Xu Huang
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Missing image Xu_Huang_Portrait.jpg Portrait of Xu Huang from a Qing Dynasty edition of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms | |
| Names | |
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| Simplified Chinese: | 徐晃 |
| Traditional Chinese: | 徐晃 |
| Pinyin: | Xú Huǎng |
| Wade-Giles: | Hsu Huang |
| Zi: | Gongming (公明) |
Xu Huang (? – 227) was a prominent general under the powerful warlord Cao Cao and his successor Cao Pi during the late Eastern Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms Period in ancient China. He was most noted for breaking the siege on the city of Fan in 219.
Chen Shou, author of the Chronicles of the Three Kingdoms, considered Xu Huang among the top five generals under Cao Cao, together with Yu Jin, Zhang He, Yue Jin and Zhang Liao.
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Life
Born in the county of Yang (杨, present day Hongdong, Shanxi) in the late years of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Xu Huang worked as a local administrative officer in his younger days. Later, he followed the Han general Yang Feng (杨奉) on a campaign against the Yellow Turban Rebellion and was appointed a captain of the cavalry (骑都尉).
In 196, after the death of Dong Zhuo, who held the emperor hostage, Xu Huang and Yang Feng escorted Emperor Xian from Chang'an back to Luoyang, which by then was much dilapidated. In the same year, Cao Cao came personally to Luoyang to move the emperor to Xuchang.
Xu Huang then prompted Yang Feng to join Cao Cao's camp, but Yang Feng did not heed the advice. Instead he sent out a force in a futile bid to snatch back Emperor Xian. Cao Cao soon retaliated and defeated Yang Feng, whereupon Xu Huang surrendered himself to Cao Cao.
Hereafter Xu Huang participated in every major campaign Cao Cao undertook, including offensives against Lü Bu, Yuan Shao, Ta Dun (蹋顿), and Ma Chao. Xu Huang performed well in all of them, being noted especially for his resourcefulness.
During the campaign against Yuan Shao's heirs in 203, the defender of the city of Yiyang (易阳) initially surrendered but soon changed his mind. Seeing such behavior, Xu Huang knew there were doubts in his enemy's heart. He then wrote a letter of persuasion and had it fired into the city on an arrow. The defender was hence won over and Xu Huang conquered the city without bloodshed.
In 215, Xu Huang was stationed at the Yangping Pass (阳平关) to defend Hanzhong against advances by Liu Bei, who attempted to sever the supply routes to the city. Xu Huang saw through the ploy and struck the enemy head-on. Many enemy soldiers jumped off the cliffs in the face of Xu Huang's ferocious attack. The city was then kept secure for the time being.
Xu Huang's most glorious moment in his military career came in the Battle of Fan in 219. When the city of Fan (樊, a district of present day Xiangfan, Hubei) was besieged by enemy general Guan Yu and the first relief force led by Yu Jin was vanquished, Xu Huang was sent with a second relief force to the city's help.
Knowing that most of his soldiers were newly trained, Xu Huang did not go into battle straight away but camped behind the enemy to impose a deterrence effect. Meanwhile, he instructed his men to dig trenches around the nearby enemy city of Yan (偃) in a pretense to cut off supplies into the city. The enemies were deceived and abandoned their position. Xu Huang then established a foothold in Yan.
By this time more support troops had arrived, and with the strengthened army Xu Huang finally unleashed an attack on Guan Yu's camp. Guan Yu personally led 5,000 horsemen to meet the attackers, but was eventually outmatched. Many of his soldiers were forced into the nearby Han River and drowned. The siege on Fan was then broken. When Cao Cao heard of the victory, he praised Xu Huang and compared the general to Sun Tzu and Tian Rangju¹.
Upon Xu Huang's return, Cao Cao went seven li out of the city to greet him, giving him full credits for securing Fan. Throughout the field reception, the soldiers of other commanders shifted about in order to get a better view of Cao Cao, but Xu Huang's men stood stationary in neat files. Seeing this, Cao Cao lauded, "General Xu has truly inherited the style of Zhou Yafu²."
After Cao Cao's death in 220, Xu Huang continued to be heavily trusted by the successor Cao Pi. He was made General of the Right (右将军) and Marquis of Yangping (阳平侯). When Cao Pi's successor Cao Rui took over in 227, he sent Xu Huang to defend Xiangyang against Wu invasion. However, Xu Huang died in the same year due to sickness, leaving behind a will demanding a burial in plain clothes. He was given the posthumous title of Marquis Zhuang (壮侯), literally meaning the robust marquis.
¹ Tian Ranju (田穰苴) was a general of the State of Qi during the Warring States period.
² Zhou Yafu (周亚夫) was a general during the early Western Han Dynasty.
Xu Huang in Romance of the Three Kingdoms
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. Xu Huang made his first appearance in Chapter 13, where he served under Yang Feng (杨奉), a military officer in the capital Chang'an. Together they escorted Emperor Xian back to Luoyang after the death of Dong Zhuo, who had been holding the emperor hostage.
When Cao Cao came to Luoyang to fetch the emperor to Xuchang, Yang Feng sent out Xuhuang to deter him. Seeing the formidable Xuhuang on his horse, Cao Cao knew he was an extraordinary man. The warlord then dispatched his personal bodyguard and one of his fiercest warriors Xu Chu to duel with the enemy.
Neither side could gain an advantage over each other after fifty bouts, by when Cao Cao was very impressed by Xu Huang's skills. Not wanting either duelist to get hurt, Cao Cao then called for Xu Chu to retreat. Knowing his lord intended to recruit Xu Huang, Man Chong (满宠), a subject of Cao Cao and a fellow townsman of Xu Huang, volunteered to persuade Xu Huang to defect.
The very night, Man Chong disguised himself as a common soldier and sneaked into Xu Huang's tent. After some persuasion, Xu Huang was won over. Man Chong then suggested slaying Yang Feng as a gesture of defection. However, Xu Huang was a righteous man and refused to kill his former superior.
In the book Xu Huang met his end outside Xincheng (新城), where he was shot in his forehead by Meng Da (孟达) from the city wall. His men immediately took him back to camp, where the physician removed the arrow and tried to heal him, but the general eventually died on the same night. The novel claimed that he was fifty-nine years old, but the figure is not supported by any historical record.