The Siege of Jiangling was a battle whose repercussions were felt until Jin’s conquest of Wu 70 years later. Although Cao Cao received the city when Liu Cong surrendered to him in 208, he lost it to Sun Quan’s forces in the subsequent years. It then became one of the primary targets of Wei’s campaigns in the region, withstanding attack on multiple occasions. It was a city of key tactical significance, and one of Wu’s great defensive bastions. The battle that put the city in Sun Quan’s hands was one of Zhou Yu’s finest and deserves a full discussion.
In 208, Liu Cong surrendered to Cao Cao, giving him control of Jing province. Cao Cao attempted to capitalize on this victory with a campaign against Sun Quan. However, Sun Quan’s forces defeated Cao Cao at Wulin in winter of that same year, with assistance from Liu Bei. At the start of 209, Sun Quan began efforts to push back against Cao Cao.
Following his victory at Wulin, Sun Quan’s first task was to capture Jing province. He and Liu Bei named Liu Qi, son of Liu Biao, as their own Inspector of Jing.[1] In the previous year, Liu Qi had become Executor of Jiangxia to replace Huang Zu[2] where he remained after taking the title of Inspector. Cao Cao appointed his own executor to Jiangxia, a former general of Liu Biao’s named Wen Ping, so the territory was disputed between them.[3] For his part, Liu Bei led an army into southern Jing in hopes of securing the commanderies of Wuling, Changsha, Lingling, and Guiyang.[4] With Liu Qi’s men fighting in Jiangxia and the four southern commanderies, Sun Quan was free to focus his attention elsewhere. He began a two-pronged assault on Cao Cao’s southernmost holdings.
The victors of Wulin, under Zhou Yu and Cheng Pu, pursued Cao Cao’s forces to Nan commandery. Cao Cao himself withdrew north, leaving Cao Ren to defend Nan from the city of Jiangling. Somewhat farther north, Yue Jin defended Xiangyang. Sun Quan personally led a second army to attack Hefei, supported by a detachment under Zhang Zhao sent against nearby Dangtu.[5]
Liu Bei sent Zhang Fei with one-thousand men to support Zhou Yu’s advance, while Zhou Yu dispatched two thousand soldiers to assist Liu Bei in the south.[6] Guan Yu was also sent to aid Zhou Yu. At the time, Xu Huang was stationed at Fan. With Man Chong, he led his army against Guan Yu, defeating him at Han Crossing. Xu Huang then proceeded to Jiangling to reinforce Cao Ren.[7]
Zhou Yu brought the bulk of his army forward to meet Cao Ren and the two camped on opposite sides of the Changjiang. Rather than attempt to force a crossing, Zhou Yu sent Gan Ning upriver with a small detachment to attack Yiling.[8] This was at Gan Ning’s own suggestion. Yiling was lightly defended, and Gan Ning captured the city quickly. Cao Ren responded by sending several thousand men to retake Yiling. Gan Ning was badly outnumbered but showed no fear. He sent a dispatch to Zhou Yu requesting reinforcements while fighting back relentlessly.[9]
Although Zhou Yu received Gan Ning’s messenger, his subordinates thought that their army wasn’t large enough to both maintain their position and rescue Gan Ning. Lü Meng presented Zhou Yu and Cheng Pu with a plan. He suggested leaving Ling Tong to guard the main camp, while Lü Meng went with them to raise the siege on Yiling. He believed that no matter the odds, Ling Tong could hold out for ten days. He also suggested sending out a small force to block the narrow trails with firewood so that if Cao Ren’s forces fled, they would have to abandon their horses. Zhou Yu accepted Lü Meng’s plan and led the army to Yiling. They attacked Cao Ren’s forces immediately upon arriving, and Cao Ren’s men retreated after sustaining heavy casualties. As Lü Meng predicted, they encountered his obstructions and had to abandon their mounts. Zhou Yu pursued them and collected the horses, doubling the strength of his cavalry forces.[10]
On the back of this success, Zhou Yu was able to establish a camp on the northern side of the river, from which he could besiege Jiangling.[11] The city, however, did not fall easily. As Zhou Yu’s vanguard approached the city, Cao Ren dispatched his subordinate Niu Jin with a few hundred men to intercept them. But Zhou Yu’s forces were more numerous than anticipated and Niu Jin was soon surrounded. Cao Ren refused to abandon men he’d sent into the field and immediately donned his armor. Against the warnings of his subordinates, he rode forth from Jiangling with a small group of his best soldiers. Cao Ren charged into the encirclement and broke through, allowing Niu Jin to escape. Some of Niu Jin’s soldiers were still left behind, so Cao Ren led a second charge and rescued the remainder. In the face of Cao Ren’s extraordinary might, Zhou Yu’s vanguard withdrew. Cao Ren’s adjutant, astonished by the display, declared his prowess to be godlike. In later years, the Wei-Jin historian Fu Xuan praised Cao Ren as superior even to Zhang Liao.[12]
The siege of Jiangling proceeded for the next several months. Zhou Yu was in the habit of inspecting the front lines himself, and on one of these occasions, he was hit by an arrow. The wound was severe enough to force him to return to camp. Word of the injury reached Cao Ren, as well as the rumor that Zhou Yu couldn’t even get out of bed. Hearing this, Cao Ren initiated an attack on Zhou Yu’s camp. However, Zhou Yu roused himself and personally oversaw the defense. Rallied by their commander, Zhou Yu’s men forced Cao Ren back.[13]
The siege of Jiangling dragged on for over a year. Eventually, however, Cao Ren determined that he’d lost enough. In Winter of 209, he withdrew from the city.[14] Previously, Liu Bei had proposed using Zhang Fei’s force to sail up the Xia river and cut off Cao Ren’s rear.[15] As Cao Ren withdrew, Guan Yu attempted to attack him from the north. Cao Ren’s general Li Tong led his men to intercept Guan Yu. They broke Guan Yu’s camp and drove his troops back, allowing Cao Ren to escape.[16] Thus the long battle at Jiangling came to an end.
In the wake of this victory, Sun Quan made Zhou Yu the Executor of Nan.[17] During this time, Liu Qi passed away, and Liu Bei replaced him as Governor of Jing.[18] Cheng Pu became Executor of Jiangxia,[19] which was previously Liu Qi’s headquarters. Sun Quan now controlled the commanderies of Nan and Jiangxia, while Liu Bei held the southern part of Jing.
In the meantime, Sun Quan’s efforts in the east were unsuccessful. Zhang Zhao was unable to gain advantage at Dangtu and withdrew. Sun Quan continued his siege at Hefei, while Cao Cao dispatched reinforcements under a general named Zhang Xi.[20] In Hefei, the Steward of Yang Jiang Ji used false messages to convince Sun Quan that Zhang Xi was drawing near with a large army, so Sun Quan withdrew.[21]
Despite working with him at Wulin and Jiangling - or perhaps because of it - Zhou Yu did not trust Liu Bei. He sent a letter to Sun Quan, describing Liu Bei as “ruthless and formidable” saying he “will not long submit to serve another.” He suggested building Liu Bei a palace in Wu and giving him wealth and women with which to amuse himself. He further suggested separating Liu Bei’s loyalists by assigning them to different posts and engaging them in battles to keep them busy. He concluded his letter saying, “Now if territory is divided to give him a foundation, and these three are allowed to gather on our border, I fear it is like a rain dragon reaching the clouds, to never again be constrained to a pool.” However, Sun Quan did not follow Zhou Yu’s advice.[22]
Although Zhou Yu had other plans, he passed away in 210[23] and was replaced by Cheng Pu replaced as the Executor of Nan.[24] At Zhou Yu’s request, Sun Quan turned to Lu Su as his chief adviser.[25] Sun Quan divided Changsha to create a new commandery called Hanchang. Lu Su was appointed executor, with his headquarters at Lukou.[26] Furthermore, Sun Quan granted Nan commandery, including Jiangling, to Liu Bei, at Lu Su’s suggestion.[27] Cheng Pu subsequently returned to Jiangxia.[28]
Jing province was now divided between three factions. Cao Cao firmly held Nanyang and much of Jiangxia, as well as a small parcel of land in Nan - including the key cities of Xiangyang and Fan (governed as part of Nanyang). Sun Quan held Hanchang and a portion of Jiangxia, while Liu Bei commanded the rest of the province. He divided the existing commanderies to create several more.
Jiangling remained in Liu Bei’s possession for the next several years. In 219, however, Liu Bei’s Executor of Nan Mi Fang surrendered the city to Lü Meng, allowing Sun Quan to take control of all Jing province. Jiangling remained in Sun hands until the destruction of the state in 280.
