| NAME | |
|---|---|
| Chinese Name | 陈蕃, 陳蕃, Chén Bō |
| Other name | Trần Phiên |
| Courtesy name | 仲举, 仲舉, Zhòng Jǔ, Zhong Ju, tự Trung Cử |
| INFORMATION | |
| Birth Place | Pingyu County, Runan Commandery (汝南郡平舆; Bình Dư, quận Nhữ Nam) |
| Died | 168 |
| Death Reason | Killed in the coup against the eunuchs after Emperor Huan's death (168) |
| CAREER | |
| Allegiance | Han Dynasty |
Biography & Historical Record
Chen Fan (陈蕃, Trần Phiên), courtesy name Zhongju (仲举, Trọng Cử), was Grand Tutor of the Han and one of the leading anti-eunuch statesmen of the second century. After Emperor Huan died he plotted with Dou Wu to destroy the Regular Attendants; the coup failed and Chen Fan was killed in 168. Romance of the Three Kingdoms names him in Chapter 1 among the loyalists whose fall opens the road to chaos.
Role in Romance of the Three Kingdoms
Chapter 1 recalls Chen Fan as a pillar of the Han who perished fighting the eunuchs, setting the moral baseline of the novel: good ministers die, and the empire slides toward warlords.
Chen Fan (陈蕃) — Historical & Literary Timeline
Emperor Huan’s reign
Grand Tutor
Leads the scholar-official opposition to the eunuchs.
168 AD
Failed coup
Plots with Dou Wu; is captured and killed.
Chapter 1
Novel prologue
Named among the martyred Han loyalists.
For detailed historical records, archives, and official chronicles, explore Chen Fan on Wikipedia.
Key Relationships
Family
- No information
Friends
- Dou Wu: General-in-chief who joined Chen Fan’s plot against the eunuchs.
Enemies
- Zhang Rang (张让, Trương Nhượng) and the Regular Attendants who crushed the 168 coup.
Other
- Emperor Huan of Han and Emperor Ling (刘宏, Lưu Hoành): The two reigns that frame Chen Fan’s career and death.
In Novel
Chapter 1
- Chen Fan (陈蕃, Trần Phiên): Grand Tutor of Han, courtesy name Zhongju; killed after the failed 168 plot against the eunuchs.
In History
Summary
- Chen Fan (陈蕃, Trần Phiên): Major historical statesman of the late Eastern Han, courtesy name Zhongju, killed in 168. Listed as historical in the novel appendix. Not a Three Kingdoms warlord, but a prologue figure of the era.
Year: 168 AD
- Chen Fan and Dou Wu fail to eliminate the eunuchs; Chen Fan is killed.
Historical Record
- The Hou Hanshu preserves his biography. Romance of the Three Kingdoms uses his death as part of the novel's opening indictment of the Han court.
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