Story 81. The Ming Dynasty and the Jurchen People on the Eve of the Later Jin Dynasty

 Story 81. The Ming Dynasty and the Jurchen People on the Eve of                                                                  the Later Jin Dynasty

 About 130 years after the fall of the Jin Dynasty to the Mongols in 1234, in 1368, Zhu Yuanzhang (朱元璋 1328–1398), a wandering monk and founder of the Ming Taizu(明太祖), drove the Yuan Dynasty, which had completely conquered the Southern Song Dynasty, back to the northern steppes and established the Ming Dynasty(明王祖). 

 The Jurchen people came under Ming rule. During the Ming Dynasty, the Jurchen people were divided into the Wild Jurchen (野人 女眞), the Jianzhou Juechen(建州女眞), and the Haixi Jurchen(海西女眞). The Yein Jurchen(野人女眞) lived in the area north of the Heilongjiang River and east of the Ussuri River today, the Jianzhou Jurchen lived in the Mudanjiang River(牧丹江), the Suifenhe River(綏芬河), and the Baekdu Mountain(白頭山) area, and the Haegeo Jurchen(海西女眞) lived in the Songhuajiang River(松花江) and the Asihe River(阿什河) basin in the east of Harbin. 

 Of these three tribes, the Yein Jurchen(野人 女眞), geographically the furthest from the Ming Dynasty, were relatively less subject to its control, while the Jianzhou Jurchen(建州女眞), the closest, maintained close ties with the Ming Dynasty.

In the fourth year of Hongwu (洪武 1371), Ming Taizu (明太祖)established the Liaodong Commandery Office (遙東都指揮使司) in Liaoyang(遙東) to control the Jurchen. After Emperor Zhu Di (朱棣1360-1424) assassinated his nephew and the second emperor, Emperor Hui (惠帝 朱允炆1377~?), and ascended the throne, he pursued a strong northern policy.

Lacking the power to resist the Ming army, the various Jurchen tribes vied to submit to the Ming. In the seventh year of Yongle (永樂1409), Zhu Di(朱棣) established the No-a-Gando Commandery Office (奴兒干都指揮使司) in the vast river basins of the Heilongjiang (黑龍江), Ussuri (黑龍江), Songhua (松花江), and Nenjiang (嫩江) to manage and control the Jurchen people. Compared to the Hongwu(洪武) period, the Ming Dynasty's control over the Jurchens became much stronger and extended farther north.

The Han Chinese(漢族) of the Central Plains(中原) long feared their belligerence, to the point where they once said, "If the Jurchens number more than 10,000, we cannot handle them." Therefore, they divided the Jurchens, alienated them, prevented their unity, and ruled them separately.

The Ming Dynasty sought to use the Jurchens to stabilize its northeastern border. To achieve this goal, they needed a "carrot." Jurchen tribal chieftains were granted official positions such as Commander-in-Chief (指揮使), Commander-in-Chief (指揮同知), and Garrison Commander (鎭撫). Their appointment letters were called "Gao" (誥) or "Gongjie" (貢敕). They were also given official seals (官印), symbols of power, and hats and belts (冠帶), indicating their status. They ruled the tribes and monopolized tribute trade based on grants from the Ming court.

According to Ming regulations, the Hai and Jianzhou Jurchen(建州女眞) were only allowed to enter the pass once a year, from early October to December. Entry was strictly by designated route, and the number of participants was limited. The Ming Dynasty's strict control over the Jurchen stemmed from their fear that their power would grow and lead to rebellion.

The Jurchen made a living by grazing livestock and selling local products from the mountains and rivers, but they suffered from constant hardship due to shortages of essential goods like food, cloth, and salt. If the dynasties of the abundant Central Plains ceased trade with the Jurchen, the Jurchen were forced to invade and plunder the borders to avoid starvation.

The Ming court was well aware of this, so it opened horse markets (馬市) throughout the border regions to ease the burden on the Jurchen. The Jurchen traded horses for what they desperately needed. These horse markets not only provided a certain level of livelihood for the Jurchen, but also served as a place for the Ming to secure horses, tools of war.

Horse prices were unilaterally determined by the Ming. In the third year of Yongle (永樂1405), the prices for the finest horses, the super high horse (上上馬), were eight rolls of silk and twelve rolls of hemp cloth per horse, the best horse (上馬), four rolls of silk and six rolls of hemp cloth per horse, the middle class horse (中馬), four rolls of silk and five rolls of hemp cloth per horse, and the low class horse (下馬), two rolls of silk and four rolls of hemp cloth per horse.

Ironware that could be converted into weapons was strictly controlled in quantity. Fifty people were to collectively purchase one pot, and only one hoe every two to three years. However, this strict control over ironware unexpectedly provoked strong opposition from the Jurchen. In the 13th year of the reign of King Seonghwa (成化1477), when the Jianzhou tribes invaded and plundered Aeyang (靉陽 present-day Fengcheng鳳城, Liaoning Province遼寧省), they claimed:

 "The Ming court strictly forbids us from purchasing goods in the horse market. Men lack hoe-cuts and shovels, unable to farm, and women lack needles and scissors, unable to tailor clothes. Therefore, we have no choice but to enter Ming territory and steal."

  <The Annals of the Joseon Dynasty(朝鮮王朝實錄)>, from the 14th year of King Sejo's reign (世宗大王1466), states, "The arrowheads used by the Jurchen are made by melting down iron products imported from the Ming." This indicates that, as the Ming Dynasty feared, the Jurchens were melting down imported agricultural tools and converting them into weapons. By the end of the Ming Dynasty, the large influx of cauldrons and plows greatly contributed to the Jurchens' military strength.

In Chinese history, when the Han Chinese established a powerful dynasty in the Central Plains and exerted their ruling power, surrounding ethnic groups generally secured their livelihoods by calling themselves "subjects" and engaging in tributary trade with the Han Chinese dynasty. However, when the Central Plains fell into chaos, the Han Chinese's control over these ethnic groups rapidly weakened, and cases of these ethnic groups even overtaking the Central Plains became commonplace.

The Wanli (萬曆) period of the Ming Dynasty (1573–1619) is a prime example. The incompetence and debauchery of Emperor Shenzong (神宗1563–1620) were so severe that it was difficult to find a historical precedent. Moreover, the so-called "Three Great Expeditions of the Wanli Dynasty(萬曆三大征伐)"—the suppression of the rebellion by the Mongol Balbae(哱拜) in Ningxia(寧夏), the dispatch of reinforcements to Joseon(朝鮮) during the Imjin War(壬辰倭亂 1592~1598) to repel the Japanese, and the suppression of the rebellion by Yang Yinglong(楊鷹龍) in Paju(파주), Guizhou(貴州省)—spent enormous amounts of money, effectively rendering the Ming Dynasty incapable of functioning as a nation.

With the Ming Dynasty unable to properly control the Jurchen, the Jurchens entered a period of warlord rivalry.

<The Annals of Emperor Wu of the Qing Dynasty (淸太祖武皇帝實錄=滿洲實錄), Volume 1>, records the situation at the time as follows:

 "The Jurchen tribes rose up like a swarm, each proclaiming themselves king and asserting their hegemony. They slaughtered one another and even engaged in fratricide. The strong despised the weak, and the majority ruled the minority with violence."

 <The Annals of the Joseon Dynasty (朝鮮王朝實錄)> also records this:

"The Jurchen were required to carry bows and arrows whenever they ventured out. This was to protect them from harm and to avoid the fear of being plundered."

 Even in the Haedal tribe(哈達部) of the Haeseo Jurchen(海西女眞), when food was depleted, people traded wives, children, slaves, and livestock for food.

As Jurchen society descended into lawlessness, a child, Noorhachi(努爾哈赤), was born who would change the course of Chinese history. Later, this child, from an ethnic minority, would become a great hero, comparable to Genghis Khan in Chinese history.