Battle of Guiling
353 BCE · Guiling (around present-day Changyuan, Henan) · China · Ancient
The Qi army "besieged Wei to rescue Zhao," laying an ambush on the Wei army's route home and winning the battle
Belligerents
Qi
- Commanders
- Tian Ji, Sun Bin
- Strength
- Qi army, about 80,000
Wei
- Commanders
- Pang Juan
- Strength
- Main Wei force attacking Zhao, about 80,000
Background
Pang Juan of Wei led an army to besiege the Zhao capital Handan, and Zhao appealed to Qi for help. Sun Bin proposed not relieving Handan directly but striking straight at the Wei capital Daliang.
Course of the battle
- Wei besieges HandanPang Juan led the Wei army north in an all-out assault on the Zhao capital Handan
- Besiege Wei to rescue ZhaoThe Qi army headed straight for Daliang, forcing the Wei army to turn back to save its own capital
- Ambush at GuilingThe Qi army ambushed the exhausted Wei relief force at Guiling
Outcome at a glance
| Date | 353 BCE |
|---|---|
| Place | Guiling (around present-day Changyuan, Henan) |
| Result | The Qi army "besieged Wei to rescue Zhao," laying an ambush on the Wei army's route home and winning the battle |
| Winner | Qi |
| Casualties | Exhausted from hurrying back to the rescue, the Wei army was ambushed and suffered heavy losses |
| Territorial change | Wei's dominance was checked, and Qi rose to become the great power of the east |
Impact
"Besiege Wei to rescue Zhao" became the classic example in traditional military strategy of attacking one point to ambush the relief force.
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