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Battle of Baideng

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{{Infobox military conflict | image = Xiongnu (10336678224).jpg | caption = | conflict = Battle of Baideng | partof = Xiongnu campaigns in China | date = 200 BC | place = Mount Baideng at Pincheng (present-day Datong, Shanxi) | result = Xiongnu victory | combatant1 = Xiongnu | combatant2 = Han dynasty | commander1 = Modu Chanyu
Hu-pai-ti (POW) Executed | commander2 = Emperor Gaozu
Han Wang Hsin Surrendered | strength1 = 400,000[1] | strength2 = 320,000[1] | casualties1 = Heavy[2] | casualties2 = HeavyCite error: The <ref> tag has too many names (see the help page).[3]

Background

After Mo-du defeated the Dong-hu, Yuezhi and other steppe tribes, his army exceeded 300,000 thousand. Now, with the steppe under his control, he could enter China.

Meanwhile, the Han Dynasty had just established its order in the central lands. Wang of Han Hsin was sent to Tai province, whose administrative center was Mayi. The Xiongnus besieged Ma-i in a massive attack. Realizing that he could no longer hold out, Prince Hsin (Xin) of Han surrendered to the Xiongnus.[4][5]

Attack of the Xiongnu

After the Xiongnus took Ma-i, they crossed the Kou-chu Mountain in the south with their troops. They attacked Ta'i-yuen and reached the gates of Chin-yang. In response, the Han ruler Gaozu personally led his army to counterattack. In winter, however, they encountered terrible cold.[6] Three out of every ten soldiers lost their fingers from the cold.[4] Mo-du then pretended to flee in defeat and drew the Han soldiers to him, and the Han soldiers began to pursue him as planned. Meanwhile, the Xiongnu vanguard made some attacks but failed and their commander was killed.[7] In fact, Mo-du hid his strong warriors and showed the weak ones.[8][6]

Battle and siege

The Han army with all its might (320,000 men, mostly infantry) began to chase them north. Gaozu led his own troops to Ping-cheng, but not all the infantry had arrived. Mo-du with 400,000 horsemen surrounded the emperor on Baideng mountain. For seven days the Chinese soldiers in the ring could neither help each other or receive supplies.[4][6][9] In a difficult situation, Gaozu had to buy his freedom.[4][6][3]He sent valuable gifts to Mo-du's wife.[10] [11]Satisfied with the gifts, she told Modu that "the rulers of these two countries should not cause such difficulties and that even if he conquered the land, he would not be able to adapt to it, and that the Han ruler had guardian spirits, which Chan-yu should take into account."[4] Modu and Wang-huan and Chao-li, the generals of Prince Hsin of Han on his side, had agreed on a place to meet. But they did not arrive, so Modu opened a corner of the siege, taking into account the possibility of Chinese intrigue and what his Khatun had said. Gaozu and his army then burst out of the corner and merged with the rest of the army[6], after which they retreated. Modu also retreated, abandoning his battle formation. They later made peace through marriage.

Treaty

According to the peace treaty, he had to surrender one of his daughters as a concubine of Xiongnu Chanyu (Gaozu sent a relative in her place after lying to Xiongnu that she was really his daughter).[4] The Han Chinese also agreed to pay Chanyu an annual tribute of silk, wine, grain and other foodstuffs to appease this powerful northern enemy.[8][12] The Han Dynasty had in effect become a tributary state dependent on the goodwill of the Xiongnu Empire.[3] When Gaozu died, Modu sent a humiliating letter to the widowed empress of Han Dynasty, suggesting that she become one of his wives. The empress reacted angrily and asked her officials whether a punitive expedition against the Xiongnu could be organized. To this belligerent speech, Han officials replied that even the wise and warlike Gaozu could not defeat the Xiongnu, but he had suffered a humiliating defeat at Ping Cheng. The Empress softened and sent a humble letter to Chanyu asking for his indulgence, explaining that she was unfit to be Chanyu's wife due to old age and her deteriorating physical condition. Finally, she reminded Chanyu that his country had done nothing wrong and begged the Xiongnu emperor to forgive his country.[3][5][7]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Chang, Chun-shu (2007). The Rise of the Chinese Empire, Volume 1: Nation, State, and Imperialism in Early China, ca. 1600 B.C. - A.D. 8. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press. p. 158. ISBN 978-0-472-11533-4.
  2. ^ https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015068806333;view=1up;seq=190 [bare URL]
  3. ^ a b c d Jin Kim, Hyun (2016). The Huns. New York: Routledge. p. 31. ISBN 978-1-138-84175-8.
  4. ^ a b c d e f Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ a b Barfield, Thomas. The Perilious Frontier. Massachusets. p. 35.
  6. ^ a b c d e ENCYCLOPAEDIA XIONGNU. Ulaan Baatar: Institute of Archaelogy Mongolian Acedemy of Sciens. 2013. p. 21. ISBN 978-99973-0-009-6.
  7. ^ a b Taşağıl, Ahmet (2019). Hunlar: Bozkırın İlk İmparatorluğu [The Huns: First Empire of Steppes] (in Turkish). İstanbul: Yeditepe. pp. 87–88. ISBN 978-605-7800-53-4.
  8. ^ a b Han Shu (in Chinese). p. 3753.
  9. ^ De Groot, M. Die Hunnen der vorchirstlichen (in German). Vol. 1. Berlin. p. 63.
  10. ^ Golden, Peter B. An Introduction to the History of the Turkic Peoples. WIESBADEN: OTTO HARRASSOWITZ. p. 43.
  11. ^ Szasz, B. (1943). A Hunok törtenete (in Hungarian). Budapest: Attila ngykiraly. p. 52.
  12. ^ Ögel, Bahaeddin (2015). Büyük Hun İmparatorluğu [Great Xiongnu Empire] (in Turkish). Vol. 1. Türk Tarih Kurumu Yayınları. pp. 304–306. ISBN 978-975-16-3153-4.

Further reading

  • Yap, Joseph P. pp 71–76. "Wars With The Xiongnu, A Translation From Zizhi tongjian" AuthorHouse (2009) ISBN 978-1-4490-0604-4

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