A Brief History of the Tujia — The Tujia Under Yuan, Ming, and Qing Tusi Rule (IV)
IV. The Tujia's Major Contribution in the Struggle Against Japanese Pirates — (I) Enthusiastic Conscription of Tujia Soldiers and Brilliant Victories: During the Jiajing reign of Emperor Shizong of Ming (1522–1566), political corruption, neglected defenses, and empty coastal garrisons allowed Japanese pirates, in collusion with wealthy landlords engaged in maritime trade, to carry out large-scale raids along China's southeastern coast. Wherever the pirates went...
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IV. The Major Contributions of the Tujia People in the Struggle Against Japanese Pirates
(1) The Enthusiastic Enlistment of Tujia Soldiers and Their Brilliant Battle Results
During the Jiajing reign of Emperor Shizong of Ming (1522-1566), politics were corrupt, defense was neglected, and the coast was undefended. Japanese pirates, colluding with wealthy landlords engaged in overseas trade, took the opportunity to carry out large-scale harassment and destruction along China's southeastern coast. Wherever the Japanese pirates went, residents were massacred and captured, property was plundered, and houses were burned. From Liaodong in the north to Fujian and Guangdong in the south, all coastal provinces suffered from the ravages of the Japanese pirates, and the lives and property of all ethnic groups were severely threatened and greatly harmed.
Although the Ming court sent troops to resist the Japanese pirates, due to political corruption, incompetent and cowardly generals, low morale, and lack of combat effectiveness, they collapsed at the first encounter or fled without fighting, suffering repeated defeats. As a result, the Japanese pirate scourge spread and intensified. In this unfavorable war situation, the Ming court appointed Zhang Jing as Supreme Commander of military affairs in the southeastern provinces. Zhang Jing trained troops and raised funds locally while petitioning to dispatch Guangxi Zhuang soldiers and Huguang native soldiers to fight the Japanese pirates. Hu Zongxian also believed that to deal with the Japanese pirates, who were skilled at close combat, it was necessary to mobilize the elite troops of the Yongshun and Baojing two Xuanwei offices.
The Yongshun, Baojing, Sangzhi, Rongmei, Youyang, and other tusi offices, along with the native officials and soldiers under the Jiuxi Guard, actively responded to the call to arms to resist Japanese pirate aggression and defend the security of China's southeastern coast.
Before going to war, the tusi strictly selected soldiers and officers, "conscripting by household" brave and battle-experienced native soldiers. Those known for their resourcefulness and courage were appointed as commanders and leaders, and were even assigned to lower positions: those capable of leading a thousand men were made leaders of a hundred; those capable of leading a hundred were made heads of ten. Thus the soldiers were elite and the officers brave, with strong combat effectiveness.
When setting out, the tusi led the native soldiers in a solemn ceremony to boost morale and express the determination to win. During the sacrifice, the tusi placed an ox head on the table with silver beside it, then issued the order: "Those who dare to charge first may take this silver and eat this ox head; the brave should sign up." Finally, an oath was sworn. The native soldiers, composed of Tujia and Miao people, enthusiastically responded to the call, often several times the required number. If three thousand were called, six thousand would come; if six thousand were called, ten thousand would come. This fully demonstrated the patriotic fervor of the Tujia and Miao peoples.
In the winter of the thirty-third year of Jiajing (1554), the Yongshun Xuanwei Peng Yinan led three thousand native soldiers, the retired Xuanwei Peng Mingfu and official student Peng Shouzhong led two thousand volunteer soldiers, and the Baojing Xuanwei Peng Jinchen brought three thousand native soldiers, providing their own food, traveling over three thousand li to rush to the Suzhou and Songjiang areas to fight the Japanese pirates. As soon as the Yongshun and Baojing native soldiers arrived at the front, they immediately entered battle. In the first month of the thirty-fourth year of Jiajing, the Japanese pirates gathered at Shengdun. Lady Wa of Guangxi commanded the Zhuang soldiers to attack from the south, while the Yongshun Xuanwei Peng Yinan led native soldiers to encircle from the north. The two armies fought in coordination, attacking from both sides, beheading over three hundred and routing the Japanese pirates. The native soldiers and Zhuang soldiers achieved victory in their first encounter with the Japanese pirates.
In April of the same year, the Japanese pirates entrenched at Sanzhangpu in Changshu split into groups to harass the Changshu and Jiangyin areas, operating with extreme ferocity. Bingbei Vice Commissioner Ren Huan commanded over a thousand native soldiers under the Baojing native official Peng Shouzhong, along with over three thousand government troops and civilian levies, and attacked in three columns. The Han and native officers and soldiers charged into battle, fighting bravely, capturing and killing over two hundred and eighty of the enemy. The Japanese pirates suffered a major defeat, "while our troops lost not a single man. Since the beginning of military operations, there had never been such a complete victory in land warfare." The victories at Shengdun and Sanzhangpu struck a blow at the arrogance of the Japanese pirates, and "when the native soldiers were deployed, the bandits greatly feared and dreaded them." In the same month, Bingbei Vice Commissioner Ren Huan and Dusi Li Jing commanded the Yongshun and Baojing native soldiers to encircle and suppress the Japanese pirates at Xinchang. The pirates, overawed by the might of the native soldiers, avoided direct confrontation, set ambushes on all sides, and sent men to light fires several li away to lure the native soldiers into advancing deep. Peng Chi, a Baojing native officer, led his native soldiers bravely at the forefront, penetrating deep into the enemy position, while Yongshun native officials Tian Xu and Tian Feng also vied to attack. Unexpectedly they fell into the enemy's ambush and were surrounded on all sides by the Japanese pirates. After fierce fighting, Peng Chi, Tian Xu, Tian Feng, and all their officers and men died heroically. In this battle, due to command errors, the native officials' eagerness for battle, and unclear intelligence about the enemy, the troops advanced alone into enemy territory and were defeated. However, the setback at Xinchang did not shake the Yongshun and Baojing native soldiers' fighting will to defend the motherland and eliminate the Japanese threat. On the contrary, they drew lessons from the defeat and actively prepared for new battles.
In May, the Japanese pirates entrenched in their lair at Zhelin sallied out in large numbers to invade the Jiaxing area, plundering, robbing, and harassing the populace. Governor Zhang Jing immediately dispatched Canjiang Lu Tang to supervise Peng Jinchen in leading native soldiers to the rescue at speed, while Zongbing Yu Dayou supervised the Yongshun native soldiers under Peng Yinan and Peng Mingfu, along with Lady Wa's Lang soldiers, to Pingwang, and Canjiang Tang Kekuan led the naval forces to advance from the central route. The Han and native officers and soldiers of all routes fought in coordination, attacking from three directions by water and land. The Baojing native soldiers won by a surprise move, being the first to blunt the enemy's edge, defeating the Japanese pirates at Shitangwan. Seeing the situation turn unfavorable, the pirates fled toward Pingwang. Zongbing Yu Dayou led the Yongshun native soldiers and government troops to intercept them on the road. The pirates, having suffered losses, fled to Wangjiangjing. The Baojing native soldiers followed in hot pursuit, and the Japanese pirates, attacked from front and rear, found themselves tightly encircled. Native soldiers, Lang soldiers, and government troops of all routes surrounded, suppressed, and blocked them on all sides, fighting bravely, capturing and killing over one thousand nine hundred Japanese pirates, with very many drowned. A small number of pirates broke through and fled back to Zhelin. The valiant and skilled Yongshun and Baojing native soldiers rendered outstanding service in the Battle of Wangjiangjing, "the Baojing troops ranking first, the Yongshun troops second." When commenting on this battle, Duyushi Tang Shunzhi held: "Several thousand Japanese pirates at Wangjiangjing took advantage of their victory to advance westward. Had it not been for the Yongshun and Baojing troops blunting their edge, where would they not have reached?" This shows the important role played by the Yongshun and Baojing native soldiers. The Jiajing Emperor of Ming issued an edict commending the Yongshun and Baojing native soldiers, granting Peng Jinchen and Peng Yinan each the rank of third-grade official, conferring on them the title of Zhaoyi General and adding the title of Right Canzheng, and granting Peng Mingfu silver. The victory at Wangjiangjing was the first decisive major victory since the beginning of resistance against the Japanese pirates in the Jiajing period, hailed as "the first in military achievement since the war began." It reversed the unfavorable situation of passive defense since the start of anti-pirate operations. Thereafter, almost every battle was a series of victories, forcing the Japanese pirates from the offensive to the defensive. This victory severely damaged the main force of the Japanese pirates: "When the bandits were first defeated at Wangjiangjing, many of their elite died"; moreover, it dealt a heavy blow to the pirates' arrogance, "the Japanese pirates were robbed of their spirit." The pirates cowering at Zhelin "were also frightened out of their wits," living in constant terror. This victory also greatly boosted the morale of all officers and soldiers, strengthening their confidence in victory in the anti-pirate struggle. From then on, the people's hearts were settled, "from this time the people of Jiaxing and Hangzhou began to sleep soundly."
After the great victory at Wangjiangjing, over a thousand Japanese pirates from Zhelin in Songjiang marauded through the Suzhou area. Baojing Xuanwei Peng Jinchen and Yongshun Xuanwei Peng Yinan led native soldiers in pursuit, advancing in three columns together with the government troops under Ren Huan, and besieged the pirates at Lujingba in Suzhou. The native and Han officers and soldiers of all routes braved torrential rain, attacking fiercely from both sides, capturing their chief leader, taking and killing five to six hundred, with countless drowned, while over two hundred remnant pirates took advantage of the rainstorm to flee back to Zhelin. Thus the victory at Lujingba was won, and the Japanese threat in the Suzhou area was eliminated. In this battle, the Yongshun and Baojing native soldiers fought the Japanese pirates at close quarters, in bloody hand-to-hand combat, placing life and death beyond their concern, displaying a tenacious fighting spirit that looked upon death as returning home. "All who discussed it said our soldiers had the heart to die and no spirit to live, and moreover with Jinchen's troops skilled in battle, their victory was fitting."
However, just as the anti-Japanese war situation was winning victory after victory with frequent triumphant reports, the corrupt Ming court became embroiled in a serious factional strife, which brought adverse effects on the anti-Japanese military operations. The treacherous minister Yan Song and his henchman Zhao Wenhua, on trumped-up charges, had Zhang Jing killed and seized the command authority over anti-Japanese military affairs into their own hands. They were corrupt and incompetent, discriminated against minority troops, sent the Yongshun and Baojing native soldiers and the Guangxi Lang troops back to their native places, and redeployed troops from all over the country, yet did not take the initiative to attack, attempting to eliminate the Japanese threat through pacification. As a result, the harassment and destruction by the Japanese pirates became rampant again, and the anti-Japanese struggle once more fell into an unfavorable situation. But the vast numbers of patriotic officers and soldiers, disregarding obstruction, with the cooperation of the people along the southeast coast, took the initiative to attack and dealt deadly blows to the Japanese pirates.
In October of the same year, Japanese pirates from Funingzhou in Fujian intruded into the Ningbo and Fenghua areas of Zhejiang. The Rongmei native soldiers, under the command of Xuanwei Tian Jiuxiao, charged at the forefront. The Japanese pirates, terrified at the news, scattered and retreated, fleeing to Houmei in Shaoxing, where the Rongmei native soldiers and government troops from two routes surrounded them and launched a fire attack. More than half the Japanese pirates died, and the anti-Japanese forces won the victory at Houmei.
In December of the same year, the Japanese pirates raided Shengxian. Tian Jiuxiao led the Rongmei native soldiers and the government troops under Bingbei Vice Commissioner Tan Lun to set ambushes on all sides, using a small force to lure the pirates out to fight. When the Japanese pirates came out, the ambush troops rose from all sides and attacked fiercely. The pirates fled in disorder to Qingfengling, where the Rongmei native soldiers and government troops pursued them, capturing and killing over one hundred and seventy Japanese pirates, winning the victory at Qingfengling.
In the seventh month of the thirty-fifth year of Jiajing (1556), the Japanese pirates gathered at Zhapu, attempting to put out to sea. Canzheng Ren Huan supervised the Rongmei native soldiers and government troops to block their sea route, while native officials Wang Xiang and Xiang Luan led native soldiers to storm the pirates' nest at Zhapu. After fierce fighting, Wang Xiang and Xiang Luan died in battle, but the Japanese pirates entrenched at Zhapu were wiped out, winning the victory at Zhapu.
In the eighth month, Yu Dayou led the Rongmei native soldiers and government troops to besiege the great sea bandits Xu Hai and Chen Dong, who had colluded with the Japanese pirates, in a corner of Shenjiazhuang. At this time, the Yongshun and Baojing native soldiers, once again called up, arrived in good time. The Yongshun and Baojing officers and soldiers proved worthy of being elite troops and fierce generals in the anti-Japanese struggle. They formed ranks on left and right, holding torches, shouting in unison, and charged into the enemy position, beheading over one thousand two hundred. Xu Hai threw himself into the water and committed suicide, and the native soldiers then jumped into the water to cut off his head. From then on, the Japanese threat in the western Zhejiang area was quelled.
In the second month of the thirty-seventh year of Jiajing, the Japanese pirates at Zhoushan in Ningbo, relying on their strategic position, put up a stubborn resistance. At this time, Peng Zhixian and others led six thousand native soldiers from Maliao, Daci, Zhenxi, and Sangzhi, and Xuanwei Tian Shijue led the Rongmei native soldiers, arriving one after another. Yu Dayou commanded the native soldiers to take advantage of heavy snow to attack from all sides, burning the pirates' camps. Most of the Japanese pirates were killed, and the victory at Zhoushan was won. The Japanese pirates in Zhejiang were completely wiped out.
In this anti-Japanese struggle, the Huguang native soldiers and Guangxi Lang soldiers, especially the Yongshun and Baojing native soldiers, rendered outstanding military service, making indelible contributions to eliminating the Japanese threat that had plagued the region for decades and to defending the motherland's territory and coastal security.
(II) Reasons Why the Native Soldiers Won Victory After Victory in the Anti-Japanese Struggle
The reason the Huguang native soldiers won victory after victory in the anti-Japanese struggle and repeatedly established extraordinary merits, becoming a formidable force renowned for a time, was mainly determined by the nature of this war. Resisting the Japanese pirates was a just war against foreign invasion, to defend the territorial integrity of the motherland and safeguard the lives and property of the people. Out of patriotic fervor, the vast numbers of native soldiers actively responded to recruitment and eagerly answered the call; in battle, they charged into enemy lines and did not hesitate to sacrifice, and closely cooperated and fought in coordination with Han officers and soldiers. This was the main reason for their victories. At the same time, strict organization, strict discipline, and superb tactics were also important factors in the Huguang native soldiers being "able to defeat many with few, winning nine out of ten battles, unmatched under heaven." The Huguang soldiers were tightly organized and thoroughly familiar with battle formations. Each si established twenty-four banners, and each banner had a banner leader. In battle, their formation placed one man in front, followed by three, five, seven men, or three, five, seven, seven men arranged in four or five horizontal rows, shaped like an iron pagoda
battle sequence; the remaining native soldiers were arrayed behind the formation, shouting to boost morale and lend momentum during battle. In offensive and defensive warfare, when the front ranks suffered casualties, the rear ranks immediately advanced column by column to fill in, keeping the battle sequence unchanged, with victory or defeat determined within four or five layers. This tight battle organization and ingenious formation allowed free advance and retreat, combining offense and defense, and was conducive to bringing collective combat power into play. Advancing, the ranks were neat; retreating, they were orderly; attacking, they were invincible; defending, they were impregnable. Moreover, they were flexible and mobile: according to battle needs, they could fight independently by banner or coordinate and fight in concert with other banners. The native soldiers had strict discipline; their control was extremely strict—only thrusting and stabbing were permitted, cutting off heads was not allowed, and violators, along with those who retreated, were all beheaded. Therefore every battle was won, and none dared oppose them. This strict discipline ensured the native soldiers' powerful combat effectiveness. In battle, everyone vied to be first, bravely killing the enemy, without needing to divide their strength to compete for heads and claim rewards, which would have affected combat effectiveness. The implementation of the collective punishment system made officers and officers, officers and soldiers, and soldiers and soldiers work as one heart, depending on one another for survival, jointly completing combat tasks. "Their collective punishment law was extremely strict, so soldiers vied to give their lives"; "in this way, no soldier dared not fight to the death." The Huguang native soldiers' masterful "hook-and-sickle spear and crossbow techniques" made it difficult for the Japanese pirates, who excelled at "close-quarters combat," to deal with them or parry. Even Hu Zongxian admitted: "In close-quarters combat, the Japanese bandits are very skilled; recently the only ones able to counter them are the Huguang troops with their hook-and-sickle spear and crossbow techniques." The vigorous fighting spirit, strict discipline, ingenious formations, and skilled techniques of the Huguang soldiers in the anti-Japanese war all had a great influence on the Ming court's armies. From the recruited militia they "selected the brave and fierce, formed them into squads and ranks according to Lang and native military methods, organized them into camps, imitated their uniforms and armor, practiced their techniques, trained them in agility, and had them follow their movements and diet." The Mandarin Duck Formation of the famous anti-Japanese generals Tan Lun and Qi Jiguang was developed on the basis of learning from the Huguang native soldiers' formations. This formation enabled various weapons to effectively coordinate in battle, each displaying its strengths, making it easy to defeat the Japanese pirates who excelled at setting ambushes, charging, and close-quarters combat, and it displayed great power in the war against the Japanese pirates.
In short, the Huguang soldiers, composed mainly of Tujia people with Miao participation, especially the Yongshun and Baojing native soldiers, made outstanding contributions in the anti-Japanese struggle. Together with the Guangxi Lang soldiers and the vast Han military and civilian population, they jointly wrote a victorious chapter in our country's history of all ethnic groups uniting as one, fighting shoulder to shoulder, resisting foreign invasion, and defending the motherland's territory.