I. The Silk Road

Zhang Qian made two missions to the Western Regions, which communicated the trade relations between China and West Asia and Europe. China's silk and silk products were transported from Chang 'an to the west, passed through the Hexi Corridor, and now rested in Xinjiang (now Iranian plateau and two river basins), and then rested in Daqin (Rome) in West Asia and Europe, which opened up the famous "Silk Road" in history. Historian Sima Qian praised Zhang Qian's mission to the Western Regions as "hollowing out", which means "opening the way". ?

Second, fight against the Huns.

In the sixth year of Yuan Shuo (BC 123), in February and April, General Wei Qing sent troops to attack the Huns twice. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty ordered Zhang Qian to take a captain to attack Mobei.

In the second year of Yuanshou (12 1 years ago), Zhang Qian was ordered to leave Beiping (now northeast Hebei) with "Flying General" Li Guang to attack the Huns.

In the fourth year of Yuanshou (before 1 19), Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty appointed Zhang Qian as a corps commander, and went to the Western Regions for the second time to unite with Wusun to fight against the Huns. Zhang Qian sent envoys to Dawan, Kangju, Da Yue, Rest in Peace, Bow Shape, Khotan, Shengu and other countries to carry out diplomatic activities, covering all parts of Central Asia and Southwest Asia, and the farthest envoys reached the Roman Empire and North Africa along the Mediterranean Sea, gradually eliminating the hidden dangers of northwest border defense for a long time.

Third, the western regions belong to Han.

Zhang Qian's second mission to the Western Regions returned to the Han Dynasty, bringing with him the emissary of Wusunguo, and since then began friendly exchanges with the Western Han Dynasty on the basis of equality. The following year, Zhang Qian's deputy envoy to Wusunguo and envoys from western countries returned to Han one after another, and Han and western countries formally began equal and friendly exchanges, and the first climax of diplomatic activities between Han and western countries began to arrive.

Zhang Qian's trip to the Western Regions brought him into contact with the customs of various countries in the Western Regions. It was the Han dynasty that began to understand the countries in the western regions and established friendly relations between the Han dynasty and the western regions, which laid the foundation for the Western Han government to establish the western regions as the capital of the western regions and formally put the western regions under the jurisdiction of the Western Han government. Ambassadors of the Han Dynasty constantly traveled to and from western countries, ranging from a dozen times a year to five or six times, all of which won the trust of various countries in the name of "Bo Wanghou".

In the second year of Emperor Xuandi of Han Dynasty (the first 60 years), the government of the Western Han Dynasty set up the Western Regions Capital Protection House to take charge of western region affairs and protect business travel. Since then, the western regions have been officially under the jurisdiction of the central government.

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The diplomatic achievements of Zhang Qian's two missions, compared with the gifts he brought and the original expectations, are far from each other (especially when he was on the first mission, he could not join hands with the Yue family to fight against the Xiongnu), but to some extent, he satisfied the desire of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty for "Tianma". However, in the traditional society of the Western Han Dynasty, which is still closed and self-protected, Zhang Qian's mission not only opened a new era in the history of ethnic exchanges, but also was hailed as a "hollowing out" action.

From then on, the countries in the western regions appeared in the vision of the Central Plains people, and merchants from the East and the West traded along the road explored by Zhang Qian, which made the famous "Silk Road".

He successfully opened up Tianshan South Road and Tianshan North Road to the Western Regions in the Han Dynasty, and introduced blood horses, cucumbers, grapes, alfalfa, pomegranate, walnuts, flax, broad beans and garlic from the Western Regions.

In particular, the return of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty provided a great deal of strategic and geographical information for the Huns, which greatly reduced the difficulty of the Han Dynasty's counterattack against the Huns, laid an intelligence foundation for Wei Qing, Huo Qubing and other famous soldiers to defeat the Huns in an all-round way, and helped the people of the Central Plains win the Hetao area and the Hexi Corridor forever.

Zhang Qian keeps calm in times of crisis and keeps integrity. For example, Liang Qichao praised him as "a persevering and open person, the first person to open a port in world history".

References:

Baidu Encyclopedia-zhangqian