43 Facts About Zhao Yun

Zhao Yun, courtesy name Zilong, was a military general who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty and early Three Kingdoms period of China.

Originally a subordinate of the northern warlord Gongsun Zan, Zhao Yun later came to serve another warlord, Liu Bei, and had since accompanied him on most of his military exploits, from the Battle of Changban to the Hanzhong Campaign.

The Zhao Yun Biezhuan described his physical appearance as follows: eight chi tall, with majestic and impressive looks.

Zhao Yun later fought on Gongsun Zan's side in some battles against rival forces.

Around the early 190s, Zhao Yun met Liu Bei, who was taking shelter under Gongsun Zan at the time.

Zhao Yun became very close to Liu Bei and desired to switch his allegiance to Liu Bei.

When Gongsun Zan sent Liu Bei to assist his ally, Tian Kai, in a battle against Yuan Shao, Zhao Yun followed Liu Bei and served as a cavalry officer under Liu Bei.

When Zhao Yun received news of his elder brother's death, he asked for a temporary leave of absence from Liu Bei to mourn his brother.

Around the same time, Zhao Yun came to Ye, Yuan Shao's headquarters, where he met Liu Bei again.

Liu Bei secretly instructed Zhao Yun to help him gather hundreds of men who were willing to follow him, and claim that they served under the General of the Left.

Zhao Yun then accompanied Liu Bei and his followers as they left Yuan Shao and headed south to join Liu Biao, the Governor of Jing Province.

Zhao Yun requested that Liu Bei spare Xiahou Lan's life and recommended Xiahou Lan to serve as a military judge because he knew that Xiahou Lan was knowledgeable about law.

Zhao Yun earned praise for being conscientious and careful when he maintained a professional relationship with Xiahou Lan despite their friendship.

Zhao Yun was later promoted to the rank of General of the Standard for his efforts.

Zhao Yun was later promoted to Lieutenant-General for his contributions towards Liu Bei's conquests of the four commanderies in southern Jing Province: Changsha, Lingling, Wuling and Guiyang.

Zhao Yun ordered Zhuge Liang, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun and others to lead reinforcements from Jing Province into Yi Province to help him, while Guan Yu remained behind to defend Jing Province.

Zhao Yun was appointed as General of the Assisting Army.

When Huang Zhong did not return to camp in time, Zhao Yun led tens of horsemen out in search of Huang Zhong.

Zhao Yun encountered Cao Cao's vanguard force and engaged them in battle until Cao Cao's main force showed up and surrounded him.

However, Zhao Yun ordered the gates to be opened, all flags and banners to be hidden, and the war drums to be silenced so as to create an illusion of an empty camp.

Just as they were retreating, Zhao Yun launched a counterattack and his men beat the war drums loudly and fired arrows at the enemy.

Zhao Yun was given the nickname "General of Tiger's Might".

Zhao Yun promoted Zhao Yun to the position of General Who Guards the East later.

In 227, Zhao Yun moved to the staging area at Hanzhong Commandery to join Zhuge Liang, who had mobilised military forces from throughout Shu in preparation for a large-scale military campaign against Shu's rival state, Wei.

Nevertheless, Zhao Yun managed to rally his men into putting up a firm defence as they retreated, thus minimising their losses.

Zhao Yun ensured that our troops retreated in an orderly manner and left no equipment behind.

Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Ma Chao, Pang Tong, Huang Zhong and Zhao Yun were awarded posthumous titles by Liu Shan as well.

Zhao Yun accompanied the Shu general Jiang Wei in the campaigns against Wei, and was killed in action in Tazhong.

Zhao Yun has been featured prominently in Chinese and Japanese popular culture, literature, art and anecdotes.

Zhao Yun was already a relatively well-known hero from the Three Kingdoms period, as folktales about his exploits have been passed down through centuries.

Zhao Yun became a household name due to the popularity of the 14th-century historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms.

Zhao Yun sometimes appears as a door god in Chinese and Taoist temples in Henan, usually in partnership with Ma Chao.

Zhao Yun is strongly associated with the color white in several Three Kingdoms media, which is a callback to his appearance as stated in Romance of the Three Kingdoms.

Measuring in at a length of nine chi, Zhao Yun is said to have wielded it with magnificent skill.

At times, Zhao Yun is associated with one of Cao Cao's twin swords from Romance of the Three Kingdoms.

Zhao Yun began to bleed profusely and eventually died of shock.

Zhao Yun is one of the Five Tiger Generals that must be recruited by the player in the NES RPG Destiny of an Emperor.

Zhao Yun appears as a playable character in Koei's Dynasty Warriors and Warriors Orochi video game series.

Zhao Yun is usually featured prominently on the cover of each title, and is most often used by the developers in screenshots and other promotional materials for upcoming releases.

Zhao Yun appears in all instalments of Koei's Romance of the Three Kingdoms strategy game series.

Zhao Yun appears as a playable character in Lost Saga, Honor of Kings, Arena of Valor, Heroes Evolved and Mobile Legends: Bang Bang.

Zhao Yun was later renamed to "Zilong" by the latter.

Zhao Yun appears as a Hero in the 2019 grand strategy game Total War: Three Kingdoms.