Battle of Guandu facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Battle of Guandu |
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| Part of the wars at the end of the Han dynasty | |||||||
 A map of the battle. It shows the movements during the battles of Boma and Yan Ford. Flanking attempts are not shown. Note that the Yellow River has changed course over the centuries and the places depicted are no longer at the same locations relative to the river. |
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| Belligerents | |||||||
| Cao Cao | Yuan Shao | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Cao Cao Cao Hong Guo Jia Xun Yu Cheng Yu Xun You Guan Yu Zhang Liao Xu Chu Yue Jin Xu Huang Yu Jin Xiahou Yuan |
Yuan Shao Chunyu Qiong  Guo Tu Tian Feng Ju Shou Shen Pei Yan Liang † Wen Chou † Zhang He  Yuan Tan Liu Bei |
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| Strength | |||||||
| About 40,000 | ~110,000 | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| ~8,000 | ~80,000 | ||||||
The Battle of Guandu was a huge fight between two powerful warlords, Cao Cao and Yuan Shao, in the year 200 AD. This happened during the late Eastern Han dynasty in China. Cao Cao won a major victory, even though Yuan Shao had many more soldiers.
This battle was a turning point in their war. It helped Cao Cao become the strongest leader in northern China. This win later led to the creation of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period.
Contents
Why They Fought
By 196 AD, it was clear that Cao Cao and Yuan Shao would eventually go to war. Yuan Shao controlled the lands north of the Yellow River, a region called Hebei. Cao Cao controlled most of the lands south of the Yellow River. He had defeated another warlord, Lü Bu, in 199 AD.
Cao Cao also had Emperor Xian with him in his new capital city, Xu. Both warlords wanted to conquer and rule all of China. They saw each other as the main obstacle to their goals.
Some years before the battle, Yuan Shao's advisors, Ju Shou and Tian Feng, warned him. They said Cao Cao would become a threat. They told Yuan Shao to attack Cao Cao while he was still building his army. But Yuan Shao ignored them because Cao Cao was still technically an ally. Tensions grew after Cao Cao moved the Emperor from the old capital, Luoyang.
Getting Ready for Battle
Guandu (located northeast of present-day Zhongmu County, Henan) was a very important place for military strategy. It was close to Yan Ford on the Yellow River. It was also on the main road to the capital city of Xu. Cao Cao knew how important this spot was. In the autumn of 199, he sent troops there and built strong defenses.
Other troops were placed along the front line. Liu Yan was at Boma, and Yu Jin was at Yan Ford. Cao Cao also sent Zang Ba to bother Qing Province. This province was ruled by Yuan Shao's son, Yuan Tan. This stopped Yuan Tan from attacking Cao Cao's eastern side.
In early 200 AD, Liu Bei rebelled against Cao Cao. He took over Xu Province. Cao Cao did something unexpected. He left his northern front open to Yuan Shao. He turned east to take back Xu Province. Yuan Shao tried to use this chance to attack south. But Yu Jin, who defended Yan Ford, stopped him.
When Cao Cao returned to Guandu, Yuan Shao decided to attack again. Liu Bei, who had fled to Yuan Shao, was now with him. Tian Feng, who had told Yuan Shao to attack earlier, now advised against it. He said they had missed their chance and should wait. Yuan Shao ignored Tian Feng and put him in prison.
Soon after, Yuan Shao had Chen Lin write a document. It was a formal declaration of war against Cao Cao. Yuan Shao then marched his main army towards Liyang, north of the river. At this time, Yuan Shao's army had about 110,000 soldiers, including 10,000 cavalry.
Fights Along the Yellow River
Yuan Shao's general, Yan Liang, crossed the Yellow River. He then surrounded Cao Cao's fort at Boma. Cao Cao listened to his advisor Xun You. He led a small group of soldiers towards Yan Ford. This was a trick to make Yuan Shao think Cao Cao would attack his camp. Yuan Shao split his troops from Liyang to stop Cao Cao's fake attack. This left Yan Liang without support at Boma.
Cao Cao then quickly moved east to help Boma. In the battle that followed, Guan Yu killed Yan Liang. Yuan Shao's army was completely defeated.
Cao Cao decided to leave the fort at Boma and move its people south. Wen Chou and Liu Bei saw this as a chance to attack. They led 6,000 horsemen to chase Cao Cao. Cao Cao expected this. He told his soldiers to drop their horses, weapons, and other valuable things along the way. Yuan Shao's soldiers broke ranks to grab these items. As they were collecting the goods, 600 of Cao Cao's best cavalry, who were hiding, attacked them. Wen Chou was killed, and Liu Bei ran away. Losing two generals in these small fights before the main battle hurt Yuan Shao's army morale a lot.
Moving to Yangwu and Flanking Attacks
Even though Cao Cao won the first battles, he still had fewer soldiers. He left the small bases along the Yellow River. He wanted to focus on a strong defense at Guandu. Cao Cao also told his officials to be kind to the people in his lands. This was to keep everyone calm and help his army's morale.
After the river battles, Yuan Shao's army moved to Yangwu. This place was just north of Guandu. They started building earth defenses there. Yuan Shao ignored Cheng Yu's small fort of 700 men at Juancheng. He missed a chance to attack Cao Cao's eastern side. This was exactly what Cheng Yu had predicted.
Yuan Shao changed how his forces were organized. He sent Liu Bei with an army to help rebellions against Cao Cao. These rebellions were happening near the capital. Cao Cao was worried about these attacks behind his lines. But his cousin, Cao Ren, said Liu Bei probably didn't have much control over his new soldiers. So Cao Cao sent Cao Ren to deal with the rebellion. Cao Ren succeeded, killing the rebel leader and defeating Liu Bei.
Yuan Shao also tried to cut off Cao Cao from the west. He sent Han Meng southwest. Cao Ren again stopped this threat. He defeated Han Meng at Mount Jiluo. After this, Yuan Shao did not send any more separate forces into Cao Cao's land.
At Yangwu, Yuan Shao received several battle plans. Ju Shou said that Cao Cao's men were running out of food. He suggested a long war, where they would avoid a big battle. Another advisor, Xu You, suggested that Yuan Shao keep fighting at Guandu. But he also said Yuan Shao should send men to go around and capture the emperor in Xu. Yuan Shao liked neither plan. He said he preferred to capture the emperor by directly attacking.
The Standoff at Guandu
In the eighth month, Yuan Shao's army slowly moved south from Yangwu. They started fighting Cao Cao's men in trench warfare. Both sides built earth walls and attacked each other with war machines. Yuan Shao built tall ramps and platforms. These allowed his men to shoot arrows down on Cao Cao's forces. Cao Cao's men had to hold their shields over their heads. They fought back with traction trebuchets that destroyed Yuan Shao's platforms. Yuan Shao also tried to dig tunnels under Cao Cao's fort. But Cao Cao dug a large ditch inside his lines to block the tunnels. Neither side could defeat the other, and they were stuck in a stalemate.
Soon, Cao Cao's army started running low on supplies. Cao Cao wondered if he should retreat to lure Yuan Shao deeper into his territory. Xun Yu, who defended the capital Xu, sent Cao Cao a letter. He told him not to retreat. He wrote that Cao Cao's supplies were low, but not as bad as in past wars. He said that the first to retreat shows weakness. He urged Cao Cao to hold his ground. He believed Yuan Shao's strength would soon run out, and a chance for a surprise attack would appear.
Cao Cao followed this advice and held his position. In the ninth month, Xun Yu pointed out that Yuan Shao was storing supplies at a depot in Gushi. This place was guarded by Han Meng. Cao Cao sent small cavalry units led by Xu Huang and Shi Huan to attack this spot. They succeeded, defeating Han Meng and burning Yuan Shao's grain carts. This forced Yuan Shao to ask for more supplies.
The Attack on Wuchao
In the tenth month, Yuan Shao's general Chunyu Qiong returned with 10,000 soldiers. They were bringing huge amounts of food supplies. Yuan Shao told Chunyu Qiong to take the supplies to Wuchao. This place was 40 li away from Guandu. Chunyu Qiong was put in charge of guarding the supplies there. Yuan Shao's advisor Ju Shou argued that Wuchao was too important to be so lightly guarded. He said Yuan Shao should send another general, Jiang Qi, to protect Chunyu Qiong and stop any raids. Yuan Shao again ignored Ju Shou's advice.
Soon after, Yuan Shao's advisor Xu You switched sides and joined Cao Cao. Xu You was unhappy because Yuan Shao didn't follow his plans. He also had his wife arrested. Xu You knew Cao Cao was short on supplies. He told Cao Cao about Yuan Shao's weak spot at Wuchao. Cao Cao's generals were suspicious of this information. But his advisors Xun You and Jia Xu told Cao Cao to follow Xu You's plan.
So, at night, Cao Cao led 5,000 foot soldiers and cavalry to attack Wuchao. He left Cao Hong and Xun You in charge of his main camp at Guandu. Cao Cao's army pretended to be a reinforcement unit from Yuan Shao. They attacked Wuchao by surprise. Chunyu Qiong's first defenses were quickly defeated. He retreated to his forts, which Cao Cao attacked and set on fire.
When Yuan Shao's camp heard that Wuchao was under attack, Zhang He told Yuan Shao to send help to Wuchao. He said the fate of the whole campaign depended on saving the supplies. However, Guo Tu suggested the opposite. He said they should attack Cao Cao's main base at Guandu. He hoped Cao Cao would then stop his raid on Wuchao. Yuan Shao chose Guo Tu's idea. He sent Zhang He and Gao Lan to lead his main army to attack Cao Cao's camp at Guandu. He sent only a small cavalry unit to help Wuchao.
Cao Cao ignored pleas to split his forces to deal with the reinforcements. He prepared his men to fight to the end. The raid on Wuchao was a huge success. Over a thousand of Yuan Shao's soldiers were killed. Four of Yuan Shao's officers were killed. Chunyu Qiong was captured. Almost all of Yuan Shao's food supplies at Wuchao were burned.
By morning, Wuchao was a huge fire. The morale of Yuan Shao's army dropped sharply because they had lost their food.
Meanwhile, at Guandu, Yuan Shao's army, led by Zhang He and Gao Lan, could not break through Cao Cao's lines. They heard about the defeat at Wuchao. They also heard rumors that Guo Tu was speaking badly about them. Zhang He and Gao Lan then surrendered to Cao Hong and destroyed their weapons. Cao Cao's forces used this chance to launch a full attack on Yuan Shao's army. Yuan Shao's large armies were destroyed. Cao Cao captured many of his supplies. Yuan Shao himself fled north across the Yellow River with only about 800 cavalry. This was all that was left of his army. Order was restored only when Yuan Shao reached the camp of his general Jiang Yiqu. From there, he gathered his scattered troops.
Some of Yuan Shao's men could not cross the Yellow River in time and were captured by Cao Cao, including Ju Shou. Some of these men pretended to surrender so they could escape later. So Cao Cao had these men buried. In his victory announcement to Emperor Xian, Cao Cao said he had killed 70,000 enemy soldiers.
What Happened Next
Cao Cao's victory at the Battle of Guandu was a major win. It completely changed the course of his fight for power with Yuan Shao. Yuan Shao died in June 202 AD. His youngest son, Yuan Shang, became his successor soon after. His oldest son, Yuan Tan, was very angry about this. He fought with his younger brother. This caused a big conflict within Yuan Shao's forces. Yuan Shao's many talented advisors and generals were also split into two groups by this fight. One group supported Yuan Shang, and the other supported Yuan Tan.
Cao Cao used this chance to attack Yuan Tan's base at Liyang. Even though Cao Cao eventually pulled back, Yuan Tan grew to dislike Yuan Shang even more during the battle. This led to open warfare between the brothers. Yuan Tan eventually joined with Cao Cao against Yuan Shang. But Cao Cao accused Yuan Tan of breaking their agreement and killed him in battle.
Yuan Shang lost battles to Cao Cao and fled north to join his second brother, Yuan Xi. Cao Cao's forces chased them. They defeated the Wuhuan tribe, who were allies of the Yuan brothers, in the Battle of White Wolf Mountain. Yuan Shang and Yuan Xi fled to Liaodong to find safety with the warlord Gongsun Kang in 207 AD. But Gongsun Kang killed them instead and sent their heads to Cao Cao. By then, most of northern China was united under Cao Cao's control. Cao Cao could then start to focus on conquering the south.
