Liang Province Rebellion

Liang Province rebellion
Part of the wars at the end of the Han dynasty
Date Winter of 184 – 189 Location Regions near the Hexi Corridor, China Result Inconclusive
Belligerents
Han dynasty	Han rebels Qiang peoples Lesser Yuezhi
Commanders and leaders
Zhang Wen Huangfu Song Geng Bi	Beigong Boyu Li Wenhou Dianyu Bian Zhang Han Sui Wang Guo
Strength
Various: 100,000+ at Meiyang 40,000+ at Chencang	Several tens of thousands

The Liang Province rebellion of 184 to 189 started as an insurrection of the Qiang peoples against the Han dynasty in the western province of Liang (Liangzhou; 涼州; roughly present-day Wuwei, Gansu) in second century AD China, but the Lesser Yuezhi and sympathetic Han rebels soon joined the cause to wrestle control of the province away from central authority. This rebellion, which closely followed the Yellow Turban Rebellion, was part of a series of disturbances that led to the decline and ultimate downfall of the Han dynasty. Despite receiving relatively little attention in the hands of traditional historians, the rebellion nonetheless had lasting importance as it removed Han Chinese power in the northwest and prepared that land for a number of non-Han-Chinese states in the centuries to come.

The rebellion began in the winter of 184 with two groups of Qiang people causing disturbances in the outlying regions of northwestern China, with one group in the northwestern commanderies of Beidi (北地) and Anding, and another in at the counties of Fuhan (枹罕) and Heguan (河關) in the upper Yellow River valley. Initially, the two groups were likely separate, each trying to seize the opportunity to resist the weakened Han rule after years of corruption and misrule. The situation escalated in October or November 184 when the troops of the Auxiliary of Loyal Barbarians From Huangzhong (湟中義從胡), which consisted of Qiang and Lesser Yuezhi recruits sent to suppress the disturbances, mutinied against their Han Chinese superiors in the military camp of Lianju (令居; northwest of present-day Lanzhou) and joined the insurgents, killing the Colonel Protector of the Qiang (護羌校尉), Ling Zheng (冷徵), in the process. At this point, the two groups had joined together, with former Auxiliary soldiers Beigong Boyu (北宮伯玉) and Li Wenhou (李文侯) as their leaders. This union meant that the rebels now had control of the band of territory along the Yellow River in present-day Lanzhou.

Within a few weeks, the rebels attacked and captured Yuanya (允吾), the capital of Jincheng Commandery (金城), making the commandery their main stronghold for rebel operations. The rebels were helped by the fact that the local governor Zuo Chang (左昌), Inspector of Liang Province (涼州刺史), had embezzled the funds allocated for the defence force, making no relief possible. The Grand Administrator Chen Yi (陳懿) went to the rebels' camp to negotiate for the release of hostages, but the rebels killed him. The hostages – which included Bian Zhang, the former Prefect of Xin'an (新安縣令); and Han Sui, Attendant Official of Liang Province (涼州從事) – were then persuaded to join the rebels' cause. The addition of such reputable and influential men gave the rebellion wider popular support, and the two men were to play more prominent roles in the rebellion as the course of events progressed.

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Wikipedia