Jiang Xu ( 211–213),

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 ...

Boyi, was a military general who lived 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 ...

of China. He is best known for his involvement in the conflict between the warlord

Ma Chao Ma Chao () (176–222), courtesy name Mengqi, was a Chinese military general and warlord who lived in the late Eastern Han dynasty and early Three Kingdoms period of China. A descendant of the general Ma Yuan, Ma Chao was the eldest son of M ...

and the Han central government (under the control of the 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 ...

) in the 210s CE.

Life

Jiang Xu was from

Tianshui Commandery Tianshui Commandery ( zh, 天水郡), known as Hanyang Commandery ( zh, 漢陽郡) during the Eastern Han dynasty, was a historical commandery of China in eastern Gansu. The modern city of Tianshui receives its name from the commandery. History Th ...

(天水郡), which is around present-day

Tianshui Tianshui is a prefecture-level city in Gansu province, China, and is the province's second-largest city (behind the provincial capital Lanzhou). Located in the southeast of the province, the city strides along the upper reaches of the Wei River a ...

Gansu Gansu is a provinces of China, province in Northwestern China. Its capital and largest city is Lanzhou, in the southeastern part of the province. The seventh-largest administrative district by area at , Gansu lies between the Tibetan Plateau, Ti ...

. He was very close to his relative, Yang Fu, whom he grew up with. Yang Fu served as a subordinate of

Wei Kang Wei Kang (died 213), courtesy name Yuanjiang, was a Chinese politician who lived in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. Early life and career Wei Kang was from Jingzhao Commandery (京兆郡), which is around present-day Xi'an, Shaanxi. His f ...

, the Inspector (刺史) of

Liang Province Liang Province or Liangzhou () was a province in the northwest of ancient China, in the approximate location of the modern-day province of Gansu. It was bordered in the east by Sili Province. History Establishment The province was first c ...

(covering parts of northwestern China). In 211, a coalition of warlords from northwestern China, under the leadership of

and

Han Sui Han Sui () (140s - June or July 215According to Cao Cao's biography in ''Sanguozhi'', Han Sui was killed in the 5th month of the 20th year of the ''Jian'an'' era of Liu Xie's reign. This corresponds to 15 June to 13 July 215 on the Julian calend ...

, started a rebellion in Liang Province against the Han central government, which was headed by

. Cao Cao's forces defeated Ma Chao and the coalition at the Battle of Tong Pass. In the subsequent years, Ma Chao, with support from the Qiang tribes and the warlord Zhang Lu, constantly raided and attacked the lands in Liang Province. At the time, Wei Kang was stationed in Liang Province's capital, Ji (兾; also called Jicheng, in present-day

Gangu County Gangu County () is a county in the southeast of Gansu province, China. It is under the administration of Tianshui City and is the most populous county in Gansu. Its postal code is 741200, and in 1999 its population was 570,318 people. It was estab ...

), which came under siege by Ma Chao. As the siege dragged on, Wei Kang took pity on the plight of the defenders and civilian population, so in 213 he surrendered to Ma Chao – against the advice of

Zhao Ang Zhao Ang ( 210s), courtesy name Weizhang, was a Chinese politician who lived in the late Eastern Han dynasty and was aligned with the faction that would later become the state of Cao Wei in the Three Kingdoms period. He is best known for resisti ...

, Yang Fu and his other subordinates. After taking over the city, Ma Chao killed Wei Kang, seized control of Liang Province, and forced Wei Kang's subordinates to submit to him. At the time, Jiang Xu held the appointment General Who Pacifies the Barbarians (撫夷將軍) and was stationed in the county of Li (歷; also called Licheng, within present-day

). Yang Fu secretly harboured the intention of avenging Wei Kang, so when his wife died, he used her death as an excuse to take leave from work. He then visited Jiang Xu and his mother in Li county. During the visit, Yang Fu lamented about how Ma Chao had committed atrocities and occupied Liang Province illegitimately, and expressed his desire to get rid of Ma Chao. Jiang Xu's mother agreed with what Yang Fu said, and urged her son to support Yang Fu in the name of righteousness. Yang Fu and Jiang Xu secretly contacted several others, including Wei Kang's former subordinates, and made plans to force Ma Chao out of Liang Province. The others involved in the plot included: Jiang Yin (姜隱),

, Yin Feng (尹奉), Yao Qiong (姚瓊), Kong Xin (孔信), Li Jun (李俊), Wang Ling (王靈), Liang Kuan (梁寬), Zhao Qu (趙衢), Pang Gong (龐恭), and Yang Fu's relatives Yang Yue (楊岳) and Yang Mo (楊謨). In late 213, Jiang Xu and Yang Fu started a rebellion against Ma Chao in another county, Lu (鹵; also called Lucheng, in present-day southeastern

). At the same time, Zhao Qu and the others who were with Ma Chao in Ji City pretended to urge Ma Chao to suppress the rebellion. Ma Chao then led troops from Ji City to attack Lu County in an attempt to suppress the revolt. After failing to retake Lu County, Ma Chao decided to return to Ji City. However, while he was away, Zhao Qu, Liang Kuan and the others had seized control of Ji City and killed his wife and child(ren). In anger, Ma Chao led his forces to attack Li County, where Jiang Xu's family members were. The defenders at Li County heard that Ma Chao had fled to

Hanzhong Commandery Hanzhong Commandery (漢中郡) was an imperial Chinese commandery located in what is now southern Shaanxi Province, centered on the upper reaches of the Han River (Hubei and Shaanxi), Han River in the Hanzhong Basin. Established during the late ...

after his defeat so they lowered their guard. They mistook Ma Chao for Jiang Xu, and unsuspectingly allowed him to enter. Ma Chao occupied Li County by force and captured Jiang Xu's mother and son. Jiang Xu's mother scolded Ma Chao, "You're an unfilial son who betrays his own father and a treacherous villain who murders his superior. Heaven and Earth will not forgive you. You should die immediately. How dare you look at me straight in the eye!" The enraged Ma Chao killed her and Jiang Xu's son and then burnt down Li County.(約誓以定，叙遂進兵入鹵，昂、奉守祁山。超聞，果自出擊叙，寬等從後閉兾門，超失據。過鹵，叙守鹵。超因進至歷，歷中見超往，以為叙軍還。又傳聞超以走奔漢中，故歷無備。及超入歷，執叙母，母怒罵超。超被罵大怒，即殺叙母及其子，燒城而去。) ''Lie Nü Zhuan'' annotation in ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 25. Jiang Xu's subsequent fate was not recorded in history.

Notes

References

* 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''). * * 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 ...

'' (''Sanguozhi zhu''). * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jiang, Xu Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown Han dynasty warlords Han dynasty government officials

Life

See also

Notes

References