Xiang Yu (232 to 202 BC)
Xiang Yu was born from a noble in the former state of Chu, which had ceased to exist when Qi Shi Huang, the first Emperor unified the country. While Chen Sheng and Wu Guang were leading peasant uprisings against the Qin Dynasty, Xiang Yu killed the prefect of Wu (now Xuzhou in Jiangzu Province) and organized troops to join the rebellion.
About this same time, a peasant called Liu Bang led an uprising in Jiang Su Province. After Chen Sheng and Wu Guang were killed in battle, Xiang Yu and Liu Bang formed the main force in the battle against the Qin government. For a time they fought under the banner of King Huai of Chu.
In 208 BC while Xiang Yu and Liu Bang were planning the capture of the Qin capital Xian Yang, an urgent message came from the city of Julu, which had been under siege for nearly a month by Qin troops. A large army was sent to relieve Ju Lu with Xiang Yu as second in command under the veteran political leader Song Yi.
When the troops got to An Yang, Song Yi ordered them to stop. He wanted to wait while the Qin army would exhaust themselves. They camped in the cold wet weather for forty-six days and the troops were short of food. Xiang Yu was furious because Song Yi ignored the suffering of the soldiers. The next morning during a conference with Song Yi, Xiang Yu jumped up and killed him. The generals were in awe and elected him their leader.
The vanguard of Xiang Yu's army as unable to raise the siege, so Xiang Yu sent his entire force into battle. After crossing the river Zhang, Xiang Yu ordered all boats sunk, and after three-day supply was prepared, all cooking pots were smashed, giving the troops no choice but to go forward.
After Xiang Yus troops raised the siege and the Qin generals had surrendered to him, he went on to conquer a vast territory covering five former states. Xiang Yu also divided the Qin Empire in fiefs for his generals, and giving himself the title of Overlord of Conqueror, banished King Huai of Chu.
In the meantime, Liu Bang moved his forces to Han Zhong and began training an army. In the year 206 B.C., Xiang Yu moved his forces to Xin Feng and Hong Meng, taking up tactical positions opposite of Liu Bang. Then, Xiang Yus advisor Fan Zheng, told Xiang Yu to invite Liu Bang to a banquet and have him assassinated by Xiang Yu's cousin Xiang Zhuang. However, the plot was discovered before the banquet and Xiang Zhuang was stopped by his father Xiang Bo and Fan Kuai.
In the same year, Xiang Yu proclaimed himself Prince of Western Chu (Xi Chu Ba Wang) and entitled eighteen Warlords of Chu. Liu Bang was given the title Prince of Han (Han Wang) and moved into the lands of Ba-Shu (Yizhou). While leaving, Liu Bang left behind his father and wife who were captured by Xiang Yu.
Xiang Yu did not stay in Xian Yang; he left three former Qin Generals: Zhang Han, Sima Xin, and Dong Yi to guard the Liang and Yong provinces, and then returned to his Capital: Peng.
Liu Bang strengthened his forces and sent Han Xin and Zhang Liang to retake the two provinces from Xiang Yus three generals. They moved their troops secretly past Chen Chang and launched surprise attacks on the Chu forces.
Zhang Han, Sima Xin, and Dong Yi surrendered to Liu Bang, and the Han forces reclaimed Xian Yang. At the same time, Tian Rong was discontent with Xiang Yu and started a revolt; he joined forces with the Prince of Zhao and attacked Chu.
Xiang Yu led his forces east to crush the revolt. In the meantime, he ordered the Prince of Jiu Jiang, Ying Bu, to escort the Chu Emperor (former King of Chu) to Peng and assassinate him along the way.
When the word got out that the Emperor was dead, Liu Bang used it as excuse to ally with Warlords against Xiang Yu.
In the year 205 B.C., Liu Bang attacked Peng with 560.000 troops while Xiang Yu was battling against the traitors in his Kingdom. Xiang Yu quickly returned with his army and slaughtered the Han army.
Liu Bang escaped to Rong Yang, and Xiao He quickly sent reinforcements. Liu Bang realized that he could not match Xiang Yu's strength and ability, and thus sent Han Xin to attack Wei, Zhao, Yan, and Qi.
Within a year, Han Xin conquered the four territories and surrounded the remaining Chu army. Ying Bu and Peng Yue both left Xiang Yu and joined Liu Bang, causing Xiang Yu to lose his power in the east. During the siege on Xiang Yu's camp, Xiang Yu used Liu Bangs wife and father to force Liu Bang to surrender. However, Xiang Yu was deceived by Liu Bangs offer of peace and foolishly returned the captives to Liu Bang.
In the year 202 B.C., Liu Bang signed a treaty with Xiang Yu. They agreed that the West would belong to the Han, and the East belong to Chu. Xiang Yu began to lead his troops back to Peng, but Liu Bang who sent Han Xin and Peng Yue to trap his army betrayed him.
They trapped Xiang Yu at He Xia, one night, while Liu Bangs forces surrounded his army; Xiang Yu was sitting in his tent with his concubine Lady Yu when he heard the sound of songs from Chu, his homeland, coming from the besiegers. Can it be that Han has conquered Chu, that they have so many men of Chu with them? he exclaimed. Xiang Yu sat late into the night drinking with Lady Yu and singing this melancholic song:
My strength uprooted mountains,
My spirit overstepped the world;
But the times are against me,
And my horse can gallop no more
When he can gallop on more
What can I do?
And what is to become of Lady Yu.
He sang it repeatedly until tears ran down his retainers cheeks. He then dashed out of the tent and gathered his remaining forces in an attempt to break through enemy lines. When they reached the Wu Jiang River, Xiang Yu gave up and turned around. He summoned a good friend and bade him to cut off his head, on which there was a high price. Thus, Xiang Yu's life ended, and the Han was victorious.
