It is not difficult to see from many related historical materials that Shi Dakai is indeed a figure praised by later generations in the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. Even his opponents have to admit his bravery and fighting skills, his integrity and his justice in the face of death.
However, as an influential historical figure, Shi Dakai is not perfect. The biggest mistake in his life was to leave angrily after the Tianjing Incident that split the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom camp. Of course, the main responsibility for Shi Dakai's departure lies with the heavenly king Hong Xiuquan. Shi Dakai, on the other hand, mainly protected himself, then became depressed and alienated from others until he was killed in Dadu River when the whole army rebelled.
According to historical records, Shi Dakai did not leave Beijing immediately after the Tianjing Incident, but returned to Tianjing to preside over the Chaogang, and received strong support from the following officials and people. However, this situation made the heavenly king Hong Xiuquan very uncomfortable. He was afraid that Shi Dakai would become the second Yang Xiuqing beyond his control. So, Hong Xiuquan, who is so petty, had another trick and began to muzzle Shi Dakai by clumsy means.
Starting from safeguarding the ruling interests of the Hong family, he named his eldest brother Hong Renfa as "Wang An" and his second brother Hong Renda as "King of Axes", allowing them to interfere in the state affairs to contain Shi Dakai. Hong Xiuquan's commendation to the two kings, An and Fu, directly destroyed the stipulation that the conspirators and founders of Jintian were not allowed to be crowned king in the early days of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, and it was also the beginning of his formation of the Hongshi Group to control the China regime. Then, he "devoted himself to Ann and the axe king" and did "major military and political affairs". At the same time, we have to seize the relieving power of Shi Dakai, and "if we don't give him military service in the end, we don't have to do it in the city", which even developed into an "insidious plot" against Shi Dakai.
This unreasonable spite, coercion and conspiracy actually prevented Shi Dakai from exerting his intelligence and realizing his ambition of assisting the government. Shi Dakai also lost confidence and hope in whether Hong Xiuquan and his clique can continue to maintain the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and establish a unified "China", and could not help but sigh that "loyalty is forced, and death is unknown".
In this case, Shi Dakai is faced with three options. One option is that if he stays in Tianjin, he is likely to be killed like Yang, king of the East, and Wei Changhui, king of the North. The second possibility is to replace Hong Xiuquan and become king on his own, but it is impossible with his personality and traditional ideas. The third option is to leave Beijing.
1On June 2nd, 857, Shi Dakai left Tianjing with several cronies in the name of avoiding disasters. He asked people to post notices along the way, saying that he was suspected by the heavenly king and was untenable, so he had to leave. He also invited soldiers of the Taiping Army, and those who were willing to go with him could join in or fight against Clear The Demon or the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. Shi Dakai with good prestige in the army, unexpectedly attracted about two hundred thousand soldiers to join along the way. Nevertheless, objectively speaking, Shi Dakai's departure split the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom camp and greatly weakened the overall strength of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.
According to records, after Shi Dakai left, Hong Xiuquan seemed to realize the seriousness of the situation. At the strong suggestion of ministers, he was forced to remove the two brothers' thrones, engraved with the gold medal of King Wing, and sent someone to Shi Dakai. Hong Xiuquan's childish behavior, of course, did not persuade Shi Dakai. At this time, he already knew that Hong Xiuquan was insidious. At the beginning, he rebelled against the kings, and now only they are left, but he knows the root cause. Dead people, very close to death, may not know that they have been calculated by Hong Xiuquan. From then on, Shi Dakai and the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom had almost nothing to do with each other.
(Portrait of Shi Dakai)
When evaluating this period of history, some researchers think that Shi Dakai's departure should be said that he had no responsibility, and he had to do it because of necessity, which was also the only correct choice. Shi Dakai's departure is Hong Xiuquan's fault, not Shi Dakai's.
After Shi Dakai left, although he was still under the banner of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, he completely ignored the interests of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, which is unforgivable in history. At that time, Tianjing was in an emergency, and Jurong and Lishui were in crisis. He ignored Tianjing when it was so critical. The situation in Jiujiang is very critical, because Kai Lin Yingxian, the leader of protecting the river, is not interested in him, and he completely lets himself go. In addition, Chen Yucheng's combat situation in Hubei is very critical. He could have lent a helping hand to support Chen Yucheng or Kay Lin Yingxian, but he didn't. It can be seen that Shi Dakai has lost his talent and generosity as a gentleman before. He put aside the interests of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, and thought that this kind of bullying by the heavenly king Hong Xiuquan was not benevolent, but could be heartless, regardless of the overall situation and cause of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. In fact, Shi Dakai should use Hong Xiuquan's mistakes to cover up his own.
Due to the defects of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Movement itself, Shi Dakai's departure from Tianjing is actually a new opportunity and an excellent opportunity for Shi Dakai to create a new world. Because Tianjing is gone, now that it is broken, there is no need to be attached. More importantly, Shi Dakai led a considerable military force at that time. As long as the correct strategic direction is found, the myth of "Wing Wang Shengli" can be completely continued, and the decadent Manchu court can also be defeated. Unfortunately, after Tianjing left, Shi Dakai, like Shu Ren, lost all his martial arts. Since then, he has never been able to fight a decent battle, and his old brother who once followed him has no choice but to leave the Wing King they once revered.
According to historical records, from 1857 to 1859, Shi Dakai led his troops to Jiangxi, Zhejiang, Fujian, Guangdong, Hunan, Guangxi and other provinces. Shi Dakai, the once invincible wing king, no longer has that indomitable spirit, and the warriors in China have become disappointing hooligans. 1859 In August, Shi Dakai and the Qing army fought fiercely in Baoqing, Hunan Province, and retreated to Guangxi in a disastrous defeat. During his stay in Guangxi, Shi Dakai was depressed and his confidence was shaken. He even proposed seclusion in the mountains, which had a bad influence on his subordinates. That's the coach. Everyone almost lost hope. 1860 In May, 67 generals including Zhu Yidian and Wang Haiyang left him with 200,000 people and returned to Tianjing to meet Li Xiucheng. Shi Dakai, who abandoned the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, also tasted the taste of being abandoned.
Some people have analyzed why Shi Dakai suffered repeated defeats in his later years. One of the main reasons is that after leaving Tianjing, the mood has been low, and I failed to cheer up immediately and formulate a good strategic policy, which led to the loss in Hunan and Jiangxi, which led to the alienation of my subordinates. Second, after entering Guangxi, it failed to make good use of the power of great achievements, but lost elite generals, and the troops were defeated and scattered. Third, in the late Taiping Army, the military discipline was lax, and the rogue style appeared, which greatly lost the hearts of the people and the mass base. Fourth, Shi Dakai's mistakes in strategic decision-making, too scattered forces and fighting in Sichuan.
186 1 in September, Shi Dakai entered Sichuan from the north and south of Guangxi via Hubei at the beginning of 1862. Since then, in order to cross the Yangtze River to the north, seize Chengdu and establish the Sichuan base area. Shi Dakai moved to Sichuan, Guizhou and Yunnan provinces, and entered Sichuan four times. Finally, in April of 1863, we crossed the Jinsha River and broke through the Yangtze River defense line. In May, Shi Dakai led an army to Dadu River, and there was no Qing army on the other side. Shi Dakai ordered more boats and rafts to cross the river the next day. Unexpectedly, it rained heavily that night, and the river soared, making it impossible to sail. Three days later, the Qing soldiers defending the eastern line of Dadu River came to the other side. The Taiping Army was blocked by the unprecedented early flood of the Dadu River. Crossing the river failed many times, and the food and grass were exhausted, and it was in a desperate situation. Wang Songlin, the battalion commander of Nanziying of the Qing army, went to Taiping Barracks to negotiate, and Shi Dakai was determined to lay down his life for the whole army. Among them, 3,000 people from the north of the city were recruited by Wang Songlin, and the remaining 2,000 people kept their weapons and were stationed in Dashubao. Later, 700 out of 2,000 people crossed the river and were dismissed or killed. After Shi Dakai was taken to Chengdu, the Qing army was treacherous and attacked Dashubao at night, leaving more than 1000 people, all of whom were killed except 300 people, old and young.
(stills)
1On June 27th, 863, Shi Dakai was tried in Chengdu court, and then passed away peacefully at the age of 32.