Between the sixth year of the Yong calendar and the seventh year of the Yong calendar, the Southern Ming army under the leadership of Sun Kewang, Li Dingguo, and Liu Wenxiu launched a large-scale counteroffensive in Sichuan, Xiang, Gui, and other provinces, collecting a considerable number of prefectures and counties, and the Qing court was shaken, and in July of the sixth year of the Yong calendar, the Prince of Jingjin was sent as the general of Dingyuan, commanding the Manchu Qing Eight Banner Army to the south, and was originally preparing to attack Guizhou from Hunan, but the news of Kong Youde's defeat and death came, and the Qing court urgently ordered Nikan to attack Guangxi from Hunan in August of that year, and the later results were known to people familiar with the history of the late Ming Dynasty. Nikan was promoted by Li Dingguo.
Qing army.
Nikan is indeed dead, but the question is whether Li Dingguo won a real victory in the Battle of Hengzhou? First, look at the records of the Records of the Ancestors of the Qing Dynasty:
"(Shunzhi) On November 19, 2009, the army arrived in Xiangtan County. The thief-headed pseudo-general Ma Jinzhong and others, led the horse infantry, and had fled to Baoqing Province. The king consulted with the generals. Weak horses, two members of the Commission of Two Wings of Mailer Zhangjing, two members of each banner zhangjing, four soldiers per cattle, and left behind to feed. On the twenty-first day, he led the officers and men to get up from Xiangtan County. March towards hengzhou capital. On the twenty-second day, he went to Hengshan County for thirty miles, and the forward encountered a thief sentry and chased him to Hengshan County. Defeat a member of the Puppet Army. Five pseudo-vice generals. Eighteen hundred horsemen. That is, the night and the journey forward. Twenty-three days, the sky is unknown, arrived in Hengzhou. And the Ming King led Belle Beizi, Gong, Gushan Erzhen, etc., forward in the middle of the line. The thieves are coming. Our soldiers are balanced according to what they are right. The thieves were defeated. Hunted down for more than twenty miles. A lot has been gained. It is as strange as four and eight hundred and twenty horses. Defeated the thieves, about 40,000 or so. Ermen forwarded the banknote. On November 19, the Nikan army arrived at Xiangtan, defeated the Ming army at Hengshan on the 22nd, and defeated the Ming army in Hengzhou on the 23rd.
Ming Army armor.
Look again at the "Biography of Li Dingguo in the Qing History Manuscript" recorded: "The great general Jingjing Prince Nikan led the division to the south, and the second Xiangtan. Ma Jinzhong retreated, and studied under him, sub-Hengzhou. Dingguo went to the aid, the two armies arrived at the same time, and under the battle of Hengzhou, Dingguo was defeated. Prince Jingjing took the lead in riding and chasing him, but when he was ambushed, he was not in the battle. Dingguo collected troops from Tunwugang. "Therefore, combining the above two materials, it can be found that the so-called Hengzhou Victory may be a counter-killing battle, Nikan defeated Li Dingguo's Ming army, and then was counter-killed by the Ming army in the process of pursuit."
Gu Cheng wrote in his book "History of the Southern Ming Dynasty" that "on November 19, the Nikan army reached Xiangtan County; the Ming general Ma Jinzhong led his troops to retreat to Baoqing. On the twenty-first day, Nikan set off from Xiangtan and the next day entered more than thirty miles away from the capital of Hengzhou (present-day Hengyang). Li Dingguo sent his generals 1,800 men to feign a battle, and then retreated. Nikan was arrogant and self-conscious, thinking that the Ming army was vulnerable, that is, on the night of the twenty-second day, he "marched concurrently", and the next day arrived at the Capital of Hengzhou in the dark of the day, and met Li Dingguo's army. Dingguo saw that Nikan was light and weak, and decided to win by strategy, ambushed the heavy troops in advance, and ordered the front-line soldiers to pretend to be invincible at the slightest contact during the confrontation, and take the initiative to retreat. Nikan "took advantage of the victory" to pursue for more than twenty miles and fell into an ambush. At the order of Dingguo, the whole army attacked, and the killing sound was overwhelming and surging; the Qing army was in a hurry and was quickly defeated by the Ming army, and the commander Nikan was also killed on the spot in the melee. Also killed by the Ming army were the first-class Berdony and Nikan escorts. The Dingguo sergeant cut the first rank of Nikan to dedicate his merits, "the Eastern Pearl is brilliantly embedded in the pocket, and the thousand gold even buys the king's head", and the whole army rejoices and thunders. The Qing army did not dare to fight again, and retreated to Changsha under the leadership of Dorobel Tunqi (or Tunqi). ”
The Eight Banners Suffered Heavy Casualties.
Guo Yingqiu wrote in the Chronicle of Li Dingguo that the Battle of Hengzhou was "when the Dingguo Tun Heng Prefecture, Ma Jinzhong Feng Shuangli Tun Changsha, the former army under Yue Prefecture." Ding Guozhi invited troops to arrive, conspired with Jin Zhong and Shuang Li, and joined forces with Changsha to lure the enemy to cross the Xiang River. Jin Zhong and Shuang Li retreated to Baigao City, and when the enemy crossed Hengshan Mountain, he bypassed the enemy's rear and recoiled; Dingguo sandwiched steamed water to resist the enemy, and the soldiers were annihilated. Xi Ding, can be expected to avoid, close to the double ceremonial path to retire Baoqing. Shuang Li walked to Xiangxiang, xiang Baoqing, Ma Jinzhong did not know what to do, and followed the west. The Qing army Bo Hengzhou, Dingguo sandwiched steaming water and army, engaged in the northern part of the city of Perfume Temple, Caoqiao, transferred to yanwu pavilion, where the number of combined, killing and wounding equal. Dingguo pretended to be defeated, and Nikan led his army to pursue him, ambushed him, and beheaded Nikan. ”
Nikan chased after it and there was nothing.
In summary, the general process of the Battle of Hengzhou is as follows: on November 19, the sixth year of the Yong calendar, the Nikan army arrived at Xiangtan, defeated the Ming army of 1,800 people at Hengshan on the 22nd (the number here is too small), according to the Qing side, on the 23rd in the Battle of the Ming and Qing armies in Hengzhou, the Qing army defeated about 40,000 Ming troops, in fact, the two sides fought in the north of the city, killing and wounding equally, Li Dingguo pretended to be defeated, began to fish, Nikan chased and died.
After the "Dingyuan General" Nikan hung up, the Qing court issued an order in the same month: "I will use troops in the dynasty." With all your might. Defeat the enemy. This is what is known to them. Er waited for this, day and night, for two hundred and thirty miles, so that the horses were tired. This big loss also. Afterwards, all matters, such as Those of Kwalamda, shall be discussed and acted with caution. If the Duty Qu Kou should dispatch all the soldiers, then send one of them within the two people of Gushan Erzhen Gong Han Dai and Yi Erde. One of them, did not leave Erbele to the left and right. In addition, those who have been dispatched are sent in Mongolia Gushan Erzhen, the commander of the escort army, the kalandanei, and the chosen commander. One baylor, two bayers, and no one left the house. Erbel Tunqi, leading the banner to protect the army, and camped in the middle. Belebasihan, Bezi Zakana, Murhu, Gonghandai, Ilder, Dang's leading guards and pro-army, were all in one place with the Beltonqi army. Its questions are Zhang JingMaltai, The Bodyguard Ah Jin, Toira, etc., and it is advisable to add details to the Feng. There are those who have fallen off their horses and have been severely injured, and those who have forgiven their feelings have come to Beijing. If there is no forgiveness for the situation, and the one who abandons the Lord and runs away, he will be in the other place to correct the Fa. ”
You can analyze this passage: "Er, waiting for this, day and night rushing for two hundred and thirty miles, so that the horses are tired." This big loss also. "It is said here that the exhaustion of the army caused by the long-distance raid was one of the reasons for Nikan's failure. The second part is to emphasize to Han Dai and Yi Erde that they must protect tunqi and these Bellebets, and the last part is to hold Nikan responsible for his death, find out that the abandoned master escaped on the spot, and send them back to Beijing with serious injuries. Therefore, in combination with all the above, Li Dingguo did win a certain degree of victory in the Battle of Hengzhou, killing the Qing Dingyuan general Ai Xinjue Ronikan.
According to the late Ming Dynasty remnants of the Late Ming Dynasty, nikan pursued only 3,000 troops, while the above-quoted "Records of the Ancestors of the Qing Dynasty" recorded that "its questions are Zhang Jing Martai, the bodyguard Ajin, the Earth Lei, etc., and it is advisable to add details." There are those who have fallen off their horses and have been severely injured, and those who have forgiven their feelings have come to Beijing. If there is no forgiveness for the situation, and the one who abandons the Lord and runs away, he will be in the other place to correct the Fa. It can be seen that these thousands of people still have escaped, so there should not be many Qing troops who were killed with Nikan, but from here, the "victory" of Li Dingguo in the Battle of Hengzhou is probably also extremely bitter, "engaged in the battle of Perfume Temple and Caoqiao in the north of the city, turned to Yanwu Pavilion, where the numbers were combined, the killing and wounding were quite large" So fighting, had to pretend to lose (or indeed lost) Finally, Nikan himself led a small number of troops into the trap... After Nikan's death, Li Dingguo had to collect troops from Wugang, that is to say, although Nikan died, from a macroscopic point of view, Li Dingguo's Ming army did not take advantage, but it cannot be said that it was defeated, and the "Qing History Manuscript Biography II" Tunqi "(Shunzhi) Eleven years, chasing hengzhou defeat" proved that the Qing army did suffer losses in this battle. As for some people saying, "Li Dingguo was defeated by the main force of the Qing army after yang Nikan", anyway, I did not find a similar record.
Military general at the end of the Ming Dynasty.
The Biography of Li Dingguo in the Yongli Shilu says: "In the winter of the sixth year of the Yongli Calendar, the troops of the five princes of the Qing Dynasty vigorously suppressed Changsha, and dingguo ordered Jin Zhong to retreat to Baigao City, lure the enemy through, and cover it up." Enter the loyalty report as ordered. It is expected that Bai Gao will be transferred to Baoqing, a loyal spinner. Dingguo fought in Hengzhou, and when he did not arrive loyally, he was shocked and collapsed, and Chang and Heng fell back. "Contact the above "Li Dingguo Chronicle" "Xi Ding, can be expected to avoid, close to the double etiquette path to retire Baoqing." Shuang Li walked to Xiangxiang, xiang Baoqing, Ma Jinzhong did not know what to do, and followed the west. It can be seen that Sun Kewang sabotaged Li Dingguo's plan to completely annihilate the Nikan army, and the Ma and Fengbu Ming armies were transferred, leaving only Li Dingguo's troops to negotiate with the Qing army, so after killing Nikan, he had to collect troops from Wugang.
Li Dingguo.
Before the Battle of the Fork in the Road, the "Records of the Ancestors of the Qing Dynasty" recorded that "the subjects (Tun qi) and other soldiers of Xi'an Province, ke Yongsheng, and the commander-in-chief of the Viceroy, were stationed in Hengzhou", which shows that Hengzhou had fallen into the hands of the Qing army after the Battle of Hengzhou last year. Therefore, some historical sources say that the Battle of Hengzhou was a defeat" When the Dingguo army was mighty and powerful, it was no longer expected to be controlled, and it was expected to be even more indignant. There is already a defeat in Hengzhou; it is expected that the envoys will be summoned and will be killed with their defeat." Later, Sun Kewang was defeated at a fork in the road, Liu Wenxiu's army was defeated at Baoning, and the counterattack of the Southern Ming court in the Hunan area was forced to end.