Li Guang

Li Guang

Lĭ Guăng (Chinese: 李廣; Wade–Giles: Li Kuang, died 119 BC), born in Tianshui, Gansu, was a famous general of the Han Dynasty. Nicknamed The Flying General by his Xiongnu enemies (Chinese:飛將軍李廣), he fought primarily in the campaigns against the Xiongnu peoples to the north of Han China. He was known to the Xiongnu as a tough opponent when it came to fortress defense, and his presence was sometimes discouraging enough for Xiongnu to abort the siege. Li Guang committed suicide shortly after the Battle of Mobei in 119 BC. He was blamed for failing to arrive at the battlefield in time (after getting lost in the desert), creating a gap in the encirclement and allowing Yizhixie Chanyu to escape after a confrontation between Wei Qing and the Chanyu's main force, whom the Han army narrowly managed to defeat. Refusing to accept the humiliation of a court martial, Li Guang took his own life. Li Guang was a descendant of Laozi and an ancestor of the Western Liang rulers and the Tang dynasty emperors.