The Three Kingdoms

The Three Kingdoms period, which was an era of heroes and legends, has been romanticized in the Chinese culture, and popularized in operas, folk stories, novels, films and video games.

At the chaotic end of the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220), warlords were seeking greater influence for their respective fiefs.

In 208, Cao Cao, a warlord and father of the founder of the Wei Kingdom, was preparing to conquer the fertile land of the southern reaches of the Yangtze River.

Liu Bei, founder of the Shu Kingdom, and Sun Quan, founder of the Wu Kingdom, formed an alliance against Cao, defeating him by burning his boats at the battle of Red Cliff, believed by some to have taken place at Jiayu. The battle laid the foundation of the Three Kingdoms, namely Wei, Shu, and Wu.

The county is home to numerous relics from the Three Kingdoms and place names related to figures of that period.