prosperous age

Did the Ming Dynasty have actual control over Tibet?

The actual answer is almost certainly no.

Although the Ming Dynasty established connections with Tibet through the tea-horse trade and continued tribute trade, it was actually limited to trade.

Although Tibetan officials returned the official seals of the Mongols and Yuan Dynasty and accepted the enthronement of the Ming Dynasty, they did not have much understanding of the Ming Dynasty, let alone respect for it.

The Ming court did not fully understand the unique political and religious system in Tibet and simply ruled it like a frontier chieftain.

The Ming court did not have a close relationship with the religious leaders in the snowy regions at the time and did not have much control over them.

For example, in the 12th year of Yongle, Tsongkhapa, the leader of the Gelugpa sect, the most influential sect in the Snow Region, rejected the invitation from Emperor Chengzu Zhu Di on the grounds that the journey was difficult, and only sent his disciple Sakya Yeshe to Beijing.

The Ming Dynasty never sent a single soldier or official to Tibet, and had no interest in Tibetan affairs at all.

Historically, the Han dynasties basically never really penetrated into Tibet or managed Tibet.

The control over Tibet is still more influenced by the grassland.

During the Qing Dynasty, because of the Manchus' all-round control over Mongolia, they actually gained administrative power over Tibet, as can be seen from the portraits preserved in Tibet.

In the portraits of the Ming Emperor and the Tibetan Living Buddha, the Tibetan Living Buddha was painted as extremely tall and majestic, while the Ming Emperor appeared extremely small in front of him.

However, in the portraits recording the meeting between the Qing Emperor and the Tibetan Living Buddha, the two are almost equal, with the Qing Emperor even sitting on the left, in a more honorable position.

Moreover, facial expressions and body movements also appear more humble.

Well, the Qing Dynasty sent a minister to Tibet to monitor Tibet's every move at all times. If we still paint in the same way as we did the Ming Emperor, there is no guarantee that something bad will happen.

In fact, all of this was brought by the Qing army after its seven invasions of Tibet.

But the Ming Dynasty did not have one.

The longevity tablet of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty is also enshrined in the Three Realms Hall of the Potala Palace. The thangka portrait painted in the image of Emperor Qianlong has been used since the Seventh Dalai Lama. The enthronement ceremony of every Dalai Lama has to be held under this portrait and supervised by the Minister Resident in Tibet.

This was the Qing Dynasty’s actual administrative power over Tibet, which was not possessed by the Ming Dynasty at that time.

Wei Guangde, who was accustomed to the "rooster pecking insects" picture of later China, naturally could not tolerate the current situation of Tibet being out of the management of the Ming court.

There was no opportunity to interfere in Tibetan affairs before, but now it is different. Through the Gelug sect, it seems that the Ming Dynasty has the opportunity to intervene in Tibetan affairs.

"Shan Dai, are you planning to use military force against Tibet?"

Just as their discussion was about to end, Tan Lun frowned and asked.

He could feel Wei Guangde's ambition towards Tibet. In the past, the Ming Dynasty only managed there in name but had no actual control at all.

However, Wei Guangde seems to be determined to change the status quo.

"It is too early to discuss using military force against Tibet."

Wei Guangde shook his head and said with a wry smile: "Now Altan Khan has become the guardian of the Gelug religion, and the grassland cavalry has become the Gelug religion's guardian army. If the Ming Dynasty interferes in Tibetan affairs at this time, it is possible that it will have to fight in Tibet and Xuanda at the same time.

Although I am not afraid of such a situation, there is no need to do so.

What the Jinyiwei had to do was to intensify their spying in Tibet and wait for an opportunity.

If Altan Khan really led his troops to Tibet and fought with the local armed forces, I can imagine whether the Ming Dynasty would get involved. "

At this point, Wei Guangde couldn't help but stare at Tan Lun and asked, "Also, what's the current situation of the Seven Guards of Guanxi?"

Since Wei Guangde turned his attention to the western part of the Ming Dynasty, he naturally began to pay attention to the Western Regions and asked about the situation in Xinjiang.

The Seven Guards of Guanxi refers to the seven garrisons established by the Ming Dynasty to the west of Jiayuguan, also known as the "Seven Guards of the Northwest" and the "Seven Guards of Mongolia". There were seven garrisons, namely Anding Guard, Aduan Guard, Quxian Guard, Handong Guard, Shazhou Guard, Chijin Mongolian Guard and Hami Guard. They were all territories conquered during the reigns of Emperor Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang and Emperor Chengzu Zhu Di in the early Ming Dynasty.

When Tan Lun heard Wei Guangde's question, his face turned red and he didn't know how to answer.

But even if it’s hard to answer, I still have to answer it.

"In name only."

Tan Lun did not hesitate and answered directly.

It wasn't thrown away from his hands, so it's none of his business if the court holds him accountable.

"But the climate there is bad and the population is sparse. It is useless even if we continue to control it. The court will also have to bear high military expenses. It is really not worth it."

Tan Lun finally said.

This is the Ming Dynasty’s view on the Western Regions: it is tasteless to eat them, but it is a pity to throw them away.

In fact, when the Ming Dynasty was first established, it also fought westward.

In the fifth year of Hongwu, Zhu Yuanzhang launched the second expedition against the Northern Yuan Dynasty, which is known in history as the Battle of Lingbei.

The Ming Dynasty had originally planned to completely wipe out the Yuan Dynasty in one fell swoop, but unexpectedly, Xu Da's Central Army and Li Wenzhong's Eastern Army were both defeated and had to retreat. Only the Western Army successfully reached the Hexi Corridor.

The commander of the Western Army, Feng Sheng, took into consideration the supply difficulties and heard the news that the other two armies had withdrawn. He was also a little worried that his Western Expedition would cause the Eastern Chagatai Khanate to rise up in opposition. So he did not garrison in the Hexi Corridor. After building Jiayuguan, he withdrew his troops.

Two years later, the Ming Dynasty sent troops to Jiayuguan to recruit Buyantemur in the Qaidam Basin and set up a garrison there to achieve nominal rule.

Although the Western Regions had vast land at that time, the geography and climate were actually not suitable for the Ming army to be stationed for a long time.

During the reign of Emperor Wu of Han, the two states and eight counties in the Hexi Corridor had a total population of 103 million. Even the county with the smallest population, Dunhuang, had more than 3 people.

During the Zhenguan period of the Tang Dynasty, the Longyou Road, which was in charge of the Hexi Corridor, had a total population of more than 19, which increased to 55 during the Kaiyuan period.

But when the Ming Dynasty launched the Western Expedition, only 3 people were found in the entire Hexi Corridor, and there were only 830 households left in Ganzhou, which was even less than the number of the Western Expedition Army itself.

Moreover, the proportion of Han people in the local area was very low. Fu Youde had to bring an interpreter with him as he marched westward. Under such circumstances, it was impossible for him to provide logistical supplies for the army.

During the Han and Tang dynasties, the climate allowed Han people to live there, but by the Ming Dynasty, survival had become a huge challenge.

Naturally, the emperors before the Ming Dynasty had no intention of continuing to rule there as it was simply too difficult.

In fact, both Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Di had the idea of ​​developing the Western Regions, but even the Hexi Corridor could not fill enough population, let alone developing westward.

Since we can’t rule directly, what should we do?

The situation could only be stabilized by means of control and enfeoffment. The so-called Seven Guards of Guanxi were actually mainly composed of ethnic minorities from the border areas, a similar model to the Three Guards of Doyan.

If the Ming Dynasty wanted to, it would not be difficult to mobilize tens of thousands of troops to attack. However, conquering the city does not mean that it can be defended for a long time.

Wei Guangde didn't need to think too much. He knew from Tan Lun's expression that if he proposed to restore the Ming Dynasty's control over the Western Regions, he would be the first to jump out and oppose it.

After all, it is a military matter that is closely related to him, so he cannot hesitate.

"It is important to make use of the existing relationship, whether they recognize it or not, to contact them first and understand the actual situation.

It is not important whether the court will continue to expand westward, but it is necessary to understand the situation. "Wei Guangde had no choice but to say.

After Wei Guangde said this, Tan Lun was no longer in a hurry and nodded to agree.

In this regard, Wei Guangde could only sigh in his heart.

Although we don't want to admit it, the fact is that the Qing Dynasty's contribution to China's territory was undoubtedly the greatest among all dynasties.

Perhaps only the heyday of the Tang Dynasty can be compared.

The Han and Tang dynasties have always been considered the most prosperous periods of the Central Plains dynasties, but even these two dynasties were deterred by the nearby Tibetan Plateau.

Tibet is located on a plateau with cold winters. Although the Qin and Han dynasties once wanted to set foot in Tibet, they gave up expanding to the southwest because the mountains are high and the waters are far away and people from the Central Plains are prone to altitude sickness after arriving there.

Therefore, the Tibetan Plateau also became a geographical barrier for the Central Plains dynasties to expand their military forces to the southwest region.

As for the prosperous Tang Dynasty, its earliest contact with Tibet was due to war.

Later generations of Chinese people only knew the story of Songtsen Gampo and Princess Wencheng. In fact, before Songtsen Gampo married Princess Wencheng, he had already married five princesses, and Princess Wencheng was the sixth.

The first "intimate" contact between the Tang Dynasty and Tubo was in 638 AD, when Tubo invaded Tuyuhun and moved eastward. Songtsen Gampo led an army of to Songzhou, Sichuan.

Tang Governor Han Wei led his troops to resist but was defeated. In August, Emperor Taizong of Tang appointed Minister of Personnel Hou Junji as the commander-in-chief of the army, and divided the troops into four groups to attack Tubo, which was severely defeated, and finally saved face.

After this military conflict, Songtsen Gampo finally realized the true strength of the Tang Dynasty and decided to establish friendly relations with the Tang Dynasty. This is how the story of Songtsen Gampo and Princess Wencheng came about.

However, this relationship lasted only ten years. After Songtsen Gampo died in 650 AD, the power of Tubo was controlled by Lu Dongzan.

At this time, the Tang Dynasty had been taken over by Emperor Gaozong Li Zhi, who completely occupied the Western Regions and the Hexi Corridor was unobstructed.

In 651 AD, Tubo launched another attack on Tuyuhun, a younger brother of the Tang Dynasty, and brought Tuyuhun under its control. Since then, Tubo and the Tang Dynasty have been directly bordering on territory, and conflicts have continued.

While the Tang Dynasty focused its main military forces on pacifying Goguryeo and suppressing the rebellion of the Western Turks, Tubo launched an attack in the Hexi Corridor.

In 670 AD, Tubo attacked the Anxi Protectorate and seized today's Aksu region in Xinjiang, resulting in the four towns of Anxi, which had been operated by the Tang Dynasty for many years, falling into the hands of Tubo.

Naturally, the Tang Dynasty was unwilling to accept this humiliation, and launched two large-scale wars for this purpose, but both ended in failure.

In April 670, Xue Rengui led an army of to counterattack and fought a fierce battle with Tubo in Dafeichuan, Qinghai. As a result, Tubo assembled heavy troops to besiege the Tang army, which was surrounded and almost wiped out.

Eight years later, the Tang army launched another counterattack in the Hexi Corridor. This time, Li Jingxuan was in charge of the 18th army, but the result was still failure.

Therefore, the territory of the Tang Dynasty did not actually include the Tibetan region. The strength of Tubo at that time could be seen from the wars between the two sides.

Wei Guangde wanted to recapture Tibet and bring it under the rule of the Ming Dynasty, but it was nothing short of a pipe dream to think of taking it by force.

The Han people were never able to engage in fierce battles on that plateau because the impact of altitude sickness was too great.

As if seeing Wei Guangde's interest in Tibet, Liu Shouyou suddenly said, "Lao Wei, given the current situation, Suonan Gyatso wants to use the Mongolian Khan Altan to restore the Yellow Sect's influence and control in Tibet.

If the imperial court confers the title of Dalai Lama, can we use this as a means to support Altan Khan in sending troops and provide us with assistance?

Although this move may not necessarily enable the Ming Dynasty to control the region, with the Dalai Lama canonized by the Ming Dynasty, the court can regularly send people to Tibet for inspection, which will also make it easier for us to understand local terrain, population and other information.

Regardless of the court's final choice, at least going there more often and understanding them more thoroughly is always a good idea."

Wei Guangde didn't say anything, just thinking about Liu Shouyou's suggestion. Tan Lun thought about it and said, "If it's just to provide some food and grass, it should be feasible."

Tan Lun understood Liu Shouyou's intention. He conferred a title on the Dalai Lama and sent people to inspect Tibet regularly, thus turning Tibet into a model similar to that of the chieftains in the southwest.

Although the management was still limited, it ultimately helped the court to gain a deeper understanding of Tibet.

"So, it would be better if Altan Khan were still alive.

Wait until he helps Sonam Gyatso return to Tibet before dying, otherwise the plan will fail. "

Liu Shouyou's proposal was somewhat in conflict with Wei Guangde's previous plan, which was to use the death of Altan Khan to divide Mongolia.

After the division of Mongolia, will his sons still help Sonam Gyatso?

Most likely not.

Only when Altan Khan was alive was it possible to mobilize Mongolian military forces to climb the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and help the Yellow Sect restore its influence there.

When Liu Shouyou heard Wei Guangde say this, he didn't know how to respond for a moment.

"Shandai, Commander Liu's suggestion is also a good idea."

Tan Lun said, "As long as Altan Khan is alive, the court can continue with this policy.

If someone dies halfway, we can talk about it later.

As long as the government troops are not dispatched, the Ministry of War will unconditionally support it."

Tan Lun would definitely not object to letting the Mongols fight on the Tibetan Plateau.

Such a good opportunity to weaken Mongolia, how can we miss it easily?

Wei Guangde nodded and said to Liu Shouyou: "Jinyiwei will check the religious beliefs of Huang Taiji, Buyan and Tubo to see if they have also converted to the Yellow Sect.

If they also believed in the Yellow Sect, I think it would be possible for the war to continue.

As long as they reach the Tibetan Plateau, the pressure on the Nine Borders will be reduced, and Liaozhen can even look for opportunities to completely wipe out the Tuman tribe in Liaodong, as well as the Taining and Fuyu tribes. "

Wei Guangde said.

The Taining and Fuyu tribes originally belonged to one of the three Doyan tribes, but at this time, the Taining and Fuyu tribes had actually been infiltrated and controlled by the Khalkha, Khorchin and other tribes, helping them attack the Ming Dynasty.

However, the Duoyan tribe has become much more obedient in recent years because they were taught a lesson twice by Qi Jiguang in Jizhen.

These tribes, including the Three Guards of Doyan, had actually become the main enemies of the Ming army in Liaodong and Jizhen.

It is understandable that Wei Guangde planned to take the opportunity to destroy them.

After all, if Altan Khan's army was nearby, it would be difficult for the Ming army to just give it a try and besiege these Mongols.

If Altan Khan understood the principle of "the lips and teeth are interdependent", he would never allow the Ming army to attack them.

"I'll have people prepare food and fodder when I get back."

Tan Lun said immediately, obviously happy to see this happen.

"Well, I am waiting for Altan Khan's memorial."

Wei Guangde smiled and said casually. (End of this chapter)