9/12/2009

Meng Huo, Barbarian King


The stubborn Meng Huo was captured and released by Kongming seven times before finally surrendering.


          Meng Huo (孟獲) was an aristocrat in the Nanzhong region, south of Shu Han, during the Three Kingdoms era of China. He was involved in several small skirmishes with Shu Han, and in retaliation Shu's strategist Zhuge Liang launched a full invasion on the Nanzhong region. After being captured by Zhuge Liang seven times, Meng Huo surrendered to him and swore his allegiance to Shu Han.
          In the official histories, Meng Huo was in fact Han Chinese. However, the popular image of Meng Huo follows Luo Guanzhong's semi-fictitious novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, where he is portrayed as a southern barbarian tribal leader. In the novel Meng Huo was married to a fictional Lady Zhurong, who claimed descent from the god of fire, Zhu Rong.

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