Famous battles are mostly named after the place at which two or more armies confronted each other. This is a common feature that battlesfields around the world share regardless of the different armies, terrain, weaponry involved such as the Battle for Gettysburg (US Civil War), Battle of Waterloo (Napoleon War) and Pearl Harbor (WWII) to name a few.

These locations became the last breathing grounds where valiant generals along with many unknown soldiers who perished for the cause of their warlords and kingdoms. On the other hand these battlefields became the showcase of the military might as well as the ingenious tactics and strategies employed by the victorious army.

The battlefields listed on this page are listed according to alphabetical order. All battlefield pictures featured here are from Rtk VI. Click on the thumbnails to see a full blown-up view of the battlefield. Note that the white mountainous areas and cliffs are impassable to troops.

Bailangshan [Xiangping, Beiping--->Wuhuan] Located in the northeastern part of Beipingjun in Youzhou. The place is now known as Bailangshan. In 207AD, the northern tribes of Wuhuan engaged Cao Cao's forces here. Cao Cao scored a victory by ordering Zhang Liao who is the vanguard to launch a raid on the Wuhuan troops to throw them into disarray before they get the change to assemble into battle formation.

Baima [Ye--->Puyang] Located in Dongjun in Yanzhou. In 200AD, Cao Cao faced a bleak situation at Baima when his encampment was surrounded by the numerically larger army of Yuan Shao's. The turning point came with Guan Yu's appearance on the battlefield and this battlefield is famous because Guan Yu turned the tide of war for the beleaguered Cao troops by slaying Yuan Shao's top notch generals Yan Liang and Wen Chou, both of whom had been giving the Cao troops a good beating when they took to the battlefield.

Bowang Slope Bowang Slope is Zhuge Liang's first combat experience since he left his secluded life in Longzhong to serve Liu Bei. This site was chosen by Zhuge Liang as the ideal location to lay an ambush to repel the 10,000 troops commanded by Xiahou Dun. Although with only around 3000 soldiers to spare, Zhuge Liang managed to repel Xiahou Dun's army by ordering Zhao Yun to lure him to Bowang Slope. With this intial phase achieved, Liu Feng and Guan Ping would set fire to the forest after which Zhao Yun would turn back to reengage the Cao troops together with Liu Bei, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei. The result was that the confused Cao troops were badly battered by the simultaneous attack from Liu Bei's forces.

Changban Slope The place Changban Slope is almost synonymous with Zhao Zilong. This is the battlefield that made Zhao Yun famous due to his extraordinary ability to penetrate the enemy lines to rescue an infant single-handedly and then fight his way out of the heavy encirclement of Cao troops with an infant beneath his chest armor. His feat of getting away unscathed and not dropping the baby which was slotted into his bosom armor while galloping, fighting, killing all those that stand in his way and also at the same time avoiding capture by several of Cao Cao's generals gained the respect of his enemies. Hence from then onwards, fear also comes into mind upon the mention of the name Zhao Yun. Another location that might come into people's minds upon the mention of Changban Slope is Changban bridge. It is at this particular bridge that Zhang Fei feigned an ambush at the woods behind the bridge while he stood guard on his horse at the bridge itself. His shouts along with the suspected ambush in the woods prevented Cao Cao from advancing across the stream thus buying some "breathing space" for Liu Bei's troops and the citizens of Xinye from the pursuing Cao army.

Chibi Taking place on the 20th of November, 208AD. Chibi is the place where Cao Cao suffered his life's greatest defeat whereby just one night is all it takes to reduce his mighty fleet to a pile of smouldering wreckage. This is a battle that is much more different than the rest due to the fact that the main thrust of the offensive was delivered over the waters of the Yangtze river. The annihilation of Cao Cao's navel power through the use of fire was quickly followed up with a mop up of the remaining surviving forces on the river bank. The ability to achieve a swift and decisive victory gave a much needed boost in confidence for East Wu that even though they were not as strong as Wei, taking advantage of the natural barrier of the Yangtze river would give them the edge needed for their kingdom's survival. As for Liu Bei's forces, the battle of Chibi marks a significant milestone because it present a perfect opportunity to capture much of Jingzhou to facilitate the build up of food and soldiers while East Wu is occupied trying to capture Hefei.

Dangyang [Xiangyang--->Jiangling] Situated in Nan prefecture in Jingzhou. In 208AD, Liu Bei pulled out his forces from Xinye and Fancheng and brought along the civilian inhabitants from Xinye which greatly burdened the army's rate of retreat. It is here in Dangyang that Cao Cao's pursuing army caught up with Liu Bei's retreating populace which resulted in the loss of many innocent civilian lives. Zhao Yun's saving of A Dou and Zhang Fei's feat of holding off the pursuing Cao troops at Changban bridge took place around this vicinity.

Didao [Anding, Tianshui--->Xiliang] Situated in Longxi prefecture in Yongzhou. In 255AD, the expeditionary army of Shu led by Jiang Wei adn Xiahou Ba won a resounding victory against the numerically superior army led by Wang Jing. The victory was possible due to the "dead end" situation faced by the Shu troops as their backs are against the river. Thus a kill or be killed mentality among the Shu troops enabled them to fight a way out. The pursuing Shu troops gave chase to the retreating Wei troops to Didao but turned back when Chen Tai arrived with reinforcements to rescue Wang Jing.

Dingtao Pending Completion.

Guandu Another historically famous battle which is a fine example that possessing a huge army does not nesscessarily equate victory. With a mere 70,000 elite troops, Cao Cao accomplished the seemingly impossible when he managed to defeat a staggering force of 700,000. It is impossible in the sense that not only is Cao Cao vastly outnumbered but his army is also running low on food supplies. These two factors almost led Cao Cao to pull back his troops and mount his defense at Xuchang instead. Fortunately he sought the opinion of Xun Yu who was in Xuchang before initiating the retreat. Xun Yu urged Cao Cao to hang in there and wait for an opportunity to exploit Yuan Shao's weakness. It finally pay off in a short while when Xu You defected over to Cao Cao from Yuan Shao's camp. The valuable info provided by Xu You regarding the storage of supplies at Wuchao presented Cao Cao the golden opportunity to conduct a raid on Wuchao and burnt the supplies feeding Yuan Shao's army there. The lost of Wuchao and the failure to capture Cao Cao's camp greatly demoralised the Yuan army which Cao Cao capitalised on by ordering his soldiers to attack the demoralised Yuan army in full force.

Han Gorge Pass Pending Completion.

Hefei A strategic location in the northwestern part of Yangzhou. With victory secured at Chibi, Sun Quan led an army to attack Hefei. The generals entrusted for the defense of Hefei were all Cao Cao's trusted generals; Zhang Liao, Li Dian and Yue Jin. However the three of them managed to nullify Sun Quan's attempt to capture Hefei. The second invasion of Hefei was due partly to Zhuge Liang's deal of exchanging Jiangxia, Guiyang and Changsha to get East Wu to open up another warfront in the east to draw Cao Cao's forces away from Hanzhong. By doing so, Zhuge Liang would be able to buy some time to replace the attrited soldiers and supplies in the newly captured Xichuan as well as ramping up popular support among the citizens of Xichuan. Although vastly outnumbered and the logical thing to do is to hold down the fort for as long as possible until reinforcements arrive. Cao Cao gave instructions to Zhang Liao to the contrary. Instead of maintaining a steadfast defense at the fort, Cao Cao gave instructions that Generals Zhang Liao and Li Dian are to go out and engage the Wu forces while Yue Jin stay to protect the fort. The strategem worked miraculously. The result being that the assault led by Sun Quan were deflected and Sun Quan would have been trapped and perished if the broken bridge were torn down further apart.

Hulao Pass Pending Completion.

Hu Pass Pending Completion.

Jiange [Hanzhong, Wudu--->Zitong] Situated in Zitong prefecture in Yizhou anmd also known as Jianmen Pass. In 263AD, Jiang Wei, Zhang Yi and Liao Hua conducted their last ditch efforts with their troops to prevent Deng Ai and Zhong Hui's invasion force from pushing deeper into Shu at this strategic pass. This is a defender's dream come true due to its treacherous terrain and the tall and almost vertical cliffs make it practically impassable.

Jie Bridge Pending Completion.

Jieting Pending Completion.

Mianzhu [Zitong, ???--->Chengdu] Located in Kuanghanjun in Yizhou. The governor of Yizhou, Liu Yan got his first initial official post here. This place became the last line of defense for Shu in 263AD when Zhuge Liang's son Zhuge Zhan and grandson Zhuge Shang laid down their lives in an attempt to stop the invading troops led by Deng Ai and his son Deng Zhong. The fall of Mianzhu led to the capitulation of Shu very shortly.

Qishan Pending Completion.

Ruxukou Pending Completion.

Tong Pass Tong Pass is better known as the battlefield where Cao Cao almost lost his life on two occasions to the warrior Ma Chao. The luring of Ma Teng and his two sons Ma Tie and Ma Xiu to the capital and slaying them incurred the wrath of Ma Chao. Being the only son left and consumed with hatred, Ma Chao mobilises the army of Xiliang and sent them marching down all the way. Ma Chao's capture of Changan, the capital of the early Han Dynasty sent spines chilling. Therefore Cao Cao immediately despatched Cao Hong and Xu Huang with 10,000 troops to Tong Pass and issued orders that they must refrain from engaging the enemy and defend the pass for ten days. However on the ninth day Cao Hong could no longer put up with the insults and taunts shouted by Ma Chao and his army and therefore led a contingent of troops out of the pass to fight Ma Chao's forces without permission. Xu Huang came out to help Cao Hong but the two of them were no match for Ma Chao, Ma Dai and Pang De and Tong Pass was lost subsequently. Although Cao Cao personally led an army along with more than ten generals to recapture the pass, he still could not overcome Ma Chao with sheer might and more than ten of his generals were no match for Ma Chao. It is only through the use of a ruse to drive Ma Chao and Han Sui apart that Cao Cao was able to secure victory in the end.

Wu Pass [Wan--->Changan] Situated in Nanyangjun in Jingzhou. To the north of the pass lie hills and mountains while deep gorges/valleys are found south of this defensive fortification. Following the death of Dong Zhuo, Lu Bu passed by this place in his escape from Changan after being defeated by the forces of Li Jue who is still loyal to the deceased Dong Zhuo. This is also the place where Han Gaozu (also known as Liu Bang), the first Emperor of the Han Dynasty enter into Guanzhong.

Wuzhangyuan Pending Completion.

Xie Gorge Pending Completion.

Xisaishan Pending Completion.

Yangping Pass [Wudu, Zitong--->Hanzhong] Sited at Hanzhongjun in Yizhou. Also known as Yangan Pass or Yangankou. It plays a crucial role in the defense of Hanzhong. Cao Cao captured Hanzhong after defeating Zhang Lu's brother Zhang Wei here in 215AD. However Cao Cao lost it to Liu Bei in 218AD when Liu Bei led an attack up north from Chengdu in his bid to expand northwards. The seizure of Hanzhong presents Shu a good staging ground for invasions against Wei.

Yijing Pending Completion.

Yiling [Yongan, Wuling--->Jiangling] Located in the southern part of Jingzhou. In 222AD, Liu Bei in his bid to avenge the death of his sworn brother Guan Yu, launched a massive invasion into East Wu. Though the fight was brought deep into enemy lines, Liu Bei's ferocious attacks were brought to a halt when Lu Xun burnt many of Liu Bei's camps at Yiling. Defeated, Liu Bei fled to Baidicheng where he passed away after falling ill brooding too much over the loss of his sworn brothers and the defeat.