Kong Youde ( zh, c=, p=Kǒng Yǒudé; mnc, , v=; Transliteration of Manchu: kung ioo de; died August 7, 1652) was a Chinese adventurer and

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 ...

military officer who served under the warlord

Mao Wenlong Mao Wenlong (; 10 February 1576 – 24 July 1629), courtesy name Zhennan, was a Chinese military general of the Ming dynasty. He is best known for commanding Ming forces in the naval battles against forces of the Manchu-led Qing dynasty in the Y ...

until Mao's death in 1629. Subsequently, he worked for Sun Yuanhua, governor of

Shandong Shandong ( , ; ; Chinese postal romanization, alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal Provinces of China, province of the China, People's Republic of China and is part of the East China region. Shandong has played a major role in His ...

, along with fellow Mao subordinate Geng Zhongming. When ordered by Sun to reinforce Zu Dashou at the

Battle of Dalinghe The Battle of Dalinghe () was a battle between the Later Jin dynasty and the Ming dynasty that took place between September and November 1631. Later Jin forces besieged and captured the fortified northern Ming city of Dalinghe (大凌河; presen ...

in 1631, Kong and Geng mutinied, pillaging the countryside, sacking

Dengzhou Dengzhou (), formerly Deng County (), is a city in Nanyang, Henan, China. It has an area of and a population of 1,500,000. The urban area is 35 km², and the urban population is 300,000. The city is located in the southwest of Henan provi ...

, and subsequently defecting to the Manchu—soon to declare themselves China's

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...

—in 1633. They were joined in 1634 by another former officer under Mao,

Shang Kexi Shang Kexi (尚可喜; Shang Ko-hsi; August 25, 1604 – November 12, 1676) was a Chinese general of the Ming and Qing dynasties. His family had migrated to Liaodong in 1576 and his father, Shang Xueli, served in the army guarding the northe ...

. Together, the three were known as the "Three Miners from Shandong" and participated in many campaigns under the Qing dynasty, hastening the demise of the Ming.

Life

Early career

Kong Youde was illiterate, but was known for his ferocity and martial skills in battle. He was a loyal follower of the semi-independent warlord Mao Wenlong, who operated in

Liaodong The Liaodong Peninsula (also Liaotung Peninsula, ) is a peninsula in southern Liaoning province in Northeast China, and makes up the southwestern coastal half of the Liaodong region. It is located between the mouths of the Daliao River (the ...

under nominal Ming supervision. In an effort to unify Ming forces on the northern frontier under a single command structure, general

Yuan Chonghuan Yuan Chonghuan (; 6 June 1584 – 22 September 1630), courtesy name Yuansu or Ziru, was a Chinese politician, military general and writer who served under the Ming dynasty. Widely regarded as a patriot in Chinese culture, he is best known for d ...

trapped and executed Mao Wenlong in 1629. Although Yuan had hoped to recruit Mao's followers into the regular Ming army, some including Kong Youde and Geng Zhongming refused to join him. Kong Youde and Geng Zhongming had close relationship, some historical sources indicate that they were sworn brothers, both of them left instead for

to work for Sun Yuanhua. While serving in Dengzhou, Kong and Geng were among the officers who learned to use the new European cannons Sun had obtained from

Macau Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a pop ...

Mutiny

In September 1631, the Later Jin dynasty of the

Manchu people The Manchus (; ) are a Tungusic East Asian ethnic group native to Manchuria in Northeast Asia. They are an officially recognized ethnic minority in China and the people from whom Manchuria derives its name. The Later Jin (1616–1636) an ...

laid siege to the northern fortress of Dalinghe. Sun ordered Kong Youde to reinforce Ming general Zu Dashou, who was trapped at Dalinghe. Rather than join the battle, Kong decided to loot the surrounding countryside instead. In February 1632, Kong Youde attacked Sun's garrison at Dengzhou, where Geng Zhongming was stationed. Geng turned on Sun Yuanhua, and Dengzhou fell to Kong Youde's assault. Among the casualties of the battle were several of the Portuguese artillery specialists from Macau who had been training the Ming troops. Kong and Geng took the Western cannons. Sun was allowed to leave unharmed, but was subsequently executed for desertion after arriving at the Ming capital of

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the Capital city, capital of the China, People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's Li ...

Defection

After capturing Dengzhou, Kong Youde besieged the Ming garrison at

Laizhou Laizhou, alternately romanized as Laichow, is a county-level city in the Prefecture-level city of Yantai, Shandong Province, China. As of 2008, Laizhou had a population of 902,000, out of which 188,000 are urban residents. Laizhou traditionally ...

. The Ming court responded by sending a force under the command of Zu Dashou's brother-in-law, Wu Xiang, accompanied by his son

Wu Sangui Wu Sangui (; 8 June 1612 – 2 October 1678), courtesy name Changbai () or Changbo (), was a notorious Ming Dynasty military officer who played a key role in the fall of the Ming dynasty and the founding of the Qing dynasty in China. In Chinese ...

. In 1633, Kong and Geng fled Shandong via the sea. After fighting several naval battles against Ming and Korean forces along the way, they landed in Liaodong with about 14,000 followers. They then switched allegiance to the Manchu Later Jin dynasty, and presented their Dengzhou artillery to the khan,

Hong Taiji Hong Taiji (28 November 1592 – 21 September 1643), also rendered as Huang Taiji and sometimes referred to as Abahai in Western literature, also known by his temple name as the Emperor Taizong of Qing, was the second khan of the Later Jin ...

. Their former associate under Mao Wenlong, Shang Kexi, soon joined them in 1634. Hong Taiji renamed the Later Jin dynasty to the Qing dynasty in 1636.

Later career

Kong Youde participated in the invasion of

Shanxi Shanxi (; ; formerly romanised as Shansi) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region. The capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-leve ...

in 1634. Kong, Geng, and Shang Kexi all participated in the

second Manchu invasion of Korea The Qing invasion of Joseon (Korean: Byeongja Horan) occurred in the winter of 1636 when the newly-established Qing dynasty invaded the Joseon dynasty, establishing the former's status as the hegemon in the Imperial Chinese Tributary System a ...

. Kong and Shang also participated in the siege of Jinzhou, against Zu Dashou. All three men were also involved in the war against

Li Zicheng Li Zicheng (22 September 1606 – 1645), born Li Hongji, also known by the nickname, Dashing King, was a Chinese peasant rebel leader who overthrew the Ming dynasty in 1644 and ruled over northern China briefly as the emperor of the short-li ...

's short-lived

Shun dynasty The Shun dynasty (), officially the Great Shun (), was a short-lived Chinese dynasty that existed during the Ming–Qing transition. The dynasty was founded in Xi'an on 8 February 1644, the first day of the lunar year, by Li Zicheng, the leade ...

. Kong Youde continued fighting against

Southern Ming The Southern Ming (), also known as the Later Ming (), officially the Great Ming (), was an imperial dynasty of China and a series of rump states of the Ming dynasty that came into existence following the Jiashen Incident of 1644. Shun force ...

forces throughout the 1640s as the Qing dynasty consolidated its control over China proper, notably in

Hunan Hunan (, ; ) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the South Central China region. Located in the middle reaches of the Yangtze watershed, it borders the province-level divisions of Hubei to the north, Jiangx ...

and

Guangxi Guangxi (; ; alternately romanized as Kwanghsi; ; za, Gvangjsih, italics=yes), officially the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region (GZAR), is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China, located in South China and bordering Vietnam ...

. In 1652, Kong Youde was battling Southern Ming armies in Guangxi when he was outflanked by the Ming loyalist general Li Dingguo. Having nowhere to escape, Kong committed suicide in

Guilin Guilin (Standard Zhuang: ''Gveilinz''; alternatively romanized as Kweilin) is a prefecture-level city in the northeast of China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. It is situated on the west bank of the Li River and borders Hunan to the nort ...

. Kong was buried outside the Zhanyi Gate in

Family

Kong Youde claimed to be a descendant of

Confucius Confucius ( ; zh, s=, p=Kǒng Fūzǐ, "Master Kǒng"; or commonly zh, s=, p=Kǒngzǐ, labels=no; – ) was a Chinese philosopher and politician of the Spring and Autumn period who is traditionally considered the paragon of Chinese sages. C ...

. This claimed descent, repeated in his Qing era biographies, was likely a fabrication. It was rejected by the officially recognized descendants of Confucius in Shandong, and he was barred by the family from entering the

Cemetery of Confucius The Cemetery of Confucius () is a cemetery of the Kong clan (the descendants of Confucius) in Confucius' hometown Qufu in Shandong province. Confucius himself and some of his disciples are buried there, as well as many thousands of his desc ...

to pay his respects. His daughter Kong Sizhen married General Sun Yanling and supported his participation of the

Revolt of the Three Feudatories The Revolt of the Three Feudatories, () also known as the Rebellion of Wu Sangui, was a rebellion in China lasting from 1673 to 1681, during the early reign of the Kangxi Emperor (r. 1661–1722) of the Qing dynasty (1644–1912). The revolt was ...

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * * {{cite ECCP, title=K'ung Yu-tê Qing dynasty generals 1652 deaths Ming dynasty generals 17th-century Chinese military personnel Suicides in the Qing dynasty Han Chinese Plain Red Bannermen