HIST4702 (2023-24) Digital History Project: 火攻挈要
The Importance of Firearms through Battles in the Late-Ming Period
Introduction
These battles were important or famous battles in the late-Ming. We can find that the Ming army, Qing army or Rebellion army used firearms or artillery every time in these battles. The usage of gunpowder weapons in combats of the late Ming had been general. Sometimes, they even became decisive for the result of battle, especially in siege battles. With this background, we can more easily understand why the Ming Empire needed to write Huogong qieyao (火攻挈要), a book about producing firearms and producing firearms.
Visualization of the Battles in the Late-Ming Period
Battle of Ningyuan 1626
Governor Wang Zhichen of Jiliao reported the commendation and rewards for the soldiers stationed at Shanhai Ning frontline. He used 18,366 taels of silver, and the Ministry of War made a detailed record of the accomplishments at Ningyuan. Firstly, according to the report of Imperial Censor Hong Ruzhong, on the 18th day of the first lunar month, the enemy forces crossed the river. Left Assistant Xiao Sheng, Deng Maolin, Chen Zhaolan, and others recaptured troops from various camps on the right. By the 21st day, all soldiers outside the city were gathered, with the total number of soldiers inside the city being less than 20,000. Vice General Zuo Fu and Adjutant General Zu Dashou, who were experienced in dealing with the enemy, believed that it was not advisable to engage in direct confrontation but rather to defend the city to the death. Thus, Zu Dashou proposed a plan to block the city gates. Generals Zhu Mei, Xu Fu, and Wang Lama all supported Zu Dashou’s proposal. Subsequently, Wang Lama suggested withdrawing the Western cannons into the city. Peng Zan Gu led the elite soldiers to pull the cannons into the city, and at the same time, they burned down the houses outside the city. Cheng Weimu, an assistant magistrate, was assigned to investigate any traitorous activities, while Jin Qizong, the deputy judge, was responsible for overseeing the recruitment of laborers in the four corners of the city and providing them with food and drink. Wei Officer Pei Guozhen was in charge of handling the logistics.
Several men guarded the alley entrance. As soon as a person exhibited disruptive behavior, they were immediately killed. The people on the city walls attempting to go down will also be killed. General Mangui managed the defense of the entire city and personally took charge of the southeastern defense. General Zuo Fu was stationed in the west, General Zu Da Shou in the south, and General Zhu Mei in the north. On day twenty-two, the city’s defenses were finally established. By the 23rd day, the enemy had approached the city. The order was given to set up camp northwest, five miles away. Cannons were positioned on the city walls. Luo Li Su, familiar with the operation, loaded and fired the cannons, killing dozens of enemies. Consequently, the enemy relocated their camp to the west.
On the 24th day, the enemy launched an attack on the city walls with horses, infantry, vehicles, shields, hooks, ladders, and cannons. The arrows rained down like falling leaves. The firearms on the city walls continuously fired, and each time a Western cannon was used, the vehicles with shields were easily destroyed. When the enemy reached the city walls, the two corner towers simultaneously struck. However, the range of the small cannons was limited, and they couldn’t reach far. As a result, the enemy began chiseling multiple holes, each over two zhang high, between the two corner towers of the city walls. Fireballs and torches were then thrown down from the walls, and iron ropes were used to hang and burn the enemy’s shields, causing casualties among those digging the walls. The Assistant Judge Jin personally operated the large cannons, ending the threat from the enemy outside the city. The enemy’s bodies piled up, and the next day, they launched another attack, similar to the previous day. The assault continued until the appointed time, after which the enemy no longer dared to approach the city walls. Their leader brandished a knife to drive away the enemy soldiers and retreated as soon as they reached outside of the city. The enemy suffered more casualties than the previous day, and they scrambled to seize the bodies outside the west gate and destroyed houses, setting them on fire. Yellow smoke filled the air. They continued the assault throughout the night, but all the equipment required for the attack was seized and collected by our soldiers. Additionally, many enemy heads were severed, just like the previous day. [1]
Battle of Guangzhou 1635
A rebel force led by Li Zicheng invaded Guangzhou in Henan with several hundred thousand troops, besieging the city. They brought in twenty cannons and launched an assault on the city. Two cannons were launched, causing the city walls to collapse. The fire quickly spread throughout the city, and the rebels took advantage of the situation to enter. Officials, soldiers, and civilians were brutally slaughtered without mercy, leaving no one spared. [2]
Battle of Xingshan 1639-1642
Liu Zhongjin, a member of the Han Army’s Blue Banner, originally belonged to the Liaoyang Dongning Guard. In the fifth year of the Chongde era, he accompanied Prince Rui, Dorgon and others in an expedition against the Ming Dynasty, besieging Jinzhou. A thousand cavalrymen were defeated by Liu Zhongjin. He also achieved victories against the enemy forces at Songshan, Xingshan, and Luhongshan. In the seventh year of the Chongde era, he joined Prince Zheng, Jirgalang and others in the assault on Tashan, utilizing artillery to bombard the castle walls. Leading his troops, Liu Zhongjin was the first to climb and capture the castle. They then proceeded to attack Xingshan, once again using artillery to demolish the walls, leading to the surrender of the Xingshan. [3]
Battle of Songshan 1639-1642
At the fourth watch, generals Kong Youde, Geng Zhongming, Shang Kexi, Ma Guangyuan, and Shi Tingzhu led their armies, advancing with the cannons. By the fifth watch, the cannons were deployed, and the soldiers from Songshan came out of the city to engage in battle, successfully repelling the enemy back into the city. Subsequently, we used the Hongyipao (red barbarian cannon/red coat cannon) to launch an attack and the city’s battlements were completely destroyed, leaving only remnants of the city walls. [4]
Battle of Jinzhou 1639-1642
In the fifth month, on the day Guiwei, we crossed the Liao River. On the day Yixu, šoojan arrived with the Korean navy. On the day Guisi, Hong Taiji reached Yizhou. On the day of Dingyou, messengers were sent by the Mongolian Dorod tribe and others from Xingshan expressing their intention to surrender. Hong Taiji ordered Jirgalang and others to lead the army to receive them, cautioning them, saying, “Do not bring too many troops on this expedition. If the enemy sees our small force, they will surely come to fight. We will divide the troops into three, with the front unit engaging in battle and the two rear units serving as reinforcements.” Upon reaching Xingshan, Zu Dashou sent Liu Zhouzhi and Wu Sangui to set up positions and press upon us. Jirgalang and the others pretended to retreat, then suddenly counterattacked, inflicting a major defeat on the enemy. On the day Wuxu, ordered Laosa, Wu Bai, and others to raid the coastal area. Another 337 households of the Soren tribe came to surrender. On the day Renyin, Hong Taiji personally led the troops to capture Wulitai. On the day Yisi, we used Hongyipao (red barbarian cannon/red coat cannon) to attack Jinzhou. [5]
Battle of Ningwu Guan 1644
On the fifteenth day, the enemy army closed in on Ningwu Guan. Ever since the fall of Taiyuan, the enemy had been riding on their winning streak, unstoppable and brimming with confidence. For the enemy, Ningwu Guan was neither a strategically significant location nor strongly defended, making it an easy target for them to conquer. Zhou Yuji tirelessly trained the soldiers day and night, handpicking courageous men from within the city amassing a force of several thousand. He motivated them with loyalty and righteousness, ready to confront the enemy and catch them off guard. The enemy was ill-prepared for this. Their advance troops had already been completely annihilated, their core forces dealt severe blows, and their elite troops were crushed repeatedly, an incalculable number of times. Although the enemy’s momentum was hindered, they refused to retreat. After multiple battles, they gradually approached the city, inflicting heavy casualties on the enemy each time. During daylight, Zhou Yuji deployed the soldiers outside the city, forming a defensive line, while at night, they retreated into the city and launched surprise attacks from the city walls, resulting in countless enemy casualties. Our ammunition was depleted, and the enemy started bombarding the city walls with cannons. With no reinforcements in sight and no countermeasures available, Zhou Yuji secretly ordered the elite troops to lay an ambush in the alleys. They lured the enemy into the city by opening the gates, waiting until more than ten thousand enemy soldiers had entered before swiftly closing the gates. The ambushing troops struck from all sides, inflicting numerous casualties on the enemy and injuring several brave generals. Enraged, the enemy besieged us, launching a continuous assault for four days and nights, overwhelming our dwindling strength. After the city walls were breached, General Zhou once again took the lead, personally engaging in alleyway warfare. [6]
Battle of Tongguan 1644
A report was submitted by Prince Yu, Dodo and others. On the fifteenth day of the twelfth month in 1644, the army pursued the rebellion army of Li Zicheng and arrived at Shan prefecture. On day twenty-two, the army camped twenty li from Tongguan, waiting for the arrival of the Hongyipao (red barbarian cannon/red coat cannon) unit. Meanwhile, Li Zicheng, the rebel leader, was in Xi’an and upon hearing the news, he led reinforcements to the Tongguan. On day nine, the Hongyipao unit arrived. On day eleven, we advanced upon Tongguan. The enemy dug deep trenches and erected strong walls, blocking our path of advancement. Hence, we launched Hongyipao to attack the enemy, causing the enemy force to tremble in fear. Our troops successively broke through their defenses, resulting in numerous casualties among the enemy. Finally, Li Zicheng fled to Xi’an. [7]
Battle of Jiangyin 1645
The Beile (Prince) led more than forty riders to circle around the left side of Junshan Mountain, surveying the terrain. When the people on the city wall saw them, cannons and crossbows were fired together at the same time, causing the riders to stumble and trample each other in a frenzy. Only the Beile barely escaped with his life. Another twenty-four large cannons, larger than before, came from Jinling and arrived in Jiangyin. Each boat carried only one cannon, and they continued to collect iron weapons from the houses along the city walls to cast cannonballs weighing twenty catties each. They also built earthen mounds to protect themselves from arrows and stones. They were planning to attack the eastern part of the city, but their plan was leaked, so they moved to the northeast corner. Heavy rain poured down as if a flood and the sound of cannons continued ceaselessly throughout the day and night, shaking the entire county. The people in the city were exhausted and trapped, with no way out, awaiting their imminent death. On that day, the people on the city wall shouted, and the soldiers outside heard it as if it were ghostly voices. In the empty corners of the city, thousands of white geese were seen flying and landing from a distance, but upon closer inspection, they had no discernible form or shadow. Those who knew believed it to be the rising and falling of souls. These white geese were the souls of the suffering people. [8]
Battle of Yangzhou 1645
Shi kefa hurried back to Yangzhou within a day and night. Rumors spread that the troops of Xu Dingguo were approaching and annihilating the forces of the Gao clan. The people inside Yangzhou city, hearing this, cut off the city gates and fled with the boats and ships. Kefa sent urgent messages to the troops stationed in various towns, but none of them came to his aid. On the twentieth day, the Qing army arrived and camped at Banzhuyuan. The next day, General Li Qifeng and Deputy Inspector Gao Qifeng, in charge of military supervision, abandoned their camp and surrendered, further weakening the city’s defense. The civil and military officials scattered and defended from different positions. Ke Fa personally defended the crucial and treacherous West Gate of the old city. He wrote a letter to his mother and wife, saying, “Bury me near the tomb of our late Emperor Gao.” Two days later, the Qing army launched a fierce attack on the city, bombarding the northwest corner with artillery, and the city walls were breached. Kefa was trying to commit suicide by cutting his own throat but not success. Then, he was carried out of the city through the Small East Gate by a subordinate general, only to be captured shortly after. Kefa shouted, “I am the Commander Shi!” before being killed. [9]
[1] Institute of History and Philology, Academia Sinica中央研究院歷史語言研究所, Ming Veritable Records 明實錄, 1966, Scripta Sinica 漢籍全文資料庫, 3369-3371.
[2] Ji Liuqi 計六奇, Mingji beilüe 明季北略, Chinese Text Project 中國哲學書電子化計劃, https://ctext.org/wiki.pl?if=gb&chapter=756708
[3] Zhao Erxun 趙爾巽, Draft History of Qing 清史稿, 1981, Scripta Sinica 漢籍全文資料庫, 9601-9602.
[4] Institute of History and Philology, Academia Sinica中央研究院歷史語言研究所, Veritable records of the Qing dynasty 清實錄, 1986, Scripta Sinica 漢籍全文資料庫, 599-1.
[5] Zhao Erxun, Draft History of Qing, pp. 70-71.
[6] Ji Liuqi, Mingji beilüe, https://ctext.org/wiki.pl?if=gb&chapter=903105#p147
[7] Institute of History and Philology, Academia Sinica, Veritable records of the Qing dynasty, pp. 124-2-125-1.
[8] Han Tan 韓菼, Record of defending Jiangyin city 江陰城守記, Chinese Text Project 中國哲學書電子化計劃, p28, https://ctext.org/wiki.pl?if=gb&chapter=565913#p29
[9] Zhang Tingyu 張廷玉, History of Ming明史, 1980, Scripta Sinica 漢籍全文資料庫, 7022-7023.
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