Preamble:
In the turbulent times of the Three Kingdoms, Zhuge Liang's Northern Expedition to Cao Wei was a remarkable historical chapter. This feat was full of setbacks and regrets, and became one of the most regrettable battles of the Three Kingdoms period. What caused the fiasco of the Northern Expedition? Was it the lack of strength of Shu Han? Was it a mistake in strategy? Or was it an internal contradiction? Let us discuss in depth.
Setbacks and lessons: The fiasco of the First Northern Expedition
Zhuge Liang had great ambitions to revive the Han dynasty and unify the Central Plains through the Northern Expedition, but the first Northern Expedition ended in a miserable failure, resulting in the loss of a large number of troops and the loss of important generals, which brought many difficulties to the subsequent Northern Expedition. In-depth analysis of the reasons, it is not difficult to find that the weakness of Shu Han's strength is certainly an important factor, but more importantly, the various problems and contradictions existing within Shu Han also played a role in fueling this failure.
Lose the influence of Jingzhou
Shu Han's loss of Jingzhou undoubtedly made matters worse for the troubled country, which pushed Shu Han to a state of complacency, making his dream of winning the Central Plains again out of reach. The real pain of losing Jingzhou is far more than that, it also means that Shu Han has lost an irreplaceable and important general - Guan Yu. Guan Yu's death, for Liu Bei, was not only a huge loss of military strength, but also his personal emotional unease. Guan Yu's loyalty and courage have long become an indelible mark in Liu Bei's heart, and his departure made Liu Bei feel deeply saddened by the loss of his right hand, and the pain in his heart is indescribable. The loss of Guan Yu not only weakened the strength of Shu Han, but also weakened Zhuge Liang's governance foundation to a certain extent.
Defeat in the Battle of Yiling
The Battle of Yiling was undoubtedly a heavy setback in the history of Shu Han. At that time, Liu Bei personally led his army eastward with the intention of conquering Eastern Wu, but was unexpectedly defeated by the famous Eastern Wu general Lu Xun with fire attack tactics, which caused the national strength of Shu Han to suffer a heavy blow, and the morale of the army was also seriously shaken. What is more serious is that this failure laid a deep hidden danger for the subsequent Northern Expedition. The defeat in the Battle of Yiling not only plunged Shu Han into an unprecedented crisis, but also made Zhuge Liang feel a great responsibility, and he realized that he was shouldering the arduous mission of revitalizing Shu Han and realizing Longzhong's grand blueprint.
Ma Tan's missteps and the Battle of the Street Pavilion
The Battle of Jieting, as a crucial battle of Zhuge Liang's first Northern Expedition, originally carried the great expectations of the Shu Han army. Due to Ma Tan's decision-making mistakes, the battle eventually ended in defeat. During the battle, Ma Tan failed to follow Zhuge Liang's careful deployment, but was stubborn and chose to station troops on the lonely mountain. This wrong strategic choice caused him to fall into the encirclement of Zhang He, which eventually led to the loss of Jieting, thus ending the entire battle in failure. Ma Tan's mistake not only deprived the Shu Han army of important strategic points, but also disrupted Zhuge Liang's overall strategic deployment and dealt a serious blow to the First Northern Expedition.
The death of Zhao Yun and the failure of the Northern Expedition
As one of the five tiger generals of Shu Han, the death of Zhao Yun was undoubtedly a major blow to the failure of the Northern Expedition. Zhao Yun's death meant that Shu Han lost an important military commander, and the Northern Expedition was severely damaged. Zhao Yun's death was not only a loss to the Shu Han army, but also a huge test for Zhuge Liang personally.
Epilogue:
The failure of Zhuge Liang's Northern Expedition was a regret in the history of the Three Kingdoms, and this history also reflected various problems within the Shu Han Dynasty at that time. Even in the face of many setbacks and difficulties, Zhuge Liang still never gave up his dream of reviving the Han family, and finally died in the country and became an immortal hero in history. Looking back on this period of history, we must not only see Zhuge Liang's strategy and wisdom, but also reflect on the lessons and enlightenment in it, and continue to move forward with this as a reference.
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