Jiang Wei

Jiang Wei 姜維 (204-263) was a general during the Three Kingdoms of China. Originally a general of Kingdom of Wei, he joined Kingdom of Shu after his mother was invited by Zhuge Liang (the minister of Shu), and he himself had fallen into a trap by Zhuge. After the death of Zhuge, he succeeded as minister of Shu and had led an unsuccessful attack to Wei.

From 247 until the demise of Shu, Jiang Wei made nine invasions north. Under the circumstances described by the famous saying "Shu has no generals of talent such that even Liao Hua (a mediocre general) is at the front lines," Jiang Wei fought against the numerous famous generals of Wei, winning some battles and losing others. Once he had Sima Zhao surrounded around Tie-long Mountain, almost costing Sima Zhao his life. As a result of all of these efforts, Jiang Wei depleted the strength of Shu.

In 263, Wei conquered Shu. Jiang proposed to restore the kingdom by imitating one of the Wei generals to rebel, but his plot failed and Jiang himself was killed along with the general by the Wei Army next year.

See also: Three Kingdoms