There are many interesting things about the Ming Dynasty, and today we will talk about Zheng He in the West. Everyone knows that he was a Ming Dynasty man, seven times to the Atlantic Ocean, his voyage opened the prelude to the era of world navigation, and made great contributions to the economic exchanges and cultural exchanges between China and foreign countries in the early fifteenth century.
But do you really know Zheng He? In fact, Zheng He was not surnamed Zheng, in fact, his original surname was Ma, his original name was Ma He, the small character Sanbao, the Hui, Kunyang (present-day Jinning, Yunnan) people. When Hongwu entered the palace, he initially served in the residence of the Yan King, and then with Zhu Di's military merits, he was promoted to eunuch and given the surname Zheng. The three dynasties of Yongle, Hongxi and Xuande. He is known as the "Three Treasure Eunuchs", also known as the "Three Treasures Eunuch".
In fact, Zheng He made outstanding contributions in the field of navigation, and he was also a general who commanded the war. Today, I will talk about Zheng He's military ability, and in the process of seven voyages to the West, he also organized several battles, and here we will say that the most outstanding battles he led were the most outstanding
Sumen answered the thorn
The battle, in this war, also achieved an unprecedented victory. How can a navigator fight a war? There's a reason for that.
First of all, Zheng He is a senior general
Everyone knows that Zheng He was a navigator and a diplomat. In fact, Zheng He and Zheng He have been in the army since he was eleven years old, with rich military experience, he has experienced hundreds of battles under Zhu Di, participated in major battles that command hundreds of thousands of troops, and once fought with the best generals of that era, such as Tie Xuan, Sheng Yong, and Ping An. Tie Xuan, Sheng Yong, Ping An and others were super fierce. All in all, Zheng He was a well-known military expert who knew how to fight and was a famous military expert, who had both high diplomatic and extremely high military talents, and who was a high-ranking talent who was a man of martial arts.
Secondly, Zheng He led a large number of generals and personnel
This is the situation of Zheng He's fleet, so how many people did he take to the West? The Biography of Ming Shi Zheng He records: "In June of the third year of Yongle, Feng He and his nephew King Jinghong and other envoys to the West, with more than 27,800 soldiers and soldiers, and more than one gold coin. "This is the number of people Zheng He brought to the West for the first time. In fact, the first time was not the largest one, the biggest one was the fourth voyage to the West in the Sumatra War.
For the fourth time, he led more than 28,560 officers and soldiers. Zheng He was still the commander, and Wang Jinghong served as the deputy of the eunuch, assisting Zheng He in coordinating and commanding the entire fleet. Wang Jinghong was extremely experienced in warfare, and he had accompanied Zhu Di in the army and played a great role in Zhu Di's seizure of the throne, which was greatly appreciated by Zhu Di.
Accompanying generals were Tang Jing, commander of the Right Guard Liuguan of the Water Army, Wang Heng of youshi, Lin Zixuan of the Left Weiliu of Jinwu, Hu Jun of you, Commander of The Longjiang Left WeiLiuguan, Tongzhi Hadu, Jinyi Weizheng Qianhu Lutong, Ma Gui, Zhang Tong, Liu Hai, Xu Zheng, Wang Hai, Xiaoqi Zhangtong, and others.
Third, Zheng He's fleet was the aircraft carrier at that time
At that time, the largest of Zheng He's ships was called the treasure ship, how big was this treasure ship, and the biography of Ming Shi Zheng He recorded: "The big one is forty-four feet long and four feet long, and eighteen zhang wide; the middle one is thirty-seven zhang long and fifteen zhang wide." The measurement of the Ming Dynasty was divided into tailoring, measuring land and construction, which should be said to be a ruler. Construction ruler: 1 foot = 31.1 cm, one zhang is 3.11 meters, slightly smaller than the current one zhang (3.33 meters). You can convert it yourself, a treasure ship is a small playground.
There are 63 treasure ships and more than 40 other ships in the Western fleet. This was absolutely the world's number one fleet at the time, and no one could resist it.
If you want to talk about the Sumenta Battle, you have to talk about the Sumenta first. The Ming Dynasty Gong Zhen's "Chronicle of the Western Fanguo" records that the Sumen Dynasty, that is, the ancient Susu Wenda kingdom, is the head of the Western Ocean General Road."
Sumatra was supposed to be in the Strait of Malacca, located at the junction of the South China Sea and the Indian Ocean, the main route for maritime traffic in the East and West Oceans, and it was said that At that time, Manjinga was an important port controlling the Strait of Malacca, one controlling the north and the other controlling the south. The Ming Dynasty Navy established a city fence and warehouse in the Strait of Malacca, as a transit station and temporary storage for Zheng He to and from Western countries, and was also an extremely important place for the Ming Dynasty.
Battle of Sumatra
There was a small country west of Sumatra where the orphans had three-pointed blue tattoos on their faces, and their king was also known as the "King of the Flower Face". In the fifth year of Yongle (1407), the orphan King Huamian sent an army to invade Sumatra. Unfortunately, King Zainuri Abidin was poisoned by an arrow and died, and the little prince was too young to fight on the battlefield. The princess, who could not understand the righteousness, took the throne and gambled with the people of her country to collect heroes who could avenge the king and restore the lost territory. A fisherman succeeded in killing the King of The Flower Face and leading his people to expel the orphan countryman. The princess kept her promise, took the fisherman as king and married him, calling him the old king, and entrusting him with the administration of state affairs. The son of the previous king honored him as the "righteous father."
Three years later, Sumundahara's son, Sudanhan Nanabi, grew up and staged a coup d'état to kill his righteous father, The Old King, and regain the throne. The old king's son Su Ganla led the remnants and his people to flee into the mountains and forests, and from time to time led troops to harass and attack the town of Suodhan Nan Abi, bent on avenging his father and returning to the throne. In order to secure the throne and cut off sugana' henchmen, Su danhan sent an envoy to China in September of the tenth year of Yongle (1412) to request that the Ming Dynasty officially crown the king, give him the seal, and help him quell Su Ganla's rebellion. Ming Chengzu ordered Zheng He to give the necessary support and assistance to the town of Suodanhan NanAbi when he was in the Western Ocean.
After the fleet arrived in Sumatra, Zheng He met with his king, Suodhan Nanabi, and on behalf of the Ming court, he was enfeoffed and rewarded with property. Suodhan Nanabi was overjoyed and once again offered to help him quell the rebellion of Suganla. Receiving the experience of the Battle of Ceylon Hill three times in the Western Ocean, Zheng He and the town of Suodhan Nanabi agreed to assist in pacifying Suganla when the fleet returned from completing its mission. Suodhan Nanabi Town thanked Zheng He for his commitment, ordered his subordinates to make full preparations for the fleet to sail from Sumatta, and at Zheng He's request, selected some people from China who were familiar with the situation of the islands in the Nanyang Archipelago and were familiar with the local vernacular language, and accompanied the sub-fleet to cruise the Nanyang Islands and its surrounding waters.
In the autumn of the thirteenth year of Yongle (1415), Zheng He's fleet ended its visit to Therumus and other Western countries, and arrived in Sumatra again on the way back to China. At this time, Su Ganla was plotting to regain the throne, and when he saw that Zheng He's fleet had come to Sumentala again, he was originally dissatisfied with Zheng He's only reward for Su danhan Nan Abi Town, plus coveted the property of Zheng He's fleet, so he led tens of thousands of troops to besiege the fleet and take the lead in provoking war. Because the officers and men of the fleet had taken precautions in advance, with the cooperation of the army of the sumatran king Sutanhan Nan abi town, the officers and men of the fleet fought back.
Su Ganla's army and Zheng He's Ming army fought in Sumatra in a place called Baisha'an. The Ming army had rich practical combat experience, coupled with excellent weapons and equipment, and the assistance of the army of Theodhan Nan Abi Town, so it quickly achieved victory, and Su Ganla could only lead the remnants of the army to flee with his family. Zheng He did not want to return to the mountains, so he led the officers and men to pursue all the way to Nanboli, and only then did he completely annihilate Su Ganla and his remnants. Su Ganla was captured with his wife and brought back to China to the Jingshi Zhengfa.
The total annihilation of the Sugan army meant that the threat of Suganla to the throne of Suodhan Nanabi town was lifted, the position of the new king was stabilized, and the relationship between Sumatra and China became closer, for which the new king was very grateful and often paid tribute. China's official factories in Sumatra are also safer and more reliable. The capture of Su Ganla was Zheng He's third military operation during his voyage to the West, and it was also the last time he used troops overseas.