For drought, I believe that everyone will not be unfamiliar. China's territory is vast, and almost every year there will be drought in some areas, and the severity of drought is different. In the early 17th century, at the end of Ming rule, Henan, Hebei, Shandong, and Shaanxi. Gansu and other entire northern regions have suffered severe drought. Due to the severity of the disaster, which caused a lot of losses, many people had to join the peasant rebel army. Then, the drought at the end of the Ming Dynasty had a disproportionate impact on the country.
First of all, let's talk about the economic situation during the Ming Dynasty. After the establishment of the Ming Dynasty, it adopted the model of heavy agriculture and suppressing commerce. However, during the Ming Dynasty, the yield per mu of arable land was only three or four hundred catties. If it is a disaster year, it is even only more than two hundred pounds. Grain production was limited, and after the peasants had paid taxes and tenant rents, they had very little left. In the film and television drama "Yongzheng Dynasty", the Kangxi Emperor paid a private visit and asked an old farmer in the field: 'This year's harvest is great, can you eat enough?' The old farmer replied, "I don't dare to think that after paying taxes and rent, I can eat for more than half a year." ’
Although this is the story of the Qing Dynasty, the situation of the peasants in the Ming Dynasty is basically the same. Ordinary peasants could only eat chaff vegetables in exchange for some miscellaneous grains, and as for white noodles, even the small landlords did not dare to think about it. In the traditional agricultural society, the technology at that time was not developed. For many cultivated land, it is impossible to irrigate at all, and can only rely on the sky to eat. Therefore, the peasants at that time often worshiped various gods and prayed for abundant grain and smooth wind and rain.
Even in the traditional ancient music, there is a song "God Rains Sweet Rain". For the average farmer, drought, flood and locust plague means a decrease in food production or even no harvest. As soon as there is a disaster, there is immediately a widespread famine, because most farmers do not have food stocks. In "The Ming Dynasty 1566", Hu Zongxian said this: "If the peasants do not have food to eat, they will become hungry people." This year will not be reversed, next year will not be reversed, and the year after tomorrow will be reversed. ”
In the traditional farming era, grain production directly affected the taxation of the imperial court. In the event of a large-scale disaster, the peasants were unable to pay taxes, and the imperial court's finances would also be in trouble. At the end of the Ming Dynasty's rule, faced with the severe influence of the climate of the Xiaoice period, the temperature dropped significantly. Lack of temperature naturally affects the climate, which in turn directly affects the growth of crops. At that time, there was a significant reduction in grain production in all regions.
Due to the rise of the Qing Dynasty in the northeast region and the rise of peasant uprisings one after another, the Ming Dynasty increased the standard of taxation, further increasing the burden on the people everywhere. From the end of the reign of the Wanli Emperor, parts of the Ming Dynasty had experienced severe drought. During the reign of the Chongzhen Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, there was a major drought that had not been seen in hundreds of years, and the drought affected Henan, Zhili, Shandong, Shanxi, Shaanxi, Gansu and other places, affecting almost the entire northern region. In the face of severe drought, the local government did not have enough food and silver to provide disaster relief, so there was a widespread famine.
Officials from Henan said: "The great drought has spread throughout the province, the grass and grass have dried up, the luoshui water is not deep, the grass, trees, animal skins, insects and flies are all eaten, many people are starving to death, hunger is dead, and the land is desolate." The situation in Shaanxi Province was even more serious, and Shaanxi officials anxiously wrote in the expedited compromise: "In the city of absolute rice, the wood bark and stone noodles are exhausted, the father and son husband and wife cut each other, and they die eight or nine times." At the end of the recital, Shaanxi officials believe that "without relief, the situation will be uncontrollable." ”
Among them, the most drought-stricken area is Shandong Province. According to the ming dynasty's literature, there was such a situation in Shandong Province: "Shandong has a severe drought in spring and summer, with no trickle of rain, dry fields and trees, and thousands of miles of burning." In October, the prefectures and counties in Shandong Province were 78 out of 10, and the rest were 89, and there was no place for light disasters. Thousands of miles in the red land, great famine, cannibalism, and mountains of the dead. Seventy-eight out of ten fugitives, two out of ten those who still survive, and few people. ”
As a result of the very severe drought, a large number of peasants were reduced to displaced people. At the same time, the peasant revolt, which had already entered a low tide, rose again. Li Zicheng, Zhang Xianzhong, and others easily pulled together a huge contingent in Henan and other places, and people everywhere continued to join the rebel army. In fact, it was not for the sake of overthrowing the Ming Dynasty, but for the most basic problem of eating. Seriously speaking, the large-scale drought at the end of the Ming Dynasty was an important reason for crushing the Ming Dynasty. Without various internal factors, it would be very difficult for the Qing Dynasty to enter the customs.
Drought did not occur only in the Ming Dynasty, but also in Henan Province during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression. In the movie "1942", there is a scene in which the police chief says, "As the chief of police, I must say a word to more than 100,000 dedicated police officers." Where there is chaos, there are them. If it weren't for them, Henan would have come out of Hong Xiuquan and Li Zicheng long ago. "It's just an analogy, but it does reflect the serious situation after the drought." There are many more questions about natural disasters, and the author will talk to you slowly in future articles.