Battle of the Badger Mouth
Encyclopedia
The Battle of the Badger Mouth (獾兒嘴及野狐嶺戰役, simplified 獾儿嘴及野狐岭战役, The Campaign of the Badger's Mouth and Wild Fox Peak) was the major decisive battle in the first stage of the Mongol-Jin War.
The Mongolian army amassed 90,000 men for the offensive force in the expedition against the Emperor in March 1211. Genghis Khan only maintained a defending force of 2000 guards in Mongolia. This means well over 90% of the available forces in Mongolia at the time was mobilized for this campaign. Before the expedition, Genghis Khan conducted a religious ritual with his troops by praying to Tengri (eternal blue sky) Shamanic practice along the Kherlen River for victory and made a vow to avenge his ambassador, Ambaghai Khan, who was betrayed by the Tartar and executed by the Jin court.
1. Border's troops: they were recently defeated by Mongolia at the Battle of Wushabao several months before the campaign and had to withdraw to Badger's Mount. Their total strength amounted to 100,000 and were led by 1st Prime Minister Du Qiannu.
2. Main troops: Their strength amounted to 250,000 and chief commander of the army is field marshal Wanyan Chenyu, 2nd Prime Minister and general Ming An. Most of troops hailed from the capital.
3. Reinforcement troops: Emergency troops from all corners of Jin country, their strength amounting to 150,000 and the commander was vice field marshal
Hersle Whosawho, an ambitious man. He was to defend Datong
with his reinforcements.
1. Battle of Wushabao (烏沙堡戰役): Happened in May–June.
2. Battle of Datong
(大同攻防戰): Happened in August and last for 7 days
Genghis Khan ordered his 3 elder sons and general Yelü Tuhwa. Each of his son commanded 10,000 cavalry. A total strength 30,000 cavalry besieged the city in order to cover the side line of the Genghis Khan's troops and cut off Jin's reinforcements to capital.
3. Badger's Mouth Campaign (獾兒嘴及野狐嶺戰役): Happened in August.
This pass leads directly to Jin's capital and attacked by Genghis Khan with a commanding force of 60,000.
4. Battle of Guihebao (澮河堡戰役): happened in October and the combat lasted 3 days.
5. Mongol army occupies Juyongguan
but Jin's 3rd Prime Minister Tu Danyi (徒單鎰)
successfully defended the capital with a commanding force of 20,000, signalling the end of this campaign.
Jebe attacked Wushabao and achieved no success. He changed his tactics by attacking Wushabao's reinforcement base. With the fall of the base, Jebe manage to capture Wushabao. Hearing the news, a senior official of Jin (a rank below Prime Minister) led the troops into retreat from neighboring three counties to Badger's Mount. The retreat provided a golden opportunity for Jebe and soon the three countries are captured with ease.
.
When the general of the Jin saw what had happened he fled to the Emperor's city, now known as Beijing, where he killed the Emperor and assumed control of the city, whose walls could not be defeated. He did not die on the battlefield. After a four year siege, which saw the residents of Beijing reduced to cannibalism in order to survive, the city finally surrendered and paid a massive tribute to Genghis Khan to make him leave. The general who had fled the battlefield did not survive the siege.
The battle was one of the Mongols' greatest victories. Ten years later, when a Taoist priest, Changchun
, passed through on his way to meet Genghis Khan, the bones of the slain were still visible on the escarpments and the air was very agreeable. The Jin was the most powerful empire in Asia primarily until the 12th century. Due to the failure of this campaign, Jin empire begins to crumble and the dynasty was officially destroyed in 1234.
In spite of the defeat, Jin prioritized conquering the Song dynasty over defending its borders against future Mongol incursions and invasions.
Background
In 1210, Genghis Khan insulted Weishaowang, the Emperor by publicly stating that he was a coward and unfit to be a leader. Genghis added "The Emperor should be a man from sky like me." Soon, news spread to the Jin Emperor through a Jin officer. The Jin emperor was enraged and ordered the execution of the Mongolian ambassador. Tensions between the Jin and the Mongols started to escalate and Genghis Khan declared war with the Jin.The Mongolian army amassed 90,000 men for the offensive force in the expedition against the Emperor in March 1211. Genghis Khan only maintained a defending force of 2000 guards in Mongolia. This means well over 90% of the available forces in Mongolia at the time was mobilized for this campaign. Before the expedition, Genghis Khan conducted a religious ritual with his troops by praying to Tengri (eternal blue sky) Shamanic practice along the Kherlen River for victory and made a vow to avenge his ambassador, Ambaghai Khan, who was betrayed by the Tartar and executed by the Jin court.
Jin's army: composition
Jin's army included:1. Border's troops: they were recently defeated by Mongolia at the Battle of Wushabao several months before the campaign and had to withdraw to Badger's Mount. Their total strength amounted to 100,000 and were led by 1st Prime Minister Du Qiannu.
2. Main troops: Their strength amounted to 250,000 and chief commander of the army is field marshal Wanyan Chenyu, 2nd Prime Minister and general Ming An. Most of troops hailed from the capital.
3. Reinforcement troops: Emergency troops from all corners of Jin country, their strength amounting to 150,000 and the commander was vice field marshal
Field Marshal
Field Marshal is a military rank. Traditionally, it is the highest military rank in an army.-Etymology:The origin of the rank of field marshal dates to the early Middle Ages, originally meaning the keeper of the king's horses , from the time of the early Frankish kings.-Usage and hierarchical...
Hersle Whosawho, an ambitious man. He was to defend Datong
Datong
Datong is a prefecture-level city in northern Shanxi Province of North China, located a few hundred kilometres west by rail from Beijing with an elevation of...
with his reinforcements.
Battle
This campaign included a series of 5 battles that took place from August–October 1211:1. Battle of Wushabao (烏沙堡戰役): Happened in May–June.
2. Battle of Datong
Datong
Datong is a prefecture-level city in northern Shanxi Province of North China, located a few hundred kilometres west by rail from Beijing with an elevation of...
(大同攻防戰): Happened in August and last for 7 days
Genghis Khan ordered his 3 elder sons and general Yelü Tuhwa. Each of his son commanded 10,000 cavalry. A total strength 30,000 cavalry besieged the city in order to cover the side line of the Genghis Khan's troops and cut off Jin's reinforcements to capital.
3. Badger's Mouth Campaign (獾兒嘴及野狐嶺戰役): Happened in August.
This pass leads directly to Jin's capital and attacked by Genghis Khan with a commanding force of 60,000.
4. Battle of Guihebao (澮河堡戰役): happened in October and the combat lasted 3 days.
5. Mongol army occupies Juyongguan
Juyongguan
Juyongguan or Juyong Pass is located in an -long valley named "Guangou" which is inside Changping County more than from Beijing City. It is one of the three greatest passes of the Great Wall of China. The other two passes are Jiayuguan and Shanhaiguan....
but Jin's 3rd Prime Minister Tu Danyi (徒單鎰)
successfully defended the capital with a commanding force of 20,000, signalling the end of this campaign.
Battle of Wushabao
Wushabao, is located at the present city of Ulanqab. Through the years, Jin's 1st Prime Minister Dujis Qiannu ordered the construction line of a series of single burgs to oversee the Mongol but the tactic turns out to be faulty, even though these burgs maintain their stability on the border. Wushabao is one of the largest and most important fortresses at the time.Jebe attacked Wushabao and achieved no success. He changed his tactics by attacking Wushabao's reinforcement base. With the fall of the base, Jebe manage to capture Wushabao. Hearing the news, a senior official of Jin (a rank below Prime Minister) led the troops into retreat from neighboring three counties to Badger's Mount. The retreat provided a golden opportunity for Jebe and soon the three countries are captured with ease.
Badger's Mount Campaign
Facing the vast Jin forces, Genghis Khan decided to only way of victory is to charge his cavalry directly past the Jin front line and attack their supply camps. Jin forces were surprised by the might of the Mongol cavalry and could not hold the front line. Mongol cavalry commenced to raid the Jin supply camps and killed many resting and unsuspecting Jin soldiers. Jin tried to retreat to support their camps but they can no longer establish central command in the chaos. At the end many Jin soldiers were slaughtered and the survivors retreated in disarray. The Mongol cavalry further gave chase and killed even more Jin soldiers for a hundred LiLi (unit)
The li is a traditional Chinese unit of distance, which has varied considerably over time but now has a standardized length of 500 meters or half a kilometer...
.
Battle of the Badger Mouth
The Jin armies were overconfident in the defensive position of the pass, and its ability to funnel the Mongol army which preferred open steppes for combat. The Jin general deliberately drew Genghis to fight there, withdrawing soldiers from cities for hundreds of miles and stationing them all at Badger's Mouth. This force was the last thing standing between Genghis and the Emperor. In all, there were between 400,000 and 500,000 Jin soldiers assembled to stop the brutal Mongol advance, which had laid waste to everything west of Yanjing(modern Beijing). The idea that the Jin should have attacked the Mongols on the open plains while their horses were grazing is not correct. For one, the whole idea of the Badger's Mouth was to neutralize the Mongol speed on the open plains and the superiority of their composite bows and funnel them within the narrow pass. Second, it would have been impossible to catch the Mongols off guard, as they were nomads who were ready to fight in an instant. The Mongol bows were far superior to Jin crossbows and by then the Mongols had developed the use of armor. Genghis sent men over the peaks surrounding the Pass, which the Jin general thought was impossible, and then attacked the much larger army from both sides. As Genghis attacked the front of the Jin armies in the mouth of the badger, the forces which had scaled the mountain first routed the Jin cavalry from behind and then joined the assault on the main force. It was one of the bloodiest battles in history, and almost every Jin soldier was killed. It is said that bones still lay on the spot 10 years later for 30 miles around.When the general of the Jin saw what had happened he fled to the Emperor's city, now known as Beijing, where he killed the Emperor and assumed control of the city, whose walls could not be defeated. He did not die on the battlefield. After a four year siege, which saw the residents of Beijing reduced to cannibalism in order to survive, the city finally surrendered and paid a massive tribute to Genghis Khan to make him leave. The general who had fled the battlefield did not survive the siege.
The battle was one of the Mongols' greatest victories. Ten years later, when a Taoist priest, Changchun
Qiu Chuji
Qiu Chuji was a Daoist disciple of Wang Chongyang. He was the most famous among the Seven True Daoists of the North...
, passed through on his way to meet Genghis Khan, the bones of the slain were still visible on the escarpments and the air was very agreeable. The Jin was the most powerful empire in Asia primarily until the 12th century. Due to the failure of this campaign, Jin empire begins to crumble and the dynasty was officially destroyed in 1234.
Aftermath
After this battle and campaign, the Jin dynasty lost half of its 950,000 troops. Roughly 10 Jin cities were plundered by the Mongols and Chinggis Khan ordered a tribute of 500 males, 500 virgins and 3000 horses to be taken back to the Mongolian plains.In spite of the defeat, Jin prioritized conquering the Song dynasty over defending its borders against future Mongol incursions and invasions.