Zhang Xianzhong
| Zhang Xianzhong | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ruler of Daxi | |||||||||||||||||
| Reign | 1644 - 1646 | ||||||||||||||||
| Successor | Sun Kewang (孫可望) | ||||||||||||||||
| Born | 18 September 1606 | ||||||||||||||||
| Died | 2 January 1647 (aged 40) | ||||||||||||||||
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| Dynasty | Xi (西) | ||||||||||||||||
| Full name | |
|---|---|
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Family name: Zhang (张) Given name: Xianzhong (献忠) |
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| Era dates | |
| Dashun (大順): 1644-1646 | |
| Posthumous name | |
| Emperor Gao 高皇帝 |
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| Temple name | |
| Xi Taizu 西太祖 |
| Zhang Xianzhong | |||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 張獻忠 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simplified Chinese | 张献忠 | ||||||||
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| Transcriptions | |
|---|---|
| Standard Mandarin | |
| Hanyu Pinyin | Zhāng Xiànzhōng |
| Wade–Giles | Chang Hsien-chung |
Zhang Xianzhong or Chang Hsien-chung (September 18, 1606 – January 2, 1647), nicknamed Yellow Tiger, was a leader of a peasant revolt from Yan'an, Shaanxi Province and he later conquered Sichuan in the 17th century. His rule in Sichuan was brief and he was killed by the invading Qing army. He is commonly associated with the massacres in Sichuan which depopulated the region. However, the extent of his killings is disputed.
Zhang was born in Dingbian, Shaanxi province, China, into a poor family. He was described as tall in stature, had a yellow complexion and a heavy chin ("tiger chin" (虎颔) in Chinese figurative description), and hence was given the nickname "Yellow Tiger". He served in the Ming army, and while in the army he was sentenced to death for violations of military rules, but was reprieved after an intervention by a senior officer who was impressed by his appearance.
Towards the end the Ming Dynasty, drought, famines and epidemics broke out in various part of China. In the late 1620s, peasants revolted in Shaanxi, resisting attempts by the Ming government to collect grains and taxes. They coalesced into rebel armies called "roving bandit" (流寇) because of their highly mobile nature, and spread into other parts of China. Zhang escaped from the army, joined the rebel forces in Mizhi County in 1630, and established himself as a rebel leader, styling himself Bada Wang (八大王, Eighth Great King). His mobile forces would conduct raids along the western edge of Shaanxi, plundering swiftly and hiding out in the hills. Later he moved into other provinces, moving from place to place raiding towns and cities. He was defeated at various times by the Ming forces; Zhang would also surrender when it was expedient for him to do so, for example in 1631 and 1638, but would then later regroup and resume rebellion.
In 1635 he joined a larger confederation of bandits that included another rebel leader, Li Zicheng (Li would later capture Beijing and end the Ming Dynasty). They devastated Henan and pushed into Anhui. After they had burnt the Ming ancestral temple at Zhongdu (Fengyang) in Anhui and ravaged the area, the rebel armies broke up and Zhang headed to Hubei. In 1637, joined by other rebels and with an army now reaching a size of 300,000 men, he again pushed into Anhui, then to Jiangsu, and almost down to Nanjing. But he was defeated there and he retreated back to Hubei. In 1638, he surrendered to Ming supreme commander Xiong Wencan (熊文燦) and was allowed to serve as a regional Ming commander. However, he reneged on the agreement in 1639 and rebelled, and later defeated the Ming forces led by the Ming general Zuo Liangyu (左良玉). In 1640, he suffered defeats at the hand of Zuo and had to flee with few followers into the mountains of Eastern Sichuan. In 1641 he emerged from Sichuan and attacked Xiangyang, capturing and executing the imperial prince there.
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