Gongsun Zan - in Fiction

In Fiction

Gongsun was commander of a cavalry force and served on the northern and eastern frontiers of the Han Dynasty, fighting against various non Han Chinese peoples. In 191, Gongsun enlisted as part of the coalition against Dong Zhuo, the warlord who had seized power in Luoyang and held the emperor hostage, but used the opportunity to enlarge his territories. In late 191, Gongsun Zan appointed Zhao Yun as a general. Zhao Yun later joined another member of the attack on Dong Zhuo, Liu Bei who also served him at one point along with his comrades Guan Yu and Zhang Fei. Gongsun Zan and Liu Bei had known each other for years having studied together in their younger days. Throughout the 190s he fought a series of battles with the warlord Yuan Shao for control of north China, starting with the Battle of Jieqiao. He was defeated by Yuan in 199 in the Battle of Yijing and committed suicide by burning the pagoda he was on.

Gongsun Zan was known as "General of Baima" and renowned for his brigade of elite cavalry from Baima, made up completely of horses of pure white ("Baima" means "white horse" in modern Standard Mandarin Chinese). It seems he hit on the tactic of using all white horses in battle when he learned the barbarians he was then fighting against considered the animals sacred and would run from them instead of fighting.