Tian Hu

Tian Hu
Water Margin character
Also known as King of Jin (晉王)
Leader of Tian Hu forces
Origin Hunter
Ancestral home / Place of origin Qinyuan County, Weishengzhou (威胜州), Shanxi
First appearance Chapter 91
Names
Simplified Chinese 田虎
Traditional Chinese 田虎
Pinyin Tián Hǔ
Wade–Giles Tien Hu
This is a Chinese name; the family name is Tian.

Tian Hu is a fictional character and an antagonist in Water Margin, one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature. He is one of the three rebel leaders in China, together with Fang La and Wang Qing, that the Liangshan heroes have to defeat in the final chapters of the novel. He only appears in the longest versions of the stories which include these extra chapters.[1]

Life

Tian Hu was originally a hunter from Qinyuan County, Weishengzhou, Shanxi. He possesses great physical strength and excels in martial arts. The Song Dynasty government is corrupt then and people are suffering from extreme poverty and natural disasters. Tian Hu uses the opportunity to spread rumours and incite people to follow him in rebelling against the government.

As the local government is weak and lacks a capable military force to suppress Tian Hu's rebels, Tian conquers and overrun five administrative divisions and 56 counties in a short time. Tian Hu establishes for himself a domain in the Hebei and Shanxi region and proclaims himself "King of Jin". He has a palace built for himself in Fenyang.

After the Liangshan outlaws have been granted amnesty by Emperor Huizong of Song, the emperor sends them on military campaigns to drive away the Liao invaders in the north and suppress the rebel forces in China. The Liangshan heroes successfully defeated Liao, followed by Tian Hu and Wang Qing's rebel forces, without suffering much casualties. Tian Hu is captured by Liangshan's "Featherless Arrow" Zhang Qing after his defeat.

References

  1. Anne McLaren (2005), Printing and Book Culture in Late Imperial China, University of California Press, p. 160, ISBN 9780520231269
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