Battle of Hulao Pass

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A Qing Dynasty drawing of Lü Bu fighting the three sworn brothers

Date	190 (Never happened historically)
Location	Hulao Pass, Henan
Result	Coalition victory

Combatants

Anti-Dong Zhuo Coalition

Dong Zhuo

Commanders

Wang Kuang, Qiao Mao, Bao Xin, Yuan Yi, Kong Rong, Zhang Yang, Tao Qian, Gongsun Zan

Dong Zhuo

Strength

Unknown

150,000

Fictional battles of the Campaign against Dong Zhuo
Sishui Pass – Hulao Pass

The Battle of Hulao Pass (虎牢關之戰) was a fictional battle in China in 190 AD, described in the novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. According to Sanguo Zhi, the authoritative source for the Three Kingdoms period, the battle for Hulao Pass never occurred.

1 In Romance of the Three Kingdoms
2 Validity
3 Cultural references
4 References

[edit] In Romance of the Three Kingdoms

[edit] Background

Main article: Campaign against Dong Zhuo

In 190, the warlord Dong Zhuo entered the Han capital Luoyang, taking control of the imperial court. The warlord Cao Cao saw this as a significant threat, and, together with other warlords, formed a new coalition with Yuan Shao as their head. The coalition first attacked Sishui Pass, and after slaying its defender Hua Xiong, they marched on to Hulao Pass, 50 li from Luoyang.

[edit] The battle

Heeding the death of Hua Xiong, Dong Zhuo personally brought an army of 150,000 men with Lü Bu, Li Ru, Fan Chou, and Zhang Ji east to Hulao Pass, while sending 50,000 men under Li Jue and Guo Si to reinforce Sishui Pass. Once at Hulao Pass, Dong Zhuo ordered Lü Bu to lead the vanguard with 30,000 men and set camp in front of the fortified pass.

The coalition decided to send half of their forces to engage Dong Zhuo's forces. Eight coalition warlords, namely, Wang Kuang, Qiao Mao, Bao Xin, Yuan Yi, Kong Rong, Zhang Yang, Tao Qian, and Gongsun Zan, each led their forces towards Hulao Pass under Yuan Shao's command. The first to arrive in Hulao Pass was Wang Kuang, where one of his officers Fang Yue volunteered to duel Lü Bu. In less than five rounds, Fang Yue was killed, and Lü Bu charged through Wang Kuang's force, killing the routing soldiers left and right. Fortunately for Wang Kuang, the forces of Qiao Mao and Yuan Yi came to his rescue. They decided to withdraw 30 li from the pass and set camp there.

Soon, the remaining five coalition warlords arrived at the camp, where they discussed and concluded that Lü Bu cannot be defeated by anyone. Just then, Lü Bu's men arrayed outside the coalition camp, and the eight coalition warlords went to meet the enemy. Mu Shun, an officer under Zhang Yang, galloped towards Lü Bu with his horse, but was immediately killed. Wu Anguo, an officer of Kong Rong, then charged out with his metal club. They fought for ten rounds, but then Lü Bu slit off Wu Anguo's wrist with his halberd. The coalition forces charged out and rescued Wu Anguo, and each side retreated to their own camps. Cao Cao commented that all eighteen warlords should be collected to discuss a plan to defeat Lü Bu, and that if Lü Bu is defeated, Dong Zhuo would be easy to kill.

The three sworn brothers – Liu Bei, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei – joined hands to fight Lǚ Bù at Hulao Pass in the 84-episode TV serial Romance of the Three Kingdoms

Just then, Lü Bu again came out to taunt the coalition. This time Gongsun Zan himself went to challenge Lü Bu, but had to withdraw after a few rounds. Lü Bu gave chase, but he was distracted by Zhang Fei, who called him a slave with three surnames (referring to Lü Bu's own surname and those of his two adopted fathers). Lü Bu then battled Zhang Fei for fifty rounds, with neither gaining an advantage over the other. Then Guan Yu, brandishing his Green Dragon Crescent Blade, dashed out to assist his oath brother. The three fighters were engaged in another thirty bouts or so when Liu Bei, holding up his Dual Swords, also joined the battle.

Like a merry-go-round, the three oath brothers galloped in a circle caging Lü Bu inside. Unable to face the combined efforts of his three opponents, Lü Bu then made a feign at Liu Bei and retreated through the resulting gap back to the pass gate. The trio chased after Lü Bu but due to the speed of Red Hare, his horse, they could not keep up with him. However they abandoned the chase after they spotted Dong Zhuo. Zhang Fei attempted to charge onto the fortification to kill Dong Zhuo, but he was repelled by the rain of arrows from the pass.

The eight coalition warlords declared the battle won, and received Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei for a celebration of their victory.

[edit] Aftermath

In light of his recent defeat, Dong Zhuo asked his aid Li Ru for advice. Li Ru responded that the whole army should retreat to Chang'an, bringing Luoyang's citizens and the imperial court with them. Dong Zhuo was delighted at the idea, and, despite heavy objection, carried through with the move, and razed Luoyang to the ground. Zhao Cen, the guard for Sishui Pass at the time, abandoned the pass once he knew of Dong Zhuo's general retreat.

[edit] Validity

As mentioned above, there was no engagement in Hulao Pass recorded in history during this time and the battle is likely a fictionalized event. In fact, historical records contradict Romance of the Three Kingdoms author Luo Guanzhong's retelling of the story in several points, such as:

Hulao Pass was not fortified until the early Tang Dynasty.
Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei did not participate in the coalition. At this time, they were fighting Yellow Turban remnants in Xiapi. Only two years later, when they were defeated, did they join Gongsun Zan like the novel said.

See also: Campaign against Dong Zhuo

Historically, however, there were confrontations between the coalition and Dong Zhuo where Dong Zhuo and Lü Bu both participated personally, but it took place in Dagu Pass (大谷關) in the south instead, with only Sun Jian's forces present on the coalition side. In that battle, both Lü Bu and Dong Zhuo were defeated by Sun Jian. Sanguo Zhi briefly describes that battle: "In Dagu Pass, ninety li from Luoyang, Dong Zhuo himself came out to fight with Sun Jian amongst the tombs of Han emperors. Dong Zhuo was defeated and fled. Sun Jian advanced to Luoyang and attacked Lü Bu. He defeated him too and put him to flight."

[edit] Cultural references

Although a work of fiction, Luo Guanzhong's compelling account of the duel between Lü Bu, the mightiest warrior in the novel, and the three sworn brothers makes it one of the most celebrated events in Chinese literature. Several sects of the Chinese opera, such as the Cantonese opera, have skits relating to this battle (commonly known as "Three Heroes Battle Lü Bu"; Traditional Chinese: 三英戰呂布; pinyin: Sān yīng zhàn Lǚ Bù).

More recently, this event has been reenacted in video games such as Dynasty Warriors and Sangokushi Sousouden, among others.