#以书之名#
The Manchus often spoke of their rise with light reference to the 13 sets of armor as if they were just small objects. However, the weight and significance carried by these 13 sets of armor is far from what appears on the surface. In the vast world of Liaodong and the grasslands, they represent a huge fortune, enough to make many people blush. Even at the height of the Manchu dynasty, few of Nurhachi's many descendants had such a rich fortune.
In the Mongolian steppe at the end of the Ming Dynasty, armor was not an ordinary equipment, but a precious weapon resource, whose value was equivalent to 90 cattle and sheep, which was equivalent to the entire family of a middle-class Mongolian family. According to the Oirat Code, it takes a whole year of hard work and savings for 20 nomadic families to create a pair of armor. And among the Jurchens in Liaodong, armor was also staggeringly expensive. Even the best of the Jurchen tribes, such as the Ulab, the mother clan that gave birth to Dolgon, had only 7,000 armor in reserve.
Nurhachi, the valiant leader, often led squads of dozens to hundreds of men in fierce siege battles. Imagine how strong his ambition and determination were when he attacked the city of Mortals, with only 25 armored soldiers and 50 soldiers around him as the main force. And when chasing Nikan Wailan, he dared to charge with only 40 armor soldiers, and this heroic and fearless spirit made people awe-inspiring.
In Nurhachi's early battles, although his team was small, the fighting backbone was extremely strong. Including himself, his younger brother Shulhaqi, the heroic An Feiyangu and Fei Yingdong and others, the armor of 13 of them became a valuable resource for Nurhachi to unify and establish the Jurchens. These armors are not only their combat equipment, but also a symbol of their courage and determination.
With these 13 armor pairs and 30 edicts, Nurhachi completed his primitive accumulation and began to fight frequently with foreign countries. While there aren't many battles to be able to capture a large amount of armor at once, each victory brings him closer to his goal. Even though in the famous Battle of the Nine-Part Alliance, he only captured the "Thirty Pairs of Armor", but this did not stop him from advancing.
When Nurhachi and his son wiped out the six-figure Ming army, they finally obtained 40,000 pairs of armor, which became an important weapon for them to dominate the Central Plains. Therefore, when the Manchu royal family divided the property, armor became an important indicator. Most of the members of the Manchu clan could only be assigned two or three pairs of armor, and even fought lawsuits over the ownership of these armors.
During the Tongzhi period of the Qing Dynasty, such a lawsuit occurred within the clan. Berenih Cham's descendant, Yujie, is at odds with her relatives over compensation for two pairs of blue armor and 400 taels of rent. In the end, the lawsuit ended with the defendant paying 80 taels of rent and two pieces of blue armor. This descendant of the clan, who only got two pairs of armor in a lawsuit at home, is a world of difference compared to their ancestor Nurhachi.
During the Daoguang period, there was a rather dramatic lawsuit in the clan. A surviving woman from the clan bravely stood up and sued her uncle. Her appeal was that the entire family had thirty pairs of blue armor, but the uncle was a bully and refused to return the three pairs of armor that belonged to her nephew. This incident not only reveals the distribution of armor in the clan family, but also shows the weight of blue armor in the hearts of clan members from one side.
In Nurhachi's time, armor was a symbol of honor and power. His son Zhu Ying had more than 200 pairs of blue armor during his lifetime, and these armors were passed down among his descendants and became a testimony of the family's glory. In the Yongzheng period, the number of blue armor shared by the prince, the prince of the county, and Baylor became a practice in the court. These princes, no matter which banner they belong to, have a deep desire for the blue armor. Because in the rules of the Manchu Qing Dynasty, the blue armor is not only a symbol of status, but also the basis for receiving subsidies.
If you get red armor, you will go to battle, and if you get white armor, you will guard the gate and defend the city. And only when you get the blue armor can you receive a subsidy of three taels of silver per month. This is for a prince, in a year, he can receive an income of 2,160 taels of silver with only Lan Jia. When the prince's income fell to 5,000 taels per year in the late Qing Dynasty, this additional income undoubtedly became considerable.
Ordinary clan families, even if they only have three pairs of blue armor, can get 108 taels of silver every year. This kind of income is also quite tempting compared with the regular military position of the Eighth Banner Army. As a result, disputes and lawsuits over armor frequently occurred in the clan.
Recalling the legend of Nurhachi's 13 armors that started the world in those days, many descendants of the clan may also have a trace of envy in their hearts while admiring the bravery of their ancestors. After all, in their eyes, those 13 pairs of armor not only represent glory and glory, but also symbolize wealth and status.