Since ancient times, China has been invaded by many foreign peoples, and the feudal rulers have also sent many soldiers to resist, among which many famous generals have emerged. Wei Qing of the Han Dynasty, Huo Quai, Yue Fei of the Song Dynasty, Di Qing, etc. All of them have made many contributions to the fight against the invasion of foreign peoples.
When the land occupied by foreign nationalities is recovered after the victory of the war, it is a major event for the whole country to celebrate. "Outside the sword, it was suddenly rumored that the north of the thistle was harvested, and the clothes were full of tears when I heard it at the first time" shows the joy of the ancient people when they heard that the land of their hometown was recovered.
Among the invasions of many foreign peoples, the invasion of the Khitan is the oldest recorded, and it is also the most troublesome and feared nomadic people in the ancient feudal dynasties. With his strong combat effectiveness and indomitable fighting spirit, he made the Central Plains Dynasty change for a long time, and also used many ways to stabilize and suppress his development to stabilize the stability of the Central Plains Dynasty and maintain the rule of imperial power.
But this unbelievable people seemed to disappear after the fall of the Liao State, and disappeared from thousands of years of feudal history, so where did their people go?
Vast history of development
1. Integrated development with the Central Plains ethnic groups
The Khitan people are a unique ethnic group in ancient Chinese history. He originated in the northeast region, and the harsh living environment in the north determined that they were a herds-based people, and also determined their heroic and rough character.
They believed in the gods and believed that they were the descendants of the celestial maidens and immortals of the Heavenly Palace, and divided the tribe into eight tribes, including the Sivandan tribe, the He Da He tribe, and the Rilian tribe. In addition, the various tribes are connected and compete with each other, so as to maintain the balance of tribal strength, stabilize the power within the tribe, maintain the rule within the Khitan tribe, and enable the Khitan people to live a stable life.
The Khitan first appeared in the records of Chinese history during the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, which was a period of regrouping of feudal society. During this period, society was divided, various ethnic groups merged with each other, and ideological, economic, and cultural blended and developed.
At this time, the Khitan people absorbed the various cultures of the Central Plains people, so that the economic exchanges between the Khitan and the Central Plains, mainly with horses and plush economic exchanges, made the Khitan economy accumulate, and the military theory also formed a perfect system under the combat methods of the Central Plains army, making the original heroic army more powerful.
And in the late Sui and early Tang dynasties, the Khitan was attached to the Central Plains Dynasty and was protected by the Central Plains Dynasty to a certain extent. During this period, it was less threatened by other nomadic peoples, and quickly accumulated strength and improved its status.
2. The rise with the support of the Central Plains Dynasty
The Khitan has gone through a long stage of development and already has a sufficient strength base to compete with the Central Plains Dynasty. At this time, due to the influence of ancient Chinese feudal society, the Khitan had changed from the traditional decentralized tribal rule to a more closely connected tribal alliance, and the center of power was held by the khan. At this time, the Khitan also had their own ambitions, delusionally wanting to break away from the sphere of influence of the Tang Dynasty and no longer submit to the status of a vassal state of the Tang Dynasty.
The consequence of its expanding ambitions was its declaration of war on the Tang Dynasty. "Attacking the Hebei region, the Tang army was repeatedly defeated. Wu Zetian sent a large army to ask for it, and with the help of Xi and the Turks, he was pacified. This ambitious nomadic people, who had been dormant for many years under the influence of the Central Plains Dynasty, had since occupied a long period of time in Chinese feudal society with a strong image.
After the Khitan broke away from the Tang Dynasty, it was supported by the Turks, and its comprehensive strength was further developed. After the Anshi Rebellion of the Tang Dynasty, after the prosperity turned to decline, the Khitan completely lost the checks and balances from the Central Plains Dynasty. At this time, due to the influence of the attached Tang Dynasty, there was a class differentiation within the Khitan people, which was the premise for the Khitan to establish a state.
Five dynasties and ten kingdoms came, various Central Plains dynasties were established one after another, the Central Plains was divided, and the people's lives were chaotic. And the new khan within the Khitan, Yelu Abaoji, took a fancy to this chaotic period and was less threatened by the Central Plains Dynasty, and successfully established the Liao State.
3. The decline and fall after the glory
The development of the Khitan in the early days of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms was not conspicuous, and during the turbulent historical period, a changing nomadic people would also be suppressed by powerful local rulers. After Yelu Abaoji came to power, he rectified the Khitan who were addicted to pleasure and suppressed the power of various tribes, so that the power of the khan expanded.
After a series of rectifications, the Khitan people tended to stabilize internally, their economic and military strength was restored, and they continued to expand their sphere of influence. In the process of continuous expansion to the Central Plains, Yelu Abaoji was proclaimed emperor in 916 AD, known as Liao Taizu in history, and established a slave state - the Khitan State.
The establishment of the Khitan state, so that the development of the Khitan reached its peak, at this time the Khitan was in a glorious state, and continued to expand to the Central Plains of the power range, after the death of Yelu Abaoji, under the rule of many emperors, the country's strength continued to develop, in the struggle with the Song Dynasty put the Song Dynasty at a disadvantage, and it signed the Yuanyuan Alliance.
At this time, the Khitan can be described as the victor in history, but history will never be biased to one side, after experiencing the leadership of several Ming monarchs, the Khitan State also began to appear mediocre and incompetent rulers, and its strength continued to decline.
When the Liao State no longer worked hard for domestic development, it gradually indulged in the temporary comfort brought by power, and ignored the threat of external nations. After a long period of development, the similar Jurchen tribe was dissatisfied with the rule of the Khitan state, and established the Jin Dynasty under the leadership of the Jurchen leader Wanyan Aguta, and launched an attack on the already backward Khitan state, causing the Liao state to perish.
Although the descendants of Yelu established the Western Liao with some branches left by the Liao State, their own strength was no longer enough to support it, and in the end, the Western Liao was also destroyed by the Mongols. The Khitan people, who had been glorious for several years, have since disappeared from the stage of history.
Where to go after the demise
1. Migration of conquests
As a nation capable of fighting well, the soldiers of the Khitan tribe were feared by the people of the Central Plains. They have been nomadic for generations, and this is one of the reasons why they are good at riding and shooting, it is their instinct engraved in their blood and bones.
The character traits of a Khitan soldier who are martial, warlike, and fearless are essential qualities to have as a good soldier. "The Khitan is a tool for siege of the city, flying ladders, rushing cars, etc., which are under the city. Dig tunnels, raise earth mountains, and siege the city on all sides. It shows the courage and orderliness of the Khitan soldiers when they fight.
And such a valiant soldier was captured after the fall of the Liao State and arranged to serve in the Mongol army.
With the establishment of the Yuan Dynasty by the Mongols, they gradually expanded their sphere of influence to the Eurasian continent, so that the Khitan soldiers walked out of the eastern land where they had lived for generations with the pace of the Mongol army and embarked on a strange road of conquest and battle. and migrated to various regions of the Eurasian continent, and even settled in the areas ruled after the conquest, becoming a new branch of the Khitan people.
The migration range of Khitan soldiers continued to expand with the continuous progress of the Mongol army, and left traces of Khitan life in various places, which was a transcontinental migration, but it also made these Khitan soldiers far away from their hometowns and could only take root in unfamiliar areas to grow and develop.
The development of the war is two-sided, it will bring death and disaster to the people in the invaded areas, but after the war, what is left is the gap in the country that has been opened, so that foreign cultures continue to pour in, and integrate with their own culture to promote development, and the Khitan people in the process of going out to fight, they also integrate with the local people and take root in the local area.
2. Settle down for a stable life
When the Liao Kingdom was destroyed by the Jurchen tribe, Yelu Dashi led the remaining part of the people to the west, "I am now fighting for righteousness and going west, and I want to use my strength to cut off my enemies and restore my territory." "
Subsequently, the Western Liao was established, but as the strength of the Jin Dynasty continued to grow, the Western Liao was also exterminated, and this part of the Khitan people also lived under the surveillance of the Jin Dynasty, and the Jin Dynasty forbade them to continue to learn Khitan culture, although the remaining Khitan people had the original living traditions, but the concept has been different from the original, and finally integrated into the Jin Dynasty society.
The rest of the Khitan people lived a life of death after the destruction of the country, and eventually scattered throughout the country, if the Khitan population gathered in one place was larger, they would form their own system and belong to the Central Plains Dynasty.
Blending into the local ethnic group, but maintaining the unique characteristics of the Khitan people, according to historical records, we can find their traces in present-day Liaoning and Yunnan. However, the small number of fugitives may be directly integrated into the ethnic groups of the fleeing areas because of the small number of people, and eventually disappear into the long river of history.
These Khitan people scattered all over the country have changed their habits with a learning attitude and integrated into the living areas of other ethnic groups, but they can see their differences in daily life and maintain the characteristics of their Khitan culture.
summary
The Khitan people have gone through a long process of development after their demise, and because they do not pay attention to the development of intermarriage between different ethnic groups, it is very likely that they have been assimilated, although the remaining Khitan people have been found by using the current high-tech technology, but they are also people in the integration and development of many years, and they are no longer the traditional Khitan people in the history books.
But the image of their heroic and fearless still exists in the history books, and these written records are the evidence of the existence of this excellent fighting nation on the stage of Chinese history.
They may be invaders who have made the people of the Central Plains look different or they may be special ethnic groups with changeable cultural characteristics, but they are all traditional cultural treasures in the 5,000-year history of the Chinese nation and are part of Chinese culture. They are important people who make up the rich history of Chinese civilization.