Mongol conquest of the Jin dynasty
This article needs additional citations for verification. (August 2020) |
Mongol conquest of the Jin dynasty | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Part of Mongol conquest of China | |||||||
An illustration of the Battle of Yehuling during the Mongol–Jin War | |||||||
| |||||||
Belligerents | |||||||
|
| ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
|
| ||||||
Strength | |||||||
Total: 180,000–210,000
|
|
Mongol conquest of the Jin dynasty | |
---|---|
Hanyu Pinyin | Méng Jīn Zhànzhēng |
The Mongol conquest of the Jin dynasty, also known as the Mongol–Jin War, was fought between the Mongol Empire and the Jurchen-led Jin dynasty in Manchuria and North China. The war, which started in 1211, lasted over 23 years and ended with the complete conquest of the Jin dynasty by the Mongols in 1234.
Background
The Jurchen rulers of the Jin dynasty collected tribute from some of the nomadic tribes living on the Mongol steppes and encouraged rivalries among them. When the Mongols were unified under Khabul in the 12th century, the Jurchens encouraged the Tatars to destroy them, but the Mongols were able to drive Jin forces out of their territory. The Tatars eventually captured Khabul's successor, Ambaghai, and handed him over to the Jin imperial court. Emperor Xizong of the Jin dynasty had ordered Ambaghai executed by crucifixion (nailed to a wooden mule). The Jin dynasty also conducted regular punitive expeditions against the Mongol nomads, either enslaving or killing them.
When the Tatars were in their original countries, during the Jin caitiff's Dading period [1161-1189] there was a rumor spoken in Yanjing and the Kitan areas saying: 'The Tatars come, the Tatars go, they'll chase His Lordship 'till he has nowhere to go!' The Chieftain of Ge, Yong, happened to hear of it and said in astonishment: 'Surely this means the Tatar people will bring disaster to my country!' and handed down a proclamation to the farthest frontiers and wastes to mobilize troops to destroy them. Every three years he would dispatch troops to the north to destroy and kill, and called it 'decreasing the number of fighting men.' Up to now, the people of the Central Plain are all able to remember this, saying: 'Twenty years ago in Shandong and Hebei, what house did not buy a Tatar to be a young slave?' All of these were those captured by soldiers. Today, among the great ministers of the Tatars, many were among those captured at that time and have lived within the state of Jin. Moreover, every year when their country came to present tribute [to the Jin] they would receive their rituals and offerings outside of the passes and then would drive them away, not allowing them to enter the border. The Tatars fled and concealed themselves in the sandy deserts and the hatred entered into the marrow of their bones... Temujin was infuriated about their bullying and insults and as a consequence of this attacked the frontier.[4]
— Zhao Gong
In 1210, a delegation arrived at the court of Genghis Khan (r. 1206–27) to proclaim the ascension of Wanyan Yongji to the Jin throne and demanded the submission of the Mongols as a vassal state. Because the Jurchens defeated the powerful steppe nomads and allied with the Keraites and the Tatars, they claimed sovereignty over all the tribes of the steppe. High court officials in the Jin government defected to the Mongols and urged Genghis Khan to attack the Jin dynasty. But fearful of a trap or some other nefarious scheme, Genghis Khan refused. Upon receiving the order to demonstrate submission, Genghis Khan reportedly turned to the south and spat on the ground; then he mounted his horse, and rode toward the north, leaving the stunned envoy choking in his dust. He gave the Jin emperor a very insulting message which the envoy dared not repeat upon his return to the Jin court. His defiance of the Jin envoys was tantamount to a declaration of war between the Mongols and Jurchens.[5]
After Genghis Khan returned to the Kherlen River, in early 1211, he summoned a kurultai. By organising a long discussion, everyone in the community was included in the process. The Khan prayed privately on a nearby mountain. He removed his hat and belt, bowed down before the Eternal Sky, and recounted the generations of grievances his people held against the Jurchens and detailed the torture and murder of his ancestors. He explained that he had not sought this war against the Jurchens. At the dawn on the fourth day, Genghis Khan emerged with the verdict: "The Eternal Blue Sky has promised us victory and vengeance".[6]
Wanyan Yongji, angry on hearing how Genghis Khan behaved, sent the message to the Khan that "Our Empire is like the sea; yours is but a handful of sand ... How can we fear you?"[7]
Mongol conquest under Genghis Khan
When the conquest of the
When the Mongol army besieged the Jin central capital, Zhongdu (present-day
The Jurchen Jin emperor Wanyan Yongji's daughter, Jurchen Princess Qiguo was married to Mongol leader Genghis Khan in exchange for relieving the Mongol siege upon Zhongdu (Beijing) in the Mongol conquest of the Jin dynasty.[11]
After the shift of the Jin capital to Kaifeng, the Jin
Muqali's advance
In 1223, the Mongol general
Mongol conquest under Ögedei Khan
When Ögedei Khan succeeded his father, he rebuffed Jin offers of peace talks but the Jin officers murdered Mongol envoys.[12]
Jin armies under Emperor Aizong successfully stopped several Mongol offensives, with major victories in the process, such as at the Battle of Dachangyuan in 1229, Battle of Weizhou (1230), Battle of Daohuigu (1231).
The
Wanyan Heda learned of this plan and led 200,000 men to intercept Tolui. At Dengzhou, he set an ambush in a valley with several tens of thousands of cavalry hidden behind the crest of either mountain, but Tolui's spies alerted him and he kept his main force with the supply train, sending only a smaller force of light cavalry to skirt around the valley and attack the Jin troops from behind. Wanyan Heda saw that his plan had been foiled and prepared his troops for a Mongol assault. At Mount Yu, southwest of Dengzhou, the two armies met in a pitched battle. The Jin army had an advantage in numbers, and fought fiercely. The Mongols then withdrew from Mount Yu by about 30 li, and Tolui changed his strategy. Leaving a part of his force to keep Wanyan Heda occupied, he sent most of his men to strike northwards at Kaifeng in several dispersed contingents to avoid alerting Heda.
On the way from Dengzhou to Kaifeng, the Mongols easily took county after county, and burnt all the supplies they captured so as to cut off Wanyan Heda's supply lines. Wanyan Heda was forced to withdraw, and ran into the Mongols at Three-peaked Hill in Junzhou. At this point, the Jin troops on the Yellow River were also diverted southwards to meet Tolui's attack, and the Mongol northern force under Ögedei Khan seized this opportunity to cross the frozen river and join up with Tolui – even at this point, their combined strength was only about 50,000. By 1232, the Jurchen ruler, Emperor Aizong, was besieged in Kaifeng. They together smashed the Jin forces. Ögedei Khan soon departed, leaving the final conquest to his generals.
Mongol-Song alliance
In 1233, Emperor Aizong dispatched diplomats to implore the Song for supplies. Jin envoys reported to the Song that the Mongols would invade the Song after they were done with the Jin—a forecast that would later be proven true—but the Song ignored the warning and rebuffed the request. They instead formed an alliance with the Mongols against the Jin. The Song provided supplies to the Mongols in return for parts of Henan.
The fall of the Jin dynasty
Wanyan Heda's army still had more than 100,000 men after the battle at Mount Yu, and the Mongols adopted a strategy of exhausting the enemy. The Jin troops had little rest all the way from Dengzhou, and had not eaten for three days because of the severing of their supply lines. Their morale was plummeting and their commanders were losing confidence. When they reached Sanfengshan (Three-peaked Hill), a snowstorm suddenly broke out, and it was so cold that the faces of the Jin troops went as white as corpses, and they could hardly march. Rather than attack them when they were desperate with their backs to the wall, the Mongols left them an escape route and then ambushed them when they let down their guard during the retreat. The Jin army collapsed without a fight, and the Mongols pursued the fleeing Jin troops relentlessly. Wanyan Heda was killed, and most of his commanders also lost their lives. After the Battle of Sanfengshan, Mongol troops took the city of Yuzhou. Kaifeng was doomed and Emperor Aizong soon abandoned the city and entered Hebei Province in a vain attempt to reestablish himself there. Thousands of people offered a stubborn resistance to the Mongols, who entrusted the conduct of the attack to Subutai, the most daring of all their commanders. Emperor Aizong was driven south again, and by this time Kaifeng had been taken by the Mongols so he established his new capital at Caizhou (present-day Runan County, Henan Province). Subutai wished to massacre the whole of the population. But Yelü Chucai was more humane, and under his advice Ögedei Khan rejected the cruel proposal.
The Jurchens used fire arrows against the Mongols during the defence of Kaifeng in 1232. The Mongols adopted this weapon in later conquests.[13]
In 1233, after Emperor Aizong had abandoned Kaifeng and failed to raise a new army for himself in Hebei, he returned to Henan and established his base in Guide (present-day
Pucha Guannu then launched a coup with his troops, killing Ma Yong and more than 300 other courtiers, as well as about 3,000 officers, palace guards and civilians who refused to cooperate with him. He made Emperor Aizong a puppet ruler and became the real master of the Jin imperial court. At this point the Mongols had arrived outside Guide and were preparing to besiege the city. The Mongol general Sajisibuhua had set up camp north of the city, on the bank of a river. Guannu then led his 450 troops out on boats from the southern gate at night, armed with fire-lances. They rowed along the river by the eastern side of the city, reaching the Mongol camp early in the morning. Emperor Aizong watched the battle from the northern gate of the city, with his imperial boat prepared for him to flee to Xuzhou if the Jin troops were defeated.
The Jin troops assaulted the Mongol camp from two directions, using their fire-lances to throw the Mongols into a panic. More than 3,500 Mongols drowned in the river while trying to flee, and the Mongol stockades were all burned to the ground. Sajisibuhua was also killed in the battle. Pucha Guannu had achieved a remarkable victory and was promoted by Emperor Aizong. But Guide was not defensible in the long term, and the other courtiers urged Emperor Aizong to move to Caizhou, which had stronger walls and more provisions and troops. Pucha Guannu opposed the move, afraid that his power base would be weakened and arguing that Caizhou's advantages had been overstated.
The Han Chinese general Shi Tianze led troops to pursue Emperor Aizong as he retreated, and destroyed an 80,000-strong Jin army led by Wanyan Chengyi (完顏承裔) at Pucheng (蒲城).
Three months later, Emperor Aizong used a plot to assassinate Guannu, and then quickly began preparations to move to Caizhou. By the time new reports reached him that Caizhou was still too weak in defences, troops and supplies, he was already on the way there. The fate of the Jin dynasty was then sealed for good, despite the earlier victory against great odds at Guide.
The
There are great men of the vanquished Jin who have gotten mixed up in odd jobs falling as low as butchering and peddling, or leaving to become Yellow Caps. All of them are still referred to by their old government [titles]. The family of Pacification Commissioner Wang has a number of men who push carts and are called 'Transport Commissioner' or 'Attendant Courtier.' In Changchun Palace, 'Palace of Long Spring,' there are many gentlemen of the vanquished Jin court, who by being there avoid baijiao, escape taxes and corvée labor, and receive clothing and food. It is to a great extent the cause for the people's sorrow and distress.[14]
— Zhao Gong
Mongol policies
James Waterson cautioned against attributing the population drop in northern China to Mongol slaughter since much of the population may have moved to southern China under the Southern Song or died of disease and famine as agricultural and urban city infrastructure were destroyed.[15] The Mongols spared cities from massacre and sacking if they surrendered, such as Kaifeng, which was surrendered to Subetai by Xu Li,[16] Yangzhou, which was surrendered to Bayan by Li Tingzhi's second in command after Li Tingzhi was executed by the Southern Song,[17] and Hangzhou, which was spared from sacking when it surrendered to Kublai Khan.[18] Han Chinese and Khitan soldiers defected en masse to Genghis Khan against the Jurchen Jin dynasty.[19] Towns which surrendered were spared from sacking and massacre by Kublai Khan.[20] The Khitan reluctantly left their homeland in Manchuria as the Jin moved their primary capital from Beijing south to Kaifeng and defected to the Mongols.[21]
Many
The Mongols valued physicians, craftsmen and religious clerics and ordered them to be spared from death and brought to them when cities were taken in northern China.[31]
The Han Chinese nobles Duke Yansheng and Celestial Masters continued possessing their titles in the Mongol empire and Yuan dynasty since the previous dynasties.
See also
Notes
- ^ 800,000 infantry and 150,000 elite cavalry spread across the Great Wall
References
- ISBN 978-0-7607-1976-3.
- ^ Mongol Warrior 1200–1350 Publisher: Osprey Publishing
- ^ ISBN 978-1-84383-596-7.
- ^ Garcia 2012, p. 322.
- ISBN 978-0-609-80964-8
- The Secret History of the Mongols
- ^ Meng Ta Peu Lu, Aufzeichnungen über die Mongolischen Tatan von Chao Hung, 1221, p. 61.
- ^ Weatherford 2004 p. 85
- ISBN 9780816046713.
- ^ Weatherford 2004 p. 96.
- ISBN 978-1108636629.
- ^ Herbert Franke; Denis Twitchett; John King Fairbank (1994). The Cambridge History of China: Volume 6, Alien Regimes and Border States. Cambridge University Press. p. 263.
- ISBN 978-1-4263-0597-9.
In A.D. 1232 an army of 30,000 Mongol warriors invaded the Chinese city of Kai-fung-fu, where the Chinese fought back with fire arrows ... Mongol leaders learned from their enemies and found ways to make fire arrows even more deadly as their invasion spread toward Europe. On Christmas Day 1241 Mongol troops used fire arrows to capture the city of Budapest in Hungary, and in 1258 to capture the city of Baghdad in what is now Iraq.
- ^ Garcia 2012, p. 337-338.
- ISBN 978-1783469437.
- ISBN 978-1783469437.
- ISBN 978-1783469437.
- ISBN 0471877336.
- ISBN 978-1783469437.
- ISBN 978-0521191890.
- ISBN 978-1466861565.
- ^ Collectif (2002). Revue bibliographique de sinologie 2001. Éditions de l'École des hautes études en sciences sociales. p. 147.
- ^ May, Timothy Michael (2004). The Mechanics of Conquest and Governance: The Rise and Expansion of the Mongol Empire, 1185-1265. University of Wisconsin--Madison. p. 50.
- ^ Schram, Stuart Reynolds (1987). Foundations and Limits of State Power in China. European Science Foundation by School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. p. 130.
- ^ Gary Seaman; Daniel Marks (1991). Rulers from the steppe: state formation on the Eurasian periphery. Ethnographics Press, Center for Visual Anthropology, University of Southern California. p. 175.
- ^ "窝阔台汗己丑年汉军万户萧札剌考辨--兼论金元之际的汉地七万户 A Study of XIAO Zha-la the Han Army Commander of 10,000 Families in the Year of 1229 during the Period of Khan (O)gedei". wanfangdata.com.cn. Retrieved 26 February 2017.
- ^ "窝阔台汗己丑年汉军万户萧札剌考辨-兼论金元之际的汉地七万户-国家哲学社会科学学术期刊数据库". Nssd.org. Archived from the original on 2020-04-13. Retrieved 2018-02-26.
- ^ "新元史/卷146" [New Yuan History/Volume 146]. Wikisource (in Chinese).
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2016-05-03.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - S2CID 161851226.
- ISBN 978-1317671602.
Bibliography
- Garcia, Chad D. (2012), A New Kind of Northerner