From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Cao Xiu
Cao Xiu
Cao Xiu Service under Cao Cao and Cao Pi
General of Cao Wei Cao Xiu participated mainly in campaigns against the the
forces of Shu (state) warlord Liu Bei during Cao Cao’s
Born (Unknown)
reign, notably against Zhang Fei and Ma Chao. When Cao
Died 228 Hong was threatened by Zhang Fei that his retreat route
would be cut off, Cao Xiu saw though the ruse and stated
Names
that if Zhang Fei indeed wanted to block their retreat
Simplified Chinese 曹休 route, he would do so secretly instead of showing his in-
Traditional Chinese
tention so obviously. He then suggested Cao Hong that
曹休
they should strike the enemy upfront when Zhang Fei
Pinyin Cáo Xiū and Ma Chao were still dwelling on the fantasy that their
Wade-Giles Ts’ao Hsiu tactic would work out. Zhang Fei and Ma Chao retreated
back to Han Zhong after being defeated by Cao Hong, and
Style name Wenlie (文烈) Wu Lan (吳蘭) fled to the Di tribute, and was killed by its
Posthumous name Marquis Zhuang (壯侯) ruler. Cao Xiu was later made Commander of the Imperi-
al Guard.
This is a Chinese name; the family name is Cao. After Cao Cao’s death in 220, Cao Xiu enjoyed a close
Cao Xiu (died 228) was a military general serving under relationship with Cao Pi, who had assumed the throne
the warlord Cao Cao during the late Han Dynasty period as the first emperor of the Kingdom of Wei. Cao Xiu was
of Chinese history. He served the state of Cao Wei during made General who Guards the South (鎮南將軍) and sent
the Three Kingdoms period. A distant nephew of Cao Cao, to the southern frontier to defend against Sun Quan’s
Cao Xiu was given special attention by the former, who forces. Personally seeing Cao Xiu off, Cao Pi dismounted
once asserted him befitting the role of a commander. from his carriage and held his trusted general’s hands,
During Liu Bei’s Hanzhong Campaign, Cao Xiu outwitted reluctant to part.
his two opponents, Zhang Fei and Ma Chao, who were In 222, Cao Pi personally led an offensive against Sun
far more well known than he was. Cao Xiu became a dis- Quan. Cao Xiu was appointed Great General who Con-
trict commander during his late life and led various cam- quers the East (征東大將軍). He supervised over twenty
paigns against Sun Quan’s forces; despite defeating sev- armies (An army or Jun was a military unit. Every 12,500
eral enemy units, few of the campaigns were met with soldiers were counted as one Jun) from various regions
success. He died in 228 shortly after his disastrous final and defeated Sun Quan’s force under Lü Fan at Dongpu
campaign against Eastern Wu. (洞浦, in the vicinity of present day Wuhu, Anhui). De-
spite his victory over Lü, who was able to regroup his
forces, Cao Xiu was defeated by Wu reinforcements sent
Biography by Xu Sheng and Quan Cong.
Early life Defeat and death
According to the Records of Three Kingdoms, Cao Xiu lost Following Cao Pi’s death in 227, Cao Xiu continued to
his father before he turned twenty, when the Yellow Tur- serve under the second Wei emperor Cao Rui. He was
ban Rebellion broke out. Bringing along his old mother, promoted to Great Defender-in-Chief (大司馬) but re-
Cao Xiu moved south across the Yangtze River away from mained in command of the defense of Yangzhou (揚州).
the rebel-infested north. When Cao Cao was raising an In 228, Cao Rui launched yet another offensive
army to join the coalition against Dong Zhuo in 190, Cao against Sun Quan (The Battle of Shiting). Cao Xiu led
Xiu heeded the call. Cao Cao was pleased to see his distant a force towards Xunyang (尋陽, present day Huangmei,
nephew, whom he described as the thousand-li horse of Hubei). Believing the words of an enemy general, Zhou
his clan. Since then, Cao Cao had Cao Xiu reside with his Fang, who pretended to surrender, he led his army deep
future successor, Cao Pi, and treated Cao Xiu like his own into unfriendly territory and suffered a disastrous defeat,
son. Beside Cao Zhen and Cao Chun, Cao Xiu was also re- which amounted to tens of thousands of casualties. Sub-
sponsible for leading the elite Tiger and Leopard Cavalry mitting a memorial, Cao Xiu pled guilty for his misjudg-
during military operations.
1
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Cao Xiu
ment. Cao Rui, however, not only forgave him but treated
him with even more respect thereafter.
Appointments and titles held
Cao Xiu died shortly after the Battle of Shiting from • Guard of Tiger and Leopard Cavalry (虎豹騎宿衛)
skin infections on his back resulting from wounds in- • Cavalry Commandant (騎都尉)
curred in the battle. He was given the posthumous title of • Central Commander of the Army (中領軍)
Marquis Zhuang (壯侯), literally meaning “robust mar- • General Who Commands the Army (領軍將軍)
quis”. • Marquis of Dongyang (東陽亭侯)
• General Who Guards the South (鎮南將軍)
• General Who Attacks the East (征東將軍)
Tomb • Inspector of Yang Province (揚州刺史)
In May 2010 archaeologists announced the discovery of • Marquis of Anyang (安陽鄉侯)
Cao Xiu’s tomb in Mengjin County, Luoyang, Henan • Senior General Who Attacks the East (征東大將軍)
Province. The tomb, 50 meters long and 21 meters wide, • Governor of Yang Province (揚州牧)
held chinaware, copperware, liquor cups, and jars as well • Marquis of Changping (長平侯)
as some human bones. Tests suggested that these bones • Grand Marshal (大司馬)
belonged to a 50-year-old man and a 40-year-old woman. • Marquis Zhuang (壯侯) - granted to Cao Xiu
A bronze seal, about the size of a coin and engraved with posthumously
Cao Xiu’s name revealed the tomb owner’s identity.[1]
See also
In fiction • List of people of the Three Kingdoms
In Luo Guanzhong’s historical novel Romance of the Three
Kingdoms, on one occasion when Yue Jin was losing to the
enemy general Ling Tong in a duel, Cao Xiu fired an ar-
References
row which hit Ling’s steed. Ling fell from the horse and [1] Ancient General’s Tomb Found
would have been killed by Yue if Gan Ning had not inter- • Chen Shou (2002). Records of Three Kingdoms, Chapter 9,
vened and saved him. Biography of Cao Xiu. Yue Lu Shu She.
ISBN 7-80665-198-5.
Family Persondata
Name Cao, Xiu
• Grandfather: Cao Ding (曹鼎), served as Chancellor
of Hejian, Administrator of Wu Commandery, and Alternative names
Imperial Secretary Short description
• Children: Date of birth
• Cao Cuan (曹篡), oldest son
Place of birth
• Cao Zhao (曹肇), second son
Date of death 228
Place of death
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Cao_Xiu&oldid=467721741"
Categories:
• 228 deaths
• Generals under Cao Cao
• Cao Wei generals
This page was last modified on 26 December 2011 at 07:27. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-
ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. See Terms of use for details. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of
the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.Contact us
Privacy policy About Wikipedia Disclaimers
2