Chapter 12 Lessons learned

From the founding of Ming Dynasty to Jiajing period, especially in Jiajing period of Ming Dynasty, Japan was a small country with feudal lords, disunity in politics and far behind China in economy. Japanese pirates are a group of lawless people who are loosely organized and scattered, with the purpose of robbery. The Ming Dynasty was a big country with a relatively developed economy and a relatively unified political power. It had a unified military command and could cooperate with the enemy. However, even if the Ming Dynasty devoted all its efforts to the whole country, it could not stop the invasion of the Japanese aggressors, which left us many lessons. There are many reasons why the Ming court could not quell the Japanese invasion for a long time. & gt& gt First, the policy of closing the country to the outside world will only lead to extinction >> The invasion of Japan in the Ming Dynasty was largely inseparable from the maritime ban of the Ming court. & gt& gt At the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, due to political needs, in foreign trade, except for "Huairou Ren Yuan" which allowed some countries or tribes to trade through "tribute", all other non-governmental overseas trade was prohibited. Zhu Yuanzhang said, "I can communicate with foreign countries by sea, so I try my best to forbid them to communicate", that is, the maritime ban is implemented, private trade at sea is prohibited, and foreigners are not allowed to do business in China. During this period, Zhoushan and other coastal islands and counties were abandoned, and coastal people were forced to move inward by force. During the period of Hongwu (1368 ~ 1398), he applied for "no access" for many times, stipulating that "coastal residents are not allowed to trade with foreigners" and promulgated cruel and severe laws such as "those who go to sea are prohibited from leaving the country". In addition, coastal defense fortifications have been built in the coastal areas from Shandong to Guangdong, and a strict "inspection" system has been established. & gt& gt Of course, the main reasons for the implementation of the maritime ban policy in the early Ming Dynasty are as follows: >> First, from the social and economic point of view, although the social economy in the early Ming Dynasty was restored and developed, it was basically a self-sufficient natural economy, and the composition of the commodity economy was weak, so there was no strong demand for foreign trade, which was a potential factor. Ming History Volume 8 1? Foodstuff 5: "At the beginning of Yongle, Kazakhstan, Maha and others, the western mud-sucking countries, came to North Korea to exchange pepper with the people. Please tax some companies. Diri: Do you think it is profitable for those who engage in business tax and the state suppresses the last person? Today, foreigners' desire from afar infringes on their interests, gains geometry and loses a lot of humiliation. Don't listen. "That is to say, even if the Ming Dynasty traded with overseas markets, it did not levy business tax, and the country gained nothing when engaging in overseas trade. No wonder the emperor and the court are not interested in foreign trade. & gt& gt Second, the direct reason for the implementation of the maritime ban policy in the Ming Dynasty was the political situation at that time, which mainly included two aspects: first, to guard against the remnants of Zhang Shicheng and Fang Guozhen at sea, because they not only established many strongholds in Nanyang, but also contacted anti-Ming forces at home and abroad to plot against the Ming Dynasty, which made the Ming Dynasty very vigilant; Second, the problem of the enemy. At that time, the enemy constantly harassed the coastal areas of China. After entering the Ming Dynasty, the disaster situation became worse, which became the most direct reason for the implementation of the maritime ban in the Ming Dynasty. It can be seen that the policy of sea ban has both external and internal functions, but in fact it only played a role in the people of the Ming Dynasty, but it did not play any role in the Japanese pirates, and even indirectly played a role in fueling the situation. & gt& gt After Yongle, the Ming court still applied the ban of "no contact with foreign countries" for many times, but it was far less severe than that during the reign of Hongwu, and the scope of the ban gradually narrowed. & gt& gt In the first year of Jiajing (1522), Xia Yan, who was in charge of this matter, said perfunctorily that the enemy started from the city ship (that is, the tributary ship) and suggested that the city ship be closed and the sea ban be strictly enforced. The imperial court accepted the suggestion, blocked the coastal ports, destroyed the ships going to sea, prohibited fishing and shrimping at sea, and cut off the maritime traffic. Anyone who breaks the law will be sentenced to death according to law. Because of this, the maritime ban became an important reason for "Jiajing the enemy". & gt& gt is actually an avoidable but unavoidable historical tragedy. What did you say?/Sorry? The "radical" countermeasure to avoid this tragedy is to lift the sea ban and open foreign trade ports. But unfortunately, at that time, from the imperial court to the local government, they didn't realize that opening the trade market was the top priority at present, or even if they did, they didn't dare to put forward blasphemous suggestions in front of Emperor Jiajing. Therefore, after the death of Emperor Jiajing, in the first year of Qin Long (1567), the problem of "enemy" was basically eliminated. Of course, some historians have suggested that the problem of "enemy" is mainly a "political" problem. Jiajing regime politicized "pirates" into "pirates" problem, but Qin Long no longer politicized "pirates" problem, so "pirates" problem no longer exists. In other words, it is not that the problem of "piracy" has been eliminated after the lifting of the ban in Qin Long, but that although the problem of piracy still exists, it is no longer politicized as an "enemy". Therefore, it is basically a historical tragedy caused by the harsh foreign policy of the Jiajing regime, which came with Jiajing once and went with Jiajing once. & gt& gt After the outbreak of "Jiajing Day Difficult", there were also several opportunities to discuss the issue of opening the trade market. Unfortunately, in the lifetime of Emperor Jiajing, the road of opening the market to trade was forbidden. First of all, in the thirty-fourth year of Jiajing (1555), when the rebellion in Zhelin and other areas was the most tense, Hangren, who knew the whole story of Haikou, gave advice to Zhang Lian, an official, and put forward three suggestions for the current disadvantages: one day, military law should be emphasized to accumulate weakness; The next day, choose the militia to win the battle; Three days later, I returned to Shanghai and dispersed from the thief's party. In Fuhai City, he pointed out that the root cause of pirates' rampant is: "The military combat readiness can't be controlled, the post-maritime ban is stricter, pirates lack food, and pirates start from this." In view of this problem, Zhang Lian emphasized that as long as it is properly managed, "then the camera will be slightly restored to the old city, which can not only disperse the gathered party, but also live on the coast of the poor, which is enough to win back the hearts of the unbroken people" (Gu Yingtai's biography of the enemy). Although Zhang Lian's remarks have a prescription for the right medicine, they have no effect in Jiajing's political affairs. Secondly, in the thirty-sixth year of Jiajing (1557), after Wang Zhi surrendered to Ningbo and was arrested, on the one hand, the military gate of Hu Zongxian deliberately used the influence of Wang Zhi to expel the pirate forces in Zhoushan waters. Hu Zongxian asked Tang Shu about the suppression of Wang Zhi. In the book "Reply to Hu Molin and Punish Wang Zhi", Tang Shu gave a positive evaluation to Wang Zhi's Zi Mingshu. From the past, present and future, he analyzed the situation that the problem of coastal pirates escalated year by year after the Jiajing court established and strictly banned the sea, and pointed out that the problem of coastal pirates is a historical social problem, which can be banned but cannot be eliminated. Uncle Tang stressed that opening the market is not a matter for Wang Zhi alone, but the country has reached a critical stage, so he agreed with Hu Zongxian's proposal. Hu Zongxian also advocated zhaofu at the beginning. Unexpectedly, on the first day of evacuation, the company commander and others around Yu and Wang immediately strongly opposed it, so that they had to change their minds and fight back. On the other hand, the imperial court had different opinions on the suppression of Wang Zhi, arguing for two years, during which there was a tendency to woo, but in the end, Emperor Jiajing killed Wang Zhi. Wang Zhi's repression is the key turning point of "saving the nation from extinction". Tan Qian, a historian in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties, also criticized the wrong decision of Jiajing authorities in his masterpiece "Guo Que", pointing out: "Hu Zongxian Xu Wang insisted on immortality, and the post-disagreement theory was fierce, so he dared not insist. Fake Wang Zhi, cheap sea, and then cengang, Ke Mei's division can be inexperienced, Fujian and Guangdong Jiangbei will not suffer Donphan. "Tan Qian's historical comments suggest an important issue, that is, if the Jiajing authorities at that time accepted Wang Zhi's submission and compassion and properly handled the issue of opening the trade market, the historical tragedy that bandits spread to the north of Fujian, Guangdong and North of the Yangtze River in 10 could have been avoided. & gt& gt Second, the country can't live without an army, and the army can't live without preparation >> It is undeniable that Zhu Yuanzhang and both paid attention to strengthening army building and coastal defense construction in the early Ming Dynasty. However, with the reduction of Japanese invasion, the Ming court gradually relaxed the army building, the guards were vacant, and generals rarely knew soldiers. Navy ships were damaged and garrison cities collapsed. When the war comes, we need soldiers to be short of soldiers. Major General warships can't go out to sea to resist the Japanese pirates, and the city can't resist the Japanese pirates on the spot. So that letting the enemy land is like breaking into no man's land and letting it burn, kill and plunder. Even if the transferred foreign soldiers have played some roles, they are inconsistent with each other, have poor discipline and waste their salaries, which will not help. Facts have proved that the Ming court could not calm the enemy for a long time, and the incompetence of the garrison was an important reason. Transferring passengers is only a temporary emergency measure and does not play a leading role. & gt& gt For example, after the Ming army defeated Wang Jiang, Zhang Jing was framed, impeached and imprisoned, and Yang Yi, the minister of Nanjing Household Department, acted as the military affairs of the governor. However, Yang Yi's irrepressibility made the place more and more chaotic, the soldiers slackened off, the unified thought collapsed, and the Japanese invasion became more and more fierce. In July this year, only 60 or 70 Japanese pirates landed near Hangzhou, plundered Chun 'an (now Chun 'an, Zhejiang Province) through Beixin Kansai, suddenly attacked Huizhou (now Shexian, Anhui Province), robbed Wuhu (now Wuhu, Anhui Province), ran north to Taiping (now Dangtu, Anhui Province), invaded Jiangning Town (now Jiangning Town, southwest of Nanjing City), and fled to Nanjing to invade Da 'anmen. This time, only sixty or seventy people fled thousands of miles, killing four or five thousand people, including one suggestion, one county magistrate, two governors and two generals. They captured two counties and were annihilated by the Ming army in more than eighty days. Explain that armaments cannot be relaxed. & gt& gt There are many reasons why the Ming army began to lose to the Japanese army, mainly two: >> First, the fighting capacity of the Ming army was very poor. By Jiajing, the number of soldiers was less than half that of the early Ming Dynasty. Some generals of the Ming army were also poor, such as Zhao Wenhua and others. As the saying goes: "If a soldier is a bear, a bear is a nest." In the officialdom atmosphere of the Ming Dynasty, it is hard to count on them. The locals can't help it, and * * * has also deployed foreign soldiers, but some of them have a bad atmosphere. They are generally very effective, but they are not paid enough, their discipline is lax, and they are ok when there are bandits. When there are no bandits, they are the first to deal with. Later, the Ming Dynasty * * * reused generals like Qi Jiguang, which partially solved the problem of generals, but in terms of combat effectiveness, when Qi Jiguang arrived, Shangshu asked for recruiting. In the thirty-eighth year of Jiajing (1559), Qi Jiguang recruited more than 3,000 peasant miners from the mountainous area of Yiwu, Zhejiang Province, and established a new army by adopting the four-level organization method of battalion, official, sentry and team. This army is called "Qijiajun". The armed forces of some ethnic minorities also played a great role in the fight against the Japanese pirates, such as the Zhuang people's armed forces led by Mrs. Walsh and another Tujia militia in western Hunan. & gt& gt Second, weapons and equipment. Japanese pirates often use Japanese knives and bows, followed by firearms such as birds. Actually, bows and arrows should have nothing to do with shotgun. It should be noted that the army and the anti-Japanese army should also have such equipment and will not fall behind. However, Japanese long knives are very dangerous. They are about1.4m long and have long handles. They are about twice the length and weight of the swords commonly used by the Ming army, and can be chopped with both hands, while the Ming army can only be equipped with one hand. Not only that, at that time, Japan's knife-making technology was very developed, such as "Murakami" and other famous knives were widely known, and because the battles in Japan at that time were small-scale and the requirements for weapons were very high, many Japanese samurai attached great importance to knives. When they make knives, they use the technology of "Baotou Steel", and the blade body of this kind of knife is very solid as a whole. Generally, the Ming army is equipped with a short one-handed knife. Only the blade of this knife is made of steel. You can imagine the painful ending of the two knives. In order to change the inferior position of the equipment, Qi Jiguang began to adopt the "Baotou Steel" technology, and he forged the "Qijia Dao" by imitating the Japanese long Dao. The blade of this kind of knife is similar to that of Japanese Dao, but its length is shorter than that of Japanese Dao. Moreover, in order to adapt to the use habits of the Ming army, the handle has a downward arc, which is generally said to be one-handed. Some data also say that both hands can be manipulated, which makes the Ming army have the ability of weapon confrontation. In order to deal with the flexible attack tactics of Japanese samurai, Qi Jiguang created the "Mandarin Duck Array". The team is the basic combat unit, and the players are equipped with different weapons according to their age and physique. When fighting, the players use their strengths to cooperate with the battle. It played an important role in the war against the enemy. I have seen on TV that the front row of this tactic is a short weapon, that is, the "Qijia Dao". & gt& gt Later, the Ming army was able to basically quell the Japanese invasion:> First, in the later period of War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression, due to the Ming Dynasty's vigorous efforts to strengthen army building, divisional defense and layered defense, a layered and deep defense system was formed along the coast. In addition, with the improvement of equipment and technology, the construction of cities and the improvement of the quality of the army, the anti-Japanese ability was greatly enhanced, which created favorable conditions for the complete elimination of the Japanese pirates. & gt& gt Second, several years of war have trained a number of capable civil servants and military commanders. Tan Lun and other civil servants in Zhejiang, Fujian and other places to fight the Japanese aggressors. Ouyang Zujing said in Tan Nianpu: Without Tan Lun's victory, there would be no such rapid victory since the Japanese disaster in the southeast. Tan Lun has made great achievements in Fujian's coastal defense construction, but also made great contributions to Fujian's coastal defense construction. Another example is Wu Guifang, who fully supported Yu, a famous anti-Japanese soldier in Guangdong, so that he showed his military talents and wiped out the Japanese invaders who invaded Jiajing in the forty-third year (1564). Wu Guifang also decided to completely annihilate Wu Ping. Military attaché s, such as Qi Jiguang, gradually changed from generals to company commanders, and made innovations in training and operations, which made the enemy turn pale and frightened. Pacify the enemy of Fujian and Zhejiang, without his wisdom and courage. Another example is Yu, who, despite several setbacks, is determined to serve the country and gallop along the southeast coast, always wins with foresight. The growth of these civilian military commanders prepared advisers and generals to defeat the Japanese invasion. What's more, Tan Lun, Qi Jiguang, etc. Are good at training. The troops they trained turned against the long-standing abuses of the garrison and became the main force to suppress the enemy. & gt& gt Third, the coastal defense is perfect and the layout is reasonable. In the later period of the Anti-Japanese War, Guangdong soldiers were divided into three roads, Fujian soldiers were divided into three roads, and Wushuizhai was restored. Zhejiang soldiers were divided into four roads and six roads. The maritime defense forces have been strengthened, the buildings in cities on land have been improved, and the defense zones have been interrelated, forming a layered and deep coastal defense system, which has changed the situation of abandoned coastal defense in the past. & gt& gt After 200 years of War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression in the Ming Dynasty, China's military thought was fully developed. Mainly reflected in the following aspects: >> The first is the multi-level defense thought. This is mainly manifested in two aspects: setting risks, paying attention to multi-level soil, sheep-horse wall and main wall; The defense system is hierarchical, such as coastal defense, coastal defense, coastal defense and river defense, and coastal defense itself has several lines of defense. All these reflect the deepening and thoroughness of defense thought during Jiajing and Wanli years. & gt& gt The second is the idea of combining offensive and defensive. Both strategically and tactically, both offensive and defensive. There is defense in attack, there is attack in defense, and the combination of attack and defense wins. There is a war in the car camp, and the border guards have a war; Play cards in the mandarin duck array, with reeds as the main defense, spears as the main defense, the first two wings as the tail array, the first one as the main defense, and the two wings as the main defense; Defending the city should have offensive troops; Guard the border with car camps, etc. This is the application and development of the idea of "invincible first" in Sun Tzu's Art of War. & gt& gt The third is the idea of striving for total victory. The idea of total victory is the traditional thought of China's military strategists, but Sun Tzu's "we must strive for the world with all our strength" and "the soldiers can gain all the benefits without fighting" refer to plotting and attacking, and "the soldiers can defeat the enemy without fighting". Jiajing's thought of total victory in Wanli period refers to the thought of total victory in actual combat. In this regard, different strategists have different tactics. For example, if we concentrate several times or even ten times the absolute advantage of the enemy, we will be awe-inspiring, surrounded by ten strikes, attacked by five strikes, and won a total victory slowly and steadily. Qi Jiguang won by surprise attack with the dominant elite troops. But both of them have made extraordinary changes and helped each other. First of all, they make themselves invincible in order to win the overall victory. & gt& gt IV is a comprehensive and profound thought of running the army. During Jiajing and Wanli years, the thought of running the army reached a new height, which was mainly manifested in two aspects: first, it was comprehensive, and it put forward effective theories and methods for all aspects of army building, such as training, training, weapons and equipment, and correctly understood the relationship between all aspects; The second is profundity. People generally realize the importance of cultivating and training ideas and courage. Of course, different military thinkers have different opinions on how to cultivate training courage. In, how people mainly start from practicing martial arts, while Qi Jiguang and others start from ideological education. & gt& gt Through hundreds of years of War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression, military strategists in the Ming Dynasty deepened their understanding of army building and its role, defense and combat, and put forward some new theories and methods. & gt& gt Third, we can move towards victory >> Throughout the whole process of the Ming Dynasty's Anti-Japanese War, it is found that the crimes of the Ming court are unknown, and the fake killing of anti-Japanese generals is an important reason for continuing the vitality of the Japanese pirates. Zhu Wan and Zhang Jing were both generals who made great contributions to War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression, but they were both killed by mistake. Not only was his contribution replaced by others, but even his life was not saved. Zhu wan was framed and died of taking medicine; Zhang was slandered and beheaded. The Ming court reversed right and wrong in this way, which chilled the anti-Japanese soldiers, greatly weakened the military strength of the Ming dynasty, and made the Japanese pirates rampant again and again. The civil strife and corruption in the Ming Dynasty killed these competent governors and made the anti-Japanese struggle frustrated repeatedly. & gt& gt Hu Zongxian is an anti-Japanese general who has made great contributions, but he also has some shortcomings. Hu Zongxian likes fame and fortune. Although he spent a lot of money on clever planning and use, he eliminated the main traitors who colluded with the Japanese, but he did not completely eliminate the Japanese. Japanese pirates still set sail from their island country and plundered the coast of China. Hu Zongxian annihilated Xu Hai and Wang Zhi in the thirty-sixth year of Jiajing (1557), but the next year, the Japanese army began a large-scale invasion. Governor Hu Zongxian was under pressure from all sides, especially from the imperial court. Hu Zongxian claimed that "thieves can destroy the sun", but he did not destroy the enemy. The enemy entrenched in cengang built a new ship to go to sea, without chasing or fighting, and let the enemy wander around Fujian. Instead, he blamed the crime of being a thief, which led to his arrest in Beijing. Facts have proved that the traitors who colluded with the Japanese pirates can achieve certain success by combining appeasement with military suppression, but the real foreign aggression can only be realized by relying on strong military force and Qi Xin's cooperation with the domestic military and civilians, and that kind of subtotal can't be completely effective. & gt& gt The stormtroopers at that time were powerful and could be used immediately, but they were difficult to control because of disunity. Fighting for personal achievements, self-hatred; The deterioration of military discipline and the poor livelihood of the people have led to various direct and indirect social ills. Because it is difficult to control the guest soldiers, they often "abandon the mouse and go through the motions, showing their greed for the wolf." They rob by day and defile women by night. If they refuse, they will kill people with their swords exposed. Therefore, it is better to meet the Japanese thief than to meet the guest soldier; If you encounter an enemy, you can still avoid it. If you encounter a soldier, you will not be born "(Volume 1 1, Enlisting Foreign Soldiers"). Qi Jiguang also pointed out: "As far away as Huguang, Shandong, Henan and other places, the wolf soldiers succeeded, but their ambitions were difficult to control, and they plundered more than thieves along the way. Wanli won, and Kou joined the army. Teachers have no discipline and poor priorities. If brought to justice, complaints will be made and crimes will be committed. If you favor goodness, you will harm the people. " (Ming Jing Bian (Volume 347), Collected Works of Qi Shaobao) The basic downfall of the enemy was directly caused by the growth of a group of patriotic anti-Japanese generals, the emergence of a group of good fighting troops and the improvement of weapons and equipment. But in fact, it was the Ming court that strengthened the integrity of coastal defense, at the same time, the level of coastal defense was also strengthened, forming a multi-level coastal defense system, which greatly strengthened the combat capability and level of unity and cooperation. Such as Tan Lun, Qi Jiguang and other famous soldiers, the fighting capacity of the Ming army has been greatly improved, and the enemy rarely has an opportunity. & gt& gt Of course, more importantly, only domestic stability and unity is the most effective way to resist foreign invasion. After Jiajing period, the civil servant and military commander of the Ming Dynasty put forward a political strategy to consolidate coastal defense, that is, to stabilize the people. This is not only a summary of experience at that time, but also a universal principle. Japanese invaders invaded the coast of China for 200 years. One of the most important reasons is that the political corruption in China has affected the survival of coastal people, and they have to find a new way of life and survival. Refugees, wozhu and traitors also came into being under such circumstances. & gt& gt Especially the unity and cooperation within the army and between the military and civilians, with one heart and one mind, after nearly 10 years of arduous anti-Japanese struggle, the disaster of the Japanese aggressors gradually subsided.