Wei Qing

Biography

Family Background and Early Life

Wei Qing's mother was known as Wei Ao, although whether Wei was the surname of her husband's family is disputed. Wei Ao and her husband had one son and three daughters: the eldest son Wei Zhangzi, also known as Wei Changjun; the eldest daughter Wei Ru, called Wei Junru in the Book of Han; the second daughter Wei Shao'er; and the third daughter Wei Zifu. Wei Ao later had an affair with Zheng Ji, a county clerk serving in the household of Cao Shou, Marquis of Pingyang, and gave birth to Wei Qing.

Volume 111 of the Records of the Grand Historian, “Biographies of General Wei and the General of Agile Cavalry,” records that Wei Qing was a man of Pingyang; his father Zheng Ji was a clerk serving in the household of the Marquis of Pingyang and had relations with the marquis's concubine Wei Ao, who gave birth to Qing. It further states that, when young, Qing was sent to his father, who made him herd sheep, while Zheng Ji's other sons treated him like a slave rather than a brother. Because of his difficult circumstances, Wei Qing eventually left his father's household and returned to his mother, becoming a mounted servant of Princess Pingyang, daughter of Emperor Jing of Han.

While serving as a mounted attendant, Wei Qing once entered the Ganquan residence with his mistress. A convict wearing the cangue who claimed skill in physiognomy told him, “You are a noble man and will rise to a rank worthy of enfeoffment.” Wei Qing laughed and replied that for someone born a slave, it was enough simply to avoid beatings and abuse, and that there was no question of becoming a marquis. The episode reflects the hardship of his youth and the modest expectations he then held for himself.

Entry into the Palace and Rise to Prominence

In spring 139 BCE, the second year of the Jianyuan era, Emperor Wu noticed Wei Zifu while visiting the residence of the Marquis of Pingyang. Because his maternal half-sister gained imperial favor, Wei Qing adopted the surname Wei. In 138 BCE, Wei Zifu, who had been neglected for more than a year after entering the palace, again won the emperor's favor and became pregnant. This aroused the jealousy of Empress Chen, whose mother Princess Guantao sent men to seize Wei Qing while he was serving at Jianzhang and intended to kill him. Gongsun Ao heard of the plot and rescued him. Emperor Wu was furious when he learned of the incident. He immediately appointed Wei Qing Supervisor of Jianzhang and Palace Attendant, raised Wei Zifu to the rank of Lady, and made Wei Changjun a Palace Attendant. Within a few days Wei Qing received gifts amounting to a thousand catties of gold. Wei Ru married Gongsun He, Superintendent of the Imperial Stud, while Wei Shao'er married Chen Zhang, a descendant of Chen Ping and an official serving as Chamberlain. Gongsun Ao also rose in status. Wei Qing was later appointed Grand Master of Palace Accord with a salary grade of one thousand piculs, joining the emperor's close attendants in hearing and discussing affairs of state.

For nearly ten years from 138 to 129 BCE, Wei Qing remained close to Emperor Wu as Supervisor of Jianzhang, Palace Attendant, and later Grand Master of Palace Accord, showing that the emperor deeply trusted his ability. Qian Daxin observed in Critical Studies of the Twenty-Two Histories that at the beginning of Emperor Wu's reign Yan Zhu and Zhu Maichen served as Palace Attendants and began participating in government because of imperial favor; later Wei Qing, Huo Qubing, Huo Guang, and Jin Midi likewise rose through the Palace Attendant establishment and came to wield authority greater than that of the chancellors. At this time Emperor Wu increasingly used trusted members of his inner court to counterbalance the outer court dominated by the Nine Ministers and aristocratic officeholders. Wei Qing's position as a Palace Attendant thus placed him among the emperor's most trusted men, and the Wei family began to flourish. During this period he also recommended talented men. In 134 BCE, Zhufu Yan went directly to Wei Qing after arriving in Chang'an. Impressed by his policy writings, Wei Qing repeatedly recommended him to Emperor Wu. The emperor praised the writings but initially gave him no office; Zhufu Yan then submitted a memorial on his own and was employed. In 130 BCE, Wei Qing sent men to Hedong to buy horses and encountered Jian Xuan, then an assistant clerk of Hedong. Impressed by his decisiveness and competence, Wei Qing recommended him for summons to the capital as Assistant of the Grand Stable.

Six Campaigns Against the Xiongnu

In 129 BCE, the Xiongnu moved south toward Shanggu (present-day Huailai, Hebei). Emperor Wu mobilized 40,000 troops in four columns and appointed the inexperienced Wei Qing General of Chariots and Cavalry, alongside Li Guang, Gongsun Ao, and Gongsun He. On his first expedition, Wei Qing remained bold and composed, penetrated deep into dangerous territory, struck the Xiongnu sacred site of Longcheng, and killed several hundred enemy soldiers. Of the other three columns, two were defeated and one returned without success. Because Wei Qing alone returned victorious, Emperor Wu enfeoffed him as Marquis within the Passes. The victory at Longcheng was the first Han victory over the Xiongnu since the dynasty's early years and strengthened confidence for further counteroffensives.

In autumn 128 BCE, Wei Qing, still General of Chariots and Cavalry, led 30,000 cavalry from Yanmen, advanced deep into enemy territory, and killed several thousand Xiongnu. In 127 BCE, the Xiongnu invaded Shanggu and Yuyang in force, first overrunning Liaoxi, killing its administrator, defeating the defender Han Anguo in Yuyang, and carrying off more than two thousand civilians. Emperor Wu sent Li Xi from Dai Commandery while Wei Qing led the main army against the Xiongnu-held Henan region in the Yellow River loop. He used a flanking maneuver, moved west behind the Xiongnu, rapidly seized Gaoque in present-day Hanggin Rear Banner, Inner Mongolia, and killed 2,300 enemy soldiers. This cut the White Sheep King and Loufan King in the Henan region off from the chanyu's royal court. Wei Qing then rushed elite cavalry southward to west of Long County, surrounding them. Han forces captured several thousand Xiongnu and seized livestock numbering in the millions, taking control of the Hetao region. Because the region had rich pasture and a strong strategic position, Emperor Wu built Shuofang city, established Shuofang and Wuyuan commanderies, resettled 100,000 people there from the interior, and restored frontier works along the Yellow River originally built under Meng Tian of Qin. The campaign removed the immediate threat of Xiongnu cavalry to Chang'an and established a forward base for further Han offensives. The Han army returned intact, and Wei Qing was enfeoffed as Marquis of Changping with 3,800 households. His subordinates Su Jian and Zhang Cigong were likewise enfeoffed for merit.

In spring 124 BCE, Emperor Wu ordered Wei Qing to lead 30,000 cavalry from Gaoque. Su Jian served as General of Mobile Warfare, Li Ju as General of Strong Crossbows, Gongsun He as General of Cavalry, and Li Cai as General of Light Chariots, all under Wei Qing. Li Xi and Zhang Cigong advanced separately from Youbeiping. The Wise King of the Right, facing Wei Qing's main force, believed the Han army could not reach him and became drunk. The Han army arrived at night and surrounded his camp. Startled, he fled under cover of darkness with a favorite concubine and several hundred elite horsemen. Guo Cheng and other light cavalry officers pursued him for several hundred li but failed to catch him. Han forces captured more than ten subordinate kings, over 15,000 men and women, and livestock said to number in the millions. Wei Qing then returned in triumph.

On receiving the report, Emperor Wu sent an envoy carrying seals and credentials into the army to appoint Wei Qing General-in-Chief and increase his fief by 6,000 households, though the Book of Han gives a figure of 8,700. Wei Qing was placed in command of the other generals and ranked above the dukes. Emperor Wu also enfeoffed Wei Qing's three sons: Wei Kang as Marquis of Yichun, Wei Buyi as Marquis of Yin'an, and Wei Deng as Marquis of Fagan. Wei Qing submitted a memorial declining the enfeoffments and credited his officers and soldiers. Gongsun Ao, Han Yue, Gongsun He, Li Cai, Li Shuo, Zhao Buyu, Gongsun Rongnu, Dou Ruyi, and others who had fought under him were also rewarded and some received marquisates.

In spring 123 BCE, Wei Qing commanded six generals—Gongsun Ao, Gongsun He, Zhao Xin, Su Jian, Li Guang, and Li Ju—in six columns from Dingxiang. They advanced several hundred li north and returned after killing several thousand enemy soldiers. After a month of rest at Dingxiang, they again crossed the frontier and killed more than ten thousand Xiongnu. The 3,000 cavalry under Su Jian and Zhao Xin, however, encountered the chanyu's main army. Zhao Xin fought, then defected to the Xiongnu with his men, while Su Jian escaped alone. Because the campaign lost two generals and Zhao Xin and yielded limited overall merit, Wei Qing received only a thousand catties of gold. His nephew Huo Qubing, however, distinguished himself and was enfeoffed as Marquis of Guanjun, beginning his rapid rise as a military commander.

The Battle of Mobei and Later Years

In spring 119 BCE, Emperor Wu assembled 140,000 warhorses and a logistical force of 500,000 infantry, ordered Wei Qing and Huo Qubing to lead 50,000 cavalry each, and sent more than 100,000 infantry and transport troops in two columns across the desert against the Xiongnu. The original plan had Huo Qubing march from Dingxiang, but false intelligence from Xiongnu captives claimed that Yizhixie Chanyu was in the east. Huo Qubing was therefore sent east from Dai Commandery while Wei Qing advanced west from Dingxiang.

After crossing the frontier, Wei Qing captured Xiongnu who revealed that the chanyu's army was actually in his direction. More than a thousand li beyond the frontier, just after crossing the great desert, he encountered the rested Xiongnu main force. The chanyu immediately sent roughly ten thousand cavalry forward. Wei Qing ordered armored wagons arranged in a ring as a fortified camp and sent five thousand cavalry to meet the attack. The fighting continued until sunset, when a sandstorm arose and neither side could see clearly. Wei Qing then ordered the cavalry on both wings to sweep forward and envelop the chanyu's army. Seeing the strength of the Han attack and the condition of its men and horses, the chanyu judged further fighting unfavorable. At dusk he abandoned the main force and broke out toward the northwest in a cart drawn by six mules, escorted by several hundred strong riders. As darkness fell, the armies fought in confusion and Xiongnu soldiers scattered. A Han officer captured prisoners who revealed that the chanyu had already fled before nightfall. Light cavalry pursued through the night, followed by the General-in-Chief's main army. By dawn they had traveled more than two hundred li without catching him, but they had killed or captured more than ten thousand enemy soldiers. They reached Zhao Xin's city at Mount Tianyan, used its stored grain for supplies, rested for a day, burned what remained, and returned.

The veteran general Li Guang, already about sixty years old, took part in the campaign under Wei Qing. Emperor Wu had verbally agreed to Li Guang's repeated request to serve as vanguard but privately instructed Wei Qing that Li Guang was unlucky and should not receive that responsibility. Wei Qing assigned Li Guang and the Right General Zhao Shiqi to make a detour by the eastern route, which angered Li Guang. Li Guang later became lost in the desert and missed the battle, rejoining the main army only after the Battle of Mobei ended. Charged by Wei Qing with delay of military operations, Li Guang refused to face a military tribunal and killed himself. In 118 BCE, Li Guang's son Li Gan privately assaulted and wounded Wei Qing over his father's death. Wei Qing kept the matter quiet, but Huo Qubing later learned of it and shot Li Gan dead during a hunt at Ganquan Palace; Emperor Wu publicly claimed that Li Gan had been killed by a deer.

To honor the achievements of General-in-Chief Wei Qing, who had fought seven campaigns against the Xiongnu and killed more than fifty thousand enemies, and General of Agile Cavalry Huo Qubing, who had fought six campaigns and killed more than 110,000, Emperor Wu created the office of Grand Marshal and conferred it on both men. He further ordered that Huo Qubing's salary rank equal that of the General-in-Chief. The two thereby handled routine military administration in place of the Grand Commandant.

After Mobei, Wei Qing no longer personally campaigned. As Grand Marshal and General-in-Chief, he became the leading official of the inner court and participated in deciding state affairs. To balance the authority of the chancellor and the Nine Ministers of the outer court, the emperor transferred the opening and review of memorials, evaluations and promotions of officials, and audiences of provincial and commandery officials to the Secretariat under the leadership of the General-in-Chief. Until his death, Wei Qing exercised substantial civil and military authority for more than a decade. Emperor Wu held him in extraordinary favor: regulations required the General-in-Chief to ride in the emperor's carriage on imperial tours, and because the Grand Marshal and General-in-Chief ranked above the Nine Ministers, the emperor required officials to bow before him.

Wei Qing died in the fourth lunar month of 106 BCE, the fifth year of the Yuanfeng era. He received the posthumous title Marquis Lie, following the maxim that “one who achieves merit and brings peace to the people is called Lie.” Emperor Wu prepared for him a burial mound shaped like Mount Lu east of Maoling, guarded by a stone qilin. After Wei Qing's death, Emperor Wu established regional inspectors over thirteen regions to supervise officials and, feeling that many distinguished civil and military men were passing away, issued an edict that same month calling for exceptional talent. In 104 BCE, Wei Qing's eldest son Wei Kang inherited the title Marquis of Changping. The office of Grand Marshal and General-in-Chief remained vacant until nineteen years later, when Emperor Wu, near death, appointed Huo Guang as one of the regents for the young heir.

While Wei Qing lived, no official dared openly attack the Wei family or Crown Prince Liu Ju. The Zizhi Tongjian records that only after Wei Qing's death, when officials believed the crown prince no longer had powerful maternal relatives to rely on, did accusations against him grow. Fifteen years after Wei Qing's death, in 91 BCE, the Witchcraft Crisis of 91 BCE erupted. His eldest son Wei Kang was implicated in the case of Gongsun Jingsheng and killed. Empress Wei and Crown Prince Liu Ju were then falsely accused by Jiang Chong, Su Wen, and others, forced into armed resistance, defeated by Liu Quli, and committed suicide. The Wei family's political influence was effectively destroyed. In 62 BCE, under Emperor Xuan, a son of Wei Deng was ordered to restore the family line and granted 500,000 cash.

Family, Early Years and His Rise

The Records of the Grand Historian record that "the great general Wei Qing was a man of Pingyang. His father Zheng Ji, an official, served in the household of the marquis of Pingyang and had relations with the marquis's concubine Wei Ao, and Wei Qing was born." Wei Qing was a man of the marquis's household, and in boyhood was sent back to his father's house, where "his father set him to herd sheep, and the sons of his father's first wife treated him as a slave and did not count him among the brothers"; finding life hard and unwilling to be a slave in the Zheng house, he returned in time to his mother. His elder brother by the same mother was Wei Zhangzi, and his elder sister Wei Zifu, having found favour with the emperor in the household of the princess of Pingyang, "took the surname Wei," and Wei Qing was styled Zhongqing. On the name "Wei Ao" the commentary observes at length that ao was a general term for a woman of any age, and that whether the surname he took was his father's or his mother's "is nowhere made clear" — a detail showing how obscure his origins were in the record. His early turn of fortune had an accidental quality: "the grand princess arrested Wei Qing and meant to kill him; his friend Gongsun Ao, a cavalry gentleman, went with strong men and took him by force, and so he escaped death." The emperor, hearing of it, made him keeper of the Jianzhang palace and attendant, with gifts amounting to a thousand pieces of gold within days, and his brothers by the same mother rose with him. The Qing scholar Qian Daxin remarked on this that "early in Emperor Wu's reign Yan Zhu and Zhu Maichen were attendants, honoured and employed, and first took part in government; afterwards Wei Qing, Huo Qubing, Huo Guang and Jin Midi all rose by way of the attendantship, and their power exceeded the chancellors'" — rising from the attendantship to command of armies being a feature of the power structure of Wu's reign.

Six Campaigns against the Xiongnu: Henan and the Court of the Wise King of the Right

Wei Qing's first campaign was in 130 BC, when he went out from Shanggu as general of chariot and horse, with Gongsun He, Gongsun Ao and Li Guang, each with ten thousand horse, against the Xiongnu. "Qing reached Longcheng and took several hundred heads," while Gongsun Ao lost seven thousand horse and Li Guang was taken by the Xiongnu and escaped, both being liable to death and ransoming themselves to commoner status, and Gongsun He gaining nothing, "so that only Qing was given the rank of marquis within the passes." In the autumn of 128 BC he went out from Yanmen as general of chariot and horse with thirty thousand horse, taking several thousand heads. The campaign of Henan in 127 BC made his name: with Li Xi he marched from Yunzhong, west by Gaoque and as far as Fuli, recovering the land south of the great bend that had once been Qin's, taking several thousand heads and more than a million head of livestock, "putting the kings of White Sheep and Loufan to flight, and so took the land of Henan and made it the commandery of Shuofang," being enfeoffed as marquis of Changping with three thousand eight hundred households; afterwards he "crossed the western river to Gaoque, took two thousand three hundred heads, and seized carts, baggage and herds entire for spoil, and so settled the land of Henan in the west, measuring the old frontier at Yuxi, cutting through Ziling, bridging the northern river, attacking Puni and breaking Fuli, beheading the light and keen troops and capturing three thousand and seventeen of the enemy's scouts," driving off more than a million head of horses, cattle and sheep "and returning with his armour and weapons whole," being further enfeoffed with three thousand eight hundred households. After this the direct threat of Xiongnu cavalry to Chang'an was removed and Han gained a forward base for further counter-attack. Even more famous was the surprise attack on the court of the wise king of the right in the spring of 124 BC: he went out from Gaoque with thirty thousand horse, with Su Jian, Li Ju, Gongsun He and Li Cai under him from Shuofang; the wise king of the right, facing Wei Qing's main force, "thought the Han could not reach so far and was drunk," and the Han troops came by night and surrounded him, whereupon he "fled by night with one beloved concubine and several hundred strong horsemen, breaking out to the north," and Guo Cheng, colonel of light cavalry, pursued several hundred li without catching him, the Han taking "more than ten of the wise king's subordinate kings, fifteen thousand men and women, and herds numbering thousands upon millions." At the frontier "the emperor sent an envoy with the great general's seal and made Wei Qing great general in the camp itself, and all the other generals passed under him," further enfeoffing him with six thousand households and making his three sons marquises; Wei Qing memorialized declining the enfeoffment and attributing the merit to his officers, whereupon the emperor issued an edict enfeoffing more than ten men, Gongsun Ao, Han Shuo, Gongsun He, Li Cai, Li Shuo, Zhao Buyu and Gongsun Rongnu among them, and granting the rank of marquis within the passes to Li Ju, Li Xi and the colonel Dou Ruyi.

Dingxiang, the Decisive Battle North of the Desert, and His End

In the spring of 123 BC Wei Qing went out from Dingxiang, "taking several thousand heads and returning," and a month later went out again, taking more than ten thousand. In this campaign Su Jian and Zhao Xin with some three thousand horse met the Shanyu's main force; Zhao Xin, after fighting hard, surrendered to the Xiongnu, and Su Jian, his army destroyed, made his way back alone. The judge advocate Hong, the senior secretary An and the court gentleman Zhou Ba debated his guilt, Zhou Ba urging that "since the great general went out he has never beheaded a subordinate general; now Jian has abandoned his army and may be beheaded, to make the general's authority clear," while Hong and An held that he should not be. Wei Qing answered: "I have been fortunate enough to serve in the field as one of the emperor's kin, and do not lack authority; that Ba should urge me to display it greatly misreads a minister's duty. And even if my office allowed me to behead a general, with the honour and favour I enjoy I would not dare to take on myself the power of life and death beyond the frontier; let it be reported to the emperor, and let the emperor decide, so that ministers may be taught not to arrogate authority — is that not well?" So Su Jian was sent in custody to the emperor's camp, and though the emperor did not put him to death he ransomed himself to commoner status. The decisive battle north of the desert in the spring of 119 BC was the summit of Wei Qing's career: the emperor ordered Wei Qing and Huo Qubing each to take fifty thousand horse with several hundred thousand foot and transport following, "and all who dared to fight hard and penetrate deep were assigned to the swift cavalry general"; Huo Qubing was first to go out from Dingxiang against the Shanyu, but on the capture of prisoners who said the Shanyu was in the east, he was sent out from Dai instead and Wei Qing from Dingxiang. Zhao Xin, advising the Shanyu, held that "if the Han cross the desert their men and horses will be exhausted, and the Xiongnu may take them captive at leisure," and so the baggage was sent far to the north and picked troops waited north of the desert; Wei Qing's army, going out more than a thousand li, found the Shanyu's troops drawn up, and he "had the war carts form a ring for a camp and loosed five thousand horse against the Xiongnu," who loosed ten thousand. As the sun was setting a great wind rose, sand and gravel striking the face so that the two armies could not see each other, and the Han extended their wings around the Shanyu. The Shanyu, seeing the Han numerous and their men and horses still strong, took a carriage of six mules with several hundred strong riders at dusk and "broke straight through the Han ring and galloped northwest"; the Han pursued by night more than two hundred li without catching him, reaching the Zhaoxin city at Mount Yanyan, where they fed the army on the Xiongnu's stored grain, "staying one day and then returning, burning all the grain left in the city," having taken nineteen thousand heads in all. Li Guang, the forward general, and Zhao Shiqi, the general of the right, had gone by the eastern road and lost their way; when Wei Qing's army met them south of the desert he meant to report the matter and had the senior secretary examine Li Guang, who killed himself, while Zhao Shiqi ransomed himself to commoner status. After this battle the Xiongnu main force moved far to the northwest and did not come south again for more than ten years, and Han occupied the great stretch of land from west of Shuofang to Zhangye and Juyan. Of the two armies that went out, the official and private horses numbered a hundred and forty thousand, "and of those that came back within the frontier there were not thirty thousand"; the office of grand marshal was then created, held by both the great general and the swift cavalry general, and the Treatise on the Balance of Trade records that in this war "of the Han soldiers and horses more than a hundred thousand died," so that with rewards and transport costs "the stores of coin in the great treasury were exhausted and the taxes spent, and still there was not enough to supply the soldiers," whence the proposal for a "military merit rank" sold for money. In his later years Wei Qing's honour was unmatched: the History of the Former Han records that when Cao Shou, marquis of Pingyang, fell ill and retired to his fief, the grand princess asked those about her who among the marquises was the worthiest, and all said the great general; she laughed and said, "He came out of my house and used to ride behind me," and they answered that "now his honour has no equal," whereupon she had the empress speak to the emperor and "the emperor ordered Wei Qing to marry the princess of Pingyang." He died with the posthumous name Lie, marquis of Changping, and his tomb was raised in the shape of Mount Lu, east of Maoling and west of Huo Qubing's.

Major Activities

Military Contributions

Wei Qing campaigned against the Xiongnu seven times and made major contributions to the security of the Western Han northern frontier. His main victories included:

1. Battle of Longcheng (129 BCE): when three of four Han columns failed, Wei Qing struck the Xiongnu sacred center of Longcheng, killed several hundred soldiers, won the first Han victory over the Xiongnu since the dynasty's early years, and was enfeoffed as Marquis within the Passes.
2. Yanmen Campaign (128 BCE): led 30,000 cavalry through Yanmen and killed several thousand Xiongnu.
3. Henan Campaign (127 BCE): used a flanking maneuver to recover the Hetao region, established Shuofang and Wuyuan commanderies, removed the Xiongnu cavalry's direct threat to Chang'an, and was advanced to Marquis of Changping.
4. Surprise attack on the Wise King of the Right (124 BCE): exploited the enemy's complacency in a night assault, achieved a major victory, and was promoted to General-in-Chief.
5. Campaign north of Dingxiang (123 BCE): twice led six generals from Dingxiang and inflicted heavy losses on the chanyu's forces.
6. Battle of Mobei (119 BCE): divided the northern expedition with Huo Qubing, encountered the chanyu's main army in the desert, defeated it after hard fighting, pursued it to Zhao Xin's city, and burned its stored grain before returning. After this campaign, the Xiongnu retreated far to the north and the southern steppe no longer housed the chanyu's court.

Political Activity

Wei Qing rose to Grand Marshal and General-in-Chief and became the senior figure of Emperor Wu's inner court. After the Battle of Mobei he no longer personally went to the battlefield, instead participating in major government decisions and exercising substantial civil and military authority for more than a decade. Emperor Wu trusted him deeply. Wei Qing was known for treating scholars with courtesy, yielding credit to others, sharing hardship with his troops, fighting bravely, and winning the affection of his soldiers.

Places of Activity

Wei Qing's military career took him through areas in present-day Shanxi, Inner Mongolia, Shaanxi, Gansu, and neighboring regions, including Shanggu (present-day Huailai, Hebei), Yanmen, Yunzhong, Gaoque, Dingxiang, and the lands north of the Gobi.

Relations with Contemporaries

Wei Qing had a close friendship with his colleague Gongsun Ao, who risked himself to save Wei Qing when Princess Guantao sent men to seize him. As a leading inner-court official, Wei Qing recommended such figures as Zhufu Yan and Jian Xuan. His relationship with Li Guang was more complicated, combining collegial ties with disputes over military command. Li Guang's son Li Gan once wounded Wei Qing, but Wei Qing chose not to publicize the assault.

His Way of War, His Command, and Later Record

The History of the Former Han sums up his career: "In all the great general Wei Qing went out seven times against the Xiongnu, beheading and capturing more than fifty thousand. Once he fought the Shanyu and took the land of Henan, setting up the commandery of Shuofang. Twice further enfeoffed, in all sixteen thousand three hundred households; and his three sons were made marquises with thirteen hundred households each, making twenty thousand two hundred households together." Behind this record lay a new way of war: grasping the Xiongnu cavalry's "mobility, shock, endurance and wide radius of action," he established the method of "cavalry against cavalry, mobility against mobility" and practised it well, fundamentally removing the Xiongnu military threat to Han. In the particular actions, at Longcheng he advanced from the east and then turned northwest in pursuit, penetrating alone several hundred li to strike the Xiongnu's sacred place of sacrifice; in the Henan campaign he manoeuvred, crossing the Yellow River twice and ranging several thousand li; in the attack on the wise king of the right he commanded three columns in a long raid of six or seven hundred li beyond the frontier, encircling his forces north of the Yinshan; and in the battle north of the desert he crossed the great desert and advanced more than a thousand li to defeat the Shanyu. In the use of arms he neglected neither infantry nor chariots: in the northern battle he first formed the war carts into a ring for a camp, the carts having shields and spears on either side and joining to make a strong work, behind which crossbowmen shot at long range, and then led the cavalry in a counter-stroke, so that the crossbowmen and chariots wore the enemy down on the defensive while the cavalry beat him on the offensive. He also, having learned where the Shanyu was, changed his plan in time and went out more than a thousand li with picked cavalry in deep pursuit to the Shanyu's own headquarters.

On the command of troops and on his character, contemporary testimony is consistent: Huang Yi, who served under him against the Xiongnu, said that "the great general treats officers and gentlemen with courtesy and shows kindness to the soldiers, and all are glad to be used by him. He rides up and down hills like flying, and his strength is beyond other men; and he has led troops so often that he is not easy to withstand." The usher Cao Liang, coming from Chang'an, said that Wei Qing "gives clear orders, is brave before the enemy and always first among the soldiers; he only settles to rest when the soldiers rest; he only dares to drink when a well has been dug and water found; and when the army is dismissed he crosses the river only after the soldiers have crossed. All the money the empress dowager gave him he gave away in rewards. Even the famous generals of old were no better." That he would not take on himself the power to execute, but said that Su Jian's case should "be reported to the emperor, and let the emperor decide," is part of the same care and self-restraint. The Biographies of the Favoured of the Records of the Grand Historian judges him from another side: "Wei Qing and Huo Qubing also rose by favour as kinsmen of the empress, yet they advanced largely by their own ability" — rising as imperial kin, but standing by talent, which is the historians' fairer placing of him; and later accounts of the Han-Xiongnu wars commonly sum up the achievement of that generation of commanders by saying that "with Wei Qing and Huo Qubing leading troops for more than ten years... they crossed the western river, passed the great desert, broke Zhenyan, attacked the Shanyu's court, exhausted the country to its limits, chased and hunted the fugitives north, made sacrifice on Mount Langju, purified themselves at Guyuan and looked out on the great sea, so that the Xiongnu were struck with terror and sued the more for marriage alliance."

Personal Relations

• Mother: Wei Ao
• Biological father: Zheng Ji
• Maternal half-brother: Wei Changjun (Wei Zhangzi)
• Maternal half-sisters: Wei Ru (Wei Junru), Wei Shao'er, and Wei Zifu (empress of Emperor Wu of Han)
• Wife: Princess Pingyang, elder sister of Emperor Wu; Wei Qing was her third husband
• Eldest son: Wei Kang, Marquis of Yichun and later Marquis of Changping
• Second son: Wei Buyi, Marquis of Yin'an
• Youngest son: Wei Deng, Marquis of Fagan
• Nephew: Huo Qubing, Grand Marshal and General of Agile Cavalry, son of Wei Shao'er
• Nephew: Liu Ju, crown prince, son of Wei Zifu
• Brother-in-law: Gongsun He, Superintendent of the Imperial Stud, husband of Wei Ru
• Gongsun Ao: colleague and close friend who rescued Wei Qing when Princess Guantao sought to kill him
• Zhufu Yan: talent recommended by Wei Qing
• Jian Xuan: talent recommended by Wei Qing
• Emperor Wu of Han: Wei Qing's sovereign, who trusted and employed him heavily
• Princess Pingyang: Emperor Wu's elder sister; Wei Qing's mistress when he was a mounted servant and later his wife
• Li Guang: colleague with whom Wei Qing had disputes over military command; Li Guang killed himself after the Battle of Mobei
• Li Gan: Li Guang's son, who wounded Wei Qing
• Princess Guantao: sent men to seize and kill Wei Qing

Historical Assessment

Han and Contemporary Assessments

• Sima Qian's Records of the Grand Historian, “Biographies of General Wei and the General of Agile Cavalry,” gives Wei Qing a nuanced treatment, emphasizing his status as an imperial relative and his restrained and conciliatory manner while narrating his achievements less expansively than those of Li Guang. In the biography of the kings of Huainan and Hengshan, however, the text indirectly praises him through the words of Wu Bei, who describes the General-in-Chief as courteous to officers, generous to soldiers, brave before the enemy, clear in command, and unwilling to drink before his troops had obtained water.
• Wu Bei, adviser to the King of Huainan, described Wei Qing as a man of exceptional ability whom other generals willingly followed.
• Emperor Wu favored Wei Qing greatly, requiring the General-in-Chief to ride in the imperial carriage on tours and officials to bow before him.

Song–Yuan Period

• Huang Zhen of the Song, in Shiji Pinglin, argued that Wei Qing and Huo Qubing should be read together with Li Guang, commenting on the contrast between Sima Qian's restrained portrayal of Wei and Huo despite their deep campaigns and the vivid heroic presence given to Li Guang despite his repeated setbacks.
• The Zizhi Tongjian records that while Wei Qing lived no official dared attack the Wei family and Crown Prince Liu Ju, and that accusations against the crown prince became more frequent only after Wei Qing's death.

Ming–Qing Period

• Huang Chunyao of the Ming argued that Sima Qian's personal frustrations led him to write warmly of Li Guang and coldly of Wei Qing, but that the comparative strengths and weaknesses of the two remained visible in the narrative.
• Qian Daxin of the Qing wrote in Critical Studies of the Twenty-Two Histories that under Emperor Wu, men such as Wei Qing, Huo Qubing, Huo Guang, and Jin Midi rose through the Palace Attendant establishment and came to exercise authority greater than that of the chancellors.

Modern Assessments

• Modern scholarship generally regards Wei Qing as one of the most outstanding commanders of Emperor Wu's reign. His seven campaigns against the Xiongnu helped establish the security of the Western Han northern frontier.
• Born into humble circumstances, Wei Qing rose from mounted servant to celebrated general through his own ability and the emperor's trust. His military skill and restrained, modest style were praised by later generations.
• Wei Qing and his nephew Huo Qubing are jointly known as “Wei and Huo” and are regarded as major figures in the history of Chinese warfare.