Xiahou Dun

Who was Xiahou Dun?

Xiahou Dun, style name Yuanrang, was a military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao in the late Eastern Han Dynasty. He served for a few months under Cao Cao's successor, Cao Pi, before his death. As one of Cao Cao's most trusted generals, Xiahou Dun aided the warlord in his campaigns against Lü Bu, Liu Bei, Sun Quan and others.

Xiahou Dun lost his left eye when he was a hit by a stray arrow during a battle against Lü Bu in the late 190s, and subsequently became known among the rank and file as "Blind Xiahou", which greatly irked him. His image as a one-eyed warrior was popularised by Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, in which he yanked the arrow fired by enemy general Cao Xing out of his eye and devoured his own eyeball to instil fear in his enemies.