Background introduction to the Battle of Jiaozhi between Jin and Wu

Background introduction to the Battle of Jin-Wu Jiaozhi

The Battle of Jin-Wu Jiaozhi was a war between Wei (later the Western Jin Dynasty) and Wu from 263 to 271 to compete for Jiaozhi and other three counties. . In 263, the Lü Xing Rebellion broke out in Jiaozhi, and Lü Xing sought refuge with the Wei State, which had just pacified the Shu Han Dynasty. After the establishment of the Western Jin Dynasty, the Shu Han generals and Nanzhong surnames actively managed Jiaozhi and other counties, and repelled the Wu army's attacks many times.

In 271, Xue Jue and Tao Huang of Wu State led 100,000 troops to attack Jiaozhi (today's north bank of Tiande River in Vietnam). The city ran out of food and supplies and fell to Wu. The Jin governors Yang Ji and Mao Ling were captured. Jiuzhen and Rinan both surrendered to Wu.

Jiaozhou is located in the south of Lingnan and has a vast territory. It is bordered by the sea in the south and blocked by five ridges in the north. It is regarded as a barren land. For the Qin and Han Empires, its ruling center was in the Central Plains. The Yangtze River Basin at that time was still relatively backward. , let alone the border areas south of Lingnan. The country is crisscrossed by mountains and rivers, the geographical environment and ethnic conditions are complicated, the transportation is extremely difficult, and the local ethnic groups have rebelled repeatedly. It is very difficult to truly control it.

When he became emperor of the Han Dynasty, Du Qin persuaded the general Wang Feng: "I think it is a barren land and the people are useless. The holy king will not work for China. It is better to abolish the counties, abandon the people and eliminate the princes. Don't reopen." This kind of view of "dismissing the county and abandoning the people" was not uncommon at the time, and represented the common view of people at that time on this barbaric area.

After the formation of the Three Kingdoms, various political powers competed with each other, and the marginal areas in the past received attention. The Shu Han pacified Nanzhong, which had the effect of "the military resources came out, and the country became rich". The four southern counties of Jiaozhou (Jiaozhi, Hepu, Jiuzhen, and Rinan) were divided by Shixie in the late Eastern Han Dynasty and were greatly developed.

In 226, Lu Dai put down the Dingshihui rebellion and incorporated the four southern counties of Jiaozhou into Sun Wu's territory. Although Jiaozhou is remote, it has unique natural resources. It is rich in fish and salt. It is also a major trading place in the South China Sea trade, such as pearls, incense, ivory, rhinoceros horn, tortoise shell, coral, colored glaze, parrots, jade, peacocks and other rare products. Items flow to various places from here.

These luxury goods can not only meet the needs of the rulers of Sun Wu, but are also widely favored by the wealthy families in the Central Plains. The rulers of Cao Wei have obtained them through diplomatic channels many times. This is still the case among the officials of the two countries, and the exchange of materials through private trade activities is even more conceivable. At the same time, Jiaozhou’s population resources cannot be ignored.

Since the end of the Han Dynasty, the vast and sparsely populated Lingnan area has ushered in a climax of immigration. According to scholars’ research, the number of people who moved to Lingnan in the more than 100 years from the end of the Han Dynasty to the Three Kingdoms reached 778,474. The significance of the Sun Wu regime is very important.

In 263 AD, Wei destroyed Shu, marking a drastic change in the political and military situation of the Three Kingdoms. The original tripartite confrontation suddenly turned into a confrontation between the south and the north. For Wei (Jin), the acquisition of Shu undoubtedly gave it more strategic choices. Not only could it launch an offensive down the river from Yizhou in the upper reaches, but it could also directly threaten Sun Wu's rear through Nanzhong. Jiaozhou area, thus forming a three-sided encirclement trend. Just when the Shu Han was destroyed, the Lu Xing Rebellion broke out in Jiaozhou, which provided an opportunity for Wei (Jin) to invade Jiaozhou.

Wei (Jin) took advantage of this war as an opportunity, relied heavily on Shu to surrender its generals, and adopted the strategy of "Shu people making diplomatic relations" by sending troops to pay the state, which dealt a heavy blow to Wu; and Sun Wu fell into the war of handing over the state. The quagmire lasted for eight years, and a heavy price was paid to regain the lost land in Jiaozhou. This war seriously depleted Sun Wu's national strength and accelerated its demise to a certain extent.

During the war, Soochow established Guangzhou to rule Guangdong and Guangxi, while Jiaozhou (Jiaozhi, Jiuzhen, Rinan, and Hepu) ruled northern Vietnam and southern Guangxi. At this point, Jiaozhou and Guangzhou The situation of separation is finally finalized.