I remember a few years ago, when I read that Shi Dakai was completely annihilated in the Dadu River, I felt sorry for it for a long time. I feel that Shi Dakai I was a hero with such a tragic ending that thousands of others were slaughtered by the Qing army unprepared, which is a great tragedy in modern history.
For many years, the heroic and upright images of Taiping soldiers in the illustrations of history textbooks have been deeply branded in my mind. In my understanding, Taiping Army is a representative of the peasant class full of fighting spirit. It has noble revolutionary sentiments, strict discipline and lofty revolutionary ideals, and is insulated from all ugly behaviors.
However, when I was sitting in the ancient books reading room of the National Library, holding high those little-known thread-bound books in the late Qing Dynasty, I read something between the lines that made me lose my glasses. These things shocked me, but I couldn't put them down. A few days later, when I finally finished reading it, I let out a long sigh. In my mind, the image of heroic martyrs with upright and noble character is becoming more and more blurred, replaced by the face of vicious and ferocious gangsters.
It suddenly dawned on me that the Taiping Army was an ordinary person, uneducated and unreasonable. When there is no discipline, naturally everything can be done. Sometimes it reveals a little bit of humanity or kindness, but it is often blinded by the pleasure of wanton beating, smashing and looting. Absolute freedom without external constraints brings about a general distortion of human nature. All their characteristics are exactly the same as those of all peasant insurgents in ancient history. Even they have never established a solid base, which is no different from the ancient "hooligans".
Without base areas, there will be no construction and no development of production. In order to survive, we can only make a living by robbery. Grab whatever you lack, grab money if you lack money, grab food if you lack food, and grab people if you lack people. When the troops are insufficient, they will forcibly pull the able-bodied men; Wandering around all the year round, my sexual desire can't be vented, so I rob a good woman to be a comfort woman.
So the conclusion is simple and clear: the greater the power of the Taiping Army, the greater the damage to social production. Just like a deadly virus, the wider it spreads in the human body, the more critical it is to human life.
What I didn't expect, in particular, was that Shi Dakai's department, which made me sympathize at the beginning, raped, plundered and killed innocent people when it was wandering around Hunan. Wherever it goes, it's like a hell on earth. I am thinking that if Shi Dakai breaks through the natural barrier of Dadu River and enters Chengdu Plain, he may be the reincarnation of Zhang.
The following historical materials are all taken from the Commendation Record of Hunan Province compiled by Guo Songtao and others in the early years of Tongzhi according to the information reported by Hunan provinces, prefectures and counties. The content is messy, but a lot of detailed first-hand information is collected. This book has many signs, including 22 volumes. At the end of the book, volumes such as Martyrdom and Martyrdom recorded the tyrannical behaviors of Taiping Army and bandits in various parts of Hunan, and even listed the names, time, place and reasons of the victims truthfully. For the sake of brevity, the names, times and places of most victims are omitted in this paper. At the same time, try to get rid of bandits and record the Taiping Army. Many records do not distinguish between Taiping rebels and bandits, and they are all called "thieves". Because their contents are representative, this paper also records them. According to the analysis contained in the book, there is almost no difference between the atrocities of bandits and the atrocities of Taiping Army. Bandits often follow the example of the Taiping Army and often join the Taiping Army. After the Taiping Army was defeated, it often became a bandit.
In particular, these historical materials are limited to Hunan province. As we all know, the plunder suffered by Hunan is relatively light in all provinces. Moreover, what is recorded below only accounts for a small part of the historical materials of the book.
The atrocities committed by the Taiping Army can be divided into the following parts: (Only the atrocities committed by the Taiping Army against ordinary people are listed, and the killing of officials and gentry landlords in the Qing Dynasty is not involved. )
First, "pull the young men" and kill those who don't follow. There are a lot of such historical materials, which seems to be an important means for the Taiping Army to expand its personnel. Compared with modern warlords, their methods are even more cruel. Wang Chang killed more than 10,000 Taiping rebels in the First World War in Jiangxi, and tens of thousands of "coercers" were captured and disbanded by Lao Xiangying.
Second, plunder, rape and maim women. There are also many historical materials of this kind, and their tragic appearance and the number of female victims are enough to completely subvert the revolutionary image of Taiping soldiers in history textbooks.
Third, abuse and maim the elderly. Forcing old people in their fifties and sixties to carry the burden for them, the old people can't do it, and they are often scolded and killed.
Fourth, killing Buddhist monks and believers. Wherever Taiping Army went, all the Buddha statues in Buddhist temples were destroyed. Monks or believers are often killed to protect Buddha statues.
5. Take revenge on local Yingyong by cruel means. Torture, such as heart gouging, laparotomy and amputation of hands and feet, is readily available. Tuan Yong's wife, children and children are often slaughtered, and tragic accidents often occur.
Six, extortion, robbing money, food and materials, just like the scene of "devils entering the village".