| Han E | |||||||||
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| Traditional Chinese | 韓娥 | ||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 韩娥 | ||||||||
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Han E (born 1345) was an ethnicHan female warrior who is considered awar heroine.[1] She served in the anti-Yuan dynastyRed Turbans dressed as a man under the name Han Guanbao. She was promoted to the rank of lieutenant[citation needed] and became famous as the "Hua Mulan of Shu".[2]
Han E was the daughter of the academic Han Cheng inSichuan.[3] When the uprising against theMongols broke out in 1361, she was dressed as a man by her family as a protective measure. The disguise led to her enlistment in the army. She fought there for twelve years dressed as a man under the name Han Guanbao under the command of Wang Quyan and Luo Jia. The revelation of the disguise is said to have come when her general gained so much confidence in her that he wanted to make her his son-in-law and married her daughter, which led to a conflict when she refused to consummate the marriage, and finally to the disclosure, which allowed her to return to her family and be married. In some versions of the story, she married a soldier named Ma Fuzong.[1]
Her deeds were perceived by her contemporaries as something admirable, especially as on her wedding night it turned out that she was still a virgin, and she was already celebrated during her time as a chaste war heroine. Her biography was first written in 1409.