Is Wu Sangui a national hero?

Theory of separation from Qing dynasty

First, the traitor Wu Sangui "led" the Qing soldiers into the customs.

On the first day of March in the seventeenth year of Chongzhen (1644), Bianjiang, the company commander of Datong, surrendered to Dashun Army. Shi Jing shook. Because Datong is the gateway to the west of Gyeonggi, Datong has fallen and Beijing is in danger. At this point, Chongzhen could no longer bear the heavy responsibility of northern defense undertaken by Wu Sangui Department stationed in Ning Guan, and urged Wu Sangui to join Wei Shijing. In mid-March, Wu Sangui immediately moved in with hundreds of thousands of Liao people from Ningyuan area, arrived at Shanhaiguan on March 19 (Monday 16), and then led the army westward to both capitals. 22, Wu Sangui soldiers arrived in Yutian area. At this moment, they suddenly got the news that the capital fell into the hands of Chongzhen and hanged themselves. At the same time, knowing that Tang Tong, the company commander of Juyongguan in Ming Dynasty, had fallen to Dashun, Li Zicheng ordered him to take advantage of his weakness to occupy Shanhaiguan. Wu Sangui was in a dilemma and worried.

Just two or three days after Wu Sangui left Ningyuan, the Qing court in Shenyang was already packed. This is good news for them. The city of Ningyuan is undoubtedly a black hole in their brilliant career. This is a shame that they can't erase. At the beginning of the 11th year of Destiny (A.D. 1626), their powerful Khan Nurhachi led 60,000 troops to defeat in Ningyuan in a victory with the Ming court. Nurhachi was also shot. After the Qing army retreated to Shenyang, Nurhachi felt ashamed and angry all day long, and soon his injury (carbuncle on his back) worsened and he died. This butcher, who caused numerous disasters, finally finished his 68-year evil life. After some competition, Huang Taiji, the eighth son of Nurhachi, inherited the position of Khan.

In the first year of Tiancong (AD 1627), after the victory of Huang Taiji's invasion of Korea, he led the victorious army to pounce on Jinzhou and Ningyuan, aiming to win and avenge his father, which was a national shame. Unexpectedly, Zhao Lvjiao was determined to stick to Golden State and defend Ningyuan to the death with Yuan Chonghuan. After 8 jin j casualties pillow by, huang taiji had to submit to humiliation, withdraw from the enclosure. Manchu once again defeated Ningyuan at the gates.

In August of the eighth year of Chongde (AD 1643), Huang Taiji died suddenly. Master Fu Lin, Dourgen, Regent Jill Harlan. In order to establish prestige, in September, Gil Harlan couldn't wait to lead the army to storm the few remaining military strongholds outside the customs. He quickly attacked the occupied Housuo, Zhongqiansuo and Qiantunwei, but when he led an army to attack Ningyuan, he was met by loyal opposition of Wu Sangui. Ningyuan, this city is a nightmare for Manchu. From 1626 to 1643, the Qing army stormed three times and failed. However, I didn't expect it today. The Qing court was overjoyed. After hearing the news, Dourgen and others, who were eager to make contributions, immediately ordered that "the armament should be repaired, the grain and horses should be stored, and a big discussion should be held in early April."

From late March to early April, Wu Sangui wandered around Yongping and Yutian. Chongzhen died, and the Ming court died. He is looking for a way out like all the old ministers in the Ming Dynasty. And the shortest way out is to surrender Dashun. This does not violate the moral code. Dynasty changes, since ancient times. Since a poor monk in Ming Taizu has become the only thrill, why can't Li Zicheng be emperor?

Dashun's policy towards Wu Sangui is also surrender. Li Zicheng sent messengers to Sangui, gave four months' rations and forty-two thousand pieces of silver, and announced that "meritorious service will be rewarded". For Wu Jun, who has been short of salary for more than a year, this is really a timely help. Wu Sangui surrendered. At this critical moment, Wu Sangui received two documents. One is a letter from the messenger of Dashun who took his father Wu Xiang to persuade him to submit to Li Zicheng, and the other is a secret letter sent to Wu Sangui, detailing the process of his father being arrested and tortured by Liu Zongmin. His father has collected 52,000 pieces of silver, but it is far from Liu Zongmin's claim of 202,000 pieces. In addition, Wu Sangui's beloved concubine Chen Yuanyuan was also occupied by Liu Zongmin. Wu Sangui was furious. So he drew his sword and beheaded the case, and raised his account to perform the military field. He beheaded one of them, cut off the ear of the other, and made him rumor that Li Zicheng: "Li thief gave his head." At the same time, arise and return to defeat Tang Tong and recapture Shanhaiguan.

Wu Sangui changed from ambiguous attitude to open confrontation, which caused an uproar in Dashun Dynasty. One view is that it should be conquered immediately. The idea of another school is to put it temporarily. There are two reasons for holding the latter view. First of all, Liu Zongmin, Lee Guo and others have been intoxicated with the joy of victory. It's really a pleasure to plagiarize and plunder corrupt officials and have Maggie. I don't want to risk my life at once. Second, Niu Jinxing, Song and other people's suggestions are based on strategic considerations, and they think that it is not suitable for large-scale expeditions at present. Because "Xindu won the hearts of the people" and Wu Jun is famous for its "ability to fight", it should not be underestimated. They think it is better to maintain the status quo for the time being and continue to recruit and surrender. But Li Zicheng through the crowd, ordered personal expedition. On April 13, Li Zicheng led hundreds of troops, claiming that 200,000 troops left the capital and marched eastward.

When the Dashun Dynasty decided to conquer, Wu Sangui found it in advance and was greatly surprised. He thinks that there is no power to resist Dashun Army. In order to protect himself, he decided to borrow soldiers from Manchu. The condition is not only to give Manchu money, but also to "pay for land." Manchu did not realize these changes in Shanhaiguan. It only knows that Li Zicheng is trapped in Beijing and Chongzhen is dead. It should take this opportunity of chaos in the Central Plains to compete with Dashun for the world. On April 9, the Manchu army headed for Shenyang. After Weng's trip on 15th, he met a special envoy sent by Wu Sangui. Dourgen and others were overjoyed and suspicious, and did not speed up the March. Arrive in Lianshan on the 20th. Wu Sangui's second special envoy has arrived. Li Zicheng army has thin Shanhaiguan, the situation is urgent. Hearing the news, the Qing army traveled 200 Li day and night and arrived in the customs on the evening of 2 1 day. 2 1 Day During the day, Dashun Army fought with Wu Jun, and Wu Jun was exhausted. Wu Sangui once again sent envoys to the Qing army camp, urging the Qing army to participate in the war. At this time, Dourgen, who knew the situation, was not satisfied with what Wu Sangui said: "Not only wealth, but also land should be divided into rewards". His ambition is to enter the Central Plains, so he insists that Wu Sangui must shave his hair instead of sending troops to help. At this point, Wu Sangui has no choice. If you fight Dashun Army alone tomorrow, you will be defeated and your life will be destroyed. So I had to go to the Qing camp, shave my head and bow down, just like Dourgen did. The next day, Shanhaiguan War started. The cunning Dourgen ordered Wu Jun to fight Dashun Army first. When the warring parties are exhausted and Wu Jun is exhausted, the party will go into battle. The unprepared Dashun army is saying, "The Tatars are coming!" In an exclamation, the defeat was like a mountain. "For a while, the battlefield was empty, the bodies were everywhere, and the wilderness was full."

At this point, Wu Sangui's so-called idea of using Qing soldiers to cut Dashun and restore the room of vision became a bubble. The Manchu Dynasty, which had completely grasped the initiative militarily and politically, only regarded Wu Sangui as one of many officials who surrendered to the Ming Dynasty and drove him away as a running dog to serve his attempt to conquer all China.

Second, another little-known Wu Sangui.

If many people don't know much about the specific process of the Qing Dynasty in Wu Sangui, then even fewer people know about Wu Sangui's personal experience. Practically speaking, Wu Sangui is not cut out to be a traitor.

As a military commander, Wu Sangui is less than eight feet tall and only of medium build, but he is handsome and dignified, brave and skilled in martial arts. In the battle, he was indomitable, rushing left and right, and he was extremely brave. Once Huang Taiji saw him from a distance, he could not help but sigh to his subordinates: "Wu Zhu is really good!"

16 12 (forty years of Wanli) Wu Sangui was born in Zhonghousuo, Hanzhen, and his ancestral home was Gaoyou, Jiangsu. His father, Wu Xiang, was a gentry. After the rise of Nurhachi, he carried out harsh ethnic discrimination policies in Liao country, plundering and killing Han people, so he joined the army in anger and held group training to protect the environment and people. Ming Jiazhi entrusted Liaodong company commanders to hold this post forever. He has made outstanding military achievements and is known as "the giant arm of Liao Right". In the struggle with the late Jin Dynasty, Wu Xiang forged a friendship with some Ming Dynasty military commanders in Liaoning Province at that time, and married his sister to Zu Dashou, a famous Liaodong star who won the title of "Pioneer Seal" in Jinzhou. Wu Sangui grew up in a war-torn area, a family with a history of anti-Japanese war. This undoubtedly tempered his courage and anti-gold consciousness from an early age. On the battlefield, young Wu Sangui was very brave. In a battle, he rushed into the enemy line and shot down a red flag prince with an arrow. When he waved a knife to cut off the prince's head before flattery, unexpectedly, the prince suddenly cut his nose with a knife. Wu Sangui is bleeding, but fearless. Tear off the red flag, bandage the wound, and fight immediately.

On one occasion, Wu Xiang led 500 cavalry as scouts, and unexpectedly met the late Jin army and was besieged. At that time, after the defeat of the Ming army in the battle of Salhu, I was very worried about the "wild wave war" with the Qing army. Generally speaking, the Han cavalry trained from the children of farmers is no match for jurchen riding. Even if the cavalry is twice as strong, the Ming army has no chance of winning, not to mention hundreds of Ming troops trapped in a large array. When Wu Sangui learned that his father was in danger, he immediately rushed to his uncle Zu Dashou's tent and asked him to send troops to save his father from danger. Zu Dashou thought it was impossible, and it would only increase casualties, so he refused to say, "How dare I act rashly, because the responsibility of protecting China's borders is great! In case of defeat, will you be safe? " Sangui knew that she couldn't be strong and left in tears. She immediately called dozens of servants and rushed into the encirclement like a strong wind. When he found his father's team, he shouted, "Come with me!" And led five hundred riding deus ex, ran back to Ningyuan. The battle shocked the whole army. From then on, the young Wu Sangui's reputation as "the courage of the three armed forces and the filial piety of the nine realms" became a household name in Liao country.

Wu Sangui, a young hero, is highly valued by his parents. Liaodong prison army accepted him as an adopted son. 1639 (the 12th year of Chongzhen), Hong Chengchou recommended him as the company commander of Liaodong. He is only 27 years old. Wu Sangui is very strict in training. Among the towns under Hong Chengchou, Wu Sangui was the most powerful. Wu Sangui is not satisfied with this, he specially retrained an extremely elite cavalry of one thousand people. * * * Divide into 20 teams with 50 people each. "Sign twenty, the name of the book leader, inserted in the boot. If you are in a hurry, it is necessary to sign someone, someone leads the ride, and there is no loss in the conflict. "

164 1 year (the fourteenth year of Chongzhen), the battle of Jinsong ended in a fiasco of the Ming army. If the defeat of Salhu 23 years ago indicated that Houjin had mastered the initiative of the Commissioner, then the defeat of Jin Song indicated that Mingting was defeated in the whole campaign. Jin Song's defeat caused the Ming Dynasty to lose a large number of elite soldiers and war generals. Veteran Cao Bianjiao was captured and killed. Hong Chengchou, Zu Dashou and others surrendered. Only Wu Sangui struggled in Ningyuan Shanhaiguan. Wu Sangui called for exile and revived the army under extremely difficult conditions. Soon, tens of thousands of troops were organized to stick to Shanhaiguan and Ningyuan outside Shanhaiguan. In the case of the death or surrender of the former Liaodong war general, Wu Sangui became the only surviving anti-Qing star. The following year, Huang Taiji launched the Battle of Nonong. Abatai and Turg were sent to avoid Shanhaiguan, which was defended by Wu Sangui, and enter through Huangyakou. Burning and looting, the soldiers went straight to Lubei. The generals in Shanhaiguan all fled like a gust of wind. Only Wu Sangui dared to lead the troops into the customs to attack the Qing army, and he repeatedly made gains. 1643, as mentioned above, Wu Sangui's loyal resistance made the invincible Qing army suffer the third defeat in Ningyuan.

In order to solve the insurmountable barrier of Shanhaiguan, the Qing court launched a powerful surrender offensive to Wu Sangui. Because Wu Sangui's uncle Zu Dashou and his mentor Hong Chengchou, as well as Wu Sanfeng, Zukefa, Zhang Cunren and many other brothers and colleagues have fallen, Huang Taiji personally wrote to him to surrender, and also called these surrender generals who had various relations with Wu Sangui to write to him to surrender. But Wu Sangui was unmoved. Of course, this is partly because his father stayed in Beijing as a hostage, and partly because of Wu Sangui's anti-Qing consciousness.

Third, the objective reasons that made Wu Sangui a traitor.

At the end of the Ming Dynasty, a large number of court officials in the late Ming Dynasty became traitors for various reasons. Common ones are fighting poverty and finding an official after joining the army. The former is typical of Hong Chengchou and Zu Dashou, while the latter is typical of Zhang Cunren, Ma Guangyuan and Quan Feng. Wu Sangui is different from them. Wu Sangui is not poor. Shanhaiguan and fifty thousand soldiers are under his control. He was an official from the company commander of the Ming court to Pingxibo. If Mingting can prolong his life, his promotion plan is still in full swing. More importantly, he started an uncompromising struggle with the Manchu since he was a teenager, so it can be said that there is no obvious traitor factor in him. In view of this, it is necessary to explore the reasons why he eventually became a big traitor.

Facing the facts, we should admit that objective factors are the important reasons why Wu Sangui turned into a traitor. This objective factor is a series of wrong practices adopted by Li Zicheng after he entered Beijing.

Based on the hatred of peasant rebels against the landlord class and Ming bureaucrats, it is understandable that many Dashun army officers and men robbed and hunted down Ming officials. The problem is that Li Zicheng does not have the vision and mind of a feudal dynasty reformer. The ancient peasant uprising was not a modern democratic revolution. It can only replace the original dynasty with a new dynasty. If Dashun wants to gain a foothold, it must cooperate with the bureaucrats of the old Ming Dynasty. Moreover, these ancient bureaucrats have abandoned the Zhu Ming regime and are ready to cooperate with the Dashun dynasty with open arms. For example, Hui Shiyang knelt down to Li Zicheng during the ceremony and said, "I was born an old minister and I want to leave your majesty." But Li Zicheng lacks insight into the mystery. Li Zicheng lost the hearts and minds of the capital by letting Dashun soldiers raid Ming officials and even harass the people. At the end of the Ming Dynasty, many officials returned to the rebellion after falling off their horses, while others fled in disguise.

Generally speaking, Dashun abandoned the cooperation of Ming bureaucrats, which was crucial to the stability of his own regime. In part, Dashun pushed back to Wu Sangui. This is not only the key to the Qing Dynasty in Wu Sangui, but also the key to the downfall of Dashun Dynasty. For those ten days-a brief moment in the long river of history-the records in various historical books are slightly different. In the face of drastic changes, Wu Sangui was emotional and lost his mind. According to records, he has accepted Li Zicheng's surrender. Only in the absence of full publicity, I got the news that my father was detained and robbed and that I loved myself was occupied. It is said that he can barely accept his father's suffering, but he will never accept the humiliation of Aiji. He knew that he was caught between the Manchu and Li Zicheng forces. It is natural for him to surrender to Dashun, whether because his father was detained in Beijing or because of his hatred with Manchu for more than ten years. However, the 32-year-old hot-blooded young military commander, after beheading Li Zicheng's special envoy and boasting that "Li thief sent his head", cut off the road he should have taken and planned to take. However, despite this, he still had doubts about the Qing Dynasty, so that he wanted to commit suicide after learning that Li Zicheng was at war. However, when he faced the reality, he had to find a way to dispatch troops to Manchu. This move moved the capital of the Manchu Dynasty from Shenyang to Beijing, and Wu Sangui regretted it.

Imagine that if the Dashun Dynasty could win over the Ming Dynasty bureaucrats, including Wu Sangui, the situation might be different. Li Zicheng not only failed to crusade against Wu Sangui with 100,000 troops, but also helped it defend the Manchu Dynasty in the north. After stabilizing the situation, we will lead the troops to unify Jiangnan. Judging from the corruption of Hong Guang regime in Nanming, it should be reasonable. Or because of the shortage of northern Xinjiang, Dashun dynasty was unable to travel south for quite a while, so Li Zicheng, Wu Sangui and a large number of Ming generals, such as Datong company commanders and Bian Jiang's total strength, were enough to resist the Manchu Dynasty. In the past, the Ming court was so difficult because it was stretched to the limit to fight the Manchu and peasant armies on both sides. If we simplify the situation to Dashun versus Manchu, then the situation that Qing rode across North China and Central Plains will never be seen again. After a period of stability, the emerging Dashun will also unify South China. As for whether Dashun has the power to restore the territory outside the customs after reunification, it is really doubtful. Will the unified Dashun be a copy of the weak Song Dynasty? Will it cause the territory of China to be south of the Great Wall today? These problems are beyond the scope of this article, so I won't repeat them here.

Due to the revision of the Ming history, the Qing Dynasty, based on its own alien rule, tampered with the Ming history, promoted the literary inquisition, prohibited the compilation of folk history books that had never stopped since Zhou Dynasty, and controlled the compilation of the Ming history in the hands of officials. At the same time, books were banned in the name of compiling Sikuquanshu, and the list of banned books in Sikuquanshu was three times longer than that in Sikuquanshu, so that many historical materials died, and the evaluation of the Ming Dynasty by later historians was misunderstood and unfair.

Since 2004, the long vernacular history "Those Things in the Ming Dynasty" has become an instant hit, and a vigorous "Ming History Fever" has been set off in China, and the voice for rectifying the name of the Ming Dynasty is getting louder and louder.

Many folk historians believe that Wu Sangui was not a traitor in the Ming Dynasty from the beginning, but because the Qing Dynasty knocked on the door in the name of "revenge for his father". Compared with Li Zicheng, who occupied Beijing and forced Emperor Chongzhen to death, Jianzhou Jurchen Department (later Jin Dynasty) was one of our own. At that time, it seemed reasonable to unite the Qing soldiers to attack the Dashun regime in Li Zicheng. At the end of Ming Dynasty, China people's national consciousness was not strong. As long as the ruler's way of governing the country is accepted by the Han people, the Han people do not exclude alien rule. This is why, regardless of Xianbei in the Northern Wei Dynasty or Xixia, Liao, Jin, Yuan and Qing Dynasties, aliens usually did not encounter strong resistance from the Han people in the early days of the founding of the People's Republic of China.

But the later development was not as loyal as the old ministers of the Ming Dynasty thought. Manchu openly searched the son of Chongzhen in the name of the Ming dynasty princes, claiming to regard the son of Chongzhen as orthodox and make him acceded to the throne. However, he broke his word and executed the man who was identified as the third son of Chongzhen by the old minister of Ming Dynasty and the old eunuch of Neigong, and called him a fake descendant of Chongzhen. Since then, the Ming court has lost its orthodox heir, and all the princes in the Ming court lack legitimacy and appeal, so the small court in Nanming has to go down the road. At this time, three generals, Wu Sangui, Geng and Shang Kexi, were already riding a tiger: the Qing court had grown, and only by assisting the Qing court to destroy Nanming could we keep the family safe and eliminate the moral crisis. Although Shi Ming never mistreated Wu Sangui, Wu Sangui, as a surrenderer, had to take the initiative to destroy Nanming and finally became an emperor forever to show his loyalty to his new master.