"The History of the Later Han Dynasty Cui Zhichuan": "He Tianqu has made achievements in the prosperous times for more than a thousand years." The ancient flourishing age could not change the essence of feudal rule and eliminate feudal exploitation and slavery, so it was not a paradise on earth, and there were crises and contradictions lurking in the flourishing age. However, even so, China has two prosperous times, namely the Tang and Song Dynasties.

Anyone who has come into contact with the ancient history of China will have the impression that the Tang Dynasty was rich and powerful, especially its military strength, while the subsequent Song Dynasty was poor and weak, especially its military strength. As a result, the adjacent two dynasties give people a feeling of sharp contrast between strength and weakness.

A man of heart began to consult historical materials for this view. As a result, he was surprised to find that in all previous wars, the winning rate of the Song Dynasty was actually much higher than that of the Tang Dynasty. So, can this view of Tang Qiang and Wei Song be overturned? The answer is no.

Let's talk about the winning rate of the war first. Throughout the Tang Dynasty, after Li Shimin, it was certainly powerful. And if you study it carefully, you will find that although most of the wars in the Tang Dynasty failed, they were all foreign wars. Because, far from the political and economic center, the reserve supply of soldiers is very unfavorable, and these unfavorable factors are also a major cause of war.

However, because the emperors are only expanding their territory, even if they fail, the impact will not be great.

However, the Song Dynasty was different. Due to the policy problems in the Northern Song Dynasty, the Song Dynasty favored literati, looked down on rude military officers and generals, and did not make good use of soldiers. Although many battles were won during this period, and the winning rate was as high as 70%, these wars were all defensive wars, which were completely different from the wars of the Tang Dynasty to expand the territory.

Dasong's territory is not vast, and it is surrounded by fierce nomadic people who are eyeing up. Xixia, especially Daliao and Daikin, are almost frequent visitors to the northern territory of the Great Song Dynasty and are old friends on the battlefield. For these countries, Da Song tried his best to beat them off, and once they failed, they would be high reparations and privileges.

From this perspective, it is meaningless to talk about the winning rate in the battle of Tang and Song Dynasties.

Furthermore, tell me where Tang Qiang is. After studying the history of the Tang Dynasty, you will know many famous ministers in history, such as Fang. Besides, you will meet many outstanding young generals, such as Wei Qing and Huo Qubing. Each of them is famous in history and has made outstanding contributions.

Therefore, the strength of Datang is first of all the talent reserve. There are famous ministers and wise kings who govern state affairs at home, and excellent generals who are brave and good at fighting abroad. The superb talent of the rulers made the Tang Dynasty increasingly strong. Secondly, it is the powerful economy and culture of the Tang Dynasty. There were many excellent rulers in the Tang Dynasty, Li Shimin was one of them, and even Wu Zetian was an excellent emperor.

Under these wise kings, the Tang Dynasty had prosperous times again and again.

Culturally, Tang poetry has been popular for a hundred years and its influence has been so far. Economically prosperous, the city is a pearl. Then came the military affairs of the Tang Dynasty. Every monarch has a dream of dominating the world, and Li Shimin is the most typical one. Expanding territory is what they often do. As a result, they have specialized military talents, and the top military officials make accurate decisions in every war and command the army to be invincible.

The army of the Tang Dynasty invaded the desert with extraordinary military strength. The Turks were defeated by the strong wind. This is the soldier king.

So, finally, what is the weakness of DaSong? After all, Dasong was a dynasty after Datang, and the ancients were best at learning from history, so the system of Dasong was more advanced than Datang. After several generations of efforts, the Song Dynasty eliminated the hidden danger of the separatist regime in the buffer region, and the military strength criticized by later generations was strictly controlled.

At this point, the combat effectiveness of the army is not as weak as rumored, and the winning rate is also real. So, why do you still say that Song is weak? Its weakness lies in military command and strategic decision-making. Because of the strength of military attaché s, the rulers of Song Dynasty suppressed military attaché s in all directions, so they valued literature over martial arts.