A.D. 157 is only a short period of 27 years from the Yellow Scarf Uprising in the last years of the Eastern Han Dynasty (184). Since the Yellow turban insurrectionary uprising, the Eastern Han Dynasty has entered troubled times. By the time Wei destroyed Shu in 263 AD, there were 280,000 households with a total population of 940,000. There are 660,000 households in Wei with a total population of 4.43 million.
Take Shu Han as an example. When Liu Beigang established the Shu-Han regime in 22 1 AD, the total population of Shu-Han was 900,000. By 263, there were only 940,000. In 42 years, the population only increased by 40 thousand, and basically the total population did not increase. If we take Shu Han as an example, the total population of Wu Dong and Cao Wei in 263 is basically the same as that of 22 1 year.
From the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty to the beginning of Cao Pihan, the total population of the world was less than 8 million, from more than 56.47 million in 157 to less than 8 million in 220. In 1963, 86% of the people in the world died and 48.47 million people lost contact. After deducting the normal mortality rate, the average annual loss is 769,000, which is quite scary.
It is easier to understand the number of wars in the official history of the Three Kingdoms first. This war is quite cruel.
I. The Yellow Scarf Uprising
The Yellow Scarf Uprising is the biggest peasant uprising in the history of China. The three brothers Zhang Jiao used the opportunity of preaching to gather 36 believers from all over the world. Fangfang is a religious unit of measurement, equivalent to an army. At that time, there were more than 10 thousand generous people and 67 thousand small parties, with an average of 8 thousand people on both sides. There are 288,000 people in 36 parties and nearly 300,000 people.
This is just a fighting force. If you count your families, there are millions of the yellow turban insurrectionary army. Later, Cao Cao received millions of yellow turban insurrectionary troops in Qingzhou, including family members. During the Yellow turban insurrectionary uprising, there were revolts in 28 counties in 7 states all over the world, equivalent to more than half of the counties in China. Therefore, the strength of the Yellow Scarf Uprising will only be more, not less.
Look at the number of government troops in the Yellow Scarf in the Eastern Han Dynasty. The government forces in the Eastern Han Dynasty are mainly divided into three parts:
1, Eastern Han Central Army.
During the Eastern Han Dynasty, the main forces of the Central Army were the Fifth School of the Northern Army (Tunqi, Yueqi, Infantry, Changshui and Shesheng), the Knights of the Three Rivers (Hanoi, Hedong and Henan) and some newly recruited troops. They were led by Zhu, Zhu and Huang Fusong to crusade against the Yellow Scarf Army, only knowing that there were 40,000 troops led by Huang Fusong.
Lu Zhi's army should be no less than 40,000 people, because he is dealing with the Yellow Scarf Army of Zhang Jiao. Even forty thousand people, Zhu's army should be at least, including Sun Jian, and should not exceed thirty thousand. Later, Cao Cao led the army to support Huang Fusong as a captain, so the main force of the Central Army in the Eastern Han Dynasty was less than 65,438+10,000 people.
2. Local army.
The local army was armed by counties around the Eastern Han Dynasty. This cannot be calculated. There are uprisings in 28 counties in 7 States, and the number of local troops will not be less. Even if a county has an army of 3,000 people, the total number is 84,000. This is just an estimate.
The landlord is powerful and armed.
After the yellow turban insurrectionary uprising began, the Eastern Han government issued an order that anyone could recruit soldiers to fight against the yellow turban insurrectionary army, and then the imperial court would rank officials according to their merits. Therefore, many landlord armed forces also recruited troops to fight the Yellow Scarf Army. For example, people like Liu Bei can't be an official in their own homes and have little capital, but with the support of businessmen, he pulled down an army to fight the Yellow Scarf Army, and then he was able to enter politics.
The number of this army is incalculable. At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the gentry was a powerful country in the world. Larger gentry may pull an army of thousands to tens of thousands. It is also possible for a smaller strongman to pull hundreds of people. There are more than 65438+ ten thousand in the whole world.
In terms of the number of troops, there were still a large number of government troops in the Eastern Han Dynasty, and the number of the Yellow Scarf Army only surpassed that of the Han Army. Moreover, the government troops in the Eastern Han Dynasty were well-trained, and the Yellow Scarf Army was only improvised by a group of farmers, so its fighting capacity was not strong. So in just 10 months, the massive yellow turban insurrectionary uprising was put down.
Second, the battle of Guandu
The battle of Guandu was a battle between Cao Cao and Yuan Shao for control of the Central Plains and the North. The two sides fought along the Yellow River. Regarding the strength of both sides, the strength of Yuan Shao's side is clearly recorded, that is, 654.38+ 10,000 infantry and 654.38+ 10,000 cavalry, totaling 654.38+065.438+ 10,000, while the strength of Cao Cao's side has always been vague.
At that time, Yuan Shao occupied four states in Hebei and Cao Cao occupied four states in the Central Plains. From the control area, the two sides are equal. In terms of population, Yuan Shao's population in the four states of Hebei is obviously higher than that in the four states of Central Plains of Cao Cao, and Cao Cao became a Yanzhou animal husbandry from Dongjun all the way, controlling the four states of Central Plains, and his strength is not much worse than Yuan Shao's.
Moreover, in A.D. 192, Cao Cao surrendered to Qingzhou Yellow Scarf Army. According to historical records, Cao Cao dropped 300,000 soldiers with a population of nearly one million. Cao Cao selected elite from the Yellow Scarf Army to form Qingzhou Army, and other Yellow Scarf Army and their families went to wasteland. According to 10, Qingzhou army also has about 30 thousand people.
In addition, Cao Cao also occupied the armies of four states. Before the battle of Guandu, Cao Cao's total strength was not less than 65438+ 10,000. If he wanted to recruit, he would have to exceed 65438+ 10,000. But in Guandu front, Cao Cao obviously defeated Yuan Shao not by quantity, but by strategy. Cao Cao likes to use strategy in war. The battles of White Horse, Yanjin and Wu Chao all depend on strategy.
Some people say that Cao Cao's army is only seven or eight thousand men, which is obviously impossible. How do seven or eight thousand people fight Yuan Shao? Even the historian Pei Song doesn't believe that Cao Cao only used seven or eight thousand people. He estimated that Cao Cao had 20,000 people, even if there were 20,000 people, it was Cao Cao's army against Yuan Shao. In fact, Cao Cao has invested more than twenty thousand troops.
The two sides confronted each other for thousands of miles along the Yellow River, but 20,000 people could not confront each other. In addition, Cao Cao built a camp in Guandu and fought hard with Yuan Shao. The war between the two sides became a war of attrition, and 20,000 people could not stop the attack of 65,438+10,000 people. If they want to stop Yuan Shao's attack, they need at least 30,000 to 40,000 people.
All Cao Cao's troops add up to 654.38+ten thousand people, but he certainly can't take all of them. Cao Cao's four central plains states are located in the world, making enemies on all sides, so it is necessary to guard against the warlords in Guanzhong, such as Ma Chao and Han Sui in the west, Liu Biao in the south, Sun Ce in the southeast, and Emperor Xiandi in Xudu, all of whom need to divide their forces to guard the Yellow River.
Therefore, Cao Cao's army in Guandu can only have 30,000 to 40,000 people at most, and 40,000 to 1 10000. After the war of Wu Chao, Cao Cao also captured 70,000 yuan Shao and killed all these prisoners. No army can capture so many people, because there are no accurate figures in history books, so this is only an estimate.
Third, Battle of Red Cliffs.
Biography of the river table: those who are close to it make amends, and dare not hand over those who guide the south. Today, there are 800 water conservancy troops, and Fang and the general will hunt in Wu. This is recorded in the biography of Jiang Biao. Cao Cao wrote a letter to Sun Quan in front of Battle of Red Cliffs, in which he mentioned that his army had more than 800,000 people. Later, it appeared in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms and became 830,000 people. This figure is definitely impossible. At that time, the population in the north was only a few, and it would be great to have this tenth of the army.
The armies of Sun Quan and Liu Bei in Battle of Red Cliffs are recorded very clearly in the history books. At that time, Zhou Yu wanted 50,000 people, but Sun Quan only gave 30,000 people, and 20,000 people were the troops of Liu Bei and Liu Qi. Sun and Liu joined forces to participate in 50,000 people in Battle of Red Cliffs.
Cao Cao launched Battle of Red Cliffs, and the original plan was for the two armies to participate in the war. One is Zhao Yan as the commander-in-chief of the guard army, leading seven armies including Yu Ban, Zhang Liao, Zhang He, Zhu Ling, Li Dian, Zhao Lu and Feng Kai. Referring to the battle of Xiangfan, the number of the seven armies in Yu Jin was 30,000, so Zhao Yanyan's seven armies were also 30,000.
Zhao Yan led the army from the Hanshui River in Xiangyang, went south along the Hanshui River, and then entered the Yangtze River. However, Cao Cao was defeated in Chibi, and Zhao Yan and others directly withdrew their troops and did not participate in the war.
The other army was led by Cao Cao himself. Starting from Jiangling City, the south county of Jingzhou, Cao Cao took 5,000 men south from Xiangyang to pursue Liu Bei, defeated Liu Bei in Dangyang, and then went south to Jiangling to rest for two months. In the past two months, Cao Cao has obviously dispatched troops. How many troops Battle of Red Cliffs Cao Cao invested is not recorded in the history books, so we can only speculate.
Cao Cao accepted Jingzhou's surrender. All the troops in Jingzhou add up to at least 70,000 to 80,000 people, at least half of whom are navy troops. It is not clear how many troops Cao Cao brought to Jingzhou. In Cao Cao's style, four or five men fought Jingzhou at most, and even divided their troops to defend Xiangyang, Fancheng and Jiangling.
Cao Cao can transfer at least 20,000 to 30,000 troops from this headquarters, and Jingzhou can transfer at least 30,000 to 40,000 troops. Therefore, Cao Cao's troops in Battle of Red Cliffs are about 50,000-70,000. Because Cao Cao still has a team of people all the way, occupying an absolute advantage. Even Cao Cao surpassed Sun Liu's allied forces in numbers. Unfortunately, the water war was not Cao Cao's strong point, but his weak point, which was quickly defeated by Zhou Yu.
Fourth, the battle of Hefei.
The battle of Hefei refers to this time that happened on 2 15. One side of the battle was an army of 65,438+10,000 troops led by Sun Quan, the number of which was clearly recorded in the history books. On the other hand, Cao Cao's three generals, Zhang Liao, Li Dian and Le Jin, had a total of 7,000 troops, that is, 65,438+10,000 to 7,000.
Although accurate figures are recorded, the actual combat strength of Sun Quan is definitely not 65,438+10,000. How many troops did Sun Quan have in 2 15? According to the above records, Sun Quan has more than 200,000 people around 220. Will he put half of the country's total troops into Hefei? I don't think it's possible.
Before the war, Zhang Liao led 800 warriors into Sun Quan's Zhong Jun tent and killed him before and after. Zhang Liao got away with it. If Sun Quan really has 65438+ ten thousand people, what is the concept? The population equivalent to a small town is all Sun Quan's army, which can't destroy 800 people in Zhang Liao. How big is the water content of this 654.38+ ten thousand people?
It is estimated that Sun Quan has a maximum of 50,000 to 60,000 people. At that time, he liked to announce how many people were in his army, mostly to scare people. If Sun Quan had 65,438+10,000 people, he would have besieged Hefei City with only 7,000 people, and he was in a panic and almost captured by Zhang Liao.
Verb (abbreviation for verb) Battle of Hanzhong
Refers to the Hanzhong War between Liu Bei and Cao Cao, which started in 2 17. Liu Bei devoted all his manpower and material resources to Yizhou. During the Liu Zhang period, the total strength of Yizhou was 70,000 to 80,000, and Liu Bei took more than 10,000 people into Sichuan. Later, Zhuge Liang, Zhang Fei and Zhao Yun also led troops into Sichuan, because the total strength of Yizhou controlled by Liu Bei reached 65,438+10,000.
However, it is impossible for Liu Bei to send all his troops to the battlefield, and the rear also needs military guards. In addition, there are some county soldiers in various places, so the total force that Liu Bei can invest in Hanzhong battlefield is at most 80 thousand.
On Cao Cao's side, Xiahou Yuan was the first to fight Liu Bei, and Xiahou Yuan was the highest military commander in the western theater of Cao Wei. It is estimated that the total strength is 30,000 to 40,000, including the subsequent surge. Until Xia was killed, Cao Cao personally led the army into Hanzhong. At this point, the number should be no less than the Shu army.
Cao Cao led the Central Army, with at least 30,000 to 40,000 people. Together with the original summer troops, Cao Wei's total investment was 80,000. In other words, in the battle of Hanzhong, the forces invested by both sides were almost the same. This scale has surpassed the battle of Yiling. The three major battles of the Three Kingdoms should be regarded as the battle of Hanzhong instead of the battle of Yiling.
Six, the battle of Yiling
The Romance of the Three Kingdoms says that Liu Bei has 700,000 troops to launch the Yiling War, which is totally untrue. The population of Shu Han is only 900,000, so it is impossible for all men, women and children to go to war. Liu Bei really invested only 40,000 troops, plus Shamoko's 10000 people, a total of 50,000 people.
At this time, Shu Han lost 50,000 Jingzhou troops because of Guan Yu, which is almost one third of Shu Han's military strength. Liu Bei could not fight many troops, and the battle of Hanzhong ended in 2 19, which lasted for two years and cost a lot. Liu Bei wants more troops to fight, and there is not so much resource allocation.
In the battle of Yiling, Liu Bei had 50,000 troops.
Lu Xun has at least 50,000 troops. Judging from Sun Quan's strength at that time, there were 200,000 troops in China. However, Sun Quan's control area extends from Jingzhou and Jiangdong to Guangdong and Guangxi, and the battle of Yiling may cost a quarter of the country's total troops. Unless Lu Xun is defeated, Sun Quan can continue to transfer troops, but the result is that Lu Xun defeated Liu Bei, and the strength of both sides is actually similar.
Seven, Zhuge Liang's Northern Expedition War
Guan Yu lost 50,000 people in the battle of Xiangfan, Liu Bei lost 50,000 people in the battle of Yiling, and Shu Han lost 654.38+10,000 people in a few years. He is also the weakest regime in the three countries. Five years after Liu Bei's death, Zhuge Liang began the Northern Expedition. It took only five years for Zhuge Liang to complete the military preparations for the Northern Expedition, making him a genius in the world.
According to the total population of Yizhou, the maximum number of troops that Yizhou can support is 65,438+10,000. Zhuge Liang's Northern Expedition can recruit new soldiers for training. It can also be considered that the total strength of Shu Han during Zhuge Liang's Northern Expedition was 65,438+10,000, including the Northern Expedition Army and the border guards guarding all directions (Jiangzhou, Hanzhong and Nanzhong Garrison) and Shu Han County.
Excluding the border guards and county soldiers, Zhuge Liang could only use 50,000 troops to carry out the Northern Expedition at most, which is also the number of troops in Zhuge Liang's five northern expeditions, and Cao Wei obviously used at least 6,543,800 troops to guard against Zhuge Liang. Take the first Northern Expedition as an example. Zhang He took fifty thousand troops against Ma Su in Jieting, and Cao Zhen's main army against Zhao Yun in Baigu, not counting others, at least fifty thousand people.
Later, Sima Yi used at least 6,543,800 troops to stop Zhuge Liang's Northern Expedition and deployed along the Qinling Mountains to Longyou. In other words, Zhuge Liang took the initiative to explore the North with half the other side's troops, while Cao Wei could only fight Zhuge Liang with a war of attrition, which truly reflected Zhuge Liang's military ability.