu Wu (Chinese language, Chinese: 吳; pinyin: ''Wú''; Middle Chinese *''ŋuo'' < Eastern Han Chinese: ''*ŋuɑ''), known in historiography as Eastern Wu or Sun Wu, was a Dynasties of China, dynastic state of China and one of the three major sta ...

. Chen Biao was born to one of Chen Wu's concubines. He also served in Eastern Wu. After Chen Biao's death, his son Chen Ao (陳敖) was commissioned as a Major of Separate Command (別部司馬) at the age of 16 and was placed in charge of 400 troops. When Chen Ao died, his military appointment was inherited by his cousin Chen Yan (陳延), who was Chen Xiu's son. Chen Yan had a younger brother, Chen Yong (陳延), who became a general and received a marquis title.

In ''Romance of the Three Kingdoms''

Although no details were given on how Chen Wu died at the

in 215, his death was dramatised in chapter 68 of the historical novel ''

Romance of the Three Kingdoms ''Romance of the Three Kingdoms'' () is a 14th-century historical novel attributed to Luo Guanzhong. It is set in the turbulent years towards the end of the Han dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period in Chinese history, starting in 184 AD and ...

'' by

Luo Guanzhong Luo Ben (c. 1330–1400, or c.1280–1360), better known by his courtesy name Guanzhong (Mandarin pronunciation: ), was a Chinese novelist who lived during the Ming dynasty. He is also known by his pseudonym Huhai Sanren (). Luo Guanzhon ...

, which romanticises the historical events before and during the

Three Kingdoms The Three Kingdoms of Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu dominated China from AD 220 to 280 following the end of the Han dynasty. This period was preceded by the Eastern Han dynasty and followed by the Jin dynasty (266–420), Western Jin dyna ...

period. In the novel, Chen Wu encountered

Pang De Pang De () (died 219), courtesy name Lingming, was a Chinese military general who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty. He started his career under the warlord Ma Teng, who was based in Liang Province. In 211, Ma Teng's son Ma Chao, along w ...

(who had recently joined

's forces) in another battle right after the Battle of Xiaoyao Ford. While fighting with Pang De, he was driven into a valley full of thick vegetation and his sleeve was caught in some tree branches. He was killed by Pang De while attempting to free himself.''Sanguo Yanyi'' ch. 68.

Notes

References

Sources

* 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''). * Luo, Guanzhong (14th century). ''

'' (''Sanguo Yanyi''). * Pei, Songzhi (5th century). ''

Annotated Records of the Three Kingdoms ''Annotated 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 the fall of the Eastern Jin ...