Battle of Fancheng
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Fancheng was fought between the forces of warlords Liu Bei
and Cao Cao
in 219 during the prelude to the Three Kingdoms
period of Chinese history
. It was named after Fancheng (樊城; also known as Fan Castle or Fan City), an ancient city situated in present-day Fancheng District, Xiangyang
, Hubei
.
's general Hou Yin (侯音) and his deputy Wei Kai (衛開) of Wan (宛; present-day Nanyang
, Henan
) rose in rebellion with several thousand troops, and they requested Guan Yu
for assistance. It would take four months for Cao Ren
to finally crush the rebellion by killing both Hou Yin and Wei Kai, but Guan Yu did not respond to the rebels throughout the duration. After taking Hanzhong
by defeating Cao Cao in May 219, Liu Bei further expanded his gains in June 219 by sending Meng Da
and Liu Feng
to take Fangling (房陵; present-day Fang County, Hubei
) and Shangyong (上庸; north of present-day Zhushan County
, Hubei). Cao Cao was temporarily forced to be on the defensive after a continuous setback and Sun Quan
of Jiangdong
decided to take the opportunity to attack Cao Cao while their newly defeated men were regrouping and resting.
Realizing the imminent attacks of Liu Bei and Sun Quan, Cao Cao planned to launch a preemptive strike on Jing Province (荊州; covering present-day Hubei and Hunan
), the eastern part of Liu Bei's territory defended by Guan Yu. The plan reasoned that Liu Bei could not continue his offensive in the north due to the need to consolidate his new gains, and so an attack into Jing Province would not be hindered by Liu's invasion elsewhere. However, the plan was called off because Cao Cao's troops still needed time to recover, regroup and re-supply from the campaign to suppress the rebellion of Hou Yin and Wei Kai, as well as from earlier setbacks in the struggles for Hanzhong. The worn-out troops were not ready for another campaign.
, and Cao Cao's forces were redeployed to the region to the south of the Huai River
to fend off the possible invasion. Seizing the opportunity, Guan Yu decided to launch an offensive of his own against Cao Cao. Mi Fang
, Administrator of Nan Commandery (南郡; present-day Jiangling County, Hubei
) was ordered to stay behind to guard Jiangling (江陵) city of Nan Commandery, while general Shi Ren was ordered to stay behind to guard Gong'an (公安; northwest of present-day Gong'an County
, Hubei). Liu Bei's main force in the region was led by Guan Yu himself to attack Cao Cao's strongholds in the north.
The campaign's objective was not clearly stated, but Guan Yu led his army along the Han River northward until he laid siege to Fancheng (present-day Fancheng District Xiangyang
, Hubei). From the advance route and the fact that Guan chose to concentrate his main forces on Fancheng, his primary objective was believed to be the conquest of Nanyang commandery. Initially, the cities being attacked were not heavily guarded, as Cao Ren at Fancheng and Lü Chang (呂常) at Xiangyang (襄陽; present-day Xiangzhou District Xiangyang, Hubei) were both surrounded. Therefore, Cao Cao ordered Yu Jin to lead Pang De to the battlefield as reinforcement. After pitching their camps on a lower ground, Yu Jin ordered Pang De to engage Guan Yu, and forced the latter to retreat several times. On one occasion, Pang De shot an arrow that became embedded in Guan Yu's helm. By this time Pang De was widely known and feared among the enemy as General White Horse, from the white steed he rode into battle.
, Henan), Fu Fang (傅方), both defected to Guan Yu. Sun Lang (孫狼), a peasant rebel leader of Luhun (陸渾, located southeast of present-day Song County
, Henan) also killed local officials to welcome Guan Yu.
Guan Yu's threat to Cao Cao after his initial success was so immense that Cao Cao was considering relocating the capital. As Cao Cao asked his subjects for input, Sima Yi
and Jiang Ji (蔣濟) strongly opposed. They pointed out that the alliance between Liu Bei and Sun Quan was shaky at the best due to the feuding of the control of Jing Province, and Sun Quan would definitely be unhappy to see Guan Yu's success. They suggested that Cao Cao should send an emissary to Sun Quan, requesting him to flank Guan Yu's rear and Jiangnan would then be awarded to Sun Quan as spoils of war and that the forces at Fancheng would then be dissolved. Initially, Sun Quan sent an emissary to Guan Yu relating his wish for a marriage be arranged between his own son and Guan's daughter. Guan Yu insulted the emissary and rejected the marriage proposal, infuriating Sun Quan.
The initial victory also proved to be the prelude to catastrophe for Guan Yu because it had made him over-confident. At the outbreak of the battle, Liu Bei controlled three commanderies of Jing Province: Nan, Lingling, and Wuling, albeit the most among all three powers, Guan Yu lacked the experience to handle a huge army, especially one with the size under his command at the time, when his force suddenly doubled as 30,000 troops captured in his earlier victory joined his army. In order to feed his army, Guan Yu sent out troops to confiscate grains stored by Sun Quan in the local border region. This further infuriated Sun Quan, and coupled with the Guan Yu's rejection of Sun Quan's marriage proposal and insults to his emissary, Sun made up his mind to sever the alliance with Liu Bei.
, convinced Cao Ren to not withdraw by indicating that the flood was only temporary and would not last long. Man Chong also noted that Guan Yu's vanguard had already advanced to Jia (郏) County yet his main force dared not to follow, because he was afraid of being cutting off from the behind and being attacked from both sides. The strategic strongholds Fancheng and Xiangyang were still in Cao Cao's hands, which posed a serious threat to the advancing enemy force that bypassed the two cities. Man Chong argued that if the two strategic strongholds were abandoned, the entire region to the south of Yellow River
would be in danger of being overrun by the enemy, because not only the region Guan Yu attacked would be lost, the vast region in the east would be lost to Sun Quan since Cao Cao's force deployed there would risk being cutting off should Guan Yu decide to strike in that direction. Hence, Man Chong concluded, these two strategic strongholds must be held at all costs and the defenders must fight to the very last man. Cao Ren agreed and strengthened the defense, and boosted his troops to over 10,000 by drafting every available man in the city.
As Xu Huang was ordered to reinforce Cao Ren, Cao Cao sent two generals, Xu Shang (徐商) and Lü Jian (呂建) to lead additional reinforcements to join Xu Huang, ordering the latter that he should never attack until all of the reinforcement sent to him had arrived. To wait for further reinforcements, Xu Huang pushed toward Yangling (陽陵) Slope, located to the north of Fancheng. As the majority of Cao Cao's force under Xu Huang's command consisted of new recruits, Xu faithfully carried out Cao Cao's order to restrain from attacking until further reinforcements. Guan Yu was well aware of Xu Huang's situation, and coupled with the earlier victory, he thus completely ignored Xu Huang's threat and committed a serious blunder by dividing his force by sending another army to besiege Xiangyang, because he mistakenly believed that Fancheng would easily fall into his control. However, due to the defenders' strong resolute, the city remain defiant.
Guan Yu made further strategic blunders in allowing his vanguard advancing too far ahead of his main force and not linking up with the vanguard promptly in a time he could not afford to split his force. As a result, the vanguard was around three miles to the north of Fancheng, leaving a huge gap between itself and the main camp. Seizing the opportunity, Xu Huang faked the digging of a long trench, giving the false impression of cutting off the Guan Yu's vanguard, which fell for the trick and retreated. Xu Huang's army therefore took the abandoned Yan (偃) City and pressed further toward Guan Yu's main army. By this time, Xu Huang's force was large enough to pose a threat to Guan Yu, because the 10,000 strong army, which consisted of battle hardened veterans led by Yin Shu (殷署) and Zhu Gai (朱蓋), had joined Xu Huang.
with a letter from Sun Quan, which informed Cao that Sun planned to attack Guan Yu from his rear, Jing Province. Sun Quan asked Cao Cao to keep this secret so that Guan Yu would not be prepared, and most of Cao Cao's advisors agreed with the plan. However, Dong Zhao objected, pointing out that Liu Bei and Sun Quan would also be the two adversaries of Cao Cao despite the temporary subjection of Sun Quan to Cao Cao. For the long term goal, it would be in the best interest of Cao Cao to weaken both adversaries, instead of letting one adversary become too strong in the long run. In the short run, if Guan Yu knew about Sun Quan's attack in his rear, he would certainly withdraw his army to reinforce his home base in Jing Province, and the siege of Fancheng would be lifted. In addition, Fancheng was under siege for some period of time, and the morale of Cao Cao's forces was low. If this critical information was not passed along to the defenders, some people inside Fancheng might turn their back on Cao Cao's side, because the food supplies were running out and they knew nothing about the secret agreement with Sun Quan. Furthermore, Dong Zhao pointed out that even if Guan Yu knew Sun Quan's intention, he would not retreat swiftly because of his stubbornness and his confidence on the two cities of Jiangling and Gong'an.
Cao Cao and others were convinced by Dong Zhao and did exactly what he had proposed: copies of Sun Quan's letter was tied to arrows, which were then shot into Fancheng and Guan Yu's camp by Xu Huang's archers. The defenders' morale increased, while Guan Yu was in a dilemma: he neither wanted to abandon the assaults on Cao Cao, because he believed that Jiangling and Gong'an, his rear bases, would not easily fall. Furthermore, if he (Guan Yu) succeeded in defeating the enemy defenders, Sun Quan would certainly exploit the opportunity to attack Cao Cao's weakened defenses instead of attacking the three commanderies under Liu Bei, because it seemed to Guan Yu that Sun Quan had much more to gain in taking the vast region in the eastern region downstream the Yangtze River
from Cao Cao. As it turned out, things did not go as Guan Yu had planned. As Guan Yu was hesitating, Cao Cao had personally led another reinforcement army on his way, and had already reached Mo Slope (摩陂; southeast of present-day Jia County
, Henan).
All of Cao Cao's commanders at the frontline believed that they should take advantage of the situation and pursue Guan Yu, except Army Advisor Zhao Yan (趙儼), who pointed out that they should not pursue Guan Yu because Guan's force should be left alone so that they could fight Sun Quan, thus weakening both Cao Cao's adversaries. Cao Ren agreed with Zhao Yan and did not pursue Guan Yu, and sure enough, when news of Guan Yu's retreat reached Cao Cao, he sent an emissary to Cao Ren, prohibiting Cao Cao's force from giving a chase for the exact same reason Cao Ren and Zhao Yan believed in.
, the commander of Sun Quan's westward army. Lü Meng held hostage the wives and children of Guan Yu's men, but treated them and the citizenry of Jing Province with the utmost care. Guan Yu's soldiers, hearing that Jing Province had fallen to Sun Quan and their families were in good hands, lost their will to fight and deserted.
Guan Yu, with only a handful of men left, became isolated in Maicheng (麥城; southeast of present-day Dangyang
, Hubei
) with Sun Quan's forces on three sides and Cao Cao's at the north. As Guan Yu attempted to escape, he and his surviving followers, including his son Guan Ping
, his Commandant Zhao Lei
, were captured in an ambush in Zhang (章) Town (east of present-day Anyuan County, Hubei) by Sun Quan's generals Zhu Ran
and Pan Zhang
. Guan Yu was later executed by Sun Quan at Linju (臨沮), along with Guan Ping and Zhao Lei.
Guan's blunder was not in continuing the siege, but severing ties with Sun Quan. At the beginning of the campaign, he had sent an emissary to Sun to ask for help, and Sun did so, though the reinforcement he sent arrived at the battlefield very slowly. Guan should have realized that he was not deemed trustworthy by Sun at the time; however, instead of strengthening the alliance, he chose to insult Sun's emissaries and rejected his marriage proposal, then confiscated Sun's food shortage on the border without prior notice. At this point, it should not be hard for one to see that Sun would retaliate. However, Guan was over-confident on his signal towers, which were erected on high grounds along the Yangtze River
to watch over the movement of Sun's forces. This move had a devastating effect on Guan's fate (as can be seen in Lü Meng's invasion of Jing Province
), but only had limited effect on the battle of Fancheng, because Guan was not affected by the news Sun attacked his rear (Guan Yu set up fortifications to fight Xu Huang instead).
The first mistake that Guan did relating directly to his military operations was the misconception of a quick capture of Fancheng. He did not realize that the flood was only temporary, and that Cao Cao could still send reinforcement after reinforcement if he failed to take the city in a short period of time. There is a strategic mistake which contributed to the mistake mentioned — Guan divided his forces into at least three parts: the vanguard in Jia County, the detachment besieging Xiangyang, and the main army he directly controlled. In doing so, he violated the law of force concentration
, and the siege on any single point would be longer than if he concentrated his forces. Then, when Xu Huang arrived the battlefield with some untrained and weak soldiers, Guan should have delivered a crushing blow to his old friend before Xu could even get prepared, but he instead focused on building fortifications and attempted to mimic what Zhou Yu
did in the Battle of Jiangling
. The last operational mistake is that Guan underestimated his old acquaintance (perhaps Guan actually did a fair evaluation on Xu Huang, as the latter was not highly regarded before the siege of Fancheng). Besides setting up two camps, Guan had 10 layers of barricades facing the direction of Xu's army, but the latter still ordered an attack after he received some elite troops and successfully conquered Guan's camps.
Other historians took a more sympathetic stands for Guan because at the outbreak of the battle, he faced the dilemma of an unfavorable result regardless the offensive was launched or not. In the west, although Liu Bei successfully gained the strategic stronghold, Hanzhong, Liu Bei could not continue his momentum because the population of Hanzhong was drastically reduced as 80,000 residents were relocated into Cao Cao's territories when the latter defeated Zhang Lu years ago. Although the Hanzhong region was still possessed of a sizable population, Liu Bei would face logistic problems had he continued his campaign against Cao Cao, because the latter had asked one of his officers to relocate 50,000 households of Di
tribes to Liang Province. Eliminating his reliable platform to Guanzhong, Cao hindered Liu's offensive in the north. Therefore, Guan led his army north in order to keep pressure on Cao, at the same time buying Liu the time to consolidate his gain. However, the unexpected flood had changed Guan's original goal into conquering northern Jing Province, which is a goal that requires Liu Bei's reinforcement from the west, and Sun Quan's entry from the east. Had Guan Yu not made the blunder of destroying the alliance between Liu Bei and Sun Quan, but instead, strengthened it, he might have a chance of succeeding what he started.
The biggest winner of the conflict was Sun Quan, who not only took back Jing Province from the hand of Liu Bei, but also received Yu Jin and his 30,000 elite troops, and most importantly, Sun Quan had secured Nan Commandery, which was very vital for the survival of the future Eastern Wu regime (it took a short time to travel from Jing Province to Yang Province downstream, if Jing Province was not controlled by the same power that controlled Yang Province, the power controlling Yang Province would be facing probable threat from the other party everyday). Cao Cao also secured his domain in Jing province by successfully fending off Liu Bei's attack, but he was more pleased that the alliance between Liu Bei and Sun Quan melted down, however, Cao Cao would die shortly after the war, and was not able to capitalize on that.
's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms
, the flooding of the Han River was not a natural occurrence, but instead, was pre-planned by Guan Yu. Guan had the rivers dammed and the dam opened when it was full, thus drowning Cao Cao's armies in the lower plains. This event was known as the Drowning of the Seven Armies (水淹七軍). Pang De put up firm resistance and attempted to escape by swimming, but was captured by Guan Yu's subordinate Zhou Cang
. In contrast, Yu Jin was depicted pleading for his life and surrendering to Guan Yu.
Several weeks later, Sun Quan, who had secretly allied with Cao Cao, attacked Guan Yu's army at Jiangling. Sun Quan surprised and defeated Guan Yu's forces there, forcing Guan to lift the siege on Fancheng and retreat. Guan Yu and his son, Guan Ping
, while fleeing to Yi Province (covering the Sichuan Basin
), were caught and executed by Sun Quan's soldiers.
In the novel, the strength of Guan Yu was greatly exaggerated for dramatic effect, and the most obvious example was that the entire Jing Province was depicted as under Liu Bei's control. In reality, the state was divided into three parts at the time, controlled separately by the three powers, with Liu Bei controlling the least portion, both in terms of population and area, and could only field 25,000 troops at any one time from the region it controlled, with Guan Yu leading only 15,000 troops at the start of the battle. Other important historical facts not mentioned in the novel included the fact that it was Cao Cao who originally planned a preemptive strike against Guan Yu, but failed to materialize because of the need to crush the rebellion first. Logistic support, another deciding factor of the result of the battle, was not mentioned either in novel. Though Guan Yu in real life certainly deserves some credits for the his bravery of leading a token force attacking an enemy that was almost ten times of his strength, as well as achieving an astonishing victory during the initial stage, his exploits were exaggerated in the novel because the author, Luo Guanzhong, personally adored Guan Yu, the most eulogized and glorified character in his work.
and Dynasty Warriors 5
, Guan Yu is depicted as simultaneously defending the lands of Jing Province and besieging Fan Castle (Fancheng). The second location is the focus of the stage. Cao Ren is the defending commander, and Sun Quan's forces later appear as reinforcements for Cao Ren. Notably, Pang De takes a prominent role, and proves to be a dangerous opponent for Guan Yu and his allies in this stage. In Dynasty Warriors 7
, the defense of Fancheng is focused on Wei's side, the invasion of Jing Province is focused on Wu's side, and retreating to Maicheng is focused on Shu's side.
Liu Bei
Liu Bei , also known as Liu Xuande, was a warlord, military general and later the founding emperor of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history...
and Cao Cao
Cao Cao
Cao Cao was a warlord and the penultimate chancellor of the Eastern Han Dynasty who rose to great power during the dynasty's final years. As one of the central figures of the Three Kingdoms period, he laid the foundations for what was to become the state of Cao Wei and was posthumously titled...
in 219 during the prelude to the Three Kingdoms
Three Kingdoms
The Three Kingdoms period was a period in Chinese history, part of an era of disunity called the "Six Dynasties" following immediately the loss of de facto power of the Han Dynasty rulers. In a strict academic sense it refers to the period between the foundation of the state of Wei in 220 and the...
period of Chinese history
History of China
Chinese civilization originated in various regional centers along both the Yellow River and the Yangtze River valleys in the Neolithic era, but the Yellow River is said to be the Cradle of Chinese Civilization. With thousands of years of continuous history, China is one of the world's oldest...
. It was named after Fancheng (樊城; also known as Fan Castle or Fan City), an ancient city situated in present-day Fancheng District, Xiangyang
Xiangyang
Xiangzhou District is a district of Xiangyang, Hubei, China. The district itself was formerly known as Xiangyang. It was a city famous for the Siege of Xiangyang by invading forces of the Mongol-founded Yuan Dynasty...
, Hubei
Hubei
' Hupeh) is a province in Central China. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Lake Dongting...
.
Background
In October 218, Cao CaoCao Cao
Cao Cao was a warlord and the penultimate chancellor of the Eastern Han Dynasty who rose to great power during the dynasty's final years. As one of the central figures of the Three Kingdoms period, he laid the foundations for what was to become the state of Cao Wei and was posthumously titled...
's general Hou Yin (侯音) and his deputy Wei Kai (衛開) of Wan (宛; present-day Nanyang
Nanyang, Henan
Nanyang is a prefecture-level city in the southwest of Henan province, People's Republic of China. The city with the largest administrative area in Henan, Nanyang borders Xinyang to the southeast, Zhumadian to the east, Pingdingshan to the northeast, Luoyang to the north, Sanmenxia to the...
, Henan
Henan
Henan , is a province of the People's Republic of China, located in the central part of the country. Its one-character abbreviation is "豫" , named after Yuzhou , a Han Dynasty state that included parts of Henan...
) rose in rebellion with several thousand troops, and they requested Guan Yu
Guan Yu
Guan Yu was a general serving under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Eastern Han Dynasty of China. He played a significant role in the civil war that led to the collapse of the Han Dynasty and the establishment of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period, of which Liu Bei was the...
for assistance. It would take four months for Cao Ren
Cao Ren
Cao Ren was a military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao during the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history. He played a significant part in assisting Cao Cao in the civil wars leading to the end of the Han Dynasty...
to finally crush the rebellion by killing both Hou Yin and Wei Kai, but Guan Yu did not respond to the rebels throughout the duration. After taking Hanzhong
Hanzhong
Hanzhong is a municipality in southwest Shaanxi Province, China, occupying a historically significant valley in the mountains between the Xi'an area, home to many Chinese capitals, and the fertile but isolated Sichuan Basin...
by defeating Cao Cao in May 219, Liu Bei further expanded his gains in June 219 by sending Meng Da
Meng Da
Meng Da was a military general who served under Liu Zhang, Liu Bei, Cao Pi, and Cao Rui during the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history.-Takeover of Yi Province:...
and Liu Feng
Liu Feng
Liu Feng was an adopted son of the warlord Liu Bei, and served as a general in Liu Bei's army during the late Han Dynasty of China.-Early life:...
to take Fangling (房陵; present-day Fang County, Hubei
Hubei
' Hupeh) is a province in Central China. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Lake Dongting...
) and Shangyong (上庸; north of present-day Zhushan County
Zhushan County
Zhushan County is a county under jurisdiction of Shiyan City, Hubei Province, China.It has population of 440,000, an area of 3,590 km2....
, Hubei). Cao Cao was temporarily forced to be on the defensive after a continuous setback and Sun Quan
Sun Quan
Sun Quan , son of Sun Jian, formally Emperor Da of Wu, was the founder of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. He ruled from 222 to 229 as King of Wu and from 229 to 252 as Emperor of Wu....
of Jiangdong
Jiangnan
Jiangnan or Jiang Nan is a geographic area in China referring to lands immediately to the south of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, including the southern part of the Yangtze Delta...
decided to take the opportunity to attack Cao Cao while their newly defeated men were regrouping and resting.
Realizing the imminent attacks of Liu Bei and Sun Quan, Cao Cao planned to launch a preemptive strike on Jing Province (荊州; covering present-day Hubei and Hunan
Hunan
' is a province of South-Central China, located to the south of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and south of Lake Dongting...
), the eastern part of Liu Bei's territory defended by Guan Yu. The plan reasoned that Liu Bei could not continue his offensive in the north due to the need to consolidate his new gains, and so an attack into Jing Province would not be hindered by Liu's invasion elsewhere. However, the plan was called off because Cao Cao's troops still needed time to recover, regroup and re-supply from the campaign to suppress the rebellion of Hou Yin and Wei Kai, as well as from earlier setbacks in the struggles for Hanzhong. The worn-out troops were not ready for another campaign.
Initial stages
In July, 219, Sun Quan mobilized his forces in preparation to attack HefeiHefei
Hefei is the capital and largest city of Anhui Province in Eastern China. A prefecture-level city, it is the political, economic, and cultural centre of Anhui...
, and Cao Cao's forces were redeployed to the region to the south of the Huai River
Huai River
The Huai River is a major river in China. The Huai River is located about mid-way between the Yellow River and Yangtze River, the two largest rivers in China, and like them runs from west to east...
to fend off the possible invasion. Seizing the opportunity, Guan Yu decided to launch an offensive of his own against Cao Cao. Mi Fang
Mi Fang
Mi Fang was an official serving under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history. He was also the younger brother of Mi Zhu, who also served Liu Bei. In 219, Mi Fang surrendered to Sun Quan, directly resulting in the loss of Jing Province and the...
, Administrator of Nan Commandery (南郡; present-day Jiangling County, Hubei
Hubei
' Hupeh) is a province in Central China. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Lake Dongting...
) was ordered to stay behind to guard Jiangling (江陵) city of Nan Commandery, while general Shi Ren was ordered to stay behind to guard Gong'an (公安; northwest of present-day Gong'an County
Gong'an County
Gong'an County is a county in the municipal region of Jingzhou , Hubei Province.-Administration:The county oversees 14 towns and two townships as of 2005...
, Hubei). Liu Bei's main force in the region was led by Guan Yu himself to attack Cao Cao's strongholds in the north.
The campaign's objective was not clearly stated, but Guan Yu led his army along the Han River northward until he laid siege to Fancheng (present-day Fancheng District Xiangyang
Xiangyang
Xiangzhou District is a district of Xiangyang, Hubei, China. The district itself was formerly known as Xiangyang. It was a city famous for the Siege of Xiangyang by invading forces of the Mongol-founded Yuan Dynasty...
, Hubei). From the advance route and the fact that Guan chose to concentrate his main forces on Fancheng, his primary objective was believed to be the conquest of Nanyang commandery. Initially, the cities being attacked were not heavily guarded, as Cao Ren at Fancheng and Lü Chang (呂常) at Xiangyang (襄陽; present-day Xiangzhou District Xiangyang, Hubei) were both surrounded. Therefore, Cao Cao ordered Yu Jin to lead Pang De to the battlefield as reinforcement. After pitching their camps on a lower ground, Yu Jin ordered Pang De to engage Guan Yu, and forced the latter to retreat several times. On one occasion, Pang De shot an arrow that became embedded in Guan Yu's helm. By this time Pang De was widely known and feared among the enemy as General White Horse, from the white steed he rode into battle.
Turning of the tide
In August, heavy rain caused the Han River to flood. Forces under the command of Yu Jin and Pang De were completely annihilated by the natural disaster, suffering at least 40,000 fatalities, and another 30,000 were captured by Guan Yu's navy. Pang De and Yu Jin were both captured; Yu begged for his life and surrendered, while Pang refused to surrender and was executed. Cao Ren, with several thousand of his surviving troops were forced on the defensive by staying behind the safety of the Fancheng's walls, while Xu Huang, who stationed in Wancheng with his force purely consisted of new recruits, was also forced to take a defensive posture instead of venturing out actively engaging the enemy. Meanwhile, the Inspector of Jing Province (the position that had the authority to raise troops from within the entire Jing Province), Hu Xiu (胡修), and Cao Cao's Administrator of Nan Town (Nan Town was located southeast of present-day Xichuan CountyXichuan County
Xichuan County is a county of Nanyang, Henan, China.Xichuan has an area of 2,798 square kilometers and a population of 746,000.Both of the Danjiangkou Reservoir and the Central route of South–North Water Transfer Project's canal head are located in Xichuan...
, Henan), Fu Fang (傅方), both defected to Guan Yu. Sun Lang (孫狼), a peasant rebel leader of Luhun (陸渾, located southeast of present-day Song County
Song County
Song County is a county of Luoyang City, Henan Province, China . It was the first capital of China during the Xia Dynasty.-External links:*...
, Henan) also killed local officials to welcome Guan Yu.
Guan Yu's threat to Cao Cao after his initial success was so immense that Cao Cao was considering relocating the capital. As Cao Cao asked his subjects for input, Sima Yi
Sima Yi
Sima Yi was a general and politician of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history. He is perhaps best known for defending Wei from Zhuge Liang's Northern Expeditions...
and Jiang Ji (蔣濟) strongly opposed. They pointed out that the alliance between Liu Bei and Sun Quan was shaky at the best due to the feuding of the control of Jing Province, and Sun Quan would definitely be unhappy to see Guan Yu's success. They suggested that Cao Cao should send an emissary to Sun Quan, requesting him to flank Guan Yu's rear and Jiangnan would then be awarded to Sun Quan as spoils of war and that the forces at Fancheng would then be dissolved. Initially, Sun Quan sent an emissary to Guan Yu relating his wish for a marriage be arranged between his own son and Guan's daughter. Guan Yu insulted the emissary and rejected the marriage proposal, infuriating Sun Quan.
The initial victory also proved to be the prelude to catastrophe for Guan Yu because it had made him over-confident. At the outbreak of the battle, Liu Bei controlled three commanderies of Jing Province: Nan, Lingling, and Wuling, albeit the most among all three powers, Guan Yu lacked the experience to handle a huge army, especially one with the size under his command at the time, when his force suddenly doubled as 30,000 troops captured in his earlier victory joined his army. In order to feed his army, Guan Yu sent out troops to confiscate grains stored by Sun Quan in the local border region. This further infuriated Sun Quan, and coupled with the Guan Yu's rejection of Sun Quan's marriage proposal and insults to his emissary, Sun made up his mind to sever the alliance with Liu Bei.
Stalemate
After the confiscation of Sun Quan's food supply, Guan Yu further ordered reinforcement from Jiangling and Gong'an to lay siege to the now flooded Fancheng. With only several thousand troops left, and low food supplies, Cao Ren considered abandoning the city. The Administrator of Runan, Man ChongMan Chong
Man Chong , style name Boning , was an official of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history.-Biography:...
, convinced Cao Ren to not withdraw by indicating that the flood was only temporary and would not last long. Man Chong also noted that Guan Yu's vanguard had already advanced to Jia (郏) County yet his main force dared not to follow, because he was afraid of being cutting off from the behind and being attacked from both sides. The strategic strongholds Fancheng and Xiangyang were still in Cao Cao's hands, which posed a serious threat to the advancing enemy force that bypassed the two cities. Man Chong argued that if the two strategic strongholds were abandoned, the entire region to the south of Yellow River
Yellow River
The Yellow River or Huang He, formerly known as the Hwang Ho, is the second-longest river in China and the sixth-longest in the world at the estimated length of . Originating in the Bayan Har Mountains in Qinghai Province in western China, it flows through nine provinces of China and empties into...
would be in danger of being overrun by the enemy, because not only the region Guan Yu attacked would be lost, the vast region in the east would be lost to Sun Quan since Cao Cao's force deployed there would risk being cutting off should Guan Yu decide to strike in that direction. Hence, Man Chong concluded, these two strategic strongholds must be held at all costs and the defenders must fight to the very last man. Cao Ren agreed and strengthened the defense, and boosted his troops to over 10,000 by drafting every available man in the city.
As Xu Huang was ordered to reinforce Cao Ren, Cao Cao sent two generals, Xu Shang (徐商) and Lü Jian (呂建) to lead additional reinforcements to join Xu Huang, ordering the latter that he should never attack until all of the reinforcement sent to him had arrived. To wait for further reinforcements, Xu Huang pushed toward Yangling (陽陵) Slope, located to the north of Fancheng. As the majority of Cao Cao's force under Xu Huang's command consisted of new recruits, Xu faithfully carried out Cao Cao's order to restrain from attacking until further reinforcements. Guan Yu was well aware of Xu Huang's situation, and coupled with the earlier victory, he thus completely ignored Xu Huang's threat and committed a serious blunder by dividing his force by sending another army to besiege Xiangyang, because he mistakenly believed that Fancheng would easily fall into his control. However, due to the defenders' strong resolute, the city remain defiant.
Guan Yu made further strategic blunders in allowing his vanguard advancing too far ahead of his main force and not linking up with the vanguard promptly in a time he could not afford to split his force. As a result, the vanguard was around three miles to the north of Fancheng, leaving a huge gap between itself and the main camp. Seizing the opportunity, Xu Huang faked the digging of a long trench, giving the false impression of cutting off the Guan Yu's vanguard, which fell for the trick and retreated. Xu Huang's army therefore took the abandoned Yan (偃) City and pressed further toward Guan Yu's main army. By this time, Xu Huang's force was large enough to pose a threat to Guan Yu, because the 10,000 strong army, which consisted of battle hardened veterans led by Yin Shu (殷署) and Zhu Gai (朱蓋), had joined Xu Huang.
Strategies
As the stalemate was reached again, Cao Cao's emissary returned to the capital LuoyangLuoyang
Luoyang is a prefecture-level city in western Henan province of Central China. It borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to the east, Pingdingshan to the southeast, Nanyang to the south, Sanmenxia to the west, Jiyuan to the north, and Jiaozuo to the northeast.Situated on the central plain of...
with a letter from Sun Quan, which informed Cao that Sun planned to attack Guan Yu from his rear, Jing Province. Sun Quan asked Cao Cao to keep this secret so that Guan Yu would not be prepared, and most of Cao Cao's advisors agreed with the plan. However, Dong Zhao objected, pointing out that Liu Bei and Sun Quan would also be the two adversaries of Cao Cao despite the temporary subjection of Sun Quan to Cao Cao. For the long term goal, it would be in the best interest of Cao Cao to weaken both adversaries, instead of letting one adversary become too strong in the long run. In the short run, if Guan Yu knew about Sun Quan's attack in his rear, he would certainly withdraw his army to reinforce his home base in Jing Province, and the siege of Fancheng would be lifted. In addition, Fancheng was under siege for some period of time, and the morale of Cao Cao's forces was low. If this critical information was not passed along to the defenders, some people inside Fancheng might turn their back on Cao Cao's side, because the food supplies were running out and they knew nothing about the secret agreement with Sun Quan. Furthermore, Dong Zhao pointed out that even if Guan Yu knew Sun Quan's intention, he would not retreat swiftly because of his stubbornness and his confidence on the two cities of Jiangling and Gong'an.
Cao Cao and others were convinced by Dong Zhao and did exactly what he had proposed: copies of Sun Quan's letter was tied to arrows, which were then shot into Fancheng and Guan Yu's camp by Xu Huang's archers. The defenders' morale increased, while Guan Yu was in a dilemma: he neither wanted to abandon the assaults on Cao Cao, because he believed that Jiangling and Gong'an, his rear bases, would not easily fall. Furthermore, if he (Guan Yu) succeeded in defeating the enemy defenders, Sun Quan would certainly exploit the opportunity to attack Cao Cao's weakened defenses instead of attacking the three commanderies under Liu Bei, because it seemed to Guan Yu that Sun Quan had much more to gain in taking the vast region in the eastern region downstream the Yangtze River
Yangtze River
The Yangtze, Yangzi or Cháng Jiāng is the longest river in Asia, and the third-longest in the world. It flows for from the glaciers on the Tibetan Plateau in Qinghai eastward across southwest, central and eastern China before emptying into the East China Sea at Shanghai. It is also one of the...
from Cao Cao. As it turned out, things did not go as Guan Yu had planned. As Guan Yu was hesitating, Cao Cao had personally led another reinforcement army on his way, and had already reached Mo Slope (摩陂; southeast of present-day Jia County
Jia County, Henan
Jia County is a county in Pingdingshan, Henan Province, China.-External links:*...
, Henan).
Conclusion
The bulk of the forces under Guan Yu's command was camped in Weitou (圍頭), while the remaining camped in Sizhong (四冢). Xu Huang spread word of an imminent attack on Weitou, but instead, he led his forces to strike Sizhong unexpectedly. Fearing the Sizhong camp would be lost, Guan Yu led 5,000 troops for the rescue, but the attack of Sizhong was only a decoy, as Guan Yu became ambushed by Xu Huang's men when he was on his way for the rescue mission. The defeated Guan Yu withdrew to his main camp, but Xu Huang's force followed closely behind and charged into Guan's main camp, successfully killing the defectors Hu Xiu and Fu Fang. With his camp overrun by the enemy, Guan Yu was forced to concede defeat by lifting the siege of Fancheng and retreating southward.All of Cao Cao's commanders at the frontline believed that they should take advantage of the situation and pursue Guan Yu, except Army Advisor Zhao Yan (趙儼), who pointed out that they should not pursue Guan Yu because Guan's force should be left alone so that they could fight Sun Quan, thus weakening both Cao Cao's adversaries. Cao Ren agreed with Zhao Yan and did not pursue Guan Yu, and sure enough, when news of Guan Yu's retreat reached Cao Cao, he sent an emissary to Cao Ren, prohibiting Cao Cao's force from giving a chase for the exact same reason Cao Ren and Zhao Yan believed in.
Aftermath
When Guan Yu returned south, he discovered that his rear bases in Jiangling and Gong'an had both surrendered to Lü MengLü Meng
Lü Meng was a military general serving under the warlord Sun Quan during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He served as the commanding general in the invasion of Jing Province that led to the death of Guan Yu.-Early life:Lü Meng was born in Fupo, Runan Commandery in 178...
, the commander of Sun Quan's westward army. Lü Meng held hostage the wives and children of Guan Yu's men, but treated them and the citizenry of Jing Province with the utmost care. Guan Yu's soldiers, hearing that Jing Province had fallen to Sun Quan and their families were in good hands, lost their will to fight and deserted.
Guan Yu, with only a handful of men left, became isolated in Maicheng (麥城; southeast of present-day Dangyang
Dangyang
Dangyang City , in Hubei Province, China, lies 70 km east of the Gezhouba Dam on the Yangtze River. During the Western Han Dynasty . Emperor Jing of Han established an administration in Dangyang on an area of 2000 km²...
, Hubei
Hubei
' Hupeh) is a province in Central China. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Lake Dongting...
) with Sun Quan's forces on three sides and Cao Cao's at the north. As Guan Yu attempted to escape, he and his surviving followers, including his son Guan Ping
Guan Ping
Guan Ping was the oldest son of the military general Guan Yu and older brother of Guan Xing. He served under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history...
, his Commandant Zhao Lei
Zhao Lei
Zhao Lei , style name Kansui , was a military officer serving under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history.-Biography:...
, were captured in an ambush in Zhang (章) Town (east of present-day Anyuan County, Hubei) by Sun Quan's generals Zhu Ran
Zhu Ran
Zhu Ran was a military general of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history. Despite being a childhood friend of the first emperor of Eastern Wu, Sun Quan, he was never tasked with important position nor assignment before Lü Meng's invasion of southern Jing Province in 219,...
and Pan Zhang
Pan Zhang
Pan Zhang was a military general of Eastern Wu during the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history. Although an active general with high rank, he was known to desire wealth and treasure, and to dress himself in a gaudy fashion...
. Guan Yu was later executed by Sun Quan at Linju (臨沮), along with Guan Ping and Zhao Lei.
Cao Cao forces
- General Who Subdues the South (征南將軍) Cao RenCao RenCao Ren was a military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao during the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history. He played a significant part in assisting Cao Cao in the civil wars leading to the end of the Han Dynasty...
- Administrator of Runan (汝南太守) Man ChongMan ChongMan Chong , style name Boning , was an official of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history.-Biography:...
- Army Advisor (參軍) Zhao Yan (趙儼)
- General Lü Chang (呂常) General on the Right (右將軍) Yu JinYu JinYu Jin was a military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He joined Cao in the early years of the civil wars that led to the collapse of the Han Dynasty...
- General Who Establishes Righteouness (立義將軍) Pang DePang DePang De was a military general during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He served different warlords during his life-span, including the Han Dynasty imperial court under Emperor Ling; the Liang Province forces led by Han Sui and Ma Teng; the Hanzhong warlord, Zhang Lu; and the...
, captured and executed
- Administrator of Runan (汝南太守) Man Chong
- General Who Conquers Bandits (平寇將軍) Xu HuangXu HuangXu Huang was a military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao during the late Han Dynasty era of Chinese history. He served the state of Cao Wei, founded by Cao Cao's successor Cao Pi, during the Three Kingdoms period...
- General Xu Shang (徐商)
- General Lü Jian (呂建)
- General Yin Shu (殷署)
- General Zhu Gai (朱蓋)
Liu Bei forces
- General of the Vanguard (前將軍) Guan YuGuan YuGuan Yu was a general serving under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Eastern Han Dynasty of China. He played a significant role in the civil war that led to the collapse of the Han Dynasty and the establishment of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period, of which Liu Bei was the...
- Hu Xiu (胡修), the former Inspector of Jing Province (荊州刺史) under Cao Cao
- Fu Fang (傅方), the former Administrator of Southern Town (南鄉太守) under Cao Cao
- Zhao LeiZhao LeiZhao Lei , style name Kansui , was a military officer serving under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history.-Biography:...
(趙累), Guan Yu's Commandant - Guan PingGuan PingGuan Ping was the oldest son of the military general Guan Yu and older brother of Guan Xing. He served under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history...
, Guan Yu's son - Yang YiYang YiYang Yi , style name Weigong , was a minister of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. He hailed from Xiangyang and was originally a subject of Cao Wei and later defected to Guan Yu, who sent him to Liu Bei...
, a former official of Jing Province under Cao Cao - Liao HuaLiao HuaLiao Hua , originally named Liao Chun , style name Yuanjian , was a military general serving under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history.-Biography:...
, Guan Yu's secretary - Sun Lang (孫狼), a peasant rebel leader from Luhun (陸渾)
Analysis
Guan Yu's campaign failed because Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang did not give enough support to Guan Yu (or were unable to give their support), and Guan had overestimated his own capabilities. After Guan captured Yu Jin, he could have declared victory by restating his military goal as destroying the enemy reinforcement, or he could've continued besieging Fancheng. To return to Jiangling was not a bad option for Guan, because he would have consolidated the gain of the campaign, and avoid the risks involved in a prolonged war. Amongst the alternatives, Guan chose to continue the siege, which also was a reasonable choice for him at the time, if the siege would not be a long one. Although the initial success was brought to him by a natural flooding, it did indeed crush the morale of the defenders, and Guan attempted to capitalize on that.Guan's blunder was not in continuing the siege, but severing ties with Sun Quan. At the beginning of the campaign, he had sent an emissary to Sun to ask for help, and Sun did so, though the reinforcement he sent arrived at the battlefield very slowly. Guan should have realized that he was not deemed trustworthy by Sun at the time; however, instead of strengthening the alliance, he chose to insult Sun's emissaries and rejected his marriage proposal, then confiscated Sun's food shortage on the border without prior notice. At this point, it should not be hard for one to see that Sun would retaliate. However, Guan was over-confident on his signal towers, which were erected on high grounds along the Yangtze River
Yangtze River
The Yangtze, Yangzi or Cháng Jiāng is the longest river in Asia, and the third-longest in the world. It flows for from the glaciers on the Tibetan Plateau in Qinghai eastward across southwest, central and eastern China before emptying into the East China Sea at Shanghai. It is also one of the...
to watch over the movement of Sun's forces. This move had a devastating effect on Guan's fate (as can be seen in Lü Meng's invasion of Jing Province
Lü Meng's invasion of Jing Province
Lü Meng's invasion of Jing Province was a battle fought between the warlords Sun Quan and Liu Bei in 219 during the prelude to the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. Sun Quan's forces, led by Lü Meng, invaded Liu Bei's territory of Jing Province , which was defended by Guan Yu, and succeeded...
), but only had limited effect on the battle of Fancheng, because Guan was not affected by the news Sun attacked his rear (Guan Yu set up fortifications to fight Xu Huang instead).
The first mistake that Guan did relating directly to his military operations was the misconception of a quick capture of Fancheng. He did not realize that the flood was only temporary, and that Cao Cao could still send reinforcement after reinforcement if he failed to take the city in a short period of time. There is a strategic mistake which contributed to the mistake mentioned — Guan divided his forces into at least three parts: the vanguard in Jia County, the detachment besieging Xiangyang, and the main army he directly controlled. In doing so, he violated the law of force concentration
Force concentration
Force concentration is the practice of concentrating a military force, so as to bring to bear such overwhelming force against a portion of an enemy force that the disparity between the two forces alone acts as a force multiplier, in favour of the concentrated forces.-Mass of decision:Force...
, and the siege on any single point would be longer than if he concentrated his forces. Then, when Xu Huang arrived the battlefield with some untrained and weak soldiers, Guan should have delivered a crushing blow to his old friend before Xu could even get prepared, but he instead focused on building fortifications and attempted to mimic what Zhou Yu
Zhou Yu
Zhou Yu was a military general and strategist who served his close friend, the warlord Sun Ce, during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history...
did in the Battle of Jiangling
Battle of Jiangling
The Battle of Jiangling was fought by the allied forces of Sun Quan and Liu Bei against Cao Cao during the prelude to the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history...
. The last operational mistake is that Guan underestimated his old acquaintance (perhaps Guan actually did a fair evaluation on Xu Huang, as the latter was not highly regarded before the siege of Fancheng). Besides setting up two camps, Guan had 10 layers of barricades facing the direction of Xu's army, but the latter still ordered an attack after he received some elite troops and successfully conquered Guan's camps.
Other historians took a more sympathetic stands for Guan because at the outbreak of the battle, he faced the dilemma of an unfavorable result regardless the offensive was launched or not. In the west, although Liu Bei successfully gained the strategic stronghold, Hanzhong, Liu Bei could not continue his momentum because the population of Hanzhong was drastically reduced as 80,000 residents were relocated into Cao Cao's territories when the latter defeated Zhang Lu years ago. Although the Hanzhong region was still possessed of a sizable population, Liu Bei would face logistic problems had he continued his campaign against Cao Cao, because the latter had asked one of his officers to relocate 50,000 households of Di
Di (ethnic group)
The Di were an ethnic group in China from the 8th century BCE to approximately the middle of the 6th century CE. Note that the character Di is used to differentiate this group from the Beidi , a generic term for "northern barbarians". They lived in areas of the present-day provinces of Gansu,...
tribes to Liang Province. Eliminating his reliable platform to Guanzhong, Cao hindered Liu's offensive in the north. Therefore, Guan led his army north in order to keep pressure on Cao, at the same time buying Liu the time to consolidate his gain. However, the unexpected flood had changed Guan's original goal into conquering northern Jing Province, which is a goal that requires Liu Bei's reinforcement from the west, and Sun Quan's entry from the east. Had Guan Yu not made the blunder of destroying the alliance between Liu Bei and Sun Quan, but instead, strengthened it, he might have a chance of succeeding what he started.
The biggest winner of the conflict was Sun Quan, who not only took back Jing Province from the hand of Liu Bei, but also received Yu Jin and his 30,000 elite troops, and most importantly, Sun Quan had secured Nan Commandery, which was very vital for the survival of the future Eastern Wu regime (it took a short time to travel from Jing Province to Yang Province downstream, if Jing Province was not controlled by the same power that controlled Yang Province, the power controlling Yang Province would be facing probable threat from the other party everyday). Cao Cao also secured his domain in Jing province by successfully fending off Liu Bei's attack, but he was more pleased that the alliance between Liu Bei and Sun Quan melted down, however, Cao Cao would die shortly after the war, and was not able to capitalize on that.
In fiction
In Luo GuanzhongLuo Guanzhong
Luo Ben , better known by his style name Luo Guanzhong , was a Chinese writer of the early Ming Dynasty period of Chinese history. He was also known as Huhai Sanren...
's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms
Romance of the Three Kingdoms
Romance of the Three Kingdoms, written by Luo Guanzhong in the 14th century, is a Chinese historical novel based on the events in the turbulent years near the end of the Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history, starting in 169 and ending with the reunification of the land in...
, the flooding of the Han River was not a natural occurrence, but instead, was pre-planned by Guan Yu. Guan had the rivers dammed and the dam opened when it was full, thus drowning Cao Cao's armies in the lower plains. This event was known as the Drowning of the Seven Armies (水淹七軍). Pang De put up firm resistance and attempted to escape by swimming, but was captured by Guan Yu's subordinate Zhou Cang
Zhou Cang
Zhou Cang is a fictional character in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms.-Biography:A strong warrior with a dark face and a wiry beard, Zhou became caught up in the Yellow Turban Rebellion and joined the rebels. It was during this time that he first met Guan Yu, who...
. In contrast, Yu Jin was depicted pleading for his life and surrendering to Guan Yu.
Several weeks later, Sun Quan, who had secretly allied with Cao Cao, attacked Guan Yu's army at Jiangling. Sun Quan surprised and defeated Guan Yu's forces there, forcing Guan to lift the siege on Fancheng and retreat. Guan Yu and his son, Guan Ping
Guan Ping
Guan Ping was the oldest son of the military general Guan Yu and older brother of Guan Xing. He served under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history...
, while fleeing to Yi Province (covering the Sichuan Basin
Sichuan basin
The Sichuan Basin is a lowland region in southwestern China. Despite its historical name, it is not only synonymous to Sichuan province, comprising its central and eastern portions as well as part of Chongqing Municipality...
), were caught and executed by Sun Quan's soldiers.
In the novel, the strength of Guan Yu was greatly exaggerated for dramatic effect, and the most obvious example was that the entire Jing Province was depicted as under Liu Bei's control. In reality, the state was divided into three parts at the time, controlled separately by the three powers, with Liu Bei controlling the least portion, both in terms of population and area, and could only field 25,000 troops at any one time from the region it controlled, with Guan Yu leading only 15,000 troops at the start of the battle. Other important historical facts not mentioned in the novel included the fact that it was Cao Cao who originally planned a preemptive strike against Guan Yu, but failed to materialize because of the need to crush the rebellion first. Logistic support, another deciding factor of the result of the battle, was not mentioned either in novel. Though Guan Yu in real life certainly deserves some credits for the his bravery of leading a token force attacking an enemy that was almost ten times of his strength, as well as achieving an astonishing victory during the initial stage, his exploits were exaggerated in the novel because the author, Luo Guanzhong, personally adored Guan Yu, the most eulogized and glorified character in his work.
Modern references
In Koei's video games Dynasty Warriors 4Dynasty Warriors 4
is a hack and slash video game and the fourth installment in the popular Dynasty Warriors series. Dynasty Warriors 4 was developed by Omega Force and published by Koei. The game is available on PlayStation 2 and Xbox and is based on a series of books called Romance of the Three Kingdoms, written...
and Dynasty Warriors 5
Dynasty Warriors 5
is a Hack and slash video game set in China and the fifth installment in the Dynasty Warriors series, developed by Omega Force and published by Koei. The game was released on the PlayStation 2 and Xbox. It is based on the Chinese novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms by Luo Guanzhong.-Gameplay:The...
, Guan Yu is depicted as simultaneously defending the lands of Jing Province and besieging Fan Castle (Fancheng). The second location is the focus of the stage. Cao Ren is the defending commander, and Sun Quan's forces later appear as reinforcements for Cao Ren. Notably, Pang De takes a prominent role, and proves to be a dangerous opponent for Guan Yu and his allies in this stage. In Dynasty Warriors 7
Dynasty Warriors 7
is a hack and slash video game and the seventh official installment of the Dynasty Warriors series. It is developed by Omega Force and published by Koei. The game has been confirmed to be PS3 exclusive in Japan. The story is based on Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms....
, the defense of Fancheng is focused on Wei's side, the invasion of Jing Province is focused on Wu's side, and retreating to Maicheng is focused on Shu's side.