Sun Jian
Sun Jian | |||||||||
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General Who Destroys Barbarians ( (under Yuan Shu) | |||||||||
In office 190 –191 | |||||||||
Monarch | Emperor Xian of Han | ||||||||
Inspector of Yu Province ( (under Yuan Shu) | |||||||||
In office 190 –191 | |||||||||
Monarch | Emperor Xian of Han | ||||||||
Preceded by | Kong Zhou | ||||||||
Administrator of Changsha ( | |||||||||
In office 187 –190 | |||||||||
Monarchs | Emperor Ling of Han Emperor Xian of Han | ||||||||
Personal details | |||||||||
Born | 155 Fuchun County, Wu Commandery (around modern day Fuyang District, Hangzhou, Zhejiang) | ||||||||
Died | 191 (aged 36)[a] Xiangyang | ||||||||
Spouse |
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Children |
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Parent |
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Relatives | See Eastern Wu family trees | ||||||||
Occupation | Military general, politician, warlord | ||||||||
Military service | |||||||||
Allegiance | Han Empire Guandong Coalition Yuan Shu's forces | ||||||||
Unit | Sun Jian's forces | ||||||||
Battles/wars | Xu Chang's rebellion Yellow Turban Rebellion Liang Province Rebellion Campaign against Dong Zhuo Battle of Xiangyang | ||||||||
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Sun Jian (Chinese:
Sun Jian was also the father of Sun Quan, one of the central figures of the Three Kingdoms era who eventually established the Eastern Wu state and declared himself its first emperor in 229, whereupon Sun Jian was given the posthumous title Emperor Wulie (
Early life and career
[edit]Sun Jian was born in Fuchun County (
Sun Jian was a civil official in his home county during his youth. When he was 16, Sun Jian travelled with his father to Qiantang, where they encountered a band of pirates dividing up their spoils on land. Sun Jian jumped on shore with a sabre in hand and pointed in different directions as if commanding a detachment of soldiers to surround the pirates. Seeing this, the pirates were deceived and fled. Sun Jian pursued, and only after taking the head of every pirate did he return (or just the leaders according to some accounts). His name henceforth spread.
In 172, he became acting major for the pro-government militias which fought against Xu Chang's rebellion in Kuaiji Commandery. He raised a militia of about 1,000 men and served with distinction, whereupon he was recommended to the court by Yang Province Inspector Zhang Min. Sun Jian was consequently rewarded with a post as assistant magistrate in Guangling Commandery, and later in two counties in Xiapi. This allowed him to gather many followers.[5]
In 184, the Yellow Turban Rebellion led by Zhang Jiao broke out across the country. Sun Jian joined the general Zhu Jun to quell the rebellion in Yu Province (covering roughly present-day southern Henan and northern Anhui). The soldiers fought hard, forcing the rebels to retreat to Wan (
Around this time, Bian Zhang and Han Sui colluded with the Qiang tribes and rebelled in Liang Province (
Despite scoring a major victory against the rebels at Meiyang, Zhang Wen could not press their advantage and the rebellion was still not quelled. Zhang Wen and the rest returned to the capital Luoyang in disgrace and thus no honor was accorded. Meanwhile, another local-scale rebellion broke out near Changsha Commandery and the rebels besieged the city. Sun Jian was then appointed as the Administrator of Changsha Commandery. Within a month upon taking up office, Sun Jian had quelled the rebellion. Meanwhile, rebellions also broke out in the neighbouring commanderies of Lingling (
Coalition against Dong Zhuo
[edit]In 189, Emperor Ling died, leaving his young son in the care of Empress Dowager He and General-in-Chief He Jin. He Jin then summoned Dong Zhuo to lead troops into the capital to assist in a plot to eliminate the powerful eunuch faction. Before Dong Zhuo arrived, however, He Jin was assassinated by the eunuchs and Luoyang fell into chaos following a clash between supporters of both sides. Dong Zhuo then seized military control of the capital and deposed the young emperor for the puppet Emperor Xian. However, his tyrannical ways incurred the wrath of many and in the following year, warlords from eastern China formed a coalition against him.
Sun Jian also raised an army and joined Yuan Shu,[3] one of the leaders of the coalition at Luyang (魯陽; present-day Lushan County, Henan). On his way, he killed Inspector of Jing Province Wang Rui and Administrator of Nanyang Zhang Zi.[3] Yuan Shu appointed Sun Jian as General Who Destroys Barbarians (
After regrouping his troops, Sun Jian pressed his troops towards Luoyang and engaged in battle against Dong Zhuo's forces at Yangren (
Fearing Sun Jian, Dong Zhuo then sent his general Li Jue as an emissary to seek peace and propose a marriage to cement the alliance. However, Sun Jian rejected the proposals with harsh words and continued to lead his troops towards Luoyang. In late 190, his army was merely 90 li away from the capital when Dong Zhuo retreated west to Chang'an after ordering the destruction of Luoyang by fire. Entering the ruins of Luoyang, Sun Jian ordered his men to reseal the tombs of Han emperors that were excavated by Dong Zhuo, after which he returned to Luyang. It was said in the Book of Wu (
Later life
[edit]In 191, Yuan Shu sent Sun Jian to attack Liu Biao, the Governor of Jing Province (荆州; covering present-day Hubei and Hunan). He defeated Liu Biao's forces led by Huang Zu and pursued the enemy across the Han River to Xiangyang. While he was travelling alone through Xianshan (峴山), Huang Zu's troops ambushed him and shot him to death with arrows. The Record of Heroes (
Sun Jian was buried in the Gao Mausoleum in Qu'e (
Historical discrepancies on death date
[edit]There are multiple differing accounts on Sun Jian's death date.
Death in 191
[edit]A Wu Lu annotation in Sun Ce's biography in Sanguozhi recorded that Sun Ce stated in a memorial to the imperial court[7] that he was 17 (by East Asian reckoning) when his father died.[8] In this account, since Sun Ce died in 200 at the age of 26 (by East Asian reckoning), Sun Jian should have died in 191.
Death in 192
[edit]Sun Jian's biography in Sanguozhi recorded that he was sent by Yuan Shu to attack Jing province in the 3rd year of the Chuping era of Liu Xie's reign.[9] This account was also found in Book of the Later Han (volume 09[10]) and Annals of the Later Han (compiled by Yuan Hong; volume 27[11]). Pei Songzhi in his commentary found in Sun Ce's biography of Sanguozhi noted that Sun Jian dying in 192 as recorded in his Sanguozhi biography should be an error, noting that Zhang Fan's Annals of Han and the Wu Li both recorded that Sun Jian died in 191.[12] Sima Guang, in his Zizhi Tongjian Kao Yi, agreed that Sun Jian died in 191.[13]
Death in 193
[edit]Wang Can's Records of Heroes recorded that Sun Jian died on the 7th day of the 1st month of the 4th year of the Chuping era.[14] This corresponds to 25 February 193 in the Julian calendar.
Family
[edit]Family tree
[edit]Sun Jian
[edit]Lady Chen | Sun Jian Wentai | Lady Wu | Wu Jing | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Pan Jun Chengming | Sun Lang Zao'an | Sun Ce Bofu | Sun Quan Zhongmou | Sun Yi Shubi 叔弼 | Sun Kuang Jizuo | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Pan Mi | Daughter (name unknown) | Daughter (name unknown) | Hong Zi | Liu Bei Xuande | Lady Sun | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Four of Sun Jian's sons – Sun Ce, Sun Quan, Sun Yi and Sun Kuang – and one of his daughters (her identity is unrecorded) were born to his wife Lady Wu, who was Wu Jing's elder sister.[15][16] Lady Sun married Liu Bei.[17]
Father
[edit]- Sun Zhong is the father of Sun Jian, grandfather of Sun Quan. Living with his mother, he believed in filial piety and grew melons as a career.[18]
Brothers
[edit]- Sun Jing
- Sun Qiang
Sisters
[edit]- Lady Sun (Sun Jian's sister), A younger sister who was Xu Kun's mother (and thus Lady Xu's grandmother)[19]
Children
[edit]- Sun Ce, eldest son, warlord in Jiangdong.
- Sun Quan, second son, Emperor Da of Wu
- Sun Yi, third son.
- Sun Kuang, fourth son.
- Lady Sun, the wife of Emperor Zhaolie Liu Bei.
- Sun Lang,[20] later disowned by Sun Quan.
- Hong Zi's wife, who is older than Sun Quan[21]
- Pan Mi's wife
Grandchildren
[edit]- Sun Shao, posthumous son of Sun Ce.
- Sun Deng, was an imperial prince of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the eldest son of Sun Quan.
- Sun Lü, as a noble and military general of the state of Eastern Wu in the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the second son of Sun Quan, the founding emperor of Eastern Wu.
- Sun He, as an imperial prince of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the third son of Sun Quan, the founding emperor of Wu.
- Sun Ba, was an imperial prince of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the fourth son of Sun Quan, the founding emperor of Eastern Wu.
- Sun Fen, was an imperial prince of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the fifth son of Sun Quan, the founding emperor of Eastern Wu.
- Sun Liang, was the second emperor of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the youngest son and heir of Sun Quan.
- Sun Luban, was an imperial princess of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. She was the elder daughter of Sun Quan,
- Sun Luyu, was an imperial princess of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. She was the younger daughter of Sun Quan.
In Romance of the Three Kingdoms
[edit]In the 14th-century historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, some events of Sun Jian were romanticised by Luo Guanzhong.
Sun Jian first appears the novel in Chapter 2 as a great warrior and descendant of Sun Tzu who takes part in suppressing the Yellow Turban Rebellion. Later, he joins the coalition against Dong Zhuo. In the battle against Hua Xiong, the commander of the enemy army, Sun Jian took off his own red scarf and handed it to Zu Mao (
After Dong Zhuo retreated to Chang'an, Sun Jian was the first to enter Luoyang and ordered to put off the fires set by Dong Zhuo. Seeing the destruction of the imperial capital and Han dynasty, Sun Jian sighed and shed a tear. However, when his men found a jade seal, which was proven to be the imperial seal, Sun Jian grew ambitious and requested to retreat to his base. The news was leaked, to Sun Jian's miscalculation. When Yuan Shao, the leader of the coalition, interrogated Sun Jian, the latter swore by saying, "Should I have hid the treasure, I shall die miserably under arrows!" Under the protection by his guards, Sun Jian left Luoyang immediately.
On the way to his base, Sun Jian passed through Jing Province, where the governor, Liu Biao, was asked by Yuan Shao to attack Sun Jian. Sun Jian badly lost the battle and barely escaped. When he later launched a revenge attack upon Jing Provence, in accordance with the order of his senior, Yuan Shu, he was lured under a cliff where he was shot dead by arrows from the above. Sun's camp reclaimed Sun Jian's corpse using a captive, Huang Zu, who was Liu Biao's brother-in-law. When Dong Zhuo heard of Sun's death in Chang'an, he said, "One of my greatest enemies is removed!" and consequently usurped more power in the imperial court.
In popular culture
[edit]Sun Jian is featured as a playable character in Koei's Dynasty Warriors and Warriors Orochi video game series. He also appears in Koei's Romance of the Three Kingdoms series.
He is a playable warlord in the 2019 game Total War: Three Kingdoms by Creative Assembly.
In the SD Gundam series BB Senshi Sangokuden, which is based on Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Sun Jian is characterised as the Gundam Sonken Zephyranthes. His design invokes a white tiger motif as he was known in life as the Tiger of Jiandong.
In Koei's 2023 video game Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty, Sun Jian appears as a character and one of the bosses of the game.
See also
[edit]Notes
[edit]- ^ The Wu Lu recorded that Sun Jian was 37 years old (by East Asian age reckoning) when he died in 191.[1]
References
[edit]- ^ (
吳 錄 曰:堅 時 年 三 十 七 。) Wu Lu annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 46. - ^ There are discrepancies over Sun Jian's death date. See this section.
- ^ a b c d de Crespigny (2007), p. 769.
- ^ a b de Crespigny (2018), p. 58.
- ^ de Crespigny (2018), pp. 65–66.
- ^ de Crespigny (2007), p. 333.
- ^ This memorial was sent in reply to Cao Cao appointing him General Who Attacks Rebels
(討逆
將軍 ) and ennobling him as the Marquis of Wu (呉 侯 ). - ^ (
呉 录载策 上表 谢曰:....臣 年 十 七 ,丧失所 怙...) Wu Lu annotation in Sanguozhi vol.46. In the memorial, Sun Ce also compared himself to Huo Qubing, noting that he was unable to match Huo's achievements when the latter was 18 (by East Asian reckoning). (诚无去病 十 八 建 功 ...) - ^ (
初 平 三 年 ,術 使 坚征荆州...) Sanguozhi vol.46 - ^ The Houhanshu recorded Sun Jian's death as occurring in the spring (1st to 3rd month) of 192, corresponding to 1 Feb to 29 Apr 192 in the Julian calendar.
- ^ The Houhanji recorded Sun Jian's death as occurring in the 5th month of 192, corresponding to 29 May to 27 June 192 in the Julian calendar
- ^ (
臣 松 之 案 :本 传云孙坚以初平 三 年 卒 ,策 以建安 五 年 卒 ,策 死 时年二 十 六 ,计坚之 亡 ,策 应十 八 ,而此表 云 十 七 ,则为不 符 。张璠汉纪及呉历並以坚初 平 二 年 死 ,此为是 而本传误也。) Commentary in Sanguozhi zhu, vol.46 - ^ (【范書
初 平 三 年 春 堅 死 】吳 志 孫 堅 傳 亦 云 初 平 三 年 ,英雄 記 曰初平 四 年 正月 七 日 死 ,袁紀初 平 三 年 五 月 。山陽 公 載 記載 䇿表曰“臣 年 十 七 ,喪失 所 怙。”裴松之 按䇿以建安 五 年 卒 ,時 年 二 十 六 ,計 堅 之 亡 ,䇿應十 八 ,而此表 云 十 七 ,則 為 不 符 。張 璠漢紀 及胡沖 吳 歴 並 以堅初 平 二 年 死 ,此為是 而本傳 誤 也,今 從 之 .) Zizhi Tongjian Kao Yi, vol.03 - ^ (
英雄 记曰:“坚以初 平 四 年 正月 七 日 死 。”) Yingxiong Ji annotation in Sanguozhi vol.46 - ^ (
孫 破 虜 吳 夫人 ,吳 主權 母 也。 ...與 弟 景 居 。 ...生 四 男 一 女 。) Sanguozhi vol. 50. - ^ (
堅 四 子 :策 、權 、翊、匡 。) Sanguozhi vol. 46. - ^ (
權 稍 畏 之 ,進 妹 固 好 。) Sanguozhi vol. 32. - ^ (《
祥瑞 志 》:锺家于富春 ,早 失 父 ,幼 与 母 居 ,性 至孝 。遭岁荒 ,俭以种瓜自 业。) Xiang Rui Zhi annotation in Jiankang Shilu, vol.01 - ^ (吴主权徐
夫人 ,吴郡富 春 人 也。祖父 真 ,与 权父坚相亲,坚以妹 妻 真 ,生 琨。) Sanguozhi, vol.50 - ^ Sun Lang's birth order is unknown
- ^ Zhuge Jin's biography in Sanguozhi uses the term "Sun Quan's zixu" (
孫 權 姊壻) to describe Hong Zi.
- Chen, Shou (3rd century). Records of the Three Kingdoms (Sanguozhi).
- de Crespigny, Rafe (2018) [1st pub. 1990]. Generals of the South: the foundation and early history of the Three Kingdoms state of Wu (PDF) (Internet (2nd) ed.).
- de Crespigny, Rafe (2007). A biographical dictionary of Later Han to the Three Kingdoms (23–220 AD). Leiden: Brill. ISBN 978-90-04-15605-0.
- Fan, Ye (5th century). Book of the Later Han (Houhanshu).
- Luo, Guanzhong (14th century). Romance of the Three Kingdoms (Sanguo Yanyi).
- Pei, Songzhi (5th century). Annotations to Records of the Three Kingdoms (Sanguozhi zhu).
- Sima, Guang (1084). Zizhi Tongjian.