Ming–Hồ War


The Ming–Hồ War was a military campaign by the Ming Empire of China to invade Đại Ngu ruled by the Hồ dynasty. The campaign began with Ming intervention in support of a rival faction to the Hồ, but ended with incorporation of Vietnam into China, marking the start of the Ming province of Jiaozhi.
A few years earlier, Hồ Quý Ly had usurped the throne of the Trần Dynasty, which ultimately led to the intercession of the Ming government to reestablish the Trần dynasty. However, Hồ forces attacked the Ming convoy escorting a Trần pretender, and all were killed in the attack. After this event, the Yongle Emperor appointed Marquises Zhang Fu and Mu Sheng to prepare and lead the Ming armies for the invasion of Đại Ngu. The war lasted from 1406 to 1407, resulting in the Ming conquest of Đại Ngu and the capture of the members of the Hồ dynasty.

Background

The former ruling dynasty of Đại Việt, the Trần, had tributary relations with the Ming Empire. However, in 1400, Hồ Quý Ly deposed and massacred the Trần house before usurping the throne. After taking the throne, Hồ renamed the country from Đại Việt to Đại Ngu. In 1402, he abdicated the throne in favor of his son, Hồ Hán Thương. Eventually, in May 1403, he requested the investiture of his son from the Ming government on the account that the Trần lineage had died out and that his son was a royal nephew. The Ming government, unaware of the deeds that Hồ had committed against the Trần, granted him this request. In October 1404, Trần Thiêm Bình arrived at the Ming imperial court in Nanjing, claiming to be a Trần prince. He notified the court of the treacherous events that had taken place and appealed to the court for the restoration of his throne. No action was taken by them until early 1405 when his story was confirmed by a Vietnamese envoy.
The Yongle Emperor of the Ming Empire issued an edict reprimanding the usurper and demanding the restoration of the Trần throne. Hồ Quý Ly had doubts about the pretender's claims, but nevertheless acknowledged his crimes and agreed to receive the pretender as king. Thus, the nominal king was escorted back by a Ming envoy in a military convoy. On 4 April 1406, as the party crossed the border into Lạng Sơn, Hồ's forces ambushed them and killed the Trần prince that the Ming convoy were escorting back. Hồ Quý Ly expected the Ming Empire to retaliate, so he prepared the military for the imminent Ming invasion. He also took on a hostile foreign policy, which included harassing the southern border of the Ming Empire.

Course

On 11 May or in the month July 1406, the Yongle Emperor appointed Duke Zhu Neng to lead an invasion with Marquises Zhang Fu and Mu Sheng as second-in-command. Chen Qia was appointed to oversee the supplies, while Huang Fu was appointed to handle political and administrative affairs. On the eve of departure, the Yongle Emperor gave a banquet at the Longjiang naval arsenal, located at the Qinhuai River in Nanjing.
Huang Fu kept a log to document the military campaign. Sixteen days before the Yongle Emperor gave the banquet at Longjiang, Huang Fu had departed from Nanjing and spend a night at Longjiang, before sailing west on the Yangtze River. After eight days, he reached Poyang Lake; after another week, he reached Dongting Lake. Thereafter, Huang traveled through the Xiang River southwards, passing Xiangtan and Guilin, heading towards Nanning in Guangxi. Three months had passed after his departure from Nanjing, when Huang arrived at Longzhou in Guangxi, where he joined the main body of the Ming forces. Zhu Neng and Zhang Fu would cross the border from Guangxi, while Mu Sheng would invade the Red River Delta from Yunnan. However, Zhu Neng died, aged 36, at Longzhou in Guangxi. Thus, Zhang Fu took over the command of the Ming army stationed there. The military expedition would now be commanded by Zhang Fu and Mu Sheng.
In the winter of 1406, the Ming armies began their invasion. Zhang Fu departed from Guangxi and Mu Sheng departed from Yunnan for a pincer attack into enemy territory. Modern historians estimate that 135,000 troops set off from Guangxi and 80,000 troops set off from Yunnan. On 19 November 1406, they captured the two capitals and other important cities in the Red River Delta. On 24 November 1406, Zhang Fu's forces had conquered Can Tram and several other strongholds. Mu Sheng's forces—who had departed from Yunnan—met up and joined Zhang Fu's forces at Đa Bang. By the end of 1406, Da Bang and Dong Kinh were conquered by the Ming. Early 1407, Hồ Quý Ly and his eldest son Hồ Nguyên Trừng launched an attack to repel the Ming army from Dong Kinh, but their forces were defeated by the Ming and forced to retreat to Tay Do.
Prominent families from the Red River plain, led by Mac Thuy and his brothers, pledged their allegiance to the Ming. By late January 1407, the Ming armies had taken control of the Red River Delta by superior siege and naval warfare.
By early May 1407, Hồ Quý Ly was forced to flee southwards as he had lost the support from his people and was being pursued by the Ming forces. The Ming armies expelled him from Thanh Hoa. Hồ Quý Ly destroyed his palace at Tay Do and fled to the south by sea. Hồ Quý Ly and his son Hồ Hán Thương were captured by the Ming on 16 June 1407. The rest of his family were captured on either the same or following day. Their capture occurred in the region of the present-day Hà Tĩnh Province. They were caged and brought as prisoners to the Yongle Emperor in Nanjing.
The Ming Shilu 2 December 1407 entry stated that the Yongle Emperor gave orders to Marquis Zhang Fu to not harm innocent Vietnamese and to spare the family members of rebels, such as young males if they themselves were not involved in the rebellion. The Ming Shilu entry dated 26 July 1406 reports that Magistrate Dao Jihan pledged 4000 native troops of Ningyuan Subprefecture to accompany the expedition, which was approved. The Ming Shilu entry dated 8 August 1406 recorded an imperial order instructing the Ming army to free prisoners that were captured by Li bandits after the army has subdued the region. The Ming Shilu entry dated 15 August 1406 recorded an imperial order that instructed that Vietnamese records like gazetteers, maps, and registers were to be saved and preserved by the Chinese army.
However, according to Yueqiaoshu published by Li Wenfeng in 1540, on 21 August 1406, the Yongle Emperor issued an order to Ming soldiers in Annam:
兵入。除釋道經板經文不燬。外一切書板文字以至俚俗童蒙所習。如上大人丘乙已之類。片紙隻字悉皆燬之。其境內中國 所立碑刻則存之。但是安南所立者悉壞之。一字不存。
"Once our army enters Annam, except Buddhist and Taoist text; all books and notes, including folklore and children book, should be burnt. The stelae erected by China should be protected carefully, while those erected by Annam, should be completely annihilated. Do not spare even one character."
On the 21st day of the 5th lunar month of the following year, Emperor Yongle issued another order to Ming soldiers in Annam:
屢嘗諭爾凡安南所有一切書板文字。以至俚俗童蒙所習。如上大人丘乙已之類。片紙隻字及彼處自立碑刻。見者即便毀壞勿存 。今聞軍中所得文字不即令軍人焚毀。必檢視然後焚之。且軍人多不識字。若一一令其如此。必致傳遞遺失者多。爾今宜一如前敕。號令軍中但遇彼處所有一應文字即便焚毀。毋得存留。
"I have repeatedly told you all to burnt all Annamese books, including folklore and children books and the local stelae should be destroyed immediately upon sight. Recently I heard our soldiers hesitated and read those books before burning them. Most soldiers do not know how to read, if this policy is adapted widely, it will be a waste of our time. Now you have to strictly obey my previous command, and burnt all local books upon sight, without hesitation."

Aftermath

On 5 October 1407, the prisoners were charged with high treason by the Ming imperial court. The Yongle Emperor asked them whether they had killed the former king and had usurped the throne of the Trần royal family, but he received no answer in return. Most of the prisoners were either imprisoned or executed.
Hồ Quý Ly and his son Hồ Hán Thương were imprisoned, but there is no known record of their eventual fates thereafter. The oldest son Hồ Nguyên Trừng became weapon engineer near the Chinese capital Beijing. In 1442, he wrote a memoir titled Nam Ông mộng lục about his homeland.
In June 1407, the Yongle Emperor annexed the conquered region as Jiaozhi province. Lü Yi was appointed as the military commissioner, Huang Zhong as the vice-commissioner, and Huang Fu as the provincial administrator and the surveillance commissioner. Jiaozhi province was divided into fifteen prefectures, 41 sub-prefectures, and 210 counties. The first major signs of discontent against Chinese rule would surface when Trần Ngỗi revolted in September 1408, but he was captured by Zhang Fu in December 1408. Tran Qui Khoang would continue the rebellion until he was captured by Zhang Fu on 30 March 1414, formally ending the rebellion. Uprisings continued throughout the course of the Chinese domination.
In addition to the annexation of Đại Ngu into Ming territory, the Yongle emperor sought to sinicize the people of Annamby ordering for all books about Annamese history and folk culture to be burned while keeping those of Chinese culture, such as Mahayana Buddhist, Daoist, and Confucian texts.