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47-624: In 1388, Ming forces under Lan Yu won a major victory over the Northern Yuan on the Buir Lake region. Northern Yuan ruler Tögüs Temür tried to escape but was killed shortly afterwards. This article related to a lake in Mongolia is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This Inner Mongolia location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Lan Yu (general) Lan Yu (died 1393)

94-410: A cangued prisoner, who foretold that it would be Wei Qing's fate to achieve nobility and marquisate , a prediction Wei Qing simply dismissed as a joke, citing that not getting caned would be fortunate enough for someone living the life of a serf. After Princess Pingyang offered the singer Wei Zifu to Emperor Wu as a concubine c. 139 BC, Wei Qing followed as an accompanying gift and served as

141-564: A consort (夫人, a concubine position lower only to the Empress), and rewarded other members of her family. This marked the beginning of the rise of one of the most influential clans in the political history of Western Han – the Wei/Huo family. Great wealth would not be all Wei Qing would have. Emperor Wu saw qualities in him – brilliant horsemanship , archery , bravery, outstanding tactical intuition as well as excellent leadership skills. Over

188-503: A shiquan ( 世券 ), a type of plaque granted by the emperor to officials in recognition of their contributions. Hui Chinese generally claim that Lan Yu was a Hui as well according to their oral legend which is disputed by historians. In 1381, Lan Yu was appointed "Left Deputy General Who Conquers the South" ( 征南左副將軍 ) and accompanied Fu Youde to attack Yunnan and pacify the region. He was rewarded with 500 dan of grain and his daughter

235-444: A 40,000-strong cavalry from Yunzhong Commandery (雲中郡, modern-day Togtoh County , Inner Mongolia), then maneuver to Gaoque (高闕, modern-day Urad Rear Banner ) to Longxi region (modern-day Gansu ), and totally outflanking and surrounding the forces of Xiongnu's Princes of Loufan (樓煩王) and Baiyang (白羊王), killing 2,300 and capturing 3,017 Xiongnu soldiers as well as over a million cattle. According to record from Shiji and Hanshu ,

282-678: A campaign against the Northern Yuan Dynasty in Mongolia, departing from Yanmen Pass and defeating the Yuan armies at Mount Luan ( 亂山 ) and near the Tula River ( 土剌河 ). Seven years later he followed Mu Ying to attack Tibet, capturing three tribal leaders and around a thousand men. For his efforts, in 1379, Lan Yu was conferred the title of " Marquis of Yongchang " ( 永昌侯 ), in addition to receiving 2500 dan ( 石 ) of grain and

329-650: A campaign against the Mongols, he warned the crown prince that Zhu Di (the Prince of Yan and future Yongle Emperor ) seemed to be a likely a threat to his succession. Zhu Di heard about this, so after Zhu Biao died in 1392, he cautioned the Hongwu Emperor that Lan Yu and other founding pioneers of the dynasty were becoming a threat to the throne and should be dealt with before they get out of control. Lan Yu and others did not restrain themselves and continued behaving in

376-402: A chance to win a major battle and be re-promoted. However, sending Generals of Front (前將軍, namely Li Guang) and Right (右將軍, namely Zhao Yiji) on flanking maneuvers was one of Wei Qing's typical tactical arrangements. This was evidenced by his previous deployment of Zhao Xin and Su Jian, who were Generals of Front and Right respectively, during the less successful 123 BC campaign. After crossing

423-518: A crushing long-distance night assault from Gaoque with 30,000 cavalrymen, completely surprising and surrounding the Worthy Prince's main camp. Not only did the Han forces send the Worthy Prince running for his life from his drunken slumber (with only his own concubine following), they also took about 15,000 captives, among them a dozen Xiongnu nobles, and millions of cattle. For this victory, Wei Qing

470-476: A horseman at Jianzhang Camp (建章營, Emperor Wu's Royal Guards ). However, as his sister gained the Emperor's love and fell pregnant, near-disaster would befall Wei Qing. The powerful Grand Princess Guantao (館陶長公主) Liu Piao (劉嫖), the mother of Empress Chen Jiao , angry that Wei Zifu had siphoned off the imperial favor from her daughter, kidnapped Wei Qing and wanted to kill him privately as retaliation. However, Wei

517-476: A lowly female servant known as Wei Ao (衛媪, literally means "the Wei woman"), and their relationship produced a son named Zheng Qing . The child was initially sent to live in his father's household as his serf mother (who was already raising four other children) could not afford to raise him in poverty, but due to the illegitimacy of his birth, the young boy was detested and mistreated by his father and step-family, and

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564-470: A rebellion and a search was conducted in Lan's residence and around 10,000 Japanese swords were found. The Hongwu Emperor immediately had Lan Yu put to death on a charge of treason. Lan Yu's clan was exterminated to the third degree and his properties confiscated. More than 15,000 people were implicated and executed in this incident, including 12 marquises and two counts. This incident is known historically as

611-458: A relatively inconclusive battle. Although he was able to kill/capture more than 10,000 Xiongnu soldiers, part of his vanguard forces, a 3,000-strong regiment commanded by generals Su Jian and Zhao Xin (a surrendered Xiongnu prince), encountered a Xiongnu force led by Chanyu Yizhixie (伊稚斜單于), and was outnumbered and annihilated. Zhao Xin defected on the field with his 800 ethnic Xiongnu subordinates, while Su Jian escaped after losing all his men in

658-468: A total of about 19,000 enemy kills. Chanyu Yizhixie was forced to escape with very few men, lost communication with his tribe for days, and did not return until his clan presumed his death and installed a new Chanyu. This was a narrow but critically significant victory for the Han empire. Xiongnu was greatly weakened to the point that they would huddle up into the barren northern Gobi desert (leading to decline of their population), and unable to raid south for

705-830: The Han dynasty and Li Jing of the Tang dynasty ". In 1392 a surrendered Yuan general Yuelutiemu'er ( 月魯帖木兒 ) rebelled in Jianchang (present-day Xichang , Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture , Sichuan ) and Lan Yu was sent to suppress the revolt. Lan Yu crushed the uprising and captured Yuelutiemu'er and his son, and was appointed as the Crown Prince's Tutor ( 太子太傅 ) for his achievement. As he made more achievements, Lan Yu became more arrogant, self-indulgent and unbridled. He started abusing his power and status and behaved violently and recklessly, sometimes even showing disrespect towards

752-621: The Lan Yu Case ( 藍玉案 ). It was believed that Hongwu Emperor orchestrated his death to eliminate any threat for his successor Zhu Yunwen; ironically, Lan Yu's death contributed greatly to Zhu Yunwen's downfall as after his death, there were no capable generals that could prevent the powerful Zhu Di (future Yongle Emperor) from usurping the throne after Hongwu Emperor's death. Wei Qing Wei Qing (died c. Jun 106 BC? ), courtesy name Zhongqing , born Zheng Qing in Linfen , Shanxi,

799-500: The Northern Yuan ruler Uskhal Khan . In the fourth lunar month of that year, Lan Yu's force arrived at Buir Lake and defeated the Northern Yuan army , capturing Uskhal Khan's family members numbering more than 100, more than 77,000 civilians, more than 150,000 livestock, along with several priced items, including Uskhal Khan's imperial seals. Uskhal Khan attempted to flee to the Mongol Empire 's old capital of Karakorum , but

846-512: The Prince of Huainan Liu An , who had been conspiring a military coup for a long time, saw Wei Qing as his prime political obstacle that must be removed. Wei Qing died in 106 BC and was buried in a large tomb built to the model of Mount Lu (盧山, a mountain previously in Xiongnu -occupied territory). The tomb was connected to that of his nephew Huo Qubing , who had died in 117 BC, and the future tomb for Emperor Wu . Wei Qing would not live to see

893-528: The arrangements promised to Li Guang by Emperor Wu (where he would command the vanguard ), Emperor Wu secretly told Wei Qing not to assign Li Guang to crucial missions due to Li's infamous history of "bad lucks". Wei Qing, after the army had already departed, merged Li Guang's forces with Zhao Yiji's and ordered them to take an eastern flanking route through a barren region. According to the historian Sima Qian , Wei Qing had done this to give his old friend Gongsun Ao, who had recently been stripped of his title,

940-474: The battle was so swift and one-sided that the Han forces "returned with all warriors intact" (全甲兵而還), implying a near-zero casualty rate. This earned Wei Qing a further promotion to the Marquess of Changping (長平侯), with a march of 3,800 households. His subordinates Su Jian (蘇建, father of the great Han patriot Su Wu ) and Zhang Cigong (張次公) were also created marquesses. The Han recapture of this territory forced

987-486: The capital Chang'an to advise on military and sometimes political matters as the dual-role of Chief Defense Minister/Generalissimo (大司馬大將軍). He also assisted his nephew, Crown prince - regent Liu Ju , when Emperor Wu was away on official tours. Despite his great honor and power, Wei Qing remained humble in many ways. Because of the great favor Emperor Wu showed him, all of the other officials at court flattered him, except for Ji An (汲黯), who treated him as an equal. Wei

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1034-461: The desert, Wei Qing's army unexpectedly encountered Chanyu Yizhixie's main forces, who was waiting in anticipation of ambushing the Han army. Despite being significantly outnumbered as well as fatigued after the long journey, Wei Qing was able to counter Xiongnu's cavalry charge with archery defense created by heavy-armored chariots arranged in ring formations, which was reinforced with cavalry counteroffensives. (This defense would be evaluated as one of

1081-405: The desperate fighting. Showing compassion on Su Jian, Wei Qing spared him even though some advocates advised him to execute Su on the spot after court martial to enforce his commanding authority. Due to the loss of Su's detachment, Wei Qing troops did not earn any promotion, even though they scored more gains than losses. At this campaign, his nephew Huo Qubing distinguished himself in battle and

1128-544: The emperor. Once, after he seized land from peasants in Dongchang ( 東昌 ), an official questioned him on his actions, but Lan Yu drove the official away in anger. In another incident, after Lan Yu returned from a campaign in the north, he arrived at Xifeng Pass ( 喜峰關 ), where the guards denied him entry as it was already late at night, but Lan led his men to force his way through. When he was away at war, Lan Yu sometimes also demoted officers at his own will and defied orders, to

1175-487: The extent of going to battle without permission. During his appointment as the Crown Prince's Tutor, Lan Yu was unhappy that his post was lower than the dukes of Song and Ying, so he exclaimed, "Am I not fit to be the Imperial Tutor (太師)?" The Hongwu Emperor became more angry with Lan Yu after learning of these incidents. Lan Yu had a close friendship with the crown prince Zhu Biao . Once after Lan Yu returned from

1222-537: The four) and Gongsun Ao suffered major losses at the Xiongnus' hand, while Gongsun He failed to encounter and engage any enemy. Wei Qing, the least experienced out of the four, distinguished himself with a successful long-distance raid of the Xiongnu's holy site Longcheng (龍城), killing over 700 Xiongnu soldiers in the process. As a reward for the victory (the first proper victory against Xiongnu in Han history), Wei Qing

1269-552: The latter already returned from Zhao Xin Castle. Both men were later summoned for court martial to explain the failure to accomplish orders and thus jeopardize the whole campaign. Feeling humiliated over the charges against him and frustrated over missing his final chance at martial glory, Li Guang committed honor suicide rather than to face the court. Many people, including the historian Sima Qian , thus blamed Wei Qing for causing Li Guang's death. Li's youngest son Li Gan (李敢), who

1316-441: The most effective against cavalry by many later Chinese tacticians, including Yue Fei .) The Han forces successfully enforced a stalemate that lasted until dusk, when a sandstorm descended upon the battlefield. Seizing the moment of poor visibility provided by the dust, Wei Qing broke the stalemate and launched bilateral flanking attacks with his cavalries. Already exhausted after a day of unsuccessful attacks against Han positions,

1363-477: The next decade. The next major Xiongnu invasion did not occur until after the Han dynasty collapsed, some 400 years later during the Jin dynasty . While Wei Qing's main force was engaging Yizhixie Chanyu , the flanking division led by Li Guang and Zhao Yiji got lost in the desert and failed to reach the battlefield in time, despite meeting little Xiongnu resistance. They only rendezvous with Wei Qing's troops after

1410-648: The next several years, Wei Qing would be entrusted as Emperor Wu's most loyal consul, as his sister also monopolized the Emperor's love for the next decade. In 129 BC, Xiongnu attacked the Shanggu Commandery (上谷郡, roughly modern-day Zhangjiakou , Hebei). Emperor Wu promoted Wei Qing as the General of Chariots and Cavalry (車騎將軍) and dispatched him with Gongsun Ao , Gongsun He (公孫賀), and Li Guang in four separate columns against Xiongnu, each leading 10,000 cavalry. Li Guang (the most seasoned commander out of

1457-652: The normal pattern of reaction against Xiongnu attacks by making a major excursion against Xiongnu's headquarters in the north of the Gobi Desert. This is known to history as the Mobei Campaign ("campaign of the desert's north"). Wei Qing and Huo Qubing were in command of the two main corps, each with 50,000 cavalrymen and 100,000 infantrymen/charioteers. Under Wei Qing's command were four other generals, namely Gongsun He, Zhao Yiji (趙食其), Cao Xiang (曹襄) and an elderly but very enthusiastic Li Guang . Contrary to

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1504-406: The same manner as they did. Around this time, Hongwu was already making plans to eliminate them. Five months later when Hongwu appointed Zhu Biao's son Zhu Yunwen (future Jianwen Emperor ) as the new crown prince, he allowed Lan Yu to continue serving as the Crown Prince's Tutor. In the second lunar month of 1393, a Jinyiwei (secret police) commander Jiang Huan ( 蔣瓛 ) accused Lan Yu of plotting

1551-489: The sudden sight of incoming Han soldiers in the darkness further broke the Xiongnu's morale, routing them. This decisive pincer attack shattered the Chanyu 's line, nearly capturing him and completely overrunning his forces, killing over 10,000 Xiongnu soldiers in the process. The Han army pursued all the way to the modern Ulan Bator region, destroying the Xiongnu stronghold Zhao Xin Castle (趙信城) before returning in triumph with

1598-524: The two Xiongnu tribes to withdraw from the fertile Hetao region (the Ordos steppe ), and dealt devastating blow to their economy. The city of Shuofang (朔方城) was built, and later became a key stronghold for offensive and defensive campaigns against Xiongnu. In 124 BC, Wei Qing would be the vital part of the greatest Han victory over Xiongnu to date. When Xiongnu's Right Worthy Prince (右賢王) made harassing raids against outskirts of Shuofang, Wei Qing launched

1645-490: The war against the Xiongnu . Wei Qing was born from humble means as a bastard child from a serf family. His father Zheng Ji (鄭季) was a low-level official for Pingyang County (平陽縣, in modern Linfen , Shanxi) and was commissioned to serve at the estate of Cao Shou (曹壽), the Marquess of Pingyang (平陽侯), and his wife Princess Pingyang (平陽公主, Emperor Wu's older sister). There, Zheng met and had an extramarital affair with

1692-676: Was a Chinese military general and official who contributed to the founding of the Ming dynasty . His ancestral home was in present-day Dingyuan County , Anhui . In 1393, Lan was accused of plotting a rebellion and put to death by the Hongwu Emperor . About 15,000 people were implicated in the case and executed as part of the Four Major Cases of the early Ming dynasty . According to the History of Ming , in his early years, Lan Yu

1739-521: Was a Chinese military general and politician of the Western Han dynasty who was acclaimed for his campaigns against the Xiongnu , and his rags to riches life. He was a consort kin of Emperor Wu of Han as the younger half-brother of Emperor Wu's wife Empress Wei Zifu , and later the third husband of Emperor Wu's older sister Eldest Princess Yangxin . He was also the maternal uncle of Huo Qubing , another decorated Han general who participated in

1786-670: Was a subordinate of Chang Yuchun , another general under the rebel leader Zhu Yuanzhang (later the Hongwu Emperor of the Ming). Lan Yu was also the younger brother of Chang Yuchun's wife. As Lan Yu displayed courage in battle, Chang Yuchun spoke well of him numerous times in front of Zhu Yuanzhang, and Lan was later promoted from guanjun zhenfu ( 管軍鎮撫 ) to an administrative officer in the commander-in-chief's office ( 大都督府僉事 ). In 1371, Lan Yu followed Fu Youde to attack Shu (covering present-day Sichuan ) and conquered Mianzhou ( 綿州 ) around present-day Mianyang . In 1372, he accompanied Xu Da on

1833-418: Was a subordinate of Huo Qubing at the time, later went to Wei Qing's home and assaulted him. Although Wei Qing decided to cool the heat and mercifully let the matter slide, Huo Qubing was greatly angered that his subordinate had the temerity to insult his uncle. He personally shot dead Li Gan during a hunting trip. After the 119 BC campaign, Wei Qing would see little combat action himself, largely remaining in

1880-545: Was given his own command. After Huo Qubing's successful campaigns in the Hexi Corridor , Xiongnu strategically retreated to north of the Gobi Desert , as the barren lands would serve as a natural barrier that was very difficult to overcome for the Han forces. However, in 119 BC, Emperor Wu decided to defy the odds and launched a massive expeditionary campaign across the desert. In this engagement, Emperor Wu broke

1927-492: Was granted the title of "Princess Consort of Shu" ( 蜀王妃 ). In 1387, Nahachu ( 納哈出 ) of the Northern Yuan invaded Liaodong and the Hongwu Emperor sent Feng Sheng , with Lan Yu and Fu Youde as his right and left deputies respectively, along with a 200,000-man army to attack him. Nahachu was defeated and surrendered. Lan Yu garrisoned the army at Jizhou ( 薊州 ). In 1388, the Hongwu Emperor commissioned Lan Yu as General-in-Chief ( 大將軍 ) and sent him with 150,000 troops to attack

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1974-464: Was impressed by Ji's integrity in face of pressure and respected Ji greatly, often requesting Ji's opinion on important matters. Throughout his career, he refused to hire scholars to praise him and create favorable public opinions, and tried to maintain a relatively low profile. Despite his humble way of life, Wei's status in the Han army made him a distinguished figure in the country, attracting admiration, jealousy and hostility alike. Emperor Wu's uncle,

2021-516: Was killed shortly after the defeat. The Hongwu Emperor was pleased when he received news of Lan Yu's victory and intended to grant Lan the title of "Duke of Liang" ( 梁國公 ), but changed the Chinese character for "Liang" from "梁" to "涼" after he heard that Lan seized a Mongol noble lady for himself and violated her. This resulted in a change in the area that was to be Lan Yu's dukedom. Despite so, Hongwu still praised Lan Yu as "comparable to Wei Qing of

2068-454: Was made the "Grand General" (大將軍) of All Armed Forces, and his march was enlarged by 8,700 households. His three young sons Wei Kang (衛伉), Wei Buyi (衛不疑), and Wei Deng (衛登) were also made marquesses (an offer later refused by Wei Qing), as well as seven generals under his command. In 123 BC, Wei Qing set off from Dingxiang (定襄) and returned with several thousand enemy kills. A month later, Wei Qing again launched from Dingxiang, but would fight

2115-421: Was made to live as a lowly sheepherder . Unable to tolerate the abuse, Zheng Qing eventually ran away back to his mother's side during his early teenage years, and served as a stableboy in the marquess's estate of Pingyang. He then severed his paternal bond by adopting the surname "Wei" of his mother's family. Legend says that Wei Qing once followed his master on a visit to Ganquan Palace (甘泉宮) and encountered

2162-576: Was promoted to a higher command and created an acting Marquess of Guannei (關內侯), with a march of several hundred households. In 128 BC, Consort Wei Zifu gave birth to Emperor Wu's first son, Liu Ju , and was created Empress very soon after. Later that year, Wei Qing, who was now officially a trusted member of Emperor's extended family , led 30,000 cavalry from Shanwu (near present-day Youyuxian , Shanxi) in Yanmen Commandery , killing thousands of Xiongnu soldiers. In 127 BC, Wei Qing led

2209-464: Was rescued at the last moment by his friends, a group of fellow palace guards led by Gongsun Ao (公孫敖). In response to the incident and as a sign of annoyance towards Empress Chen and her mother, Emperor Wu appointed Wei Qing the triple role of Chief of Jianzhang Camp (建章監, equivalent to a chief security officer ), Chief of Staff (侍中) and Chief Councillor (太中大夫), effectively making him one of Emperor Wu's closest lieutenants. He also publicly made Wei Zifu

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