Xu Da (1332–1385),

courtesy name A courtesy name (), also known as a style name, is a name bestowed upon one at adulthood in addition to one's given name. This practice is a tradition in the East Asian cultural sphere, including China China, officially the People's R ...

Tiande, was a Chinese military general and politician who lived in the late

Yuan dynasty The Yuan dynasty (), officially the Great Yuan (; xng, , , literally "Great Yuan State"), was a Mongols, Mongol-led Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after Division of the M ...

and early

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...

. He was a friend of the

Hongwu Emperor The Hongwu Emperor (21 October 1328 – 24 June 1398), personal name Zhu Yuanzhang (), courtesy name Guorui (), was the founding emperor of the Ming dynasty of China, reigning from 1368 to 1398. As famine, plagues and peasant revolts ...

, the founder and first ruler of the Ming dynasty, and assisted him in overthrowing the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty and establishing the Ming dynasty. He was also the father of Empress Xu, who married the third Ming ruler, the

Yongle Emperor The Yongle Emperor (; pronounced ; 2 May 1360 – 12 August 1424), personal name Zhu Di (), was the third Emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigning from 1402 to 1424. Zhu Di was the fourth son of the Hongwu Emperor, the founder of the Ming dyn ...

Biography

Xu Da was described as a stalwart man with slim face and high cheekbones, he joined the Red Turban rebels in 1353 to overthrow the Mongol-led

in China. Xu served as a general under Zhu Yuanzhang, a prominent rebel leader, and assisted him in defeating other rival warlords and opposing forces. In 1368, the year when the Ming dynasty was founded, Xu Da and other Ming generals led an attack on

Khanbaliq Khanbaliq or Dadu of Yuan () was the winter capital of the Yuan dynasty of China in what is now Beijing, also the capital of the People's Republic of China today. It was located at the center of modern Beijing. The Secretariat directly admi ...

(present-day

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

), the Yuan capital, and forced the last Yuan ruler, Toghon Temür, to flee northward."Xu Da." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2008. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 09 Oct. 2008
/ref> Xu Da led a pursuit on the retreating Yuan forces and encountered

Taejo of Joseon Taejo of Joseon (4 November 1335 – 27 June 1408), born Yi Seong-gye (), was the founder and first ruler of the Joseon dynasty of Korea. After ascending to the throne, he changed his name to Yi Dan (), and reigned from 1392 to 1398. He was ...

, the founder of the Korean

Joseon dynasty Joseon (; ; Middle Korean: 됴ᇢ〯션〮 Dyǒw syéon or 됴ᇢ〯션〯 Dyǒw syěon), officially the Great Joseon (; ), was the last dynastic kingdom of Korea, lasting just over 500 years. It was founded by Yi Seong-gye in July 1392 and ...

, who was ordered by the Mongols to attack the Ming army. Xu Da's presence struck fear into the Korean generals, who in turn, allied themselves with the Ming forces instead. Afterwards, Xu Da's army entered Mongol territory, routed Mongol reinforcements, sacked the Mongol capital at

Karakorum Karakorum ( Khalkha Mongolian: Хархорум, ''Kharkhorum''; Mongolian Script:, ''Qaraqorum''; ) was the capital of the Mongol Empire between 1235 and 1260 and of the Northern Yuan dynasty in the 14–15th centuries. Its ruins lie in t ...

, and captured thousands of Mongol nobles in 1370. His army ventured to

Transbaikalia Transbaikal, Trans-Baikal, Transbaikalia ( rus, Забайка́лье, r=Zabaykalye, p=zəbɐjˈkalʲjɪ), or Dauria (, ''Dauriya'') is a mountainous region to the east of or "beyond" (trans-) Lake Baikal in Far Eastern Russia. The steppe and ...

and reached further north than any other Chinese army had ever before. Xu Da died in 1385 under mysterious circumstances. He was not accused of plotting an assassination on the Hongwu Emperor – although many other generals who contributed heavily to the founding of the Ming dynasty were put to death by the emperor for allegedly plotting rebellions. According to legend, Xu Da was allergic to

goose A goose (plural, : geese) is a bird of any of several waterfowl species in the family (biology), family Anatidae. This group comprises the genera ''Anser (bird), Anser'' (the grey geese and white geese) and ''Branta'' (the black geese). Some o ...

, so the Hongwu Emperor sent him a goose dish and ordered the emissary to ensure that Xu ate it and died.Deng, Yinke''History of China'' Beijing : China Intercontinental Press, 2007. pp.131-132 This statement is not a fact, but a rumor. Xu Da died of natural illness. His family was still very prominent in the Ming dynasty.

Family

Wives and Issue: * Lady, of the Zhang clan (張氏) * Lady, of the Xie clan (謝氏), daughter of Xie Zaixing (謝再興) ** Xu Huizu (徐輝祖; 1368–1407), 1st son ** Xu Zengshou (徐增壽; d. 1402), 3rd son ** Xu Yihua, Empress Renxiaowen (仁孝文皇后徐儀華; 5 March 1362 – 6 August 1407), 1st daughter ***Married Zhu Di, the future Emperor Yongle, in 1736 and had issue.(4 daughters and 3 sons) * Lady, of the Sun clan (孫氏) ** Xu Yingxu (徐膺緒; 1372 – 2 March 1416), 4th son * Lady, of the Jia clan (賈氏) ** Unknown name/Posible to be Xu Miaojin (徐妙锦), 4th daughter * Unknown: ** ''Xu Tianfu'' (徐添福), 2nd son — died young ** Lady Xu (徐氏; d. 1427), 2nd daughter ***Married Zhu Gui, son of

, and had issue (3 sons) ** Lady Xu (徐氏; d. 1449), 3rd daughter ***Married Zhu Ying, Prince of Ai, son of

Ancestry

In fiction

Xu Da appears as a minor character in

Louis Cha Louis Cha Leung-yung (; 10 March 1924 – 30 October 2018), better known by his pen name Jin Yong (), pronounced "Gum Yoong" in Cantonese, was a Chinese wuxia ("martial arts and chivalry") novelist and essayist who co-founded the Hong Kong dail ...

's ''

wuxia ( ), which literally means "martial heroes", is a genre of Chinese fiction concerning the adventures of martial artists in ancient China. Although is traditionally a form of historical fiction, its popularity has caused it to be adapted f ...

'' novel '' The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber''. As a member of the anti- Yuan Ming Cult, Xu Da participated actively in the rebellions to overthrow the Yuan dynasty under the leadership of Zhang Wuji. Zhang passes Xu the '' Book of Wumu'', a text on military strategy written by the

Song dynasty The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the res ...

general Yue Fei. Xu benefits greatly from reading the book, becomes a brilliant military commander, and assists Zhu Yuanzhang in overthrowing the Yuan dynasty and establishing the Ming dynasty.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Xu, Da 1332 births 1385 deaths Generals from Anhui Ming dynasty chancellors Ming dynasty generals People from Fengyang