Why is it said that Galdan lost not only in military power but also in people's hearts?
The Battle of Zhaomoduo took place in the 35th year of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty (1696 AD). Kangxi led The Qing army ambushed the Oylat Mongolian Junggar army Galdan in a critical battle at Zhaomodo. After this battle, all of Galdan's elite troops were lost, and there would be no chance for a comeback. The rebellion that lasted for nearly 10 years was finally put down, and the Khalkha region was reunified under the Qing Dynasty.
During the battle, Galdan was waiting for work in Mobei, and the situation was originally favorable; while the Qing army was forced to attack from afar, and the situation was originally unfavorable. Galdan occupied the right time and location, but lost "humanity", so the result of the battle was a complete victory for the Qing army.
"Yi Talks about Humanities and History" Looking at the Battle of Zhaomoduo, Kangxi was completely victorious, while Galdan was completely defeated. The main reason was the gap in military power - Kangxi had a strong army and was backed by national power. He took the lead in military operations and always held the initiative; in contrast, Galdan's weak military strength and economy were at a disadvantage in front of the Qing army, so Galdan has always been passive and vulnerable; there is also an economic gap - The Qing Dynasty had a huge territory and a developed economy, while Galdan was in a corner, and its economy only relied on the single production economy of the nomadic people; more importantly, it was the gains and losses of people's hearts - Galdan "the unrighteous will have few helpers", and Kangxi "the successful ones" Help me a lot."
The Qing army was divided into three armies. The East Route Army was led by General Sabusu, a brave division from Guandong, numbering about 10,000 people; the West Route Army was led by Fuyuan General Fei Yanggu. There are about 24,000 people; the Central Route Army is directly led by Emperor Kangxi, with a total of more than 30,000 people. The total number of the three armies is about 70,000. On the other hand, Galdan has less than 10,000 troops. For example, the historical book "Records of the Qing Dynasty: Records of the Holy Ancestor" records: "Wen Galdan tribe only has five or six thousand people." Fei Yanggu, the general of the Qing Dynasty, mentioned in his memorial to Kangxi: "Galdan led the thieves with tens of thousands of people." Considering that Fei Yanggu should have exaggerated to claim military exploits, Galdan's army should not have exceeded ten thousand. .
The generals of the Qing army were already equipped with telescopes at that time. In addition to the traditional cold weapons halberds, knives, guns, and swords, the Qing army also had a considerable number of hot weapons-cannons. According to statistics, More than 100 cannons showed their power in the Battle of Zhaomodo. But Galdan's weapons are still the bows and arrows and prairie sabers of the Genghis Khan era. This comparison of firepower makes the difference.
The Qing Dynasty was a centralized feudal country with a large territory and developed economy, and the economy reached the peak of the Qing Dynasty during the Kangxi period. Therefore, Kangxi fought the Zhaomodo Campaign with the backing of strong national power. Galdan, on the other hand, is a relatively peaceful local separatist regime, still stuck in the relatively backward single-production economic stage of nomads. We can see the poverty of the Galdan tribe from the scattered historical records of Galdan from different periods: “There are a few camels and horses, but no cattle or sheep.”, “There are more than a thousand camels, cattle and horses, and they are in ruins, and there are no sheep. ", "As a last resort, we dig out the produce of the soil to eat."
Kangxi mobilized the power of the whole country to fight this battle. Emperor Kangxi not only led the expedition himself, but also mobilized all the elites of the Eight Banners, plus the brave and capable divisions of the Inner Mongolia and Khalkha Mongolian troops. In order to boost the morale of the soldiers and solve their worries, Kangxi issued an edict: "In addition to paying the usual price to all soldiers killed in the battle, the guards will give a son with an official salary of the seventh rank; for the Xiaoqi, a son will be given an official salary of the eighth rank. If he has no children, he will give his widow and wife the money and grain they have borrowed from the public treasury for the rest of their lives. In addition, they will be generous. "This way the Qing army can fight to the death in a desperate battle." Emperor Kangxi also recruited war horses from various provinces. "Those who are willing to donate horses and camels to the public in a hurry will be regulated. If there are sinners who are willing to donate horses and camels to the public, they are also allowed to donate horses and camels to atone for their sins." In this way, there will be enough war horses, which can be replenished at any time during the war. loss.
Those who win the hearts of the people win the world - Kangxi "Those who gain the Tao will get many help", Galdan "Those who do not follow the Tao will have few help"
The Galdan tribe does not have stable rear supplies, so "Wherever you hit, you rob." When Galdan marched to Kalkanamuzal Tuoyin, he set up troops to loot, burn, kill and loot, and committed all kinds of evil. The local herdsmen suffered terribly, so Galdan's subsequent conspiracy " Yin sent envoys to induce various tribes in Inner Mongolia to rebel and return." He was stillborn. In addition to being cruel to other tribes, Galdan was also very cruel to the people of his own tribe. In order to speed up the march, Galdan brutally killed the wives, daughters, children and disabled people of his own tribe, so that his own soldiers were all There are complaints against him. "Those who have attained the Dao will receive many help, while those who have lost the Dao will have few." So Galdan became a loner.
On the other hand, Emperor Kangxi's "propaganda work" in the enemy's rear was quite adequate. In his edict to Galdan's nephew Cewang Alabutan, he stated that this battle was only targeting Galdan alone. , your herdsmen in various places can graze as usual without panic. This will naturally disintegrate the Galdan tribe's rear military morale. The predecessor of the Battle of Zhaomodo was the Battle of Ulanbutong. In that battle, Kangxi's Qing army completely defeated the hearts of Galdan's troops. The soldiers were generally disheartened, demoralized and depressed. It is recorded in historical records that Galdan surrendered and said: "When we met at Ulan Butong, we were intimidated. Now that we are here in Kerulun and Tula, all the people of Erut who have conquered our country knew that they would perish, but Galdan thought otherwise, but he still made false claims." After the defeat in the Battle of Zhaomodo, Galdan fled for his life in a hurry. Even his soldiers laughed at him, "You will have this day too."
The Battle of Zhaomoduo once again illustrates Mencius’ eternal saying - "Those who gain the right will be helped by many, those who are unjust will be helped by few." The Battle of Zhaomodo was of great significance to the Qing Dynasty. Kangxi not only defeated the Galdan elite, but also finally put down the Galdan rebellion that lasted for nearly 10 years, and the Khalkha region was reunified under the Qing Dynasty.