Cao Chun
Cao Chun (
170 –
210) was a
cavalry general under the powerful
warlord Cao Cao during the late
Eastern Han Dynasty and
Three Kingdoms Period in ancient
China. He commanded the elite mounted force – the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry (虎豹骑) – in several campaigns against
Yuan Tan,
Ta Dun (蹋顿) and
Liu Bei. Cao Chun was also the younger brother of
Cao Ren, another prominent general under Cao Cao.
Born in 170, Cao Chun was a younger brother of
Cao Ren. When Cao Chun was thirteen, their father died and the brothers took over the family estates and several hundred servants in their employ, whom Cao Chun managed well. Being well-learned himself, Cao Chun also befriended scholars, who flocked to him.
At seventeen, Cao Chun entered the
Han imperial court in
Luoyang as the Attendant at the Yellow Gates (黄门侍郎, a spokesman for the emperor). In 189, Cao Chun joined his elder cousin
Cao Cao's army and followed him to war against
Dong Zhuo, the tyrannical warlord who held the emperor hostage.
During a siege on
Yuan Tan in
Nanpi (南皮) in early 205, Cao Chun commanded the elite mounted force – the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry. In the initial stage of the confrontation, Cao Cao's troops suffered significant losses to skirmishes by the enemy but eventually prevailed. Cao Chun's men took the head of Yuan Tan.
In the subsequent northern expedition against the
Wuhuan tribe, Cao Chun's force again excelled in battle. The riders captured
Ta Dun (蹋顿), chief of the Wuwan. For his credits, Cao Chun was enfeoffed as Tinghou¹ of Gaoling (高陵亭侯) with stipends from 300 households.
In 208, Cao Chun accompanied Cao Cao south on the campaign to take the
Jingzhou (荆州). At
Xiangyang, Cao Chun and his men was sent ahead to pursue the retreating force of
Liu Bei. They caught Liu Bei at
Changban and in the ensuing encounter, captured Liu Bei's two wives and supplies, as well as some enemy troops.
Cao Chun pressed on south to secure the strategic city of
Jiangling, which had a cache of armaments and a sizeable river fleet. He then returned to his hometown, where he died in 210. According to the
Book of Wei, Cao Cao favored Cao Chun so much that he refused to appoint anyone to succeed the commandership of the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry.
In 220, Cao Cao's successor
Cao Pi conferred Cao Chun the posthumous title of Marquis Wei (威侯), literally meaning the awe-inspiring marquis. Cao Chun's son Cao Yan (曹") also served in the military and was eventually promoted to Lingjun General (领军将军) and Xianghou¹ of Pingle (平乐乡侯).¹
The title of marquis was divided into three grades under the Kingdom of Wei during the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms period. These are, in ascending order of prestige, tinghou (亭侯), xianghou (乡侯) and xianhou (县侯).Direct descendants
*Cao Yan (曹")
**Cao Liang (曹亮)
Immediate family
*
Cao Ren (elder brother)
**Cao Tai (曹泰)
***Cao Chu (曹初)
**Cao Kai (曹楷)
**Cao Fan (曹范)
Extended family
*
Cao Cao² (elder cousin)
**
Cao Pi***
Cao Rui****
Cao Fang*****
Cao Mao******
Cao Huan*
Cao Hong (cousin) (曹洪)
*
Cao Xiu (distant nephew)
**Cao Zhao (曹肇)
*
Cao Zhen (distant nephew)
**
Cao Shuang**Cao Xi (曹羲)
**Cao Xun (曹训)
*
Cao Anmin (distant nephew) (曹安民)²
For a complete list of Cao Cao's descendants, see Cao Cao.*
*
Three Kingdoms*
Personages of the Three KingdomsChronicles of the Three KingdomsRomance of the Three Kingdoms
