The Military History Thread

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January 5, 1500
Ludovico Sforza’s War

When Francesco I Sforza, ruler of Milan, died in 1466, the family titles devolved upon the dissolute Galeazzo Maria, his elder son, whilst Ludovico was conferred the courtesy title of Count of Mortara. Galeazzo Maria ruled until his assassination in 1476, leaving his titles to his 7-year-old son, Gian Galeazzo. A bitter struggle for the regency with the boy’s mother, Bona of Savoy, ensued; Ludovico emerged as victor in 1481 and seized control of the government of Milan, despite attempts to keep him out of power. For the following 13 years he ruled as Regent.

In 1494, the new king of Naples, Alfonso II, allied himself with Pope Alexander VI, posing a threat to Milan. Ludovico decided to fend him off using France, then ruled by Charles VIII. He permitted the French troops to pass through Milan so they might attack Naples. However, Charles’ ambition was not satisfied with Naples, and he subsequently laid claim to Milan itself. Bitterly regretting his decision, Ludovico then entered an alliance with Emperor Maximilian I, joining the league against France.

Gian Galeazzo died under suspicious circumstances in 1494, and the throne of Milan fell to Ludovico, who hastened to assume the ducal title and received the crown on October 22. But by then, his luck seemed to have run out. Ludovico had also hoped by involving the French and the Emperor in Italian politics, he could manipulate the 2 and reap the rewards himself. At first, Ludovico fended off the French at the Battle of Fornovo in 1495 (see posting). However, with the death of Charles, the French throne was inherited by his cousin, Louis XII. The new king had a hereditary claim to Milan, as his paternal grandmother was Valentina Visconti, daughter of Gian Galeazzo Visconti, the first Duke of Milan. In 1498, he descended upon Milan. As none of the other Italian states would help the ruler who had invited the French into Italy, Louis was successful in driving Ludovico from Milan. Ludovico managed to escape and, in 1499, sought help from Maximilian.

Ludovico put together a force of some 8000 men, mainly German infantry, with some Swiss, Albanian light horse and Burgundian men-at-arms. The began to move south through the Alpine foothills in early January 1500, occupying Chiavenna and Bellinzona. An attack on Como on January 20 was repelled by French artillery. However, in late January, serious unrest broke out in Milan itself, which the French were unable to contain. Gian Giacomo Trivulzio, the condottiero commanding the French army, withdrew from the city on February 2, leaving a strong garrison in the castle, and fell back to Novara. On February 5, Ludovico made his triumphant entry into Milan.

Recognizing past errors, Ludovico now presented himself to his people as a wise soldier-prince, ready to defend them from the French and Venetians, and able to take advice. At this stage, he had more men than he could pay for. and more troops were on the way. Leaving a trusted commander in the city, struggling to keep order among the different factions, Ludovico marched west to confront the French at Novara.

On February 9, Pavia fell to his army after a prolonged bombardment, and Vigevano surrendered a few days later; the armies were now within a day’s ride of each other. The French were reinforcing with fresh troops from home, basing now at Mortara, and Ludovico decided that it was time to attack Novara. The siege began on March 5; an assault penetrated the town, but was repulsed. A concentrated bombardment began on the 20th. Preferring to fight another day, rather than endure a prolonged siege, the French surrendered the town 2 days later.

Discipline was breaking down as Ludovico’s troops were short of food and money. By month’s end, 2000 Swiss had already left, just as the French were being reinforced by thousands more Swiss. Louis de la Trémoille arrived with 500 lances and assumed overall command.

The French now marched on Novara, arriving on April 8. Ludovico deployed for battle outside the city with the infantry in center, the men-at-arms on the right and light horse on the left. The French began a general advance and after some cavalry skirmishing and exchanges of fire, the infantry closed to melée. But when the front ranks of Ludovico’s infantry began to waver, the Swiss and then the Landsknechts refused to back them up and soon Ludovico’s forces were retiring in confusion back into Novara. During the night the Swiss on both sides began to fraternize, as did the Burgundians with the French. The Swiss and Burgundians negotiated safe conduct for themselves, agreeing that if Ludovico was found among them, they would not protect him; his other troops were forced to take their chances, pursued by the French as they abandoned the city. The disconsolate, corpulent, pallid duke, disguised as an unlikely Swiss infantryman, was identified and detained.

The French swiftly moved to reoccupy all the places that had been taken by Sforza or had declared for him; there was no resistance. French attitudes toward the duchy had been changed by the brief Sforza restoration, accompanied as it was by what they saw as rebellion by subjects who had pledged their allegiance to the king only a few months before. Violence and looting by French troops was worse than it had been after the conquest, and cities that had declared for the Sforza were obliged to expiate their crime by paying large indemnities. Those who had been most conspicuous in supporting the return of the duke tried to find a way out of the duchy. Many were captured, while others made it to Venetian territory, only to be handed back to the French. Ludovico would be sent to France and would end his days there in 1508 in close captivity.

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January 6, 1661
Venner’s Uprising

The Fifth Monarchists were active from 1649 to 1660 during the Interregnum, following the English Civil Wars. They took their name from a prophecy in the Book of Daniel that 4 ancient monarchies (Babylonian, Persian, Macedonian, and Roman) would precede the kingdom of Christ. They also referred to the year 1666 and its relationship to the biblical Number of the Beast indicating the end of earthly rule by carnal human beings. They were one of a number of nonconformist dissenting groups that emerged around this time.

When Oliver Cromwell dissolved Parliament by force in April 1653, many Fifth Monarchists hailed him as a second Moses, leading God's people to the Promised Land. Congregations around the country issued declarations of support and expressed their hope that Christ’s kingdom was dawning. The Anglo-Dutch War (1652-4) was seen as a continuation of the process that had started with the civil wars. The Fifth Monarchists expected the war eventually to engulf the whole of Europe until Rome itself had fallen and the Pope, whom they identified with the Antichrist, was overthrown.

The establishment of Cromwell’s Protectorate in December 1653 was seen as a betrayal by the Fifth Monarchists. A number of officers resigned their commissions. However, the sect continued to agitate against the Protectorate with pamphlets and petitions throughout the 1650s. There were also frequent rumors of Fifth Monarchist plots to subvert the army and overthrow the government. In 1657, a Fifth Monarchist plot against Cromwell was discovered and the ringleader Thomas Venner, head of a London congregation, was imprisoned until the Protectorate ended in 1659. During the political turmoil that followed the fall of the Protectorate, rumors of imminent Fifth Monarchist uprisings contributed to the sense of instability in the nation and to the belief that there could be no settled order unless the King returned.

The Restoration was a devastating blow for the Fifth Monarchists. Some leaders were executed in October 1660 as regicides. Other leaders were imprisoned. Strict censorship and a ban on religious meetings outside the established church quickly drove the movement underground. Many feared that the return of the Stuarts was an indication that God had abandoned their cause. Venner, however, was inspired by the defiance of the executed Fifth Monarchist regicides and proclaimed it as a test of the truly faithful.

Venner and his followers adapted their plans of 1657 to bring down the restored monarchy. A supply of armor and weapons was gathered. The rebels’ manifesto, A Door of Hope, was probably written by Venner’s son-in-law William Medley, who had also written the 1657 manifesto, A Standard Set Up. The new declaration justified armed insurrection to advance the kingdom of Christ and railed against the re-emergence of the old enemy the Cavaliers. Venner appealed to all republicans and sectarians to unite against the new tyranny.

The Epiphany uprising began on January 6, 1661 when Venner and about 50 armed followers broke into Saint Paul’s cathedral. They proclaimed Christ as king and challenged passers-by to declare their allegiance. A man who declared for King Charles was shot and killed. This gave the alarm to the guards at the Exchange, and 4 files of musketeers were sent to dislodge them. The Fifth Monarchists stood firm and forced the guards to flee, causing further alarm in the City. The lord mayor of London, Sir Richard Browne, called out the Trained Bands, but before they could be mustered, Venner’s company drew off. After forcing their way out of the city through Aldersgate, the Fifth Monarchists lay low in woods near Highgate. A detachment of cavalry was sent the next day to flush them out but failed. Meanwhile, anyone suspected of sympathizing with the rebellion was arrested and imprisoned.

The rebels returned to the city early in the morning of January 9. An attempt was made to liberate the prisoners in the Wood Street jail but a company of Trained Bands advanced to engage them. Venner’s men held their ground in the ensuing firefight until Major Cox led another company to reinforce the Trained Bands. After several men had been killed on both sides, the rebels withdrew towards Leadenhall, apparently splitting into smaller groups.

While skirmishing continued in the streets, the City authorities mobilized the Trained Bands and auxiliaries. The city gates were locked and guarded so that no one could enter or leave. Companies of Col. Monck’s regiment of foot stationed in London advanced to attack the rebels in Bishopsgate Street. Even Monck’s veterans were held at bay for a time, but the Fifth Monarchists were gradually overwhelmed. One group of 10 made a stand in a nearby tavern. While some soldiers battered down the door, others climbed onto the roof and smashed in the tiles to fire directly into the room where the rebels were huddled; all but 2 were killed. Eventually, 22 rebels were killed and 20 taken prisoner. The city forces lost a similar number. Venner himself is said to have killed 3 soldiers with a halberd and sustained 19 wounds before he was captured.

The surviving Fifth Monarchists were brought to trial. Venner was found guilty of treason and sentenced to be hanged, drawn and quartered along with one of his lieutenants, Roger Hodgkin; 9 others were sentenced to be hanged. Venner was executed on January 19 near the Fifth Monarchist meeting house in Swan Alley. The meeting house was ordered to be demolished. The government was badly shaken by the uprising and ordered the arrest of hundreds of sectarians and republicans. The Baptists issued a repudiation of Venner’s actions; the Quakers issued their peace testimony, affirming non-violence under all circumstances. However, the Restoration government banned all religious meetings outside the established church as a result of Venner’s uprising..

Although some events such as the Great Plague and Great Fire of London continued to encourage belief in the end of the world ruled by carnal human beings, the doctrine of the sect either died out or became merged in a milder form of Millenarianism. Reports of Fifth Monarchist activity continued into the 1680s. A militant group which included Thomas Venner’s eldest son took part in Monmouth's Rebellion of 1685.

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740
Fujiwara Hirotsugu Rebellion

The Fujiwara clan had influenced Japanese politics since its founder assisted in a coup d’état in 645, in which the Soga clan was overthrown and shortly thereafter a reform program (Taika Reform) was launched, aimed at reinforcing imperial authority. In the 730s, the imperial advisory body known as the Council of State was controlled by 4 sons of Fujiwara Fuhito known as the “Fujiwara Four” Together they held 4 of 10 positions of this important council, directly under the emperor and in charge of all kinds of secular affairs.

In 735 a devastating smallpox epidemic, which eventually killed 1/3 of the Japanese population, broke out on Kyushu. While most victims were from the producer populace of western and central Japan, by 737, the epidemic reached the capital at Nara causing terror among the aristocracy. Emperor Shomu was spared, but by late summer 737, many high officials were dead, including the “Fujiwara Four”. The deaths considerably weakened the influence of the Fujiwara clan.

New appointments brought about a shift in power towards nobles closely related to the emperor and away from non-imperial clans such as the Fujiwara. The only Fujiwara in the council was Fujiwara Toyonari who had a relatively low rank. In addition, all the clans that had opposed the Fujiwara Four such as the Otomo, the Saeki or the Agata Inukai were backers of the new officials. Unlike under the Fujiwara Four, the Emperor was not opposed by a single strong faction anymore as members of this new council originated from various clans.

Several Fujiwara were exiled to posts in distant provinces. Fujiwara Hirotsugu, the oldest son of the youngest of the Fujiwara Four, and nephew of Empress Komyo, was the leader of the Shikike branch of the Fujiwara family. He is described as very talented in warfare, dance, music, poetry and science, but also as a daredevil looking for enemies to attack and risks to take. Seeing Fujiwara influence waning, Hirotsugu openly opposed 2 of the most imprtant of the new officals, who were importing Buddhism to Japan. Emperor Shomu had Hirotsugu demoted from his position as governor of the central Yamato Province, to remote Kyushu where he became vice-governor of Dazaifu in 738.

In September 740, Hirotsugu declared himself in rebellion. At the time the people of Kyushu were experiencing hard times after the smallpox epidemic, years of drought and bad harvests. The government had responded with a large scale temple building project aimed at appeasing the gods. However farmers could not afford the imposed corvée on temple construction. Hirotsugu was supported by discontented farmers, local district chiefs and members of the Hayato minority of southern Kyushu; he also tried to secure support from Korea. Making use of his official position at Dazaifu, Hirotsugu soon had an army of 10-15,000 men.

With the army in vital Dazaifu and Hirotsugu’s connections in the capital, this situation posed a serious threat to the central government. Shomu responded by assigning Ono Azumabito to head an army of 17,000 men from eastern and western Japan except for Kyushu - the largest royal army of the 8th century. These included many good mounted archers. As draftees had been released a year before due to the epidemics, it took another month before they could be mustered. (The Taika reforms had instituted a Chinese-style conscript army).

Hirotsugu split his army in 3 parts one under his command and the others under his subordinates, Tsunade and Komaro. They advanced along different routes to northern Kyushu where the Kanmon Straits separate Kyushu from Honshu. Eventually he arrived at the Miyako district near the expected government crossing point. But Hirotsugu’s plans for an organized attack were foiled as one column did not appear and another was late. The government army successfully landed on Kyushu, capturing 3 camps at Tomi, Itabitsu and Miyako. On October 20, several of Hirotsugu’s men defected, along with most of his horse archers Four days later a price was put on his head.

On November 2, Hirotsugu’s remaining army, 10,000 men, met the government forces at Itabitsu river. His army was defeated and dispersed. Trying to reach Korea by boat, Hirotsugu was forced back by storms, and captured by government forces on November 16. A week later, on November 24, a general beheaded him without the court’s permission.

[Ennath]

January 7, 1812
Siege of Ciudad Rodrigo

At the start of 1812 Wellington was planning to go onto the offensive. It was clear that Napoleon would soon be at war with Russia, and vast numbers of troops would be withdrawn from Spain. The Guard cavalry had already been pulled out, and on January 14 Napoleon withdrew the Infantry of the Guard and every Polish unit. Although Wellington had already made his move by this date, it was already clear that something must happen, for Napoleon did not campaign without the Imperial Guard.

Wellington was faced by the Army of Portugal, now under Marshal Auguste Marmont. At full strength this force was too strong for Wellington to face, but on November 21, Napoleon ordered Marmont and King Joseph to provide 15,000 men for an expedition to attack the Valencian front from the west. Joseph could only provide 3000, so Marmont lost 12,000 men. On December 15, this expedition, under Gen. Montbrun, began to move east, and by the end of 1811 it had left La Mancha, heading east towards Alicante (it would arrive in the east after Valencia had fallen to Suchet, and would fail to capture Alicante).

By the end of 1811 Wellington had an excellent intelligence network in Spain, and news of this movement reached him on December 24. Five days later Wellington learnt that Clausel’s division had moved east from its position around Salamanca. By the end of December he had also learnt that the Imperial Guard cavalry had left Old Castile, and 2 divisions of Young Guard infantry were leaving the Army of the North.

This news convinced Wellington that the time was right to attack Ciudad Rodrigo, which dominated one of the routes between Portugal and Spain. The place was not a first class fortress. The town was built on top of a low hill, overlooking the River Agueda. It was surrounded by a thick medieval wall and a more modern line of low fortifications. The French had improved the defenses a little, building a fort on the summit of the Great Teson, and improving the defenses of the suburb of San Francisco. Despite its importance the town was not strongly garrisoned. Gen. Dorsenne had provided 2000 men from the Army of the North, under the command of Gen. Jean Leonard Barrié, to defend the town, although there was no shortage of food or of ammunition. Massena had left his siege artillery in Ciudad Rodrigo before invading Portugal, and so the town contained 153 heavy guns - all Barrié lacked were gunners.

On January 2-3, Wellington ordered his army to concentrate for the siege, and despite the poor winter weather they were in place by January 5. Wellington scouted out the defenses of the town, and on January 7, the siege began. He intended to occupy the Greater Teson and construct his first parallel on that hill. He would then advance onto the Little Teson, and construct his main gun batteries there. That would allow his gunners to bombard that part of the wall from only 200 yards.

In order to do this Wellington had to first capture the Redoubt Renaud, the French fort on the Greater Teson. Wellington decided to attack this outlying fort on the night of January 8. 450 men of the Light Division, under Col. Colborne, were chosen for this assault. Colborne’s column got to within 50 yards of the fort without being discovered. He then sent his riflemen to surround the fort, using the cover of the darkness. When the rest of his force began their attack, the riflemen opened fire on the garrison and forced them to take cover behind the walls. The main force managed to get into the fort, and the garrison surrendered.

On January 9, the Allies opened their first parallel, on the summit of the Greater Teson. Wellington rotated his 4 divisions through the trenches every 24 hours. This prevented any individual division from suffering too heavily from the very dangerous French counter-fire, which significantly slowed down the construction of the siege works. Work began on the second parallel on the night of January 13-14. This trench came under fire from the fortified convent of Santa Cruz, outside the main walls, and so this too had to be stormed.

On January 14, the French made a very successful sortie. The Allies had developed a rather careless method of exchanging divisions. When the troops in the trench saw the new division advancing to take their place, they immediately left the trenches, leaving them unoccupied. The French timed their assault to take place at 11 AM, the time at which the transfer took place. This attack captured the second parallel and the convent of Santa Cruz, and nearly reached the first parallel and the existing gun batteries. They were held off by a few troops from the 24th and 42nd Foot, who had been working in the trenches, until the relieving division had time to arrive. Despite this setback, the heavy guns opened fire that afternoon. That night the Allies captured the Convent of San Francisco, another of the French strong points in the suburbs, and Barrié decided to withdraw completely from the suburbs and concentrate his garrison in the town.

Despite the heavy counter-fire, by the end of January 18, the British and Portuguese guns had created two breaches. The French had constructed defensive works inside the “great breach” at the northwestern corner, but the “lesser breach”, on the northern wall, had been created by one day’s bombardment. After continuing the bombardment for most of the next day, Wellington decided to make an assault at 7 PM on the night of January 19. Wellington decided to make 4 simultaneous attacks. The 3rd Division was to attack the great breach. The Light Division was to attack the Lesser Breach. Pack’s Portuguese column was to make a diversionary attack against the Santiago Gate, at the east of the city. Finally O’Toole’s Portuguese were to make a second diversionary attack across the bridge from the southern side of the Agueda.

The main attack failed miserably. Most of the garrison was concentrated around the great breach. The attackers came under heavy fire as they approached the breach, and when the first British troops reached the top they discovered a 16 foot drop down to ground-level. The first British troops to reach the top of the breach were swept away when the French detonated some powder bags which they had left in the gap. A second attempt was made to reach the top of the breach, and again it failed.

By the time this second attack at the great breach was repulsed, the French had effectively lost the battle. Most of their troops had been concentrated behind the great breach, and so Crauford’s Light Division found themselves lightly opposed at the lesser breach. Although Crauford himself was mortally wounded while directing the advance, his men established themselves on the ramparts. They then spread out left and right, hitting the troops defending the great breach in the rear. The two Portuguese columns also managed to break in. Pack’s Brigade captured the redan outside the Santiago Gate, while O’Toole’s men got inside the town. The French retreated to the square outside the castle, and then surrendered, as did Barrié in the castle.

Ciudad Rodrigo was the first town to be stormed by Wellington’s army, and the army rather disgraced itself by sacking the town, even though its Spanish population were meant to be allies. The sack was less of a disgrace than the later sack of Badajoz (see posting) - it only lasted for one night, and the soldiers are said not to have attacked any of the citizens of the town. Instead they concentrated on plunder.

The French suffered just over 500 casualties, most of them during the fighting on January 19. The British and Portuguese lost 195 dead, 916 wounded and 10 missing. Gen. Craufurd lingered for 4 days and his death was a bitter blow to Wellington. The Light Division would never be quite as effective after Craufurd’s death.

The speed with which Wellington captured Ciudad Rodrigo disrupted the French plans. Marmont and Dorsenne had expected the place to hold out for 3 weeks, and based their plans for any relief on that expectation. In the event they did not even learn of the siege until January 13. News of the fall of Ciudad Rodrigo reached Marmont on January 21, when he was still a day’s march from Salamanca, and after lingering around Salamanca for 2 weeks, he returned to Valladolid and abandoned any hope of recovering the town.

One reason for Marmont’s unwillingness to attack Ciudad Rodrigo was that he had correctly identified Badajoz as Wellington’s next target. Within a week of the storm of Ciudad Rodrigo, Wellington was beginning to issue orders for a move to the south, and Marmont wanted to be in a position to move his own army to help defend that fortress. This plan would be foiled not by Wellington, but by Napoleon, who insisted on sending detailed orders to Marmont, always based on information that was up to a month out of date when it reached Paris. Napoleon’s orders would pin Marmont in place in the north just when his troops were needed around Badajoz.

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January 8, 1593
Battle of Pyongyang

The Koreans could not hope to expel the invading Japanese by themselves. Despite the various logistical and organizational difficulties suffered by the Japanese, Korea ultimately had to rely on the intervention of Ming China. Korean naval victories in 1592 stalled the entire strategy of the invaders, isolating Konishi Yukinaga’s army of 30,000 at Pyongyang and securing Chinese waters from Japanese attack, enabling the Chinese to come to Korea’s assistance by land.

The Korean Court was at first hesitant to call for help from the Ming Dynasty, and began a withdrawal to Pyongyang. The local Chinese governor at Liaodong eventually acted on King Seonjo’s request for aid following the capture of Pyongyang by sending a small force of 5000 soldiers led by Zu Chengxun. This cavalry force advanced almost unhindered and managed to enter Pyongyang, but was quickly defeated by the Japanese. During the later half of 1592, the Ming sent investigation teams into Pyongyang to clarify the situation. They became fully aware of the situation and made the decision for a full intervention by September 1592.

By then it had become clear that the situation was much more serious than could be handled by local forces. Thus the Ming Emperor mobilized and dispatched a larger force in January 1593 under Li Rusong and Imperial Superintendent Song Yingchang. According to the collection of letters left by Song Yingchang, the strength of the Ming army was around 40,000, composed mostly of garrisons from the north, including around 3000 men with experience against Japanese pirates. This force linked up with a Korean force of 10,000 (about 2000 or them warrior monks). Li was the overall allied commander. The allied forces arrived on the west side of Pyongyang on January 5, 1593.

Li sent Shen Weijing, who had previous experience dealing with the Japanese, to open negotiations. Konishi Yukinaga, realizing his forces’ difficult position, was more amenable to Li’s offers than he otherwise would have been. Over the next couple of days however, the parley turned into chaos as Li attempted to capture the Japanese envoys sent to his camp. After that the Japanese made a similar offer for him to enter into the city and talk. He had originally planned to storm the city and take its defenders by surprise under the cover of false negotiations, but at the last minute bailed and decided to go with a direct assault.

Skirmishing began on the outskirts over the next couple of days, with Li attempting to dislodge a Japanese garrison on the hills north of the city while Konishi Yukinaga attempted a night raid on the allied camp.

Early in the morning of January 8, Li launched his attack from 3 sides, with the primary focus in the west, under direct command. The southern assault force was led by Zu Chengxun. His soldiers disguised themselves as Koreans to confuse the Japanese, who thought little of the fighting capabilities of the Korean army. The northern assault force was led by Wu Weizhong and included the Korean warrior monks. Their objective was to take the high grounds on Mt. Morobung just north of the city.

According to Chinese accounts, the Ming forces had fired off rocket arrows coated in dried excrement early in the morning to create a stink which nauseated the defenders. Before the assault began, they fired off another round of dung coated rocket arrows.

In the north, Wu Weizhong was hit by a bullet to the chest but remained conscious and continued the attack. In the south, the Japanese were confused by the disguised soldiers, and could not believe they would actually attack, given their poor opinion of Koreans. They were taken by surprise when the Ming assaulted their position and were unable to prevent them from entering the city. However once inside, the Ming troops were ambushed by Japanese reserves and repulsed. The heaviest fighting occurred on the western end. Li Rusong’s horse was shot from under him and fell into a pit. Many of the allied generals personally scaled the siege ladders with their men and fought on the walls.

Before noon, Konishi realized his forces were threatened on all fronts. He decided to pull his men back into the citadel they had recently constructed on the east side of the city. In the citadel, Konishi surveyed the battlefield and realized that the eastern walls were still open, so they retreated that night and made a dash for Seoul. The retreat was hampered as they attempted to ford the Datung River and were hit by allied ambushes and artillery resulting in heavy casualties.

There are contradictions among the different sources on how the Japanese left the city. Ming sources generally state that it was part of the battle plan to leave a part of the city open so the Japanese would be less inclined to fight to the death. A few Japanese sources cite that the allied forces did not dare come near their fortifications in the city. Korean sources are even more confusing as they contained both the Chinese and Japanese versions of events. They state that Li Rusong ordered the army not to press the attack, and then later wrote that the Korean general Yi Il was punished because Li was angry that he had let the Japanese forces slip away, while others said that Li ordered them not to let the Japanese retreat.

The allies lost about 1000 men killed and 1500 wounded. The Japanese lost about 1500 men in the battle, but over 5000 during the retreat.

Soon after taking Pyongyang, Li succeeded in retaking the major city of Kaesong on January 19, with only minor resistance. Overconfident from his recent success and possibly misled by false reports, Li Rusong advanced towards Seoul with his allied army of 20,000.. On January 26, the force ran into an unexpected confrontation at Pyokchegwan with a Japanese army of about 30,000 and suffered a heavy defeat (see posting).

[Ennath]

January 9, 1916
The End at Gallipoli

In the wake of the failure of the Allied attacks at Scimitar Hill and Hill 60 beginning August 21, 1915, intended to link the Allied sectors of Anzac Cove and Suvla Bay, Mediterranean Commander-in-Chief Sir Ian Hamilton telegraphed London in a state of increasing despondency. Hamilton requested a further 95,000 reinforcements from British war minister Lord Kitchener. He was offered barely a quarter, 25,000. Confidence in the Gallipoli operation in London and Paris was fast dwindling. While former First Lord of the Admiralty and architect of the operation Winston Churchill pressed both governments to provide continued support, French Gen. Maurice Sarrail suggested a combined offensive against the Asian coast, a proposal rapidly over-turned by his Commander-in-Chief Joseph Joffre, who insisted upon retaining French focus on the Western Front.

Affairs outside of Gallipoli began to intrude upon strategy in the region. The invasion of Serbia and plans for an extensive landing at Salonika exhausted resources from both the French and British governments, with the latter offering to provide up to 125,000 troops (much against Kitchener's inclination). Such were the demands for men intended for Salonika that forces were diverted away from Hamilton, to the latter’s great dismay. As it was, Hamilton was facing increasing criticism from London as grim news of the campaign reached home, along with complaints of his mismanagement of the campaign (from the Australian journalist Keith Murdoch among others).

Thus with the possibility of further reinforcements to the region seemingly ruled out, Hamilton received word on October 11 of a proposal to evacuate the peninsula. He responded in anger by estimating that casualties of such an evacuation would run at up to 50%. The tide was clearly against Hamilton. His belief in what was widely viewed as an unacceptable casualty rate in the event of evacuation resulted in his removal as Commander-in-Chief and recall to London at a meeting of the Dardanelles Committee on October 14.

Hamilton was replaced by Sir Charles Monro, a long-time critic of the campaign. Monro lost no time in touring Helles, Suvla Bay and Anzac Cove upon his arrival on October 28. His recommendation was prompt: evacuation. This did not, however, meet with Kitchener’s approval. He traveled to the region to see the state of affairs for himself. Upon his arrival, he quickly reversed his thinking on seeing the conditions facing the Allied force and recommended evacuation on November 15, overriding arguments by senior naval figures Sir Roger Keyes and Rosslyn Wemyss to attempt a naval effort once again. The British government, having prevaricated for several weeks, finally sanctioned an evacuation on December 7.

In the meantime, the untenable nature of the Allied position was made apparent by a heavy rainstorm on November 26, lasting for 3 days and followed by a blizzard at Suvla in early December. Rain flooded trenches, drowned soldiers and washed corpses into the lines; the following snow killed still more men from exposure.

The evacuation operation was easily the most successful element of the entire campaign, with casualty figures significantly lower than Hamilton had predicted. Painstaking efforts were made to deceive the 100,000 watching Turkish troops into believing that the movement of Allied forces did not constitute a withdrawal.

Suvla and Anzac were to be evacuated in late December, the last troops leaving before dawn on December 20. Troop numbers had been slowly reduced since December 7 and ruses, such as William Scurry’s self-firing rifle, rigged to fire by water dripped into a pan attached to the trigger, were used to disguise the Allied departure. Everything was done at night with utmost secrecy First to be removed were the sick and wounded and the prisoners and then, slowly over time, the infantry. The Turks were unaware of what was happening. As the last troops left Anzac Cove, they maintained silence for an hour or more, until curious Ottoman troops ventured to inspect the trenches, whereupon the Anzacs opened fire. A mine was detonated at the Nek which killed 70 Ottoman soldiers. The Allied force was embarked, with the ANZACs escaping with out the loss of a single life, but large quantities of supplies and stores fell into Ottoman hands.

Helles was retained for a period but a decision to evacuate the garrison was made on December 28. The British ruses used at Suvla Bay and Anzac Cove worked once again at Cape Helles, as the bewildered Turks hesitated to act. The French troops were evacuated first, followed by nightly streams of British troops. With the remaining garrison down to 19,000 men, Liman von Sanders, on January 7, at last sent his troops to the attack in the early afternoon at Gully Spur, opening up with a 4.5 hour artillery bombardment. But the Turks had to cross over 100 yards to reach the British trenches and the defensive fire was so deadly that the Turkish soldiers fell back and refused to obey their officers’ orders to continue.

Mines were laid with time fuses and that night and on the night of January 7-8, under the cover of a naval bombardment, the British troops began to fall back 5 miles from their lines to the beaches, where makeshift piers were used to board boats. The last British troops departed from Lancashire Landing around 0400 on January 9. Among the first to land, remnants of the Plymouth Battalion, Royal Marine Light Infantry were the last to leave the Peninsula. 10 minutes after they pushed off, the munitions and supply dumps exploded, and the Turks followed up with a heavy shelling of the empty beaches. The British miraculously escaped once more - over 35,000 troops and 3600 horses and mules, 127 guns and 328 vehicles were evacuated without a single casualty.

Winston Churchill, however, viewed Monro’s achievement with a somewhat jaundiced eye: “he came, he saw, he capitulated” he wrote of Monro, and the sneer has remained through the years to blight Monro’s correct decision and remarkable follow-through. But the escape was the only success of the campaign.

[haroldeye]

I believe the commander of the last British Company to leave was Clem Atlee, later to become Labour Prime minister.

[Ennath]

January 10, 1923
Klaipéda Revolt

The German–Lithuanian border had been stable since the Treaty of Melno in 1422. However, due to migration, northeastern East Prussia (“Lithuania Minor”) had a significant Lithuanian-speaking population. The Klaipėda Region, 1100 square miles, was by 1918 roughly evenly divided in population. The idea of uniting Lithuania Minor with Lithuania surfaced during the late 19th century. The activists also eyed Klaipėda (Memel), a major port. It would be Lithuania’s only access to the sea and having a port was seen as an economic necessity. After World War I, the Lithuanians petitioned the Allies to attach the whole of Lithuania Minor (not limited to Klaipėda) to Lithuania. However, at the time Lithuania was not officially recognized by the western powers and not invited to any post-war conferences.

The Polish Republic regarded the Klaipėda Region as possible compensation for Danzig. The Polish Corridor provided access to the Baltic, but the Free City of Danzig was not granted to Poland. In early 1919, the Polish representative to the Paris Peace Conference campaigned for the incorporation of the Klaipėda Region into Lithuania, which was then to enter into a union with Poland. Until the union could be worked out, Klaipėda was to be placed under the temporary administration of the Allies. While such a union had a historic tradition in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, Lithuania categorically refused any such proposals. Worsening relations led to war and dispute over the Vilnius Region. However, the union idea was met favorably in Western Europe. Poland and Klaipėda signed a trade agreement in April 1922. In addition, Poland attempted to establish its economic presence by buying property, establishing business enterprises, and making connections with the port.

According to the Treaty of Versailles, lands north of the Niemen River were detached from Germany and placed under a League of Nations mandate. The French agreed to become temporary administrators of the region and the first French troops arrived on February 10, 1920. The Germans officially handed over the region on February 15. On June 8, France appointed Gabriel Jean Petisné as the head of the civilian administration in the Klaipėda Region. Petisné showed anti-Lithuanian bias and was favorable towards the idea of a free city.

The Lithuanians seized this statement and further campaigned for their rights in the region believing that once they received international recognition, the region should be theirs. As the mediation of the Polish–Lithuanian conflict over the Vilnius Region by the League of Nations was going nowhere, the Klaipėda Region became a major bargaining chip. Already in 1921, implicit "Klaipėda-for-Vilnius" offers were made. In March 1922, the British made a concrete offer: in exchange for recognition of Polish claims to Vilnius, Lithuania would receive the Klaipėda Region and economic aid. The Lithuanians rejected the proposal as they were not ready to give up on Vilnius. After this, the Allies turned against Lithuania and now favored the free city solution.

During a secret session on November 20, 1922, the Lithuanian government decided to organize a revolt. They recognized that diplomatic were fruitless and economic measures to sway the inhabitants towards Lithuania were too expensive and ineffective in international diplomacy. General Silvestras Zukauskas claimed that the Lithuanian Army could disarm the small French garrison and take the region in 24 hours. However, a direct military action against France was too dangerous, both militarily and diplomatically. Therefore, it was decided to stage a local revolt. The grand plan was kept secret even from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and very few Lithuanians understood the full role of the government in the revolt. Thus the main credit for organization of the revolt is sometimes given to the Lithuanian Riflemen’s Union, which provided the manpower. The revolt was to be presented as a genuine uprising of the local population against its German Directorate and not against the French administration.

On December 18, 1922, a committee of the Conference of Ambassadors scheduled the presentation of a proposal for the future of the region on January 10, 1923. While the content of the proposal was not known until after the start of the revolt, the Lithuanians expected the decision to be against their interests and hastened their preparations. Indeed, the committee proposed either creating a free city or transferring the region to Lithuania if it agreed to a union with Poland. January 1923 was also convenient as France was distracted by the occupation of the Ruhr and Europe feared the outbreak of another war.

In December 1922, a Lithuanian planner met with Reichswehr commander Hans von Seeckt and was assured that German army would not interfere and arms were quietly purchased from the Germans.

The revolt started on January 10, 1923, as 1,090 volunteers crossed the border into the region.. They wore civilian clothes and had green armband with letters MLS (rebel/volunteer of Lithuania Minor). Hoping to negotiate a peaceful retreat of the French and to avoid casualties, shooting was allowed only as a last resort. In the Klaipėda Region, these men were met by some 300 local volunteers. More local men joined once the rebels reached the towns. There was little resistance, but there were problems with cold winter weather, lack of transportation and basic supplies (they were not provided with food or clothes, but were given a daily allowance of 4000 German marks).

The force was divided into 3 armed groups. The first and strongest (530 men) was ordered to take Klaipėda. The second group (443 men) was sent to capture Pagėgiai (Pogegen) and secure the border with Germany and the third (103 men) to Šilutė (Heydekrug). By January 11, the Lithuanians controlled the region, except for the city of Klaipėda. The French administrator refused to surrender and fighting broke out on January 15. The city was defended by 250 French soldiers, 350 German policemen, and 300 civilian volunteers. After a brief gunfight, a ceasefire was signed and the French soldiers were interned in their barracks. During the fighting, 12 insurgents, 2 French soldiers, and a German policeman were killed. On January 16, the Polish ship Komendant Piłsudski entered the port of Klaipėda carrying Col. Eugène Trousson, a member of the French military mission in Poland, and reinforcements to French troops. However, the ship soon departed as the fighting was over. On January 17-18, the cruiser HMS Caledon and 2 French torpedo boats reached Klaipėda. The Lithuanians began organizing a local army, which included 317 men by January 24.

France protested the seizure and issued threats of military action. Britain protested, but refrained from threats. It was suspected that Lithuania had Soviet support, which contributed to Allied caution. Poland protested, but also feared wider repercussions. On January 29, the Allies rejected a proposal to send troops to quash the revolt. France wanted to restore its administration, but Britain and Italy supported the transfer of the region to Lithuania. On February 2, the Allies presented a sternly worded ultimatum demanding withdrawal of all rebels from the region and disbandment of any armed forces.

At the same time, the League was making its final decision regarding the dispute over the Vilnius Region. On February 3, the League decided to divide the 3.7 mile wide neutral zone. Despite Lithuanian protests, the division proceeded on February 15. In these circumstances, the League decided on an unofficial exchange: Lithuania would receive the Klaipėda Region for the lost Vilnius Region. Already on February 4, the allied ultimatum was replaced by a diplomatic note requesting that the transfer of the Klaipėda Region would be orderly and not coerced. On February 11, the Allies even thanked Lithuania for the peaceful resolution of the crisis. On February 17, the Conference transferred the region to Lithuania under several conditions to be later formalized in the Klaipėda Convention: the region would be granted autonomy, Lithuania would compensate Allied costs of administration and assume German liabilities of war reparations, and the Niemen River would be internationalized. Lithuania accepted and French and British ships left the port on February 19.

[Ennath]

1102
Siege of Tripoli

After the capture of Antioch (June 1098, see posting) and the destruction of Ma'arrat al-Numan (January 13, 1099), the Syrian emirs were terrified of the advancing crusaders and quickly handed over their cities to the Franks. On January 14, Sultan ibn Munqidh, emir of Shaizar, dispatched an embassy to Raymond IV of Toulouse, one of the leaders of the crusade, to offer provisions and food for men and horses, as well as guides to Jerusalem. In February, the emir of Homs, Janah ad-Dawla, who had fought bravely at the siege of Antioch, offered horses to Raymond. The qadi of Tripoli, Jalal al-Mulk, from the Banu Ammar, sent rich gifts and invited the Franks to send an embassy. The ambassadors marveled at the splendors of the city, and an alliance was concluded. The crusaders moved on to Arqa, which they besieged from February 14 to May 13, before continuing south to Jerusalem; they did not attack Tripoli or any other possessions of the Banu Ammar.

The crusader siege of Jerusalem (see posting) was a success and led to the foundation of the Kingdom of Jerusalem. Most crusaders returned home afterwards; a second movement set out, encouraged by the success of the First Crusade, but it was mostly annihilated in Anatolia. Raymond participated in this crusade as well, and returned to Syria after escaping from this defeat. He had with him only 300 men. Fakhr al-Mulk, qadi of Tripoli, was not as accommodating to Raymond as his predecessor had been, and called for assistance from Duqaq of Damascus and the governor of Homs. However, the troops from Damascus and Homs defected once they reached Tripoli, and the qadi was defeated at the beginning of April 1101, losing 7000 men. Raymond could not take Tripoli itself, but captured Tortosa, which became the base of all future operations against Tripoli.

The following year, Raymond, with the aid of Byzantine engineers, constructed Mons Peregrinus (“Pilgrim’s Mountain”) to block Tripoli’s access inland, effectively blockading the city. With the Genoese Hugh Embriaco, Raymond also seized Gibelet. After the Battle of Harran in 1104, Fakhr al-Mulk asked Sokman, the former Ortoqid governor of Jerusalem, to intervene; Sokman marched into Syria but was forced to return home.

Fakhr al-Mulk attacked Mons Peregrinus in September, 1104, killing many of the Franks and burning one wing of the fortress. Raymond himself was badly wounded, and died 5 months later in February, 1105. He was replaced as leader by his nephew William-Jordan, count of Cerdanya.

In 1108, it became more and more difficult to bring food to the besieged by land. Many citizens sought to flee to Homs, Tyre, and Damascus. The nobles who had betrayed the city by showing the Franks how it was being resupplied were executed. Fakhr al-Mulk left to await help from the Seljuk sultan Mehmed I and went to Baghdad at the end of March with many gifts. He passed through Damascus, now governed by Toghtegin after the death of Duqaq, and was welcomed with open arms. In Baghdad, the sultan received him with great spectacle, but had no time for Tripoli while there was a succession dispute in Mosul. Fakhr al-Mulk returned to Damascus in August, where he learned Tripoli had been handed over to al-Afdal Shahanshah, vizier of Egypt, by the nobles, who were tired of waiting for him to return.

The next year, the Franks gathered in force outside Tripoli, led by Baldwin I of Jerusalem, Baldwin II of Edessa, Tancred, regent of Antioch, William-Jordan, and Raymond IV's eldest son Bertrand of Toulouse, who had recently arrived with fresh Genoese, Pisan and Provencal troops. Tripoli waited in vain for reinforcements from Egypt.

A compromise was reached among the crusaders in the course of a dispute beneath the walls, and arbitrated by Baldwin of Jerusalem. It allowed the city to be captured: the County of Tripoli would be divided between the two claimants, William-Jordan, as a vassal of the Principality of Antioch, and Bertrand, as a vassal of Jerusalem.

The city fell to assault on July 12, and was sacked by the crusaders. The Egyptian fleet arrived 8 hours too late. Most of the inhabitants were enslaved, the others were deprived of their possessions and expelled. Bertrand had William-Jordan assassinated in 1110 and claimed two-thirds of the city for himself, with the other third falling to the Genoese. Thus Tripoli became a crusader state; the rest of the Mediterranean coast had already fallen to the crusaders or would pass to them within the next few years, with the capture of Sidon in 1111 and Tyre in 1124.

[Ennath]

January 11, 1851
Jintian Uprising

In 1843 Hong Xiuquan, Feng Yunshan and Hong Rengan founded the God Worshipping Society, a heterodox Christian sect, in Hua County (in modern Guangdong). The following year they traveled to Guangxi to spread their teachings to the peasant population. After that, Hong Xiuquan returned to Guangdong to write about his beliefs, while Feng remained in the Mount Zijing area to rally others to join the sect.

In February 1850, a local corps passed through a number of God Worshiping villages and threatened to kill the converts In response, Feng Yunshan began to call for open revolt. In July, the God Worshipper leaders directed their followers to converge in Jintian and quickly assembled 10-30,000 people, and began forming military age males into units. The total number of officers and enlisted personnel reached 13,155 by the end of that month, and civilian ranks were also created to govern the remaining civilian population.

The Qing imperial army in Guangxi was not particularly strong, with only about 30,000 troops, and was occupied with suppressing another rebellion (by the Heaven and Earth Society). Hong Xiuquan and his followers were able to build their forces without being noticed by the government at first.

In December 1850, Li Dianyuan, the Qing commander at Xunzhou, led his troops to surround one of Hong Xiuquan’s residences in Huazhoushanren village in an attempt to eradicate the rebels. However, Hong Xiuquan and Feng Yunshan were saved by reinforcements sent by Yang Xiuqing, and they returned to Jintian. On New Year’s Day 1851, an imperial force commanded by Zhou Fengqi and his deputies Li Dianyuan and Yiketanbu launched an offensive toward Jintian. However, the rebels anticipated this and had set up an ambush near Siwang Dyke and Caijiang Village, 3 miles from Jintian. The government troops were defeated and Yiketanbu killed.

On January 11, 1851, which was also Hong Xiuquan’s birthday, the God Worshipping Society proclaimed an uprising at Jintian, declaring the formation of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. Five rules for its military were laid out: follow orders; men and women are to be segregated during movement; do not commit any mistake; be fair and harmonious; cooperate and do not withdraw during battle. The rebels changed their garments, kept their hair long (the men previously had to wear their hair in a queue in accordance with Qing law), and tied a red cloth around their heads. On the 13th, they headed to Dahuangjiangkou.

As the rebels moved southeast, Heaven and Earth Society rebels totaling more than 2000 joined Hong Xiuquan. In the meantime, Qing official Li Xingyuan ordered Gen. Xiang Rong to lead 2000 men to attack the rebels, with an additional support force of 1000 from Guizhou. On February 18, Xiang Rong was joined by other imperial forces led by Gens. Li Nengchen and Zhou Fengqi, and attacked Dahuangjiangkou simultaneously from east to west. They had about 20,000 men to face some 7000 Taipings. However, they entered makeshift minefields set up by the rebels and were ambushed, sustaining several hundred casualties. The government forces were forced to halt the offensive and attempt to blockade the rebels.

The rebels withdrew under the cover of darkness on the night of March 10 to East Village. The imperial troops gave chase but were ambushed again. Both sides reached a stalemate near Sanli Dyke. On the 23rd, Hong Xiuquan declared himself the “Heavenly King” in East Village. On April 3, Guangxi governor Zhou Tianjue and Xiang Rong massed over 6000 troops to attack East Village but were driven back. After suffering continual defeats, Li Xingyuan died on May 12. Four days later the rebels broke out of the blockade and advanced towards Xiangzhou. Qing forces pursued while a newly deployed 1000-strong imperial force from Guangzhou led by Gen. Wulantai was stationed at Liangshan Village. Xiang Rong's force was deployed to Jie Ridge to block the rebel route to the north.

At the battle of Du’ao Ridge (north of Liangshan Village), Wulantai’s army was badly mauled. However, the government troops were able to deflect attempts by the rebels to break out of the encirclement. By July, the rebels were forced to withdraw from Xiangzhou to their original base at Mt. Zijing. Although the rebels’ northward expedition failed to materialize, they did succeed in attracting huge numbers of the lower classes to join them and obtained a large amount of supplies. This marked the beginning of the Taiping Rebellion, the bloodiest war of the 19th century.