Battle of Chengpu
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The Battle of Chengpu took place in 632 BC between the State of Jin and the State of Chu and its allies during the
Spring and Autumn period The Spring and Autumn period was a period in Chinese history from approximately 770 to 476 BC (or according to some authorities until 403 BC) which corresponds roughly to the first half of the Eastern Zhou period. The period's name derives fr ...
of Chinese history. It was the first great battle in the protracted conflict between the states of the
Yellow River The Yellow River or Huang He (Chinese: , Standard Beijing Mandarin, Mandarin: ''Huáng hé'' ) is the second-longest river in China, after the Yangtze River, and the List of rivers by length, sixth-longest river system in the world at th ...
valley, and the states of the
Yangtze River The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ; ) is the longest list of rivers of Asia, river in Asia, the list of rivers by length, third-longest in the world, and the longest in the world to flow entirely within one country. It rises at Jari Hill in th ...
valley. The Jin victory confirmed the hegemony of Duke Wen and checked Chu ambitions in the north for at least a generation. chinadetail.com


Background

Following the death of
Duke Huan of Qi Duke Huan of Qi (; died 643 BC), personal name Xiǎobái (小白), was the ruler of the State of Qi from 685 to 643 BC. Living during the chaotic Spring and Autumn period, as the Zhou dynasty's former vassal states fought each other for supremacy ...
in 643 BC, the state of Chu steadily extended its influence northward, absorbing half a dozen smaller states as its satellites. In 636 BC, Chong'er, a ducal prince of Jin, after nineteen years in exile traveling throughout numerous states, came to power as
Duke Wen of Jin Duke Wen of Jin (697–628BC), born Chong'er (literally "Double Ears"), was a scion of the royal house of Jin during the Spring and Autumn Period of Chinese history. He famously endured a long period of exile from his realm before finally bei ...
with the help of
Duke Mu of Qin Duke Mu of Qin (died 621BC), born Renhao, was a duke of Qin (659–621BC) in the western reaches of the Zhou Kingdom during the Spring and Autumn Period of Chinese history. Sometimes considered one of China's Five Hegemons, he greatly expanded ...
. Duke Wen assumed a position of leadership among the states and instituted numerous domestic reforms. In the years leading up to 632 BC, conflict between Jin and Chu became increasingly public and was characterised by frequent shifts in alliances between the various small states that lay in a narrow band of land between the two larger states.
King Cheng of Chu King Cheng of Chu (, died 626 BC) was from 671 to 626 BC king of the state of Chu during the Spring and Autumn period of ancient China. He was born Xiong Yun () to King Wen of Chu, and King Cheng was his posthumous title. In 672 BC Xiong Yun's ol ...
attacked the State of
Song A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetitio ...
, the ally of Jin most accessible from the south, in the winter of 633 BCE. In retaliation, an expeditionary force under Duke Wen marched south in the spring of the following year and occupied the States of Wei and
Cao Cao or CAO may refer to: Mythology *Cao (bull), a legendary bull in Meitei mythology Companies or organizations * Air China Cargo, ICAO airline designator CAO *CA Oradea, Romanian football club *CA Osasuna, Spanish football club *Canadian Assoc ...
, both satellites of Chu. The two sides sought out alliances in the following months. The States of Shen, Xi, Chen and Cai, all immediately contiguous to Chu, sided with King Cheng, as well as the more distant State of Lu.


Prelude

As promised by Duke Wen to King Cheng during his exile in Chu, the Jin army retired "three days march" () (45 km) before camping on the plain of Chengpu on the border of Wei and Cao, awaiting a decisive battle The retirement also linked the Jin forces up with Qi and Qin reinforcements. Only the central force of the Chu under Prime Minister Ziyu () was made up entirely of Chu troops. The left wing under Zixi incorporated soldiers from Chu's close satellites Shen and Xi. The right wing under Zishang comprised completely a separate detachment from the armies of Chen and Cai, perhaps numbering around a third () of the entire force. The Jin force was expanded before the expedition from two armies into three: the upper, the central and the lower; these three were then regrouped into wings before the battle: the upper army at the right wing under commander
Hu Mao HU or Hu may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Hu Sanniang, a fictional character in the ''Water Margin'', one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature * Tian Hu, one of the antagonists in the ''Water Margin'' * Hollywood Unde ...
and vice-commander Hu Yan, lower at left under Luan Zhi and vice
Xu Chen Xu Chen (; born 29 November 1984) is a badminton player from China. In 2010, he (along with his partner Guo Zhendong) was ranked within the top 10 men's badminton doubles in the world. At the 2012 Summer Olympics, he competed in the mixed doubl ...
, central remained at centre under Xian Zhen and vice Xi Zhen. Duke Wen did not direct or engage in the fighting.


Battle

On the fourth day of the fourth month of 632 BC, the rival forces met. The battle commenced with the advance of both wings of the Jin army. The Chu right wing was reckoned to be the weakest and Xu Chen, commander of the Jin left wing, attacked. Xu Chen dressed his
chariot A chariot is a type of cart driven by a charioteer, usually using horses to provide rapid motive power. The oldest known chariots have been found in burials of the Sintashta culture in modern-day Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia, dated to c. 2000&nbs ...
horses with tiger skins to panic the Chu horses and launched an urgent, vigorous assault on the Chu right wing. The attack was rapidly successful, scattering and demolishing the enemy wing completely. The Jin left then became a holding force, fixing the Chu center and preventing it from attacking the Jin centre or aiding the Chu left wing, since in either case the Jin left would have taken it in the flank and rear. Meanwhile, Hu Mao's Jin right wing had skirmished with the enemy, faked a retreat and carried with them the two great banners of the Jin commander-in-chief himself. The Chu left, made up of levies from the states of Shen and Xi, thought that the Jin right wing had lost and Ziyu ordered a pursuit. A contingent of chariots under Luan Zhi swept in front and dragged tree branches to raise a dust cloud and thereby obscure the movements of Hu Mao's men who were circling and reforming. The Jin left aided by the Jin center continued to maintain their positions against the Chu center. Though the Jin centre was temporarily disordered by an intense whirlwind, it was effective in preventing the Chu center from supporting its left wing. As the Chu left advanced, it was caught in the flank by Duke Wen's bodyguards, composed of the sons of noble clansmen and sons of his close followers, as well as the Song contingent. Meanwhile, the entire force of the Jin right wing completed its recircling and was supported on its right by Luan Zhi's chariots to join the assault. The Chu left was completely destroyed. Seeing both his wings enveloped, Ziyu ordered a general retreat, which turned into rout when it was discovered that the Chu camp and train in the rear had been captured during the battle by the Qi and Qin contingents, which had been sent to occupy it via a flanking march.


Evaluation

The Battle of Chengpu is one of the biggest battles of the
Spring and Autumn period The Spring and Autumn period was a period in Chinese history from approximately 770 to 476 BC (or according to some authorities until 403 BC) which corresponds roughly to the first half of the Eastern Zhou period. The period's name derives fr ...
and the most detailed in the '' Zuo Zhuan''. Nevertheless, the location of the battle remains obscure: two inconclusive possibilities are the vicinity of Chenliu,
Henan Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is al ...
and the southwest area of
Juancheng County Juancheng County falls under the jurisdiction of Heze, in the southwest of Shandong Shandong ( , ; ; Chinese postal romanization, alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal Provinces of China, province of the China, People's Republic ...
,
Shandong Shandong ( , ; ; alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the East China region. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilizati ...
. After returning to the north, Duke Wen was recognised by the King of Zhou as first among the feudal lords. A multi-state conference at Jiantu in 631 BC headed by Duke Wen confirmed their support for the Zhou royal family and swore a covenant of alliance. The battle, however, was not effective in the long term in restricting the power of Chu.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chengpu, Battle of 632 BC 7th-century BC conflicts Chengpu 632 BC 7th century BC in China Spring and Autumn period Chu (state) Jin (Chinese state) Qi (state) Qin (state) Chen (state) Cai (state)