Since Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty , Xinjiang has joined the big family of the Chinese nation.
Han Chinese began to build Xinjiang together with local ethnic minorities.
In ancient times, Lin Zexu entered Xinjiang to survey the land, reclaim wasteland, and build water conservancy projects; later, "eight thousand Hunan women went to Tianshan " to join the Xinjiang Construction Corps and carry out the construction work of Xinjiang together with the local ethnic groups.
However, there will always be some restless Western forces who want to pick up their "traditional arts" and launch various rebellion activities against Xinjiang.
They either use religion or create Xinjiang terrorists in an attempt to split Xinjiang.
And this kind of activity has not been interrupted since the beginning of the industrial revolution .
Xinjiang map
The overt and covert struggle between Britain and Tsarist Russia in Central Asia in the 119th century
The earth in the 19th century was the world of Western powers. They took the lead in the industrial revolution and led the world in productivity. With the support of cannons and battleships, they expanded wildly and established their own colonies all over the world.
UK is one of the leaders.
Starting from the Battle of Plassey in 1757, Britain gradually controlled India through war and unequal trade and established colonies.
On the ocean, they guarded the Indian Ocean traffic artery leading to the Pacific Ocean.
In addition, India has a vast territory, rich resources, and a large population. The British occupation of India is equivalent to occupying a treasure house. By using these resources, it has gradually achieved the reputation of an empire on which the sun never sets.
But "everyone is not guilty, but a man with a jade is guilty." Why is it that such a good place is only available in the UK?
At this time, the Tsarist Russian regime entrenched in the north also focused on this piece of land. In the early 19th century, Russian Emperor Paul and Alexander I both discussed with French Napoleon a joint attack on India, but this plan was not realized.
However, the ambition of successive tsars to go south to obtain the outlet of the Indian Ocean remains unchanged.
So Tsarist Russia continues to expand into India.
Before 1840, Tsarist Russia had already expanded into southern Kazakhstan, the grasslands north of the Syr Darya River ;
Tsarist Russia's sphere of influence in the east was gradually invading Balkhash Lake east and south of China;
Invaded the South Caucasus from the west and threatened
;
In Central Asia,
khanates such as Bukhara , Khiva, Kokand have been regarded as important embezzlement targets. A semi-encirclement trend gradually formed towards India.
British people are naturally unwilling to let others take away the meat in their mouths. Therefore, the British are very sensitive to Russia's actions and want to quickly build a barrier between India and Russia.
It seeks to use India as a base, penetrate from the north through Afghanistan into the hinterland of Central Asia, and establish its own anti-Russian outpost.
But for Afghans who have a long tradition of fighting against foreign invasion, it is difficult to turn it into a colony like India.
If war can't solve things, let's use money to solve them. So the British started spending money to eliminate disasters.
used money and weapons to support the feudal dynasty of Afghanistan. Only by constantly spreading money did they control Afghanistan to a certain extent.
At the same time, Britain was actively trading in Central Asia, opening up markets, and monitoring the actions of the Russians . Then support local anti-Russian forces and always be wary of Tsarist Russia's southward movement.
The situation during this period generally showed that Britain and Tsarist Russia were advancing towards Central Asia from the south to the north, forming a confrontation.
British-Russian confrontation situation
When the situation reached a deadlock, their eyes began to shift.
Xinjiang, China, next to Afghanistan, has become the second battlefield.
They were not only interested in Xinjiang's geographical location as a threat to each other, but in hindsight they also coveted Xinjiang's rich products and future strategic threats to the Qing government.
So Xinjiang has become a battleground for these two greedy people.
At this time, in 1842, the Qing government lost the Opium War and signed the " Treaty of Nanjing".
Lin Zexu was exiled to Xinjiang. Naturally, Lin Zexu had a panoramic view of the small actions of Britain and Russia in Central Asia.
Lin Zexu inspected Xinjiang
The Zhanggeer and Zhuo riots that occurred from 1820 to 1828 had British influence.
In northern Xinjiang, Tsarist Russia has openly adopted a policy of encroaching on my country's border territories. For example, they built fortresses on the Irtysh River and expanded to Xinjiang.
At that time, the strength of the troops stationed in Xinjiang was not weakened to the extreme, so the British and Russian plans failed to succeed.
But if there is no big problem now, it does not mean that there will be no problem in the future.
Lin Zexu clearly understood that when the strategic goals of Britain and Russia were completely transferred from Central Asia to Xinjiang, there would definitely be chaos here in the future.
Therefore, he began to prepare for a rainy day and actively participated in the work of farming, stocking up on food and improving his combat effectiveness.
But three years later, before the crisis he expected, the imperial court transferred him out of Xinjiang.
So he could only worry silently until 1849 when he found someone who could quell the crisis in Xinjiang in the future - Zuo Zongtang.
That year he passed by Changsha and invited Zuo Zongtang to come on board and talk about it.
He handed all the Xinjiang information and maps he had compiled to Zuo Zongtang, hoping that Zuo Zongtang would step forward when the Xinjiang crisis broke out.
Lin Zexu and Zuo Zongtang discussed Xinjiang on the ship
Later, in 1850, Lin Zexu died of illness on his way to Guangxi to suppress the God-Worship Uprising.
Returning to Central Asia, the current Governor-General of India was Ripon, who adopted an isolationist policy.
So Russia gained momentum and ate up all the Central Asian khanates in one fell swoop, marched to Afghanistan, and marched directly to the door of India.
At this time, Britain felt that the crisis was coming, and hurriedly reconciled with Russia, demarcated the border between Afghanistan and Russia, and used the entire Afghanistan as a buffer zone.
Originally, Tsarist Russia could disagree and continue fighting. But as he fought, he found that the Afghans were too difficult to fight, so he agreed to reach a settlement with the British.
But reconciliation does not mean that we no longer want the outlet of the Indian Ocean.
There was no way to get through Afghanistan, so they shifted their target to Xinjiang, planning to move south from the flank and attack India.
At this time in Xinjiang, because the flames of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom spread here, it triggered an uprising among people of all ethnic groups.
The results of the uprising were then occupied by feudal lords of various ethnic groups and religious elites. As a result, five feudal separatist regimes emerged:
The Jin Xiangyin and Sidik regimes centered on Kashgar (today's Kashgar City);
The Tuoming regime centered on Urumqi;
The regime centered on Kuqa The Huang Hezhuo regime;
the Mahfodi and Habibullah Khan regimes centered on Hotan (today Hotan County );
the Mizimuzhat regime centered on Ili .
Separate regimes and melee
The melee between these separatist regimes made it impossible for Xinjiang to organize effective anti-invasion capabilities, so this allowed Britain and Russia to see the opportunity to invade Xinjiang.
Foreign invasion
In January 1865, the Kim Sang-yin and Sidik regimes, who were caught in a melee of separatist regimes, asked for help from the Kokand Khanate in the west of Xinjiang, my country.
So the ambitious Agub brought Busuluk, known as the " saint ", and 50 cavalry to Kashgar.
Agube bandits
Then he immediately showed ruthless political methods. He united with Busuluk to launch a mutiny and drove away Sidik.
After embezzling Sidik's power, he formed a gang of several thousand people. In April, he supported Busuluk as the Great Khan and established the Zhedeshar Khanate , which means the Seven Cities Khanate.
Immediately afterwards, he used Sidik's shell to join the melee within Xinjiang.
In the autumn of 1865, Kokand was defeated by the Bukhara Khanate supported by Russia, and 7,000 remnants fled into Xinjiang and took refuge in Agub.
Agubai, who later obtained this power, used it in operations in southern Xinjiang and successively conquered Yarkand and Hotan.
Busuluk panicked at this time. On the surface, he and Agubai were in the same group.
But he knew that when he first established Khan, his strength was stronger than Aqubai, but in thirty years Hedong, thirty years Hexi , the situation has changed.
Therefore, he had to strike first and then create another mutiny to drive away Aguba. But failed, and he was driven back to Haokand by Agub.
Then Agubah made Busuluk's cousin Qatar the Great Khan. But these brothers are naturally rebellious and don't want to be subordinate to others. They just don't want to be puppets.
So Qatar was even more unlucky than his brother. The plan had not even started to be hatched, but he was directly poisoned.
This time Agub became the Great Khan and established the Hongfu Khanate.
Hongfu Khanate
Then he immediately marched north, defeated Rexiding and captured Aksu, captured Kuqa, Korla, and occupied the entire southern Xinjiang.
Agube became a puppet of Britain and Russia
At this time, Agube's activities in southern Xinjiang attracted the attention of the British, and they winked at each other.
Agubai wanted an umbrella, and Daiying wanted a puppet, so they had a clear understanding and they hooked up.
In 1868, the British sent a special envoy to meet with Agub, recognized his regime, presented a large number of arms, and allowed him to recruit craftsmen in India to return to Kashgar to set up a military factory.
Looking at the British in action, Russia is certainly not idle either. He was very domineering and directly coerced Agub to become its vassal state, and also took an offensive stance.
Therefore, Agubo does not dare to resist Russia and pleases both Britain and Russia, so one can be the father and the other the mother.
Agub held talks with British representatives
Agub was also very shameful. In order to consolidate his dominance in Xinjiang, he directly used China's territorial sovereignty as a bargaining chip in the transaction to win the support of Britain and Russia.
Therefore, in order to extend its claws further north of the Tianshan Mountains, the British sent a delegation to southern Xinjiang to deliver several cannons and 10,000 rifles specially designed for the army to Agub.
Agub was not satisfied and sent two delegations to London. The Queen of England also gave Agubah 60,000 rifles and equipment for a repair shop.
At this time, Aguba had become a lackey of the British. In order to get the asylum of Britain, he could say to the Christians in a low voice:
"The Queen is like the sun, and in her gentle sunshine, poor people like me can grow and prosper well."
It can be seen that the Aguba regime It is the colonial regime established by foreign invaders in Xinjiang. There is no doubt about it.
In 1870, with the support of the United Kingdom, the Aguba gang crossed the Tianshan Mountains and captured Urumqi, seized Turpan, and cut off the connection between the Hexi Corridor and Xinjiang.
Agubai continued to march north to conquer northern Xinjiang
Russia also suddenly sent troops to Ili. The local people of all ethnic groups rose up to resist and fought for 50 days, but eventually fell.
After that, Russia brazenly announced that "Ili will forever belong to Russia."
Afterwards, Britain and Russia reached a reconciliation, mutually recognized the rationality of their respective regimes, and divided Xinjiang.
Even in 1874, the British Minister to China Waitoma suggested to Li Hongzhang that Ili in Xinjiang, China should be given to Russia, and the southern foothills of the Tianshan Mountains should be given to Aguba.
It can be seen that Xinjiang is already in a serious crisis, and the calls for the recovery of Xinjiang in China are getting louder and louder.
For the people of Xinjiang living under the Agube regime, they want to get rid of Agube's bloody rule all the time.
Some people even traveled long distances over mountains and ridges to Beijing to report the situation in Xinjiang to the Qing government and beg the court to send troops.
The Xinjiang issue attracted attention
In 1871, Zuo Zongtang was suppressing the Hui rebellion in Shaanxi and Gansu.
After he heard the news about Russia's invasion of Ili, he immediately sent Xu Zhanbiao to Suzhou to replace the Urumqi Admiral Cheng Lu who was unwilling to leave the customs and try to stabilize Xinjiang.
Then he hurriedly wrote a book for Liu Jintang who was recovering in Hunan, hoping that he would recruit thousands of elite soldiers and quickly return to Gansu to discuss matters in Xinjiang.
In 1872, Zuo Zongtang wrote successive letters stating the serious consequences of Russia's occupation of Ili, proposing a military strategy for regaining Xinjiang, and expressing the proposition that "no inch of national territory can be used by others."
Zuo Zongtang put down the Hui rebellion
He hoped that the imperial court would remove Urumqi Admiral Chenglu, who had repeatedly evaded war, withheld grain, concealed the number of battalions, overpaid the army, and even falsely reported victory.
In 1874, Zuo Zongtang conquered Suzhou, quelled the rebellion of the Hui people in Shaanxi and Gansu, and freed up his hands to shift his focus outside the pass.
The dispute over maritime and land borders
However, just as the preparations for the recovery of Xinjiang were in full swing, the maritime border was in danger.
On May 6, 1874, the Japanese government sent Army Lieutenant General Saigo Congdou and led 3,000 troops to invade Taiwan.
Although the Qing government sent Fuzhou Shipping Minister Shen Baozhen to lead a self-built ship to Taiwan for defense, which stabilized the situation. However, due to pressure, Japan was compensated 500,000 taels of silver, causing it to withdraw from Taiwan.
Japan invaded Taiwan
However, when they were eager to regain Xinjiang, some landlords and comprador classes headed by Li Hongzhang were preparing to pay the bills.
They believe that Xinjiang is remote and lacking in supplies, and is surrounded by British and Russian forces. Even if it is regained, it will be difficult to defend it for a long time, and the cost is too high. It is better to abandon Xinjiang and use the money to buy foreign weapons.
Friends who are familiar with history all know that the comprador class in the late Qing Dynasty used the state's money to buy obsolete or substandard foreign products and made a large portion of it themselves.
The Sino-Japanese War is the best example. Five out of ten artillery shells bought from foreigners were dumb cannons, which were far inferior to weapons made by oneself.
Therefore, the Qing government could not make up its mind about coastal defense and land defense, so the Military Aircraft Department sent comments on the dispute between coastal defense and fortress defense to Gansu in the form of a secret edict.
After receiving the secret edict, Zuo Zongtang submitted the "Report on the Situation of Coastal Defense and the Suppression of Grain Transportation Outside the Customs" and the "Secret Exhibition of Compliance with the Edict" on March 7.
Zuo Zongtang wrote a letter to refute Li Hongzhang
In which he refuted Li Hongzhang's arguments and proposed the idea of equal emphasis on recovering Xinjiang and strengthening coastal defense.
Then he considered the overall interests of the Chinese nation, reviewed Qianlong's use of troops to unify the country in Xinjiang, and pointed out the overall strategic significance of Xinjiang:
"Those who restore Xinjiang will protect Mongolia, and those who protect Mongolia will defend the capital."
If Xinjiang is lost This means that there will be nothing to hold on to in the future, and foreign troops can drive straight in through the Hexi Corridor to disrupt Mongolia and approach Beijing.
Hexi Corridor
Under this memorial, the Qing court finally adopted Zuo Zongtang’s ideas. He also broke the rule that Han officials could not intervene in Xinjiang affairs, appointed him as the imperial minister, supervised the military affairs of Xinjiang, and granted him various powers such as the use of troops outside the customs and the transfer of food and wages.
Therefore, after several years of planning for Xinjiang, Zuo Zongtang was finally able to take charge of affairs and send troops outside the customs to regain Xinjiang.
But before that, he must first solve the problem of food and wages.
He could easily solve the food problem. When the rebellion was put down in Shaanxi and Gansu, he devoted himself to improving people's livelihood and helped the people of Shaanxi and Gansu to avoid paying taxes for several years.
Moreover, under the policy of recruiting people to farm, Gansu's productivity was restored, and the army was able to purchase military rations reasonably.
Then he set up the Northern Bureau in Hohhot, Mongolia to be responsible for the supply of the North Route Army, and the Southern Bureau in Jiuquan to be responsible for the supply of the South Route Army.
In addition, he had previously ordered Zhang Yao to go out of customs to Hami , purchase food, reclaim wasteland, and set up emergency dispatch points to supply food to the north and south roads.
Support private transportation
Therefore, after nearly a year of preparation, Zuo Zongtang formulated a complete strategic plan.
The general plan is to first recover Urumqi, pacify northern Xinjiang, then go south to pacify southern Xinjiang, and then advance westward to Ili to intimidate Tsarist Russia.
Each battle implements the strategic thinking of "slowly advance and rush to fight", and gather superior forces to annihilate the enemy.
The battle to regain Xinjiang began
html On March 16, 1876, Zuo Zongtang left Lanzhou and headed west, arriving in Suzhou to command the strategic decisive battle to regain Xinjiang.In early April, Liu Jintang led his troops out of the customs and headed for Hami. In May, Xu Zhanbiao left the customs and stationed in Barkol.
In Xinjiang, there are already Hami Zhang Yao's Chongwu Army, and Jinshun active in Jimusa and the ancient city area.
The first strategic target of the Western Expedition is Urumqi, Manas on the North Road, and the Agubai gang stationed here is the rebel Bai Yanhu who fled to Xinjiang from Shaanxi and Gansu.
html On July 21, Liu Jintang arrived at Jimusa and met with Jinshun's troops. They both entered Fukang on July 28, preparing to attack the ancient pastoral area where the elite rebel army was located.After Bai Yanhu learned that the Western Expeditionary Army had arrived near the ancient pasture land, he moved here from Urumqi, trying to fight with his elite troops.
html On August 21, Liu Jintang made final preparations. At night, he and Jin Shun's troops attacked Huangtian at night. The next morning, they occupied Huangtian Jianka and surrounded the ancient pastureland.
Night attack on Huangtian
Liu Jintang began to attack the city on the 24th. Each battalion fought bravely and captured the ancient pastureland on August 28th. Bai Huyan led the remaining troops to flee south. The
army took advantage of the situation and marched straight into Urumqi on August 29. Until the Western Expeditionary Army won this key battle, Urumqi returned to the embrace of the motherland.
html On September 21, the Liu and Jin tribes took advantage of the momentum to capture Manas City, and all the Agubai gang's influence in northern Xinjiang was driven away.At a time when the morale of the army was at its peak and they wanted to go south to conquer Aguba, Zuo Zongtang ordered the army to rest in place and warned Liu Jintang that he still needed to adopt the strategy and tactics of "slow advance and rush to fight". He should not take it lightly and keep an eye on the enemy to the west. Tsarist Russia, prevent them from interfering.
Recover Northern Xinjiang (except Ili)
At this time, Agubai was in Dabancheng, Toksun and Turpan organized a horn defense line.
In order to deal the final blow to Agubai, Zuo Zongtang decided to march into southern Xinjiang in the spring of the next year.
During the period, he asked all ministries to rest and replenish military supplies, and mobilized the "Zhuosheng Army" from Baotou, Shanxi to replace Liu Jintang in guarding Urumqi, while Jinshun was stationed west of Manas to guard against sudden attacks by the Russian army.
On the first day of March 1877, the army set off. Liu Jintang led the Mabu battalions and artillery teams from Urumqi over the mountains to the south and marched into Dabancheng.
On the other side, Zhang Yao and Xu Zhanbiao marched westward to Turpan from Hami and Barkol respectively, forming an attack posture from the east and north against Aguba's main force.
Besieging Daban City
Agubai was frightened by the combat effectiveness of the Western Expeditionary Army, and quickly asked Britain for help, hoping that his master could persuade the Qing government to allow him to "establish a country" in southern Xinjiang.
But when Zuo Zongtang heard from the Prime Minister's Office that Britain was going to beg for surrender and "found the country" on Agub's behalf, he pointed out mercilessly:
The British were simply trying to use Xinjiang to prevent the Russians from going south and protect their property in India. That’s all.
He showed the British that his confidence and determination to march into southern Xinjiang could not be shaken.
On the third day of March, Liu Jintang led his troops to Chaiwopu , and deployed troops that night to blockade Dabancheng without the enemy being aware of it.
launched an attack early the next morning. Liu Jintang took the lead in the charge. After his mount was shot, he changed horses and continued to kill the enemy.
After several days of fierce fighting, the army successfully captured Dabancheng on the seventh day of March.
Since Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty , Xinjiang has joined the big family of the Chinese nation.
Han Chinese began to build Xinjiang together with local ethnic minorities.
In ancient times, Lin Zexu entered Xinjiang to survey the land, reclaim wasteland, and build water conservancy projects; later, "eight thousand Hunan women went to Tianshan " to join the Xinjiang Construction Corps and carry out the construction work of Xinjiang together with the local ethnic groups.
However, there will always be some restless Western forces who want to pick up their "traditional arts" and launch various rebellion activities against Xinjiang.
They either use religion or create Xinjiang terrorists in an attempt to split Xinjiang.
And this kind of activity has not been interrupted since the beginning of the industrial revolution .
Xinjiang map
The overt and covert struggle between Britain and Tsarist Russia in Central Asia in the 119th century
The earth in the 19th century was the world of Western powers. They took the lead in the industrial revolution and led the world in productivity. With the support of cannons and battleships, they expanded wildly and established their own colonies all over the world.
UK is one of the leaders.
Starting from the Battle of Plassey in 1757, Britain gradually controlled India through war and unequal trade and established colonies.
On the ocean, they guarded the Indian Ocean traffic artery leading to the Pacific Ocean.
In addition, India has a vast territory, rich resources, and a large population. The British occupation of India is equivalent to occupying a treasure house. By using these resources, it has gradually achieved the reputation of an empire on which the sun never sets.
But "everyone is not guilty, but a man with a jade is guilty." Why is it that such a good place is only available in the UK?
At this time, the Tsarist Russian regime entrenched in the north also focused on this piece of land. In the early 19th century, Russian Emperor Paul and Alexander I both discussed with French Napoleon a joint attack on India, but this plan was not realized.
However, the ambition of successive tsars to go south to obtain the outlet of the Indian Ocean remains unchanged.
So Tsarist Russia continues to expand into India.
Before 1840, Tsarist Russia had already expanded into southern Kazakhstan, the grasslands north of the Syr Darya River ;
Tsarist Russia's sphere of influence in the east was gradually invading Balkhash Lake east and south of China;
Invaded the South Caucasus from the west and threatened
;
In Central Asia,
khanates such as Bukhara , Khiva, Kokand have been regarded as important embezzlement targets. A semi-encirclement trend gradually formed towards India.
British people are naturally unwilling to let others take away the meat in their mouths. Therefore, the British are very sensitive to Russia's actions and want to quickly build a barrier between India and Russia.
It seeks to use India as a base, penetrate from the north through Afghanistan into the hinterland of Central Asia, and establish its own anti-Russian outpost.
But for Afghans who have a long tradition of fighting against foreign invasion, it is difficult to turn it into a colony like India.
If war can't solve things, let's use money to solve them. So the British started spending money to eliminate disasters.
used money and weapons to support the feudal dynasty of Afghanistan. Only by constantly spreading money did they control Afghanistan to a certain extent.
At the same time, Britain was actively trading in Central Asia, opening up markets, and monitoring the actions of the Russians . Then support local anti-Russian forces and always be wary of Tsarist Russia's southward movement.
The situation during this period generally showed that Britain and Tsarist Russia were advancing towards Central Asia from the south to the north, forming a confrontation.
British-Russian confrontation situation
When the situation reached a deadlock, their eyes began to shift.
Xinjiang, China, next to Afghanistan, has become the second battlefield.
They were not only interested in Xinjiang's geographical location as a threat to each other, but in hindsight they also coveted Xinjiang's rich products and future strategic threats to the Qing government.
So Xinjiang has become a battleground for these two greedy people.
At this time, in 1842, the Qing government lost the Opium War and signed the " Treaty of Nanjing".
Lin Zexu was exiled to Xinjiang. Naturally, Lin Zexu had a panoramic view of the small actions of Britain and Russia in Central Asia.
Lin Zexu inspected Xinjiang
The Zhanggeer and Zhuo riots that occurred from 1820 to 1828 had British influence.
In northern Xinjiang, Tsarist Russia has openly adopted a policy of encroaching on my country's border territories. For example, they built fortresses on the Irtysh River and expanded to Xinjiang.
At that time, the strength of the troops stationed in Xinjiang was not weakened to the extreme, so the British and Russian plans failed to succeed.
But if there is no big problem now, it does not mean that there will be no problem in the future.
Lin Zexu clearly understood that when the strategic goals of Britain and Russia were completely transferred from Central Asia to Xinjiang, there would definitely be chaos here in the future.
Therefore, he began to prepare for a rainy day and actively participated in the work of farming, stocking up on food and improving his combat effectiveness.
But three years later, before the crisis he expected, the imperial court transferred him out of Xinjiang.
So he could only worry silently until 1849 when he found someone who could quell the crisis in Xinjiang in the future - Zuo Zongtang.
That year he passed by Changsha and invited Zuo Zongtang to come on board and talk about it.
He handed all the Xinjiang information and maps he had compiled to Zuo Zongtang, hoping that Zuo Zongtang would step forward when the Xinjiang crisis broke out.
Lin Zexu and Zuo Zongtang discussed Xinjiang on the ship
Later, in 1850, Lin Zexu died of illness on his way to Guangxi to suppress the God-Worship Uprising.
Returning to Central Asia, the current Governor-General of India was Ripon, who adopted an isolationist policy.
So Russia gained momentum and ate up all the Central Asian khanates in one fell swoop, marched to Afghanistan, and marched directly to the door of India.
At this time, Britain felt that the crisis was coming, and hurriedly reconciled with Russia, demarcated the border between Afghanistan and Russia, and used the entire Afghanistan as a buffer zone.
Originally, Tsarist Russia could disagree and continue fighting. But as he fought, he found that the Afghans were too difficult to fight, so he agreed to reach a settlement with the British.
But reconciliation does not mean that we no longer want the outlet of the Indian Ocean.
There was no way to get through Afghanistan, so they shifted their target to Xinjiang, planning to move south from the flank and attack India.
At this time in Xinjiang, because the flames of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom spread here, it triggered an uprising among people of all ethnic groups.
The results of the uprising were then occupied by feudal lords of various ethnic groups and religious elites. As a result, five feudal separatist regimes emerged:
The Jin Xiangyin and Sidik regimes centered on Kashgar (today's Kashgar City);
The Tuoming regime centered on Urumqi;
The regime centered on Kuqa The Huang Hezhuo regime;
the Mahfodi and Habibullah Khan regimes centered on Hotan (today Hotan County );
the Mizimuzhat regime centered on Ili .
Separate regimes and melee
The melee between these separatist regimes made it impossible for Xinjiang to organize effective anti-invasion capabilities, so this allowed Britain and Russia to see the opportunity to invade Xinjiang.
Foreign invasion
In January 1865, the Kim Sang-yin and Sidik regimes, who were caught in a melee of separatist regimes, asked for help from the Kokand Khanate in the west of Xinjiang, my country.
So the ambitious Agub brought Busuluk, known as the " saint ", and 50 cavalry to Kashgar.
Agube bandits
Then he immediately showed ruthless political methods. He united with Busuluk to launch a mutiny and drove away Sidik.
After embezzling Sidik's power, he formed a gang of several thousand people. In April, he supported Busuluk as the Great Khan and established the Zhedeshar Khanate , which means the Seven Cities Khanate.
Immediately afterwards, he used Sidik's shell to join the melee within Xinjiang.
In the autumn of 1865, Kokand was defeated by the Bukhara Khanate supported by Russia, and 7,000 remnants fled into Xinjiang and took refuge in Agub.
Agubai, who later obtained this power, used it in operations in southern Xinjiang and successively conquered Yarkand and Hotan.
Busuluk panicked at this time. On the surface, he and Agubai were in the same group.
But he knew that when he first established Khan, his strength was stronger than Aqubai, but in thirty years Hedong, thirty years Hexi , the situation has changed.
Therefore, he had to strike first and then create another mutiny to drive away Aguba. But failed, and he was driven back to Haokand by Agub.
Then Agubah made Busuluk's cousin Qatar the Great Khan. But these brothers are naturally rebellious and don't want to be subordinate to others. They just don't want to be puppets.
So Qatar was even more unlucky than his brother. The plan had not even started to be hatched, but he was directly poisoned.
This time Agub became the Great Khan and established the Hongfu Khanate.
Hongfu Khanate
Then he immediately marched north, defeated Rexiding and captured Aksu, captured Kuqa, Korla, and occupied the entire southern Xinjiang.
Agube became a puppet of Britain and Russia
At this time, Agube's activities in southern Xinjiang attracted the attention of the British, and they winked at each other.
Agubai wanted an umbrella, and Daiying wanted a puppet, so they had a clear understanding and they hooked up.
In 1868, the British sent a special envoy to meet with Agub, recognized his regime, presented a large number of arms, and allowed him to recruit craftsmen in India to return to Kashgar to set up a military factory.
Looking at the British in action, Russia is certainly not idle either. He was very domineering and directly coerced Agub to become its vassal state, and also took an offensive stance.
Therefore, Agubo does not dare to resist Russia and pleases both Britain and Russia, so one can be the father and the other the mother.
Agub held talks with British representatives
Agub was also very shameful. In order to consolidate his dominance in Xinjiang, he directly used China's territorial sovereignty as a bargaining chip in the transaction to win the support of Britain and Russia.
Therefore, in order to extend its claws further north of the Tianshan Mountains, the British sent a delegation to southern Xinjiang to deliver several cannons and 10,000 rifles specially designed for the army to Agub.
Agub was not satisfied and sent two delegations to London. The Queen of England also gave Agubah 60,000 rifles and equipment for a repair shop.
At this time, Aguba had become a lackey of the British. In order to get the asylum of Britain, he could say to the Christians in a low voice:
"The Queen is like the sun, and in her gentle sunshine, poor people like me can grow and prosper well."
It can be seen that the Aguba regime It is the colonial regime established by foreign invaders in Xinjiang. There is no doubt about it.
In 1870, with the support of the United Kingdom, the Aguba gang crossed the Tianshan Mountains and captured Urumqi, seized Turpan, and cut off the connection between the Hexi Corridor and Xinjiang.
Agubai continued to march north to conquer northern Xinjiang
Russia also suddenly sent troops to Ili. The local people of all ethnic groups rose up to resist and fought for 50 days, but eventually fell.
After that, Russia brazenly announced that "Ili will forever belong to Russia."
Afterwards, Britain and Russia reached a reconciliation, mutually recognized the rationality of their respective regimes, and divided Xinjiang.
Even in 1874, the British Minister to China Waitoma suggested to Li Hongzhang that Ili in Xinjiang, China should be given to Russia, and the southern foothills of the Tianshan Mountains should be given to Aguba.
It can be seen that Xinjiang is already in a serious crisis, and the calls for the recovery of Xinjiang in China are getting louder and louder.
For the people of Xinjiang living under the Agube regime, they want to get rid of Agube's bloody rule all the time.
Some people even traveled long distances over mountains and ridges to Beijing to report the situation in Xinjiang to the Qing government and beg the court to send troops.
The Xinjiang issue attracted attention
In 1871, Zuo Zongtang was suppressing the Hui rebellion in Shaanxi and Gansu.
After he heard the news about Russia's invasion of Ili, he immediately sent Xu Zhanbiao to Suzhou to replace the Urumqi Admiral Cheng Lu who was unwilling to leave the customs and try to stabilize Xinjiang.
Then he hurriedly wrote a book for Liu Jintang who was recovering in Hunan, hoping that he would recruit thousands of elite soldiers and quickly return to Gansu to discuss matters in Xinjiang.
In 1872, Zuo Zongtang wrote successive letters stating the serious consequences of Russia's occupation of Ili, proposing a military strategy for regaining Xinjiang, and expressing the proposition that "no inch of national territory can be used by others."
Zuo Zongtang put down the Hui rebellion
He hoped that the imperial court would remove Urumqi Admiral Chenglu, who had repeatedly evaded war, withheld grain, concealed the number of battalions, overpaid the army, and even falsely reported victory.
In 1874, Zuo Zongtang conquered Suzhou, quelled the rebellion of the Hui people in Shaanxi and Gansu, and freed up his hands to shift his focus outside the pass.
The dispute over maritime and land borders
However, just as the preparations for the recovery of Xinjiang were in full swing, the maritime border was in danger.
On May 6, 1874, the Japanese government sent Army Lieutenant General Saigo Congdou and led 3,000 troops to invade Taiwan.
Although the Qing government sent Fuzhou Shipping Minister Shen Baozhen to lead a self-built ship to Taiwan for defense, which stabilized the situation. However, due to pressure, Japan was compensated 500,000 taels of silver, causing it to withdraw from Taiwan.
Japan invaded Taiwan
However, when they were eager to regain Xinjiang, some landlords and comprador classes headed by Li Hongzhang were preparing to pay the bills.
They believe that Xinjiang is remote and lacking in supplies, and is surrounded by British and Russian forces. Even if it is regained, it will be difficult to defend it for a long time, and the cost is too high. It is better to abandon Xinjiang and use the money to buy foreign weapons.
Friends who are familiar with history all know that the comprador class in the late Qing Dynasty used the state's money to buy obsolete or substandard foreign products and made a large portion of it themselves.
The Sino-Japanese War is the best example. Five out of ten artillery shells bought from foreigners were dumb cannons, which were far inferior to weapons made by oneself.
Therefore, the Qing government could not make up its mind about coastal defense and land defense, so the Military Aircraft Department sent comments on the dispute between coastal defense and fortress defense to Gansu in the form of a secret edict.
After receiving the secret edict, Zuo Zongtang submitted the "Report on the Situation of Coastal Defense and the Suppression of Grain Transportation Outside the Customs" and the "Secret Exhibition of Compliance with the Edict" on March 7.
Zuo Zongtang wrote a letter to refute Li Hongzhang
In which he refuted Li Hongzhang's arguments and proposed the idea of equal emphasis on recovering Xinjiang and strengthening coastal defense.
Then he considered the overall interests of the Chinese nation, reviewed Qianlong's use of troops to unify the country in Xinjiang, and pointed out the overall strategic significance of Xinjiang:
"Those who restore Xinjiang will protect Mongolia, and those who protect Mongolia will defend the capital."
If Xinjiang is lost This means that there will be nothing to hold on to in the future, and foreign troops can drive straight in through the Hexi Corridor to disrupt Mongolia and approach Beijing.
Hexi Corridor
Under this memorial, the Qing court finally adopted Zuo Zongtang’s ideas. He also broke the rule that Han officials could not intervene in Xinjiang affairs, appointed him as the imperial minister, supervised the military affairs of Xinjiang, and granted him various powers such as the use of troops outside the customs and the transfer of food and wages.
Therefore, after several years of planning for Xinjiang, Zuo Zongtang was finally able to take charge of affairs and send troops outside the customs to regain Xinjiang.
But before that, he must first solve the problem of food and wages.
He could easily solve the food problem. When the rebellion was put down in Shaanxi and Gansu, he devoted himself to improving people's livelihood and helped the people of Shaanxi and Gansu to avoid paying taxes for several years.
Moreover, under the policy of recruiting people to farm, Gansu's productivity was restored, and the army was able to purchase military rations reasonably.
Then he set up the Northern Bureau in Hohhot, Mongolia to be responsible for the supply of the North Route Army, and the Southern Bureau in Jiuquan to be responsible for the supply of the South Route Army.
In addition, he had previously ordered Zhang Yao to go out of customs to Hami , purchase food, reclaim wasteland, and set up emergency dispatch points to supply food to the north and south roads.
Support private transportation
Therefore, after nearly a year of preparation, Zuo Zongtang formulated a complete strategic plan.
The general plan is to first recover Urumqi, pacify northern Xinjiang, then go south to pacify southern Xinjiang, and then advance westward to Ili to intimidate Tsarist Russia.
Each battle implements the strategic thinking of "slowly advance and rush to fight", and gather superior forces to annihilate the enemy.
The battle to regain Xinjiang began
html On March 16, 1876, Zuo Zongtang left Lanzhou and headed west, arriving in Suzhou to command the strategic decisive battle to regain Xinjiang.In early April, Liu Jintang led his troops out of the customs and headed for Hami. In May, Xu Zhanbiao left the customs and stationed in Barkol.
In Xinjiang, there are already Hami Zhang Yao's Chongwu Army, and Jinshun active in Jimusa and the ancient city area.
The first strategic target of the Western Expedition is Urumqi, Manas on the North Road, and the Agubai gang stationed here is the rebel Bai Yanhu who fled to Xinjiang from Shaanxi and Gansu.
html On July 21, Liu Jintang arrived at Jimusa and met with Jinshun's troops. They both entered Fukang on July 28, preparing to attack the ancient pastoral area where the elite rebel army was located.After Bai Yanhu learned that the Western Expeditionary Army had arrived near the ancient pasture land, he moved here from Urumqi, trying to fight with his elite troops.
html On August 21, Liu Jintang made final preparations. At night, he and Jin Shun's troops attacked Huangtian at night. The next morning, they occupied Huangtian Jianka and surrounded the ancient pastureland.
Night attack on Huangtian
Liu Jintang began to attack the city on the 24th. Each battalion fought bravely and captured the ancient pastureland on August 28th. Bai Huyan led the remaining troops to flee south. The
army took advantage of the situation and marched straight into Urumqi on August 29. Until the Western Expeditionary Army won this key battle, Urumqi returned to the embrace of the motherland.
html On September 21, the Liu and Jin tribes took advantage of the momentum to capture Manas City, and all the Agubai gang's influence in northern Xinjiang was driven away.At a time when the morale of the army was at its peak and they wanted to go south to conquer Aguba, Zuo Zongtang ordered the army to rest in place and warned Liu Jintang that he still needed to adopt the strategy and tactics of "slow advance and rush to fight". He should not take it lightly and keep an eye on the enemy to the west. Tsarist Russia, prevent them from interfering.
Recover Northern Xinjiang (except Ili)
At this time, Agubai was in Dabancheng, Toksun and Turpan organized a horn defense line.
In order to deal the final blow to Agubai, Zuo Zongtang decided to march into southern Xinjiang in the spring of the next year.
During the period, he asked all ministries to rest and replenish military supplies, and mobilized the "Zhuosheng Army" from Baotou, Shanxi to replace Liu Jintang in guarding Urumqi, while Jinshun was stationed west of Manas to guard against sudden attacks by the Russian army.
On the first day of March 1877, the army set off. Liu Jintang led the Mabu battalions and artillery teams from Urumqi over the mountains to the south and marched into Dabancheng.
On the other side, Zhang Yao and Xu Zhanbiao marched westward to Turpan from Hami and Barkol respectively, forming an attack posture from the east and north against Aguba's main force.
Besieging Daban City
Agubai was frightened by the combat effectiveness of the Western Expeditionary Army, and quickly asked Britain for help, hoping that his master could persuade the Qing government to allow him to "establish a country" in southern Xinjiang.
But when Zuo Zongtang heard from the Prime Minister's Office that Britain was going to beg for surrender and "found the country" on Agub's behalf, he pointed out mercilessly:
The British were simply trying to use Xinjiang to prevent the Russians from going south and protect their property in India. That’s all.
He showed the British that his confidence and determination to march into southern Xinjiang could not be shaken.
On the third day of March, Liu Jintang led his troops to Chaiwopu , and deployed troops that night to blockade Dabancheng without the enemy being aware of it.
launched an attack early the next morning. Liu Jintang took the lead in the charge. After his mount was shot, he changed horses and continued to kill the enemy.
After several days of fierce fighting, the army successfully captured Dabancheng on the seventh day of March.
Then on the 11th, they continued their night march and divided their troops into two groups at Baiyang River. The Taoist priest Luo Changhuchi went to Turpan to join Zhang Yao, and Liu Jintang led the troops to attack Tuokexun.
Toksun City was captured in the morning of the 13th day. On the same day, Zhang Yao, Xu Zhanbiao, Luo Changhu and other troops captured Turpan.
At this time, the Western Expedition army moving south was unstoppable. Aguba collapsed under the powerful offensive and committed suicide by taking medicine in Korla in April.
Agube committed suicide by taking medicine
Agube Group fell apart.
After four months of rest, the Western Expeditionary Army marched toward the eight southern cities, completely wiping out the remaining forces and recovering all of Xinjiang except Ili.
Then the Qing government sent Chonghou to negotiate with Russia to recover Ili.
Zuo Zongtang was worried and sent Jinshun's army to guard the key passes and cut off the supply to Yili.
But in Russia, Chonghou signed the " Sino-Russian Ili Treaty" that was humiliating and humiliating the country.
Although Ili was brought back in the treaty, important areas such as the west of the Horgos River, the Tekes River Basin and the Musul Pass in China were ceded to Russia.
This resulted in the loss of all the important defensive areas to the west and south of Ili, and also gave Russia the rights to "pay on behalf of others" and to trade and tax-free.
This incident spread to the country, and the whole country was outraged and demanded that the contract be changed.
Zuo Zongtang also responded to this. He actively mobilized the army, went out to station troops in Hami, and requested the imperial court to dismiss Chonghou from his post and hand him over to the Ministry of Punishment for prosecution.
The imperial court adopted his suggestion and decided to send Zeng Guofan's son Zeng Jize as an envoy to negotiate, and ordered Zuo Zongtang to make military preparations.
On May 26, 11880, Zuo Zongtang personally led an army to carry the coffin and set off for the battle.
All the way from Jinshun to station Jinghe Feint attack from the front to contain the main force of the Russian army and prevent the Russian army from invading eastward;
All the way from Zhang Yao crossed the Tianshan Mountains from Aksu and attacked the southern part of Ili;
went all the way from Liu Jintang through the Wushi Ice Ridge to the back road to the west of Ili, forming a sure-fire situation for the Russian army.
However, just when Zuo Gong was full of confidence in this war, the Qing government compromised under the intimidation of Russia.
At that time, Russia sent 20 warships to Nagasaki, Japan, threatening to block China's coast and intimidate Beijing.
Then the British also sided with the Russians and sent Gordon to lobby Li Hongzhang and threatened him:
"If you want to fight, burn the suburbs of Beijing and move the government archives and the emperor from Beijing to Li Hongzhang was frightened, and the Qing government transferred Zuo Zongtang back to Beijing.
Zuo Zongtang was not intimidated. He continued to fight, but he could not reverse the will of the entire court. After
left office, he asked the court to let Liu Jintang, who was leading the battle, take over the military affairs of Xinjiang.
Zeng Jize, who was in Russia, relied on Zuo Zongtang's defense deployment in Xinjiang as a backing and still argued hard.
signed the "Revised Treaty" with Russia on February 24, 1881 to regain its sovereignty, but it still had to pay compensation, which continued unabated. It was still an unequal treaty. But Xinjiang is back.
Conclusion
In 1884, at the strong suggestion of Zuo Zongtang, Xinjiang was officially established as a province on November 17.
Since then, Xinjiang has become closer to the motherland.
In Xinjiang, which had been tempered by the war, under Zuo Zongtang's series of measures, they learned how to take advantage of climate characteristics, how to grow cotton , and how to weave, so the production level gradually improved.
Regarding Zuo Gong’s contribution to the entire northwest, including Xinjiang, Yang Changjun, who later came to Xinjiang to deal with the aftermath, wrote a poem about it:
The general’s preparations have not yet been returned
The descendants of Hunan are all over the Tianshan Mountains
Three thousand miles of newly planted willows
attracted Spring breeze passes through Jade Pass
Xinjiang will always belong to China.
