Coalition against Dong Zhuo

Campaign against Dong Zhuo
Part of the wars at the end of the Han dynasty
A mural in Fragrant Hills depicting the duel between the three sworn brothers and Lü Bu at Hulao Pass in a fictional encounter.
Date February 190–191 Location Henan, China Result Inconclusive; Dong Zhuo retreats west, Coalition disbanded
Belligerents
Guandong Coalition	Dong Zhuo
Commanders and leaders
Yuan Shao Cao Cao Yuan Shu Sun Jian Zhang Miao Han Fu Bao Xin Yuan Yi Zhang Chao Zhang Yang Yufuluo Kong Zhou Wang Kuang Liu Dai Qiao Mao	Dong Zhuo Lü Bu Li Jue Guo Si Hua Xiong †
Strength
100,000+	Described as less than coalitions'

Campaign against Dong Zhuo
Traditional Chinese	董卓討伐戰
Simplified Chinese	董卓讨伐战
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Dǒng Zhuó Tǎofá Zhàn

Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin	Dǒng Zhuó Tǎofá Zhàn

The Campaign against Dong Zhuo was a punitive expedition initiated by a coalition of regional officials and warlords against the warlord Dong Zhuo in 190 in the late Eastern Han dynasty. The members of the coalition claimed that Dong had the intention of usurping the throne by holding Emperor Xian hostage and by establishing a strong influence in the imperial court. They justified their campaign as to remove Dong from power. The campaign led to the evacuation of the capital Luoyang and the shifting of the imperial court to Chang'an. It was a prelude to the end of the Han dynasty and, subsequently, the Three Kingdoms period.

In Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, the campaign is memorable for at least two famous incidents: one is Guan Yu's slaying of Hua Xiong; the other is the three-on-one duel between the three sworn brothers (Liu Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei) and Lü Bu. The two scenes are often reenacted in Chinese opera along with other famous scenes from the novel. Both incidents however, are fictional; Hua was killed in a battle against Sun Jian. Liu, Guan and Zhang were not active in the campaign. Instead, they were fighting remnants of the Yellow Turban rebels in the north and thus did not duel with Lü Bu, who, historically, was defeated by Sun Jian in battle.

Following the death of Emperor Ling in 189, General-in-Chief He Jin summoned the frontier general Dong Zhuo from the northwest into the capital city of Luoyang. Dong was ordered to lead his troops into the capital city to aid He in eliminating the eunuch faction, the Ten Attendants, from the imperial court. However, before Dong Zhuo's arrival, He Jin's plan was revealed and he was assassinated by the eunuchs. He Jin's associates led by Yuan Shao stormed the palace after the assassination and started massacring eunuchs. The young Emperor Shao and his younger brother, the Prince of Chenliu, were brought out of the palace by the surviving eunuchs during the chaos. The emperor lost the Imperial Seal during his escape. They were eventually discovered by a search party and escorted back to the palace safely by Dong Zhuo and his men.

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Wikipedia