Xiahou Shang was a military general of Cao Wei

Cao Wei

Cao Wei was one of the states that competed for control of China during the Three Kingdoms period. With the capital at Luoyang, the state was established by Cao Pi in 220, based upon the foundations that his father Cao Cao laid...

 during the Three Kingdoms

Three Kingdoms

The Three Kingdoms period was a period in Chinese history, part of an era of disunity called the "Six Dynasties" following immediately the loss of de facto power of the Han Dynasty rulers. In a strict academic sense it refers to the period between the foundation of the state of Wei in 220 and the...

 period of Chinese history

History of China

Chinese civilization originated in various regional centers along both the Yellow River and the Yangtze River valleys in the Neolithic era, but the Yellow River is said to be the Cradle of Chinese Civilization. With thousands of years of continuous history, China is one of the world's oldest...

. He was a distant nephew of Xiahou Yuan

Xiahou Yuan

Xiahou Yuan was a military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He was killed in the Battle of Mount Dingjun against Liu Bei's general Huang Zhong in 219, and was given the posthumous title of Marquis Min , literally meaning "sympathetic...

 and father of Xiahou Xuan

Xiahou Xuan

Xiahou Xuan , style name Taichu , was a minister of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. He was the son of Xiahou Shang. Xiahou Xuan's mother was Cao Shuang's aunt , and thus he was close to Cao Shuang's faction. Despite this, he survived the overthrow and execution of Cao...

 and Lady Xiahou Hui

Lady Xiahou Hui

Xiahou Hui , formally known as Empress Jinghuai, was a noble lady of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. She was the daughter of Xiahou Shang and wife of the regent Sima Shi....

.

Biography

Xiahou Shang was a distant nephew of Xiahou Yuan

Xiahou Yuan

Xiahou Yuan was a military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He was killed in the Battle of Mount Dingjun against Liu Bei's general Huang Zhong in 219, and was given the posthumous title of Marquis Min , literally meaning "sympathetic...

, who adopted him as a son. Xiahou Shang was not very active when Cao Cao

Cao Cao

Cao Cao was a warlord and the penultimate chancellor of the Eastern Han Dynasty who rose to great power during the dynasty's final years. As one of the central figures of the Three Kingdoms period, he laid the foundations for what was to become the state of Cao Wei and was posthumously titled...

 was alive, only participating in suppressing barbarian

Wu Hu

Wu Hu was a Chinese term for the northern non-Chinese nomadic tribes which caused the Wu Hu uprising, and established the Sixteen Kingdoms from 304 to 439 AD.-Definition:...

 rebellions. Cao Cao's successor, Cao Pi

Cao Pi

Cao Pi , formally known as Emperor Wen of Wei, was the first emperor of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. Born in Qiao County, Pei Commandery , he was the second son of the late Han Dynasty warlord Cao Cao.Cao Pi, like his father, was a poet...

, was a close friend of Xiahou Shang, so Cao Pi gave him important positions, such as General who Conquers the South (征南將軍) and Inspector of Jing Province. Xiahou Shang generally took over commands for Cao Wei's southern frontiers. He took the Shu Han

Shu Han

Shu Han was one of the three states competing for control of China during the Three Kingdoms period, after the fall of the Han Dynasty. The state was based on areas around Sichuan, which was then known as Shu...

 outpost at Shangyong (上庸) from Liu Feng

Liu Feng

Liu Feng was an adopted son of the warlord Liu Bei, and served as a general in Liu Bei's army during the late Han Dynasty of China.-Early life:...

, and although Eastern Wu

Eastern Wu

Eastern Wu, also known as Sun Wu, was one the three states competing for control of China during the Three Kingdoms period after the fall of the Han Dynasty. It was based in the Jiangnan region of China...

 was allied to Cao Wei at the time, Xiahou Shang tightened his defences against Eastern Wu. Surely enough, Sun Quan

Sun Quan

Sun Quan , son of Sun Jian, formally Emperor Da of Wu, was the founder of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. He ruled from 222 to 229 as King of Wu and from 229 to 252 as Emperor of Wu....

 rebelled soon after. In 222, Xiahou Shang and Cao Zhen

Cao Zhen

Cao Zhen was a military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He served the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period. He was also a distant nephew of Cao Cao, though the latter treated him like a son. Cao Zhen participated in many...

 attacked the Eastern Wu fortress at Jiangling, guarded by Zhuge Jin

Zhuge Jin

Zhuge Jin , style name Ziyu , was a military general and politician of Eastern Wu during the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history.-Early life:...

. Xiahou Shang advanced both through land and water, burning Zhuge Jin's ships mid-river and capturing the fortress. However, he was called back because of a plague.

In 224, a favourite concubine of his drew the envy of his wife, who was the sister of Cao Zhen; in support of his clansmen, Cao Pi had the concubine strangled. Xiahou Shang became depressed after the loss of his favourite concubine and would not see anyone. A year later, Xiahou Shang fell to sickness and died, before which Cao Pi held his hand and sobbed.

In fiction

In Luo Guanzhong

Luo Guanzhong

Luo Ben , better known by his style name Luo Guanzhong , was a Chinese writer of the early Ming Dynasty period of Chinese history. He was also known as Huhai Sanren...

's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms

Romance of the Three Kingdoms

Romance of the Three Kingdoms, written by Luo Guanzhong in the 14th century, is a Chinese historical novel based on the events in the turbulent years near the end of the Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history, starting in 169 and ending with the reunification of the land in...

, Xiahou Shang is only portrayed as a minor character. He participated in the Battle of Mount Dingjun

Battle of Mount Dingjun

The Battle of Mount Dingjun was fought between the warlords Liu Bei and Cao Cao in 219 during the prelude to the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. Liu Bei's victory in the battle marked a major milestone in his Hanzhong Campaign.-The battle:...

, as a subordinate of Xiahou Yuan, against Liu Bei

Liu Bei

Liu Bei , also known as Liu Xuande, was a warlord, military general and later the founding emperor of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history...

's forces. During a skirmish, he was captured by the enemy and later released in exchange for the enemy general Chen Shi

Chen Shi

Chen Shi was a military general serving under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history.-Biography:...

, who was captured by Xiahou. During the exchange, Huang Zhong

Huang Zhong

Huang Zhong was a military general serving under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He was most noted for his victory in the Battle of Mount Dingjun, in which his force routed that of Xiahou Yuan, who was slain during battle...

fired an arrow at him, which hit him in the back and seriously injured him.