The
Battle of Red Cliffs, otherwise known as the
Battle of Chibi, was a decisive battle fought at the
end of the Han dynasty, about twelve years prior to the beginning of the
Three Kingdoms period in
Chinese history. It was fought in the winter of 208/9 AD between the allied forces of the southern warlords
Liu Bei and
Sun Quan and the numerically superior forces of the northern warlord
Cao Cao. Liu Bei and Sun Quan successfully frustrated Cao Cao's effort to conquer the land south of the
Yangtze River and reunite the territory of the
Eastern Han dynasty. The allied victory at Red Cliffs ensured the survival of Liu Bei and Sun Quan, gave them control of the Yangtze , and provided a line of defence that was the basis for the later creation of the two southern states of
Shu Han and
Eastern Wu. The battle has been called
the largest naval battle in history in terms of numbers involved.