---
node: battle_of_red_cliffs
type: event
slug: battle_of_red_cliffs
title: "Battle of Red Cliffs"
lead: "In the winter of AD 208, the allied forces of Sun Quan and Liu Bei defeated the far larger army of the northern warlord Cao Cao on the Yangtze at Red Cliffs. The defeat blocked reunification and led to the three-way division of the empire."
published: 2026-07-09
updated: 2026-07-09
---

## What happened

On the Yangtze near modern Chibi, Hubei, the allies — with Sun Quan's commander Zhou Yu prominent — used a fire attack against Cao Cao's ships and forced his retreat north.

## Background

Cao Cao had unified the north, and the Han court had fallen under his control. He moved south to complete the reunification of the empire.

## Consequences

Reunification was blocked, and the empire settled into the three-way division formalized after 220 as Wei, Shu Han, and Wu. The battle became one of the most famous in Chinese history, retold in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms.