Battle of Caishi | |||||||
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Part of the Jin–Song Wars | |||||||
Song dynasty river ship armed with a trebuchet catapult on its top deck, from the Wujing Zongyao |
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Belligerents | |||||||
Jurchen Jin dynasty | Southern Song dynasty | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Wanyan Liang | Yu Yunwen | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
Disputed | Likely 18,000 soldiers | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
At most 4,000 soldiers | Unknown |
The Battle of Caishi (Battle of Ts'ai-shih; Chinese: 采石之戰) was a major naval engagement of the Jin–Song Wars of China that took place on November 26–27, 1161. Soldiers under the command of Wanyan Liang (the Prince of Hailing), the Jurchen emperor of the Jin dynasty, tried to cross the Yangtze River to attack Song China. Yu Yunwen, a civil official, commanded the defending Song army. The paddle-wheel warships of the Song fleet, equipped with trebuchets that launched incendiary bombs made of gunpowder and lime, decisively defeated the light ships of the Jin navy.
Starting in 1125 the Jin had conquered all Song territories north of the Huai River. In 1142, a peace treaty settled the border between the two states, putting the Jin in control of northern China and the Song in control of the south. Wanyan Liang was enthroned in 1150, and was intent on uniting northern and southern China under a single emperor. In 1158, he asserted that the Song had violated the 1142 treaty, a pretext for declaring war on the Song. He began preparations for the war in the following year. He instituted a draft in which all able-bodied men were required to enlist. The draft was unpopular, precipitating revolts that were later suppressed. The Jin army left the capital of Kaifeng on October 15, 1161, and pushed through from the Huai to the Yangtze River without much resistance from the Song.