Three Kingdoms

The Three Kingdoms period (Simplified Chinese: 三国; Traditional Chinese: 三國; Pinyin Sānguó) is a period in the history of China. In a strict academic sense it refers to the period between the foundation of the Wei in 220 and the conquest of the Wu by the Jin Dynasty in 280. However, many Chinese historians and laypeople extend the starting point of this period back to the uprising of the Yellow Turbans in 184.

Related Topics:
Simplified Chinese - Traditional Chinese - Pinyin - History of China - Wei - 220 - Wu - Jin Dynasty - 280 - Yellow Turbans - 184

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The earlier, "unofficial" part of the period, from 190 to 220, was marked by chaotic infighting between warlords in various parts of China. The middle part of the period, from 220 and 263, was marked by a more militarily stable arrangement between three rival states, Wei (魏), Han (漢), and Wu (吳).

Related Topics:
190 - 220 - 263 - Wei - Han - Wu

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To distinguish these states from earlier states of the same name, historians prepended a character: Wei is also known as Cao Wei (曹魏), Han is also known as Shu Han (蜀漢), which later became more commonly known as Shu, and Wu is also known as Eastern Wu (東吳). The later part of this period was marked by the destruction of Shu by Wei (263), the overthrow of Wei by the Jin Dynasty (265), and the destruction of Wu by Jin (280).

Related Topics:
Wei - Han - Wu - 263 - Jin Dynasty - 265 - 280

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The term "Three Kingdoms" itself is somewhat of a mistranslation, since each state was eventually headed by an Emperor who claimed legitimate succession from the Han Dynasty, not by kings. Nevertheless the term has become standard among sinologists and will be used in this article.

Related Topics:
Emperor - Han Dynasty - Sinologist

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Although relatively short, this historical period has been greatly romanticised in the cultures of China, Japan, Korea and throughout Southeast Asia. It has been celebrated and popularised in operas, folk stories, novels and in more recent times, films, television serials, and video games. The best known of these is undoubtedly the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, a fictional account of the period which draws heavily on history. The authoritative historical record of the era is Chen Shou's Sanguo Zhi, along with Pei Songzhi's later annotations of the text.

Related Topics:
China - Japan - Korea - Southeast Asia - Video games - Romance of the Three Kingdoms - Chen Shou - Sanguo Zhi

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The Three Kingdoms period is one of the bloodiest in Chinese history. A population census in late Eastern Han dynasty reported a population of approximately 56 million, while a population census in early Western Jin dynasty (after Jin re-unified China) reported a population of approximately 16 million. Even taking into account the inaccuracies of these census reports, it's safe to assume that a large percentage of the population was wiped out during the constant wars waged during this period.

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This article will trace outline the major developments leading to the establishment of the Three Kingdoms and their subsequent history.

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