Campaign against Dong Zhuo

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Campaign against Dong Zhuo
Part of the wars at the end of the Han dynasty
A mural in Fragrant Hills depicting the duel between the three sworn brothers and Lü Bu at Hulao Pass in a fictional encounter.
Date February 190–191 Location Henan, China Result Inconclusive; Dong Zhuo retreats west, Coalition disbanded
Belligerents
Guandong Coalition	Dong Zhuo
Commanders and leaders
Yuan Shao Cao Cao Yuan Shu Sun Jian Zhang Miao Han Fu Bao Xin Yuan Yi Zhang Chao Zhang Yang Ma Teng Yufuluo Kong Zhou Wang Kuang Liu Dai Qiao Mao Liu Bei[1]	Dong Zhuo Lü Bu Li Jue Guo Si Hua Xiong † Xu Rong Hu Zhen Zhang Ji Niu Fu Fan Chou Li Ru
Strength
100,000+[2]	Described as less than coalitions'[3]

The Campaign against Dong Zhuo was a punitive expedition initiated by a coalition of regional officials and warlords against the warlord Dong Zhuo in 190 in the late Eastern Han dynasty. The members of the coalition claimed that Dong had the intention of usurping the throne by holding Emperor Xian hostage and by establishing a strong influence in the imperial court. They justified their campaign as to remove Dong from power. The campaign led to the evacuation of the capital Luoyang and the shifting of the imperial court to Chang'an. It was a prelude to the end of the Han dynasty and, subsequently, the Three Kingdoms period.

In the 14th-century historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, the campaign is memorable for at least two famous incidents: one is Guan Yu's slaying of Hua Xiong; the other is the three-on-one duel between the three sworn brothers (Liu Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei) and Lü Bu. The two scenes are often reenacted in Chinese opera along with other famous scenes from the novel. Both incidents however, are fictional; Hua Xiong was captured and executed by Sun Jian after a brief battle. Liu, Guan and Zhang did participate in the campaign although their actions are not further described,^[1] with no mention that they dueled with Lü Bu, who, historically, was defeated by Sun Jian in battle.