at the end of the eastern Han dynasty, after the yellow turban insurrectionary failed, the powerful forces who suppressed the rebel army fought for independence and competed for the central plains. Yuan Shao, the biggest separatist force in the north, relied on his strength and plotted to destroy Cao Cao Group with his camera. Cao Cao, with the emperor as his support, ordered the governors, put in order to conduct government affairs, cultivate land and accumulate grain, and stepped up preparations to fight against Yuan Shao. In the autumn of the fourth year of Jian 'an, Cao Cao sent troops to Guandu, a military place south of the river (Yellow River), to build a base for preparation. In January of the following year, Liu Bei, who was attached to Cao Cao, defected to Yuan Shao. Yuan Shao took the opportunity to attack the south to the north bank of the river, and was blocked by Cao Jiang who was stationed in Liyang (now Xunxian County, Henan Province). Cao Cao was able to muster nearly 2, troops in Guandu, waiting for a decisive battle with Yuan Shao.
in February, Yuan Shao led 1, troops and more than 1, cavalry to occupy Liyang. General Yan Liang was sent to cross the Yellow River south to besiege Baima City (now Huaxian County, Henan Province). Cao Cao adopted Xun You, an adviser, as a diversion. In April, he led the army to cross the river ferry to Yanjin (now Yanjin North, Henan Province) and pretended to cross the north. Yuan Shao suited his troops to the west, and Cao Cao attacked the east, defeated Yuan Jun, beheaded Yan Liang, solved the siege of the white horse, and moved the city's officials and people to the southwest to lure the enemy. Yuan Shao sent generals Wen Chou and Liu Bei to cross the river with 6 Qingqi. Cao Jun went to the south of Yanjin to ambush, untied his saddle and released his horse, and abandoned the trench. Yuan Jun chased him and scrambled for property. Cao Cao took the opportunity to attack the pursuer with nearly 6 xiaoqi and killed Wen Chou.
Yuan Shao was defeated in the first battle, and his spirit was frustrated, so he changed the advance of the sub-army into a camp, trying to force Cao Jun to fight a decisive battle with superior troops. And sent Liu Bei and others into Runan (now Pingyu North, Henan Province) to harass the rear of Cao Jun. Cao Cao avoided a decisive battle under unfavorable conditions and took the initiative to retreat to Guandu. At the same time, Cao Ren and Yu Jin were sent to harass Yuan Jun's side, and the counties were ordered to be lenient and slow down taxes to stabilize the rear. In August, Yuan Jun advanced from Yangwu (now southeast of Yuanyang, Henan Province) to Guandu, and built a camp relying on sand dunes, dozens of miles from east to west. Cao Jun also set up camps to confront them. Yuan Jun built a dirt mountain in the camp, built a high oar, and shot Cao Ying with a strong bow, while Cao Cao built a thunderbolt to destroy the high oar. Yuan Jun resumed digging tunnels to attack Cao Ying, but Cao Jun refused to dig trenches. In the confrontation, Yuan Shao repeatedly refused the suggestion that his subordinates divide their forces to attack the capital Xu (now Xu Changdong, Henan Province), in an attempt to wait for Jun Liang to retreat and take advantage of the situation to attack and annihilate. After Cao Jun was short of food, his foot soldiers were tired, and there was rebellion in the rear. Cao Cao wanted to defend Xu. Xun Yu, a counselor, thought that Cao Jun was weak and the enemy was strong. At this time, withdrawing troops would take advantage of it. After a long stalemate, Yuan Jun would definitely change, which was a surprise victory. Cao Cao took his advice, stubbornly stuck to it, and soon after getting supplies, a surprise soldier attacked and burned Yuan Jun's grain truck, forcing Yuan Shao to divide his troops to protect and transport the grain.
In October, Yuan Shao sent Chunyu Qiong with more than 1, troops and escorted more than 1, grain wagons to Wuchao (now Fengqiu West, Henan Province), 4 miles north of Yuan Shao Daying. It is very important for Ju Shou, the supervisor of the army, to station grain in the nest, and he suggested sending more troops to guard it. Xu You, the adviser, once again suggested an adventurous attack on Xu, but Yuan Shao refused. Xu Yousu was at odds with Yuan Shao, so his family members broke the law and went to prison. In anger, Xu Yousu surrendered to Cao Cao and offered a plan to attack Wu Chao. Cao Cao ordered Cao Hong to guard Guandu, with a head of 5, elite troops, falsely claimed reinforcements under the banner of Yuan Jun, and took the path at night to attack Wu Chao, besieged Chunyu Qiong Army and burned rations. Yuan Shao knew that Wu Chao had been attacked, but he still refused the suggestion that Zhang He should be the main force to rescue him. He only sent a light horse to rescue him and led the main force to attack Cao Ying. At dawn, Cao Cao knew that Yuan Jun's reinforcements were coming, and the overseers fought. They first broke the Chunyu Qiong camp, then defeated the reinforcements, burned the Wuchao Liangmo, and returned to Guandu. Yuan Jun was unable to attack Cao Cao's camp, knowing that Wu Chao had fallen, his morale was shaken, and infighting broke out one after another. Zhang He burned his fighting equipment and surrendered to Cao Cao. Cao Cao took the opportunity to attack, defeated Yuan Jun and chased him to the river. * * * wiped out more than 7, Yuan Jun's main forces and seized all the military resources. Yuan Shao only led more than 8 people to flee to the north, and never recovered.
In the battle of Guandu, Cao Cao took advantage of Yuan Shao's weakness of bullying, arrogance, incompetence in employing people, and negligence in planning, and then took the initiative, coordinated attack and defense, grasped the fighter plane, and made a surprise attack, which became a famous war example in China's ancient war history.
-----------. Because of the war in Guandu (now northeast of Zhongmou, Henan Province), the history is called the Battle of Guandu.
at the end of the eastern Han dynasty, the clans were divided. After Dong Zhuo's Rebellion (189), after nearly ten years of melee, Yuan Shao and Cao Cao, the two most powerful separatists, were formed (see Wei Wudi and Cao Cao). In the fourth year of Jian 'an, Yuan Shao wiped out Gongsun Zan, a separatist state, and occupied four states (now Hebei, Shanxi, northeastern Shandong and parts of Yellow River and Hebei). Cao Cao occupied Yanzhou and Henan (now the west of Shandong and the southeast of Henan Yellow River), and welcomed Emperor Xian of Han to Xu (now Xu Changdong, Henan) in the first year of Jian 'an, and achieved the superior position of "relying on the emperor to make princes". Both sides have their own ambitions and try to dominate the world.
in the fourth year of Jian' an, Yuan Shao organized 1, troops and 1, horses to enter Liyang (now the northeast of Xun County, Henan Province) in an attempt to directly attack Xu and destroy Cao Cao in one fell swoop. In the first month of five years, in order to avoid being caught between Scylla and Charybdis, Cao Cao led his army eastward into Xuzhou, defeated Liu Bei, who was allied with Yuan Shao, forced Guan Yu to surrender and occupied Xiapi (now the south of Pixian County, Jiangsu Province). Then stationed in Guandu, which is easy to defend but difficult to attack, ready for battle. In February, Yuan Shao sent general Yan Liang south and surrounded Baima (now east of hua county, Henan). Cao Cao has only 2, soldiers and horses, and the power contrast is extremely wide. So he adopted the operational policy of diverting the East from the West and dividing his forces. In April, he led the army from Guandu to Yanjin (now Yanjin North, Henan Province) and made a gesture of crossing the Yellow River northward to attack the rear of Yuan Shao. Lombardi quickly suited to meet jun in the west. Jun took advantage of the situation and attacked the white horse, killing Yuan Shao's general Yan Liang. Yuan Shao heard the news and sent troops to chase him. Jun also beheaded Yuan Shao's general Wen Chou. Cao Jun's morale was greatly boosted, and then he returned the officers to cross the river, waiting for an opportunity to break the enemy. In July, Yuan Jun's main force entered Yangwu (now southeast of Yuanyang, Henan Province) in the north of Guandu. In August, close to Guandu, the military camp is dozens of miles long. When Cao Cao was outnumbered, he adopted the policy of active defense, and the two sides were at loggerheads in Guandu for several months. During this period, Cao Cao was once ready to give up Guandu and retreat to Xu. Xun Yu pointed out that retreat will lead to overall passivity, and we should look for fighters in persistence to win by surprise. Cao Cao followed his advice. In October, Yuan Shaopa sent Chunyu Qiong to send more than 1, troops to escort a large amount of grain, and hoarded it in the old city and Wuchao (now southeast of Yanjin, Henan Province), about 4 miles north of Yuan Jun's camp. Ju Shou suggested that Yuan Shao send troops to the granary flank to prevent the attack of Jun, but Yuan Shao refused. Xu You, the counselor, also suggested that while the main force of Cao Jun was stationed in Guandu and the rear was empty, he sent light troops to attack Xu, but Yuan Shao did not adopt it. Xu You defected to Cao Cao and told Yuan Jun the truth. Cao Cao decisively decided to leave Cao Hong and Xun You to stick to Guandu Camp, and personally led a five-thousand-step attack on Wu's nest. He arrived in the middle of the night, took Yuan Jun unprepared, laid siege to it, and set fire to its stores. Yuan Shao mistakenly thought that Cao Cao's camp in Guandu must be empty, so he sent Gao Lan and Zhang He to lead the main attack, and only sent a small number of troops to rescue Wu Chao. As a result, Cao Ying in Guandu was heavily guarded and firmly defended, and failed to capture it. At the same time, Cao Cao stormed the nest, killed the garrison commander Chunyu Qiong, adowa Yuan Jun, and burned all the stored grain. News came that Yuan Jun was in a panic and split internally. Zhang He and Gao Lan led their troops to surrender to Cao Cao. Cao Cao took the opportunity to attack, defeated Yuan Jun and wiped out more than 7, people. Yuan Shao and his son fled back to Hebei with 8 cavalry. Two years later, Yuan Shao died of depression and anger. This campaign laid the foundation for Cao Cao to unify the north.
-----------. At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the strongmen fought for independence and fought for the Central Plains. At that time, Yuan Shao owned four states, namely, Hebei, Qinghai, Youyou and Hebei. He relied on his abundant soldiers and food, and plotted to destroy Cao Cao in Yanzhou and Henan. In January of the fifth year of Jian 'an, Yuan Shao led 1, soldiers to the south. Prior to this, Cao Cao had defeated Liu Bei, who was allied with Yuan Shao, and moved to Guandu, which was easy to defend but difficult to attack. In April, Cao Cao attacked Yan Liang, the general of Yuan, and defeated Yuan Jun in Baima (now the slippery county of Henan Province). Yuan Shao lost in the first battle, his spirit was frustrated, and he changed his adventurous attack into a camp. The two armies fought against each other in Guandu for several months. In the meantime, Cao Cao once wanted to defend Xuchang (now Xu Changdong, Henan Province) because of the shortage of soldiers and food. Xun Yu, the counselor, believes that Cao Jun is weak and strong, so withdrawing troops will take advantage of it at this time; On the other hand, Yuan Jun underestimates his enemy, is divided internally, and the stalemate will change after a long time, which is a surprise victory. Cao Cao took his word and sent troops to attack and burn Yuan Jun's grain truck. He also led an elite 5 troops to attack the grain depot in Yuan Junwu's nest (now in Henan), wiped out Yuan Jun and burned all the stored grain. The news came that Yuan Shao and his men were shaken and surrendered in succession. Cao Cao took the opportunity to attack on all fronts, wiping out more than 7, enemies, and Yuan Shao and his son fled north with only 8. The battle of Guandu laid the foundation for Cao Cao to unify the north, and Yuan Shao never recovered. The battle of Guandu is a famous example in China's ancient war history.
-----------. In 2 AD (the fifth year of Jian 'an, Emperor Xian of the Eastern Han Dynasty), Cao Caojun and Yuan Shaojun were at loggerheads in Guandu (now northeast of Zhongmou, Henan Province), where they launched a strategic decisive battle. Cao Cao surprised Wu Chao (now Fengqiu West, Henan Province) and then defeated Yuan Jun's main force. This battle laid the foundation for Cao Cao's unification of northern China.
Background
In p>196 (the first year of Jian 'an), Cao Cao welcomed Xian Di and moved the capital to Xuchang. Since then, his power has greatly increased. He defeated Lu Bu, Yuan Shu and others successively and occupied Yanzhou, Yuzhou and Xuzhou. In 199 (the fourth year of Jian 'an), Yuan Shao finally defeated Gongsun Zan. According to Youzhou, Jizhou, Qingzhou and Bingzhou, he had all the land of Hebei, and wanted to go south to compete for the world. In this way, the decisive battle between the two most important political and military groups in North China is inevitable.
The initial situation was that Yuan Qiang Cao was weak. Yuan Shao has no worries, a vast territory and many people, and can mobilize more than 1 thousand troops. Cao Cao is under attack from all sides. Except Yuan Shao in the north, the generals in Guanzhong are still watching, while Liu Biao and Zhang Xiu in the south refuse to surrender, and Sun Ce in the southeast is stirring. Liu Bei, who is temporarily attached, is also close to each other. Nevertheless, some people of insight at that time, including Xun Yu and Guo Jia, Cao Cao's masterminds, also worked in Jia Xu under Zhang Xiu, and engaged in Yang Fu in Liangzhou. After comprehensively analyzing the advantages and disadvantages of Cao and Yuan, they thought that Yuan Shao was lenient outside and taboo inside, and they were all optimistic about Cao Cao, and felt that the situation would change in the direction favorable to Cao Cao.
periphery
in the fourth year of Jian' an, Zhang Xiu listened to Jia Xu's advice and surrendered to Cao Cao. Liu Biao lacks decision, and the two do not help each other. Cao Cao used Wei Ji's plan to soothe Guanzhong. This year, Cao Cao stationed troops in Guandu to defend Xudu.
in the first month of the fifth year of Jian' an, Cao Cao personally led the troops, defeated Liu Bei, who had betrayed Yuan Shao, in Xuzhou, captured Guan Yu alive and surrendered him, and immediately returned him to the army. Yuan Shao hesitated and lost the opportunity to attack Cao Cao.
In February, Yuan Shao led 1, infantry and 1, cavalry into Liyang (now northeast of Xun County, Henan Province), preparing to cross the river, and at the same time sent Yan Liang to attack Baima (now northeast of hua county, Henan Province).
in April, Cao Cao used Xun You's plan to make a diversion from the east to the west, pretending to cross the river in Yanjin, and inducing Yuan Shao to divide his troops to the west. In fact, he lightly attacked Baima, which caught Yan Liang off guard. In this battle, Guan Yu defeated Yan Liang. The siege of the white horse has been solved, and Cao Cao moved the people and retreated west along the river. Yuan Shao led the army to cross the river and pursued Cao Cao to the south of Yanjin. Cao Cao ordered the cavalry to release their horses and throw away the trench. Wen Chou and Liu Bei pursued them successively with five or six thousand cavalry, and the soldiers divided the trench, which gradually became chaotic. Cao Cao rode for more than 5, seized the opportunity to attack and killed Wen Chou. Since then, Cao Cao has also been an officer crossing, Yuan Shaojin has been protecting Yangwu (now southeast of Yuanyang, Henan Province), and Guan Yu has returned to Liu Bei.
Schematic diagram of the battle of Guandu
At that time, Sun Ce in Jiangdong tried to sneak up on Xudu, but was assassinated by an assassin. Runa yellow turban insurrectionary Liu Bi rebelled, and Yuan Shao sent Liu Bei to help him and break it for Coss.
At loggerheads
In August, Yuan Shao did not listen to Ju Shou's suggestion of sustained fighting, and gradually advanced from Yangwu to Guandu, relying on sand ridges as a chariot, covering dozens of miles from east to west.
in September, Cao Cao and Yuan Shao fought against each other, and turned to the enemy. Yuan Shao built a high oar, built a mound of mountains, and shot at a high altitude, so Cao Bing had to go under the shield. Cao Cao then made a thunderbolt car according to the advice of counselor Liu Hua, and sent stones to break the tower. Yuan Jun dug a tunnel again, and Cao Jun dug a long ditch. Cao Jun was running out of food and grass, and his foot soldiers were tired. Cao Cao wrote to Xun Yu to discuss retreating to Xu. Xun Yu wrote back: "Yuan Shao concentrated his main force in Guandu and wanted to win or lose the referendum. If the public is weak and strong, if it can't be controlled, it will be taken advantage of. This is the key to determining the general trend of the world. When Chu and Han were between Xingyang and Chenggao, Liu Bang and Xiang Yu were unwilling to take a step back first, thinking that if they retreated first, they would lose ground. It's been half a year since Yuan Shao was unable to move forward, with one being equal to ten. The situation is clear, there is no room for manoeuvre, and a major change will soon take place. This is the time to win by surprise. Don't miss it. " So Cao Cao decided to continue to stand by, and at the same time made Xu Huang and others harass Yuan Jun's supply line.
Surprise attack
In October, Yuan Shao sent-{Chunyu Qiong}-more than 1, soldiers to escort the commissary, and stayed in Wuchao (now Fengqiu West, Henan Province), forty miles away from Yuan Shao's camp. Ju Shou suggested that Jiang Ji should be sent to the flank to cover, but Yuan Shao did not follow. Xu You's offer of a light army to attack Xu Du at night was not adopted; His family was imprisoned for breaking the law, so Xu Sui broke with Yuan and turned to Cao Cao. Cao Cao came out barefoot to meet him and asked Xu You. Xu You told Cao Cao that Yuan Jun's trench was more than 1, yuan, and his garrison was lax. If he was advised to attack lightly, Yuan would be defeated. Cao Cao made a decisive decision and made Cao Hong and Xun You stay at Guandu Camp. They rode 5, men at their own pace, disguised as Yuan Jun's troops and Jiang Ji's troops. People tied their mouths with horses and carried firewood, and they quickly rushed to Wu's nest from the path at night, where they set fire to the siege, causing panic and confusion in Chunyu Qiong. At dawn, Chun-{Yu}-Qiong discovered Cao Cao and Serenade, went out to fight back, Cao Cao led the army to assault, and Chunyu Qiong retreated to the camp. When Yuan Shao learned of the military situation, he only sent Qingqi to rescue Chunyu Qiong, and ordered Zhang He and Gao Lan to attack Cao Cao Guandu camp heavily. Zhang He believes that the battlefield of Wuchao is the key to the war situation and should be fully rescued. Yuan Shao did not listen. When reinforcements approached Wu's nest, Cao Cao boosted morale, concentrated his forces, beheaded Chunyu Qiong first, and then broke the aid ride, burning all Yuan Jun's materials.
The news reached the front of Guandu, and Guo Tu, the counselor, framed Zhang He and Gao Lan. When Zhang He and Gao Lan learned that Yuan Shao was going to kill them, they led their troops to surrender Cao. So Yuan Jun completely collapsed, and Yuan Shao and his eldest son, Yuan Tan, only led his troops to cross the river and escape.
as a result,
in the battle of Guandu, Cao Cao won the world, but Yuan Shao's main elite was completely lost and weakened, and he was unable to compete with it. Since then, Yuan Jun has been losing ground. In the seventh year of Jian 'an, Yuan Shao died of illness. Later, Yuan Tan and Yuan Shang fought for positions, and there was chaos in Hebei. Cao Cao took advantage of the chaos and finally settled the north.
References (external links)
The History of the Three Kingdoms? Wei Shu? Emperor Wu Ji "
" Three Kingdoms? Wei Shu? Dong Zhuo Yuan Shao Yuan Shu Liu Biao Biography
Zi Zhi Tong Jian? Volume 63