Song–Xia wars

Li Jiqian's rebellion
Date 982 - 1004 Location Ordos Plateau Result Tangut independence
Belligerents
Dingnan Jiedushi	Song dynasty
Commanders and leaders
Li Jiqian

In 982, the ruler of the Dingnan Jiedushi, Li Jipeng, decided to submit to the Song dynasty and exchange his title for a comfortable existence in Kaifeng. His brother, Li Jiqian, did not agree to this and refused to submit to Song administration. Jiqian led a group of bandit holdouts and resisted Song control. In 984, the Song attacked his camp and captured his mother and wife, but he narrowly escaped. He rebounded from this defeat by capturing Yinzhou the next year.[1] Along with Yinzhou, Jiqian captured large amounts of supply, allowing him to increase his following. In 986, Jiqian submitted to the Khitans and in 989, Jiqian married into Khitan nobility.[2] Jiqian also made symbolic obeisance to the Song, but the Song remained unconvinced of his intentions. Jipeng was sent by the Song to destroy Jiqian, but he was defeated in battle on 6 May 994, and fled back to Xiazhou. Jiqian sent tribute on 9 September as well as his younger brother on 1 October to the Song court. Emperor Taizong of Song was receptive of these gestures, but Jiqian returned to raiding Song territory the next year. In April 996, Taizong sent troops to suppress Jiqian, who raided Lingzhou in May and again in November 997. For a brief period after 998, Jiqian accepted Song suzerainty, until the fall of 1001 when he began raiding again. Jiqian died on 6 January 1004 from an arrow wound. His son and successor, Li Deming, proved to be more amicable towards the Song than his predecessor.[3]

Areas of conflict on the border between the Song, Liao, and Western Xia empires from 1040 to 150

Upon the death of his father, Li Deming, in 1032, Li Yuanhao adopted the Tangut surname of Weiming. He levied all able bodied men between 15 and 60 years of age, providing him with a 150,000 strong army. By 1036, he had annexed both the Ganzhou Uyghur Kingdom and the Guiyi Circuit to his west. In 1038, Yuanhao declared himself emperor of the Great Xia. In response, the Song dynasty cut off border trade and put a bounty on his head.[6]

Beyond establishing a Chinese-style central government for the militarized kingdom (which included sixteen bureaus), he also designated eighteen military control commissions spread among five military zones: (1) 70,000 soldiers to deal with the Liao, (2) 50,000 assigned to deal with Huan, Qing, Zhenrong, and Yuan prefectures, (3) 50,000 opposite Fuyan circuit and Lin and Fu[1] prefectures, (4) 30,000 to deal with the Xifan and Huige to the west, and (5) 50,000 in the eastern skirtlands of Helan Mountains, 50,000 at Ling, and 70,000 spread between Xing prefecture and Xingqing fu, or superior prefecture. Altogether Yuanhao had as many as 370,000 men under arms. These were mounted forces, which had been stretched thin by hard warfare and probably excessive use of non-warrior horsemen impressed to fill the army. He maintained a six-unit bodyguard of 5,000 and his elite cavalry force, Iron Cavalry (tieqi) of 3,000. It was a fearful concentration of military might overlaying a relatively shallow economic base.[7]

— Michael C. McGrath

In the winter of 1039–1040, Yuanhao laid siege to Yanzhou (now Yan'an) with over 100,000 troops. The prefect of Yanzhou, Fan Yong, gave contradictory orders to his military deputy, Liu Ping, making him move his forces (9,000) in random directions until they were defeated by Xia forces (50,000) at Sanchuan Pass. Liu Ping was taken captive.[8] Despite the defenders' mediocre performance, Yuanhao was forced to lift the siege and retreat to a ring of forts overlooking Yanzhou, when heavy winter snows set in.[9]

A Song army of 30,000 returned later that winter under the command of Ren Fu. They were ambushed at Haoshuichuan and annihilated.[10] Despite such victories, Yuanhao failed to make any headway against Song fortifications, garrisoned by 200,000 troops on rotation from the capital,[11] and remained unable to seize any territory.[12]

In 1042, Yuanhao advanced south and surrounded the fort of Dingchuan.[13] The defending commander Ge Huaimin lost his nerve and decided to run, abandoning his troops to be slaughtered.[14] Again, Yuanhao failed to gain significant territory. Half his soldiers had died from attrition and after two years, Western Xia could no longer support his military endeavors. Tangut forces began suffering small defeats, being turned back by Song forces at Weizhou and Linzhou.[15]

By 1043, there were several hundred thousand trained local archer and crossbow militiamen in Shaanxi, and their archery skills were now generally effective. Crucial to defense (or offense) was the use of local non-Chinese allies to screen Song from the monetary costs and social costs of full-scale war. By mid-1042, the accumulated efforts of men like Fan Zhongyan and others to entice the fan to settle in the in-between areas were paying off. The fan generally and the Qiang specifically were siding with the Song much more than with the Xia at this point. By now, also, there were enough forts and walled cities to limit Yuanhao’s maneuverability and to improve mutual support against him.[16]

— Michael C. McGrath

The Liao dynasty took advantage of the Song's dire predicaments by increasing annual tribute payments by 100,000 units of silk and silver (each).[15] The Song appealed to the Liao for help, and as a result, Emperor Xingzong of Liao invaded Western Xia with a force of 100,000 in 1044.[17] Liao forces enjoyed an initial victory but failed to take the Xia capital and were brutally mauled by Yuanhao's defenders.[18] According to Song spies, there was a succession of carts bearing Liao dead across the desert.[19]

Having exhausted his resources, Yuanhao made peace with the Song, who recognized his rights to Xia lands as king and agreed to pay an annual tribute of 250,000 units of silk, silver, and tea.[19]

In 1064, Emperor Yizong of Western Xia raided the Song dynasty. In the fall of 1066, he mounted two more raids and in September, an attack on Qingzhou was launched. The Tangut forces destroyed several fortified settlements. Song forces were surrounded for three days before cavalry reinforcements arrived. Yizong was wounded by a crossbow and forced to retreat. Tangut forces attempted another raid later on but failed, and a night attack by Song forces scattered the Tangut army. Yizong regrouped at Qingtang and launched another attack on Qingzhou in December but withdrew after threats by Emperor Yingzong of Song to escalate the conflict.[20] The next year, the Song commander Chong E attacked and captured Suizhou.[21] Three years later, the Tanguts invaded Song territory again in retaliation but failed to take any significant territory.[22]

The five routes of the Song invasion of Western Xia (1081)

The Western Xia counterattack in 1082

In 1081, the Song dynasty launched a five-pronged attack on the Western Xia. After initial victories, Song forces failed to take the capital of Xia, Xingqing, and remained on the defensive for the next three years. Xia counterattacks also experienced initial success before failing to take Lanzhou multiple times. In 1085, the war ended with the death of Emperor Shenzong of Song.

Advance and fortify was a Song dynasty military strategy and campaign to seize Western Xia lands in the northwest. The campaign centered on fortifying key locations along river valleys and mountains to erode the Xia position. In 1096, the Song stopped paying tribute to the Xia, and the next year launched a two-pronged "advance and fortify" campaign. From 1097 to 1099, the Song army constructed 40 fortifications across the Ordos plateau. In 1098, the Empress Regent Liang of Xia sent a 100,000 strong army to recapture Pingxia. The Tangut army was completely defeated in their attempt to dislodge the Song from their high ground position, and their generals Weiming Amai and Meiledubu were both captured.[33]

Tsongkha and other Tibetan kingdoms during the Era of Fragmentation

In 1103, the Song dynasty annexed Tsongkha and spent the following year weeding out native resistance. The expansion of Song territory threatened the Western Xia's southern border, resulting in Western Xia incursions in 1104 and 1105. Eventually the Western Xia launched an all out attack on Lanzhou and Qingtang. However, after the Advance and fortify campaign of 1097–1099, Western Xia forces were no longer able to defeat Song positions. Failing to take major cities, the Tangut forces went on a rampage, killing tens of thousands of local civilians. The next year Emperor Chongzong of Western Xia made peace with the Song, but was unable to clearly demarcate their borders, leading to another war in 1113.[34]

In 1113, the Western Xia started building fortifications in disputed territory with the Song dynasty, and took the Qingtang region. Incensed at this provocation, Emperor Huizong of Song dispatched Tong Guan to evict the Tanguts. In 1115, 150,000 troops under the command of Liu Fa penetrated deep into Xia territory and slaughtered the Tangut garrison at Gugulong. Meanwhile, Wang Hou and Liu Chongwu attacked the newly built Tangut fortress of Zangdihe. The siege ended in failure and the death of half the invasion force. Wang bribed Tong to keep the number of casualties a secret from the emperor. The next year, Liu Fa and Liu Chongwu took a walled Tangut city called Rendequan. Another 100,000 troops were sent against Zangdihe and succeeded in taking the fortress. The Xia made a successful counterattack in the winter of 1116–1117. Despite piling casualties on the Song side, Tong was adamant about eradicating the Xia once and for all. He gave orders for Liu Fa to lead 200,000 into the heart of the Xia empire, aiming straight at the capital region. It quickly became apparent that it was a suicide mission. The Song army was met outside the city by an even larger Tangut army led by the Xia prince, Chage. The Tangut army surrounded the Song forces, killing half of them, with the remaining falling back during the night. The Tanguts pursued the Song and defeated them again the next day. Liu was beheaded. A ceasefire was called in 1119 and Emperor Huizong issued an apology to Western Xia.[35]

• Forage, Paul C. (1991), "The Sino-Tangut War of 1081-1085", Journal of Asian History, 25 (1): 1–28, JSTOR 41930788
• Lorge, Peter (2015), The Reunification of China: Peace through War under the Song Dynasty, Cambridge University Press
• Nie, Lina (2015), A Grand Strategy or a Military Operation? A Reconsideration of the Liangzhou Campaign of 1081
• McGrath, Michael C. (2008), Frustrated Empires: The Song-Tangut Xia War of 1038-1044
• Mote, F. W. (2003), Imperial China: 900–1800, Harvard University Press, ISBN 978-0674012127
• Smith, Paul Jakov (2015), A Crisis in the Literati State
• Tseng-Yü, Wang; Wright, David C. (2015), "A history of the Sung military", The Cambridge History of China, pp. 214–249, doi:10.1017/CHO9781139193061.005, ISBN 9781139193061
• Twitchett, Denis (1994), "The Liao", The Cambridge History of China, Volume 6, Alien Regime and Border States, 907-1368, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 43–153, ISBN 0521243319
• Twitchett, Denis (2009), The Cambridge History of China Volume 5 The Sung dynasty and its Predecessors, 907-1279, Cambridge University Press