User:Generalissima/Zhao Chongguo

Zhao Chongguo (, 137 – 52 BCE) was a prominent Chinese military commander and official during the Western Han dynasty.

Early life and career
In 137 BCE, Zhao Chongguo was born in the Shanggui prefecture of the Longxi Commandery, located along the periphery of the Western Han in what is now Tianshui, Gansu. He was born into a "well-respected family" originating in the northwestern commanderies, suggesting material qualifications for officialdom and a lack of involvement with crime, magic, or merchant trades. At some point, he moved to Lingju in the Jinchang Commandery, in what is now Yongdeng County.

Little is known about his early life or military experience prior to 104. Posthumous histories report that he was ambitious as a youth and sought to become a general. At a young age, he studied military science and the Four Barbarians. With the "Six Commanderies" having a regional tradition of cavalry service, Zhao likely began service as a cavalryman in a local defense unit.

Military service
In 104, an elite cavalry unit titled the Feathered Forest was created in the capital of Chang'an, one of five units placed under the administration of the Minister of the Imperial Household and tasked with protecting the Emperor. The members of the unit, dubbed the "Gentlemen of the Feathered Forest", were mainly recruited from the northwest, with a particular emphasis on the descendants of men who died in military service. The soldiers of the Feathered Forest, like those in other Imperial Household units, were often appointed to higher military and civil positions following a period of service. Zhao joined the unit at some point between its formation and 99 BCE.

In 99 BCE, Zhao joined a force of 30,000 cavalry in Li Guangli's campaign against the Xiongnu, receiving the rank of acting major. The army was forced to retreat, and suffered heavy casualties, eventually becoming trapped by the encroaching Xiongnu forces after several days of combat. Zhao led a group of around 100 men to breech the Xiongnu lines and allow for the rest of the Han army to retreat, suffering twenty sword cuts in the process. After General Li commended Zhao's service, Emperor Wu invited Zhao to a private meeting and consoled him on his injuries.

Soon after meeting with Emperor Wu, Zhao was promoted to the rank of Gentleman of the Household. He was later promoted again, becoming the Chief of Staff of the General of Chariots and Cavalry. Jin Midi served as the first General of Chariots and Cavalry from 87 to his death the following year. From 83 to 80, Shangguan An (the father of Empress Shangguan) served in the position until his execution for treason. Zhao likely served as chief of staff to Grand General Huo Guang, and progressed rapidly during Huo's dictatorship (83–63). In 80, Zhao led an army against the Di people, who had rebelled in the Wudu Commandery. During this campaign, he held the title of Army Protector Chief Commandant, likely an advisory position to the Grand General. He was then sent to command the garrisons of Shanggu Commandery in modern-day Inner Mongolia, possibly only as a brief inspection.

Later in 80, he was appointed as the Chief Commandant of Waters and Parks, a position he would ultimately hold until 60 BCE. As Chief Commandant, he managed the Shanglin Park to the north of the capital. This position also allowed him to administrate the minting of cash coinage, as the central mint was located inside the park. By 74, he was joined in this position by the General of the Van, Han Zeng.

In 74, he collaborated with Huo to depose the newly-enthroned emperor Liu He in favor of Emperor Xuan, signing the deed of indictment against the emperor alongside the Imperial Counsellor and Han Zeng. In reward for this service, Zhao was awarded the hereditary title of Marquis of Yingping. Around this time, he was promoted to General of the Rear, but continued concurrently in his civil position as Chief Commandant.

From 72 to 71, he was one of five Han generals who participated in a large cavalry campaign against the Xiongnu at the request of the Wusun. Following a massive raid into Shanxi in 70, a defected Xiongnu commander advised the Han army to place Zhao, who had reportedly become infamous to the Xiongnu, in command of the northern frontier commanderies. This led to the Xiongnu forces retreating the following year. In 68, Huo Guang died, and the Huo family was overthrown in favor of direct rule by Emperor Xuan. Zhao remained in the good graces of the administration.

Campaign against the Qiang
Preventing contact and alliances between the Qiang people and the Xiongnu had been a geopolitical goal of the Han since the reign of Emperor Wu, and was a major motivator for the conquest of the Hexi corridor. During the mid-60s BC, a chieftain of the Qiang Xianlian tribe requested permission to pasture their herds in the Huangshui valley, where they had previously been expelled. Zhao was angered after this proposal was relayed positively to the Han court by the emissary Yiqu Anguo, accusing the Qiang of merely seeking contact with the Xiongnu and recommending a preemptive attack. The Han government's official response to the proposal is unknown, but the local garrison was unable to prevent the Qiang resettlement in the region.

In 63, the chief of the Xianlian joined a large group of Qiang chieftains in suspending local feuds and forming an alliance. Zhao counseled Emperor Xuan on the matter, describing a unified Qiang as a particular threat to the Han, and predicting that the Xiongnu would imminently seek to ally with them. In 62, the Han became aware that the Qiang lord Langhe had sent envoys to the Xiongnu, seeking to join in an alliance to attack Dunhuang and Shanshan. Following predictions of an imminent attack by Zhao, the offices of the Chancellor and Imperial Secretary sent Yiqu Anguo into Qiang territory to attempt to break up the Qiang alliance. Yiqu Anguo arrived in the spring of 61 with a force of 2,000 cavalry, and immediately began killing large numbers of Qiang chieftains and tribespeople. This led to widespread anti-Han resentment, with chieftains who had formerly submitted to the Han rising in revolt. The Qiang attacked Yiqu Anguo at the Datong River. Losing his baggage train and suffering major loses of weapons, he retreated downriver to Lianju, near modern Minhe.

Leading the campaign
Emperor Xuan sent Imperial Secretary Bing Ji to consult Zhao on the leadership of an ensuing relief expedition. Although now in his seventies, Zhao volunteered to lead the expedition himself to the emperor's approval. Zhao joined a group of around 10,000 cavalry troops mobilized at the Jincheng Commandery. The army departed west along the Yellow River, seeking to make a crossing to the northern bank east of the confluence with the Huangshui River. During the night, Zhao sent three regiments to cross and construct field fortifications along the northern bank in order to protect the rest of the army. However, this vanguard was attacked by a small group of Qiang horsemen shortly after. Suspecting a possible ambush, Zhao withdrew his forces and sent a party to scout a highly defensible location along the river known as the Siwang Narrows. When no Qiang forces were found at the narrows, the army traveled along the Huangshui through Luodu (now Ledu) and rested for several days at the fort of Longzhi, southeast of modern Xining.

Shortly before Zhao's arrival at Longzhi, a Qiang emissary named Diaoku was detained at the fort. Zhao declared him innocent and sent him as a messanger to the Qiang, promising amnesty and large monetary rewards for Qiang who decapitated those in the rebellion. They would also be rewarded with ownership of the wives, children, and property of the decapitated.

As Zhao advanced upriver, his son Zhao Ang led a hastily-assembled relief column comprised of standing forces from Chang'an. Bogged down by Qiang forces at Lianju and cut off from its supply lines, it was eventually reinforced by a group of around 5,000 cavalry. The Grand Administrator of Jincheng, commanding around 10,000 cavalry, was also sent to reinforce Zhao Ang. However, many of these troops had likely joined Zhao Chongguo's forces.

Xin Wuxian, the Grand Administrator of Jiuquan, wrote to Zhao Chongguo and advocated a strike on the Han and Kai sub-tribes near Qinghai Lake, suggesting that the enslavement of their families and the seizure of their livestock would greatly weaken the Qiang, and allow for their destruction by the main army in the winter. Zhao stated that the plan would leave the northern frontier undefended against a potential Xiongnu attack, and that the amount of supplies needed for such an expedition would unhelpfully encumber the horses. Although the Han and Kai tribes were seen as most responsible for the rebellion, he believed that subduing and gaining the allegiance of the nearby Xianlian would secure the frontier against the other Qiang tribes.

After deliberations, the Three Lords and Nine Ministers advised the emperor against Zhao's proposal. Yiqu Anguo was dispatched to deliver the emperor's response to Zhao, reprimanding him for not seeking to prevent Han and Kai raids into Gansu. The emperor additionally appointed Xin Wuxian as "General Who Smashes the Qiang". Zhao responded with a further outline of his plan, noting that