The War in the Three Kingdoms Period
In the history of China, during the formation and division of Wei, Shu (Han) and Wu (190 ~ 280), powerful forces scuffled and merged, and the three countries competed for the world, which eventually led to a series of wars in the State of Jin.
The origin of the dispute China has been unified by the Han Dynasty for 400 years since Qin Shihuang established a unified multi-ethnic country. At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, political corruption, extortion, and serious disasters made the people miserable, and farmers rose up one after another. In the first year of Zhong Ping (184), a large-scale yellow turban insurrectionary war led by Zhang Jiao broke out. The rule of the feudal landlord class was threatened, and the Han court quickly ordered the general He Jin to guard the capital and suppress the uprising. At that time, Cao Cao rode a surname horse and took part in the massacre with Sun Jian and led the troops. Liu Bei, the deposed emperor from Zhuoxian (now Zhuozhou, Hebei), also took the opportunity to organize armed forces and participate in the suppression. In the process of suppressing the uprising, the private armed departments of the former powerful landlords changed from hidden to open, and the number surged; State and county officials have also expanded their power, and the relationship with the dynasty has become increasingly lax, and the division caused by the development of landlord's big land ownership has become increasingly serious.
In order to strengthen the control of counties, the dynasty changed the chief executive's "state secretariat" into a "state shepherd" in charge of military and political power, and sent a prestigious person to serve as it, which backfired and intensified the separatist regime. After the death of Emperor Zhong Ping of the Han Dynasty for six years, blades, the general in charge of state affairs, was killed by eunuchs. Dong Zhuo, the state shepherd, led the army into Luoyang, established the Han Emperor, and forced Cao Cao, Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu to monopolize state affairs. The chaos in the capital and Dong Zhuo's domineering prompted the separatist forces to expand rapidly. States and counties have their own animal husbandry schools, recruiting troops, sharply increasing private military departments, and successively attacking Dong Zhuo. The melee broke out one after another, forming a fragmented situation, followed by the Eastern Han Dynasty, which existed in name only, and history entered the period of tripartite confrontation.
In the war during the formation of the Three Kingdoms, Cao Cao was defeated and unified the northern part of China, while Sun Ce captured Jiangdong and Liu Bei captured Bashu as the land of founding the country, forming a pattern of tripartite confrontation among the three countries.
In the first year of Chuping (190), the allied forces of Guandong Prefecture and County crusaded against Dong Zhuo, led by Yuan Shao, and entered Luoyang (now Luoyang East, Henan Province). After Dong Zhuo moved the capital to Chang 'an (northwest of Jin 'an), he divided his troops to guard the eight passes around Luoyang, such as Hangu, Yike, Guangcheng, Otani, Bayuan, Xuanmen, Jin Meng and Xiaopingjin, in order to repel the allied forces. More than 100,000 allies are disloyal to each other and wait and see. Cao Cao went west alone and returned after defeat, so he developed his armed forces independently. Then, Sun Jian, the governor of Changsha under the post-general Yuan Shu, led an army to attack Dong Zhuo and forced him out of Luoyang the following year (see Sun Jian attacking Dong Zhuo). Later, Sun Jian died in the scuffle between Yuan Shu and Liu Biao for Jingzhou, and Dong Zhuo was also killed by the corps commander Lu Bu, and the scuffle between the dignitaries intensified. After Yuan Shao bullied Jizhou Muhanfu, he gave way and defeated Gongsun Zan, who occupied Youzhou, in the battle of boundary bridge in Chuping for three years, thus reversing the passive situation. Furthermore, in the fourth year of Jian 'an (199), Gongsun Zan was destroyed, and most of Hebei, Qinghai, Bingzhou and Youzhou became the strongest forces in northern China.
Cao Cao worked as a shepherd in Yanzhou for three years in Chuping. He used both hard and soft, surrendered more than 300,000 Qingzhou Yellow Scarf Army, and selected its elite as "Qingzhou Soldiers", which enhanced his own strength. But on the surface, he obeyed Yuan Shao, assisted Yuan Shaobei in attacking Gongsun Zan, and forced Yuan Shunan to conquer Jianghuai. Because Lu Bu took advantage of weakness to seize most of Yanzhou, Cao Cao pacified Yanzhou, recovered lost ground, learned a lesson, and adopted An Xun's strategy of "taking deep roots to control the world" (Xun En Chuan of the Three Kingdoms) to consolidate Yanzhou and Yanzhou base areas. Then he forced Emperor Xian of Han to move to Xu (now Xuchang, Henan Province), and became a general himself, "relying on the emperor to make the princes", recruiting talents, rewarding agriculture, and cultivating fields in Xu County and areas along the traffic line to support him. In the following three years, with the strategy of disintegration and divide and rule, Zhang Xiu was defeated in the Anzhong War, Lu Bu was captured and killed in Xuzhou, and Yuan Shu was trapped to death, becoming the only force in the north that could compete with Yuan Shao, who had a huge army.
At the same time, Sun Ce also plans to capture Jiangdong, as the founding place. In the first year of Xingping (194), he got more than 1,000 people from Yuan Shu, the old subordinate of his father Sun Jian, and led five or six thousand people the following year, and joined forces with Zhou Yu, invading eastward and capturing Niuzhu and Moling. After conquering Huiji (now Shaoxing, Zhejiang), it invaded Dongye (now Fuzhou), publicly broke off relations with Yuan Shu and developed independently. According to the three counties in Jiangdong, Sun Ce, Cao Cao, who had a bad view in the north, temporarily adopted the strategy of wooing, expressing himself as a rebel general and sealing the marquis of Wu.
At that time, Yuan Shao wanted to attack Cao Cao in the south, and Cao Cao also tried to develop to the north of the Yellow River. Cao Cao fought for the prefect of Yuyang and ordered him to supervise six counties in Youzhou to contain Yuan Shao's rear. Send Cang Ba to conquer Qingzhou Qi, Beihai and other places to consolidate the East Wing; Divide troops to Guandu (now Zhongmou, Henan, upstream of the gap, near Bianshui) for fortification. Then, strive for the neutrality of Jingzhou Liu Biao and relieve the worries of the southwest; The army defeated Liu Bei and drove him out of Xuzhou, thus avoiding various attacks. In the fifth year of Jian 'an (now Xunxian), Yuan Shao led an army of 65,438+10,000 troops. In view of the fact that Cao Cao was outnumbered, he first defeated Yuan Jun's momentum by transferring troops from east to west, and then returned to Guandu to refuse to defend. The camera attacked and burned Yuan Jun's grain and grass, took advantage of the situation to launch an attack, defeated Yuan Jun, annihilated more than 70,000 people, and won a great victory in the battle of Guandu. After Yuan Shao's death, his son fought a civil war and occupied Yecheng, the land that Yuan inherited. He also made an expedition to Liucheng (now Chaoyang South, Liaoning Province), annihilated yuan brothers who fled into the hinterland of Wuhuan and colluded with his Wuhuan forces, and basically completed the great cause of reunifying the north.
In the 13th year of Jian 'an, Cao managed Xuanwu Pool to train the water army. After taking measures against the Guanzhong area where unrest might occur, he sent more than 100,000 troops to conquer Jingzhou (now Jingsha, Hubei) in order to unify the north and south. At that time, Sun Quan inherited his brother Sun Ce's eight-year career, consolidated Jiangdong, unified the army to conquer Xiakou (now Wuhan), opened the East Gate of Jingzhou, and annexed Jing and Yizhou in full view. Liu Bei, who was attached to Liu Biao in Jingzhou, also began to change his long-term dependence on others. He asked Zhuge Liang to be the main counselor, determined to take advantage of Jing and Yi first, unite with Sun Quan, enter the territory of the Central Plains, and practice the water army in Fancheng. Liu Biao died of illness. After his son Liu Cong surrendered to Cao Cao, Liu Bei led his troops south and was pursued by Cao Jun in Nagano (now Dangyang). He led more than 20,000 troops in Fankou (now Ezhou) and joined forces with Sun Quan. Battle of Red Cliffs defeated Cao Cao, became a shepherd in Jingzhou, won four counties including Wuling and Changsha, and "borrowed" Nanjun from Sun Quan as a way to grow and develop. Cao Cao was defeated in the north, and Sun Wu was consolidated and developed. This laid the groundwork for the tripartite confrontation between the three countries.
In the sixteenth year of Jian 'an, Liu Zhang was afraid of Cao Cao's invasion, and Liu Bei led tens of thousands of soldiers into Yizhou in the name of helping to defend. Later, Zhuge Liang and others were called to lead the army into Bashu, taking counties first, and successfully entered Chengdu in nineteen years. Since then, three independent and relatively stable political, economic and military centers have been formed with Cao Cao and Sun Quan, and the situation of tripartite confrontation between the three countries has been completely realized.
The tripartite confrontation during the war was also the beginning of a long-term and more complicated dispute among the three countries.
The strategic locations in the period of the tripartite confrontation mainly include Huainan, Jingzhou and Hanzhong. Huainan and Hanzhong were the border areas of Wei, Wu and Shu, respectively, while Jingzhou was bordered by the three countries, each occupying its own side at that time, which was the most hotly contested area. After Cao Cao was defeated in Chibi, Jingzhou, and returned to the north, he successfully fought the battle of Weinan, which was completely based in Guanzhong, and opened up a naval training base in Qiaocheng (now Bozhou, Anhui). In the face of these two rivals, Sun Quan and Liu Bei, we should adopt the general plan of attacking the west in the east or attacking the west in the east, and try to avoid fighting on both sides. One is to compete with Sun Quan for the land of Huainan, win the battle of Hefei, and curb Sun Quan's offensive. After fighting for Hanzhong with Liu Bei, concentrate on fighting for Jingzhou with Sun and Liu.
Wei, Shu and Tachileik fought for Jingzhou, which triggered the three wars of Fancheng, Jiangling and Yiling. Liu Bei's progress in Bashu aroused Sun Quan's dissatisfaction. When Liu Bei captured Hanzhong, Guan Yu, a famous Shu Han soldier, guarded Jingzhou, led his army from Jiangling (now Jingsha, Hubei) to the north, and besieged Cao Jun in Xiangyang and Fancheng (now Xiangfan), which further shocked Cao Wei. Cao Cao used the stratagem of Sima Yi and others to further alienate Sun Quan from Liu Bei, which led to Sun Quan sending troops to attack Jiangling and killing Guan Yu, while Cao Wei benefited the fisherman. Liu Bei tried to avenge Guan Yu and retake Jingzhou, and regardless of the opposition of his ministers, he attacked Wu with all his troops. Sun Quan failed to make peace and made further reconciliation with Wei. He appointed Lu Xun as the commander-in-chief, led 50 thousand troops to reject the Shu army, and adopted the strategy of retreating quickly, concentrating troops and fighting with cameras. In the second year of Zhangwu (222), he burned down the company camp and defeated Liu Bei, thus winning the battle of Yiling. As a result, the national strength of Shu Han was greatly damaged, and Sun Wu was also worried about the north. After the war, the two sides reconciled and jointly resisted the powerful state of Wei, which led to a long-term confrontation between the three countries.
Cao Wei encouraged Wu and Shu to weaken each other, won the opportunity to recuperate, and the country became stronger and stronger. In the meantime, Cao Cao died of illness, and Cao Pi proclaimed himself emperor. Taking Wei and Jin Dynasties as an example, he planned to go south. Sun Wu adjusted his deployment in time and turned to Cao Wei. With the natural barrier of the Yangtze River and the relatively strong water army, Xelloss first repelled the three-way attack of Wei Jun, and then twice retreated to Guangling (now Yangzhou, Jiangsu) where Wei Jun was located, making it impossible for Xelloss to cross the river until his death.
Shortly after the battle of Yiling, Liu Bei died of illness, and the powerful forces of Han and Yi in the south (now Yunnan, Guizhou and southwest Sichuan) turned against Shu. Zhuge Liang, the prime minister of Shu and Han dynasties who assisted the imperial court, marched into South China in three ways in the third year of Jianxing (225), taking attack as the first priority, supplemented by attack, pacifying South China, strengthening exchanges between foreigners and Chinese, and promoting the development of South China. After the consolidation of the Shu-Han rear area, Zhuge Liang continued to develop the economy at home, carefully managed the army, constantly strengthened his national strength, and strengthened his alliance with Wu abroad, which created conditions for the northern expedition to Wei. In the fifth year of Jianxing, Zhuge Liang unified the 654.38+ 10,000-strong army north of Hanzhong, which kicked off the attack on Wei. Instead of suggesting that the meridian passage (from Ankang, Shaanxi Province to xi 'an) directly attack Chang 'an (northwest of Xi 'an), we should implement a prudent strategy of attacking Longyou first and then taking Qinchuan (Guanzhong area). The following year, due to the street pavilion in Ma Su (now southeast of Tianshui, Gansu, north of Sol Zhang), the Shu army returned to Hanzhong. After the unification of tens of thousands of troops, Chencang (now Baoji East, Shaanxi Province) was surrounded by the north, so it was impossible to make a quick decision and the grain and grass were exhausted. After several battles with Sima Yi, the general of Wei State, he died in 12 years. Zhuge Liang did not achieve remarkable results in the battle against Wei.
Although Sun Wu defeated Cao Xiu of Fu Wei in Shi Ting (now Qianjiang, Anhui) and contained Cao Wei's offensive, he was still unable to advance northward. It is to resist Wei while consolidating the south and developing to the sea. In the second year of Huanglong (230), Wei Wen and others were sent across the sea to Yizhou (now Taiwan Province Province), but more than a thousand people returned. After that, he sent his generals to Liaodong twice to contact Gongsun Yuan to contain the northeast of Cao Wei. After Wei Mingdi sent his troops to defeat Gongsun Yuan, in the second year of Jingchu (238), he ordered Sima Yi, the commander of Qiu, to levy Liaodong and pacify Liaodong, Xuantu, Daifang.
Sima Yi successfully prevented Zhuge Liang from attacking and fighting in Liaodong, and his prestige and power increased greatly. After Ming Di's death, Sima Yi, eight-year-old Prince Cao Fang and general Cao succeeded to the throne. Cao Shuang was afraid of the rise of Sima Yi, eager to make contributions, build a strong army, and rashly led the army to attack Shu, which was defeated and prospered (now Yangxian County, Shaanxi Province). Sima Yi resigned because of his old age and illness, kept a low profile, secretly guarded his confidant, and cooperated with Qiu Jiang Ji. In the first ten years (249), Cao Shuang was remonstrated, executed and monopolized the military and political power. He also sent troops to Huainan to quell the rebellion in the tomb. Later, Sima Yi, Sima Shi and Si Mazhao successively put down the rebellions in Qiu Jian and Zhuge Dan, and completely eradicated the forces of Cao Shi, known as the "Three Rebellions in Huainan". The Cao Wei regime has existed in name only, and the Sima family has now completed its preparations for Wei.
In the late Three Kingdoms, Wu and Shu gradually weakened, and the alliance was unable to compete with Wei. After Sun Quan's death, Wu won in Dongxing against Wei Jun, but it was a spent force. Jiang Wei of Shu Han fought in Longxi many times, but it was not worth the loss, and his dream of rejuvenating the Central Plains had long been shattered. Due to the serious shortage of troops, all points in the periphery of Hanzhong were forced to give up and retreat to Han and Yue. However, Sima Wei developed the economy, stabilized the political situation, and its military strength was constantly enhanced, and the conditions for unifying the world gradually matured. In view of the weak filial piety at the border between Shu and Han, a strategic decision was made to destroy Shu first and then swallow Wu along the river. In the fourth year of Jingyuan (263), Si Mazhao, the general in charge of state affairs, sent troops to attack Shu in three ways. When the main force was blocked in Jiange (now northeast of Jiange, Sichuan), the famous Deng Ai made a surprise attack across the Yinping path, and the battle of Wei destroying Shu Han was successful.
In the second year of Wei Xianxi (265), Sima Yan, the son of Wei Xianxi, proclaimed himself emperor, openly took Wei from the rulers, and stepped up preparations to destroy Wu. When Wu was destroyed, his lips were cold and his teeth were cold, and political corruption made people deviate, which led to rebellion against Wu and Jin. In the first year of Fenghuang (272), Lu Kang, the general of Wu, kept up the crisis and won the battle, which forced the Jin army to retreat and delayed the realization of Jin's strategic intention to destroy Wu. After eight years of preparation, from November of the fifth year of Xianning (279) to March of the following year, Jin sent more than 200,000 troops to March from Bashu, Xiangyang, Shouchun and Xiapi, and the naval forces cooperated in an unprecedented scale, winning Jianye (now Nanjing) and destroying Wu.
Historical position and function The war in the Three Kingdoms period promoted the historical process of the three kingdoms from division to partial reunification, and then realized national reunification, and promoted the great development of political, economic, cultural and ethnic relations. There has been a new development in the form of war, and there has been a large-scale operation on water, infantry and cavalry. Countries pay attention to the development of arms adapted to their geographical characteristics. Cao Wei's cavalry, Sun Wu's water army and Shu Han's infantry all have strong fighting capacity. With the multipolarization of war objects and the complexity of the strategic situation between the enemy and ourselves, there are many examples of military deployment and strategic application, among which Cao Cao's war strategy of unifying the north is particularly prominent. Zhuge Liang guided the development of Longzhong Dui, although the situation changed later and failed to be fully realized, it was still an epoch-making and relatively complete strategic plan. Frequent military diplomacy and flexible alliance strategy. Battle of Red Cliffs, the Three Kingdoms Jingzhou War is an example. In the battle against remote ethnic areas, "attacking the heart is the best" has also been used more brilliantly. In terms of operational methods, Zhuge Liang's "Eight Arrays" and the widely used fire attack, surprise attack, ambush, tunnel and so on. Are handed down from generation to generation.
With the development of the war, the commander-in-chief is becoming more and more sound, and the three pillars are good at selecting generals and employing people, relying on them to plan and implement the war; At the same time, it promoted the reform and establishment of some military systems, the formation of Chinese and foreign military systems, the implementation of the world military system and the improvement of the staff system, which had far-reaching influence. Logistics support pays more and more attention to the construction of rear supply bases, and all of them have implemented unprecedented scale reclamation. The equipment of the army has improved obviously. Shu Han created a crossbow with ten arrows, which is suitable for mountain transportation. The improved steel knives, stone carts and compass carts made by Cao Wei, a large number of vests used, and various ships with good performance made by Sun Wu are all very famous.
The study of military theory in the Three Kingdoms period has been deepened with rich war practice. Cao Cao's annotation of Sun Tzu's Art of War initiated the study of Sun Tzu's Art of War. Zhuge Liang's military exposition is highly valued by later generations.