Preface
The Ming Dynasty, once the dynasty of all countries, is now a plate of scattered sand. The phrase "if the court dies, it will die" seems to be an ominous prophecy of the fate of the Ming Dynasty. However, what is refreshing is that in the pen of the historians of the Qing Dynasty, the Ming Dynasty general Sun Chuanting has a very high evaluation.
This makes one wonder why Qing historians praised Ming generals so much, especially considering that the impact of his life may have been closely related to the fall of the Ming Dynasty?
The root cause of the fall of the Ming Dynasty
The fall of the Ming Dynasty stemmed from the corruption of the imperial court and its disregard for the interests of the common people. Those profligate princes devoured the wealth of the country; And the weak and incompetent emperor connived at all this. Under these circumstances, the lives of the ordinary people of Li fell into dire straits, and the people were struggling to make a living, which led to the rise and fall of peasant uprisings.
The profligacy of the princes of the Zhu family
In the later part of the Ming Dynasty, the princes of the Zhu family became a black hole that devoured the wealth of the country. According to statistics, more than half of the income of the Ming Dynasty every year had to be provided for these princes to eat, drink, prostitute and gamble. They own vast tracts of land, more than half of the country's arable land, and never pay any taxes. On the contrary, the imperial court also allocated a large amount of salt tax and tea tax to them, for fear that these princes would starve.
These princes lived a luxurious life, taking concubines and giving birth to children, and having a group of heirs. If a prince's family has less than dozens of heirs, he doesn't dare to say that he is the Zhu family when he goes out. The more heirs, the more money the court allocated, and the more extravagant the princes' lives became. This creates a vicious circle that eventually leads to the depletion of the country's finances.
These princes not only do not pay taxes themselves, but also often take advantage of their special status to escape taxes. They occupy large tracts of land, but are not willing to spend a penny to support the construction of the country and military spending. On the contrary, they often use their power to oppress the people at the bottom, further increasing the burden on the people.
In this case, the finances of the Ming Dynasty were already stretched. Even in times of crisis, these princes are not willing to give their money to support the country. They are only interested in their own pleasures and completely ignore the interests of the country and the people. This greed and selfishness eventually led to the fall of the Ming Dynasty.
Emperor Chongzhen's weakness and incompetence
In the face of the profligacy of the princes, Emperor Chongzhen turned a blind eye. Even when Li Zicheng's peasant army had already reached his doorstep, he was unwilling to collect a penny from the princes as military expenses. On the contrary, in order to suppress the growing peasant uprising, he listened to Yang Sichang's plan of "increasing the number of troops and salaries", which increased the tax burden of the common people.
This practice undoubtedly exacerbates the situation and further exacerbates public discontent. However, Chongzhen doesn't seem to realize the seriousness of the problem. When there was a proposal to raise military expenses from the princes, he locked them up, which led to a further deterioration of the state finances.
Chongzhen's weakness and incompetence made him completely unable to cope with the crisis at that time. Not only was he reluctant to raise military funds from the princes, but he put those who made the proposal in prison. This practice undoubtedly added fuel to the fire and further exacerbated the discontent of the population.
In the end, when Li Zicheng's peasant army had already reached the doorstep, Chongzhen was still indifferent and could only watch his dynasty fall. His weakness and incompetence became another important reason for the fall of the Ming Dynasty.
Sun Chuanting: The last hope at the end of the Ming Dynasty
In this moment of crisis, a figure named Sun Chuanting stepped forward and became the last hope of the Ming Dynasty. Sun Chuanting had long had insight into the root of the Ming Dynasty's problems, and he knew that if he did not change the court's attitude towards the people, any efforts would be in vain.
Sun Chuanting was born in Shanxi and has had outstanding talents since he was a child. At the age of 26, he was admitted to Jinshi, and then was selected by the Ming court and entered Beijing as an official. In the Ming Dynasty at that time, the traitor Wei Zhongxian was rampant and domineering, and the officials in the court were obedient to him.
But Sun Chuanting was unmoved, and after refusing to flatter Wei Zhongxian, he angrily resigned and returned to his hometown. Although Sun Chuanting chose to live in seclusion, when the world was in turmoil at the end of the Ming Dynasty, he still stepped forward and served as the governor of Shaanxi.
At that time, Shaanxi was suffering from a three-year drought, and the people were hungry and cold, and there was even a situation where they were eating from their children. But after Sun Chuanting took office, order was quickly restored, and there were bandits in every village, and thieves killed every family.
Sun Chuanting's efforts were too late
However, Sun's efforts were ultimately too late. His actions offended interest groups within the imperial court, who feared that their vested interests would be threatened if Sun Chuanting was not eliminated. As a result, they began to frame Sun Chuanting, saying that he trained the Ming army for the purpose of rebellion.
The weak Emperor Chongzhen eventually succumbed to these pressures and ordered Sun Chuanting to be imprisoned. Although Li Zicheng later made a comeback, Chongzhen had to ask Sun Chuanting out of prison, but he desperately asked Sun Chuanting to go out of the decisive battle, which led to Sun Chuanting's death.
After Sun Chuanting was killed, the last pillar of the Ming Dynasty also collapsed. The princes of the Zhu family originally wanted to use their financial resources to exchange a way of life with Li Zicheng, but Li Zicheng was unmoved, and they could only disappear into the long river of history with their dynasty.
Although Sun Chuanting ultimately failed to save the Ming Dynasty, his efforts and sacrifices have become an indelible legend in history. He gained insight into the root causes of the Ming Dynasty's problems and tried to change the status quo through his actions. Even if he ultimately failed, he did not give up his loyalty and love for the country. This spirit is undoubtedly worthy of being remembered and emulated by future generations.
epilogue
The fall of the Ming Dynasty was a tragedy caused by many factors. The greed of the princes of the Zhu family, the weakness of Emperor Chongzhen, and the court's disregard for the interests of the common people all contributed to the decline of this once glorious dynasty.
Although Sun Chuanting tried to save it, he was ultimately victimized by interest groups within the imperial court, which became the last straw for the fall of the Ming Dynasty. The lesson of this history is that the rise and fall of a country depends not only on the ability of its rulers, but also on the soundness of the entire system.
If the ruling class only cares about the immediate interests and ignores the interests of the people, then sooner or later the country will go to ruin. We should draw lessons from history and establish a system that is fair, honest and concerned about the people's livelihood, so that we can truly achieve long-term peace and stability.