Since ancient times, parts of Inner Mongolia and Ningxia in China have been collectively known as the Hetao Plain. The reason for its name is mainly due to the good geographical location of the Nuclear River Loop Plain, which is located in the curved area of the Yellow River Basin, where the local water and soil resources are abundant, the land is fertile, the grassland is luxuriant, and there has always been a "Saiwai Jiangnan"
Reputation. Unlike the barren and backward areas of the northwest, the Hetao Plain presents a great contrast, and most importantly, this land is very suitable for raising horses, and it is a rare feng shui treasure.
We know that during the Ming Dynasty, the Han Chinese were in power, and we could not avoid envying the powerful Mongol cavalry. However, there was no suitable land for horse breeding in the Central Plains, and even if horses were bred, the quality was not as good as that of the Mongol cavalry.
Unlike the Hetao Plain, this is an excellent horse breeding area, and if the Ming Dynasty can include this area in the territory, it will naturally greatly improve its military combat capabilities.
But although the climatic conditions of the Loop Plain are suitable for horse breeding, The Ming rulers also wanted to recover this land, but the recovery of the Hetao Plain has always been more difficult.
1. Recover the Hetao Plain
1. "Discard the set"
During this period, the Ming Dynasty and the Mongol tribes launched a tug-of-war for resources, and it took a lot of effort to recover the Hetao Plain.
In the fifth year of Chenghua, the ruler finally could not bear the Mongol invasion of the northern border of the Ming Dynasty, and ordered the dispatch of troops to search and suppress the Hetao Plain, which was also the first real contest for the Hetao Plain.
At this time, although the Ming Dynasty gained control of the Hetao Plain, it did not form an effective management, resulting in the huge consumption of the Ming army in the Hetao Plain at that time, and it was difficult to maintain.
The rulers then set up a barrier in the southern part of the Loop Plain for defense, but the north was not fortified, so the entire northern part of the Loop Plain was sent directly to the Mongol tribes.
2. The Ming Dynasty lost its advantage
After the First Battle of the Loop, most of the Mongol tribes left the Loop Plain area, and the barrier erected in the southern part of the Loop Pos posed a great threat to them.
The Loop has seen a rare period of stability in nearly two decades. But with the accession of the new Mongol Khan to the throne, the Mongol tribes launched a series of wars to invade the Hetao Plain.
At this time, the internal political views of the Ming Dynasty were divergent, the supervision of the Hetao Plain was not in place, and the Ming Dynasty did not have the strength to recover the Hetao Plain.
3. Defeated by party strife
In the last stage, the Ming Dynasty initially wanted to take the initiative to take the Hetao Plain as soon as possible, but did not achieve victory. Among them, corrupt officials and officials withheld military salaries and other behaviors. These are the main reasons that hindered the recovery of the Loop Plain.
The continuous party struggle made it difficult to carry out the recovery of the Hetao Plain, and at the same time, the Mongol tribes attacked vigorously, and the Hetao Plain finally fell completely into the hands of the Mongols.
The border of the Ming Dynasty fell into a very dangerous situation, which shows that the failure of the Ming Dynasty to recover the Hetao Plain was inextricably linked to the party struggle.
Second, the reasons for the loss of the Loop Plain
1. Desertification is serious
The desertification of the Hetao area is very serious, from the beginning of the Ming Dynasty there was a desertification problem, and in the middle and late Ming Dynasty, the desert gradually pushed into the territory of the Ming Dynasty, and the Great Wall was buried, which was harmful to a country's defense system.
Therefore, during the Wanli period, the Ming rulers organized a large-scale sand clearing campaign, but unfortunately with little effect. As a result, the Ming Dynasty's idea of establishing an agricultural system in the Hetao Plain could not be realized.
Because it is difficult to maintain basic survival needs, the army does not have the ability to stay here for a long time. It is also impractical to transport grain and grass, and the grain and grass needed by the army can only be collected nearby, and the people have to bear too much pressure, which will inevitably cause many problems.
2. The power of the Ming Dynasty contracted
After the Battle of Jingnan, the Ming army moved to the south of the desert, which meant that the Ming Dynasty gave up most of the northern land that Zhu Yuanzhang had attacked.
Since then, the politics of the Ming Dynasty has been repeating the same problem, that is, party strife. The politics of the Ming Dynasty continued to be internally attrition, and a large number of talented politicians did not escape the drag of party strife.
Their inability to exert their greatest value has left the recovery of the Loop Plains so far away that no one has the energy to deal with the problems of the Loop Plains.
The friction between the rulers and the courtiers deepened, and the entire imperial court became fragmented by the party strife, and even if we tried our best, it would be impossible to recover the Hetao Plain.
3, the economy is lagging behind
After experiencing many wars, the Hetao Plain has lost many opportunities for its own development, and the local development has lagged behind, and the economy has become even more vulnerable.
In fact, in the early Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang established a policy that was very conducive to the development of border passes, that is, to maintain the normal operation of the frontier through the opening of the Central Law.
However, the later kings of the Ming Dynasty did not have the foresight of Zhu Yuanzhang, did not pay enough attention to the construction of the frontier, and even abolished the Kaizhong Law in order to solve the current economic difficulties, and the economy of the frontier was destroyed, and the expenditure increased, which became a major burden for the Ming Dynasty.
In fact, the significance of the Hetao Plain area to the Ming Dynasty was very significant, but unfortunately, the rulers at that time did not realize the role of the Hetao Plain, nor did they consider the safety and stability of the Hetao Plain, which could play a positive role in promoting the stability of the entire Ming Dynasty.
That's why they will give up the Hetao Plain in their hands. The Ming Dynasty's defense system was flawed, and the Mongol departments saw the needle and directly invaded the Hetao Plain.
If the Ming Dynasty could pay attention to the importance of stability in the frontier areas, perhaps the later development of the Ming Dynasty would be a different look. References: "History of the Ming Dynasty", "The Beginning and End of the Ming Dynasty Hetao", "Futao Shu"