Post by H. İhsan Erkoç on Dec 18, 2004 21:18:52 GMT 3
This was posted by some of the Chinese members of the old All Empires Forum upon my request:
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The Battle of Talas according to Chinese sources
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The Battle of Talas
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In the year 751 AD (the tenth year of the Tianbao period of Emperor Tang Xuanzong), the battle of Talas River was fought near today's Kirghizia in Kazakhstan.
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The official cause of the battle was due to the Chinese vassal of Tashkent in Central Asia not paying enough respect fit for an vassalage to the Chinese empire. As a result, the Tang Chinese Viceroy of Anxi in Central Asia, Gao Xianzhi, invaded the state of Tashkent. The Tashkent rulers pleaded for peace, to which Viceroy Gao initially agreed, but soon he went against his earlier promise and sacked the city of Tashkent by force. The city was pillaged by the Chinese army, the men were snatched away while the women, children and the elderly were killed. The king of Tashkent was also beheaded. The prince of Tashkent, who luckily got away, begged the Abbasid Dynasty of the Islamic empire for help. At this crucial time Chinese intelligence reported that the Arab Muslims intended to strike the four Chinese districts in Xiyu (in modern day Xinjiang province and parts of Kazakhstan and Afghanistan). Viceroy Gao decided to strike the Arabs first in a preliminary attack. Due to the influence of Tang China in Central Asia at the time, troops from Central Asian states that were allied to China such as the Qarluq Turks and the state of Ferghana joined the Tang Chinese forces. Altogether the Tang Chinese army and allies numbered more than 30,000 men, two-thirds of which were Chinese. The Arab army numbered about 70,000. The Tang army under the leadership of Gao Xianzhi travelled more than 700 Chinese miles and eventually it met with the Arab Muslim army at Talas. Thus a famous and important battle in Asian and world history - the battle of Talas River, took place.
ÔÚâòÂÞ˹սÒÛÖÐË«·½Ï໥˺ɱ£¬Õ½¶·³ÖÐøÎåÈÕ¡£Æä¼ä´óÌÆÁª¾üµÄ¸ðÂß»²¿¼ûÐÎÊƲ»Ãî·´Ë®µ¹Ïò´óʳ£¬¸ßÏÉÖ¥Êܵ½´óʳÓë¸ðÂß»²¿¼Ð»÷£¬ÎÞÁ¦Ö§³Å¶øÀ£°Ü²»³É¾ü¡£¸±½«ÀîËÃÒµºÍ±ð½«¶ÎÐãʵÊÕ£ɢ±øÓÎÓÂÏò°²Î÷ÌӶݣ¬Í¾ÖÐÇ¡·ê´óÌÆÁª¾üÖеİκ¹ÄDZøÒ²À£ÌÓÖÁ´Ë£¬½á¹û±øÂí³µÁ¾Óµ¼·¶ÂÈûµÀ·¡£ÀîËÃҵΩ¿Ö´óʳ׷±ø½«¼°£¬»ÓÎè´ó°ô±Ðɱ°ÙÓàÃûͬÊô´óÌÆÁª¾üµÄ°Îº¹ÄǾüÊ¿£¬²ÅµÃÒÔÂÊÏÈͨ¹ý¡£´ËÇ°ÀîËÃÒµ»¹ÔøÈ°¸ßÏÉÖ¥Æú±øÌÓÅÜ£¬±»¶ÎÐãʵ³âÔðΪ¡°µ¬µÐ¶ø±¼£¬·ÇÓÂÒ²£»Ã⼺ÏÝÖÚ£¬·ÇÈÊÒ²¡±¡£×îºó¸ßÏÉÖ¥µÈËìÒý²Ð±øÌÓÖÁ°²Î÷¡£´ËÒÛÒÔ´óʳ¾üÍêʤ±¼Ï®ÎÊ×ïµÄ´óÌÆÁª¾üΪ½á¾Ö£¬ÌÆÈýÍòÓàÊ¿×ä½üºõȫû£¬Ö»ÓÐÉÙÊýÌÓÍÑ¡£
The mutual struggle during the battle lasted for five days, during which the Tang Chinese ally of Qarluq Turks saw that the situation was gradually going against the Chinese army and thus defected and went over to the Arab side. Gao's forces were attacked from both sides by the Arabs and the Qarluq Turks and as a result the Chinese army could not hold on and was routed. Two generals serving under Viceroy Gao, General Li Siye and General Duan Xiushi gathered the scattered troops and escaped towards the Anxi region in Tang-controlled Xiyu. In the process of retreat troops of the Ferghana allies, who were also retreating, crowded and blocked the path of the Tang army. Concerned about the Arab forces chasing them, General Li Siye ordered his men to kill the Ferghana troops in order to get away. Hundreds of Ferghana soldiers were killed before the Tang army got away. Earlier on when the battle was being lost, General Li advised Viceroy Gao to run away. General Duan condemned him saying: "To retreat due to fear of the enemy is not courage, to save oneself by sacrificing the army is not benevolence." In the end Gao Xianzhi escaped with a few remaining troops. Thus the battle ended with a victory for the Arab Muslims over the attacking Tang Chinese. Almost all of the Tang army's 30,000 men were killed or captured and only a small minority got away.
An ancient Chinese source, an account of the battle from the Zizhi Tongjian, written during the Northern Song Dynasty.
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My own English translation of this account: (Not necessarily 100% accurate
)
The person that Gao Xianzhi had captured was the King of Tashkent. The Prince of Tashkent escaped away to the various barbarian states and among them he spread words about Xianzhi's unfaithfulness and greed. The various barbarian states all became very angry at this, and with the Islamic empire in the lead, they secretly planned to strike the four districts in Xiyu. After Xianzhi heard about this, he attacked the Islamic empire with an army of 30,000 men, consisting of both Chinese and non-Chinese troops. His force travelled a great distance of 700 Chinese miles before encountering the Islamic army at the city of Talas. The battle lasted for five days. During this time the Qarluq Turks in the Tang army defected and they attacked the Tang forces together with the Islamic army. Xianzhi was decisively defeated. Most of his men were lost and only a few thousand remained. Then the Right Guard General Li Siye advised Xianzhi to escape away. The retreating path was narrow and difficult to travel, and the allied Ferghana troops were in front of them, their men and horses blocking the way. Siye went ahead, and with a large club he ordered his men to kill all the obstructing Ferghana soldiers. The men and horses were all slaughtered before Xianzhi's forces could go through.
The officers and soldiers of the Tang army were all scattered around and could not find each other. Then the Vice-General Duan Xiushi of Xinyang heard the sound of Siye. After they met Xiushi condemned him, saying: "To hide from the enemy and escape away is not courage, to save oneself by abandoning the army is not benevolence. Now fortunately you have been able to escape, but do you not feel any sense of guilt and shame?" Siye bowed to Xiushi and thanked him for his rebuttal. He then stayed behind to hold off enemy troops that were running after them. He also gathered up the scattered soldiers before returning to Anxi. All the soldiers that had ran away were excused from any punishment. After returning to Anxi, Siye told Xianzhi about what happened. Xianzhi therefore rewarded Duan Xiushi, putting him in charge of various forces in the provincial capital and making him a judge in the army.
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The Battle of Talas according to Chinese sources
âòÂÞ˹սÒÛ
The Battle of Talas
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In the year 751 AD (the tenth year of the Tianbao period of Emperor Tang Xuanzong), the battle of Talas River was fought near today's Kirghizia in Kazakhstan.
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The official cause of the battle was due to the Chinese vassal of Tashkent in Central Asia not paying enough respect fit for an vassalage to the Chinese empire. As a result, the Tang Chinese Viceroy of Anxi in Central Asia, Gao Xianzhi, invaded the state of Tashkent. The Tashkent rulers pleaded for peace, to which Viceroy Gao initially agreed, but soon he went against his earlier promise and sacked the city of Tashkent by force. The city was pillaged by the Chinese army, the men were snatched away while the women, children and the elderly were killed. The king of Tashkent was also beheaded. The prince of Tashkent, who luckily got away, begged the Abbasid Dynasty of the Islamic empire for help. At this crucial time Chinese intelligence reported that the Arab Muslims intended to strike the four Chinese districts in Xiyu (in modern day Xinjiang province and parts of Kazakhstan and Afghanistan). Viceroy Gao decided to strike the Arabs first in a preliminary attack. Due to the influence of Tang China in Central Asia at the time, troops from Central Asian states that were allied to China such as the Qarluq Turks and the state of Ferghana joined the Tang Chinese forces. Altogether the Tang Chinese army and allies numbered more than 30,000 men, two-thirds of which were Chinese. The Arab army numbered about 70,000. The Tang army under the leadership of Gao Xianzhi travelled more than 700 Chinese miles and eventually it met with the Arab Muslim army at Talas. Thus a famous and important battle in Asian and world history - the battle of Talas River, took place.
ÔÚâòÂÞ˹սÒÛÖÐË«·½Ï໥˺ɱ£¬Õ½¶·³ÖÐøÎåÈÕ¡£Æä¼ä´óÌÆÁª¾üµÄ¸ðÂß»²¿¼ûÐÎÊƲ»Ãî·´Ë®µ¹Ïò´óʳ£¬¸ßÏÉÖ¥Êܵ½´óʳÓë¸ðÂß»²¿¼Ð»÷£¬ÎÞÁ¦Ö§³Å¶øÀ£°Ü²»³É¾ü¡£¸±½«ÀîËÃÒµºÍ±ð½«¶ÎÐãʵÊÕ£ɢ±øÓÎÓÂÏò°²Î÷ÌӶݣ¬Í¾ÖÐÇ¡·ê´óÌÆÁª¾üÖеİκ¹ÄDZøÒ²À£ÌÓÖÁ´Ë£¬½á¹û±øÂí³µÁ¾Óµ¼·¶ÂÈûµÀ·¡£ÀîËÃҵΩ¿Ö´óʳ׷±ø½«¼°£¬»ÓÎè´ó°ô±Ðɱ°ÙÓàÃûͬÊô´óÌÆÁª¾üµÄ°Îº¹ÄǾüÊ¿£¬²ÅµÃÒÔÂÊÏÈͨ¹ý¡£´ËÇ°ÀîËÃÒµ»¹ÔøÈ°¸ßÏÉÖ¥Æú±øÌÓÅÜ£¬±»¶ÎÐãʵ³âÔðΪ¡°µ¬µÐ¶ø±¼£¬·ÇÓÂÒ²£»Ã⼺ÏÝÖÚ£¬·ÇÈÊÒ²¡±¡£×îºó¸ßÏÉÖ¥µÈËìÒý²Ð±øÌÓÖÁ°²Î÷¡£´ËÒÛÒÔ´óʳ¾üÍêʤ±¼Ï®ÎÊ×ïµÄ´óÌÆÁª¾üΪ½á¾Ö£¬ÌÆÈýÍòÓàÊ¿×ä½üºõȫû£¬Ö»ÓÐÉÙÊýÌÓÍÑ¡£
The mutual struggle during the battle lasted for five days, during which the Tang Chinese ally of Qarluq Turks saw that the situation was gradually going against the Chinese army and thus defected and went over to the Arab side. Gao's forces were attacked from both sides by the Arabs and the Qarluq Turks and as a result the Chinese army could not hold on and was routed. Two generals serving under Viceroy Gao, General Li Siye and General Duan Xiushi gathered the scattered troops and escaped towards the Anxi region in Tang-controlled Xiyu. In the process of retreat troops of the Ferghana allies, who were also retreating, crowded and blocked the path of the Tang army. Concerned about the Arab forces chasing them, General Li Siye ordered his men to kill the Ferghana troops in order to get away. Hundreds of Ferghana soldiers were killed before the Tang army got away. Earlier on when the battle was being lost, General Li advised Viceroy Gao to run away. General Duan condemned him saying: "To retreat due to fear of the enemy is not courage, to save oneself by sacrificing the army is not benevolence." In the end Gao Xianzhi escaped with a few remaining troops. Thus the battle ended with a victory for the Arab Muslims over the attacking Tang Chinese. Almost all of the Tang army's 30,000 men were killed or captured and only a small minority got away.
An ancient Chinese source, an account of the battle from the Zizhi Tongjian, written during the Northern Song Dynasty.
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My own English translation of this account: (Not necessarily 100% accurate
)The person that Gao Xianzhi had captured was the King of Tashkent. The Prince of Tashkent escaped away to the various barbarian states and among them he spread words about Xianzhi's unfaithfulness and greed. The various barbarian states all became very angry at this, and with the Islamic empire in the lead, they secretly planned to strike the four districts in Xiyu. After Xianzhi heard about this, he attacked the Islamic empire with an army of 30,000 men, consisting of both Chinese and non-Chinese troops. His force travelled a great distance of 700 Chinese miles before encountering the Islamic army at the city of Talas. The battle lasted for five days. During this time the Qarluq Turks in the Tang army defected and they attacked the Tang forces together with the Islamic army. Xianzhi was decisively defeated. Most of his men were lost and only a few thousand remained. Then the Right Guard General Li Siye advised Xianzhi to escape away. The retreating path was narrow and difficult to travel, and the allied Ferghana troops were in front of them, their men and horses blocking the way. Siye went ahead, and with a large club he ordered his men to kill all the obstructing Ferghana soldiers. The men and horses were all slaughtered before Xianzhi's forces could go through.
The officers and soldiers of the Tang army were all scattered around and could not find each other. Then the Vice-General Duan Xiushi of Xinyang heard the sound of Siye. After they met Xiushi condemned him, saying: "To hide from the enemy and escape away is not courage, to save oneself by abandoning the army is not benevolence. Now fortunately you have been able to escape, but do you not feel any sense of guilt and shame?" Siye bowed to Xiushi and thanked him for his rebuttal. He then stayed behind to hold off enemy troops that were running after them. He also gathered up the scattered soldiers before returning to Anxi. All the soldiers that had ran away were excused from any punishment. After returning to Anxi, Siye told Xianzhi about what happened. Xianzhi therefore rewarded Duan Xiushi, putting him in charge of various forces in the provincial capital and making him a judge in the army.
