In May 1853, Lin Fengxiang, Li Kaifang, and Ji Wenyuan set out from Yangzhou and led the Ninth Army of more than 22,500 people north, with the goal of occupying Tianjin first and waiting for reinforcements before taking Beijing. The Northern Expeditionary Army marched northward, and on August 28, it captured the important town of Linhuanguan, and the capital was shaken. Due to grain and grass supplies and weather reasons, the Northern Expeditionary Army was unable to advance after occupying Zhenhai and Duliu in Tianjin, which gave the Qing court time to dispatch a large number of troops. Because of the increasing number of Qing troops and the cold weather, the Northern Expeditionary Army, which was mainly southerners, was gradually at a disadvantage.
In early 1854, the Northern Expeditionary Army was forced to withdraw south due to running out of food. During this period, Lin Fengxiang learned that the reinforcements had arrived in Shandong, so he sent Li Kaifang to divide his troops to meet the reinforcements. However, before Li Kaifang met the reinforcements, the reinforcements had already collapsed, and Li Kaifang had to hold on to Gaotang Prefecture.
The Qing general Sheng Bao led a heavy siege of Gaotang Prefecture for 9 months without any progress. In order to take Gaotang Prefecture as soon as possible and eliminate this Northern Expeditionary Army, Katsuho decided to break the city by digging tunnels and burying explosives. On March 7, 1855, the tunnel was dug and 20,000 kilograms of explosives were buried in it. But what Katsuho did not expect was that after the explosives exploded, not only failed to damage the Taiping Army in the slightest, but also killed hundreds of officers and soldiers, and Katsuho himself was slightly injured. The Taiping army in the city took advantage of the situation to attack, killing hundreds of Qing troops and then breaking through to Feng Guantun. However, the Taiping army was again besieged by Qing forces at Fengguantun, and soon After, Li Kaifang was captured and executed in Beijing in June.
In his self-description, Li Xiucheng believed that the Northern Expedition was the first of the Ten Mistakes of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, and some people believed that the Northern Expedition created the conditions for the victory of the Western Expedition and the Eastern Crusade. What do you think?