The battle of Kunyang was a strategic decisive battle between the two armies of the new Han Dynasty in the Central Plains at the end of the new dynasty. The main battlefield of this war was in the front line of Kunyang (now ye County, Henan Province), so it was called the battle of Kunyang. The battle of Kunyang is one of the famous battle cases in Chinese history. It determines the fate of the two armies of the new Han Dynasty and the national destiny of the Central Plains Dynasty for hundreds of years in the future. It is a far-reaching strategic decisive battle in Chinese history. In the battle of Kunyang, Liu Xiu, a partial general, was famous all over the world. The battle of Kunyang was not only the key battle for Liu Xiu to defeat Wang Mang, but also laid the foundation for Liu Xiu to seize the world in the future. Gu Yanwu, a famous thinker in the Ming Dynasty, once praised Liu Xiu in the battle of Kunyang: “destroy the great enemy in the first war, and make him Yuping.”.
brief introduction
The battle of Kunyang was a battle that took place in the fourth year of the new emperor of China and the first year of the reform. Liu Xuanjun, with the green forest army as the main body, destroyed more than 400000 main forces of Wang Mang in the new dynasty in Kunyang county (now ye County, Henan Province). The battle of Kunyang was one of the battles in the history of ancient war in China, in which few won more.
After Liu Xuan became emperor, the green forest Army (Han Army) led by Liu Yan continued to besiege Wancheng, and sent Wang Feng, Wang Chang, Liu Xiu and other soldiers to the north, successively conquering Kunyang (now ye County, Henan Province), Dingling (now the northeast of Wuyang, Henan Province), Kan county (now the south of Kan City, Henan Province) and other places, so as to ensure that the main force conquered Wancheng.
With the continuous development and expansion of the green forest Army (Han Army), Wang Mang finally realized that the green forest Army (Han Army) posed the greatest threat to Guanzhong, so he shifted the focus of suppression from the red eyebrow army in the east to the green forest army. In March of the fourth year of the emperor of the earth (the first year of the reign of the emperor of the earth. A.D. 23), Wang Mang sent Da Sikong Wang Yi and Da situ Wang Xun to recruit 420000 soldiers from all counties, known as millions, to rescue Wancheng from Luoyang south in an attempt to destroy the green forest Army (Han Army) at one stroke.
Soldiers from all counties were ordered to concentrate on Luoyang, with flags and supplies for thousands of miles. Wang Yi and Wang Xun led 100000 troops, and after meeting Yan you and Chen Maojun in Yingchuan, they approached Kunyang.
At this time, the green forest Army (Han Army) stationed in Kunyang was only 89000. In the face of a strong enemy, the generals of the green forest Army (Han Army) had a fierce dispute over whether to abandon the city or stick to the enemy. Liu Xiu, proceeding from the overall situation, firmly advocated sticking to Kunyang to ensure that the main force conquered Wancheng. Just when the discussion was pending, the mang army was approaching the north of Kunyang city. The generals of the green forest Army (Han Army) finally agreed with Liu Xiu’s opinion and decided that Wang Feng and Wang Chang would stick to Kunyang and send 13 people, including Li Yi, Zong Qiao and Liu Xiu, to ride in the night to break through the siege and mobilize reinforcements to Jiaxian county and Dingling.
Mang general Yan you quite knew how to use troops. According to the strategic situation at that time, he proposed that although Kunyang was small, the city was hard to attack. The army should bypass the city and attack the main force of Wancheng green forest Army (Han Army) first. Once the main force of the green forest Army (Han Army) is broken, Kunyang will break without fighting. But the commander Wang Yi didn’t know the art of war. Relying on the soldiers, he wanted to wash Kunyang with blood and save Wancheng again. He declared that: millions of divisions have been destroyed, and now he slaughtered the city, marching with blood, singing before and dancing after, regardless of unhappiness ?. There are more than 100 mang army battalions, which surround Kunyang for dozens of floors. Banners cover the fields. The sound of Zhenggu is heard dozens of miles away. They attack day and night and launch strong attacks again and again. The green forest Army (Han Army) fought very hard. The General Wang Feng once wavered and begged to surrender to Wang Yi, but Wang Yi thought that the conquest of Kunyang was just around the corner and did not allow Wang Feng to surrender. It made the garrison realize that only by fighting hard and sticking to it, can there be a way to survive waiting for the reinforcements, so it fought with the reckless army more tenaciously. At the most tense time, the residents of the city also boarded the city to defend, and fought back countless crazy attacks of the mang army.
Seeing that Kunyang had been unable to attack for a long time, Yan you suggested: open up, remove a corner of the siege, let the defenders flee, spread the news of the defeat, and make the Wancheng green forest Army (Han Army) afraid. But Wang Yi still refused to adopt it. Relying on the large number of troops, he must attack Kunyang to show his military power. However, he did not seriously command the war, put aside the siege, and was busy extorting bribes from nearby counties all day.
During the fierce battle in Kunyang, Li Yi, Zong Qiao, Liu Xiu and others urgently mobilized all kinds of reinforcements in Dingling and Xi counties, but some generals were greedy for their own property and wanted to divide troops on the spot to stay behind, unwilling to rescue Kunyang. Liu Xiu reminded them: if we can defeat the enemy, our treasures will be more than ten thousand times greater in the future; If you are defeated by the enemy, you can’t keep your head, and you can’t talk about gold and silver. So all reinforcements followed Li Yi and Liu Xiu to Kunyang.
In June of the first year of the reform (AD 23), Li Yi and Liu Xiu led more than 10000 reinforcements back to Kunyang. Liu Xiu led more than 1000 elite infantry and cavalry as forwards, and Li Yi led the main force behind, forming a formation four or five miles away from the mang army.
Wang Yi and Wang Xun found that there were few reinforcements from the green forest Army (Han Army), so they didn’t pay attention to Liu Xiu at all, and only sent thousands of people to camp to fight. Liu Xiu immediately launched a fierce attack on the mang army, killing dozens of people, boosting morale, and then launched a continuous attack on the mang army, annihilating nearly a thousand enemies, defeating the mang army, and the morale of the green forest Army (Han Army) was greatly boosted.
At this time, under the long-term siege of the green forest Army (Han Army), Wancheng had no food and grass inside and no reinforcements outside. The garrison general cenpeng (~ ad 35) was finally forced to surrender. But the news has not yet reached Kunyang. In order to further boost morale and shake the morale of the mang army, Liu Xiu pretended that Wancheng had been broken and that the main force of the green forest Army (Han Army) would come to Kunyang. When the news reached the city of Kunyang, the garrison immediately rose in morale, became more determined to defend the city, and was ready to go out of the city to annihilate the enemy at any time. When mang Jun got the news, everyone was depressed and demoralized. The green forest Army (Han Army) has occupied an advantage in momentum.
After winning the first battle, Liu Xiu decided to attack the backbone of the mang army, making it lose its command function, causing chaos in the mang army, and then took the opportunity to break through the enemy and lift the siege of Kunyang. He also selected 3000 warriors, detoured to the west of the city, crossed the Kunming River, and directly attacked the backbone of the reckless army. At this time, Wang Yi and Wang Xun still disagreed. When they saw Liu Xiu attacking themselves, they led more than 10000 people to fight. In order to prevent chaos in the battalions, they ordered all armies not to go to war without authorization. Liu Xiu commanded 3000 warriors to storm Wang Yi and Wang Xun’s army. Most of the soldiers of the mang army were coerced. They had no fighting spirit and could not withstand the fierce attack of Liu Xiujun. They quickly defeated and fled. The rest of the troops did not dare to act rashly because they did not get the order to attack. Liu Xiujun defeated the backbone of Wang Yi and Wang Xun and killed Wang Xun. At this time, the green forest Army (Han Army) in Kunyang city saw that the formation of the mang army had been in disorder, and immediately opened the city to kill, and attacked with the reinforcements inside and outside, and the sound of killing was shocking for a time. Mang army lost its commander, and all the armies were at a loss. Soon, the whole army collapsed and fled in all directions. At this time, there was another storm, the tiles lifted and the stones rolled, the green forest Army (Han Army) chased and chased, the reckless army trampled on each other, and the corpses were everywhere. Countless soldiers drowned in the water (now Shahe in Ye County, Henan Province), and the water did not flow.
Wang Yi, Yan you, and Chen Mao led only a few remaining troops to flee back to Luoyang. The green forest Army (Han Army) seized a large amount of supplies and equipment from the mang army, and all kinds of spoils were piled up. The green forest Army (Han Army) has been moving for more than a month.
In the battle of Kunyang, the green forest Army (Han Army) destroyed Wang Mang’s main force, shook the Xinmang court up and down, and made its rule close to collapse. This battle is a famous battle in the ancient military history of our country, in which the few win the many and the weak win the strong. Liu Xiu made great contributions to the victory of the green forest Army (Han Army).
After the Kunyang defense war, the contradictions among the generals of the green forest Army (Han Army) intensified. With the support of peasant generals Li Yi, Zhu tuna and others, Liu Xuan executed Liu Yan and his ministry, Liu Ji, who posed the greatest threat to him. Liu Xiu did nothing on the surface, but secretly spied on the opportunity, accumulated strength, and opened the way for the creation of the Eastern Han Dynasty in the future.
[war background]
Wang Mang faced the attack of the northern red eyebrow and the southern green forest uprising groups, and became increasingly anxious. The northern red eyebrow and the southern green forest army were the two most powerful uprising forces at that time. At the beginning, Wang Mang thought that the red eyebrow army was more powerful, and the rebel army was almost all over the northern states and counties. He felt that the situation was more serious, so the new mang Dynasty focused on encircling and suppressing the red eyebrow army in the north, and sent more than 100000 elite soldiers commanded by Grand Master Wang Kuang and general AI Zhang to fight against the red eyebrow army. The county army and the temporarily recruited troops assembled by Nayan general Yan you and zhizong General Chen Mao were used to deal with the southern green forest uprising army. Yan you and Chen Mao commanded these troops to fight, and Wang Mang did not easily grant them military talisman. Each marching battle must be reported in advance, or he will be sentenced to the crime of “making soldiers”.
When the green forest army annihilated Zhen Fu and Liang Qiu cijun, defeated Yan you and Chen Mao at the foot of Nanyang City, and then Liu Xuan became emperor, publicly proposed to restore the Han Dynasty and establish the reform regime, Wang Mang realized that the green forest uprising army in the South had greater pressure on the Xinmang regime, so he decided to shift the focus of his strategy, and on the one hand, he transferred the main force attacking Chimei to the south to fight; On the one hand, the troops of all counties were urgently mobilized to prepare for the complete elimination of the green forest Han army. In order to form a powerful force to fight against the Han Army, Wang Mang specially appointed the great Sikong Wangyi and situ Wangxun as the commander, recruited the so-called people who were proficient in 63 military techniques at that time, served as officers similar to staff officers in the army, and appointed the commander Ju Wuba as a base captain, who was specially responsible for building a camp, trapping tigers, leopards, rhinoceroses, elephants and other ferocious beasts into the army, so as to release them during the battle and shock the enemy. The prefectures and counties selected their own elite soldiers, led by the prefectures and the shepherds themselves, and concentrated near Luoyang within a time limit. The number of troops from all over Luoyang reached more than 420000, known as a million troops. After these troops were concentrated, they began to advance towards Yingchuan. The troops of Yan you and Chen Mao met again in Yingchuan, and then attacked in the direction of Kunyang. The army stretches for thousands of miles, and there is an endless stream of food and supplies. In January of the third year of the emperor of the earth (A.D. 22), after the green forest uprising army wiped out Zhen Fu and Liang Qiu’s troops, it defeated the famous mang army generals Yan you and Chen Mao under Nanyang city. Yan you and Chen Mao immediately led their troops back to Yingchuan. In March of the same year, Han General Wang Feng and Taichang Pian General Liu Xiu attacked Kunyang, Dingling, Yancheng and other places, and the progress was smooth. The activities of the troops commanded by Wang Chang in Runan and other areas have also been successful. The Han Army saw the troops of the mang army coming to Kunyang area, so Wang Feng and Wang Chang led nearly 10000 troops to occupy Kunyang city. At this time, the army commanded by Liu Yan was besieging the Xinmang army guarding the city in Wancheng, and the victory or defeat was not known. However, Wancheng was full of soldiers, and there was no fighting spirit inside and no rescue outside. The situation was extremely unfavorable to the Xinmang army.
Although the commander of the Han army was Wang Feng, Liu Xiu became an important decision-maker in the Kunyang battle because Wang Feng and others lacked the firmness to fight in the face of the overwhelming Xinmang army.
[operation planning]
In the fourth year of the new mang Emperor (AD 23), in May of the first year of Liu Xuan’s reform, after the army under the command of Wang Yi and Wang Xun joined Yan you and Chen Mao, they moved from Yingchuan to Kunyang, and more than 100000 troops arrived in Kunyang in 2 or 3 days. Commander Wang Yi immediately ordered the siege of Kunyang. According to the lessons of past defeats, general Yan you of Nayan believed that the troops should not be used in Kunyang, a small city that is both solid and does not affect the overall situation. The army should go straight to Wancheng and break through the Han Army besieging Wancheng, then Kunyang will be defeated by itself. Wang Yi couldn’t listen to Yan you’s suggestion. He had neither strategic vision nor deep thinking, but said proudly: “when I besieged Zhai Yi before, I was criticized for not being able to capture him. Now I command a million troops, and when they encounter the enemy city, they bypass it and cannot attack it. How can this show our prestige! We should kill the soldiers and civilians in this city first, and the whole army marches forward with their blood, isn’t it more enjoyable!” So Wang Yi still insisted on besieging Kunyang with 100000 troops. Wang Feng, Wang Chang and others saw that the Xinmang army gradually gathered in Kunyang, and the situation was very serious. After Liu Xiu led 3000 cavalry troops to meet the Xinmang army in the northwest of Yingchuan, they also led troops back to Kunyang. With other sporadic troops of the Han Army retreating into Kunyang, there were about 10000 defenders in Kunyang. Wang Feng and others, in view of the great disparity between the enemy and ourselves, were not confident in sticking to Kunyang, and some officers and soldiers retreating into Kunyang city were also panicked, worried about their wives and children, They want to disperse back and save their own areas.
Seeing this, Liu Xiu said to everyone: “At present, our army is short of food, and there are powerful enemies outside the city. If we can concentrate on fighting the enemy, there is still the possibility of victory; if we disperse and go back, we will not be able to survive. Moreover, Liu Yan and others have not succeeded in attacking Wancheng, and they are unable to save us. Once Kunyang is lost, within a day, all departments will be destroyed by the enemy one by one. Now if we do not work together, live or die together, and make contributions together, we will be greedy for life and fear death, Can you just keep your wife’s belongings? ” Hearing Liu Xiu’s words, the generals were furious and said, “how dare you teach us!” Liu Xiu stood up with a smile. Just then, the Scout came back and reported, “Wang Xun’s army is about to reach the north of the city. The army stretches for hundreds of miles and there is no guard.” Wang Feng and others have always despised Liu Xiu. Seeing the urgency of the current situation, they discussed and decided to ask Liu Xiu to plan a plan to defeat the enemy. At this time, after analyzing the situation, Liu Xiu made a decision. Wang Feng and General Wang Chang, a senior general of Tingwei, led people to stick to Kunyang city. That night, he rode with Zong Qiao, Li Yi and other 13 people, and went out of the South Gate of Kunyang city to mobilize troops to prepare for the internal and external attack against the Xinmang army.
[war process]
early stage
When Xinmang army entered Kunyang, it began to siege Kunyang city according to the order of commander Wang Yi and Wang Xun. In order to show its combat power, the mang army surrounded Kunyang for more than 10 floors and set up more than 100 military barracks. Military flags were everywhere, and the sound of gongs and drums could be heard dozens of miles away. The reckless army dug tunnels, attacked the city with rush cars and boxcars, and concentrated all the crossbows to shoot wildly into the city, and the arrows poured out like rain. The soldiers and civilians in the city can’t go out for action. They even have to head over the door to draw water to prevent being hit by an arrow. When the battle was the hardest, Wang Feng and others wavered again and wanted to surrender to the reckless army. However, Wang Yi and Wang Xun believed that the small town of Kunyang was just around the corner, and they were not allowed to surrender. Otherwise, they would not be considered to have made contributions. Therefore, they were determined to level Kunyang. At this time, Yan you saw that it was difficult for Kunyang to attack in a short time, so he suggested Wang Yi to say, “the art of war says that the besieged city should leave one side. We should let the enemy of Kunyang escape some, so that they can spread the news of failure to shock the enemy of Wancheng.” However, Wang Yi and others relied on their soldiers to have enough food and occupy an absolute dominant position. They once again rejected Yan you’s suggestion and continued to step up the hard attack on Kunyang, so that hundreds of thousands of troops could be stationed under the strong city.
metaphase
The rebel army held on to Kunyang with less than 10000 troops. Under the fierce attack of the enemy of absolute superiority, Wang Feng and others wavered, and expressed their surrender to the mang army, which was rejected by the mang army. This taught the soldiers of the rebel army from the opposite side that the real purpose of the enemy was to destroy them, and there was no way out for them to surrender. The battle of Kunyang was a battle of life and death. Only by uniting and resolutely fighting to the death with the enemy, Only in this way can we hope to win and survive. Therefore, the Han Army and the people in the city fought side by side, fighting back the strong attacks of the Xinmang army time and time again, and the overwhelming Xinmang army had nothing to do. Although the city was attacked repeatedly, Kunyang city still stood still. Wang Yi’s idea of “slaughtering the city, marching in blood, singing before and dancing after, and taking care of unhappiness and evil” is difficult to realize. Before Kunyang was besieged, 13 people, including Li Yi and Liu Xiu, who took the opportunity to go out of the city to mobilize soldiers, arrived at Dingling, Yicheng and other places to mobilize troops from all over the country. Some generals were greedy for their belongings and wanted to divide troops on the spot to stay behind, unwilling to go to Kunyang for reinforcements. Liu Xiu said to them, “if we can defeat the enemy today, our treasures and possessions will be more than ten thousand times more than they are now, and our major events can also be successful; if we are defeated by the enemy and our heads can’t be protected, what about gold and silver?” So the soldiers of all battalions followed Liu Xiu, Li Yi and others to move towards Kunyang area.
The Kunyang offensive and defensive war between the two armies of the new Han Dynasty was in a stalemate. At the end of May, Wancheng mang army had surrendered to the Han army. On the first day of June, the Han troops led by Li Yi and Liu Xiu from Dingling, Yicheng and other places arrived in Kunyang area. In order to inspire everyone’s fighting spirit, Liu Xiu led more than 1000 infantry and cavalry men as forwards, and Li Yi led the main force to follow up. When Liu Xiujun approached the four or five miles of the mang army, he immediately put into formation and prepared to attack. Wang Yi and Wang Xun also sent thousands of soldiers to fight. Liu Xiu personally led his troops to rush to kill dozens of people. The generals who followed him said happily, “General Liu usually sees a small group of enemies and is very afraid. Today he sees the great enemy, but he is very brave. It’s really amazing. Please always lead us in the front to fight, and we will work together to break the enemy”! Liu Xiu then led the soldiers to attack the mang army again. The mang army was defeated, and Liu Xiu army killed nearly a thousand people of the mang army. Liu Xiu led his troops to win several battles in a row, which greatly inspired the fighting spirit of the Han Army and reduced the spirit of Wang Yi and Wang Xun. In order to further disrupt the fighting morale of the mang army and inspire the fighting spirit of the Han Army and people in Kunyang City, Liu Xiu and others deliberately exaggerated the victory of the Wancheng Han army. He shot a secret letter that said that the Wancheng Han Army had won, “Wan XiaBing arrived” into Kunyang City, and at the same time it fell into the hands of the mang army, causing the panic of Wang Yi and Wang Xun, the commander of the mang army. The soldiers of the mang army saw that a small Kunyang, under the pressure of soldiers, had been fighting hard for more than a month, but they could not break through. If coupled with the 100000 Han troops in Wancheng, they would be even more unable to deal with it.
later stage
Therefore, the news of Wancheng mang army’s failure greatly affected the fighting will of the mang army. Then Liu Xiu led a 3000 person death squadron to attack the enemy’s backbone from the west of the city. Wang Yi and Wang Xun despised Liu Xiu and thought it was easy to defeat Liu Xiu. Therefore, they only led more than 10000 people to patrol the positions. Command all battalions to strictly control their troops, and do not send troops without orders. Wang Yi and Wang Xun fought against Liu Xiu, but they were not opponents of Liu’s death squads. The formation of the mang army was soon broken by Liu Xiujun, and the soldiers fled in chaos. At this time, the rest of the troops of the mang army did not dare to act rashly, so no one took the initiative to support the operations of Wang Yi and Wang Xun. Liu Xiu led the Han Army, fought bravely, defeated Wang Yi and Wang Xun’s troops and killed Wang Xun. The backbone of Wangyi was destroyed. After Wang Xun was killed, the troops of mang army lost their command center and immediately became chaotic. At this time, the Han Army in Kunyang city saw that the death squads led by Liu Xiu and others had won, and also shouted the sound of rushing out of the city gate, attacking the reckless army inside and outside. The sound of killing was earth shaking, and the 420000 army in Wangyi quickly collapsed. Wang Mang’s army was originally a poor people forcibly recruited, and had long hated Wang Mang’s regime. After internal and external attacks by the rebel army, it naturally abandoned its ranks and fled. The fleeing soldiers pushed each other, “those who walked jumped and trampled each other, and the bodies were buried for more than a hundred miles”. It happened that there was a strong wind and thunderstorm again. The roof tiles were blown away by the wind, and the rain poured down and the water rose violently. The tigers and leopards in Wang Yijun’s team were trembling. Soldiers mang fell into the water and drowned more than 10000 people, and pangchuan was almost blocked by the bodies. Wang Yi, Yan you, Chen Mao and others only took a few Chang’an elite riders and crossed the river on dead bodies to escape. The Han Army seized all the military supplies of the mang army, and all kinds of things piled up. It has been moving for more than a month, but it has not finished. Wang Yi led more than a thousand disabled soldiers to flee to Luoyang. When Wang Mang learned the news of the disastrous defeat of Kunyang, he was extremely shocked, and the whole court was also frightened.
[war analysis]
lesson
The Kunyang strategic decisive battle, which decided the fate of the Xinmang regime and the Han Dynasty, ended in the complete victory of the Han Army and the disastrous defeat of the Xinmang army. So far, the basic armed forces that the Xinmang Dynasty relied on to resist the peasant uprising army’s extension of its reactionary rule collapsed. All the people hate the complete destruction of Wang Mang’s regime, which is bone deep. It is just around the corner. Why the Xinmang army was defeated by more than 10000 people of the Han army with 420000 people, and the mang army was almost completely destroyed, the lesson of which is very thought-provoking.
The choice of the battlefield for the decisive battle of the reckless army was inappropriate
Both sides of a strategic decisive battle often go all out, that is, to accomplish their work in one battle, so they usually compete at a critical moment and in a critical area. However, Kunyang, a small city, was chosen for this decisive battle. Although it has certain strategic value, from the perspective of the overall strategic situation, it is neither an important central city overlooking the control side, nor a dangerous pass blocking the capital, but only a small city on the edge of the triangle axis of Chang’an, the capital, Luoyang, a strategic town, and Wancheng. Occupying Kunyang will not pose a threat to the capital, and it will be difficult to resist the North-South attack of Luoyang and Wancheng. If the mang army keeps Wancheng, even if the Han Army occupies Kunyang, it will be difficult to maintain it for a long time. Therefore, in such a meaningless area, in the face of less than 10000 opponents, investing 420000 troops to fight a decisive battle cannot but be regarded as meaningless blind action.
The reckless army misused the arrogant and incompetent commander
The strategic decisive battle maintains the destiny of the country and the survival of the rule. The battlefield commander plays an extremely critical role in the outcome of the decisive battle. The new mang Dynasty chose the core general to command 420000 troops, not to choose talents and appoint talents, but to choose officials according to their height, and to use only their relatives. Wang Yi and Wang Xun, the commanders of the mang army, can be described as mediocre and arrogant people rarely seen in the history of war since the Western Han Dynasty. Before the Kunyang war, general Yan you suggested not to attack Kunyang and go straight to Wancheng. Once the siege was liberated, Kunyang would not attack itself. This was a good plan that was extremely beneficial to the overall strategic situation of mang army, but it was rejected by Wang Yi. When the small town of Kunyang could not be attacked for a long time, it also rejected Yan you’s important suggestion that “encircling the division will be forbidden”. As a result, more than 400000 troops attacked the fortified city and watched Wancheng fall. Strategically, they lost valuable opportunities, making the army that had taken the initiative to attack the absolute advantage completely useless. If Wang Yi can adopt any of the suggestions put forward by Yan you, or ignore Kunyang City, or surround three and lack one, or accept the surrender of Kunyang Han Army, the outcome of the battle between Kunyang and Wancheng may be another situation. Of course, this does not mean that the new mang regime, which is on the brink of doom, will come back from the dead, but if the Han Army does not wipe out the main force of the mang army so quickly, it will undoubtedly extend the time to eliminate the Wang Mang regime.
The reckless army suffered a great loss in the strategic campaign of belittling the enemy
Wang Yi, the commander of mang army, relied on the strong advantage of his 400000 strong army and did not pay attention to the Han Army at all. When he commanded the army to reach the foot of Kunyang City, he ordered to attack the city without making any specific operational deployment, and said blindly and arrogantly, “kill Kunyang City, advance in blood, sing before.”
After the dance “, to show their authority. When Liu Xiu and Li Yi sent reinforcements, there were at best only a few thousand people, which was a good opportunity for the reckless army to use its own advantages to destroy the enemy, but Wang Yi and others, out of their arrogance and contempt for Liu Xiu, only sent 10000 people to fight Liu Xiu
3000 death squads, and put their thousands of troops in a useless place. As a result, Liu Xiujun broke down the command center of mang army at one fell swoop, and the whole army was defeated.
The failure of the mang army also lies in its major strategic actions related to life and death. It has neither strategic overall combat vision nor specific combat planning. It allows the natural development of the war situation, and takes the subjective desire of taking it for granted as the king of the facts of victory
The Yi army acted passively and blindly in accordance with the will of the Han Army, which made it difficult for the whole army to understand why it came and what purpose it was fighting for, and of course, it was impossible to play a proactive fighting spirit. This is related to the Han Army’s clear strategic objectives and careful operational planning, as well as
Compared with the active and tenacious fighting spirit, there is a world of difference. The decisive battle of Kunyang vividly proved that there is only an advantageous army without specific battle planning. Relying on blind action alone, no matter how many troops are, they are just vulnerable mobs, and there is no reason not to be defeated.
[related persons]
usurper who founded the Xin dynasty
Wang Mang (45-23 years ago, October 6), the founder of the new dynasty. He reigned from 8 to 23 A.D. The height is about 1.62 meters. Wang Mang, with the word Ju Jun, was born in Yuancheng, Weijun (east of Daming County, Hebei Province). Nephew of Wang Zhengjun, Queen of the Yuan emperor of the Han Dynasty. When he was young, his father Wang man died, and soon his brother also died
Death. Wang Mang is filial to his mother and respects his sister-in-law. He lives a frugal life, reads poetry and books, and makes friends with sages. He is well-known. Wang Mang is extremely deferential to his uncle Wang Feng, who is in the position of big Sima. On her death, Wang Feng asked Wang Zhengjun to take care of Wang Mang. In the first 22 years of the reign of emperor Cheng of the Han Dynasty, Wang Mang first served as a servant of the yellow gate, and later was promoted to Shesheng school
Lieutenant. Wang Mang was polite, honest and frugal. He often shared his salary with the doormen and the poor, and even sold his carriage to help the poor. He was deeply loved by everyone. His uncle Wang Shang wrote that he would give part of his fief to Wang Mang. He followed the system of the Zhou Dynasty to implement the new deal. The currency system has been changed repeatedly,
Changing the official system and official name, depriving Liu’s aristocrats of their rights, triggered strong dissatisfaction. Because he despised the border vassal, he cut the king into a vassal, and constantly provoked wars against the Huns and the northeast and southwest nationalities. The taxes and corvee are heavy, and the punishment and administration are harsh. In 2011, the Yellow river changed its course and victims were everywhere. Tianfeng four years
(17 years) farmers all over the country rebelled, forming a red eyebrow and green forest uprising. In the fourth year of the Emperor (AD 23), the green forest army invaded Chang’an. In the chaos, he was killed by the merchant Du Wu, and the new dynasty perished. He was the emperor whose tongue was cut off.
Emperor Guangwu of Han Dynasty
Emperor Guangwu of Han (6 BC ~ 57 AD) was the founding emperor of the Eastern Han Dynasty in China. Liu Xiu, named Wenshu, was born in Caiyang, Nanyang (now the southwest of Zaoyang, Hubei). The ninth grandson of Liu Bang, Emperor Gaozu of the Han Dynasty, is a direct descendant of Liu Fa, king of Changsha. His father once served as Nantong order
? He reigned from 25 to 57 A.D. After the red eyebrow and green forest uprisings broke out, in the third year of the Emperor (A.D. 22), Liu Xiu and his brother Liu Yan, in order to restore the rule of the Liu surname, set up an army in Chung Ling (now the south of Zaoyang, Hubei Province) to form a Chung Ling army. In the fourth year of the emperor, Liu Xiu made great contributions in the battle of Kunyang. Liu Xiujian
After the establishment of the Eastern Han Dynasty, it was first committed to rectifying the administration of officials and strengthening the centralization of authoritarianism. Although he made meritorious officials Hou and granted them generous titles, he prohibited them from interfering in political affairs. The power of princes and relatives was also restricted in many ways. In the administrative system, Liu Xiu further suppressed seizing
Three public functions and powers, so that the country’s government affairs are handled by the Shangshu desk, and finally dominated by the emperor; On the other hand, the supervisory system was strengthened to improve the authority and status of the assassins, such as Zhongcheng, the governor of the imperial court, the captain of Sili, and the assassin of the Ministry. It also consolidated more than 400 counties across the country and reduced the official posts to 1/10 of the province. Same as this
At that time, Liu Xiu also took many measures to stabilize people’s livelihood and restore the broken social economy. In the sixth year of Jianwu period, the imperial edict was issued to restore the old system of 30 taxes and 1 tax. The burden of feudal rent and corvee in the early Eastern Han Dynasty was less than that in the late Western Han Dynasty and during the war. He issued an imperial edict nine times to release the slaves, or mention
The high legal status of slaves made a large number of slaves exempt from being common people, made refugees return to the countryside and promoted production. The period of his rule was called Zhongxing in history.
In the 15th year of Jianwu, Liu Xiu ordered the country to check the land household registration in response to the serious phenomenon of “exceeding the system of farmland and houses” and concealing the land household registration at that time. The county guards and orders did not dare to touch the noble bureaucrats and aristocratic families. Instead, in the process of inventory, “they were mostly cunning and not pragmatic”, “you Rao HaoYou”
, invading the weak “. As a result, farmers all over the country were provoked to revolt, and the powerful surnames of counties and countries also took the opportunity to make trouble. In this regard, Liu Xiu took different countermeasures. The resistance struggle against the peasants was divided and suppressed, and for the chief soldier surnamed Da, after the execution of a dozen sheriffs who were untrue about Dutian
That is, he ordered to stop farming and make concessions to the powerful landlords. At the end of his reign, Emperor Guangwu also “announced prophecy in the world”, attempting to use the mixture of Confucianism and divination theology as an ideological weapon to strengthen the control of people’s thoughts. However, Liu Xiu is still a bright King
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[significance of war]
The battle of Kunyang was the decisive battle in the green forest and red eyebrow uprising. It gathered and annihilated the main force of the army on which Wang Mang relied to maintain his rule, creating favorable conditions for the rebel army to successfully march into Luoyang and Chang’an, and finally overthrow the rule of Xin mang.
In the battle of Kunyang, the strength of Wang Mang’s army was 420000, while the total strength of the Protestant army guarding the city and foreign aid was only 20000. However, it is by no means an accident that the rebel army was able to achieve a brilliant victory in completely annihilating the enemy under such a wide gap in the military strength. resolution
Its gist is about this: the political resistance to Wang Mang’s tyrannical rule conforms to the wishes and requirements of the general public, so it has the support and support of the people, which is the deep political root of the victory of the rebel army in the Kunyang war. Militarily, the rebel army held fast to Kunyang to contain the enemy
The correct practice of mobilizing troops and actively counterattack seriously delayed the action of Wang Yijun, consumed its strength, and firmly grasped the initiative of battlefield attack and defense. In the specific application of operational guidance, the insurgents dare to fight, have high morale, and are good at taking advantage of the weaknesses of the enemy
Attack and military attack, destroy the enemy’s fighting will, and turn a small victory into a big victory; And be able to grasp the warplanes, choose the enemy headquarters as the primary attack target, and smash it at one stroke, making the enemy in a headless situation, and finally it is difficult to escape the fate of failure
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[relevant records]
The camp head fell, and the soldiers and generals under it were defeated
“Zizhi Tongjian” records that during the campaign, “there will be thunder, wind, roof tiles flying, rain pouring, making rivers overflowing, tigers and leopards fighting, soldiers fighting to drown, tens of thousands of dead, water is not flowing”. This watch will play an important role in the victory of the defeated Han Army in the new dynasty tomorrow. However, the climate is right
The two armies should be the same, but why the results are vastly different. Both “dongguanhan Ji” and “post Han Shu” recorded such a magical phenomenon: “meteors fall into the camp at night, clouds are like bad mountains in the day, when the camp falls, they fall apart below the ground, and officials and scholars are tired of falling.” There is an ominous flow at night
The star fell into Wang Mang’s military camp, and during the day, there were clouds like collapsing mountains falling straight towards the camp, which dispersed only when they were very close to the ground, and the officers and soldiers were scared to lie on the ground. “Clouds are like bad mountains” is a bad omen for the army,
According to the divination of ancient divination, “the place where the head of the camp fell, its soldiers were defeated and generals were killed, and blood flowed thousands of miles.” It is conceivable that this will be a huge blow to the superstitious mang army. This unusual factor led to Wang Mang’s army’s final defeat, which led to the irresistible political power of the new dynasty
The earth block collapses. To the north, the battle of Kunyang ended in the glorious victory of the Gengshi uprising army in annihilating the main force of Wang Mang army and obtaining all its equipment and supplies.