Cao Cao

Chinese poet

Born AD 155 · died AD 220
Also known as Tsao Tsao, Cho Cho, Mengde

Who was alive at the same time as Cao Cao?

Drag across the timeline, or use the arrow keys, to see who was alive in any year and the age each person reached that year. Dashed lines mark world events. Faded ends mark uncertain dates.

When Cao Cao was born, Marcus Aurelius was 33 or 34, Antoninus Pius was 68 or 69, Septimius Severus was 8 or 9, Didius Julianus was 21 or 22 and Pertinax was 28 or 29.

When Cao Cao died, Plotinus was 14 or 15, Aurelian was 5 or 6, Elagabalus was 16 or 17, Severus Alexander was 11 or 12 and Decius was 18 or 19.

Born during Cao Cao’s lifetime: Plotinus, Tertullian, Caracalla, Aurelian, Commodus, Elagabalus, Origen and Pope Sixtus II.

Not quite contemporaries: Gordian III was born about 5 years after Cao Cao died, Porphyry of Tyre was born about 11 years after Cao Cao died, Saint Lawrence was born about 5 years after Cao Cao died and Probus was born about 12 years after Cao Cao died.

What happened in Cao Cao’s lifetime

Battle of Red Cliffs AD 208

Where Cao Cao’s contemporaries were born

Cao Cao is labelled; the others are the best-known people we track who lived at the same time. Each dot is a birthplace from Wikidata (58 of 68 placed); tap one to open that person.

Birthplaces as a list

Antoninus Pius: Lanuvium
Ptolemy: Ptolemais Hermiou
Lucian: Samosata
Marcus Aurelius: Rome
Pertinax: Alba
Didius Julianus: Mediolanum
Septimius Severus: Leptis Magna
Nagarjuna: South India
Commodus: Lanuvium
Macrinus: Cherchell
Pope Cornelius: Rome
Origen: Alexandria
Caracalla: Lugdunum
Pope Dionysius: Roman Empire
Pope Fabian: Rome
Diophantus: Alexandria
Decius: Martinci
Elagabalus: Rome
Plotinus: Asyut
Severus Alexander: Tell Arqa
Pope Sixtus II: Greece
Aurelian: Sirmium
Irenaeus: İzmir
Clement of Alexandria: Athens
Philip the Arab: Shahba
Lucius Verus: Rome
Valerian: Roman Empire
Mani: Ctesiphon
Maximinus Thrax: Thrace
Saint Valentine: Terni
Claudius Gothicus: Sremska Mitrovica
Gordian I: Phrygia
Justin Martyr: Nablus
Ardashir I: Istakhr
Geta: Rome
Appian: Alexandria
Arrian: Nicomedia
Pausanias: Asia
Aemilianus: Djerba
Tacitus: Terni
Trebonianus Gallus: Perugia
Quintillus: Sirmium
Hippolytus of Rome: Anatolia
Cecilia of Rome: Rome
Zhuge Liang: Yinan County
Ulpian: Tyre
Aulus Gellius: Rome
Marcion of Sinope: Sinop
Guan Yu: Yanhu District
Clodius Albinus: Hadrumetum
Cao Pi: Bozhou
Sun Quan: Zhejiang
Herodian: Roman Empire
Papinian: Homs
Marcus Cornelius Fronto: Cirta
Dionysius of Alexandria: Alexandria
Herodes Atticus: Marathon
Sextus Julius Africanus: Aelia Capitolina

Compare Cao Cao

The 67 best-known contemporaries

67 of the people we track were surely alive at the same time as Cao Cao. All of them are listed here. See also everyone alive in AD 188.

Marcus Aurelius AD 121 – AD 180
Ptolemy c. AD 100 – c. AD 170
Nagarjuna c. AD 150 – c. AD 250
Lucian c. AD 120 – c. AD 180
Plotinus AD 205 – AD 270
Tertullian c. AD 160 – c. AD 240
Antoninus Pius AD 86 – AD 161
Septimius Severus AD 146 – AD 211
Caracalla AD 188 – AD 217
Aurelian AD 214 – AD 275
Commodus AD 161 – AD 192
Elagabalus AD 203 – AD 222
Origen c. AD 184 – AD 254
Pope Sixtus II c. AD 215 – AD 258
Pope Dionysius c. AD 200 – AD 268
Diophantus c. AD 200 – c. AD 284
Severus Alexander AD 208 – AD 235
Pope Cornelius c. AD 180 – AD 253
Pope Fabian c. 200s – AD 250
Didius Julianus AD 133 – AD 193
Macrinus c. AD 164 – AD 218
Decius AD 201 – AD 251
Pertinax AD 126 – AD 193
Irenaeus c. AD 130 – c. AD 202
Clement of Alexandria c. AD 150 – c. AD 215
Philip the Arab c. AD 204 – AD 249
Lucius Verus AD 130 – AD 169
Valerian c. AD 199 – c. AD 265
Mani c. AD 216 – c. AD 276
Maximinus Thrax AD 173 – AD 238
Saint Valentine AD 175 – AD 273
Claudius Gothicus AD 214 – AD 270
Gordian I AD 159 – AD 238
Justin Martyr c. AD 100 – c. AD 165
Ardashir I AD 180 – c. AD 242
Geta AD 189 – AD 211
Cyprian c. AD 200 – AD 258
Appian c. AD 95 – c. AD 165
Arrian c. AD 91 – c. AD 176
Pausanias c. AD 113 – c. AD 180
Aemilianus AD 207 – AD 253
Balbinus AD 178 – AD 238
Tacitus AD 200 – AD 276
Trebonianus Gallus AD 206 – AD 253
Quintillus AD 212 – AD 270
Gordian II 190s – AD 238
Hippolytus of Rome c. AD 170 – AD 235
Cecilia of Rome c. AD 200 – c. AD 230
Diadumenian AD 208 – AD 218
Zhuge Liang AD 181 – AD 234
Ulpian AD 170 – AD 228
Aulus Gellius c. AD 130 – c. AD 180
Marcion of Sinope c. AD 90 – c. AD 160
Tatian c. AD 120 – c. AD 173
Guan Yu AD 160 – AD 220
Clodius Albinus AD 150 – AD 197
Cao Pi AD 187 – AD 226
Gaius c. 120s – c. AD 180
Liu Bei AD 161 – AD 223
Sun Quan AD 182 – AD 252
Herodian c. AD 170 – c. AD 250
Papinian AD 142 – c. AD 212
Marcus Cornelius Fronto c. AD 100 – c. AD 165
Vologases V AD 130 – AD 208
Dionysius of Alexandria AD 190 – AD 264
Herodes Atticus c. AD 101 – AD 177
Sextus Julius Africanus c. AD 160 – c. AD 240