According to historical records, in A.D. 1555 (the thirty-fourth year of Jiajing), an embarrassing event that was rare in the history of war and was enough to make the Ming Dynasty feel ashamed occurred in the south of China: an enemy with only 53 people looted Zhejiang, Anhui and Jiangsu Sansheng, and attacked more than 20 counties such as Hangzhou, Yan, Hui, Ning and Taiping, forcing them to stay at the gates of Nanjing. It took this enemy army more than 80 days to flee thousands of miles, killing four or five thousand officers and men, before it was surrounded by the Ming army, which occupied an absolute dominant number.
It turned out that this enemy landed in Shangyu County, Shaoxing, Zhejiang Province on June 7th in the thirty-fourth year of Jiajing (1555). After they landed, they stormed all the way. Attack when you meet a small county, and fight when you meet officers and men. In Biography of Japan in the Ming Dynasty, we can see that it used a lot of verbs to record this experience: it suddenly invaded Huiji County, robbed Hangzhou, suddenly arrived in Shexian County, Huizhou, arrived in Jixi and Jingde, swept Jingxian County, headed for Nanling, and reached Wuhu. Burn the south bank, go to Taiping House, invade Jiangning Town, and take Nanjing directly.
Undoubtedly, the most impressive thing about this enemy is the fighting capacity of their special forces. According to Chart Compilation, those who cover these 53 people are slippery, scheming, fierce and good at fighting, and even thieves! In the battle of Nanling, Chen Cheng and his son in Wuhu County led Wuhu Xiao Jian to fight alone and all died. At the battle of Jiangning Town, Zhu Xiang and Jiang Sheng, commanders of the Ming army, led the troops to meet them, but they refused. Xiang died in battle and fell off his horse, with more than 300 officers and men.
One thing I have to mention is that in the battle against Nanling County, the enemy was surrounded by officers and men from four counties. The officers and men of the Ming army drew bows and shot at them. The thieves knew that they were taking care of each other and they all collapsed. It can be seen from the written record of A Record of Emperor Shizong of Ming Dynasty that the enemy's experts can catch arrows, which not only highlights the weakness of the Ming army, but also reflects the enemy's high martial arts. No wonder the loyalist collapsed after seeing this and retreated together.
Incredibly, after this Japanese army with only 53 people fled to Nanjing, it began a jaw-dropping siege war. According to "Ming History", the thief went straight to Nanjing, and his leader was dressed in red and yellow, and many people attacked Da 'anmen. Our soldiers attacked him with spears from the outer city, and the thief walked back and forth along the Xiao 'anmen Gate and Jiagang Gate of the outer city and found his position. The spy was sent and the thief led the people to the mausoleum.
Imagine that Nanjing is the capital of the Ming Dynasty, with a solid wall and more than 10,000 troops guarding the city, regardless of the surrounding Ming army. It is shocking and funny that only these 53 enemy troops dare to attack the city unscrupulously. To their horror, they were indeed arrogant and regarded the Ming Dynasty as a paper tiger, which made them vulnerable. Ironically, they are really bold to the extreme.
Nanjing was suddenly attacked, and naturally the whole city was in an uproar. Zhang, the minister of Nanjing Ministry of War, hastily ordered the closure of the city gate and ordered the citizens to take their own food and equipment to defend the city. Regarding the details of this battle, the then Confucius scholar at Nanjing Hanlin Academy recorded in his notes that a thief had only 72 ears. Nanjing soldiers engaged with them and killed two commanders. Eight or nine hundred soldiers were killed, and none of these seventy-two people were left behind. Thirteen doors in Nanjing are closed, and the whole city refers to the city. The elders in the class and the divisions guard the gate separately. Although the thieves retreat, they dare not lift martial law. It is no secret that the Beijing garrison is stationed. On weekdays, Zhu Xungui rode from Hao to Chi, and the soldiers paid 80,000 yuan for meals every month. Today is the day. Today, when 72 thugs lock the door, that is, drag out an ignoble existence, why not be humiliated by the court?
There are different records about the number of these bandits, some say 53, some say 60 or 70, and some say 72. Considering the opinions of 53 people, it should be correct that all the battles recorded by Zheng Re in the curtain of Hu Zongxian, the governor of the Anti-Japanese War, came from the military newspaper Tang Bao.
The arrogant enemy was finally wiped out. On August 13, the enemy, pursued by officers and men, crossed the border of Wujin County and arrived at Huishan Temple in Wuxi. The thief ran for more than 180 miles day and night, tired of watching the pavilion, and arrived at Hushu Pass the next day.
At Hushuguan, Governor Cao Bangfu of Susong and Deputy Special Envoy Wang Chonggu led thousands of officers and men to lay a tight encirclement on land and beside Taihu Lake. As a result, 27 people were beheaded by government troops in Wulin Temple, and the rest of the enemy fled from Hengjing Qianma Bridge and hid in private houses. The loyalist used fire to attack, but the enemy couldn't resist and fought our way out. After a long run, they dispersed in Tianhe. The official leader saw the grass in the field move slightly, so he asked his men to shout in unison: The thief is hiding in the field! Terrified, the enemy was captured and killed, and none escaped.
Although the whole army was wiped out in the end, the enemy's record was: it ran wild in three provinces for more than 80 days, killing four or five thousand officers and men, including one censor, one county magistrate, two governors and two Ming Dynasty commanders. Zheng Ruoceng was deeply touched by this: after eight counties and three thousand miles, the material resources and terrain of ordinary people were not clear in his mind; Don't kill people, don't rob money, don't rape women, and your ambition is measurable!
In any case, the Japanese army with only 53 people, with its 3,000-mile rampage, abruptly tore off the fig leaf of the Ming Dynasty and exposed the military shame of Daming to the world. It's really embarrassing and embarrassing.
Why are Japanese pirates so rampant to this extent? What are the deep-seated reasons? It is really necessary to discuss it.
Based on the analysis of hand data, the author thinks that the incompetence of the Ming army is not only caused by the army, but also by the influence of national politics and the loss of people's hearts.
First, the concept of building the army is incorrect. As we know, the military service system implemented in the Ming Dynasty was a hereditary system initiated by Zhu Yuanzhang, and non-commissioned officers were stationed in health centers, setting fields on weekdays and protecting places in wartime. When the Ming Dynasty was founded, the total number of soldiers was as high as1800,000. If such a huge army is not self-sufficient, it can't rely on the people to support it. Therefore, Zhu Yuanzhang adopted the hereditary system of military households to ensure that the army could be amphibious in peacetime and wartime.
Supposedly, this method did play a positive role at that time. Therefore, Zhu Yuanzhang once proudly declared: I raise a million soldiers without spending a grain of rice on the people. But the result is only to feed millions of farmers on collective farms. In the middle and late Ming dynasty, the defenders were no different from ordinary peasants and had no fighting capacity. Undeniably, the combat effectiveness of the army will definitely reduce the training time and weaken the professional intensity because of the reclamation work. Once a war breaks out, even the well-equipped and well-armored Ming army cannot defeat the enemy with backward equipment and strength alone.
Chou Ying, a famous painter in Ming Dynasty, painted a realistic work-Enemy-occupied Map. Because Chou Ying experienced the sufferings of the enemy, he described the image of the enemy vividly: his hair was shaved in a half-moon shape, his upper body was wearing a light coat, his lower body was only wearing crotch cloth, he was barefoot, and he was holding a pike, a bow and a Japanese knife. In sharp visual contrast with the enemy in the near light, the soldiers of the Ming army on the picture scroll have bright armor and neat lineup. Alas, many facts in the middle and late Ming dynasty proved that the seemingly powerful Ming army was no match for the Japanese at all.
For example, during the Jiajing period (1552- 1553), the enemy landed near Zhoushan and Xiangshan, invaded Wenzhou and Taizhou, defeated the government and captured Huangyan County. An enemy surrounded Taicang County, plundered Pinghu, Haiyan and Haining, and killed hundreds of loyalists. 300 Japanese invaders defeated Tang Kekuan, deputy commander of the Ming army, on Chongming Island, and harassed Shanghai and Jiaxing. One enemy attacked Jiaxing, defeated General Don Lew, and the Ming army suffered more than a thousand casualties. On the contrary, it looted Haining, Yangzhou and Taizhou and killed countless loyal ministers. ...
Second, the corruption of the national political system. By the middle of the Ming Dynasty, with the entry of some incompetent and immoral kings into the DPRK, the official atmosphere became increasingly corrupt, and with the influence of the social atmosphere of valuing literature over martial arts, the military was no exception. If the army is a huge machine, it is riddled with holes and doesn't work well.
For example, it is not uncommon for generals to deduct military salaries, and soldiers who are overwhelmed are everywhere, which makes it common for military households to flee in large numbers. By the time of Jiajing, the escape rate of military households had been surprisingly high, and a large number of health clinics existed in name only, and some health clinics actually had only a few people left. Even the health centers in Liaodong, Shandong, Zhejiang, Fujian and Guangdong, which are on the coastal front line, have only 30% troops left. What's more, because of the long-term peace, the quality of generals and soldiers is surprisingly poor. Some hereditary generals can't even ride a horse, and they can't even figure out the flag. They usually perform their duties by drinking and bragging with their colleagues, while soldiers are even less effective. They are busy with land reclamation and are willing to get paid, but they can't fight.
Zhang Huan, a front-line official, once visited the emperor and described the front-line officers and soldiers sadly: going into battle is like a child's play, there will be no orders and the soldiers will have no discipline. Often the rockets are finished far away from the enemy, and countless people run away and kill thousands of miles. Isn't this situation rooted in investors?
Third, the sea ban policy has lost popular support. Originally, the Ming Dynasty formulated a strict sea ban policy in the hope of playing a decisive role in the consolidation of coastal defense. However, because the direct target of the sea ban policy is the broad masses of subjects rather than the anti-Ming forces at sea, it can not only be an effective means of coastal defense, but even intensify some contradictions in coastal areas.
When people in coastal areas live by the sea, or engage in fishery production or maritime trade, which becomes their main source of life, the promulgation and implementation of the policy of prohibiting people from going to the sea is obviously contrary to public opinion. This practice is not only closed-door and arrogant, but also blocks the normal way of making a living for people in coastal areas. How can we not lose people's hearts?
Therefore, when pirates who came to sea or even land appeared, they were in the right place at the right time, like a duck to water. On the contrary, the loyal minister who represents the teacher of justice is unpopular and struggling. What causes people to turn a blind eye to the enemy, and some even support the enemy? After a little analysis, it is not difficult to see that on the surface, it seems that the people's consciousness and vigilance are not high, and the people's national consciousness is not strong, but in essence its root lies in the Ming Dynasty itself.
It is a truth that those who lose people's hearts lose the world, which has been proved by history countless times throughout the ages. The fifty-three Japanese attacks on Nanjing that we are discussing today are just another interpretation of this truth.
This historical story has warned us too much behind the scenes. How to build our invincible people's army and our great cause of strengthening the country and enriching the people? How to benefit the people and unite people? Are important events worthy of deep thought and reflection.