Jiang Wei

From Freepedia

Jiang Wei (姜維, 202-264), or Jiang Boyue, was amongst some 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 in the Battle of Tian Shui 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 planned a series of attacks against Wei.

Continuing Zhuge Liang's policy of eliminating Wei, Jiang Wei made seven invasions to the north (the attempted conquest of the central plains) between 247 A.D. and the disintengration of Shu. 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 serious 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. If anything, he was hugely respected by the Wei enemies for his tactical acumen, given the comparativley weaker resources which Shu had at her disposal, and the ever-hindering Liu Chan. Jiang 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, led by the incredibly resilient Deng Ai and Zhong Hui, conquered Shu. Jiang proposed to restore the kingdom by persuading Zhong to rebel, but his plot was discovered and Jiang killed himself out of guilt for he had 'given away' the Shu Kingdom and lost to Wei. Zhong Hui was killed by the Wei Army next year.

See also: Three Kingdoms