Geng Kui (; ), born in

Xianyang Xianyang ( zh, s=咸阳 , p=Xiányáng) is a prefecture-level city in central Shaanxi province, situated on the Wei River a few kilometers upstream (west) from the provincial capital of Xi'an. Once the capital of the Qin dynasty, it is now int ...

Shaanxi Shaanxi is a Provinces of China, province in north Northwestern China. It borders the province-level divisions of Inner Mongolia to the north; Shanxi and Henan to the east; Hubei, Chongqing, and Sichuan to the south; and Gansu and Ningxia to t ...

, was a Chinese general of the

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 was sent by

Dou Xian Dou Xian (; - died 92 AD) was a Chinese general and consort kin of the Eastern Han dynasty, famous for destroying the Xiongnu nomadic empire. Early life A native of modern-day Xianyang, Shaanxi Province, he was part of the powerful Dou clan whi ...

to defeat the unnamed Northern Chanyu, leader of the

Xiongnu The Xiongnu (, ) were a tribal confederation of Nomad, nomadic peoples who, according to ancient Chinese historiography, Chinese sources, inhabited the eastern Eurasian Steppe from the 3rd century BC to the late 1st century AD. Modu Chanyu, t ...

. He achieved this in 91 AD, shortly after the Battle of the Altai Mountains. The Northern Chanyu was defeated once more and fled away, abandoning his kingdom. It is unknown where he went or what became of him. In 109, the Southern Chanyu with a number of

Wuhuan The Wuhuan (, < Eastern Han Chinese: *''ʔɑ-ɣuɑn'', <

Xianbei The Xianbei (; ) were an ancient nomadic people that once resided in the eastern Eurasian steppes in what is today Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, and Northeastern China. The Xianbei were likely not of a single ethnicity, but rather a multiling ...

rebelled and, by winter, controlled a large area of the northern commanderies near the

Yellow River The Yellow River, also known as Huanghe, is the second-longest river in China and the List of rivers by length, sixth-longest river system on Earth, with an estimated length of and a Drainage basin, watershed of . Beginning in the Bayan H ...

. 20,000 men under He Xi were sent to aid the local Chinese forces. Geng Kui, who is named as being the Governor of Liaodong at the time, and Liang Qin, the last Protector General of the Western Regions who was hurriedly sent with 8,000 men bore the brunt of the fighting. In the 3rd month of 110, the Southern Chanyu was overwhelmed and came to kowtow and begged to surrender. His request was granted. In the summer of 121, the Xianbi along with the Mo and

Hui people The Hui people are an East Asian ethnoreligious group predominantly composed of Islam in China, Chinese-speaking adherents of Islam. They are distributed throughout China, mainly in the Northwest China, northwestern provinces and in the Zhongy ...

s of the northeast defeated and killed the Grand Administrator Cai Feng. In the autumn they defeated the troops of Yunzhong Commandery and killed Grand Administrator Cheng Yan, and besieged the Colonel Protector of the

Wuhuan The Wuhuan (, < Eastern Han Chinese: *''ʔɑ-ɣuɑn'', <

Macheng Macheng () is a city in northeastern Hubei province, People's Republic of China, bordering the provinces of Henan to the north and Anhui to the northeast. It is a county-level city under the administration of Huanggang City and abuts the south sid ...

. Geng Kui, who was now entitled the new General Who Crosses the Liao, managed with a large army to drive off, but not defeat the Xianbi and relieve the siege of Macheng. However, the Xianbi, from this time on became more aggressive regularly raiding along the frontier with a force said to number tens of thousands of mounted archers. Around the time Chanyu Tan died in 124, Geng Kui left office.de Crespigny (1984), p. 289.

Footnotes

References

* Chavannes, Édouard (1906): "Trois Généraux Chinois de la dynastie des Han Orientaux. Pan Tch'ao (32-102 p.C.); – son fils Pan Yong; – Leang K'in (112 p.C.). Chapitre LXXVII du ''Heou Han chou''." Chavannes. ''T'oung pao'' 7, pp. 210–269. * de Crespigny, Rafe (1984) ''Northern Frontier. The Policies and Strategies of the Later Han Empire''. Faculty of Asian Studies, Australian National University. Canberra. * Hill, John E. (2009) ''Through the Jade Gate to Rome: A Study of the Silk Routes during the Later Han Dynasty, 1st to 2nd Centuries CE''. BookSurge, Charleston, South Carolina. . Han dynasty generals {{china-mil-bio-stub 1st-century births 2nd-century deaths