Yellow Turban Rebellion

Not to be confused with Red Turban Rebellion.
Yellow Turban Rebellion
Part of the wars at the end of the Han dynasty

Map showing the extent of the Yellow Turban Rebellion in China in 184 CE
Date4 March 184–205 CE[1]
Location
Various locations in China
Result

Rebellion suppressed, Han victory

  • Han dynasty heavily weakened
  • Beginning of a state of turmoil in China
Belligerents
Han dynasty Yellow Turban Army
Commanders and leaders
Emperor Ling
He Jin
Huangfu Song
Lu Zhi
Zhu Jun		 Zhang Jue †
Zhang Bao †
Zhang Liang †
Strength
350,000 2,000,000 (360,000 were initially followers of Zhang Jue)[2]
Casualties and losses
Unknown[a]
Yellow Turban Rebellion
Traditional Chinese黃巾之亂
Simplified Chinese黄巾之乱
Literal meaningYellow turban conflict
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinHuángjīn zhī luàn
IPA[xwǎŋtɕín ʈʂɨ́ lwân]
Yue: Cantonese
Yale RomanizationWòhnggān jī lyuhn
Jyutpingwong4 gan1 zi1 lyun6

The Yellow Turban Rebellion, alternatively translated as the Yellow Scarves Rebellion, was a peasant revolt during the late Eastern Han dynasty of ancient China. The uprising broke out in 184 CE, during the reign of Emperor Ling. Although the main rebellion was suppressed by 185 CE, it took 21 years for full suppression of resistant areas and emerging rebellions by 205 CE.[1] The weakening of the imperial court and the rising political influence of ultra-autonomous regional military-governors, who helped suppress the rebellion, eventually led to rampant warlord dominance and the resultant Three Kingdoms period.

The rebellion, which got its name from the color of the rebel headwear, marked an important point in the history of Taoism due to the rebel leaders' association with the then secret Taoist societies.[4] The revolt was also used as the opening event in the 14th-century historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms.

  1. ^ a b Smitha, Frank E. "DYNASTIC RULE and the CHINESE (9 of 13)". Macrohistory and World Timeline. Retrieved 19 February 2015. By the year 205 (21 years after it had begun) the Yellow Turban Rebellion was over, and rule by the Han family was shattered and at its end.
  2. ^ Ropp, Paul S (10 June 2010). China in World History. Oxford University Press. p. 40. ISBN 9780199798766.
  3. ^ Michaud, Paul (1958). "The Yellow Turbans". Monumenta Serica. 17: 47–127. doi:10.1080/02549948.1958.11730973. ISSN 0254-9948. JSTOR 40725564.
  4. ^ Bowker, John (1997). The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions.


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