Mandate of Heaven - Factions preview

[AlbertoC]

Hi all! Today we are talking of the new factions available in the new Sengoku Jidai expansion, Mandate of Heaven. We hope you'll enjoy reading it! Mandate of Heaven will be released tomorrow November 3rd on PC and Steam!


Koxinga and the Zheng Dynasty

In 1624, Zheng Chengkong was born in Japan to a Chinese pirate and merchant father and a Japanese mother. The family resettled in Fujian China when he was seven years old. Koxinga studied to be a government scholar.

In 1644, Beijing fell to rebels led by Li Zicheng and the emperor committed suicide. This led to the subsequent fall of Beijing to the Manchus. The Ming remnant forces relocated to Nanjing and were led by Prince Fu, who was proclaimed as the Hongguang Emperor. The following year, the Manchus captured Nanjing and Hongguang Emperor was executed.

In 1645, Prince Tang, Longwu Emperor, was installed as the next Southern Ming ruler and set up court in Fuzhou. Fuzhou was controlled by the Zheng family with Zheng Chengkong’s father, Zheng Zhilong, as head. The Southern Ming court was secure for some time due to the natural defences of Fujian province and the presence of the Zheng family army. It was during this time that Zheng Chengkong was given the title Koxinga (“Lord of the Imperial Surname”).

The Qing forces broke into Fujian in 1646. Zheng Zhilong abandoned the emperor, who was subsequently killed, and secretly negotiated with the Manchus. He surrendered himself on 21 November 1646 and was to become the “governor” of both Fujian and Guangdong and retired wealthy. Koxinga and his uncles refused to yield to the Qing and took control of Zheng Zhilong’s military forces. Their defiance would lead to the execution of Zheng Zhilong. While the Qing were victorious on land, the Zheng family had a powerful navy due to their trading and piracy activities. They conducted amphibious raids on coastal cities held by the Qing but were not strong enough to permanently secure them.

Forced off the mainland, Koxinga set sights on Formosa (Taiwan) in 1661. But he had to first deal with the Dutch presence on the island. He besieged Fort Zealandia until it surrendered on February 1662. The Dutch soldiers and civilians were set free but all VOC property and goods were left behind. Koxinga would then form the Kingdom of Tungning and the Zheng dynasty. The government was patterned after the Ming court but the kingdom did not claim to be the continuation of the Ming dynasty.

In the same year, Koxinga suddenly died and his son Zheng Jing took control of the kingdom. Koxinga would leave a lasting legacy for many people for different reasons. Today, he is worshiped as a god in Fujian and by overseas Chinese in Southeast Asia and Taiwan. He was hailed as a national hero in China, Taiwan, and Japan.

The Kingdom of Tungning would send troops to the mainland during the unsuccessful Revolt of the Three Feudatories in the 1670s. The ruler at that time, Zheng Jing, would die of illness in 1681 and a subsequent power struggle weakened the kingdom. The Qing took advantage of the chaos within the kingdom and launched an invasion. In 1683, Formosa was incorporated into the Qing Empire as part of Fujian province.




The Zheng army generally employed weapons and tactics similar to the Ming with a few exceptions. Their standard assault troops of choice would be the Rattan Shield Soldiers (Teng Pai Bing). They carried large shields made of hard plant fibre and swords for close combat. These troops left such a good impression on the Qing that they incorporated them into the army and copied their tactics.

Elite troops on the other hand would comprise of the Iron Men (Tie Ren). Instead of wearing classical Ming dynasty armour, these troops wore a full suit of armour similar in design to the ones worn by the Qing but lamellar in construction instead of brigandine. For offence, they carried large “horse chopping” blades. Exaggerated accounts during the siege of Fort Zealandia claim that these armours (along with the rattan shields) were bulletproof. Though these claims can be doubted, it was commonly agreed upon that the Iron Men were of better quality and morale compared to the equivalent Ming formations.

Finally, the Zheng army also employed a battalion of African gunners. These specialist African soldiers were originally from Macau serving in the Portuguese militia. When 200 of them sought freedom, they ended up in Fujian under the Zheng family army. Fighting under the banner of the Virgin Mary, they were experts in the use and maintenance of firearms and also fought bravely in hand-to-hand combat. During the siege of Fort Zealandia, they enticed the Dutch slaves to defect.

After the siege, the battalion replaced their matchlocks with high quality muskets that the Dutch had left behind. Little is known of the fate of these soldiers after the fall of the Kingdom of Tungning.

[AlbertoC]

Tibetan Lords and Rivals

Since the 15th century, Tibet was embroiled in internal power struggles. After the fall of the Mongol Yuan dynasty, the Phagmodrupa Dynasty took control of the kingdom. In 1435, Tibetan lords in the west, called the Rinpungpa, broke away but failed to dominate the land. In 1565, a low-born retainer of Rinpungpa, named Karma Tseten, rebelled against his master and established the Tsangpa. In 1620, the Tsangpa would defeat the Phagmodrupa and become the dominant rulers of Tibet.

The family was opposed to the Gelug School of the Dalai Lamas and expelled the monks in bloody fashion. The Dalai Lamas in turn sought help from the Mongols and the Tsangpa had to fend off several invasions. In 1642, the last leader of the Tsangpa, Karma Tenkyong, was captured by the Mongols. He was subsequently killed by the Mongols after a rebellion by Tsangpa loyalists. The Mongols then handed Tibet over to the fifth Dalai Lama. The following era is known as the Ganden Phodrang regime which lasted until the 1950s.

During the Qing-Dzungar Wars (1687-1758), Tibet was occupied by the Dzungars in 1717. The Qing sent an expeditionary force to expel the invaders in 1720. After defeating the Dzungars, the Qing kept troops in Tibet and organised a new government which still recognised the Dalai Lamas.



Unlike the Mongols, the Tibetan army employed cavalrymen armed with lances who excelled at charging. The cavalrymen also carried missile weapons like bows or matchlock firearms to weaken their targets before a charge. But they carried less ammunition compared to the other nations. Early on, their horses wore armour, but this became less prevalent from the middle of the 17th century. Tibetan infantry are classified as warriors who do not fight in close formation.

They are armed with spears and bows. Characteristically long matchlock firearms with long prongs for support (similar to a bipod) became popular in the 17th century and remained largely unchanged until the early 20th century.

[AlbertoC]

The Three Feudatories

The Three Feudatories were three Han Chinese generals given the authority to govern most of southern China as a reward for their services in eliminating the Ming. Wu Sangui controlled Yunnan and Guizhou and was called the “Prince of Western Pacification”. Shang Kexi, the “Prince of Southern Pacification”, took control of Guangdong. Finally, Geng Jimao, the “Prince of Southern Calm”, controlled Fujian. They ruled their fiefs with full authority and also obtained funding from the imperial treasury. When Kangxi Emperor inherited the throne, he felt that the Three Feudatories posed a great threat and wished to reduce their power.

In 1671, Shang Kexi fell ill and passed control to his son Shang Zhixin. Geng Jimao died that year and his son Geng Jingzhong took over. In 1673, the three princes asked the Qing court if they could retire to Manchuria. Kangxi Emperor agreed, but only on condition that they would hand over their fiefs to the Qing administration. Wu Sangui opposed the plan and declared independence from the Qing, and proclaimed himself as the “Emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty”. The following year, Geng Jingzhong declared independence and obtained military aid from Zheng Jing of the Kingdom of Tungning in Formosa. Only Shang Kexi accepted Kangxi Emperor’s proposal but his son Shang Zhixin thought otherwise. Shang Zhixin would imprison his father and declared independence as well.

Qing forces initially had trouble defeating the rebels when they sent Manchu generals and Bannermen against Han Chinese armies who were experienced in campaigning in the south. The Han Green Standard Army would fare better against the rebels. Geng Jingzhong and Shang Zhixin would be defeated by 1677 while Wu Sangui was still successful in holding out. When Wu Sangui died due to illness in 1678, his grandson Wu Shifan took over but was unable to stop the Qing. In 1681, Wu Shifan was cornered in Kunming and committed suicide when it fell -- bringing an end to the rebellion.



The armies of the Three Feudatories operated in a similar fashion to the Green Standard Army. Thus their equipment and tactics are similar.

[AlbertoC]

Dzungar Khanate

The Dzungar were western Oirat Mongols that gained prominence in the 17th and 18th centuries. Under Galdan Khan, their territory expanded from western Mongolia and China to present-day Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. Political intrigue with the eastern Khalkha Mongols led to open conflict between eastern and western Mongol factions. In August 1688, the Dzungars won the Battle of Olgoi Lake and the Khalkha Mongols were finally defeated.

The defeated Khalkhas sought help from the Qing and submitted as vassals in return. Fighting the Dzungar in the Mongolian steppes was logistically difficult for the Qing so a decisive battle was sought. The armies cornered the Dzungars at Ulan Butung on 3 September 1690. During the battle, the Dzungars dismounted under the protection of a camel wall. On the defensive, they were able to inflict heavy casualties upon the Qing before performing an orderly withdrawal.

In 1696, with adequate preparation, Kangxi Emperor personally led a campaign against the Dzungars. This time, the Qing split their army into three and hoped to catch the Dzungar in a pincer manoeuvre. The plan worked and the Dzungars ran into the Qing secondary army. The Dzungar was decisively defeated at the battle Jao Modo (12 June 1696) and would withdraw further west. Galdan would die of illness in 1697 and leadership passed on to Tsewang Rabtan.

In 1717, the Dzungars would invade Tibet under the pretence of deposing a pretender to the Dalai Lama who was promoted by the rival Khoshut Khanate. The Dzungars then eliminated the Khoshut ruler’s entire family. The Qing would send a small expedition the following year but would be defeated by the Dzungars in the battle of Salween River (September 1718). Kangxi sent a larger expedition in 1720 and was able to expel the Dzungars from Tibet.

Kangxi Emperor’s successor, Yongzheng Emperor, continued to fight the Dzungars and gained a foothold in present-day western China. In 1752, Dawachi and Amursana competed for the title of Khan of the Dzungars. The defeated Amursana sought help from the Qing. In 1755, Qianlong Emperor sent an expedition and defeated Dawachi. In line with the previous Qing policy of keeping the Mongols divided, Qianlong appointed Amursana as Khan of Khoid and not as Khan of all Dzungar tribes.

This infuriated Amursana and he rallied all of the Oirat Mongols to rebel against the Qing. The Qing in turn found a new ally -- the Uyghurs who were oppressed under Dzungar rule. The Dzungars would be defeated at the battles of Oroi-Jalatu, Khorgos, and Khurungui. Amursana took refuge in Russia and died of small pox. In the end, Qianglong Emperor would then order the fateful genocide of the Dzungar people.



The Dzungar Army is represented in the game by the Western Mongol Army (1650-1700) -- which can now field dismounted troops.