Analysis of the reasons why Qin won the war to destroy the Six Kingdoms
Time: 2008-10-27 16:59 Source: Author: Clicks: 180 times
Qin Tong The war of the Six Kingdoms was not only the last war of annexation by princes at the end of the Warring States Period, but also the earliest war of feudal unification in Chinese history. From 230 BC to 221 BC, the Qin State spent 10 years to successively destroy six countries: Yan and Zhao in the north, Han and Wei in the Central Plains, Qi in the east, and Chu in the south, ending the Spring and Autumn Period. It lasted for more than 500 years
Qin's war to unify the six kingdoms was not only the last annexation war of princes at the end of the Warring States Period, but also the earliest feudal unification war in Chinese history. From 230 BC to 221 BC, the Qin State spent 10 years to successively destroy six countries: Yan and Zhao in the north, Han and Wei in the Central Plains, Qi in the east, and Chu in the south, ending the Spring and Autumn Period. After more than 500 years of wars and disputes between feudal princes, the first centralized and unified country in Chinese history was established.
The situation of various countries before the unification of the Six Kingdoms
After the long-term mergers and wars in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, Chinese society gradually developed towards the trend of national unification. By 246 BC, the first year of Qin Shihuang's accession to the throne, with the beginning of Qin's unification war to destroy the six kingdoms, the first powerful and unified feudal empire in the history of our country, the Qin State, was about to be born in the shadow of swords. The decline of the Six Kingdoms and the prosperity of the Qin Kingdom have become an irreversible trend.
Qi
Xiang is a powerful country in the east. However, in the early years of Qin Shihuang, when the Qi regime was passed to King Qi Jian, the hegemony established during the period of King Wei of Qi had long become a relic of history, and Qi had only the false name of a powerful country in the East. It was politically backward, its economy was developing slowly, its country had no good ministers and good generals, and its army had no ambition to fight. Facing the war that the powerful Qin was about to launch to destroy the six kingdoms, it was unprepared and sat there waiting to be killed.
Han
is originally the weakest among the three Jins. By the time of King Huanhui of Han, Han had already surrendered to Qin. In the early years of Qin Shihuang, Korea's territory shrank even further, leaving only the capital Yangzhai and more than 10 small and medium-sized cities around it. It was basically a country in name only.
Wei
Although it also experienced the most powerful period in the early Warring States Period, it occupied vast areas in Hedong, Hexi, Hanoi, and outside Hebei. The territory was crisscrossed by mountains and rivers, and the situation was dangerous. , but because it blocked Qin Dong's throat from Hangu, it had been Qin's primary opponent for many years. Especially since King Hui of Wei, it had been continuously defeated by Qin, and its territory was shrinking day by day. In the early years of Qin Shihuang, when King Anli of Wei was in his late period, the country was even weaker. However, Lord Xinling stole the talisman to save Zhao, especially united all the vassal states to fight against Qin, and achieved a great victory outside the river, which greatly enhanced the prestige of Wei. He should have taken advantage of the victory to restore Wei's territory. However, King Anli was stupid and incompetent. Not only did he not Taking the opportunity to restore the country, he instead listened to Qin's instigation and deposed Lord Xinling, thus losing a precious opportunity to make a comeback.
Zhao
Located in the north of the Central Plains, with a radius of 2,000 miles, it is also a powerful country in the north. During the reign of King Wuling of Zhao, he advocated Hufu riding and shooting, revolutionized politics, enriched the country and strengthened the army, and the country's power was revitalized. Zhao resisted the Xiongnu in the north and resisted the powerful Qin in the south, becoming the only country that could compete with Qin. However, after the death of King Wuling of Zhao, Zhao was repeatedly attacked by Qin soldiers. He refused to appoint the country's good generals such as Lian Po and Li Mu, and actually listened to the slanderous words and had them deposed. King Zhao's mediocrity and incompetence made Zhao finally defeated by Qin.
Yan
At the beginning of the Spring and Autumn Period, Yan was still a very weak country. By the time of King Zhao of Yan, he worked hard to govern, expanded his territory, and became stronger and stronger. He once reached Liaodong in the north, Shanggu in the west, and Qi in the south. , Zhao borders. When King Xi of Yan came to power, not only did he not make peace with his neighbors Zhao and Qi, he often launched melee wars, which wasted people and money, and caused huge losses in national power. Among the six countries, it became a weak country slightly stronger than Han. Li
Chu
From the Spring and Autumn Period to the Warring States Period, it has never lost its status as a great southern country. It has a territory of 5,000 miles, has millions of armors, a vast land and abundant resources, and has grown grain for 10 years. It is a vassal state. A big country with considerable strength in China. However, after Qin general Bai Qi captured the capital of Chu, the power of the Chu state was greatly weakened, and the capital was forced to move to Chendi, and later to Juyang and Shouchun. The capital was forced to move many times, which greatly dampened the morale of the people of Chu. Before and after King Kaolie of Chu came to power, the state of Chu actually had the reputation of being a strong Chu state and was far from being able to compete with Qin.
Qin
Located in the western border, it was originally a small Rongdi country in the Guanzhong area. During the Spring and Autumn Period, it was far behind the other vassal states in the Central Plains. , Qin was often ostracized. However, since Qin Xiaogong worked hard to govern, he appointed Shang Yang to reform, abolished the old slave-owner aristocratic privileges and the Shiqing Shilu system, and gradually established a centralized feudal ruling regime. Internally, they implemented "rewarding military merits and teaching farming wars", while externally, they fought against the princes. Sima Cuo merged with Hanzhong and Bashu in the south, and destroyed Yiqu and Longxi in the north. The vast areas of Bashu were successively owned by Qin. Hou Baiqi led his army to conquer Ying, the capital of Chu, defeated the Zhao and Wei coalition forces in Huayang, and annihilated the Zhao army in Changping. Almost all the rivers and mountains in the Central Plains were under the control of Qin.
Qin’s basic strategy and tactics to destroy the six kingdoms
In 238 BC, the Qin royal government eradicated the group of Prime Minister Lu Buwei and Changxin Hou Lao Ai, began to take charge of the government, and made careful arrangements to unify the six kingdoms war. Li Si, Wei Liao and others assisted the King of Qin in formulating a strategy to unify the country.
Qin's strategy to destroy the six kingdoms had two contents. One was to take advantage of the melee among the six kingdoms to "destroy the princes, become an emperor, and unify the world." The King of Qin adopted Wei Liao's strategy of breaking up the alliance of the six kingdoms, "not caring about property, bribing its powerful ministers to disrupt its plans", and dividing and disintegrating the enemy country from within. The second is to inherit the policy of distant relations and close attacks in past dynasties, and determine the specific strategic steps of first being weak before becoming strong, and first being near before being far away. Li Si suggested that the Qin Dynasty attack Han and Zhao first, "If Zhao is lifted up, Han will perish, and if Han perishes, Jing and Wei will not be independent, and Jing and Wei will not be independent." In one fell swoop, they destroyed Han and Wei, uprooted thorns, and weakened Qi and Yan in the east." This strategic step can be summarized into three steps, namely, win over Yan Qi, stabilize Chu and Wei, eliminate Han and Zhao, and then defeat each one to unify the country. Under the guidance of this strategic approach, a war of unification began.
The war to annex Han and destroy Zhao
Before Qin launched the attack on Zhao, he followed the plan of Li Si and Wei Liao and used spies to provoke a war between Yan and Zhao. When the war between Yan and Zhao broke out, Qin started to attack Zhao on the pretext of aiding Yan to fight against Zhao. The Qin army attacked Zhao from three directions: west, northwest, and south, but focused its attack on the southern part of Zhao State, so as to trap the Zhao army in the dilemma of fighting on two sides and being attacked from both sides. In the winter of the eleventh year of the First Emperor of Qin, when the two countries Yan and Zhao were at war, Qin sent Wang Jian and led his army to attack the strategically important location of Yanyu in the Taihang Mountains. This strategic location that had long been coveted by the Qin State was wiped out by Qin in one fell swoop, thus opening up the path from the west to the west. Facing the passage to attack Handan. Qin Yangrui and his army attacked Hanyang (to the north of Yan and Yu) and successfully conquered it, so that the northwest direction of Handan lost its barrier. Qin Huanlu's army set out from Nanyang and captured Anyang, which belonged to Yeyi. At this point, the Qin army had advanced to the south of Handan, and was only separated from Handan, the capital of Zhao, by the Zhang River and a few cities. Although there were 300,000 Qin troops in each group, they were blocked after capturing the above-mentioned areas due to the tenacious resistance of Zhao's 200,000 troops. Later, after continuous battles, Qin Shihuang organized the three northern and southern troops attacking Zhao into an independent combat unit, commanded by Huan Lu. In the thirteenth year of the First Emperor's reign (234 BC), this newly formed army once again attacked southern Zhao. Huanlu avoided crossing the river directly, and instead crossed the lower reaches of the Zhanghe River to bypass the flank of Zhao Huluan's army and attack Pingyang southeast of Handan. The two armies fought in Pingyang. The Zhao army was defeated and 100,000 people were killed. Zhao general Hu was killed in battle. King Zhao appointed Li Mu, a famous general from the northern frontier, as commander-in-chief. Li Mu's army once annihilated 100,000 Xiongnu invading troops. It was powerful in the border areas and had the strongest combat effectiveness. Li Mu led his army back to Zhao and immediately fought with Qin Huanlu's army in the Feixia area of ??Yi'an. He dealt a heavy blow to the Qin army, which almost completely destroyed it. Only Commander Huanluan and a few guards broke through and escaped.
South Korea is the smallest among the seven countries, but its position is the most important. It blocked Qin's path from Hangu Pass to the east. If Qin wanted to annex the six kingdoms, it must first destroy Han. This formed a continuous war between Qin and South Korea. After many attacks by Qin, Han's land gradually shrank. So he expressed his willingness to become a vassal vassal to Qin. In the seventeenth year of Qin Shihuang and the ninth year of Han Wangan (230 BC), Qin sent Nei Shiteng to lead his troops to attack Han again in order to completely destroy Han. Han was unable to resist. Nei Shiteng commanded the Qin army to conquer the capital of Han, captured Han Wangan, and captured Han Wangan. The obtained Han land was renamed Yingchuan County. In this way, Han became the first country among the six kingdoms to be destroyed at that time.
In the fifteenth year of Qin Shihuang and the fourth year of Zhao Wangqian's reign (232 BC), Qin sent out armies from the north and the south to attack Zhao. Li Mu, the commander-in-chief of the Zhao army, decided to concentrate his forces first to attack the invading Qin army from the north. After winning, he would then attack the Qin army from the south. The Zhao army commanded by Li Mu was agile and fast. It first dealt a heavy blow to the Qin army attacking Fanwu, followed and pursued it, and drove the Qin army out of the Zhao territory. It immediately returned to the south and marched south. Its momentum was unstoppable. When the Qin army heard along the Zhang River, After hearing the news, they left without fighting. The Qin troops in Shangdang and other places also retreated one after another, not daring to fight. The Qin army's third large-scale attack failed. Although the Zhao army was victorious again and again under the command of Li Mu, it was difficult to replenish its troops after the loss. The existing troops alone could not fight Qin for a long time, and they had to seek foreign aid immediately. At this time, Chu and Wei had been weakened, and the relationship between Yan and Zhao was not good. Only by uniting Qi and gaining the support of Qi's manpower and material resources could they compete with Qin. Qin also noticed Zhao's attempt and immediately sent a group of strategists to Qi to conduct lobbying activities, trying his best to undermine the alliance between Qi and Zhao and isolate Zhao. Qin Ze did not miss the opportunity and launched another large-scale attack.
In the seventeenth year of Qin Shihuang and the sixth year of Zhao Wangqian (230 BC), a severe drought occurred in Zhao, and Qin launched a large-scale attack on Zhao again the following year. The Qin army sent two armies from the north and the south and mobilized some minority tribal soldiers to participate in the battle. The Zhao army, under the command of general Li Mu and deputy general Sima Shang, continued to fight against the Qin army. Although the Qin army fought hard, the victory was not decided. The King of Qin and his advisers believed that Qin's two attacks on Zhao were blocked by Li Mu, and they felt that they could not win militarily, so they resorted to counterintuitive tactics and paid a lot of money to bribe the treacherous Zhao King's favored minister Guo Kai in front of the King of Zhao to spread rumors and slander Li Mu and Li Mu. Sima Shang attempted to rebel. King Zhao rashly dismissed Li Mu and Sima Shang without any analysis, appointed Zhao Cong and Yan Ju as commanders of the Zhao army, and mistakenly killed the famous general Li Mu.
Zhao Wangqian fell into Qin's counter-intentional plan, paving the way for Qin to destroy Zhao. Zhao Cong was no match for Wang Jian, and was quickly defeated by the Qin army. Zhao Cong was killed, and Yan Ju packed up his remaining troops and returned to Handan to defend his troops. The traitor Guo Kai was bought by Qin and willing to serve Qin. He persuaded King Zhao to surrender in many ways. Zhao Gongzijia firmly opposed it and advocated fighting to the end. He led his clan and guests to participate in the defense of the capital Handan. However, King Zhao lost his fighting spirit and allowed himself to be manipulated by the traitor Guo Kai. He actually ordered Kaicheng to surrender to the Qin army, which finally destroyed the Zhao country that had been founded for more than 250 years.
The Battle to Destroy Wei
After Zhao was destroyed by Qin, Qin immediately wanted to go south to destroy Chu, but there was still a Wei State in between. Although Wei at this time only had the capital near Daliang. There were some cities and towns, but they were ultimately obstacles to Qin's advance into Chu, so he decided to destroy Wei first and then attack Chu. Originally, Wei was at the "pivot of the world" and had a superior strategic situation. However, due to frequent wars, Wei's strength was greatly weakened. Over the years, under the attack of the powerful Qin, they retreated steadily and continued to cede territory to seek peace. The Wei State's territory north of the river was devoured. In the 22nd year of Qin Shihuang and the third year of King Wei's leave (225 BC), Qin sent troops to attack Daliang, the capital of Wei. The commander-in-chief of the Qin Dynasty, Wang Ben, believed that the city wall of Daliang was strong and difficult to conquer in a short period of time, so he diverted water from the ditch to flood Daliang City. After three months of fighting, the city wall collapsed. King Wei pretended to surrender and was killed by Wang Ben. When Wei fell, Qin built the land as Dongjun.
The Battle of Chu
After the Qin army destroyed Zhao, defeated Yan and merged with Wei, they then launched a massive attack on Chu. At that time, Chu was still a large country in southern China, owning present-day western and southeastern Henan, southern Shandong, the two provinces of Hubei and Hunan, the east of Dongting Lake, and all of Jiangxi, Anhui, Jiangsu, and Zhejiang. At this time, Chu State still had the strength needed to fight Qin. Qin Shihuang believed that the young and brave general Li Xin, who once pursued Prince Dan of Yan in Yanshui with thousands of troops and won victory, was the ideal general to lead his troops to attack Chu. So he entrusted him with an important task and asked Li Xin how many troops and horses would be needed if he sent troops to attack Chu? Li Xin replied, "It would only be 200,000 people." The First Emperor asked Wang Jian again, and Wang Jian said, "It has to be 600,000 people." The First Emperor did not agree with Wang Jian's opinion, but agreed with Li Xin's statement, and immediately said: "General Wang is old, why should he be cowardly! General Li is indeed brave, and his words are true." Wang Jian said that his words were of no use, and he thanked him for his illness. , return Pinyang. Li Xin was ordered to be the commander-in-chief of the Qin army, and he and Meng Tian led 200,000 troops to attack Chu. Li Xin concentrated his troops in Yingchuan County. Since the border between Qin and Chu was mostly plains and there was no danger, he believed that the purpose of this battle was to annihilate Chu's field troops. Li Xin judged that when the Qin army attacked Chu, in order to resist the Qin army's attack, the Chu army would concentrate its forces on both sides of the Ru River, that is, in the border areas of Huaiyang, Shangshui, and Shangcai. Then it was decided to adopt a two-wing pincer offensive to surround and annihilate the Chu army. So it was decided that part of the army would be commanded by Meng Tian, ??advance along both sides of the Ru River, and attack the Chu army from the front. The main force was personally commanded by Li Xin. It started from the south of Ru River, passed through Wuyang, Pingyu, Xincai, and Yingyi, and detoured to the left flank of the Chu army. It joined Mengtian's army, surrounded the Chu army, and gathered to annihilate it.
The Qin army eliminated the resistance of the Chu border troops and launched attacks on Xi and Pingyu from the north and south of the Ruhe River. They defeated the Chu army. Li Xin's army occupied Pingyu and Mengtian's army occupied Xicheng. The Qin army encountered no significant resistance from the Chu army. After occupying two cities, they crossed the Honghe River and marched eastward.
Xiang Yan, the commander-in-chief of the Chu army, changed the direction of the Qin army's advance and advanced deeply alone. He immediately led the main force of the Chu army and advanced rapidly to pursue the Qin army in Tangxi and dealt a heavy blow to the Qin army. Li Xin was defeated and led his army to retreat towards Chengfu. The Chu army took advantage of the victory and pursued fiercely, fighting non-stop for three days and nights. The fortresses built by the Qin army for days were all broken by the Chu army. Seven of the first-level generals were killed. Li Xin's army suffered heavy losses. Thanks to the cover of Meng Tian's army, Li Xin was able to break through and escape back to the Qin territory without being captured. This was another major setback after the Yi'an War in the Qin Unification War.
The Qin army suffered a major setback. Although Qin Shihuang felt that he had made a mistake in selecting the commander, he did not waver in his determination to destroy Chu and continued the war to destroy Chu. After Li Xin's defeat, Wang Jian was appointed as the commander-in-chief of the Qin army. Qin Shihuang moved to Zun for advice and went to Wang Jian's hometown Pinyang in person to invite Wang Jian to serve as the commander-in-chief of the Qin army. Wang Jian declined, saying that he was in poor health and could not obey his orders. Qin Shihuang insisted on inviting him to go on an expedition and asked him what he wanted. At this time, Wang Jian said: "The king must use his ministers as a last resort, and it must be 600,000 people." Qin Shihuang agreed. Wang Jian then succeeded Li Xin as the commander-in-chief of the Qin army and led an army of 600,000 to fight against Chu. Qin Shihuang personally sent Wang Jian to the shore of Bashui on the outskirts of Beijing. Wang Jian asked the King of Qin to give him more fields and houses. The King of Qin agreed to his request, and Wang Jian led his troops eastward.
Based on long-term combat experience in the past, Wang Jian knew that both the Chu army and the Zhao army had a strong will to fight and were capable of fighting and defending. The Chu army had recently defeated the Qin army commanded by Li Xin. It was full of vigor and high morale. Not only was there no guarantee of victory against such an enemy, but if it acted carelessly, it would also affect the future of the entire war. Therefore, after Wang Jian entered the Chu Kingdom, he immediately ordered his troops to build fortifications in the areas of Shangshui, Shangcai, and Pingyu, and fortified them, and ordered his troops not to go to war. They were resting and on standby, so the two sides remained in a stalemate for several months without any major fighting.
Chu launched a large-scale eastward advance against the Qin army and concentrated all its forces to fight. At that time, the Qin Dynasty had destroyed the three Jin Dynasties, had no worries, had a large amount of material support, and was able to fight a protracted war. Chu was far behind both militarily and politically. Commander-in-chief Xiang Yan still concentrated the main force of the Chu army on the north bank of the Huaihe River in Shouchun, waiting for the Qin army's attack. The King of Chu blamed Xiang Yan for being timid and sent people several times to urge him to take the initiative to attack the Qin army. Xiang Yan's army had no choice but to attack the Qin army, but could not break the Qin army's fortress and the Qin army refused to fight. Xiang Yan had no choice but to lead his army eastward. Wang Jian immediately ordered the entire army to pursue the Chu army. The Chu army was blocked by the Guohe River. The two sides fought and the Chu army was defeated and fled eastward. The Qin army pursued them to Qinan and pacified all the areas belonging to Chu. After beheading the Chu general Xiang Yan, Wang Jian led his troops to Shouchun, the capital of Chu. The capital of Chu was captured by the Qin army, and King Xiong Beicu of Chu was captured. The Qin army marched into Qinnan, and after just over a year of fighting, Chu, known as the most powerful country in the south, collapsed.
In the 20th year of Qin Shihuang (227 BC), Qin sent generals Wang Jian and Xin Sheng to lead their troops to fight against Yan.
Commander-in-Chief Wang Jian aimed to directly capture Jicheng, the capital of Yan State. At the same time, it was judged that the Yan army must rely on the rivers passing through the Yanzhao Highway for resistance. In particular, the larger river Yishui on the Yanzhao boundary must be heavily guarded, and it was not appropriate to devote the main force to a frontal attack. Downstream of Yishui, the river is deep and wide, and it is difficult to cross the river. If the Yan army in front of Yishui is surrounded by the mountains in the upper reaches of Yishui, it will be easy to succeed without hostility. Therefore, Wang Jian decided to use part of his troops to attack Yan from Zhongshan (now Dingxian, Hebei) to the north. The Yan army and the Zhao army from Zhao Jiabu, Daijun, have organized a joint force to fight against the Qin army on the north bank of Yishui River. Wang Jian used the main force of the Qin army to detour upstream of the Yishui River and surrounded the right wing of the Yan Dai army in Yishui. The two sides met west of the Yishui River. The Qin army defeated the Yan army, the Zhao army withdrew to Dai County, and the remaining Yan army retreated to Jicheng. Qin continued to attack Yan, defeated the Yan army's resistance, and besieged Yan's capital. Yan was not determined to defend the capital and retreated to Liaodong, allowing the Qin army to easily capture Jicheng. After Wang Jian captured the capital of the Yan state, he immediately sent General Li Xin and his army to pursue the Yan army retreating eastward. They pursued it to Yanshui and defeated the remnants of the Yan army led by Prince Dan. At this time, the rulers of Yan who fled to the Liao River Basin believed that the Qin army's attack on Yan was entirely caused by Prince Dan's assassination conspiracy and that the disaster originated from the Prince. Zhao Jia also advised King Yan to kill Prince Dan and offer his head to Qin to seek peace. So King Yan killed Prince Dan and offered his head to sue for peace, but the Qin army did not stop its military attack.
The Qin army pursued the remnants of Yan to Liaodong. Due to the remoteness of the place, it had little bearing on the overall situation, so it diverted its troops to fight against Chu. After about three years, the war between Qin and Chu ended successfully, and it turned to its troops, commanded by general Wang Ben, to attack Liaodong. The Yan army was unable to fight, and King Yan was captured by the Qin army. Qin immediately transferred its troops to attack Dai County. Although Zhao Jia led his troops to fight hard, they were eventually defeated and committed suicide in grief and anger.
The War to Destroy Qi
After the Yan army invaded and occupied Qi, Qi's vitality was greatly depleted, and it did not have the strength to participate in the political and military struggles between the Eastern countries and Qin. During the war between the Qin army and the annihilation of Zhao, Han, Yan, Wei, and Chu, Qi had always stayed on the sidelines and watched the destruction of all countries. In the past, at a critical moment in the Changping War between Qin and Zhao, Zhao asked Qi for military supplies. Zhou Zi, who had political foresight, once said to the King of Qi: "The defense between Zhao and Qi and Chu is just like teeth with lips. If the lips are dead, the teeth will be cold. Zhao will be destroyed today, and Qi and Chu will be affected tomorrow." He advocated active aid to Zhao. King Jing of Qi did not accept this strategically far-sighted suggestion. After that, although the vassal states jointly fought against Qin several times, Qi avoided participating or participated in the war ineffectively in an attempt to curry favor with Qin.
For more than 40 years after King Jian of Qi took the throne, the three Jin, Chu, Yan and Qin wars continued. Since Qi did not have the same border with Qin, it was not attacked, and everyone enjoyed themselves, and they were in a peaceful environment for a long time. There is no preparation for military reform, no preparation for war, and the level of political numbness is astonishing. Qi Wangjian himself was mediocre and incompetent, and Qi Prime Minister Hou Sheng was also a greedy man. Qin bribed Hou Sheng with large sums of money for many years, and Hou Sheng served Qin's strategy of far-reaching and close-in attacks. He persuaded Qi Wangjian to submit to Qin all day long. No fighting spirit at all. Therefore, even though Qi still had more than 70 cities when it destroyed the six kingdoms, it was still vulnerable.
In the twenty-sixth year of the First Emperor of Qin (221 BC), the army commanded by King Ben of Qin suddenly attacked Qi from the south of Yan to the north, heading straight to Linzi, the capital of Qi. Qi was unprepared for battle and had no soldiers to fight. Prime Minister Hou Sheng of Qi persuaded the King of Qi to surrender, and King Jian of Qi surrendered without a fight. King Jian of Qi was sent to the place where he starved to death among the pines and cypresses. This subjugated king who was greedy for enjoyment and lost his country got the end he deserved.
Qin’s victory in the war to unify the six kingdoms was due to Qin’s proper use of strategies and tactics in the war. During the reign of King Qin, the country was prosperous and powerful, with sufficient manpower and material resources to support the war. Strategically, it was in an offensive posture. Tactically, the Qin State implemented the policy of moving from near to far, first weak and then strong. It first destroyed the neighboring weak countries Han and Zhao, and then broke through from the center to attack Yan and destroy Wei, thus relieving the worries of the north. Finally, the powerful enemy Qi Chu on both wings was eliminated. This tactical use was in line with the actual situation. In specific battles, Qin used strategies correctly. For example, in the war to destroy Han and Zhao, according to the specific situation, instead of completely mechanically following the established policy of "taking Korea first to fear other countries", it was flexible and flexible, allowing Zhao to take advantage of the opportunity. Then attack Zhao first, and if Han can attack, then Han will be destroyed. The battle to destroy Chu was won by concentrating superior forces based on the strength of the Chu state to attack Chu after reviewing the mistakes in attacking Chu. When attacking Qi, he avoided the real situation and turned to the weak, and won by surprise. On the contrary, the six countries were weak in power and could not unite strategically. They fought independently and could not stop Qin's attack. They passively defended themselves during the war and were passively beaten, so that they were destroyed by Qin one by one.
Commentary
At the end of the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, Qin Shihuang, with his ambition to swallow up the mountains and rivers, destroyed the six countries in less than 20 years, ending more than 550 years of war and chaos since the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, and established The first unified and centralized feudal empire in Chinese history. This great empire had epoch-making significance for China's feudal social and political system. It created a new era in Chinese history and made ancient Chinese society a great step forward.
History has its own laws of development, and chance lies in necessity. Since ancient times, Qin's annexation of the six kingdoms has been far from universally acknowledged by historians. There are words of praise; there are also words of regret for the demise of the Six Kingdoms. Qin's unification of the six kingdoms was by no means a gift from God, and the demise of the six kingdoms one by one was no accident.
Qin Xiaogong re-implemented Shang Yang's reform. Although he was initially opposed by conservative forces, he finally won the support of the whole country.
The support of people's hearts determines the rise and fall of the world. This has been a truth since ancient times
Although Shang Yang was executed by the old slave-owning nobles after the death of Duke Xiao, due to the thoroughness of Shang Yang's reform, the new law has penetrated into all strata of society, especially The emerging landlord class, which represents the mainstream of social progress, wholeheartedly supports the reform and strives to become stronger. The barbaric old slave-ownership system is gradually being abolished. More and more slaves are lifted from their shackles. Common people can be rewarded based on their merits and can freely cultivate land. The people are prosperous and the country is strong, ranking first among the six countries. Therefore, the people of Qin are willing to fight for Qin's loyalty.
Qin has continued to develop for six consecutive generations since Duke Xiao, and Qin has already occupied strategic advantages in geographical location
Qin's development from a small country in Xirong to a first-class powerful country is not a day's work. It took six generations of dynasty to fight hard before ascending to the throne of the Seven Heroes. During the reign of Duke Xiao of Qin, he ordered Shang Yang to attack Wei and capture the area west of the Wei River. He then captured the Wuguan Pass of Chu State and took the entire Guanzhong area as his own. During the reign of King Huiwen of Qin, he took Zhang Yi as his prime minister and lobbied the princes to cede territory to Qin without using weapons. At the same time, he ordered Sima Cuo to destroy Yiqu in the north and guard Bashu in Hanzhong in the south, which greatly increased Qin's territory. During the period of King Zhao, Bai Qi led his troops to defeat the coalition forces of various countries in Yique and Huayang, and captured Ying, the capital of Chu. Before and after the Changping War, they occupied large areas of Wei and Zhao territory. By the time Qin Shihuang came to the throne, Qin's territory reached Sanchuan County in the east, Qianzhong County in the south, and Shang County in the north. Most of the Central Plains and the western and central areas of South China were completely owned by Qin. At this time, the various vassal states were very weak compared with Qin, and some of them were less than the size of a county in Qin. This geographically superior strategic situation occupied by Qin became the strongest material basis for its annexation of the six countries.
There are many good generals in Qin’s counselors, who strategize, unite troops in battles, and coordinate strategies and strategies. They all work together to take advantage of subjective guidance
Qin has gathered many people for several generations. A large number of generals and talents, most of whom were guests of Qin, were loyal to Qin and played an extremely important role in Qin's unification of the six kingdoms. Shang Yang's reform laid the foundation for Qin's prosperity. Zhang Yi and Fan Ju's "continuous attack on Qin" and Fan Ju's strategy and tactics of "diplomacy far away and attack near" became Qin's basic national policy to conquer the six countries. The talents of Sima Cuo, Wei Ran, Bai Qi and others were fully utilized. During the period of Qin Shihuang, there were even more talented people around him. When Qin Shihuang ascended the throne when he was young, Prime Minister Lu Buwei assisted Qin Shihuang in power. All military and political decisions came from Lu Buwei. Prime Minister Li Si was good at both ruling the country by law and planning wars. War general Wang Jian made great contributions in the Qin unification war. Especially at the critical moment when the Qin army was defeated by the Chu army, he defeated Chu general Xiang Yan in one fell swoop, captured the Chu capital, and destroyed Chu. The contribution made by these elite generals of the Qin Dynasty to the victory of Qin's unification war will forever be recorded in the annals of history.
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The victory of any war is inseparable from the commander's correct decision-making on the war and his far-sighted planning for the overall war. It was in these aspects that Qin Shihuang made far-sighted decisions. Ability, this is also an important factor in Qin's ability to destroy the six kingdoms
Qin Shihuang was not only a rare hero in ancient my country, but also a wise king that other kings of the six kingdoms at that time could not match. When Prime Minister Li Si made a suggestion to Qin Shihuang to annihilate the six kingdoms based on the general situation at that time, Qin Shihuang immediately adopted it and launched a war to destroy the six kingdoms with perseverance. When the war reached a critical moment, Qin Shi Huang personally visited the front line to inspect and supervise the progress of the war. Qin Shihuang learned from the experience of his predecessors in enfeoffing princes, and every time he conquered a vassal state, he changed it into a county: the Qin army destroyed Chu and changed Chu land into Chu County and Kuaiji County; after seizing some areas in Wei, it was changed into Dong County, etc. , which played an important role in consolidating the results of Qin's unification war. In short, Qin Shihuang's victory in the war of defeating the Six Kingdoms was indelible and great.