Zhuge Dan (died 10 April 258), courtesy name Gongxiu, was a Chinese military general and politician of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. When he held key military appointments throughout his middle to late career, he was involved in all of the three rebellions which broke out in Shouchun (around present-day Shou County, Anhui) between 251 and 258. During the second rebellion, he actively assisted the Wei regent Sima Shi in suppressing the revolt. After the rebellion, the Wei government put him in charge of Shouchun. As the Sima clan became more powerful and established themselves as the de facto rulers of Wei, Zhuge Dan feared that he would end up slain like Wang Ling and Guanqiu Jian – the leaders of the first two rebellions – so he started the third rebellion against Sima Zhao, who succeeded Sima Shi as regent of Wei in March 255. Although he received some support from Wei's rival state Eastern Wu, his rebellion was eventually suppressed by Wei imperial forces and he met his end at the hands of Hu Fen, a military officer under Sima Zhao.
Early career Zhuge Dan was from Yangdu County (), Langya Commandery, which is in present-day Yinan County, Shandong. He was a descendant of Zhuge Feng ()(諸葛誕字公休，琅邪陽都人，諸葛豐後也。) Sanguozhi vol. 28. and a cousin of Zhuge Jin and Zhuge Liang.(吳書曰：初，瑾為大將軍，而弟亮為蜀丞相， ... 族弟誕又顯名於魏，一門三方為冠蓋，天下榮之。) Wu Shu annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 52. He started his career as a Gentleman of Writing (). There was once when he and Du Ji, a Supervisor (), test-rode a boat in the river. The boat capsized after being hit by a wave and both men were thrown overboard. When the huben guards came to save him, Zhuge Dan told them to save Du Ji first. He lost consciousness later, drifted to the shore, and eventually recovered.(魏氏春秋曰：誕為郎，與僕射杜畿試船陶河，遭風覆沒，誕亦俱溺。虎賁浮河救誕，誕曰：「先救杜侯。」誕飄于岸，絕而後蘇。) Wei Shi Chunqiu annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 28.
Later, Zhuge Dan became the Prefect () of Xingyang County ()(初以尚書郎為滎陽令， ...) Sanguozhi vol. 28. and then served as a Gentleman () in the Ministry of Personnel (). During this time, when his colleagues recommended people to him, he would publicly reveal what they told him in private before giving jobs to the people they recommended. When he evaluated officials' performance, he would take into account what others said regardless of whether it was positive or negative. As a result, his colleagues were especially careful when they recommended people to him.(... 入為吏部郎。人有所屬託，輙顯其言而承用之，後有當否，則公議其得失以為襃貶，自是群僚莫不慎其所舉。) Sanguozhi vol. 28.
After gaining some experience in the Ministry of Personnel, Zhuge Dan was then reassigned to be a Palace Assistant Imperial Secretary and Master of Writing (). He was close friends with Xiahou Xuan and Deng Yang. They enjoyed much praise from other officials and the citizens in the imperial capital. Later, someone told the Wei emperor Cao Rui that Zhuge Dan and his friends, along with other "celebrities", were engaging in superficial and fame-seeking behaviour. Cao Rui felt disgusted and wanted to discourage such behaviour among his subjects, so he removed Zhuge Dan from office.(累遷御史中丞尚書，與夏侯玄、鄧颺等相善，收名朝廷，京都翕然。言事者以誕、颺等脩浮華，合虛譽，漸不可長。明帝惡之，免誕官。) Sanguozhi vol. 28.
After Cao Rui's death in January 239, Cao Fang became the new Wei emperor. He restored Zhuge Dan as Palace Assistant Imperial Secretary and Master of Writing, and subsequently promoted him to Inspector () of Yang Province and General of Illustrious Martial Might ().(會帝崩，正始初，玄等並在職。復以誕為御史中丞尚書，出為揚州刺史，加昭武將軍。) Sanguozhi vol. 28.
Battle of Dongxing
In 251, Wei imperial forces led by the regent Sima Yi suppressed a rebellion by the Wei general Wang Ling. After that, the Wei imperial court appointed Zhuge Dan as General Who Guards the East (), granted him imperial authority, put him in charge of military affairs in Yang Province, and enfeoffed him as the Marquis of Shanyang Village ().(王淩之陰謀也，太傅司馬宣王潛軍東伐，以誕為鎮東將軍、假節都督揚州諸軍事，封山陽亭侯。) Sanguozhi vol. 28.(詔以揚州刺史諸葛誕為鎮東將軍，都督揚州諸軍事。) Zizhi Tongjian vol. 75. After Sima Yi died later that year, his son Sima Shi succeeded him as regent and continued to control the Wei government.(八月，戊寅，舞陽宣文侯司馬懿卒。詔以其子衞將軍師為撫軍大將軍，錄尚書事。) Zizhi Tongjian vol. 75.
Around early or mid 252, Zhuge Dan pointed out to Sima Shi that Eastern Wu forces had been making incursions on Wei territory and had constructed a large dam, complete with exterior defences, at Dongxing (東興; southeast of present-day Chaohu, Anhui). He suggested to Sima Shi to send Wang Chang and Guanqiu Jian to lead troops to attack and destroy the dam.(鎮東將軍諸葛誕言於大將軍師曰：「今因吳內侵，使文舒逼江陵，仲恭向武昌，以羈吳之上流；然後簡精卒攻其兩城，比救至，可大獲也。」) Zizhi Tongjian vol. 75. Later that year, Sima Shi devised a strategy for launching a three-pronged attack on Eastern Wu. He sent Wang Chang to attack Nan Commandery (南郡; present-day Jingzhou, Hubei), Guanqiu Jian to attack Wuchang (武昌; present-day Ezhou, Hubei), and Hu Zun and Zhuge Dan to lead 70,000 troops to attack the Dongxing dam.(十一月，詔王昶等三道擊吳。十二月，王昶攻南郡，毌丘儉向武昌，胡遵、諸葛誕率衆七萬攻東興。) Zizhi Tongjian vol. 75. In response, the Wu general Zhuge Ke led 40,000 troops to Dongxing to counter the invaders.(甲寅，吳太傅恪將兵四萬，晨夜兼行，救東興。 ...) Zizhi Tongjian vol. 75. The Battle of Dongxing concluded with a tactical victory for the Wu forces. Zhuge Dan was reassigned to the position of General Who Guards the South () after he returned from the battle.(諸葛恪興東關，遣誕督諸軍討之，與戰，不利。還，徙為鎮南將軍。) Sanguozhi vol. 28.
Guanqiu Jian and Wen Qin's Rebellion
In early 255, the Wei generals Guanqiu Jian and Wen Qin started a rebellion in Shouchun (壽春; present-day Shou County, Anhui)(春，正月，儉、欽矯太后詔，起兵於壽春， ... 儉又遣使邀鎮南將軍諸葛誕，誕斬其使。) Zizhi Tongjian vol. 76. because they were unhappy with the Sima family's control over the Wei government. Both of them were close to the former Wei regent Cao Shuang and his followers,(初，揚州刺史文欽，驍果絕人，曹爽以鄉里故愛之。欽恃爽勢，多所陵傲。及爽誅，又好增虜級以邀功賞，司馬師常抑之，由是怨望。鎮東將軍毌丘儉素與夏侯玄、李豐善，玄等死，儉亦不自安，乃以計厚待欽。) Zizhi Tongjian vol. 76. who were ousted from power in a coup in 249 by Sima Yi. Guanqiu Jian and Wen Qin sent a messenger to Zhuge Dan, urging him to rally troops in Yu Province to support them. However, Zhuge Dan executed the messenger and publicly announced that Guanqiu Jian and Wen Qin had rebelled.(後毌丘儉、文欽反，遣使詣誕，招呼豫州士民。誕斬其使，露布天下，令知儉、欽凶逆。) Sanguozhi vol. 28.
Sima Shi personally led Wei imperial forces to deal with the rebels. He ordered Zhuge Dan to lead troops from Yu Province and advance to Shouchun via Anfeng Ford (). After Sima Shi quelled the revolt, Zhuge Dan and his forces were the first to enter Shouchun. By then, the civilian population of Shouchun, numbering over 100,000, had fled into the countryside or escaped to Eastern Wu for fear of being killed.(大將軍司馬景王東征，使誕督豫州諸軍，渡安風津向壽春。儉、欽之破也，誕先至壽春。壽春中十餘萬口，聞儉、欽敗，恐誅，悉破城門出，流迸山澤，或散走入吴。) Sanguozhi vol. 28.
The Wei imperial court appointed Zhuge Dan as Senior General Who Guards the East (), with honours equivalent to those of the Three Ducal Ministers, and ordered him to oversee military affairs in Yang Province. Earlier on, when news of Guanqiu Jian and Wen Qin's rebellion reached Eastern Wu, the Wu regent Sun Jun, along with Lü Ju, Liu Zan and others, had led Wu forces to Shouchun to support the rebels. However, by the time they showed up, Wei forces had recaptured Shouchun so the Wu forces retreated. Zhuge Dan sent his subordinate Jiang Ban () to lead troops to attack the retreating Wu forces. Jiang Ban killed Liu Zan in the ensuing battle and obtained his official seal. For his achievements, Zhuge Dan was promoted from a village marquis to a county marquis – "Marquis of Gaoping (County)" () – and awarded 3,500 taxable households to form his marquisate. The Wei government also changed his appointment to "Senior General Who Attacks the East" ().(以誕乆在淮南，乃復以為鎮東大將軍、儀同三司、都督揚州。吴大將孫峻、呂據、留贊等聞淮南亂，會文欽往，乃帥衆將欽徑至壽春；時誕諸軍已至，城不可攻，乃走。誕遣將軍蔣班追擊之，斬贊，傳首，收其印節。進封高平侯，邑三千五百戶，轉為征東大將軍。) Sanguozhi vol. 28.
Zhuge Dan's Rebellion
Making preparations to rebel As Zhuge Dan was close friends with Xiahou Xuan and Deng Yang () – both were Cao Shuang's associates – and had witnessed the downfall of Wang Ling and Guanqiu Jian, he felt very uneasy and was worried that he would become a victim of the Sima family's purges. Thus, when he was stationed in Shouchun (壽春; present-day Shou County, Anhui), he attempted to increase his popularity among the masses in the Huai River area by being very generous. He also used his personal wealth to bribe his subordinates and hire thousands of mercenaries as bodyguards.(誕旣與玄、颺等至親，又王淩、毌丘儉累見夷滅，懼不自安，傾帑藏振施以結衆心，厚養親附及揚州輕俠者數千人為死士。) Sanguozhi vol. 28. He even pardoned criminals who committed capital offences.(魏書曰：誕賞賜過度。有犯死罪者，虧制以活之。) Wei Shu annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 28.
Around the winter of 256, Zhuge Dan found an excuse to entrench himself further in Shouchun and build up his defences. He wrote to the Wei imperial court, claiming that he heard that Eastern Wu forces were planning to attack the Huai River region. He asked for 100,000 troops and permission to build more defensive structures in the area.(甘露元年冬，吴賊欲向徐堨，計誕所督兵馬足以待之，而復請十萬衆守壽春，又求臨淮築城以備寇，內欲保有淮南。) Sanguozhi vol. 28. At the time, as Sima Shi had died in 255, his younger brother Sima Zhao had taken over the reins of power as the regent of Wei. Jia Chong suggested to Sima Zhao to keep a close watch on the generals who were guarding strategic locations throughout the Wei Empire and assess whether they were loyal to him. Sima Zhao heeded his words and sent him to Shouchun to meet Zhuge Dan. Jia Chong told Zhuge Dan, "Many wise men in Luoyang hope to see the Emperor abdicate in favour of a better ruler. You already know this. What do you think?" Zhuge Dan replied sternly, "Aren't you Inspector Jia's son? The State has treated your family generously for generations. How can you betray the State and let it fall into the hands of others? I can't stand this. If there is trouble in Luoyang, I'll die for the State." Jia Chong remained silent.(魏末傳曰：賈充與誕相見，談說時事，因謂誕曰：「洛中諸賢，皆願禪代，君所知也。君以為云何？」誕厲色曰：「卿非賈豫州子？世受魏恩，如何負國，欲以魏室輸人乎？非吾所忍聞。若洛中有難，吾當死之。」充默然。) Wei Mo Zhuan annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 28. After returning to Luoyang, Jia Chong told Sima Zhao, "Zhuge Dan has high prestige and popularity in Yang Province. If you summon him here and he doesn't obey, it's a small problem. But if you don't summon him, it'll become a big problem." Around the early summer of 257, Sima Zhao issued an order in the imperial court's name, ordering Zhuge Dan to return to Luoyang to serve as Minister of Works () in the central government.(世語曰：司馬文王旣秉朝政，長史賈充以為宜遣參佐慰勞四征，於是遣充至壽春。充還啟文王：「誕再在揚州，有威名，民望所歸。今徵，必不來，禍小事淺；不徵，事遲禍大。」乃以為司空。) Shiyu annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 28.(朝廷微知誕有自疑心，以誕舊臣，欲入度之。二年五月，徵為司空。) Sanguozhi vol. 28. While the order ostensibly promoted Zhuge Dan to a prestigious ministerial office (one of the Three Ducal Ministers, in fact), it was actually a move to remove him from power in Shouchun and put him under Sima Zhao's control in Luoyang.
Rising in revolt