Xiahou Dun
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Missing image Xiahou_Dun_Portrait.jpg Illustration of Xiahou Dun swallowing his own eyeball from a Qing Dynasty edition of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms | |
| Names | |
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| Simplified Chinese: | 夏侯惇 |
| Traditional Chinese: | 夏侯惇 |
| Pinyin: | Xiàhóu Dūn |
| Wade-Giles: | Hsiahou Tun |
| Zi: | Yuanrang (元让) |
Xiahou Dun (? – 220) was a military general under the powerful warlord Cao Cao during the late Eastern Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms Period in ancient China. One of the most trusted men of Cao Cao's, Xiahou Dun aided the warlord in his campaigns against Lü Bu and Sun Quan.
Xiahou Dun lost his left eye during a battle in 194 and subsequently became known among the rank and file as "Blind Xiahou", which greatly irked him. His image as a one-eyed warrior was later popularized by the historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, in which he was said to have yanked out the arrow that struck him in the eye and devoured his own eyeball.
The Chronicles of the Three Kingdoms describes Xiahou Dun as a modest and generous man. He personally fetched his teacher to the camp so that he could continue his studies in the field. He also distributed any excess wealth he had, taking from the treasury only in need, and did not own any property. At his death, he was given the posthumous title of Marquis Zhong (忠侯), literally meaning the loyal marquis.
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Life
Xiahou Dun was born in the county of Qiao (present day Bozhou, Anhui). At fourteen, Xiahou Dun killed a man who insulted his teacher. His fiery personality had been well-known ever since. In 190, Xiahou Dun joined Cao Cao as the latter was raising an army to join the coalition against Dong Zhuo, the tyrannical warlord who held the emperor hostage.
Xiahou Dun had been a close aide to Cao Cao during the initial battles against Dong Zhuo as well as the Battle of Yanzhou, and was made a deputy commander. However, he suffered a huge humiliation in 194 when he was held hostage in his own camp. At that time, Cao Cao was leading a campaign against Tao Qian, the governor of the Xuzhou (徐州) whom Cao Cao accused of killing his father, leaving Xiahou Dun to guard the city of Puyang (濮阳).
However, Zhang Miao (张邈) and Chen Gong (陈宫), along with several other subjects of Cao Cao, rebelled. They colluded with Lü Bu, a mighty warrior leading a wandering army, and quickly occupied most of Yanzhou (兖州). Xiahou Dun immediately drew on a light cavalry force and headed for Juancheng (鄄城), where Cao Cao's family resided.
Xiahou_Dun_Opera_Facial_Makeup.jpg
On the way, Xiahou Dun ran into Lü Bu's force. Lü Bu evaded the encounter and came for Puyang. With its commander out in the field, Puyang soon felled. Lü Bu then sent envoys to Xiahou Dun, pretending to surrender. Lü Bu's man then took Xiahou Dun hostage within his own tent, and demanded a heavy ransom.
Fortunately, Xiahou Dun's subject Han Hao (韩浩) was calm and collected throughout the crisis. He quickly took over command of the troops and refused negotiations with the captors. He then ordered soldiers to storm Xiahou Dun's tent. Not expecting such hardline response, the traitors surrendered and were executed.
When Cao Cao learnt of the rebellion, he hastily returned and laid siege on Lü Bu in Puyang. After more than hundred days of stalemate, a famine breakout forced Lü Bu to give up his position and seek refuge under Liu Bei in Xiapi (下邳).
However, Lü Bu soon turned on his host and took over Xiapi, sending Liu Bei to nearby town of Xiaopei (小沛). In 198, Lü Bu even deployed his aide Gao Shun (高顺) to attack Xiaopei. Under the request from Liu Bei, Cao Cao sent Xiahou Dun to engage Gao Shun. However, Xiahou Dun lost the battle, during which he was struck by a stray arrow in the left eye. After personally leading an army to defeat Lü Bu, Cao Cao compensated Xiahou Dun by promoting him to Jianwu General (建武将军).
Xiahou Dun then spearheaded an agricultural program in the proximity of Chenliu (陈留, southeast of present day Kaifeng, Henan). He instructed workers to dam up the Taishou River (太寿水, a distributary of Huai River) so as to create a large pond. He then encouraged the people to grow paddy rice in the inundated land. The program greatly aided the people during the years of severe famine.
After the death of Cao Cao in 220, his successor Cao Pi forced the last emperor of the Han Dynasty to abdicate and subsequently assumed the throne as the first emperor of the Kingdom of Wei. Cao Pi then made Xiahou Dun the Supreme General (大将军). However, Xiahou Dun passed away just several months later.
Xiahou Dun in Romance of the Three Kingdoms
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The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, a historical novel by Luo Guanzhong, was a romanticization of the events that occurred before and during the Three Kingdoms period. In the book, Xiahou Dun was said to be a cousin of Cao Cao, while his loss of an eye was also made much more dramatic than it probably was.
In 198, Xiahou Dun was sent to engage Gao Shun (高顺) and Cao Xing, two aides of Lü Bu, outside Xiaopei (小沛). As his force came upon the enemies, Xiahou Dun rode forward with spear set to offer a challenge. Gao Shun took him on and the two dueled for forty or fifty bouts before Gao Shun, feeling outmatched, retreated. Xiahou Dun pursued him deep into the enemy lines.
Then Cao Xing secretly took aim and fired an arrow at Xiahou Dun. The arrow hit the target right in the left eye. With a cry, Xiahou Dun pulled out the arrow along with his eyeball. "Essence of my father, blood of my mother, I cannot throw this away," he exclaimed and swallowed the eye.
His spear firmly held up, Xiahou Dun then came straight for Cao Xing. With no time to react, Cao Xing was impaled right in the face and died beneath his nemesis' horse.
The Xiahou Clan
Direct descendants
- Xiahou Chong (夏侯充)
- Xiahou Yi (夏侯廙)
- Xiahou Zuo (夏侯佐)
- Xiahou Shao (succeeded Xiahou Zuo but is not a direct descendant of Xiahou Yi) (夏侯劭)
- Xiahou Yi (夏侯廙)
- Xiahou Mao (夏侯楙)
Immediate Family
- Xiahou Lian (younger brother) (夏侯廉)
Extended family
- Xiahou Yuan¹ (cousin)
- Xiahou Shang (nephew) (夏侯尚)
- Xiahou Xuan (夏侯玄)
- Xiahou Ben (grandnephew of Xiahou Shang) (夏侯本)
- Xiahou Xuan (夏侯玄)
- Xiahou Ru (adopted cousin, adopted brother of Xiahou Shang) (夏侯儒)
- Xiahou En (distant nephew) (夏侯恩)
- Xiahou De (fictitious nephew in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms) (夏侯德)
- Xiahou Feng (distant grandnephew, nephew of Xiahou Shang) (夏侯奉)
Uncertain relationships
- Xiahou Lan (夏侯兰)
- Xiahou Cun (夏侯存)
- Xiahou Xian (夏侯献)
¹ For a complete list of Xiahou Yuan's descendants, see Xiahou Yuan.