The Xiang Army, many people will think of Zeng Guofan first, but zeng was actually a higher-level role, and the specific formation and training of the Xiang Army was Luo Zenan's responsibility. In the first month of the third year of Xianfeng, Zeng Guofan began to organize regimental training in Changsha, and at this time he mainly did three things, first, to send a report to the Xianfeng Emperor and ask for money; second, to greet the inspector Yamen and train troops in batches (to put it bluntly, to ask Zhang Liangji and Zuo Zongtang for help); third, to step up the formation and training of Xiang Yong. Of course, in addition, it is also in charge of Changsha's public security. This third point is actually mainly dependent on Luo Zenan and his disciples.
Luo Zenan, zi Zhongyue, number Luo Shan. A native of Shuangfeng County, Hunan Province. General of the Xiang Army in the late Qing Dynasty, theoretician, and writer. He was born in the twelfth year of Emperor Jiaqing of the Qing Dynasty, and in the first year of Xianfeng, he was raised by the heirloom Filial Piety Fangzheng. As a teenager, he had great ambitions and liked to study the works of science. After the Taiping Army invaded Hunan, Luo Zenan began to lead apprentices to initiate group training as a national student in the second year of Xianfeng, at this time he was actually just a private school gentleman earlier, but he created a new mode of running a school, the content and methods he talked about were different from other private schools, in addition to teaching people to read and take the exam, he also taught people to meditate and cultivate, practice high jump and boxing sticks. Morning lectures, afternoon drills (is this a military school?). This different kind of teaching method unexpectedly attracted many students, such as Wang Xin, Li Xubin, Li Xuyi, Jiang Yili, Liu Tenghong, Yang Changjun, Kang Jinghui, Zhu Tieqiao, Luo Xinnan, Xie Banghan, etc. Later, some of these students became famous generals of the Xiang Army, and some became scholars and confucians.
At this time, the main purpose of running the regiment was to assist Zhu Sunyi of Xiangxiang Zhi County. Why did Zhu look up to Luo? In the second year of Xianfeng (1852), after the Breakthrough of Yong'an, the Taiping Army went straight north and advanced into Hunan. The situation was critical, Hunan Inspector Luo Bingzhang called on the local organization of regimental exercises, Zhu himself was very attentive, time is urgent, he needs a capable person to preside over the county's regimental training affairs, so he thought of the "filial piety and honest Fangzheng" Luo Zenan, whom he recommended to the imperial court two years ago.
The following year, XianFeng again ordered the officials who were registered to organize regimental exercises on the spot, because he knew that the Green Camp could not be relied on, and the dead horse was used as a living horse doctor, and Zeng Guofan began to receive instructions frequently. Some people will wonder, only once favored by the imperial court? As of September of the second year of Xianfeng, Xianfeng appointed Chen Fuen, a former shangshu of the Ministry of Punishment, to run a regimental training in Jiangxi, and later appointed Zhou Tianjue, who was recuperating from illness under the pretext of recuperating in Anhui, to run a regimental training in Anhui, and appointed Lü Xianji, a waiter of the Ministry of Works, and Li Hongzhang, a hanlin editor, to also conduct a regimental training in Anhui. So far, more than thirty people have been appointed as "regimental training ministers." According to this roll call, when it is Zeng's turn, it is also natural.
Therefore, when Zeng Guofan Xianfeng began to train in Changsha in the first month of the third year, Luo Zenan had already assisted Xiangxiang Zhixian in running it. Zeng had no experience, so naturally these things relied on Luo and his disciples, including Wang Xin, The Li Xubin Brothers, and others to do practical things.
How did you meet Rozenan? At present, there is no conclusive conclusion, some people say that it was introduced by a common friend Liu Rong; some people say that Zeng Guofan's two younger brothers Zeng Guoquan and Zeng Guohua studied in Changsha were in Luona, so they met.
Luo Zenan's troops were the earliest family of the Xiang Army
Why did you rely so heavily on Rozenan? In the first month of the third year of Xianfeng, Zeng Guofan, Guo Songtao, and Zeng Guobao embarked on a journey to Changsha to organize regimental training, and the earliest troops to follow at this time were actually two branches, one was that Zhu Sun of Zhixian County brought six hundred township heroes to ask for his companions (it is not excluded that these six hundred people were also trained by Luo Zenan, because Luo had always assisted Zhu in training Xiang Yong); the other was That the three were Luo Zenan, Liu Rong, and Wang Zhen, with a regiment of more than a thousand people run by the student office. This is the earliest composition of the Xiang Army. The reason why Zeng Guofan, who is good at knowing people, may also be because of Luo Zenan's support commitment.
Luo Zenan was the first to rank at the bottom of the Xiang military system
In the second year of Xianfeng, after Luo Zenan, a scholar of the Xiangxiang regiment, took over the Xiangxiang regiment training, he decided to "imitate the method of the Qi clan (Qi Jiguang), deploy his people, teach the stabbing, be loyal and righteous, and discipline solemnly", and determined a unique battalion system. Each battalion of the army has five hundred men (one battalion officer and four sentry officers outside), ten of whom are in a team, and the team has a commander; eight teams are sentries, and the sentry has a sentry commander, all of which are sentry officers; the four posts are battalions, with battalion officers under their jurisdiction; and Yu is a pro-soldier and directly under the battalion officers. Each team cooperates with long and short weapons such as guns, spears, and small guns. The Admiralty had five hundred men per battalion. He also advocated the barracks culture of "rationally governing the army", "preaching in the direction of the soldiers and returning to the twilight". The troops led by him and his disciples, whether it was the initial Xiangxiang regimental training, or the later Xiangyong and Xiangjun, always adhered to the concept of "rationally governing the army". Many of these ideas were also recognized by Zeng Guofan, who had an evaluation of Luo Zenan: "Delicate apprentices, follow each other's conquests, fight in the direction of the battlefield, and preach at dusk." The door of the theoretician, the next many generals, the ancient rare also. ”
Rozenan is a true master of frontline tactics
Although he was a scholar, Luo Zenan fought fiercely. In 1854, at the Battle of Yuezhou Bridge, he led a thousand troops to fight against the Taiping Army of nearly 10,000 people and saved the bridge; and in the half wall of Tianjia Town, he also broke tens of thousands of enemies with 2,000 people. Hu Linyi once commented: "Every battle must be first, loyal and courageous." Military talents are largely cultivated through reading. Luo Zenan liked to study military books, and often copied the "Zuo Zhuan" to write some articles such as battle and defense. He even wrote a geographical work that was extremely useful for combat deployment, "Outline of Imperial Public Opinion", covering water conservancy, border defense, river disasters and other aspects.
He created the tactic of "braking with statics" based on the words of "Zuo Shi" "three times again". At the beginning of the battle, he did not easily send troops, always waiting for the opportunity, dragging the enemy army to exhaustion, and launched a surprise attack, and the Xiang army won a complete victory with a hundred. This tactic comes from the "quiet" theory he advocates. Someone once asked him how to defeat the enemy, and he said: "After reading the "University", 'Knowing and then being able to be fixed, being still and then being able to be quiet, being quiet and then being able to be at peace, being safe and then being able to worry, worrying and then being able to get' is enough. ”
Rowe may also be a big strategist
Most of the Ping Taiping Heavenly Kingdom's strategy along the Yangtze River is considered to be the Hulin Wing strategy. However, Liu Rong had a different evaluation, Liu was both a good friend of Zeng and an aide to Zeng Guofan, and had close contacts with Luo Zenan, and for Luo Zenan's strategic vision, he also said: "The fundamental strategy of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom of the Later Kingdom of Ping, that is, Luo's proposal." ”
Luo Zenan was the founder of the Chu Army
Most people think that Zuo Zongtang is the founder of Chu Jun, but in fact, it is not. The Chu army originated from the earliest Chu Yong, Xinning Chu Yong, which was Wang Xin's army, and Wang Xin, as mentioned above, was the first person to follow Luo and defect to Zeng. Only later, some changes in the relationship between Zeng and Zuo, Wang Xin finally broke away from the Zeng clan and entered the Hunan patrol and jurisdiction system, and later Left aided Zhejiang, and then later recovered Xinjiang.
In summary, Luo Zenan was the first person to form Xiangyong and led this unit to participate in the formation of the Xiang Army's army battalion, set the relevant systems, formulate tactics and personally practice, and was the earliest and most direct founder of the real Xiang Army, and because of its extensive and far-reaching influence.