Who was Liu Zongmin, the general of Li Zicheng, the leader of the rebel army in the late Ming Dynasty?

Liu Zongmin, Han nationality, was born in Lantian, Shaanxi Province in the Ming Dynasty, and was a member of the Ministry of Li Zicheng. He used to be a forger, and he was brave and resourceful in collecting debts from Li Zicheng. Break through from Li Zicheng in Nanyuan, Tongguan, and hide in Shangluo Mountain. After helping Li Zicheng break through Shangluo Mountains and enter Henan, the situation recovered greatly, and he was appointed as a general and named Ruhou. He led his troops out of Guguan to settle down and joined forces with the main force of Beijing Dashun Army. After entering Beijing, he plundered officials to help pay, occupied Chen Yuanyuan and angered Wu Sangui. He was injured after fighting with Wu Sangui and Dourgen in Shanhaiguan, which led to the rout of Dashun Army. Later, Li Zicheng retreated to Huguang and occupied Wuchang House. After that, the general of the Qing army Jingyuan, Azig, led the army to surround Wuchang House. 1645 On the morning of April 23rd, Liu Zongmin was wounded by an arrow when he led his troops to break through Wuchang House, and was captured by the Qing army. Because he refused to surrender, he was strangled by the Qing army with a bowstring.

all one's life

In the 11th year of Chongzhen (1638), the peasant army of Li Zicheng was attacked by the Ming army in Tongguan, Shaanxi. He and Li Zicheng led the rest to break through and hide in Shangluo Mountain. Start the next year. In the 13th year of Chongzhen, it helped Li Zicheng to break through Brazil and Fish-bellied Mountain and enter the disaster area in Henan, with great momentum. Sixteen years as a general. The following year, the peasant soldiers were divided into two roads, north and south, crossing the Yellow River eastward and heading for the capital. Later, Zong Min assisted Li Zicheng to lead the Northern Route Army through Datong (now Shaanxi) and Fu Xuan (Xuanhua, Hebei) to reach the gates of Beijing. On the night of March 17, the peasant army commanding North Road captured the outer city. 19, conquer the capital. Chongzhen committed suicide in Jingshan Park.

After Li Zicheng entered Beijing, he implemented the policy of "helping soldiers pay" and set up the "soldier pay storage department", which was led by Liu Zongmin and Lee Guo. The amount of reimbursement is "100,000 in the main hall, 7530,000 in the Jing Tang Jin Yi of the Ministry of Education, 530,000 in the Daoke Official Department, 321,000 in the Hanlin, and thousands of subordinates" (A Shen Lu Zhen).

On May 17, 2007, Li Zicheng convened a military meeting in Wuyingtang, and planned to send General Liu Zongmin into the customs. Liu retorted that everyone is a thief, so why did you enjoy yourself in Beijing and let me go to the front to work hard? Li Zicheng helpless, had to personal expedition. Liu Zongmin can't dodge and compete with Li Zicheng for Wu Sangui.

On May 26th, Dashun army stormed Shanhaiguan, and Wu Sangui resisted to the death. After Wu Sangui led the Qing army into Shanhaiguan and invaded the capital, the peasant army was forced to retreat. In the second year of Qing Shunzhi (1645), he was captured and killed by the Qing army in the battle of Tongshan (now Hubei).

"Moon Hee on the Land Bridge" records that Liu Zongmin once took away Chen Yuanyuan, the beloved concubine of Wu Sangui, and the furious Wu Sangui had to lead the Qing soldiers into the customs. Wu, a poet in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties, wrote in Yuan Yuanqu that "all the three armies are mourning, and the anger of rushing to the crown is beautiful." However, the novelist Yao wrote in Qu (198O, the first issue of Literary Heritage Quarterly) that Chen Yuanyuan was no longer in Beijing at that time, but had arrived in Ningyuan (Nanxingcheng, Jinzhou) and soon died.

No matter how later generations evaluate a historical figure, they mostly know it from literary works, because literary creation comes from real life and is based on history. In Yao's historical novel Li Zicheng, he was the first member of Li Zicheng's team and ranked first as a military commander. In the long and arduous class struggle, they shared the same enemy and forged a deep brotherhood. It can be said that Li Liu's team is the cornerstone of their own career.

Speaking of Liu Zongmin's position in the uprising army, we can make an image metaphor, and it is really appropriate to compare Feng Yunshan and Yang in the peasant uprising of Taiping Heavenly Kingdom led by Hong Xiuquan more than 200 years later.