During the Three Kingdoms period, for about 100 years after the Yellow Turban Army uprising in 184 AD, the Central Plains rose up and fought continuously.
According to common sense, nomads in the north during this period often marched south, posing a great threat to the Central Plains Dynasty.
At the end of the Qin Dynasty, the Xiongnu took advantage of the great chaos in the world to go south and reclaim the Hetao area previously taken by Meng Tian.
In the last years of the Western Jin Dynasty, the same Xiongnu took advantage of the "Rebellion of the Eight Kings" and directly sent troops to destroy the Western Jin Dynasty, opening the bloody "Five Hu Chaos".
During the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period, the Khitan went south to seize the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun.
However, the Three Kingdoms period was a special case, when the Central Plains were beaten into a pot of porridge, but the foreign races in the north never went south to invade the Central Plains.
Even though Cao Cao, who was in the north, experienced such a defeat as the Battle of Chibi, the Xiongnu still did not dare to act rashly.
You know, Fu Jian, the former Qin Heavenly King who unified the north a hundred years later, experienced the defeat of Shuishui, which directly led to the demise of the country.
Why is that?
In fact, the reason for the problem is very simple: that is, during the Three Kingdoms period, the strength of the Central Plains departments was too strong!
As we all know, the Three Kingdoms period was an era of talent.
There are many famous generals who have always been remembered by posterity, whether it is the strategizing under the battlefield or the conquest and killing on the battlefield, it is thrilling.
However, almost all of these deeds, which were widely praised by later generations, occurred when the forces of the Central Plains fought against each other, and the deeds of fighting against foreign tribes were rarely mentioned.
Similarly, those well-known famous generals do not have many achievements in foreign races.
In fact, this is because at that time, all the tribes in the Central Plains fought against foreign tribes, and there were almost no famous generals, and there were no praiseworthy major battles.
At that time, in the north of the Central Plains, there were mainly ethnic minority countries such as the Southern Xiongnu, Wuhuan, and Qianghu.
However, these nomads, under the rounded blows of various forces in the Central Plains, have no room for stirring up trouble.
1. Southern Huns
Due to the long-term war against the Xiongnu by the Han Dynasty, the Xiongnu tribes that fought continued to migrate west, and finally in the north of the Central Plains, only the relatively weak Southern Xiongnu remained.
By the Three Kingdoms period, on the border of the Central Plains, the Xiongnu were no longer the largest nomads.
At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the Southern Xiongnu, who had escaped the control of the Eastern Han government, often sent troops to attack the Sizhi, Jizhou, and Yanzhou regions, and plundered deep into the hinterland of the Central Plains.
In 202, the Southern Xiongnu joined forces with Yuan Shao against Cao Cao in Huchuquan, and after being defeated by Cao Cao, the Southern Xiongnu were directly taken over by Cao Cao.
After the annexation of the Southern Xiongnu, Cao Cao detained the Xiongnu in Huchuquan in Yecheng and sent King Youxian to the kingdom of Beijian, and since then the Xiongnu have existed in name only.
In order to facilitate the management of the Xiongnu, Cao Cao divided the southern Xiongnu who moved inward into five departments: the left part was more than 10,000 households living in Guzi County in Taiyuan;
More than 6,000 households living in Qi County are the right part;
More than 3,000 people living in Puzi County live in the south;
More than 4,000 households living in the north;
There are more than 6,000 households living in Tailing County in the central part.
Although each ministry was still commanded by the nobles of his tribe, Cao Cao sent Han Chinese as Simas in each ministry to strictly supervise the Xiongnu.
After the annexation of the Southern Xiongnu, it provided sufficient human resources for the north controlled by Cao Cao.
Cao Cao made the Xiongnu no longer graze cattle and switch to farming, so that the land was no longer barren and agricultural production was guaranteed.
Moreover, Cao Cao also requisitioned a large number of Xiongnu people to join the army to fight against the forces of the Central Plains and the Xianbei people in the north.
2. Wuhuan
Wuhuan, also known as Karasuma, belongs to the same Donghu people as the Xianbei people.
At the end of the Qin Dynasty, Eastern Hu was defeated by the Xiongnu's Dong Dunshan Yu and retreated to Wuhuan Mountain and Xianbei Mountain respectively.
In the long run, it is divided into two ethnic groups, one is called the Wuhuan ethnic group and the other is called the Xianbei ethnic group.
At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Wuhuan broke free from the restraint of the Eastern Han Dynasty and united with Yuan Shao to defeat Gongsun Zhan, who controlled northeastern China, and married Yuan Shao.
After Yuan Shao was defeated by Cao Cao, Wuhuan took over Yuan Shao's remaining forces.
The Wuhuan leader Gang Dun repeatedly attacked the border of Cao Cao's forces, robbing 100,000 households of the people of Youzhou.
In 207, in order to completely eliminate the remnants of the Yuan clan and to completely solve the great trouble of Wuhuan, a henchman on the northern border, Cao Cao personally led Guo Jia, Zhao Zhao, Zhang Liao, Xu Huang, Cao Chun and others to Wuhuan.
When Cao Cao led the forward cavalry to march to White Wolf Mountain (in Jianchang County, Huludao City, Liaoning), he was suddenly attacked by 200,000 cavalry led by Gang Dun, Yuan Shang, and Yuan Xi.
Faced with the overwhelming numerical superiority of the Wuhuan cavalry, Cao Cao's general Zhang Liao urged Cao Cao to take advantage of the unstable Wuhuan formation and attack quickly.
Cao Cao adopted Zhang Liao's suggestion, and Zhang Liao then led 3,000 elite horses into the Wuhuan formation.
After a fierce battle, Wuhuan was defeated on the whole line, and even Wuhuan Shan Yuton, known for his "Xiaowu", was killed on the spot, and more than 200,000 Wuhuan troops surrendered.
Cao Cao then moved more than 10,000 families from Youzhou and Hezhou counties to the Central Plains. Select strong personnel to be integrated into their own army.
In 218, Wuhuan united with Xianbei to rebel, and Cao Cao sent Cao Chang and Tian Yu to rebel and easily defeat the rebels, and Wuhuan's strength was once again seriously weakened.
The Wuhuan that remained in the ancestral land was soon occupied by Xianbei, and they all merged with Xianbei.
The Wuhuan people, who migrated internally, were gradually assimilated by the Han people.
The country and nation of Wuhuan have gradually withdrawn from the historical stage.
3. Humble
The Xianbei tribe was in a state of fragmentation during the Three Kingdoms period and its strength was very weak.
In the stage of the chaotic battle of various warlords in the early Three Kingdoms, the Xianbei tribes were suppressed by the warlord Gongsun Zan of the Central Plains.
Gongsun Zan was from an Eastern Han noble family and was sent by the Eastern Han court to serve as a vassal state in Liaodong.
There, he led troops to fight with the Xianbei people many times, and the Xianbei army that he killed many times lost his armor and armor, and finally Gongsun Zan was made the Marquis of Duting by the imperial court and became a feudal official guarding Liaodong.
In Liaodong, Gongsun Zan formed a light cavalry called "White Horse Yicong", and this army all rode white horses, "so he chose 3,000 elite horses to ride on white horses, and called 'White Horse Yicong'".
For quite some time, "White Horse Yicong" has been a nightmare for the Xianbei people, and Gongsun Zan once became the largest prince in northern China.
In the later period, although Gongsun Zan was defeated by Yuan Shao, the life of the Xianbei tribe was not much better.
After Cao Cao broke through Wuhuan, he scared all the Xianbei departments stupid.
They knew that they were no match for Cao Cao, so they began to take the initiative to befriend Cao Cao.
The Xianbei tribal leaders Budugen and Kibineng both began to pay tribute to the imperial court.
After Cao Cao's death, the Wei emperor Cao Pi also made Kebineng a vassal king.
In the later period, Kebineng's strength became stronger and stronger, with more than 100,000 horses, and began to harm the border of the Wei state.
Moreover, Kibineng also plans to continue the entire Xianbei tribe and establish the Xianbei regime.
Therefore, Wang Xiong, the assassin of Youzhou in the Wei state, sent the assassin Han Long to assassinate him.
The Xianbei regime, which had just improved, immediately collapsed and fell into chaos again. It was not until the Five Hu and Sixteen Kingdoms period that the Xianbei Ministry really rose.
4. Qiang
The Qiang are located in the west of the Central Plains regime.
As early as the Eastern Han Dynasty, the Qiang people were very violent, and the Eastern Han spent huge material and financial resources in order to pacify the Qiang people.
But the Qiang never developed much climate, because they never had a leader who could unify all the tribes.
According to the Book of the Later Han, there are more than 150 Qiang tribes, large and small, and there are more than 10 large Qiang tribes near Liangzhou alone, including pro-Han tribes.
Therefore, during the Three Kingdoms period, the Qiang people were always inadequate.
At the beginning of the Three Kingdoms, the Qiang people were suppressed by Ma Teng. Ma Teng was the father of Ma Chao, a general of the Five Tigers of the Shu state.
His ancestor was Ma Yuan, the famous "Fubo General" of the Eastern Han Dynasty, and his mother was Qiang, so he had half Qiang blood.
Ma Teng joined the army at the end of Emperor Ling of Han, and was promoted to military sima for meritorious service because of his great strength, generous personality, and sincerity to others.
He successively defected to Han Sui, Dong Zhuo, and Cao Cao, but his sphere of influence was always in the area of Liangzhou and played an important role in maintaining peace in the area around Liangzhou.
In the "Records of the Three Kingdoms", Ma Teng was said to be "a white horse in the north, waiting for the wise to enter the sage, and saving the lives of the people."
By the time of the Three Kingdoms, Wei and Shu, who had contact with the Qiang tribes, treated the Qiang tribes differently.
Cao Wei insisted on attacking the Qiang.
In the nineteenth year of Jian'an, Ma Chao, Han Sui and others led hundreds of thousands of coalition troops composed of Qiang and Di people to rebel, besieging the city and cutting off roads.
Cao Cao immediately ordered Xiahou Yuan to lead his army to attack, and Xiahou Yuan adopted the tactic of "abandoning heavy duty and boldly attacking", attacking alone and fighting thousands of miles. ”
In one fell swoop, he defeated rebel forces such as Han Sui, Song Jian, Ma Chao, and King Di.
Since then, the Qiang people have always been considerate to Xiahouyuan.
But the Shu state has always wanted to draw the Qiang as an ally.
During Zhuge Liang's Northern Expedition, he sent people to contact some Qiang tribes, intending to form an alliance with the Qiang to fight against Cao Wei.
Therefore, during the national period, the Qiang people were only mercenaries or allies of various separatist forces.
So, during the Three Kingdoms period, when famous generals were emerging one after another, who was guarding the Central Plains in the northern territory?
There are mainly four people.
1. Cao Zhang
Cao Chang was the second son born to Cao Cao and Empress Bian of Wuxuan.
Unlike Cao Cao's other sons, Cao Chang did not like literature very much, but was excellent in martial arts, because of his yellow beard, he was called "Yellow Beard" by Cao Cao.
In the twenty-third year of Jian'an (218), Cao Chang was made a general of Beizhonglang and a general of Xingxiao.
Cao Chang successively quelled Wuhuan's rebellion, and subdued the tens of thousands of troops of the Xianbei leader Kebineng, and made repeated combat achievements in the process of defending the northern border of Cao Wei. After Cao Pi ascended the throne, Cao Chang was made King of Rencheng.
Second, Yan Rou.
Yan Rou was taken prisoner in Wuhuan and Xianbei since he was young, and was later elected as the Sima of Wuhuan by Xian Yufu, Qi Zhou, and Xian Yuyin, and once defeated the general Zou Dan of Gongsun Zan and killed more than 4,000 people including Zou Dan.
Later, Yan Rou annexed Cao Cao. During Cao Cao's northern campaign against Wuhuan, Yan Rou followed him to the three counties of Karasuma, and in the Battle of White Wolf Mountain, he was commanded by Zhang Liao, one of Cao Wei's five sons, to defeat Wuhuan.
Because of his role and contribution to guarding Cao Wei's northern state, Cao Cao treated him like a son, and Cao Pi regarded him as a brother.
Yan Rou has been responsible for guarding the north and commanding the Youzhou soldiers and horses. In 220, after Cao Cao's death, after Cao Pi ascended the throne, he made Yan Rou a general of Duliao.
3. Tian Yu.
Tian Yu had followed Gongsun Zan to deal with Xianbei in eastern Liaoning, and after Gongsun Zan was defeated, Tian Yu annexed Cao Cao.
Tian Yu successively served as Yingyin, Langling Lingling, Yiyang Taishou and so on.
Like Cao Zhang, Yan Rou and others, Tian Yu guarded the northern frontier of Cao Wei all year round, and when Wuhuan's ministers rebelled, Tian Yu led his army to break through Wuhuan, and then waved his troops forward to defeat the Xianbei army that came to support Wuhuan.
King Karasuma Bone Jin was disrespectful to the official government, and Tian Yu only led more than a hundred people to Bone Jin's tribe and beheaded Bone Jin.
Tian Yu did and the state after the assassination history. The Hu people outside the country heard of his prestige and came to the DPRK one after another to contribute.
Fourth, pull.
At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, he was annexed to Yuan Shao of Jizhou, and after Yuan Shao's death, he followed Yuan Shao's son Yuan Shang. After Cao Cao pacified Yuan Shao's forces, he returned to Cao Cao.
After Cao Pi took the throne, he recruited Captain Xianbei and stationed himself in Changping.
During his tenure as the captain of Yanmen Taishou and Xianbei, he adopted the method of dividing the various departments of Xianbei to prevent the foreign clan from becoming bigger.
The Xianbei chieftains Budugen and Leak Gui Mu had conflicts with Kebineng, and led more than 30,000 families to request annexation. He ordered to fight back against Kebineng and killed Kebineng's younger brother Zhuluohou.
Kibi Neng formed a grudge with Karasuma Guiyi Marquis Wang Tong and Wang Zhi, and personally led Gui Ni and others to attack Kibineng and defeat Kibineng in Yunzhong Former County.
Later, he contacted more than 100,000 families such as Hexi Xianbei to rectify the ancient city of Shangguan City in northern Henbei, where soldiers and horses were stationed, and the Hu people from near and far were all happy and sincere.
Looking at these four generals who guard the northern territory, whether it is combat power or popularity, they cannot be compared with famous generals such as Zhang Hao and Xu Chu.
But they were still able to easily crush the northern aliens, and they were convinced.
Therefore, in the turbulent period of the Three Kingdoms, even though the chaos in the Central Plains became a pot of porridge, the town guarding the northern territory was still a crack soldier.
No matter how fierce the foreign race is, it is no match for these generals who have been in the battlefield for a long time and can fight well.
On the contrary, after the Western Jin Dynasty unified the world, it was easily destroyed by foreign races.
It seems that it is indeed a truth that a good general in troubled times is indeed a truth!