Neutral Warrior
Dong Zhuo, the Tyrant of Luoyang
董卓died 1924 star
In short
Dong Zhuo (died 192) was a general from the northwest frontier who marched into the capital Luoyang in 189, deposed the young emperor, and ruled through the boy he set in his place. When the eastern governors rose against him he burned Luoyang and moved the court to Chang'an. He was killed there in 192 by his own bodyguard, Lu Bu. The Han dynasty never governed again.
| Lived | died 192 |
|---|---|
| Name in Chinese | 董卓 |
| Courtesy name | Zhongying |
| Served | the Han court, then himself |
The history
Dong Zhuo was from Lintao in Longxi, the far northwest. He grew up among the Qiang, could shoot from either side of a galloping horse, and made his career in the frontier wars. By the 180s he commanded some of the best troops in the empire, and twice declined orders to give them up.
In 189 the emperor died, and the regent He Jin called the frontier armies to the capital to frighten the palace eunuchs. He Jin was killed before they arrived. Dong Zhuo found the young emperor wandering outside the city and escorted him home. Within weeks he had absorbed the capital’s troops, deposed the emperor in favor of a younger half brother, Emperor Xian, and had the deposed boy and his mother killed.
The governors of the east formed a coalition against him in 190. He burned Luoyang, drove its people to Chang’an, and let his soldiers loose on the road. At Mei, near the new capital, he built a fortress with walls as high as Chang’an’s and stored grain there for thirty years. If his great plan failed, he said, he could grow old behind it.
He was killed in 192 by Lu Bu, whom he had once thrown a halberd at in a temper. His body was left in the market. The history says the guards set a wick in his navel, and it burned for days.
The novel
Romance of the Three Kingdoms explains the killing with Diaochan, a singing girl whom Wang Yun promises to both men. The history has only an affair between Lu Bu and a maid of Dong Zhuo’s household.
Dong Zhuo in the game
In Warlords of the Three Kingdoms Dong Zhuo is the Tyrant of Luoyang: a 4 star warriorwho serves no Kingdom. The game's line for him: “He entered the capital to restore order, deposed an emperor, burned the city, and stored grain for thirty years.”
| Kingdom | Neutral, sworn to no Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Role | Warrior |
| Rarity | 4 star |
| Base attack and defense | 25 and 24 |
| Where from | Won by mastering the boss campaign of chapter 2, Dong Zhuo's Tyranny, to three stars. |
Four star is where he starts. Duplicates become shards, shards add stars, and each star adds a tenth to both numbers.
Questions
Who killed Dong Zhuo?
Lu Bu, his bodyguard and sworn son, on 22 May 192, at the gate of the palace in Chang'an. The minister Wang Yun had arranged it.
Why did Dong Zhuo burn Luoyang?
A coalition of eastern governors had risen against him in 190, and Luoyang was too exposed. He forced the court and the population west to Chang'an and burned the capital behind them, palaces and tombs included.
Did Dong Zhuo cause the Three Kingdoms?
He ended the central government that the rest fought over. After 189 the emperor was a prize held by whoever was strongest, and the governors who had armed against Dong Zhuo kept their armies.
How do you get Dong Zhuo in Warlords of the Three Kingdoms?
Won by mastering the boss campaign of chapter 2, Dong Zhuo's Tyranny, to three stars.
Sources
The history follows Chen Shou's Records of the Three Kingdoms, written in the third century, with Pei Songzhi's annotations of the fifth, and Fan Ye's Book of the Later Han for the years before the Han court fell apart. What the page calls the novel is Luo Guanzhong's Romance of the Three Kingdoms, of the fourteenth century. Where the two disagree, the page says which is speaking. For more on him, see Dong Zhuo on Wikipedia.
Written by Gitkonek Studio, .
Keep reading
- Diaochan, the Beauty Who Shamed the MoonA singer in Wang Yun's house who set Dong Zhuo and Lu Bu against each other, and so ended a tyranny.
- Lu Bu, the Flying GeneralHe served Ding Yuan and Dong Zhuo, killed them both, and was surprised when no one else would trust him.
- Zhang Jiao, the General of HeavenA healer with a book of the Great Peace, whose followers rose in yellow turbans across eight provinces at once.