Liu Bei (; 161 – 10 June 223),
courtesy name Xuande, was a warlord in the late
Eastern Han dynasty who founded the state of
Shu Han in the
Three Kingdoms period and became its first ruler. Despite early failings compared to his rivals and lacking both the material resources and social status they commanded, he gathered support along disheartened Han loyalists who objected to
Cao Cao's reign over the emperor and relied heavily on this support. Liu Bei overcame his many defeats to carve out his own realm, which at its peak spanned present-day
Sichuan,
Chongqing,
Guizhou,
Hunan, parts of
Hubei, and parts of
Gansu.