生平

侍奉孙家

本为南阳太守黄子廉后人，但家族分离，黄盖祖父迁居到零陵郡居住下来。后来乡亲都纷纷死去，黄盖生活艰难，但仍有壮志，虽然贫穷，仍常负薪警戒自己，又自习读书、学习兵法。之后担任郡吏，再被考察为孝廉，升任公府。

孙坚起义兵时，黄盖就开始跟随孙坚。孙坚攻破南山山贼，击败北方董卓。初平二年（191年），孙坚战死于襄阳岘山，黄盖继续追随其子孙策及孙权，为孙家征战四处，更随孙策平定江东，立下战功。有一段时间，因山越不服而令边县多乱事，当每县有难，就会调黄盖驻守。

杀一儆百

一次驻守石城时，知道当地县吏很难控制，黄盖便立下条例管制，起初众县吏都不敢有所动作，但渐渐发现黄盖没有看文书，又开始放肆做乱，黄盖特意抽出犯错者立斩，杀一儆百，全县震惊。后转为春谷长、寻阳令，所守九县，管理有条。又升为丹阳都尉，在其任内，扶弱除强，山越人都很敬服黄盖。

焚舰备尝

建安十三年（208年），北方曹操南下，黄盖跟随周瑜与曹军于赤壁作战，两军对峙，黄盖率先提出火攻战术，并亲自前往曹营诈降，周瑜认为可行。交战之日，黄盖准备了数十艘蒙冲、斗舰，满载薪草膏油，外用赤幔伪装，船上插著牙旗，在船后系上走舸。黄盖先向曹操投书通报投降，使曹军看见黄盖率船只前来而毫无戒备。黄盖遂令燃点茅草，同时发起火攻，火乘风势波及曹军岸上的水寨与军营。黄盖在战争途中不幸被流矢所中堕入水中，被救起时，吴军兵士居然认不出是黄盖，则将他安置在厕床中。黄盖不屈地大声呼喊韩当，韩当发现他时：「这是黄盖的声音呀！」，流著泪地替他解开战服，并派军医前来看顾黄盖，才得以保留性命。虽然如此，但仍大败曹操，被受任武锋中郎将。

晚年事迹

后来，武陵发生蛮族叛乱，进攻城邑，黄盖被调驻为太守，当时郡中只有五百人，黄盖运用战术，大开城门引蛮兵入城，入了一半时，立即发动攻击，斩杀数百人，并收复所失的城邑，斩杀其领袖，放了投降者。以一季的时间，平定所有的乱事，当地的各部落的头目对他以礼相待。不久，长沙郡的益阳县也受到山贼的侵犯，黄盖再次平定，孙权便升他为偏将军，最后病死于任内（公元215年或更早）。

特徵

黄盖姿貌威严，善于养众，每次出战，士卒们都争先立功。而且为官决断，事无留滞。今湖南省洞庭湖一带有黄盖湖。

家庭

父

• 黄安，字孚仁，黄香第五子黄瓒之长子。

子

• 黄柄，孙权称帝时，追论黄盖之功，被赐关内侯。

评价

• 陈寿《三国志》评曰：「凡此诸将，皆江表之虎臣，孙氏之所厚待也。」（《三国志·吴书·程黄韩蒋周陈董甘凌徐潘丁传第十》）

• 韦曜：「盖少孤，婴丁凶难，辛苦备尝，然有壮志，虽处贫贱，不自同于凡庸，常以负薪馀间，学书疏，讲兵事。」（《三国志·吴书·程黄韩蒋周陈董甘凌徐潘丁传第十》）

• 《陈书·蔡景历传》载蔡景历书：「武夫则猛气纷纭，雄心四据，陆拔山岳，水断虬龙，六钧之弓，左右驰射，万人之剑，短兵交接，攻垒若文鸯，焚舰如黄盖，百战百胜，貔貅为群。」

• 庾信：「乍风惊而射火，或箭重而回舟。未辨声于黄盖，已先沈于杜侯。落帆黄鹤之浦，藏船鹦鹉之洲。」（《哀江南赋》）

• 章如愚：「如程普、黄盖、甘宁、徐盛、潘璋、朱然、朱桓、贺齐、凌统、全琮、吕范，皆智足以御众，勇足以却敌，未有不为守令之职者。」（《山堂考索》）

• 郝经：「程普诸将皆江表虎臣，鏖兵卫主，攻坚轧敌，兴王定霸，孙氏兄弟卒立国建号，诸将之力也。若黄盖之水战而用火攻，能用竒者也；蒋钦之不挟私怨而举徐盛；凌统之亲贤下士轻财重义；陈表倾家养士妻子露立，并有良将之规。甘宁之奢侈、潘璋之不法，权皆容之，许宁报苏飞之恩，不使统复父，操之雠驭将之术也。丁奉恃功而骄，不容于虐主，宜哉！」「吴将剽轻，殆多谲计。莫肯下人，卒自称帝。摩创抚孤，动辄流涕。驾驭有术，驱策有方。果保江东，不负桓王。」（《续后汉书》）

艺术形象

文学

通俗小说《三国演义》中，黄盖以铁鞭为兵器。曹操军来犯之际，黄盖向周瑜提议火攻破敌，周瑜要他行苦肉计，黄盖一口答应。黄盖故意提出投降曹操，周瑜假意下令斩首，后改为杖打五十，打得皮开肉绽。阚泽帮助黄盖向曹操献降书，曹操起初识破诈降，但有两细作回报黄盖遭刑的事，曹操才相信。这故事也衍生出揭后语「周瑜打黄盖──一个愿打，一个愿挨」。

但苦肉计并无正史记载，赤壁之战时候黄盖只是「建策火攻」而已。

漫画游戏

• 真三国无双系列 / 无双OROCHI系列（光荣公司开发，稲田彻配音）

• 《苍天航路》（王欣太）

• 《火凤燎原》（陈某)：设定于董卓火烧洛阳时登场，奉命潜入洛阳营救被董卓囚禁家属，曾与华雄交手

影视形象

• 1994年电视剧《三国演义》：分别由吴桂苓、许福印饰演黄盖

• 1996年台湾华视电视剧《三国英雄传之关公》：由田丰饰演黄盖

• 1996年电影《诸葛孔明》：由刘金泉饰演黄盖

• 1999年电影《一代枭雄曹操》：由刘金泉饰演黄盖

• 2008年电影《赤壁》及《赤壁2：决战天下》：张山饰演黄盖

• 2010年电视剧《三国》：刘魁饰演黄盖

• 2012年香港无线电视台电视剧《回到三国》：杨英伟饰演黄盖

• 2020年电影《新解释·三国志》：由矢本悠马饰演黄盖

Early life

Huang Gai was from Quanling County, Lingling Commandery (零陵郡), which is present-day Lingling District, Yongzhou, Hunan. He was a descendant of Huang Zilian, a former Administrator of Nanyang Commandery. Huang Gai's grandfather moved from Nanyang to Lingling and had remained there since. Huang Gai was orphaned at a young age and he experienced hardships in his early days. However, he had high ambitions and, despite being poor, he worked hard and read books and studied military arts on his own.

Early career and service under Sun Jian and Sun Ce

Huang Gai later became a minor official in the local commandery office before he was nominated as a xiaolian and employed as an assistant in the office of one of the Three Ducal Ministers. Around the 180s, when the warlord Sun Jian was raising a militia to help government forces suppress the Yellow Turban Rebellion, Huang Gai responded to the call and became one of Sun Jian's subordinates. Huang Gai accompanied Sun Jian in attacking bandits in the region and also participated in the campaign against Dong Zhuo under Sun Jian's banner. Huang Gai was later appointed as a Major of Separate Command. After Sun Jian's death in 191, Huang Gai continued to serve under Sun Jian's eldest son, Sun Ce, and later under Sun Quan, Sun Ce's younger brother. He was involved in Sun Ce's conquests in the Jiangdong region.

Service under Sun Quan

Maintaining peace and stability within Wu

When Sun Quan was in control of the Wu territories, the lands were not very peaceful as the Shanyue tribes in the region often raided counties and caused much trouble. Huang Gai was sent to pacify the Shanyue. Once, Huang Gai was assigned to oversee Shicheng County and he knew that the local officials did not follow the laws and were difficult to control. After entering the county office, he chose two officers to be his assistants and ordered them to manage the office. He also gave instructions for all the officers to abide by rules and regulations and perform their duties well. The two officers were afraid of Huang Gai so they put in full effort in their work. However, as time passed, they realised that Huang Gai did not inspect their work, so they became lax and reverted to their old ways. Huang Gai was actually aware of what was going on. He invited all the local officials to attend a banquet later and exposed the two officers' misdeeds in front of everyone. The officers were frightened and started begging for their lives, but Huang Gai still executed them. This incident shocked everyone in the county. Huang Gai was later reassigned to be the Chief of Chungu County (春谷县; northwest of present-day Fanchang County, Anhui) and the Prefect of Xunyang County (寻阳县; southwest of present-day Huangmei County, Hubei). The nine counties under his governorship were peaceful and stable. Huang Gai was subsequently promoted to Commandant of Danyang Commandery (丹杨郡; around present-day Nanjing, Jiangsu). He helped the poor and earned the respect of the Shanyue.

Battle of Red Cliffs

In the winter of 208-209, Huang Gai fought in the Battle of Red Cliffs against Cao Cao's forces. He was a subordinate of Zhou Yu, who was the frontline commander of Sun Quan's forces in that battle. Huang Gai told Zhou Yu: "The enemy are superior in numbers in comparison with our side. I fear that we cannot last long. However, I observe that Cao Cao's ships are linked to each other. We can destroy them by fire." Huang Gai then prepared about ten mengchongs and doujians (鬬舰; a type of warship) and filled them with the ingredients necessary for starting a fire. He then wrote a letter to Cao Cao, pretending that he wanted to surrender and defect to Cao Cao's side. Cao Cao told Huang Gai's messenger: "I only fear that this is a trick. However, if what Huang Gai said is true, I will reward him handsomely."

Huang Gai also prepared some zouges (走舸; a smaller type of boat), which would follow behind the mengchongs and doujians, and his small fleet sailed towards Cao Cao's base. The wind was blowing strongly from the southeast. When Huang Gai's fleet reached the middle of the river, the ships all raised their sails, and Huang Gai lifted a torch and instructed his men to shout "We surrender!" Cao Cao's troops came out of the camp to look and they said Huang Gai was coming to join them. When Huang Gai was about 20 li away from the enemy base, he ordered his men to set the ships on fire and they boarded the smaller boats behind. As the wind was very strong, the flaming ships sailed towards Cao Cao's warships at fast speed and caused them to catch fire as well. Cao Cao's ships were all burnt down and the flames also spread quickly to his camps on land. Zhou Yu then ordered an attack on Cao Cao's base and scored a major victory. Cao Cao retreated north with his surviving troops after his defeat.

Huang Gai was hit by a stray arrow during the battle and fell into the river. He was saved by Zhou Yu』s men, who did not recognise him and left him on a toilet seat. When Han Dang passed by, Huang Gai managed to call out to him. Han Dang recognised Huang Gai's voice so he rushed towards him. With tears in his eyes, Han Dang helped Huang Gai remove his clothing so that the wound can be treated, and Huang Gai survived.

Later career and death

Huang Gai was promoted to General of the Household of Martial Edge (武锋中郎将). When the tribal people in Wuling Commandery (武陵郡; around present-day Changde, Hunan) started a rebellion, Huang Gai was appointed as the Administrator of Wuling and was sent to quell the uprising. At that time, there were only 500 troops in the commandery and they were heavily outnumbered by the rebels. However, Huang Gai ordered the city gates to be opened, and when about half of the rebel army had entered, he launched an assault on them, killing hundreds of enemies while the surviving ones fled. Huang Gai later succeeded in pacifying the rebellion over the following three months by targeting the rebel chiefs and pardoning the rebels who surrendered. By summer, all the tribal chiefs had submitted to Huang Gai. Peace was restored in Wuling.

Later, when Huang Gai received news that Yiyang County was under attack by bandits, he led his forces to fight the bandits and succeeded in restoring peace in the region. Huang Gai was subsequently promoted to Lieutenant-General. He died in office while serving as the Administrator of Wuling Commandery.

Huang Bing

In 229, after Sun Quan declared himself emperor and established the state of Eastern Wu, he granted the title of a Secondary Marquis to Huang Gai's son, Huang Bing, in recognition of Huang Gai's contributions.

Appraisal

Huang Gai was described as having a stern and serious appearance, and was known to be a good disciplinarian. Every time he went into battle, the men under him would compete fiercely to earn the top credit. Huang Gai was also known to be just and decisive when he handled cases in court and he never had any lapses. After his death, he was fondly remembered by the people of Wu, and they even created portraits of him and worshipped him.

In Romance of the Three Kingdoms

Huang Gai is a minor character in the 14th-century historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, which romanticises the historical events before and during the Three Kingdoms period. He appears mainly in the chapters covering the events leading to the Battle of Red Cliffs. His most significant moment in the novel is a fictional episode in which he proposes a "self-torture ruse" (苦肉计) to win Cao Cao's trust so that Zhou Yu's fire attack plan can be carried out. Huang Gai has a secret conversation with Zhou Yu one night and suggests his plan. The following morning, when Zhou Yu calls for an assembly of the officers to discuss their battle plans, Huang Gai pretends to openly challenge and insult Zhou Yu. Zhou Yu pretends to be furious and he orders Huang Gai to be executed, but with some intervention from Gan Ning and others, he spares Huang Gai's life and has him severely flogged. Huang Gai then writes a letter to Cao Cao, expressing his willingness to defect over to Cao Cao's side because he is unhappy with Zhou Yu. Cai Zhong and Cai He, two spies planted by Cao Cao in Zhou Yu's camp, confirm Huang Gai's account that he was flogged on Zhou Yu's order because of an argument. Kan Ze later helps to convince Cao Cao that Huang Gai's defection is genuine, even though Cao initially saw through the ruse. Huang Gai then arranges with Cao Cao that on a certain night, he would sail across the river over to Cao's camp. That night, Huang Gai uses the opportunity to launch the fire attack, sparking off the Battle of Red Cliffs.

In popular culture

Huang Gai appears as a playable character in Koei's Dynasty Warriors and Warriors Orochi video game series.

He is portrayed by Liu Kui in the 2010 Chinese television series Three Kingdoms.