Qifu Gangui

Who was Qifu Gangui?

Qifu Gangui or Qifu Qiangui, formally Prince Wuyuan of Henan, was a prince of the Chinese/Xianbei state Western Qin. He was a brother of the founding prince, Qifu Guoren, who became prince after Qifu Guoren's death in 388 because Qifu Guoren's son Qifu Gongfu was considered too young for leadership. He subsequently expanded the state's power and influence, but only to an extent, and in 400 after military losses to Later Qin, his state was annexed by Later Qin and he himself became a Later Qin general. However, after Later Qin was weakened by defeats at the hands of its rebel general Liu Bobo's Xia state, Qifu Gangui redeclared independence in 409, but ruled only three more years before he was killed by Qifu Gongfu in a coup. His son Qifu Chipan defeated Qifu Gongfu and succeeded him as prince.

Qifu Gangui was known for using military strategies designed to expose weaknesses and to mislead enemies into acting in an overly dangerous manner, and then strike when the enemy became overconfident.