Liu Biao

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This is a Chinese name; the family name is Liu (劉).
Liu Biao
Traditional Chinese: 劉表
Simplified Chinese: 刘表

Liú Biǎo (? - August, 208) was the governor of the Jing province during the late Eastern Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms era of China. He was of the same extended family as the Han emperors.

Once the Han Dynasty became consumed with war after the Yellow Turban Rebellion, he fought a war against the warlord, Sun Jian. One of Liu Biao's brilliant strategists, Kuai Liang, devised a plan to eliminate Sun Jian by crushing him with logs as he rode towards the main camp of Liu Biao, and succeeded. Later, Sun Jian's two elder sons, Sun Ce and Sun Quan, caused Liu Biao no end of trouble as they sought to avenge their father’s death. However, they did not cause Liu Biao's demise. Whilst Cao Cao, in the north, was gaining strength, Liu Biao chose to neither help nor hinder his conquests.

Later, during Cao Cao’s decisive Battle of Guandu against Yuan Shao (203- 207 AD), Liu Biao remained neutral, despite being one of the only other warlords in a position to oppose the two powers. Liu Biao, however, eventually decided to shelter Liu Bei, an enemy of Cao Cao. This made him a target of Cao Cao’s wrath. Later, after Cao Cao's unification of the North, a large army was sent to conquer the Jingzhou. Along with Liu Bei, Liu Biao's forces took several early victories. After impressing the remnants of Yuan Shao's forces into his already grand army, however, Cao Cao's superior numbers eventually took toll on Liu Biao's defenses. With a decline in relations between Liu Biao and Liu Bei, as a result of the meddling of Cai Mao's family, Liu Biao's people were faced with difficulty to say the least.

To make matters even worse, shortly after Cao Cao's main army began its offensive, Liu Biao, himself, died of sickness. According to the historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, long before his death, sensing his own deteriorating condition, he had discussed with Liu Bei which of his two sons should succeed him. The traditional choice would be his elder son, Liu Qi, yet he predicted (correctly) that his wife would favour Liu Cong, his second son. Ultimately, he followed Liu Bei's advice and chose Liu Qi to succeed him. However, after Liu Biao's death, his wife altered his will, leaving Liu Cong with possession of much of Liu Biao's land. The weak Liu Cong immediately surrendered to Cao Cao and his elder brother, who had still retained control of one city. Due to its strategic positioning between all three warring factions during the Three Kingdoms era, many battles were fought and lives lost in Jingzhou over the course of the various campaigns and battles fought between Shu Han, Cao Wei and Eastern Wu.

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