The Tianshui revolts refer to the rebellions that broke out in the southern part 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 present-day

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 ...

and

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 ...

) in the spring of 228 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 of China. Military forces from the state of

Shu Han Han (; 221–263), known in historiography as Shu Han ( ) or Ji Han ( "Junior Han"), or often shortened to Shu ( zh, t=蜀, p=Shǔ; Sichuanese Pinyin: ''Su'' < Middle Chinese: *''źjowk'' < Eastern Han Chinese: *''dźok''), was a Dynasties in ...

, led by their

chancellor Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...

regent In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...

Zhuge Liang Zhuge Liang () (181September or October 234), also commonly known by his courtesy name Kongming, was a Chinese statesman, strategist, and inventor who lived through the End of the Han dynasty, end of the Eastern Han dynasty ( 184–220) and t ...

, planned to seize control of

Chang'an Chang'an (; zh, t=長安, s=长安, p=Cháng'ān, first=t) is the traditional name of the city now named Xi'an and was the capital of several Chinese dynasties, ranging from 202 BCE to 907 CE. The site has been inhabited since Neolithic time ...

, a strategic city in Shu's rival state,

Cao Wei Wei () was one of the major Dynasties in Chinese history, dynastic states in China during the Three Kingdoms period. The state was established in 220 by Cao Pi based upon the foundations laid by his father Cao Cao during the end of the Han dy ...

. The three commanderies of Nan'an,

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 ...

, and Anding were captured by Shu forces, but these territorial gains were later lost after the

Battle of Jieting The Battle of Jieting was fought between the states of Cao Wei and Shu Han in 228 during the Three Kingdoms period in China. The battle was part of the first Northern Expedition led by Shu's chancellor-regent, Zhuge Liang, to attack Wei. The b ...

. As mentioned in the biography of the Wei general

Zhang He Zhang He () (died July or August 231), courtesy name Junyi, was a military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He continued serving in the state of Cao Wei under its first two rulers, Cao Pi and ...

: "The commanderies of Nan'an, Tianshui and Anding rebelled and defected to (Zhuge) Liang, (Zhang) He pacified all of them."(南安、天水、安定郡反應亮，郃皆破平之。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 17.

Background

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 ...

, during a war council meeting, Zhuge Liang proposed a wide left flanking manoeuvre to seize the upper

Wei River The Wei River () is a major river in west-central China's Gansu and Shaanxi provinces. It is the largest tributary of the Yellow River and very important in the early development of Chinese civilization. In ancient times, such as in the Records ...

valley to capture the city itself.

Wei Yan Wei Yan () (died October 234), courtesy name Wenchang, was a Chinese military general and politician of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period of China. Originally a subordinate of the warlord Liu Bei during the late Eastern Han ...

objected to the plan and proposed a strike through a pass in the

Qinling Mountains The Qinling () or Qin Mountains, formerly known as the Nanshan ("Southern Mountains"), are a major east–west mountain range in southern Shaanxi Province, China. The mountains mark the divide between the drainage basins of the Yangtze and Ye ...

with 10,000 elite troops to take

by surprise. Zhuge Liang rejected the plan because it was too ambitious and went for a more cautious approach. The objective was to seize Chang'an along with Tianshui (天水; around present-day

), Anding (安定; around present-day

Zhenyuan County, Gansu Zhenyuan County () is a county in the east of Gansu province, China, bordering Ningxia to the west. It is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Qingyang. Its postal code is 744500, and its population in 2018 was 528,076 people ...

), and Nan'an (南安; around present-day

Longxi County Longxi is a county under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Dingxi in the southeast of Gansu Province, China. Referred to in ancient times as Longxi Commandery, it is notably the origin of the Longxi Li lineage, from which the Ta ...

, Gansu) commanderies, and Mount Qi (祁山; the mountainous regions around present-day

Li County, Gansu Li County or Lixian is an administrative division of the prefecture-level city of Longnan in southeastern Gansu, a northwestern province of China. The 2010 Chinese census found a population of 458,237, a decline of around 25,000 from the year 2 ...

Revolt

In 228, Zhuge Liang declared that he would march through the Xie Gorge to take Mei County (郿縣; southeast of present-day

Fufeng County Fufeng County () is a county under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Baoji, in the west-central part of Shaanxi Province, China. The county lies in the fertile Guanzhong Plain on the north bank of the Wei River between Xi'an, to ...

). He sent Zhao Yun and Deng Zhi as decoys to give the appearance of threatening Mei County and to occupy Ji County (冀縣; 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 ...

). Cao Zhen led his armies to oppose them. Zhuge Liang personally led the armies to besiege Mount Qi; the ranks were ordered, discipline severe and authority apparent. The three commanderies of Nan'an, Tianshui, and Anding all revolted and defected from the Wei side to Zhuge Liang, sending shockwaves throughout

Cao Rui Cao Rui () (204 or 205 – 22 January 239), courtesy name Yuanzhong, was the second emperor of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period. His parentage is in dispute: his mother, Lady Zhen, was Yuan Xi's wife, but she later remarr ...

moved to Chang'an to oversee the defences. Cao Zhen secured Mei County against Zhao Yun, while a combined cavalry-infantry force of 50,000 under Zhang He went west to oppose Zhuge Liang's main army. At that moment,

Jiang Wei Jiang Wei (202 – 3 March 264), courtesy name Boyue, was a Chinese military general and politician of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period of China. Born in Ji County (present-day Gangu County, Gansu), Jiang Wei started his ...

was patrolling the outskirts with his commanding officer Ma Zun (馬遵), the Administrator of Tianshui Commandery. Afraid that Jiang Wei might be colluding with the Shu army, Ma Zun fled secretly at night to Shanggui County (上邽縣; in present-day

, Gansu). When Jiang Wei discovered this, it was already too late and on returning to Shanggui County, the defenders refused to open the gates for him. As a result, Jiang Wei defected to the Shu side along with his colleagues Liang Xu (梁緒), Yin Shang (尹賞), and Liang Qian (梁虔). There was in fact no battle at Tianshui; only a revolt took place. The area surrounding the city submitted quickly to Shu, enabling the army to advance steadily but the Shu army had suffered a setback at the

, when Zhang He defeated

Ma Su Ma Su (190–228), courtesy name Youchang, was a Chinese military general and politician of the state of Shu Han in the Three Kingdoms period of China. Ma Su had conspicuous talent in military theories and was admired by the Shu chancellor Zhuge ...

who was sent by Zhuge Liang to handle him. Zhuge Liang gave the order for a retreat back to Shu territory. Zhao Yun and Deng Zhi were also ordered to counter Cao Zhen, but their troop strengths were inferior to that of the enemy. Hence they were defeated at Ji Gorge (箕谷; east of present-day

Baoji Baoji ( zh, s= , t= , p=Bǎojī; ) is a prefecture-level city in western Shaanxi province, People's Republic of China. Since the early 1990s, Baoji has been the second largest city in Shaanxi. Geography The prefecture-level city of Baoji had a ...

), but their centre held firm and thus avoided a great defeat. Zhao Yun and his army withdrew. The commanderies that rose in revolt to join Shu were later pacified by Zhang He and returned to Wei control.

In ''Romance of the Three Kingdoms''

In Chapters 92 and 93 of the 14th-century 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 ...

'',

was one of the reasons Zhuge Liang went on this expedition, and getting Jiang to defect to Shu became a goal after his quick battle with Zhao Yun. Zhuge Liang sent Zhao Yun ahead first, and after a skirmish and some scheming he comes onto the battlefield. During the battle, Ma Zun (馬遵) suspected Jiang Wei of plotting with the enemy. When Jiang Wei was outside Tianshui, Ma Zun closed the city gates and denied Jiang Wei entry. Jiang Wei had no choice but to defect to Zhuge Liang's side.

In popular culture

Starting from the fourth instalment in

Koei Koei Co., Ltd. was a Japanese video game publisher, developer, and distributor founded in 1978. The company is known for its historical simulation games based on the novel ''Romance of the Three Kingdoms'', as well as simulation games based o ...

's video game series ''

Dynasty Warriors is a series of Japanese hack and slash action video games created by Omega Force and Koei (now Koei Tecmo). The series is a spin-off of Koei's turn-based strategy '' Romance of the Three Kingdoms'' series, based upon the Chinese novel of ...

'', there is a playable stage called "Battle of Tian Shui" that is based on the fictional account of the revolt in ''

''. If the player is playing as

, Wei forces will win the battle, but Jiang himself would later join Shu. If the player is playing on the Shu side, he must defeat Jiang Wei to make him defect to Shu.

Notes

References

* Chen, Shou. ''

Records of 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 regarded ...

'' (''Sanguozhi'') vol. 17, 35, 36, 44. * Luo, Guanzhong. ''

'' (''Sanguo Yanyi'') ch. 91-96. {{coord missing, China Tianshui 228 220s conflicts 228 3rd-century rebellions Rebellions in China