How brave and strong were the ancient Han people, and how strong they felt that the five major foreign races could not defeat the Han people? This question has always been controversial. The Han people have been an agrarian people since ancient times, and compared with the nomadic people, the physique seems to be weak, but in the long history, the Han people have continuously defeated foreign invasions, and finally moved towards unification, achieving a brilliant civilization. What is it that sustains the Han people in the midst of war? Is it the strength and courage of the physique, or the use of wisdom? Or is it something else? Let's find out.
The formation of the Han Chinese nation
The water of the Yellow River flows eastward, nourishing the birthplace of Chinese civilization. Legend has it that in this magical land, there is a heroic figure, and he is the legendary Yellow Emperor.
The Yellow Emperor was the leader of a nomadic tribe who fought valiantly and led his people on a safari. Once, the Yellow Emperor led his tribe to the Central Plains, attracted by the warm and humid climate and fertile land, and decided to settle here.
At first, the Yellow Emperor tribe only settled in a corner of the Central Plains, living by hunting and gathering. Gradually, they began to experiment with growing crops, learned to fire pottery, and mastered handicrafts such as pottery making and weaving. Life gradually shifted from nomadic to sedentary, and the tribal population grew.
In order to better manage the clansmen and maintain tribal order, the Yellow Emperor formulated a series of laws and regulations, such as marriage and family systems, patriarchal etiquette, etc. He also created hieroglyphs, which were used to record important events and knowledge and skills. All these laid the foundation for the later formation of the Han nationality.
Time flies, and the descendants of the Yellow Emperor spread all over the Central Plains and divided into many tribes. Although they live in different regions, they share the same roots and have very similar language and cultural practices. Over time, these tribes intermarried, migrated, and merged with each other, gradually forming a larger ethnic group, the Huaxia people.
In the 21st century BC, the Xia Dynasty was established as the first centralized dynasty of the Chinese people. Since then, after the Shang, Zhou, Spring and Autumn Period, and the Warring States Period, one powerful dynasty after another has appeared in the Central Plains, and they are all descendants of the Huaxia people. After a long period of integration, the Huaxia people gradually evolved into a unified Han nationality and became the main ethnic group of Chinese civilization.
It was thanks to the heroic figure of the Yellow Emperor that the Han people were able to settle down in the Central Plains, get rid of the nomadic life, and open the road to agricultural civilization. For thousands of years, under the cultivation of this hot land, the Han people gradually matured, and finally moved towards unification, achieving a splendid Chinese culture.
The use of Han military wisdom
Since ancient times, the Han people have been a brave and warlike people. In the long course of history, the Han people have constantly summed up their war experience and gradually formed unique military wisdom.
The most famous is Sun Wu's Art of War. Sun Wu was born in the Spring and Autumn Period and was a famous military strategist and thinker during the Warring States Period. In "The Art of War", he summed up the experience of the ancient Han people in military practice for thousands of years, and put forward important military ideas such as "thinking about the overall situation", "controlling people in the invisible", "no victory without war", and "attacking the heart first", which had a far-reaching impact on later generations.
The essence of "The Art of War" lies in the "power change formation". The so-called "contingency" means that we can flexibly adjust our operational principles, strategies, and tactics in light of the actual conditions of both the enemy and us. The "formation" is the specific combat formation method. Sun Wu believed that war is a contest of wisdom, and the key to victory lies in strategizing, not in the confrontation of force. He proposed a variety of formations, such as "virtual and real", "impermanence of movement and static", "suspicious formation", "odd positive", and "escape formation", with the aim of disrupting the enemy's hearing and hearing and making him at a loss.
Sun Wu's military thinking had a great influence on later generations. Zhang Liang, a famous general of the Han Dynasty, was a loyal fan of Sun Tzu's Art of War. In the Battle of Changping, Zhang Liang used the "Yi Formation" formation to lure the Hun cavalry deep into the Han army's position, and then the Han army surrounded and annihilated it. This battle completely broke the arrogance of the Xiongnu and made great contributions to the Han Dynasty.
In addition to Sun Wu, the Han people also made considerable achievements in military equipment and special forces construction. During the Eastern Han Dynasty, the famous general Wei Qing invented the advanced weapon of "repeater", which can shoot dozens of arrows at a time, with a long range and strong lethality. As soon as the crossbow came out, it was immediately widely used in the Han army and became the "killer weapon" of the Han army.
The Han Dynasty also established two elite special forces, "Wucai" and "Wuwei". The "armed cavalry" is mainly engaged in reconnaissance, guerrilla, and vanguard combat missions, and is extremely mobile. "Wuwei" was the hoplite of the Han army, responsible for holding the position and confronting the enemy head-on. Two special forces played an important role in a number of campaigns.
It was precisely by virtue of their unique military wisdom and advanced weaponry that the Han were able to perform miraculous feats during the war years, defeat powerful enemies again and again, and finally unify the Central Plains and create one glorious dynasty after another.
The tenacious qualities of the Han Chinese nation
Since ancient times, the Han people have been known for their perseverance. In the long history, the baptism of countless wars has forged the tenacious character of the Han people.
The most reflective of the tenacity of the Han people is the war during the Three Kingdoms period. It was a turbulent time of smoke and devastation. Heroes and heroes from all walks of life have risen one after another, bravely killed the enemy, bravely and loyally, and staged tragic scenes that can be sung and cried.
Among them, the most memorable is the Battle of Red Cliffs. In 208 AD, Sun Quan of Eastern Wu united with Liu Bei of Shu Han to meet on the Chibi River, and the combined fleet had only a few dozen warships. Cao Cao's army had more than 800,000 horses and thousands of ships. Cao's army was so strong that it was wiped out by the allied forces of Eastern Wu, Shu and Han in the Battle of Chibi.
The key to this battle was the careful planning of Zhou Yu, the governor of Eastern Wu. He first sent people to dig up the grass and trees near Chibi, and when Cao's army was stationed in Chibi, the Soochow fleet suddenly launched an attack and set fire to the grass and trees. At this juncture, the Shu Han army also arrived in time, and the two-way coalition army surrounded the Cao army and caught it off guard.
In the Battle of Chibi, the allied forces of Eastern Wu and Shu and Han defeated the strong with the small, and finally achieved an earth-shattering victory. This is a vivid portrayal of the tenacity of the Han people. In the face of a strong enemy, the Han people are not afraid, but are not afraid of danger, indomitable, give full play to their wisdom, and finally turn the passive into the active and turn the tide.
In addition to the Battle of Chibi, the Han people also showed tenacity and unyielding qualities in resisting foreign invasions. In 304 AD, the Western Jin Dynasty was destroyed by the Xiongnu, and the Central Plains was in shambles. However, the Han Chinese did not give in and went on a disband, eventually regrouping their forces in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River and establishing the Eastern Jin Dynasty in 317 AD.
Although the territory of the Eastern Jin Dynasty was small, it was a symbol of the Han people's unremitting self-improvement. The people of the Eastern Jin Dynasty took "Rather be a peaceful dog than a faint monarch and minister" as their motto, and insisted on resisting foreign rule. After nearly a hundred years of hard work, the Eastern Jin Dynasty finally reunified the Central Plains in 420 AD, ending the humiliating period of being ruled by foreign peoples.
It is precisely by virtue of its endless and continuous tenacity that the Han nation can stand firm in the baptism of war, regain its vigor from the ashes again and again, and finally move towards reunification, achieving a splendid Chinese civilization.
The cultural self-confidence of the Han people
Since ancient times, the Han Chinese nation has been proud of its broad and profound cultural heritage. The long-standing Chinese civilization has given birth to the unique values and spiritual pursuits of the Han people, which is an important reason why the Han people can stand tall in the flames of war.
Among them, the most representative is Confucianism. The core of Confucianism is "benevolence", "courtesy", "filial piety", "loyalty", etc., which emphasizes self-cultivation and family harmony, attaches importance to human ethics, and pursues a harmonious and orderly society. This kind of thinking has been deeply rooted in the hearts of the Han people since the Zhou Dynasty and has become an important link to maintain national cohesion.
Confucianism was greatly developed during the Han Dynasty. During the reign of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, Dong Zhongshu's "overthrow a hundred schools of thought and respect Confucianism alone" established the guiding position of Confucianism. Since then, Confucianism has become the mainstream ideology of Han Chinese society and has had a profound impact on the entire nation.
Confucianism cultivated a firm belief and pride in the Han Chinese nation. Since ancient times, the Han people have regarded themselves as "Zhongzhou Zhengshuo" and "the kingdom of the Heavenly Empire". They believe that only the Central Plains is the birthplace of civilization, and only the Han people are the proud sons of heaven. This kind of cultural self-confidence allowed the Han people to be steadfast and self-reliant in the face of foreign invasions.
The most reflective of the cultural self-confidence of the Han people is the "harmony" policy of the Han Dynasty. In order to consolidate the frontier, the Han dynasty intermarried with the northern nomads on several occasions. But the Han Chinese did not see it as a shame, on the contrary, they saw it as spreading the advanced Central Plains culture to other peoples.
According to historical records, whenever a princess of the Han Dynasty married to the north, she would bring a large number of cultural relics and ceremonial personnel with her. They not only taught foreigners the etiquette and customs of the Central Plains, but also spread the farming techniques and handicrafts of the Central Plains to the foreign people. It can be said that the Han people, with great self-confidence, spread the civilization of the Central Plains to the border areas.
It is precisely by virtue of the long-standing cultural heritage and national pride that the Han people were able to maintain firm beliefs and gather strong strength in the midst of war. This kind of cultural self-confidence was nurtured in the development of civilization for thousands of years, forged in countless wars, and finally became an important pillar for the Han nation to stand still.