Zhao Yun

Zhao Yun
A Qing dynasty illustration of Zhao Yun
General of Shu Han
Born	(Unknown)
Died	229
Names
Traditional Chinese	趙雲
Simplified Chinese	赵云
Pinyin	Zhào Yún
Wade–Giles	Chao Yun
Courtesy name	Zilong (simplified Chinese: 子龙; traditional Chinese: 子龍; pinyin: Zǐlóng; Wade–Giles: Tzu-lung)
Posthumous name	Marquis Shunping (simplified Chinese: 顺平侯; traditional Chinese: 順平侯; pinyin: Shùnpíng Hóu)

Zhao Yun (died 229), courtesy name Zilong, was a military general who lived in the late Eastern Han dynasty and early Three Kingdoms period. Originally a subordinate of the northern warlord Gongsun Zan, Zhao Yun later came to serve another warlord, Liu Bei, and had since accompanied him on most of his military exploits, from the Battle of Changban (208) to the Hanzhong Campaign (217–219). He continued serving in the state of Shu Han – founded by Liu Bei in 221 – in the Three Kingdoms period and participated in the first of the Northern Expeditions until his death in 229. While many facts about Zhao Yun's life remain unclear due to limited information in historical sources, some aspects and activities in his life had been dramatised or exaggerated in folklore and fiction, most notably in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, in which he was lauded as a member of the Five Tiger Generals under Liu Bei.

Zhao Yun's original biography in the Records of the Three Kingdoms (Sanguozhi), written by Chen Shou in the third century CE, is only 346 Chinese characters long. In the fifth century, Pei Songzhi added annotations from the Zhao Yun Biezhuan (趙雲別傳; Unofficial Biography of Zhao Yun) to Zhao Yun's biography in the Sanguozhi, providing a relatively clearer, though still incomplete picture of Zhao's life.

Zhao Yun was from Zhending County (真定縣), Changshan Commandery (常山郡), which is located south of present-day Zhengding County, Hebei. The Zhao Yun Biezhuan described his physical appearance as such: eight chi tall (approximately 1.85 metres), with majestic and impressive looks.