Zhuge Qiao


Zhuge Qiao, courtesy name Bosong, was an official of the state of Shu Han in the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the adopted son of Zhuge Liang, the Imperial Chancellor and regent of Shu from 223 to 234. His biological father was Zhuge Liang's elder brother Zhuge Jin, a military general of Shu's ally state, Eastern Wu.

Life

Zhuge Qiao and his brother Zhuge Ke were very famous in Eastern Wu but many people felt that Zhuge Qiao was not as talented as his brother.
Zhuge Liang did not have any sons initially so he requested to adopt Zhuge Qiao as his heir. Zhuge Jin sent Zhuge Qiao to Shu after seeking permission from the Wu emperor Sun Quan. Zhuge Qiao became Zhuge Liang's adopted son. Zhuge Liang changed Zhuge Qiao's original courtesy name "Zhongshen" to "Bosong". Zhuge Qiao was appointed as a Chief Commandant of Escorting Cavalry, and he followed Zhuge Liang to Hanzhong Commandery. Zhuge Liang once wrote a letter to Zhuge Jin, " Qiao should have returned to Chengdu. However, I see that the sons of the other Shu generals have inherited their fathers' legacies, so I thought we should share honour and shame together with them. I have put Qiao in command of 500-600 soldiers and deployed him to the valley together with the sons of the other generals."
Zhuge Qiao died in 223 at the age of 25. Zhuge Qiao's son, Zhuge Pan, served in Shu as well and his highest appointment was Protector of the Army and Soaring Martial General, but he also died at a young age. After Zhuge Ke and his family were massacred in Wu in a coup d'état in 253, Zhuge Pan reverted to his original lineage and travelled to Wu to continue his biological grandfather's bloodline there.