Jiayuguan is not the westernmost territory of the Great Chu Empire. In fact, since the Great Chu Empire took over the Qingkang area, the westernmost area has become Kangxi Province.
The Jungar tribe has continued to fight in recent years and has controlled large areas of territory in Central Asia, including large areas of territory, through direct annexation, indirect annexation through alliances, etc.
Therefore, the Dachu Empire now actually borders Jungar directly, and the border area is huge.
From Kangxi Province to Qinghai Province, then to Gansu Province, and further north from Gansu Province is Mobei Mongolia.
This is because Gansu Province, based on the Shaanxi Xingdusi of the Ming Dynasty, added the large western area of Monan Mongolia, which was larger than the Gansu Province during the Yuan Dynasty.
In the vast area bordering the Chu Empire and Jungar, Jiayuguan is actually a concave hinterland, but its strategic role is irreplaceable.
Because Jiayuguan guards the Hexi Corridor, it is the most convenient passage from the Western Regions to the hinterland of the Central Plains, and it can even be said to be the only passage.
If you don't take the Hexi Corridor, you can only take the large desert, Gobi, and grassland areas in the north. Go around the boss and fight to the hinterland of Monan Mongolia. Go south from the Fengzhoutan area in the Yinshan area and cross Zhangjiakou or other passes to enter. Shanxi or Hebei region.
Jiayuguan not only guards the Hexi Corridor, but its strategic location is extremely important. Behind Jiayuguan is one of the most important large-scale oases in the Hexi region, which is the Jiuquan area in later generations; and behind it is the Shandan area, where the Chu Empire lies in the northwest. The most important military horse farm in the region is the Damanying Military Horse Farm.
Bidige
Relying on the Damanying Military Horse Farm, the local garrison can obtain a large number of high-quality war horses.
Relying on the oasis area behind Jiayuguan, the local garrison and even the garrison in the surrounding areas can solve a considerable part of the food and grass on the spot. After all, only when there is an oasis can we cultivate the land. Only when we can cultivate the land can we cultivate it. Only when we have cultivated it can we have food.
If all the food for the northwest garrison needs to be transported from the rear, then the cost will be high and it will be difficult to carry out long-term garrisoning. This is just like the abandonment of Yumen Pass during the Ming Dynasty. It is because of the lack of local conditions for cultivation, and most of the supplies need to be transported from the rear. Come on, the maintenance cost is too high.
In addition, the surrounding threats were huge, so they had to abandon Yumen Pass and retreat to Jiayuguan for garrison.
After returning to Jiayuguan, the Ming Dynasty also ensured the security of the Western Front for hundreds of years. This was because the large oasis behind Jiayuguan and the pastures further back could support the local garrison's food and grass needs as well as the needs of mules and horses.
In this way, you can know how important Jiayuguan is. This place is not only the west gate of the Ming Dynasty in the past and the Chu Empire today, it is also an important supply place for maintaining the presence of troops in the Hexi Corridor.
There are not many places like this in the Western Region.
After leaving Jiayuguan, if you want to find a place like this suitable for large-scale garrison, the only remaining place is the Hami area. The Yumen Pass mentioned before is not suitable.
The Hami area was also the core territory of the Yarkand Khanate before. Now with the demise of the Yarkand Khanate, it has fallen into the hands of the Jungar people.
Because of the importance of Jiayuguan, the Chu army renovated the city and the nearby Great Wall after taking over the place, changing the Jiayuguan defense line from a traditional city wall-style fortification to a fortification suitable for firearms operations.
Fixed forts, peripheral fortresses, trench breastworks, etc. were built.
At the same time, a large number of garrison camps were built, and many reclamation camps were moved for reclamation.
Today's Jiayuguan, including the entire Jiayuguan defense line in the surrounding areas, is already a large defense line with more than 20,000 troops stationed for a long time.
Among the more than 20,000 people, cavalry accounted for more than half, and almost all field artillery units were equipped with a large number of mules and horses, and their maneuverability was equivalent to that of cavalry artillery.
This kind of force configuration is invisible in the Central Plains and the southern regions. The main focus is mobility.
Not only are there many cavalry and fast artillery, but the infantry units are also equipped with a large number of mules, horses and carriages. When necessary, the infantry can also ride horses for short-distance rapid maneuvers, which is somewhat similar to a weakened version of dragoons.
By the way, dragoons have completely disappeared in the Chu army, because the large number of divisional cavalry regiments in the Chu army have been gradually transformed into standard light cavalry, the kind that can mount a charge and dismount to form a formation.
On the other hand, in order to enhance their mobility, some infantry units began to equip a large number of mules and horses, which have a certain degree of maneuverability on horseback and the ability to dismount for combat, but it is not the same concept as the dragoons of the past.
Dragoons, even if they are a bit worse, are still cavalry, and the horses they use are serious war horses. If necessary, they can also fight on horseback, although their skills are very poor...
These fast and mobile infantrymen use some cheap draft horses. These draft horses are usually used to pull carts. The carts transport the infantry's various equipment, logistical supplies, tents and the like. , allowing soldiers to march on foot without any load.
Marching on horseback is something that can only be done under special circumstances.
Therefore, there is no special training on horseback combat on weekdays, but I can't play horseback combat.
The reason why these infantry in the northwest and even the north are equipped with a certain number of service horses is purely to improve the infantry's mobility. Daily mobility is not on horseback, but on foot, or at most in a carriage.
After all, when fighting in the northwest and northern grasslands, the place is too big. The infantry can only walk on two legs. By the time the infantry arrives on the battlefield, the cucumbers and vegetables are cold.
Therefore, the Army has always been committed to improving the mobility of the infantry in these directions, and equipped with more mules, horses, and carriages for the purpose of improving mobility.
As for why not all of them are replaced by cavalry...cavalry is expensive!
Many things in the military need to be cost-considered, and it is impossible to buy just what is good.
Even for nomadic peoples like the Jungar, their armies are not all cavalry. A considerable part of them are infantry. However, there are many mules and horses, and the infantry has less weight, so it can march faster. When necessary, some of the infantry can be concentrated on horseback. Just march quickly.
The Chu army is also about to read, and unlike Zhungeer who is simply equipped with many mules and horses, the Chu army in the northwest and other northern regions will also be equipped with a large number of carriages.
The carriages equipped by the Da Chu Empire Army are different from the traditional oriental carriages.
The most special one is the four-wheel transport carriage, which uses a steering mechanism and cylindrical bearings, and also uses spring shock absorption.
And these are all to improve transportation capacity.
During the domestic unification war, the Dachu Empire began to widely use new horse-drawn carriages as a means of transportation. However, in the early days, due to the lack of mules and horses, and the terrain in the south, the proportion of horse-drawn carriages was not too large. Many times, in order to transport supplies to the front line, we have to rely extensively on wheelbarrows and even manual transportation.
During the Battle of Dongdao, because the terrain in the Northeast was flat and the number of mules and horses increased, the Chu army began to equip and use various types of new carriages on a large scale, including both four-wheeled carriages and two-wheeled carriages. The two are used together.
After all, the two have different requirements for mules, horses, and terrain, so it is difficult to completely replace each other.
Four-wheeled carriages transport large volumes, but have high terrain requirements.
The two-wheeled carriage transports a smaller volume, but is less picky about the terrain.
The carriage transportation of the Great Chu Empire played an extremely important role during the follow-up period of the Dongdao Campaign, especially when it went deep into the hinterland of Northeast China and the hinterland of Monan Mongolia, and undertook the logistic transportation of hundreds or thousands of kilometers for the Chu army.
After the Battle of Dongji, horse-drawn carriages had become an indispensable means of transport for the Chu army's logistical supplies and even front-line marches, and began to be popularized on a larger scale. Even in the southern region, horse-drawn carriages began to be equipped in large numbers.
Mainly because at that time, the Great Chu Empire acquired Monan Mongolia, an important horse-producing land, and also reached an agreement with Mobei Mongolia, becoming the suzerain state of the three major tribes in Mobei Mongolia. The two sides conducted complementary trade, and Mobei Mongolia Northern Mongolia sold cattle, horses, sheep and other livestock, as well as wool and other materials, in exchange for guns, swords, armor, various military supplies from the Chu Empire, as well as tea, cloth and other daily necessities.
From that time on, although the Chu Empire still lacked top-level war horses, it did not lack ordinary war horses. As for ordinary draft horses, it was not to mention ordinary draft horses. At least it was enough to meet military needs.
Under such circumstances, the military carriages of the Chu Empire were further developed.
Based on past experience in using horse-drawn carriages, the Logistics Department put forward a series of new requirements to improve military transport horse-drawn carriages. As a result, a series of improved military quarter-carriages were born and are widely used in various troops.
There are several types of four-wheeled carriages in service in the northwest region. The most important type of freight four-wheeled carriage has a load capacity of one ton, and the frame is specially designed to transport standard material transport boxes. .
In order to better transport various types of military supplies, especially bulk supplies such as various types of ammunition, the Logistics Department has specially formulated packing standards and stipulated unified dimensions for several specifications.
The box also has buckles to ensure stability when the boxes are stacked.
The frame on the corresponding carriage has also been designed in a standardized manner, with standard buckles.
In this way, wooden boxes containing ammunition can be easily stacked during logistics transportation.
How should I put it? The logistics department of the Dachu Empire used a model similar to later standard containers on new carriages and ammunition boxes.
This benefit can unify transportation standards and make loading and unloading easier and more convenient.
Because the specifications of these four-wheeled carriages are highly unified, and the need for temporary formation of self-protection was also taken into consideration when designing, there are often buckles on the front and rear of the frame that can be connected and fixed end to end.
The use of horse-drawn carriages, especially four-wheeled horse-drawn carriages, to form formations for self-protection is a common tactic used by the Chu Empire's logistics transport troops. It is also a necessary tactic. It can effectively resist the harassment of small and medium-sized enemy cavalry and ensure the safety of supplies.
When forming a formation to protect themselves, soldiers could hide behind carriages loaded with supplies and use muskets or light artillery and other supplies to carry out counterattacks.
If the materials transported are still food, then this kind of vehicle array is basically no different from a field fortress built with sandbags, and its defensive capabilities are quite strong.
For the enemy's harassing troops who lack heavy firepower, they need to pay a heavy price to break through this kind of vehicle formation... Well, most of the time they can't break it even if they pay a heavy price.
During the Battle of Dongji, the Chu army's logistics and transportation troops widely used this kind of vehicle formation for self-protection. The Mongolian cavalry on the opposite side was basically helpless. If they had to attack by force, they would basically lose everything.
Of course, this is also because the Chu army's logistics and transportation troops are often professional baggage troops. The combat effectiveness of these baggage troops is not much worse than that of ordinary infantry. They are also generally equipped with 65mm regimental field guns, which have greater firepower than assault troops. Even stronger.
Each division of the Chu army belongs to the baggage regiment, which is not the same as the traditional logistics troops. They are very powerful in combat, and their performance is not much worse than that of ordinary infantry regiments when they are directly recruited into group battles.
Even if the transport troops transporting in the rear are temporarily recruited civilians, they will usually be escorted by regular troops such as the second-class division.
At the end of the battle, the Mongolian cavalry under the control of the Eastern Captives simply gave up attacking the Chu army's logistics troops... They couldn't defeat the Chu army by sending out small-scale troops; as for sending out large-scale troops... The Chu army was not stupid, so how could it be possible? It allows you to use large-scale troops to bypass the rear and attack the logistics.
The tradition of large-scale application of horse-drawn carriages was even greater on the Jiayuguan front line in the 14th year of Chengshun, because this place is flat all the way to the west, either in the desert or the Gobi Desert, and the distance is very far. If the transportation of materials is not large, It would be impossible to do it using a horse-drawn carriage on such a large scale.
Therefore, on July 18, the 14th year of Chengshun, the leading troops of more than 10,000 Chu troops began to leave Jiayuguan and march toward Hami, kicking off the Western Region Campaign.
There are all kinds of carriages along the way!
There were only more than 10,000 people, and they brought more than 1,000 horse-drawn carriages, carrying a large amount of food, drinking water, ammunition, tents for marching and other materials.
Seeing the many carriages driving behind him and his men carrying large amounts of supplies in large and small bags, Major General Lin Xubing felt a lot more at ease.
This time, he led the entire army as the vanguard and launched an attack in the direction of Hami first. In his opinion, the biggest enemy was not the Jungar people. They were just a group of nomads who were still in the barbaric era and were not worth fighting for. carry.
The real enemy is the vast uninhabited land and distance in the Western Region!
The Gobi Desert and deserts can make it difficult to replenish food and drinking water on site.
Long distances can make resupply extremely difficult.
Therefore, if you want to go to the Western Regions, fighting and other matters are secondary. The most important thing is to bring enough supplies.
He didn't want to travel hundreds of kilometers and starve to death...
Therefore, during this expedition, he brought as many supplies as possible... He never thought that he would be able to obtain supplies on the spot during the westward march, nor did he expect to obtain supplies from the rear in a short time after marching westward. supply.
After Major General Lin Xubing led his army to march westward, he immediately dispatched his 23rd Cavalry Regiment to rush towards Chijin City.
Nowadays, the power of the Jungar people has expanded to the Chijinwei area, which is less than 100 kilometers away from Jiayuguan.
Originally, there were only two to three thousand indigenous people living in this place. In the early years, it was canonized by the Ming Dynasty, but that is all old news. After the establishment of the Chu Empire, this place came under the jurisdiction of the Yarkand Khanate.
Because the Yarkand Khanate had good relations with the Da Chu Empire, and as an oasis area closest to the Jiayuguan area controlled by the Da Chu Empire, this place was the first stop for various trades with the Da Chu Empire and to receive military assistance from the Da Chu Empire. .
Therefore, it also attracted considerable attention from the Yarkand Khanate. It once stationed a lot of troops here, and over the years, many business travelers have gradually gathered here to live and do business.
After Zhungar defeated the Yarkand Khanate this spring, it continued to sweep across the entire Western Region. Naturally, this place fell under the control of the Zhungar people.
Here, there are now more than 300 troops sent by Zhungeer, in addition to hundreds of local servants.
Their purpose is not to fight against the Chu Empire... They don't have the ability. No matter how stupid Zhungeer's senior officials are, they know that it is impossible to resist the Chu army so close to Jiayuguan.
Anyone with a little bit of brains knows that if they want to win the war with the Chu army, they must keep distance... Distance is their best resource.
Go directly to the Jiayuguan Pass and fight with the Chu army... I'm afraid you have to be mentally retarded at level 10 to do this.
Therefore, Zhungeer's hundreds of troops in the Chijinwei area are not to directly fight the Chu army, but purely to serve as a forward observation post to observe the Chu army's movements...
If the Chu army breaks out, their only task is to deliver the news to Hami in the rear as soon as possible.
Today's Hami area is the key defense area for the Jungar people in surrounding areas!
Well, only the Hami region has enough geographical conditions to support the survival of a larger population and garrison troops. Other places are still a little behind.
Nowadays, in the Hexi Corridor area, there are basically two places suitable for large-scale garrisoning of troops, one is Hami and the other is Jiayuguan, and the others are basically not suitable.
As for these two places, to this day, Jiayuguan is the west gate guarding the Guandong region, and Hami is the east gate guarding the Western Regions!
This also means that if the Chu Empire wants to advance westward, it will have to fight around Hami in the early stage...
This is a limitation of geographical factors and has nothing to do with the generals’ ideas. If you don’t go to Hami, you will have nowhere to go.
You can't really cross the vast tracts of no-man's land, it's all the Gobi Desert and the desert. Tens of thousands of people ran into the desert and marched... It also spanned hundreds of thousands of kilometers. It's impossible to do it without a level 20 brainiac. Something like this happened.
Based on the local geographical conditions, the Chu army stationed troops in Jiayuguan and the Zhungeer people stationed troops in Hami. The long distance of more than 500 kilometers between the two was controlled by Zhungeer. There are small towns along the way. These small towns basically rely on oases.
The closest to Jiayuguan is the Red Gold City.
This place is actually very small. The so-called city is actually similar to a small town in the Huaxia region. Because Zhungeer troops are stationed here, the Chu army also attaches great importance to this place.
The destination of the 23rd Cavalry Regiment dispatched by Lin Xubing was here. It was not to capture this place, but mainly to block and intercept the Jungar forces in the area through a surprise attack, and to delay the enemy in the direction of Hami as much as possible. The army learned about the Chu army's westward advance.
The news of the army's westward march can be delayed as long as possible. It is best to wait until the army has fought all the way to Hami before the enemies in Hami city know about it.
As for undeclared war and the like... that's nonsense. The Chu Empire has never formally declared war on others during the war.
Usually, an imperial edict is issued internally to explain to oneself the necessity, justice and interests of the war, and then a warning is given to the enemy.
The same is true this time. The Da Chu Empire has published an imperial edict in the Da Chu Di newspaper, positioning the war as a self-defense counterattack... Do you think Zhugeer didn't attack the Da Chu Empire, why did he fight back? The Yerqiang Khanate is also a vassal state of the Great Chu Empire. Even if everyone in the world knows that it is a vassal state in name only and cannot be taken seriously, there is nothing you can do if the empire officially takes it seriously.
The Zhungeers have all attacked the vassal states of the empire. Is there anything wrong with the empire fighting them back?
In June, the feudal affairs department of the Imperial Ministry of Rites and Education had sent a reprimand document to the Jungar side, seriously censuring the Jungar side for their barbaric behavior in killing the Yarkand Khanate, and asked them to leave and withdraw from the original Yarkand Khanate. Qiang Khanate territory, otherwise the consequences will be at your own risk.
Zhun Geer naturally ignored him...he wrote a lot in reply, which can be summed up in four words: none of your business...
Since they have all killed the Yarkand Khanate, they have anticipated and been mentally prepared to deal with the empire's counterattack.
This fat has been swallowed, and you want them to spit it out. This is impossible.
Therefore, the empire was naturally too lazy to continue sending people to deliver any diplomatic documents.
It’s nonsense, just send troops to do it!
At this time, Major General Lin Xubing led the army to go on an expedition, and the 23rd Cavalry Regiment of the Army was ordered to march urgently to attack and blockade Chijin City.
On July 19, the cavalrymen of the 23rd Cavalry Regiment of the Dachu Empire Army appeared outside Chijin City, causing great panic among the Jungar people and local indigenous people in the city!
