The Battle of Shanhaiguan was a tragic and bloody battle in the history of the late Ming Dynasty. The 180,000 elite troops led by Li Zicheng were almost completely wiped out, and 15 generals died on the battlefield.
What caused this invincible rebel army to suffer such a crushing defeat at Shanhaiguan? What kind of strategic mistakes and decision-making mistakes are hidden behind the tragic scenes on the battlefield and the thrilling details of the battle?
So, what led to this huge historical turning point and changed the course of the Ming and Qing dynasties?
Arrogance leads to catastrophe
In the last years of the Ming Dynasty, famines and wars were frequent, and the old social order was in jeopardy. At this turbulent time, a peasant uprising leader named Li Zicheng rose rapidly, known as "Li Chuangwang", and defeated the official army that was waiting for the rabbit with the elite Dashun army, all the way to the city of Beijing.
In 1644, Emperor Chongzhen hanged himself in despair, and the Ming Dynasty was overthrown. What happened next was even more unexpected - Li Zicheng entered the city of Beijing logically, announcing that he was about to ascend the throne as emperor and start a new dynasty.
At this critical moment, Wu Sangui, who is located in Shanhaiguan, has become Li Zicheng's biggest hidden danger. Wu Sangui was a relict of the Ming Dynasty, followed Chongzhen in his early years, and was later forced to defect to the Dashun army.
For Li Zicheng, the Shanhaiguan controlled by Wu Sangui is undoubtedly a barrier that is difficult to break, and if this obstacle is not resolved as soon as possible, it may be difficult to establish a firm foundation in Beijing. Therefore, he decided to personally lead the army to Shanhaiguan to solve this hidden danger once and for all.
Take advantage of the victory to pursue the verbal criticism
In June 1644, Li Zicheng arrived at Shanhaiguan with an army of 180,000 and prepared to launch an attack on Wu Sangui, who was stationed there. This army came like a surging river, which made Wu Sangui's army, which was barely resisting, feel very confused.
After a long process of Ming death, Wu Sangui had lost confidence in the future, and he even began to consider defecting to the Qing army in order to save his life in the torrent of history.
At this critical moment, Li Zicheng was quite ruthless with him. It turned out that when Li Zicheng captured Beijing, he began to exploit the nobles and gentry in the capital, demanding that they hand over their family property for free as military salaries.
Wu Sangui's father, Wu Xiang, was one of the victims and was trapped in prison and tortured. This made Wu Sangui angry in his heart, and he resolutely refused to cooperate with Li Zicheng again.
In desperation, Wu Sangui could only seek help from the Qing army. As a Manchu armed force that was an enemy of the Ming Dynasty, the Qing army was naturally happy to see it. Dolgon, the Qing Emperor who ruled the northeast at that time, immediately made a decision and personally led a large army to support Wu Sangui and deal with Li Zicheng together.
This is undoubtedly a heavy blow to Li Zicheng. He originally thought that it would be difficult for Wu Sangui to fight against his own army of 180,000 alone, but he didn't expect that the other party would be able to unite the Qing army. But what surprised him even more was that the Qing army was able to send troops to support Wu Sangui so quickly.
The Guan army was annihilated
When the first batch of Qing troops marched from the Shanhaiguan South Road, Li Zicheng immediately dispatched two large armies to intercept them. One of them was led by Li Zicheng himself, and the other was in charge of the general Tang Tong.
This time and again, Li Zicheng and Wu Sangui's army launched a fierce battle around Shanhaiguan. In successive encounters, the offensive of the Dashun army was gradually suppressed by Wu Sangui's Guanning Iron Cavalry.
But at this moment, Dolgon personally led the elite Eight Banners cavalry to kill from the east road, forming a front and rear attack on Li Zicheng's Dashun army. The superb combat skills and powerful firepower superiority of the Eight Banners cavalry soon disrupted the battle formation of the Dashun army, plunging it into chaos.
At the same time, another Qing army led by Duoduo also launched a fierce offensive against Li Zicheng's team from the lower reaches of the Shihe River. The defensive line was the weakest here, and was quickly broken through by the army of Duoduo. The panicked Dashun army suddenly collapsed in all directions, and it was powerless to fight back.
In the fierce battle, all 15 generals under Li Zicheng were killed, and he himself escaped with injuries. The once proud army of 180,000 was almost wiped out in this battle, and only a few thousand soldiers were left to protect Li Zicheng and flee back to Beijing.
Li Zicheng, who was completely defeated, hurriedly ascended the throne and became emperor, but then fled to the northwest in a hurry, and could not make a comeback. The Qing army, which pursued the victory, soon entered the city of Beijing, officially announcing the end of the Ming Dynasty and opening a new era of the Manchu Dynasty.
Greedy for life and afraid of death, losing the hearts of the people
The reason for such an ending lies in Li Ziben's character and deeds. As a peasant-turned-leader of the uprising, Li Zicheng fought all the way and amassed a strong military force. But after the capture of Beijing, he began to gradually let his guard down, sinking into the noise of dogs and horses, turning a blind eye to the suffering of the people.
Originally, Li Zicheng should have taken advantage of the situation to stabilize his rule, appease the people, and rebuild social order. But he chose a different path - wantonly exploiting the rich class in the capital, ruthlessly squeezing the wealth of the common people to support his army and extravagant life.
Naturally, this practice aroused strong dissatisfaction among the people. People who originally had a glimmer of hope for Li Zicheng have changed their attitudes at this moment, and even miss the decadent rule of the previous dynasty. But Li Zicheng was unaware of it, only caring about his own desire for power and pleasure, completely ignoring the demands of the people.
If Li Zicheng still had some people-oriented ideas when he first rose to the throne, then after ascending the throne, he was quickly blinded by power and desire. He is arrogant, disdainful of cooperating with others, and even more despises Wu Sangui, who has been relied on for a long time.
When Wu Sangui chose to rebel because of his own interests, Li Zicheng even sent incompetent generals to take over Shanhaiguan, completely underestimating the strength of this old general.
Such an erroneous decision directly led to the fiasco in the Battle of Shanhaiguan in the future. Li Zicheng's invincible army was crushed under the fierce offensive of the Qing army, and even 15 generals of his cronies were killed on the battlefield.
This unprecedented and tragic war not only shattered Li Zicheng's dream of imperial industry, but also made him completely lose the trust of the people. In the end, Li Zicheng could only flee to the northwest in a hurry, ending in a frustrated ending.
The Manchu Qing seized this excellent opportunity, took advantage of the victory to pursue, took advantage of the weakness, and soon broke through the city of Beijing and took over the Central Plains. Since then, the history of the Ming Dynasty has come to an end, and the Qing Dynasty has opened its new chapter.
A dream that reigns over the world
The reason for Li Zicheng's ultimate failure lies in his own flaws. As a peasant rebel from a low background, he was brave and good at fighting, and he also had an elite army under his command.
But at the critical moment of stabilizing his rule and establishing a new order, he completely lost his vision and wisdom. Unwilling to cooperate with the bureaucratic elites of the past, he suppressed and exploited them. He also profligated and indulged his desires, completely ignoring the suffering of ordinary people.
This practice not only quickly lost the support of the people, but also provided an opportunity for the Qing army to take advantage of. In the end, Li Zicheng's arrogance caused a catastrophe. He was once close to the dream of stepping on the throne, but eventually became another victim in the torrent of history in the late Ming and early Qing dynasties.
His failure has also become a painful lesson for future monarchs - you must not ignore the will of the people, nor can you be arrogant, otherwise you will reap the consequences.
epilogue
The wheels of history are rolling forward, and the tragedy of Li Zicheng has long been settled. The strife and turmoil of that time have now become a drop in the long river of history.
But we still need to be vigilant to prevent similar mistakes from being repeated. The road of politics has always been bumpy and dangerous, and only by being cautious and self-reliant can we achieve steady and far-reaching results. Let's learn from this and work together to create a more just and harmonious future.
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