Zhang Mancheng 張曼成 was a leader of Yellow Turbans. He fought in the 184 AD. Yellow Turban Rebellion and scored an immediate success when he killed the Grand Administrator of Nanyang commandery.
Biography[]
Zhang Mancheng was from Nanyang commandery in Jing province.[1] Presumably a man of lesser wealth because he joined the religious leader Zhang Jue 張角 after the early 170’s.
In 184 the Yellow Turban Rebellion began and Zhang Jue had divided his force over thirty-six Divisions (Fāng 方) and appointed each Division, either a Large Division or a Small Division, with its own leader. Each Division Leader could then appoint a gang leader to a part of his force.[3] Which of these titles, if any, was given to Zhang Mancheng is not known, but since he commanded a large force he may have been a leader of a Large Division or Small Division.
We do know that Zhang Mancheng fought in Nanyang commandery and that a Division in Nanyang commandery was intended to cooperate with the Yellow Turbans from Runan commandery (Peng Tuo?), Yingchuan commandery (Bo Cai?) and Luoyang (Ma Yuanyi).[4] Perhaps Zhang Mancheng commanded the Nanyang force that was to cooperate with the above forces. We are not told if there was another group of Yellow Turbans in Nanyang commandery.
Betrayal[]
Early in the year 184 AD. a man named Tang Zhou 唐周 betrayed his fellow Yellow Turbans by informing the Han about his masters’ plan to rebel and all Yellow Turbans in Luoyang and their sympathizers were arrested or killed. Ma Yuanyi was torn asunder and the forces of Runan commandery, Yingchuan commandery and Nanyang commandery had to do without his powerful Division.[2]
Struggle for Wan[]
On 23 April 184 AD Zhang Mancheng dispatched his troops, which were said to consist of several 10.000 men,[2] called himself “Messenger of the Gods”[5] and attacked Nanyang commandery’s Grand Administrator Chu Gong 褚貢. He managed to kill him and then besieged Wan city for some time. In the sixth month Qin Jie 秦頡, the former Grand Administrator of Changsha commandery and now appointed as the new Grand Administrator of Nanyang commandery, attacked Zhang Mancheng and killed him.[2]
Zhang Mancheng’s remnant forces elected Zhao Hong 趙弘 as their new leader.[6]
Notes[]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 de Crespigny, A Biographical Dictionary of Later Han to the Three Kingdoms, biography of Zhang Mancheng, page 1068 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "dC100" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 de Crespigny, Emperor Huan and Emperor Ling, Zhongping 1
- ↑ Michaud, The Yellow Turbans, page 76
- ↑ de Crespigny, Generals of the South, page 88
- ↑ Fan Ye, History of the Later Han, biography of Zhu Jun, “時，南陽黃巾張曼成起兵，稱「神上使」，眾數萬，殺郡守褚貢，屯宛下百餘日。"
- ↑ de Crespigny, A Biographical Dictionary, biography of Zhao Hong, page 1098
Sources[]
- de Crespigny, Rafe. A Biographical Dictionary of Later Han to the Three Kingdoms (23 - 220 AD). Leiden: BRILL, 2007.
- —. Emperor Huan and Emperor Ling. Canberra: National Library of Australia, 1989.
- —. Generals of the South: the foundation and early history of the Three Kingdoms state of Wu. Canberra: The Australian National University, 1990.
- Fan Ye 范曄 (398–445). Hou Han shu 後漢書 “History of the Later Han”.
- Leban, Carl. Ts'ao Ts'ao and the Rise of Wei: The Early Years. Columbia University, Ph. D., 1971.
- Michaud, Paul. „The Yellow Turbans.” Monumenta Serica, vol. XVII (1958): 47-127.
- Sima Guang 司馬光 (1019–1086). Zizhi tongjian 資治通鑒 “Comprehensive Mirror for Aid in Government”.