Dong Zhuo

Dong Zhuo
Portrait of Dong Zhuo from a Qing dynasty edition of Romance of the Three Kingdoms
Grand Preceptor of Eastern Han dynasty
Born	(Unknown)
Died	22 May 192
Names
Courtesy name	Zhongying (traditional Chinese: 仲穎; simplified Chinese: 仲颖; pinyin: Zhòngyǐng; Wade–Giles: Chung-ying)

Dong Zhuo (died 22 May 192),courtesy name Zhongying, was a politician and warlord who lived in the late Eastern Han Dynasty. He seized control of the capital Luoyang in 189 when it was in a state of turmoil following the death of Emperor Ling and a clash between the eunuch faction and some court officials led by General-in-Chief He Jin. Dong Zhuo subsequently deposed Emperor Shao and instated Emperor Xian.

Dong Zhuo rose to power in the Han imperial court and ruled the nation with tyranny and cruelty for a brief period of time. The following year, a coalition of regional officials and warlords launched a punitive campaign against Dong, forcing him to move the capital to Chang'an. Dong Zhuo was assassinated in 192 by his foster son Lü Bu as part of a plot orchestrated by Interior Minister Wang Yun.

Dong Zhuo was born in Lintao, Longxi Commandery (present-day Min County, Gansu) and was said to be a chivalrous youth who was excellent in horseback archery in his early days. He travelled around the Qiang region and befriended many men of gallantry. When he grew up, he returned and started farming in the countryside, where he incidentally excavated a blade, which had obscure inscription fading from it which said "slash the kings like logging." When he took the sabre to the famed scholar Cai Yong for appraisal, the latter asserted to him that it was the blade of the Hegemon-King of Western Chu, Xiang Yu. As a physically adept man with a good background, Dong became an imperial guard, and joined Zhang Huan's campaign against Qiang rebels in Bing Province as a Major. He was rewarded with 9,000 rolls of fine silk for his performance, all of which he distributed to his colleagues and subordinates.