Why were the tens of thousands of Seng Gelinqin's elites vulnerable in the Battle of Baliqiao?

text/Lonely red wine

The Battle of Bali Bridge was the most important battle in the Second Opium War. In August 1860, the British and French forces captured Dagukou in Tianjin. The commander of the Qing army and the Prince of Mongolia Seng Gelinqin led his troops to retreat to the Baliqiao area in Tongzhou. The brave and militant Seng Gelinqin believed that the British and French troops were not good at land warfare, and the number of British and French coalition forces landing was not many. Therefore, nearly 40,000 elite troops were assembled in the area of ​​Baliqiao, including tens of thousands of Mongolian cavalry, and they were preparing to fight the British and French coalition forces. . As a result, in this battle, Seng Gelinqin's 40,000 elites were vulnerable to a single blow, defeated, and beaten by the British and French forces so that they could not find the North. The most surprising thing is that in such a big melee, the British army only suffered more than 30 casualties, and the French lost more than 20 people. Many people can't help but wonder, why did the tens of thousands of Seng Gelinqin's elite lose so embarrassed in the Battle of Baliqiao?

Maybe most people will answer without hesitation, because the British and French coalition forces have an overwhelming weapon advantage. In fact, this is not entirely true. First of all, although the weapons of the Qing army are not as great as the British and French forces, they are not as far apart as imagined. The Qing army participating in the war was not only generally equipped with matchlock guns, but also equipped with a large number of artillery, not all cold weapons like those shown in TV dramas. In fact, the key to the defeat of the Qing army was the cold weapon showdown. To be precise, the British and French allied forces completely defeated the Qing army by hand-to-hand combat, and achieved the final victory through hand-to-hand combat. Z1z

Seng Green Qin's tens of thousands of soldiers and horses, although known as the elite of the Qing Dynasty, but in fact, most of them are mobs. The Qing army has been dignified for a long time and neglected in training. The guards in Beijing like Zhenghuangqiqi soldiers can be said to be superficial. The combat literacy of soldiers can not be compared with the British and French coalition forces. Although the monk king brought tens of thousands of cavalry, but they are still the same, relying on horses to fight and bravely rush up to fight with the enemy. What's more serious is that many Mongolian cavalry are herdsmen temporarily recruited from the grasslands, and their combat effectiveness can be imagined. The Anglo-French coalition forces are different. They have been screened at various levels and undergo rigorous scientific modernization training. They have strict discipline and strong combat effectiveness. Their tactical level and combat literacy are far beyond the Qing army. Many commanders in the Qing army, such as Shang Shu Ruilin of the Ministry of Rites, Vice Du Tong Shengbao, and others, were all inexperienced civilians and did not lead soldiers to fight at all. It was just that a group of mobs with little war experience confronted the well-equipped and battle-tested modern British and French troops, and the result was naturally predictable.

Although Seng Gelinqin's command was reasonably good and the morale of the Qing army was also very strong when charging, but after the fight, the Qing army was quickly defeated. Most of the Qing army, especially the local heroes and civic groups, quickly collapsed under the fierce fire from Britain and France, and fled in all directions. Although the courageous Mongolian cavalry rushed forward without fear of death, they were not the opponents of the British and French forces at all. The British Sikh and French dragoons on the opposite side were not only well-trained, but also possessed iron discipline and extraordinary courage. Facing the matchlock guns and bows of the Mongolian cavalry, they did not hesitate to cross the trench and rushed up, and the Mongolian cavalry started a hand-to-hand battle. The Sikh cavalry and the French dragoons riding high-headed horses rushed into a rampage. The Mongolian cavalry were not opponents at all, and quickly fled in all directions. When the cavalry in front collapsed, the infantry behind turned around and ran away. Soon the Qing army was defeated and became the target of allied massacres.

Compared with a modern army such as the British and French forces, the Qing army can be said to be backward in all respects, and is not at the same level as the British and French forces. Britain and France are equipped with sophisticated weapons and have received modern military training. The commander's military philosophy is even more unmatched by the Qing army. The British and French forces can withstand more than 20% of casualties and still continue to fight, while the Qing army, such a feudal army, collapsed when it reached 5% of casualties. This is the gap between the modern army and the feudal army. Seng Gelinqin’s cavalry is powerful, but it is still nothing more than a feudal army. The essence is still a herdsman on the grassland. With a brute force and horses, this kind of army can beat the Taiping Army and the Nian Army. But if you fight against the real modern forces, you will be beaten and collapsed. Although the Qing army had a large number of troops, the number of soldiers did not make much sense in front of the British and French troops armed to the teeth and received modernization training. The Qing army and the Anglo-French army differed in system, in ideology, and in concept. It can be said that there are essential differences. This is also the main reason why even if the Qing army later equipped with advanced guns, it was still not an opponent of the European and American armies. The French are so powerful, but their thinking became rigid. As a result, the French army, known as the "Army No. 1 in the world" during World War IIThe team, together with the British, was still defeated by the Germans, not to mention the corrupt and backward Qing army.

Reference materials: "The Second Opium War"