Japan has invaded our country through the Korean Peninsula many times in history. Among them, the larger-scale Sino-Japanese wars included the Anti-Japanese War from 1931 to 1945, the Sino-Japanese Sino-Japanese War of 1894 , and the Ming Dynasty War to Resist Japan and Aid Korea from 1592 to 1599. In this series of battles to counter Japanese aggression and safeguard national sovereignty and dignity, a large number of people with lofty ideals fought to the death with their blood and lives, composing one tragic heroic hymn after another.
It is worth mentioning that in the history of our country’s counterattack against Japanese aggression, there was such a national hero. He was born into a family of generals and defeated the Japanese army twice in a row. After returning home, he died heroically in the bloody battle with Mongolia. He was General Li Rusong, the commander of the first war to resist Japan and aid Korea in the Ming Dynasty.
picture above_ Li Rusong (1549 - May 8, 1598), whose courtesy name was Zimao and whose nickname was Yangcheng, had a wonderful military career before resisting Japan and aiding Korea. Li Rusong was born in Tieling, Liaodong in 1549. When he was a boy, he followed his father, Li Chengliang, to fight and was familiar with the military. Xu Wei, who once served as Hu Zongxian's staff, taught Li Rusong the art of war. Later, because Wu Jinshi inherited his father's admiration, he was awarded the official position of commanding Tongzhi. Filled with the title of Ning Yuanbo. Later, because of his military exploits, he was transferred to the Commander-in-Chief, Qian Shi, and promoted to the deputy right general of the Shenji Battalion. In 1583, Li Rusong served as the chief military officer of Shanxi.
During Li Rusong's military career, he once made suggestions to Emperor Wanli , saying that Li Chengliang and Li Rusong should not be in charge of important military towns together. Emperor Wanli issued an edict to transfer Li Rusong to the Youjun Dudu Mansion. In the matter, Shao Shu said that Li Rusong and his younger brother Li Rubai had committed illegal acts, but Emperor Wanli still trusted Li Rusong and did not adopt the suggestions in the matter.
592, Ningxia senior military officer Kuaibai colluded with Hetao Mongolia to launch a rebellion. The troops of the Ming army who put down the rebellion were not in a good position to fight. On the recommendation of Mei Guozhen, the imperial censor, Li Rusong served as the chief military officer of Shaanxi's rebellion and led the main force of the Ming army to quell the rebellion.
Pictured above_ Li Chengliang (1526-1615), also known as Ruqi
Li Rusong's superb military command ability can be seen from the pacification of the Kuaibai Rebellion. Li Rusong just took the lead in ordering Magui to lead the Ming army to attack the rebel reinforcements Mongolian Hetao troops. After fierce fighting, the Ming army defeated the Mongolian Hetao tribe and drove them to the north of the Helan Mountains, cutting off the rebels' foreign aid.
After inspecting Ningxia's city defenses, Li Rusong ordered the digging of the Yellow River to cut off foreign aid to the rebels in the city. Foreign aid ran out of ammunition and food, and internal fighting broke out. By September, Li Rusong commanded the Ming army to attack the city. Kuaibai surrendered to Li Rusong.
Li Rusong adopted siege tactics to eliminate the rebels by digging into the Yellow River and cutting off foreign aid. In terms of military tactics, it was superior to a desperate attack.
Then during the subsequent War to Resist Japan and Aid Korea, Li Rusong achieved a combination of wisdom and bravery and achieved brilliant victories in consecutive defeats of the Japanese army.
picture above_ Toyotomi Hideyoshi (March 17, 1537 - September 18, 1598), formerly known as Kinoshita Tenkichiro , Hashiba Hideyoshi
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In 11592, Toyotomi Hideyoshi sent 150,000 troops to attack North Korea on a large scale. In just two months, most of North Korea's territory was captured by the Japanese army. In December 1592, Emperor Wanli issued an edict, ordering the Ming army, which had just achieved a great victory in the Ningxia battlefield, to serve as admiral of the Eastern Expedition and lead more than 30,000 Chinese troops across the Yalu River to resist Japan and aid Korea. On December 25, the soldiers of the Ming Army marched eastward under the leadership of Li Rusong. In this way, Li Rusong stepped onto the core stage of resisting Japan and aiding Korea.
html In the first month of 11593, the Ming army arrived at Pyongyang City. The opponent of the Ming army is the Japanese army's Konishi Yukinagabu.
So during the Battle of Pyongyang, Li Rusong adopted the following methods to attack the Japanese troops guarding Pyongyang at a relatively small cost.
Pictured above_ Konishi Yukinaga (1558-1600)
First, he used military tactics such as false defeats and feigned attacks to confuse the Japanese army.
At noon on the sixth day of the first lunar month , the southern soldiers of the Ming army and the Korean soldiers held up iron shields and pretended to attack Mudanfeng. They encountered resistance from the Japanese army and the Ming army retreated. When the Japanese troops in Songshan City took the opportunity to come out to snatch the spoils of war, the Ming army launched a counterattack. After a two-hour confrontation between the two armies, the Ming army withdrew again. That night, the Japanese army dispatched more than 3,000 troops to attack the Ming army's positions. The Ming army extinguished the lights in the camp and created lighting strips outside the camp. The Japanese army seemed unclear about the Ming army's true intentions, and finally withdrew their troops and returned to camp.
After confusing the Japanese army, Li Rusong wrote to the Japanese general Konishi Governor, hoping that Konishi Governor would surrender to the Ming army. Governor Konishi asked the Ming army to retreat 30 miles in order to write a letter of surrender. Li Rusong knew that Governor Konishi's so-called "surrender" was actually a delaying tactic, so he ordered a combat force to attack the ordinary gate of Pyongyang City, and then retreated. The Japanese army opened the door and went out of the city to look for the Ming army, but 30 people were killed by the Ming army.
So this series of confusing actions made it difficult for the Japanese army to figure out what the Ming army’s true intentions were? Li Rusong's wisdom in quelling the Kuaibai Rebellion in Ningxia was applied in the Battle of Pyongyang.
Above picture_ The Ming army attacking the city
Second, reward the officers and soldiers heavily and lead the army to attack the city.
After the offensive began, Li Rusong agreed on the military law and informed the officers and soldiers that the first officer and soldier to climb the Pyongyang city wall would be given 10,000 taels of silver and a hereditary commander. There must be brave men under the heavy reward, and the Ming army immediately launched successive siege operations. Pyongyang City is 3 to 4 meters high and the terrain is steep. The Japanese army relied on strong fortifications to resist desperately. During the battle, Li Rusong personally led 200 soldiers to the front line to command back and forth, and also beheaded a Ming army soldier who retreated from the battle to the gates of Pyongyang.
Due to Li Rusong's leadership, the generals of the Ming army performed very bravely. For example, Wu Weizhong was shot in the chest, but he still commanded on the front line. Luo Shangzhi was crushed under the masonry and his feet were injured, but Luo Shangzhi still fought bravely to attack the city. Li Rusong's own mount was hit by the Japanese army. Li Rusong changed his mount and continued to supervise the battle. Li Rusong and the generals are so brave, one can only imagine the bravery of ordinary soldiers.
Pictured above_ Crouching Tiger Cannon , with a short range, suitable for mountain combat, flexible, and similar to the later mortar
Third, the artillery attack.
The Battle of Pyongyang commanded by Li Rusong not only used deception to confuse the Japanese army, but also personally commanded the battle on the front line. Another factor was artillery. The Ming army invested in heavy weapons such as general cannon and tiger crouching cannon, which played an important role in the siege campaign.
During the Battle of Pyongyang, the Ming army beheaded 1,285 Japanese soldiers and captured 2,985 horses. There are more than 450 weapons of various types. However, the actual number of Japanese soldiers killed in the battle exceeded 10,000. The Ming army sacrificed 796 people and injured 1,492 people, winning the Battle of Pyongyang at a relatively small cost of casualties. After the Battle of Pyongyang, the Japanese army was worried that Li Rusong would lead the army south. Abandoned the 13 villages between Seoul and Pyongyang, and retreated to Seoul to preserve their strength. This shows the psychological shock of the Ming army towards the Japanese army.
Picture above_ February 1593 The Battle of Bi Tie Guan
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The Battle of Bi Tie Guan was an encounter between the Ming army and the Japanese army. At that time, a leading force of the Ming army headed for Seoul. The first half of the Ming army's vanguard was 3,000 people led by zu Chengxun, Li Ning and other generals. The second half consisted of 2,000 troops led by Li Rusong, including , Yang Yuan, Li Rubai and Zhang Shijue.
At the beginning of the battle, the Japanese company headquarters and the Ming army's vanguard started a fierce battle. The Ming army's Cha Da Shou tribe beheaded 130 Japanese soldiers and won a victory. Zha Damou reported his victory to Li Rusong. After receiving the news, Li Rusong led his troops to Biti Pavilion to check the situation.
Due to the heavy losses of the Japanese army Tachibana Munemobe, the Japanese army quickly dispatched reinforcements of more than 10,000 people. So in the entire Battle of Bitiguan, the Japanese reinforcements reached more than 17,000 people. The Ming army's troops around Li Rusong were only more than 1,000 people, and there were 3,000 Ming army cavalry who took the lead in fighting the Japanese army. It was obvious that the enemy was strong and we were weak.
Above picture_ Diagram of the Battle of Biti Hall
But Li Rusong and the generals were not afraid. After the battle began in full, Li Rusong led a group of soldiers to directly attack the Japanese troops stationed in the Toishixian area. The Ming army suppressed the Japanese army with magical arrows, and the Japanese army shot at the Ming army with matchlock guns . After a fierce battle, the Japanese army could not hold on and retreated to Toishi Xian Mountain. At the critical moment when Li Rusong was taking advantage of the victory, another group of Japanese troops stationed on the right side of the pass launched a charge under the command of Inoue Keizhen and attacked Li Rusong. The Japanese troops who retreated to Toishi Xian also attacked Li Rusong. Li Rusong's troops were surrounded by Japanese troops.
Li Rusong led the Ming army in a deadly battle and bravely broke through. The Japanese army Utaka Hideya all came to attack the Ming army at Bokuto Pavilion. However, the Liaodong Army of the Ming Army showed very strong combat effectiveness. With the support of Yang Yuan, Li Rusong finally broke through the Japanese encirclement. Many servants around Li Rusong died heroically, including Li Yousheng himself. The Ming army annihilated more than 4,000 Japanese troops at the cost of losing 1,000 people. The Japanese army's mission to encircle the Ming army failed.
The Battle of Pyongyang and the Battle of Byokkwan became the pinnacle battles of Li Rusong's military career. Li Rusong became a national hero of China's anti-aggression war. Due to his outstanding military exploits, the imperial court appointed Li Rusong as the Taibao of the Crown Prince and the Left Commander of the Central Military Command Left Commander.
picture above_ Items used by Li Rusong
Li Rusong made the following contributions to the victory of the War to Resist Japan and Aid Korea:
First, he unified command of the Ming army to fight against Japan, and won the battle of Pyongyang and the Battle of Byokkwan, annihilating 15,000 Japanese troops, regaining Pyongyang, Wangjing and other important cities in Korea. It dealt a heavy blow to the arrogance of the Japanese army and forced the Japanese army to negotiate with the Ming Dynasty.
Second, Li Rusong ordered Zha Damou and Li Rumei to burn down the Japanese army's large grain warehouses in Longshan, burning all 13 grain warehouses with hundreds of thousands of stones of grain, which dealt a heavy blow to the Japanese army's logistical supplies. The Japanese army was besieged on all sides.
Third, interrogate Japanese prisoners of war to obtain intelligence and master first-hand information. For example, Li Rusong once interrogated Japanese soldiers Shen Ruluo and made a new assessment of the Japanese military strength in Seoul. Based on the situation of the war, the Ming army suggested that the court send more reinforcements to the front line and deploy troops in coastal areas to guard against Japanese attacks on the coast.
Pictured above_ Emperor Wanli, Zhu Yijun (1563-1620), the Ming Shenzong
- died heroically in the bloody battle with Mongolia
Unfortunately, Li Rusong did not see the final victory of resisting Japan and aiding Korea.
After returning to China, Li Rusong received a high degree of trust and support from Emperor Wanli, who appointed Li Rusong as the chief military officer of Liaodong. Some people in the court held different opinions, but Emperor Wanli firmly believed in Li Rusong's ability. According to historical records, Li Rusong "felt the knowledge of the emperor and became more energetic."
In 11597, the Mongolian Tatar invaded Liaodong, and the Ming army and the Mongolian troops launched a fierce battle. Li Rusong commanded the Ming army to attack the enemy's home base and fought bloody battles with tens of thousands of Mongolian troops. There were only 3,000 Ming troops around Li Rusong, while the enemy had a large number of troops. In the end, Li Rusong died heroically in the Hunhe River area. Emperor Wanli mourned deeply after learning the news that Li Rusong had died for his country. He posthumously awarded Li Rusong the title of Shaobao, Ning Yuanbo, and the posthumous title of "Zhonglie", and built a temple to commemorate Li Rusong's great achievements.
Author: Sun Yi Editor: Lilith
Reference:
[1] "Wanli Korean War" Liang Xiaotian Modern Publishing House
[2] "New Technology War in the Ming Empire" Li Huguang Taiwan Publishing House
The text is created by the History University Team, and the pictures are from the Internet. The copyright belongs to the original author
