The battle took place at Changban (長坂; south of present-day Duodao District, Jingmen, Hubei).

Many officials and civilians of Xiangyang followed Liu Bei as he left, as he was greatly respected by the people.

As Liu Bei was bringing along more than 100,000 unarmed people and thousands of carts of luggage, his force could not move very quickly.

Instead, Liu Bei had Guan Yu sail ahead down the Han River with a detachment of several hundred ships and take a roundabout route to Jiangling, where they planned to rendezvous.

Cao Cao and his cavalry caught up with Liu Bei's congregation at Changban, Dangyang, and Liu Bei had to flee for his life, galloping south with Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, and Zhuge Liang, while leaving his family and the populace behind.

They met Guan Yu's fleet and over 10,000 men led by Liu Qi at Han Ford (漢津).

Lu Su, an adviser to the Jiangdong warlord Sun Quan, was originally on a mission to offer condolences for Liu Biao's death.

To this, Lu Su dissuaded Liu Bei from joining Wu Ju, saying Wu Ju was only an ordinary fellow who would not be independent for long; and persuaded Liu Bei to form an alliance with his lord Sun Quan against Cao Cao.

Liu Bei was pleased at this suggestion, and sent Zhuge Liang to follow Lu Su back to meet Sun Quan and secure the alliance.

In the 14th-century historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, the battle is romanticised into a showcase of the power and bravery of Zhang Fei and Zhao Yun.

Zhao Yun braves danger by fighting his way through enemy lines in search of Lady Mi and A'dou.

Zhang Fei had earlier ordered his men to tie tree branches to the tails of their horses and ride around in the woods, churning up dust to create an illusion of an ambush.

Zhao Yun's biography in the Sanguozhi briefly stated that during the Battle of Changban, after Liu Bei abandoned his family and fled, Zhao Yun protected A'dou (carrying A'dou close to him) and Lady Gan and escorted them to safety.

The bridge was already destroyed when Zhang Fei bellowed a challenge, similar in tone to the one in the novel, but without the highly exaggerated effect on the enemy.

The Battle of Changban is the highlight of Zhao Yun's and Zhang Fei's story mode in Koei's video game series Dynasty Warriors.