Han Xin is the most famous generation of famous generals in Chinese history.
On February 28, 202 BC (according to the western Han Dynasty, which began with October as the first year, and February of the same year after October), Liu Bang held an enthronement ceremony at the yang of DingtaoShui (present-day cao county, Shandong) in Shandong, with the name of Han and the title of Han Gao. For Liu Bang, the reason why he could eliminate Xiang Yu and establish the Western Han Dynasty, Han Xin, a famous general, was undoubtedly indispensable. In the last year of the Qin Dynasty, Han Xin initially defected to Xiang Liang and Xiang Yu, but was not appointed. Switching to Liu Bang, on the recommendation of Xiahou Bao, Bai Zhi Su Du Wei, and Xiao He Bao as a general, formulated Hanzhong countermeasures for Liu Bang.
Since then, Han Xin has conquered the northern war in the south, first breaking the Chu army between Beijing and Su, and then pacifying the State of Wei. Ordering the Northern Expedition to take the Daiguo, Liu Bang took his elite troops and defeated the Zhao State in a battle of the backwater, and sent people to surrender the Yan State. Support Liu Bang and clear the Chu cavalry sent by Xiang Yu to the Zhao state, and pacify the remaining Zhao state. After Liu Bangchenggao's army defeated his elite troops, he was ordered to attack the State of Qi, and at Weishui completely annihilated the Dragon and 200,000 Chu troops. Han Xin attacked the Chu state, and Xiang Yu signed a gulf agreement with Liu Bang. Liu Bang followed Zhang Liang's and Chen Ping's strategy to tear up the gap agreement and failed to pursue Xiang Yu. In the fifth year of the Han Dynasty, he led his troops to encircle and annihilate the Chu army. As far as Han Xin's life is concerned, the most classic battles are the following four battles, that is, these four battles can be called textbook war models.
I. The Battle of Chen Cang
In February of the first year of the Han Dynasty, Xiang Yu and Liu Bang ended the War against Qin. After the fall of the Qin Dynasty, Xiang Yu was able to divide the princes because of his strong strength. For Xiang Yu, he declared himself the Overlord of Western Chu, and in order to restrain Liu Bang, he sealed Ba (郡治江州, on the north bank of the Beijialing River in present-day Chongqing), Shu (郡治成都, in present-day Sichuan), and Hanzhong (present-day three counties south of Qinling in Shaanxi and western Hubei) to Liu Bang and forced him to leave Guanzhong. On this basis, Xiang Yu divided Guanzhong into three places where the warriors had to contend, and Feng Qin sent Zhang Handan, Sima Xin, and Dong Feng as kings, in an attempt to control Guanzhong with the King of Three Qin and prevent Liu Bang from advancing eastward.
In the Battle of ChenCang, Liu Bang took advantage of Han Xin's strategy, "Ming Xiu Zhan Dao, secretly crossing Chen Cang", and won a surprise victory from a small road, defeated Zhang Handan and others, and captured Guanzhong, laying the foundation for Liu Bang to compete for the world later. The Battle of Chen Cang lasted eight months, and after the victory, Liu Bang basically occupied the territory of the Qin State during the Warring States period, and had the foundation for Qin Shi Huang to destroy the Six Kingdoms and unify the world. In other words, At this time, Liu Bang could send troops to destroy princes everywhere like Qin Shi Huang at the end of the Warring States period, thus establishing the Western Han Dynasty.
2. The Battle of Jingxing
The Battle of Jingxing was fought by the Han and Zhao armies in October of the third year of Emperor Han Gao's reign (204 BC) around Jingxing (present-day southeast of Jingxing, Hebei). In the Battle of Jingxing, Han Xin led only about 30,000 soldiers and horses, while Zhao Guo sent 200,000 troops. Therefore, for the Battle of Jingxing, it can be described as a classic battle with less victory and more victory. In this battle, Han Xin, a major general of the Han army, took advantage of the heart of Chen Yu, the commander of the Zhao Army, to set up a backwater array that violated the taboo of the soldiers, prompting his generals to fight bravely in order to escape from death, and dispatched another light horse to take advantage of the gap to seize the Zhao army camp. Zhao Jun wanted to go back to the camp for a short rest, but was surprised to see that the camp was full of Han army flags, thinking that the general trend had gone, so he scattered.
In the view of many historians, in the Battle of Jingxing, Han Xinqi used both sides, lined up with the water, pulled out banners and changed banners, flexibly used troops, won by surprise, made a quick decision, and finally won more with less, composing a glorious chapter in the history of ancient Chinese warfare. Further, for the Battle of Jingxing, it is a textbook model of war. Against the background of the disparity in strength between the two sides, Han Xin fought a battle against the water, verifying the theory of the soldier who put himself to death and was born later. The outcome of the Battle of Jingxing was of great significance to the entire course of the Chu-Han War. The victory of the Han army gave it a gradual advantage in the overall strategic situation, that is, it eliminated the strongest opponent in the northern battlefield, thus creating a favorable situation of isolating Xiang Yu.
3. The Battle of Weishui
The Battle of Weishui was a classic battle of turning significance in the Chu and Han dynasties, in which Han Hanxin not only eliminated the only remaining living force of Qi Chu, cut off the right arm of Western Chu, and occupied the land of Sanqi, achieving a favorable situation of detouring back to the rear of Western Chu and strategically encircling it. In the Battle of Weishui, Xiang Yu's general Long despised Han Xin and was anxious for battle merit, so he led his troops to take a position across the Weishui River (Weihe River in Shandong) with Han Xin's army. In the face of the careless dragons, Han Xin sent people to make more than 10,000 bags overnight, filled with sand and stuffed the upper reaches of the Wei River. Leading half of the army to wade into the water to attack longhe's array, longhe sent troops to meet it, Han Xin pretended to be defeated, and long thought that Han Xin was weak, and led his army to cross the river to attack.
At this time, Han Xin ordered his men to dig up the sandbags of the Wei River, and the river rushed to the river, and most of Long Ji's army did not cross it. Han Xin slashed and killed Long He. The combined forces of Qi and Chu on the east bank saw that the west bank army was annihilated and fled in all directions. Han Xin led his army to cross the water in pursuit to Chengyang, and the Chu soldiers were captured. Qi Wang Tian Guang fled and was killed shortly after. In the fourth year of the Han Dynasty (203 BC), all the Qidi were pacified. In the Battle of Weishui, the Chu army had 200,000 people, while Han Xin had only tens of thousands of troops. Therefore, like the Battle of Jingxing, the Battle of Weishui is also a classic battle in which fewer victories are more.
4. The Battle of xiaxia
Finally, the Battle of Xiaxia was a strategic decisive battle fought between the Chu and Han armies in december of the fifth year of Emperor Han Gao's reign (202 BC) at Xiaxia (present-day Lingbi County, Anhui Province, on the north bank of the Tuo River southeast of the river). As we all know, the Battle of Xiaxia was the last big battle between the two major forces of Liu Bang and Xiang Yu. In December of the fifth year of the Han Dynasty (202 BC), Liu Bang, Han Xin, Liu Jia, Peng Yue, Yingbu and other Han armies totaling about 400,000 people and 100,000 Chu troops fought a decisive battle under the command of The Chu Army. The Han army was centered on han xin, with the general Kong Xi on the left wing and Chen He on the right wing, Liu Bang leading his troops to follow, and the general Zhou Bo was broken. In 202 BC, Xiang Yu retreated to Xiaxia (present-day Lingbi County, Anhui) and broke through Wujiang (present-day Wujiang Town, Hexian County, Anhui). Finally, the overlord Bieji killed himself by the Wu River.
After Xiang Yu's death, the Han army annihilated 80,000 Chu troops, and all the Chu people surrendered to Han, except for the Lu people in Xiang Yu's original fiefdom who refused to surrender (king Huai of Chu had made Xiang Yu the Duke of Lu, and later honored Xiang Yu as the King of Lu), and liu Bang showed Xiang Yu's first rank to the Lu people, and the Lu people surrendered. At this point, the Chu-Han War, which lasted for 4 and a half years, ended with Liu Bang's victory. In general, in the contest between the two major forces of Liu Bang and Xiang Yu, that is, in the dispute between Chu and Han, Han Xin played an important role. In particular, the Battle of Jingxing and the Battle of Weishui, twice won more with less, expanded the strength of Liu Bang's side, and severely damaged Xiang Yu's side, laying a good foundation for the siege of Xiang Yu at the Battle of Xiaxia. However, it is a great pity that although he made great achievements for the establishment of the Western Han Dynasty, in 196 BC, Lü Hou conspired with Xiao He to kill Han Xin.