Tang Zi ( 225–262) was a military general of the state of
Eastern Wu
Wu ( Chinese: 吳; pinyin: ''Wú''; Middle Chinese *''ŋuo'' < Eastern Han Chinese: ''*ŋuɑ''), known in historiography as Eastern Wu o ...
during the
Three Kingdoms
The Three Kingdoms () from 220 to 280 AD was the tripartite division of China among the dynastic states of Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu. The Three Kingdoms period was preceded by the Han dynasty#Eastern Han, Eastern Han dynasty and wa ...
period (220–280) of China. In 258, he defected to Wu's rival state,
, and became a general under Wei.
Life
Tang Zi was from Licheng Commandery (利城郡; between southeast of present-day
Linshu County
Linshu County () is a county of southern Shandong province, People's Republic of China, bordering Jiangsu province to the south and east. It is under the administration of Linyi
Linyi () is a prefecture-level city in the south of Shandong p ...
,
Shandong and northwest of present-day
Ganyu District,
Lianyungang
Lianyungang () is a prefecture-level city in northeastern Jiangsu province, China. It borders Yancheng to its southeast, Huai'an and Suqian to its south, Xuzhou to its southwest, and the province of Shandong to its north. Its name derives ...
,
Jiangsu
Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with its c ...
). In 225, Cai Fang () started a rebellion in Licheng Commandery, killed the commandery Administrator Xu Ji (), and nominated Tang Zi to be their leader. The
Wei
Wei or WEI may refer to:
States
* Wey (state) (衛, 1040–209 BC), Wei in pinyin, but spelled Wey to distinguish from the bigger Wei of the Warring States
* Wei (state) (魏, 403–225 BC), one of the seven major states of the Warring States per ...
emperor
Cao Pi
Cao Pi () ( – 29 June 226), courtesy name Zihuan, was the first emperor of the state of Cao Wei in the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the second son of Cao Cao, a warlord who lived in the late Eastern Han dynasty, but the eldest son ...
ordered Ren Fu (), Duan Zhao (),
Wang Ling and
Lü Qian
Lu, Lü, or LU may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Lu (music), Tibetan folk music
* Lu (duo), a Mexican band
** ''Lu'' (album)
* Character from Mike, Lu & Og
* Lupe Fiasco or Lu (born 1982), American musician
* Lebor na hUidre, a manuscript ...
() to lead troops to suppress the revolt. After the Wei forces defeated the rebels and retook Licheng Commandery, Tang Zi fled south to
Wu via the sea and became a Wu military officer.
Between 235 and 236, Tang Zi participated in a campaign against the restive
Shanyue
The Shanyue (山越) were an ancient conglomeration of upland Yue hill tribes living in what is today the mountainous regions of Southern China and Northern Vietnam during the Han dynasty. Since the Southern part of China was not yet controlle ...
tribes in Wu territories along with the Wu generals
Lü Dai
Lü Dai (161 – 21 October 256), courtesy name Dinggong, was a military general of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. Born in the late Eastern Han dynasty, Lü Dai started his career as a minor official in his h ...
and
Wu Can. After the campaign, he was promoted to the rank of a general for his contributions. Later, he and Wu Can led 3,000 troops to attack the Shanyue led by Dong Si () but could not overcome the enemy until reinforcements led by another Wu general,
Zhou Fang Zhou Fang may refer to:
* Zhou Fang (Han dynasty) (周防), Eastern Han scholar
* Zhou Fang (Three Kingdoms) (周魴), Eastern Wu
* Zhou Fang (Jin dynasty)
Zhou Fang (260–320), courtesy name Shida, was a Chinese military general of the J ...
, showed up. In 239, he joined Lü Dai in quelling a revolt by Liao Shi ().
In 252, Tang Zi fought at the
Battle of Dongxing
The Battle of Dongxing, also known as the Battle of Dongguan, was fought from January to February 253 between the states of Cao Wei and Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. The battle concluded with a tactical victory for Wu.
B ...
against Wu's rival state,
Wei
Wei or WEI may refer to:
States
* Wey (state) (衛, 1040–209 BC), Wei in pinyin, but spelled Wey to distinguish from the bigger Wei of the Warring States
* Wei (state) (魏, 403–225 BC), one of the seven major states of the Warring States per ...
, alongside other Wu generals such as
Liu Zan
Liu Zan (183–255), courtesy name Zhengming, was a military general of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He previously served under the warlord Sun Quan (later the founding emperor of Wu) in the late Eastern H ...
,
Lü Ju and
Ding Feng. He was promoted to General of the Vanguard (), granted imperial authority, and enfeoffed as a marquis for his achievements in the battle.
In 256, Tang Zi joined
Wen Qin
Wen Qin (died February or March 258), courtesy name Zhongruo, was a Chinese military general and politician of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He served as the Inspector of Yang Province during the reign of the t ...
, Lü Ju, Liu Zuan () and
Zhu Yi to resist a Wei invasion in the regions around the Huai and Si rivers (in present-day
Anhui
Anhui , (; formerly romanized as Anhwei) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the East China region. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze River ...
). In the same year, after the Wu regent
Sun Jun died, Tang Zi sided with Sun Jun's cousin
Sun Chen in a power struggle and killed Lü Ju, thus clearing the way for Sun Chen to succeed Sun Jun as the regent of Wu.
In 257, when the Wei general
Zhuge Dan
Zhuge Dan (died 10 April 258), courtesy name Gongxiu, was a Chinese military general and politician of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. When he held key military appointments throughout his middle to late career, h ...
started
a rebellion in 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. Its ...
,
Anhui
Anhui , (; formerly romanized as Anhwei) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the East China region. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze River ...
), he sent his son
Zhuge Jing as a hostage to Wu in exchange for support from Wu against Wei. In the following year, Sun Chen ordered Wen Qin, Tang Zi, Quan Yi (), Quan Duan (), Wang Zuo () and others to lead 30,000 troops to Shouchun to assist Zhuge Dan in his rebellion against Wei forces led by the Wei regent
Sima Zhao
Sima Zhao () (211 – 6 September 265), courtesy name Zishang, was a Chinese military general, politician, and regent of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China.
Sima Zhao capably maintained control of Wei, which had been ...
. When the tide turned against Zhuge Dan by early 258, Zhuge Dan and Tang Zi tried to break out of the siege but failed. After being captured by Wei forces, Tang Zi agreed to surrender and defect to Wei. Sima Zhao appointed him as General Who Stabilises Distant Lands (). As Sima Zhao treated the surrendered Wu soldiers well, in return the Wu government did not harm Tang Zi's family members, who were still in Wu when he defected to Wei.
In 262, when Sima Zhao was planning
an invasion of Wei's other rival state,
Shu, he ordered Tang Zi to supervise the construction of warships to be used in a later campaign against Wu. Nothing about Tang Zi was recorded in history after that.
See also
*
Lists of people of the Three Kingdoms
The following are lists of people significant to the Three Kingdoms period (220–280) of Chinese history. Their names in Mandarin pinyin are sorted in alphabetical order.
Fictional characters in the 14th-century historical novel '' Romance of ...
References
*
Chen, Shou (3rd century). ''
Records of the Three Kingdoms
The ''Records or History of the Three Kingdoms'', also known by its Chinese name as the Sanguo Zhi, is a Chinese historical text which covers the history of the late Eastern Han dynasty (c. 184–220 AD) and the Three Kingdoms period (220� ...
'' (''Sanguozhi'').
*
Pei, Songzhi (5th century). ''
Annotations to Records of the Three Kingdoms
Annotations to 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 leaving his native land, P ...
'' (''Sanguozhi zhu'').
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tang, Zi
Year of birth unknown
Year of death unknown
Eastern Wu generals
Cao Wei generals
People from Lianyungang
Generals from Jiangsu