何進

Profile

The butcher’s son who became Grand General when his sister was made empress. Commanding the capital’s defense during the Yellow Turban crisis, he stood at the summit of power — then, in his showdown with the eunuchs, took Yuan Shao’s fatal advice to summon provincial armies, Dong Zhuo’s among them. He dithered until the eunuchs murdered him inside the palace, and the warlord he had invited swallowed the capital. The blunder that began the age.

Key events

1. 189

   The Ten Eunuchs and the Death of He Jin

   Grand General He Jin plots to purge the eunuchs and is murdered instead, plunging Luoyang into bloodshed — the chaos that invited Dong Zhuo in.

   Dong ZhuoYuan Shao

History vs. the novelHistoryvsNovel

Both tellings agree: his indecision opened the floodgates. The histories add a fairer note — he restored the purged scholar-officials and briefly served as the rallying point of reform.