Manchu-led Later Jin (which later became the Qing dynasty). The revolt was eventually crushed by Ming government forces, although many surviving rebels managed to flee across the Bohai Sea and surrendered to the Manchu, significantly upsetting the balance of power
In late 1631, Kong was called in to reinforce Ming forces at the
Wuqiao, the regiment was bogged down by bad weather, and the local magistrate deliberately allowed the merchants to close the markets and refused to sell the troops provisions. One of the starving soldiers stole a chicken from the household of a powerful gentry named Wang Xiangchun, and Wang's servant had the soldier paraded and humiliated
through the camp with an arrow impaled through the face. This enraged the other soldiers, who rioted and killed Wang's servant. This escalation prompted Wang's son to personally intervene and demand that all the perpetrators be harshly punished.
At the same time, Kong's subordinate Li Jiucheng had spent all the funds provided by Sun Yuanhua and feared getting into trouble, so he coerced Kong to mutiny. The mutineers sacked the Wang household, raided
Shanghe and Qingcheng, and captured Dengzhou on February 22, 1632 when Geng Zhongming defected to the mutineers and handed over the city. Sun Yuanhua was captured but managed to convince Kong to surrender peacefully, however the amnesty decree was suppressed by censorial inspector Wang Daochun, who held a hardline approach to the rebels. Growing impatient, Kong resumed his rebellion, but released Sun out of their friendship. However, the failure to defend Dengzhou led to the impeachment of Sun Yuanhua by his political enemies. He was accused of treason, which led to torture in prison and eventually his execution in 1633.[2]
After more victories, Kong's rebel forces arrived at Laizhou in March and began a 6-month siege. The Ming central government mobilized Gao Qiqian, Wu Xiang, and Wu Sangui with 12,000 men to relieve Laizhou. The rebel forces were eventually smashed and forced to retreat to Dengzhou, where the poorly provisioned survivors were reduced to cannibalism before Kong and Geng escaped by sea with their remaining followers, defecting to the Later Jin in the spring of 1633.[3]
Aftermath
The surviving rebels included many
foot soldiers to attack Ming fortifications. Both Kong and Geng were appointed lords by Hong Taiji
, who rejoiced at the defection of these high-profile Ming commanders.
Swope, Kenneth M. (2009), A Dragon's Head and a Serpent's Tail: Ming China and the First Great East Asian War, 1592-1598, University of Oklahoma Press.
Swope, Kenneth (2014), The Military Collapse of China's Ming Dynasty, Routledge
