Wang Kuang, style name

Chinese style name

A Chinese style name, sometimes also known as a courtesy name , is a given name to be used later in life. After 20 years of age, the zì is assigned in place of one's given name as a symbol of adulthood and respect...

 Gongjie (公節), was a minor warlord who lived during the late Han Dynasty

Han Dynasty

The Han Dynasty was the second imperial dynasty of China, preceded by the Qin Dynasty and succeeded by the Three Kingdoms . It was founded by the rebel leader Liu Bang, known posthumously as Emperor Gaozu of Han. It was briefly interrupted by the Xin Dynasty of the former regent Wang Mang...

 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...

.

Biography

Wang first served under General-in-Chief He Jin

He Jin

He Jin was the elder half-brother of Empress He, consort to Emperor Ling of the late Eastern Han Dynasty in China. He shared power with his sister as regents in 189, following the death of Emperor Ling. In the ensuing struggle with the influential eunuch faction for power, He Jin was assassinated...

, but resigned and lived as a commoner after He Jin was killed by the Ten Attendants

Ten Attendants

The Ten Attendants were a group of eunuchs from the Eunuch Faction of the Han Imperial Court in China...

. He rose through the ranks in the following years and soon became the Prefect of Henei

Henei

Henei can refer to:# Hanoi, a city of Vietnam ;# Henei, an ancient province in China, currently in the north of modern Henan....

. During the campaign against Dong Zhuo

Campaign against Dong Zhuo

The Campaign against Dong Zhuo was a punitive expedition initiated by a coalition of regional officials and warlords against Dong Zhuo, Chancellor of State, in 190 during the late Han Dynasty of Chinese history...

, Wang led an army to attack Dong Zhuo from the north but was defeated at the Battle of Heyang Ford. When Dong Zhuo sent Humu Ban, who married a younger sister of Wang Kuang, and other scholars to negotiate a truce, Wang Kuang ordered them to be executed. Years later, the remaining relatives of Humu Ban killed Wang in revenge.

In fiction

In Luo Guanzhong

Luo 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...

, at the Battle of Hulao Pass

Battle of Hulao Pass

The Battle of Hulao Pass is a fictional battle described in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. The battle was fought between Dong Zhuo and a coalition of regional warlords and officials as part of the Campaign against Dong Zhuo in 190 during the prelude to the Three...

, Wang ordered his general Fang Yue

Fang Yue

Fang Yue is a fictional character in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. He was a military general serving under the warlord Wang Kuang. Wang was one of the members of the coalition against Dong Zhuo. When the coalition faced Dong's forces at the Battle of Hulao Pass,...

 to challenge Lü Bu

Lü Bu

Lü Bu was a military general and later a minor warlord during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. According to the Records of Three Kingdoms, Lü Bu was highly-skilled in horse-riding and archery, and was thus nicknamed "Flying General"...

. Fang was defeated and slain by Lü after five rounds.

See also

• List of people of the Three Kingdoms