Editing Battle of Xiangyang

{{Short description|Battles during Mongol invasion of China (1267–1273)}}
{{for|the battle that took place during the late Eastern Han dynasty|Battle of Xiangyang (191)}}
{{Infobox military conflict
| image             = 
| caption           = The preserved northern gate of the city of Xiangyang is called "The Linhan Gate (臨漢門)".
| conflict          = Battle of Xiangyang
| partof            = the [[Mongol conquest of the Song dynasty]]
| date              = 16 October 1268 – 14 March 1273<ref name="warpolsoc"/>
| place             = [[Xiangyang]], [[Hubei]]
| result            = Yuan victory
| combatant1        = [[Song dynasty#Southern Song, 1127–1279|Southern Song dynasty]]
| combatant2        = [[Mongol Empire]]
* [[Yuan dynasty]]
| commander1        = [[Li Tingzhi]]<br>[[Lü Wenhuan]]
| commander2        = [[Aju]]<br>Liu Zheng<br>[[Arikhgiya]]<br>[[Shi Tianzhe]]<br>[[Guo Kan]]
| units1            = 
| units2            = 
| strength1         = 8,000
| strength2         = 100,000<br>5,000 ships<br>100+ trebuchets<br>20+ counterweight trebuchets
| casualties1       = Heavy
| casualties2       = Heavy
}}
{{Campaignbox Mongol conquest of the Song dynasty}}

The '''Battle of Xiangyang''' ({{zh|t=襄陽之戰|s=襄阳之战|p=Xiāngyáng zhī zhàn|first=t}}) was a protracted series of battles between the [[Yuan dynasty]] and the [[Song dynasty#Southern Song, 1127–1279|Southern Song dynasty]] from 1267 to 1273. The battle was a significant victory for the Yuan dynasty and ended a 30-year defensive campaign waged by the Southern Song dynasty, allowing Yuan forces to advance into the Southern Song heartland. The capture of Xiangyang also allowed the Yuan dynasty to take control of the [[Han River (Hubei and Shaanxi)|Han]] and [[Yangtze]] rivers, thereby depriving the Southern Song dynasty of two formidable natural barriers. The defeat devastated the Southern Song dynasty, which collapsed several years later at the [[Battle of Yamen]].

The battle consisted of skirmishes, ground assault, and the [[siege]] of the twin fortified cities of [[Fancheng]] and [[Xiangzhou District, Xiangyang|Xiangyang]] in modern-day [[Hubei]], China. [[Lü Wenhuan]], commander-in-chief of the Southern Song dynasty, surrendered to Yuan Emperor [[Kublai Khan]] in 1273. The conventional use of Mongol cavalry was restricted by the woody terrain and numerous military outposts of the Southern Song. Chinese firearms and [[cannon]]s were employed by the Yuan in the victorious siege of Fancheng after capturing the outposts and relieving Southern Song forces from [[Sichuan]] and [[Yue Prefecture (Hunan)|Yuezhou]], which broke through the siege but was eventually defeated. The use of the counterweight [[trebuchet]] by the Yuan proved especially effective.

== Background ==
{{Main|History of the Song dynasty}}
Before the rule of Kublai Khan, the Mongols had launched military campaigns as far as Eastern Europe, and had conquered Russia, [[Siberia]], [[Tibet]], [[Korea]], [[North China]], [[Yunnan]], [[Iraq]], [[Anatolia]] and [[Iran]]. However, the [[Song dynasty]] was difficult to conquer because of the strategic location of Xiangyang, which became a vital position for Kublai to capture and hold. The city guarded the waterways of [[Northern and southern China|South China]] because the [[Han River (Hubei and Shaanxi)|Han River]] was a major tributary into the [[Yangtze]] river. Once the city fell, the Mongols obtained easy access into important Southern cities in China and the [[Southern Song]] would collapse shortly after.

The [[Southern Song]] knew the importance of this vital spot, and treated the defense of Xiangyang as important as their capital. The city was surrounded by mountains on three sides, and a river (Han river) on one side. Song stored massive amount of supplies inside the fortress, as preparation for long sieges. They also built high walls and towers on all four sides of the fortress. Each entrance of the fortress had at least two layers of walls, used to trap enemy sieging forces inside.

In 1133, the famous Song general [[Yue Fei]] led many successful campaigns against the [[Jin dynasty (1115–1234)|Jin dynasty]], in the Xiangyang area. From there, he pushed the Jin army back north as far as [[Kaifeng]]. In 1234, the Jin dynasty was conquered by the Mongols under the leadership of [[Ögedei]]. At that time, Mongols and the Southern Song dynasty were allies. After that, the two former allies did not have any common enemy. The Song killed Mongol envoys and attempted to invade the Mongol territories.<ref>''The Cambridge History of China: Volume 6, Alien Regimes and Border States'' by [[Herbert Franke (sinologist)|Herbert Franke]], [[Denis Twitchett]], [[John King Fairbank]], p.367</ref>

Xiangyang surrendered to the army of the [[Mongol Empire]] without resistance in 1236.<ref>[[John Man (author)|John Man]], ''Kublai Khan: The Mongol King Who Remade China'' (2006), p.158</ref><ref>J.Bor ''Mongol hiiged eurasiin diplomat shshtir, VOL. II''</ref> But the Mongols voluntarily left the city after it was briefly held by them in 1236–38. The twin cities of Xiangyang-Fenchang, with walls almost 5 kilometers around and 200,000 people, withstood a Mongol assault in 1257.<ref>C. P. Atwood ''Encyclopedia of Mongolia and the Mongol Empire'',  p.592</ref> The Mongolian cavalry were lured in Xiangyang where they were slaughtered by the Song defenders due to the [[fortress]]'s double-layered wall design. When a Mongol contingent entered the entrance of the fortress, the Mongol forces would be slaughtered to the last man, while trapped between four walls. The Mongols lifted the siege of Xiangyang. The sudden death of [[Möngke Khan]] forced the imperial army of the [[Mongol Empire]] to withdraw from the Song territory in 1259–60.

In 1260, [[Kublai Khan]] was proclaimed successor to the throne after the death of his brother Möngke, as was his youngest brother [[Ariq Böke]]. The [[Toluid Civil War|succession war between him and Ariq Böke began]]. Kublai Khan won the war eventually, though his claim as the successor to Möngke was only partially recognized by the Mongols in the west. In 1271, Kublai Khan renamed his empire "Yuan", establishing the [[Yuan dynasty]], instead of "Ikh Mongol Uls" (Great Mongolian Nation or Great Mongol Empire).<ref>C. P. Atwood ''Encyclopedia of Mongolia and the Mongol Empire'', p.648</ref> After defeating his rivals and opponents in [[Mongolia]] and Northern China, Kublai Khan also wanted to continue his grandfather [[Genghis Khan]]'s conquest of China. In 1267, Kublai Khan ordered [[Aju]] and the Song defector Liu Zheng to attack Xiangyang and Fencheng. General Lu Zende had levied corruption charges against Liu Zheng, the Luzhou prefect, causing Liu Zheng to defect to the Mongols in 1261

== Siege ==
[[Image:xuanfengwupao.jpg|thumb|250px|Illustration of a Xuanfengwupao (旋風五砲) from the Wujing Zongyao<ref name=bm/>]]
[[Image:Trebuchet1-intransit.jpg|thumb|250px|Illustration of a hinged counterweight [[trebuchet]] prepped for transit from the [[Wujing Zongyao]], late Ming (Wanli Period) edition<ref name=bm>[http://www.grandhistorian.com/chinesesiegewarfare/index-english12122007.html "Chinese Siege Warfare: Mechanical Artillery & Siege Weapons of Antiquity"] by Liang Jieming {{ISBN|981-05-5380-3}}</ref>]]

Aju and Liu Zheng arrived in 1268 and blockaded the city with a ring of [[fort]]s. Liu Zheng had advised the cities be starved from Sichuan by building forts there.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Alvarez |first1=Sandra |title=The Mongol Siege of Xiangyang and Fan-ch'eng and the Song military |url=https://deremilitari.org/2014/05/the-mongol-siege-of-xiangyang-and-fan-cheng-and-the-song-military/ |website=De Re Militari The Society for Medieval Military History |date=May 11, 2014}}</ref> The Mongols probed the defenses of [[Xiangzhou District, Xiangyang|Xiangyang]] and [[Fancheng]]. The Yuan-Mongols learned from their mistake, and this time brought along with them about a hundred [[trebuchet]]s. These trebuchets had a shooting range of around 100 metres, and could use projectiles of around 50&nbsp;kg. During Mongol campaigns against the [[Jin dynasty (1115–1234)|Jin dynasty]], the Mongols used about 5,000 trebuchets, and they were very successful in destroying the Jin fortresses. Lu Wende commanded the Song dynasty's Yangtze and his son-in-law Fan Wenhu and son Lu Wenhuan commanded Xiangyang.

However the twin cities had expected an assault by bombardment and prepared for it. The city moat was expanded to a width of 150 metres, forcing Yuan siege weapons to set up at a distance. In addition to reinforcing their walls with clay, they made netting screens ten centimetres thick and ten metres in length to cover them and dampen projectile impact. As a result, the Yuan siege weapons were both ineffective and inaccurate, and the few shots that did land bounced off the wall harmlessly.

=== Mongol entrapment ===
The Mongols then started to block Xiangyang off from the rest of Song. A Yuan fleet of 5,000 ships was established, to stop any Song supplies from the Han river. The Han River was blockaded with five stone platforms capped by [[arbalest]]s. The Mongol trained 70,000 [[marines]] but Song food supplies still held out in 1271. The Yuan also sent forces to go around the fortress, and set up camps at the key roads, to stop Song supplies from land. Eventually, Yuan built their own forts at these key locations.

From late 1267 to 1271, Song reinforcements from the south tried, many times, to attack the Mongol positions, in order to supply Xiangyang, but outside of Xiangyang, the Song forces were no match for the Mongolian cavalry. The catalog of useless thrusts continued, the Chinese losing 1,000 in October 1270, 2,000 in August 1271, and most of a 3,000 strong force was destroyed the following month.<ref>[[John Man (author)|John Man]], ''Kublai Khan: The Mongol King Who Remade China'' (2006), p.167</ref> Once the Yuan forts were completed, the situation became hopeless. As a result, the Song forces inside Xiangyang had to depend on themselves.

The Song had stored years of supplies within Xiangyang. However, by 1271, the fortress finally ran low on their supplies. Still, the Song troops chose to hang on. Finally, in 1272, a small Song force of 3,000 men was able to break through the Yuan naval blockade, and supplied Xiangyang from the Han river. The force, led by two men both named Zhang, commanded a hundred paddle wheel boats, travelling by night under the light of lantern fire, was discovered early on by a Mongol commander. When the Song fleet arrived near the cities, they found the Mongol fleet to have spread themselves out along the entire width of the Yangtze with "vessels spread out, filling the entire surface of the river, and there was no gap for them to enter."{{sfn|Andrade|2016|p=48}} Another defensive measure the Mongols had taken was the construction of a chain, which stretched across the water.{{sfn|Andrade|2016|p=48}} The two fleets engaged in combat and the Song opened fire with fire-lances, fire-bombs, and crossbows. A large number of men died trying to cut through chains, pull up stakes, and hurl bombs, while Song marines fought hand to hand using large axes, and according to the Mongol record, "on their ships they were up to the ankles in blood."{{sfn|Andrade|2016|p=49}} With the rise of dawn, the Song vessels made it to the city walls and the citizens "leapt up a hundred times in joy."{{sfn|Andrade|2016|p=49}} This was a major morale boost to the defenders. However, no one could get back out to inform others of the success. The Song officials considered that reinforcement lost and Xiangyang, doomed to fall from the lack of supplies, did not send more Song reinforcements afterwards. The high casualties and low success rates ended the transportation of further supplies.<ref name="warpolsoc"/>

Aju realized that the twin cities were hard to take with Mongol cavalry and wrote to Kublai that he needed Chinese infantry. Kublai reinforced him with 20,000 men.

=== New weapon of the Yuan forces ===
The defense of Xiangyang came to an end in 1273, with the introduction of the counterweight [[trebuchet]]. Because the [[Han Chinese]] commander [[Guo Kan]] fought with the Mongols under [[Hulagu]] in the Middle East, Kublai had heard of siege engines of great effectiveness. Experts [[Ismail (mangonel expert)|Ismail]] and [[Al al-Din]] were sent by [[Abaqa Khan|Abaqa]], [[Ilkhanate|Ilkhan]] of Persia, to China by the decree of Kublai Khan in 1272. They built the powerful siege engines under the [[Kingdom of Qocho|Uyghur]] general Arikhgiya by March, 1273. These counterweight trebuchets had a shooting range of {{convert|500|m}}, and could launch projectiles weighing over {{convert|300|kg}}. On top of their power, these new trebuchets were much more accurate than the old ones, and were the only artillery capable of reaching the walls of Xiangyang. Yuan forces built about 20 of them, and used them to assist the siege of Xiangyang.

The Mongols started the siege with Fancheng in early 1273. Song soldiers in Xiangyang witnessed a giant rock which flew right over the gigantic walls of Fancheng, and hit the houses inside. Under the cover of bombardment, the Yuan army was able to fill the moat and take the walls, after which followed an assault by a cavalry and the storming of the city resulted in high casualties on both sides.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lorge |first1=Peter |title=War, Politics and Society in Early Modern China, 900-1795 |date=2006 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=113437285X |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hQB_AgAAQBAJ&pg=PT143}}</ref> Fancheng, after holding out for years, suddenly fell within a few days.

The Yuan Mongol army then turned their attention to Xiangyang. Lu Wenhuan sent a messenger to [[Emperor Duzong of Song]], to request immediate reinforcements. The messenger successfully got by the Yuan forts and reached the emperor. But upon hearing the effectiveness of these new trebuchets, the emperor considered Xiangyang lost and did not send reinforcements.

For the next few days, Song soldiers looked to the south for reinforcements, but all they saw were Yuan siege weapons and the Mongols waiting to end their lives. The position of Song forces worsened.

In February, Yuan siege weapons began bombarding the city and a shot happened to hit a stone bridge inside. When the stone landed, it made a thunderous noise. Song soldiers went to check the damage, and saw that the stone had sunk a few feet into the solid ground.<ref name="warpolsoc">{{cite book|author=Peter Lorge|title=War, Politics and Society in Early Modern China, 900–1795|date=25 October 2005|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0-203-96929-8|pages=84–87}}</ref>

Yuan bombardment began to collapse the city structures as well as reduce the drum tower and turrets on the city walls.

Lu Wenhuan surrendered the city on 14 March 1273; he was made governor of Xiangyang and Fancheng under Yuan rule as part of the terms.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://deremilitari.org/2014/05/the-mongol-siege-of-xiangyang-and-fan-cheng-and-the-song-military/|title=The Mongol Siege of Xiangyang and Fan-ch'eng and the Song military » De Re Militari|website=deremilitari.org|language=en-US|access-date=2017-11-11}}</ref>

== Aftermath ==
{{see also|Mongol conquest of the Song dynasty}}

Xiangyang, the strongest fortress of the Song dynasty, had fallen. As a result, Yuan forces were free to conquer the rest of southern China. Everywhere else Yuan went, Song fortresses defected as the defecting Song commander in Xiangyang, Lu Wenhuan, ordered other members of his family commanding Song forces to defect to the Yuan.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lorge |first1=Peter |title=War, Politics and Society in Early Modern China, 900-1795 |date=2006 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=113437285X |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hQB_AgAAQBAJ&pg=PT145}}</ref> In 1275, the Song government unsuccessfully attempted to negotiate a truce, but by then it was too late.<ref name="warpolsoc"/>

Many people agree that the fall of Xiangyang essentially marked the end of the Song dynasty. For example, [[Paul K. Davis (historian)|Paul K. Davis]] wrote, "Mongol victory broke the southern Song dynasty, leading to the establishment of the Yuan dynasty."<ref>[[Paul K. Davis (historian)|Paul K. Davis]], ''100 Decisive Battles from Ancient Times to the Present: The World's Major Battles and How They Shaped History'' (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999), 142.</ref> For the six years that Yuan sieged Xiangyang, Song were unable to regroup and strike back at Yuan with their resources in the south. In fact, they could not even get much reinforcements and supplies to Xiangyang, to support the hard-working defense there. The emperor of the Song dynasty abdicated on 4 February 1276.<ref name="warpolsoc"/>

== Role of Chinese-designed gunpowder weapons ==

[[Image:Chuangzi Nu1.jpg|thumb|280px|Chuangzi Nu<ref name=bm/>]]

Both the Song and Mongol forces had thunder crash bombs during the siege, a type of gunpowder weapon. The Mongols also utilized siege crossbows and traction trebuchets. The Song forces used [[fire arrow]]s and [[fire lance]]s in addition to their own thundercrash bombs. The Song forces also used [[Paddle steamer#China|paddle ships]].<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0TjxaHltoY0C&dq=xiangyang+siege&pg=PA12|title=Siege weapons of the Far East: AD 960-1644 |author1=Turnbull |first=Stephen |author-link=Stephen Turnbull (historian) |year=2002|publisher=Osprey Publishing|edition=illustrated|isbn=1-84176-340-3|page=12|access-date=2010-10-28}}</ref> Siege crossbows and firebombs were also deployed on Song ships against Mongol forces, in addition to fire lances.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=N2MMD0yfxyAC&dq=xiangyang+siege&pg=PA63|title=Genghis Khan & the Mongol conquests, 1190-1400 |author1=Turnbull |first=Stephen R.|author-link=Stephen Turnbull (historian) |year=2003|publisher=Osprey Publishing|edition=illustrated|isbn=1-84176-523-6|page=63|access-date=2010-10-28}}</ref> The name of the bombs in Chinese was Zhen tian lei. They were made from cast iron and filled with gunpowder, the Chinese Song forces delivered them to the enemy via trebuchets. Armor made out of iron could be penetrated by pieces of the bomb after the explosion, which had a 50-kilometre{{clarify|date=September 2019}} noise range.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=04S4YdDarD0C&dq=xiangyang+siege&pg=PA356|title=The Hutchinson dictionary of ancient & medieval warfare|author1=Bennett|first=Matthew|author-link=Matthew Bennett (historian)|editor=Matthew Bennett|year=2008|publisher=Taylor & Francis|isbn=978-1-57958-116-9|page=356|access-date=2010-10-28}}</ref>

== Role of the counterweight trebuchet ==

Since the Yuan employed [[Muslim]] engineers for the designing of the counterweight trebuchets, they were designated in Chinese historiography as the "Muslim" trebuchet (''hui-hui pao''). The Chinese scholar [[Zheng Sixiao]] (1206–1283) indicates that, "in the case of the largest ones, the wooden framework stood above a hole in the ground".<ref>Quoted in Needham and Yates, Science and Civilisation in China, 5:6:221</ref> After Aju asked Kublai, the Emperor of the Mongol Empire, the powerful [[siege machine]]s of the [[Ilkhanate]], [[Ismail (mangonel expert)|Ismail]] and Al-aud-Din<ref name="Rossabi2014">{{cite book|author1=Rossabi |first=Morris |author-link=Morris Rossabi|title=From Yuan to Modern China and Mongolia: The Writings of Morris Rossabi|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GXejBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA229|date=28 November 2014|publisher=BRILL|isbn=978-90-04-28529-3|pages=229–}}</ref> from [[Iraq]] arrived in South China to construct a new type of trebuchet which used explosive shells. These Muslim engineers built mangonels and trebuchets for the siege.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UOiGAAAAMAAJ&q=xianyang+foreign+engineers+persia+mangonels+catapults|title=City of heavenly tranquility: Beijing in the history of China|author1=Becker |first=Jasper |author-link=Jasper Becker|year=2008|publisher=Oxford University Press|edition=illustrated|isbn=978-0195309973|page=64|access-date=2010-10-28}}</ref> Explosive shells had been in use in China for centuries but what was new was the counterweight type of [[trebuchet]] as opposed to the torsion type giving greater range and accuracy as it was easier to judge the weight of the counter weight than the torsion generated by repeated windings.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Turnbull |first1=Stephen |author-link=Stephen Turnbull (historian)  |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ug_twStv-4sC&dq=xiangyang+siege&pg=PA53 |title=Chinese Walled Cities 221 BC-AD 1644 |last2=Noon |first2=Steve |publisher=Osprey Publishing |year=2009 |isbn=978-1846033810 |edition=illustrated |page=53 |access-date=2010-10-28}}</ref>

[[File:Mahmud_ibn_Sebuktegin_attacks_the_fortress_of_Zarang.jpg|thumb|left|250px|The city of [[Zarang]] under siege by [[Mahmud of Ghazni]] in 1003 CE. From the illuminated manuscript of [[Rashid-al-Din Hamadani|Rashid al-Din]]'s ''[[Jami' al-tawarikh]]'', dated 1314 CE. Edinburgh University Library]]

The counterweight trebuchet built by the Muslims from Mosul were longer in range, and assisted in destroying Fancheng.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1fb7tBwv4ZYC&dq=xiangyang+siege&pg=PA190|title=Fighting techniques of the Oriental world, AD 1200-1860: equipment, combat skills, and tactics|author1=Michael E. Haskew |author2=Christer Joregensen |author3=Eric Niderost |author4=Chris McNab |year=2008|publisher=Macmillan|edition=illustrated|isbn=978-0312386962|page=190|access-date=2010-10-28}}</ref> Chinese and Muslim engineers operated artillery and siege engines for the Mongol armies.<ref>{{cite book |author=Grousset |first=René |url=https://archive.org/details/empireofsteppes00grou |title=The Empire of the Steppes: A History of Central Asia |publisher=Rutgers University Press |year=1970 |isbn=0813513049 |edition=reprint |page=[https://archive.org/details/empireofsteppes00grou/page/283 283] |quote=chinese engines artillery chinese muslim engineers. |author-link=René Grousset |access-date=2010-10-28 |url-access=registration}}</ref> The design was taken from those used by [[Hulegu]] to [[Siege of Baghdad (1258)|batter down the walls of Baghdad]].

The Chinese were the first to invent the traction trebuchet, now they faced Muslim designed counterweight trebuchets in the Mongol army. The Chinese responded by building their own counterweight trebuchets, an account from the Chinese said in 1273 "the frontier cities have all fallen. But Muslim trebuchets were constructed with new and ingenious improvements, and different kinds became available, far better than those used before."<ref>{{cite book |author1=Turnbull |first=Stephen R. |author-link=Stephen Turnbull (historian) |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=N2MMD0yfxyAC&dq=xiangyang+siege&pg=PA63 |title=Genghis Khan & the Mongol conquests, 1190-1400 |publisher=Osprey Publishing |year=2003 |isbn=1841765236 |edition=illustrated |page=63 |access-date=2010-10-28}}</ref>

=== The design of the trebuchets deployed at Xiangyang ===
The Chinese scholar [[Zheng Sixiao]] (1206–1283) indicates that, "in the case of the largest ones, the wooden framework stood above a hole in the ground".<ref>Quoted in Needham and Yates, ''Science and Civilisation in China'', 5:6:221</ref>

Another version is given by [[Marco Polo]] in his book ''[[Il Milione]]'' where he claims having been responsible for teaching the Mongols how to build and use catapults during the siege of Xiangyang. However, the names of the Muslim engineers were given by Muslim sources as Talib and his sons Abubakr, Ibrahim and Muhammad,<ref name="ReferenceA">[[Rashiduddin Fazlullah]]'s ''[[Jami' al-tawarikh|Jamiʻuʾt-tawarikh]]'' (Compendium of Chronicles), English translation & annotation by [[Wheeler Thackston|W. M. Thackston]], 3 vols., Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University, Dept. of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, 1998-99, 2: 450</ref> respectively, by Chinese sources as Ala-ud-Din and Isma'il.<ref>Liang, Jieming (2006). ''Chinese Siege Warfare: Mechanical Artillery & Siege Weapons of Antiquity'', p. 30</ref> Moreover, it has been claimed the siege had already ended before Marco Polo's arrival in China.<ref>[[Frances Wood|Wood, Frances]] (1995). ''Did Marco Polo go to China?'', London: Secker & Warburg, pp. 107-108.</ref>

== Role of political infighting in the Song Court ==
Political infighting among the Song also contributed to the fall of Xiangyang and Fancheng; due to the power of the Lü family, many questioned their allegiance to the Song. The Emperor barred [[Jia Sidao]] himself from the command, so Li Tingzhi, an enemy of the Lü family, was appointed commander. Jia permitted the Lü family to ignore Li's orders, resulting in a fractious command. Li was then unable to relieve Xiangyang and Fancheng, managing only temporary resupply during several breaks in the siege.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=t203wZyNqIwC&dq=xiangyang+siege&pg=PA84|title=War, politics and society in early modern China, 900-1795|author=Peter Allan Lorge|year=2005|publisher=Taylor & Francis|isbn=0-415-31690-1|page=84|access-date=2010-10-28}} [http://sociology.sunimc.net/htmledit/uploadfile/system/20100823/20100823143531244.pdf Alt URL]</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Fang |first=Cheng-Hua |date=2003 |title=Military families and the Southern Song court— the Lü case |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/23496108 |journal=Journal of Song-Yuan Studies |issue=33 |pages=49–70 |issn=1059-3152}}</ref>

== See also ==
*[[Siege of Diaoyucheng]]

== References ==
{{reflist}}

==Bibliography==
* {{Citation|author1-link=Tonio Andrade |last=Andrade |first=Tonio |year=2016 |title=The Gunpowder Age: China, Military Innovation, and the Rise of the West in World History |publisher=Princeton University Press |isbn=978-0-691-13597-7}}.

== External links ==
* [http://zhidao.baidu.com/question/13449675.html?fr=qrl3 Xiangyang really that hard to conquer?]: (Chinese)

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{{Yuan dynasty topics}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Xiangyang, Battle of}}
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