Jiang Wei
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Jiang Wei (姜維, 202-264), or Jiang Boyue, was one of the greatest generals during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. Originally a general of the Kingdom of Wei, he joined the Kingdom of Shu after his mother was invited by Zhuge Liang (the prime minister of Shu), and he himself had fallen into a trap laid by Zhuge Liang. He was taken by Zhuge as his protégé and earned a reputation as an outstanding warrior as well as a gifted strategist. Of note was his encounter with the already ageing Zhao Yun, and it was a masterful demonstration of the warriors' combat skills when they fought, with neither gaining the advantage. After the death of Zhuge Liang, Jiang succeeded him as the commander of the Shu armies and started a series of attacks against Wei.
From 247 until the demise of Shu, Jiang Wei made nine invasions to the north (the attempted conquest of the central plains). Under the circumstances described by the famous saying "Within Shu there are no great generals, such that even Liao Hua (a mediocre general) is at the front lines," Jiang Wei fought against the numerous famous generals of Wei, winning some battles and losing others. He was also a huge advocate of the triple-crossbow, and coupled with his brilliant strategies, the Wei Kingdom was ever under siege. At one point he had Sima Zhao, the Wei Commander-in-Chief, surrounded around Tie-long Mountain, almost costing Sima Zhao his life. But such was his luck, or lack of it, for that was not the only occasion when the Shu army came so close, but were yet so far. Subsequently, he was ultimately unsuccessful in his attempts to conquer or establish a firm foothold in the Kingdom of Wei, and as a result of all of these efforts, Jiang Wei depleted the strength of Shu.
In 263, Wei conquered Shu. Jiang proposed to restore the kingdom by persuading the Wei general Zhong Hui to rebel, but his plot was discovered and Jiang himself was killed along with the Zhong Hui by the Wei Army next year.
See also: Three Kingdomsfr:Jiang Wei ko:강유 ja:姜維 zh:姜维