Rise of the three kingdoms series#

In 200, Dong Cheng, an officer of the court and imperial in-law, received a secret edict from the emperor to assassinate Cao Cao. Due to betrayal amongst his officers, Lu Bu was defeated and executed. Liu Bei fled to Cao Cao for safety and they both allied together to siege Lu Bu's base, Xiapi. After this conflict, Lu Bu betrayed his benefactor, gaining control of Xu, and attempted to seal an alliance with Yuan Shu. With Liu Bei and Lu Bu, the coalition surrounded Yuan Shu and forced him to flee. Sun Ce did not agree with the decision, abandoned him, and negotiated with Cao Cao to destroy him. Yuan Shu, confident in his subordinates, declared himself as emperor in 197. His quick and successful conquests earned him a grand reputation with his lord. Meanwhile, in the south, Sun Ce succeeded his father and served for a time under Yuan Shu. In 195, Lu Bu was defeated and fled to Liu Bei for safety. Tao Qian soon passed away, and his province of Xu was then ruled by Liu Bei. He was foiled by Lu Bu attacking his base, Yan Province, and was forced to retreat. Because of Wang Yun's actions, however, four of Dong Zhuo's former generals: Li Jue, Guo Si, Zhang Ji, and Niu Fu were able to slay him, repel Lu Bu, and take hostage of the emperor, causing further calamity to the court.ДЄcting under the Han, Cao Cao continued his conquest to Tao Qian, who was supported by Liu Bei and Gongsun Zan. The emperor and Dong Zhuo escaped to Chang'an though the warlord wasn't killed until his subordinates, Wang Yun and Lu Bu, mutinied against him in 192. His rude manners and brutality instigated several revolts against him led by Yuan Shao and Sun Jian. The coalition against Dong Zhuo then argued between themselves on whether to place a new emperor, the kind warlord Liu Yu, as a replacement.Дong Zhuo obeyed yet lacked the political etiquette and tact to sustain the land for long. He manipulated the succession and placed Liu Xie on the throne as Emperor Xian, deposing Emperor Ling's immediate successor, Liu Bian. His capable military leadership drove them into a civil conflict. Yuan Shao and a handful of men duly murdered the eunuchs afterwards but their actions triggered Dong Zhuo to approach the capital. With Yuan Shao's support, he planned to remove the scheming eunuchs from capital but was assassinated before his plans could come to fruit. He Jin supposedly wanted to sustain the dynasty when Emperor Ling passed away, leaving a dispute between his two heirs, Liu Bian and Liu Xie. Even when the rebellion was dispelled, the Han continued to be plagued by natural disasters and ill-timed tragedies within the court. The weakened Han empire was being suppressed by the rebels until He Jin organized an army to oppose them.

Rise of the three kingdoms series#

Romance of the Three Kingdoms series including its spin-offs in the Eiketsuden seriesДЄrguably, the beginning of each country's military affairs began when the Yellow Turban Rebellion broke out in 184, caused by large-scale famine and heavy taxation.Koei has the following IPs and franchises use this era as their main setting: Historical records suggest that Zhou Yu and Lu Su devised the concept of two kingdoms. In Romance of the Three Kingdoms, the concept was devised by Zhuge Liang on Liu Bei's third visit but this is not the case in history. However, the term 'kingdoms' has been popularized in several translations.

Technically, neither of them ruled any sort of kingdom since their lands were actually individual empires.

The kingdom of Eastern Wu, led by the Sun family.

The kingdom of Cao Wei, led by the Cao family.

The kingdom of Shu Han, led by the Liu family ( Liu Bei's branch).

Out of the warring regional lords, three of them eventually gained enough power to claim themselves as the emperors of the land. It ended the Han Dynasty and separated the land into civil conflict. The Three Kingdoms era refers to a historical period in China that lasted from 220~280 AD.

From left to right: Liu Bei, Cao Cao, and Sun Quan. Image representing the kingdoms in Sangokushi 12.