From
the very beginning of our species history we have waged war. Clearly the in
built aggression of our species has been a tremendous driving force in our
development and rapid rise to the dominate species on the planet, although
countless millions have died in warfare since history began it is also clear
that much of our technological and sociological development has come from war.
Armed
conflict has been defined as "the logical outcome of an attempt of one
group to protect or increase its political, social and economic welfare at the
expense of another group", the activity of fighting a war including the
weapons and methods that are used: psychological, nuclear , economic ,
guerrilla ,naval ,nuclear ,trench, ect is called warfare
Warfare
is generally understood to be the controlled and systematic waging of armed
conflict between sovereign nations or states, using military might and
strategy, until one opponent is defeated on the field or sues for peace in the
face of inevitable destruction and greater loss of human life. The first
recorded war in history is that between Sumer and Elam in Mesopotamia in 2700
BCE in which Sumer was victorious, and the first peace treaty ever signed
ending hostilities between nations was between Rameses II (the Great) of the Empire
of Egypt and Hattusili III of the Hittite Empire in 1258 BCE. In both of these
cases, war was waged, and a treaty signed, to resolve political and cultural
conflicts. Warfare has been a part of the human condition throughout recorded
history and invariably results from the tribe mentality inherent in human
communities and their fear or mistrust of another, different, `tribe' as
manifested in the people of another region, culture, or religion.
Among
Kung Fu practitioners there is a prevalent opinion that martial arts payed
major if not a crucial role in warfare in ancient China. Unfortunately for these people the truth is
completely the opposite.
For
successful warfare two things play crucial role, economy and technology, and
these two things are closely related. Without sufficient funding army simply
cannot exist. Equipment and weapons, food, logistics, training, salaries and
many other things necessary for war are expensive and were expensive since the
beginning of history. Technology development is expensive but crucial for
warfare, better weapons and equipment means better chances for victory. As a
rule, army with more resources and better technology will eventually win, but
resources are the most important part of successful warfare, being human or
technological resources. The best example of the economy significance is WWII.
Germany had better technology and initially had great success due to innovative
strategy and technological superiority, eventually lost the war because all the
resources were depleted, German economy simply couldn’t support the war
anymore. On the other side Russia and U.S.A. had almost limitless resources in
men and technology. For example , German ‘Tiger ‘ tank was far superior over
any other tank in WWII but only 1347 were produced, while U.S.A. produced 50
000 “Sherman” tanks and Russia produced
unknown number of “T 34” maybe even more than Americans.
Equally
important is a strategy, of course with clear idea that strategy cannot exist
without economy , human resources and technology. Strategy, in warfare, is the
science or art of employing all the military, economic, political, and other
resources of a country to achieve the objects of war.
Next
important thing in warfare is a critical relationship between military technology
and tactics of its employment. From the
earliest times, success in combat of military organizations and the ultimate
purpose of military technology, depends on the ability of the combatant group
to coordinate the actions of its members in a tactically effective manner. This
coordination is a function of the strength of the forces that bind the unit
together, inducing its members to set aside their individual interests—even
life itself—for the welfare of the group. These forces, in turn, are directly affected
both by tactics and by technology.
Tactics
is the art and science of fighting battles on land, on sea, and in the air. It
is concerned with the approach to combat; the disposition of troops and other
personalities; the use made of various arms and equipment and the execution of
movements for attack or defense.
As
we can see for the successful warfare personal fighting skills of individual
soldier are completely irrelevant. Now let’s see how war was waged in ancient
China.
The
first military conflicts in China are recorded with the rise and fall of the Xia Dynasty (c.2070-1600 BCE). During
this period bronze casting was invented but majority of everyday tools and
weapons were made from stone, bone and leather. First leather armors were
invented during this period. Existence of Xia dynasty is still matter of debate
among historians and there is no mention of kung fu in this period.
Shang
dynasty is the earliest dynasty of traditional Chinese history supported by
archaeological evidence. Shang infantry were armed with a variety of stone and bronze
weaponry, including spears, pole-axes, pole-based dagger-axes, composite bows,
and bronze or leather helmets. Shang depended upon the military skills of their
nobility, although Shang rulers could mobilize commoners as conscript laborers
and soldiers for both campaigns of defense and conquest. Aristocrats and other
state rulers were obligated to furnish their local garrisons with all necessary
equipment, armor, and armaments. The Shang king maintained a force of about a
thousand troops at his capital and would personally lead this force into
battle. A rudimentary military bureaucracy was also needed in order to muster
forces ranging from three to five thousand troops for border campaigns to
thirteen thousand troops for suppressing rebellions against the Shang dynasty.
We have no record nor other evidence that Kung Fu existed at this time although
it is certain that some kind of wrestling existed.
Zhou Dynasty.
(ca. 1050–256 B.C.) brought further development in military technology, tactics
and strategy. State still depended on aristocracy to train and equip the army.
Just like in previous period warfare was seen as an aristocratic affair,
complete with protocols that may be compared to the chivalry of the European
knight. In this period chariots were introduced and used to great extent in
warfare making infantry made of conscripted commoners virtually useless.
The
Spring and Autumn period was a period in Chinese history from approximately
771 to 476 BC. During this period, the Zhou royal authority
over the various feudal states started to decline, as more and more dukes and
marquesses obtained regional autonomy, defying the king's court in Luoyi, and
waging wars amongst themselves.
The Warring States
period was an era in ancient Chinese history characterized by warfare, as well
as bureaucratic and military reforms and consolidation. It followed the Spring
and Autumn period and concluded with the Qin wars of conquest that saw the
annexation of all other contender states, which ultimately led to the Qin
state's victory in 221 BC as the first unified Chinese empire, known as the Qin
dynasty
The chariot remained a major factor in Chinese
warfare long after it went out of fashion in the Middle East. Near the beginning
of the Warring States period there is a shift from chariots to massed infantry,
possibly associated with the invention of the crossbow. This had two major
effects. First it led the dukes to weaken their chariot-riding nobility so they
could get direct access to the peasantry who could be drafted as infantry. This
change was associated with the shift from aristocratic to bureaucratic
government. Second, it led to a massive increase in the scale of warfare. When
the Zhou overthrew the Shang at the Battle of Muye they used 45,000 troops and
300 chariots. For the Warring States period the following figures for the
military strengths of various states are reported:
Qin
1,000,000
infantry, 1,000 chariots, 10,000 horses;
Chu
same
numbers;
Wei
200–360,000
infantry, 200,000 spearmen, 100,000 servants, 600 chariots, 5,000 cavalry;
Han
300,000
total;
Qi
several
hundred thousand;
Technological
advances such as iron weapons and crossbows put the chariot-riding nobility out
of business and favored large, professional standing armies, who were
well-supplied and could fight a sustained campaign. The size of armies
increased; whereas before 500 BC Chinese
field armies numbered in the tens of thousands, by 300 BC armies regularly included up to a couple
of hundred thousand drafted soldiers, accompanied by cavalry. For example,
during the Battle of Changping the state of Qin drafted all males over 15 years
of age. Although these conscripts with one to two years of training would be no
match individually against aristocratic warriors with years of experience, they
made up for it with superior standardization, discipline, organization, and size.
The Warring States period saw the introduction of many innovations to the art
of warfare in China, such as the use of iron and of cavalry.
Warfare
in the Warring States period evolved considerably from the Spring and Autumn
period, as most armies made use of infantry and cavalry in battles, and the use
of chariots became less widespread. The use of massed infantry made warfare
bloodier and reduced the importance of the aristocracy, which in turn made the
kings more despotic. From this period onward, as the various states competed
with each other by mobilizing their armies to war, nobles in China belonged to
the literate class, rather than to the warrior class as had previously been the
case. The various states fielded massive armies of infantry, cavalry, and
chariots. Complex logistical systems maintained by efficient government
bureaucracies were needed to supply, train, and control such large forces. The
size of the armies ranged from tens of thousands to several hundred thousand
men. Iron weapons became more widespread and began to replace bronze. Most armor
and weapons of this period were made from iron. The first official native Chinese
cavalry unit was formed in 307 BC during the military reforms of King Wuling of
Zhao, who advocated 'nomadic dress and horse archery'. But the war chariot
still retained its prestige and importance, despite the tactical superiority of
cavalry.
The
crossbow was the preferred long-range weapon of this period, due to several
reasons. The crossbow could be mass-produced easily, and mass training of
crossbowmen was possible. These qualities made it a powerful weapon against the
enemy.
Infantrymen
deployed a variety of weapons, but the most popular was the dagger-axe. The
dagger-axe came in various lengths, from 9 to 18 feet; the weapon consisted of
a thrusting spear with a slashing blade appended to it. Dagger-axes were an
extremely popular weapon in various kingdoms, especially for the Qin, who
produced 18-foot-long pike-like weapons.
In
221 BC, the Qin unified China and
ushered in the Imperial Era of Chinese history. Although it only lasted 15
years, Qin established institutions that would last for millennia. Qin Shi
Huan, titling himself as the "First Emperor", standardized writing
systems, weights, coinage, and even the axle lengths of carts. To reduce the
chance of rebellion, he made the private possession of weapons illegal. In
order to increase the rapid deployment of troops, thousands of miles of roads
were built, along with canals that allowed boats to travel long distances. A
national conscription was devised: every male between the ages of seventeen and
sixty years was obliged to serve one year in the army. During the Warring
States period, all the states in China were trying to draw more power and
prestige to themselves. The states of Qin and Chu were the strongest which was
due, in part, to the locations of these two states being able to command vast
resources. They were also able to expand their borders without fear of
immediate conflict, unlike the other states, and so could obtain still further
resources. This benefit, and others such as the size of the Qin army and their
expert use of the chariot, contributed to their success in warfare. The Qin had
all of the resources and advantages but what finally gave them victory over the
other states was their ruthlessness in battle. The Qin statesman Shang Yang
(356-338 BCE) advocated total war and a disregard for the polite policies of
battle which Chinese generals had always adhered to. His lessons were
implemented by Ying Zheng, King of Qin, who emerged victorious from the Warring
States period and proclaimed himself Shi Huangdi - `first emperor' - of China
in 221 BCE. About 230 BCE, when the final campaign to unify China began, it is
estimated that Qin controlled one-third of all the land under cultivation in
China and one-third of China’s total population.
During
the Warring States Era (475-221BC), chariots followed by infantry were still
important, but a new way of battling had been invented from nomads: cavalry.
Horseriding was first developed in east Asia by nomads in the north-eastern
regions of modern China in Eastern Zhou times, but cavalry only seems to have
been invented and brought up by the Chinese in the mid 4th century.
A
field army was composed of four parts: chariots, infantry, cavalry and archers,
as displayed in Qin Shi Huang's mausoleum. Cavalry played important roles in
campaigns that were under the rule of the First Emperor, but judging by the
numbers of cavalry horses and men in the warriors’ pits, cavalry still seems to
have had a good functioning in battle, by supplementing the main fighting force
of infantry and chariots. Interestingly, the Qin cavalry horses don't have any
stirrups to help the rider mount and give him stability in the saddle.
According
to one ancient military document, these early cavalry would have acted as
scouts or raiders who could find out an enemy’s formation, destroy his ferries
or boundary gates, cut off and burn his supply train and lines of
communication, and make sudden strikes at unexpected places, either during a
pitched battle or when the opposing armies were on the march. This is why
Calvary was so important and helped the Qin a lot.
The
Qin army is not only well motivated, but well armed. Millions of men, criminals
and prisoners of war were enslaved in huge amounts and forced to make weapons.
The Qin, lacking significant iron, copper or tin deposits, were also very
careful with their metal and set up an official post to ensure that no metal go
to waste. The Qin culture also prevented the use of metals to make instruments
for rituals or musical instruments. All would go for weapons or agricultural
tools. The Qin get their ritual pieces by defeating other states. The Qin army
rarely had to worry about food when it comes to attacking other states. The
Qin's agriculture was extremely successful. Some regions made fertile productive through wise and long
term investments in water works, and even Zheng Guo was made to apply his
genius in making the Canal of Zheng Guo which helped to create vast tracts of
arable land to feed the armies of Qin. A well fed army fights better than a
half-starving army. The Qin army is known for their crossbowmen. From the
terracotta army we see that there's warriors in ranged units with both archers
and crossbowmen. The Qin army is well organized with a clear
distinct hierarchy. A unit leader is responsible for his men, and his men are
responsible to him. In any given moment, a Qin unit is entirely independent as
he sought to kill the enemy and at the same time cohesive as breaking any
military law means death. The Qin was so powerful during battles because they
advanced without fear and were ready to risk their lives without hesitation.
During
Qin dynasty wrestling and weapon competitions were particularly popular, still
, these cannot be considered as Kung Fu in a way we know it today.
Han dynasty was the
second imperial dynasty of China (206 BC–220 AD). Han period is considered by
scholars and the ancient Chinese themselves as the golden era of Chinese
culture, would have lasting effects on all who followed, particularly in the
areas of government, law, philosophy, history, and art. To this day, China's
majority ethnic group refers to themselves as the "Han Chinese" and
the Chinese script is referred to as "Han characters". It was founded
by the rebel leader Liu Bang, known posthumously as Emperor Gaozu of Han.
Han
army was made of , male commoners who were liable for conscription starting
from the age of 20 until the age of 56. Some convicts could also choose to
commute their service by serving on the frontier. Conscripts trained for one
year and then served for another year either on the frontier, in one of the
provinces, or at the capital as guards. A relatively small minority of these
conscripts would also have served in the cavalry division in the north, which
was primarily composed of volunteers from families of superior status, or water
borne forces in the south. Conscripts were generally trained to arrange
themselves in a formation five men deep. After finishing their two years of
service, the conscripts were discharged. During Western Han times discharged
conscripts could still be called up for training once a year but this practice
was discontinued after 30 AD. The Northern Army was a professional force of
full time soldiers which had existed since 180 BC. It originally consisted of
eight regiments and around 8,000 troops, but was later reorganized from 31 to
39 AD into a smaller force of five regiments, around 4,200 troops.
During
Han dynasty wrestling fencing and “sword dance” were very popular , but these
activities could not be considered Kung Fu.
Six Dynasties,
(AD 220–589), in China, the period between the end of the Han dynasty in AD 220
and the final conquest of South China (589) by the Sui (established in 581 in
North China).
The Three Kingdoms (220–280) was the
tripartite division of China between the states of Wei, Shu and Wu. It started
with the end of the Han dynasty. The Three Kingdoms period is one of the
bloodiest in Chinese history. A nationwide census taken in AD 280, following
the reunification of the Three Kingdoms under the Jin shows a total of 2,459,840
households and 16,163,863 individuals which was only a fraction of the
10,677,960 households, and 56,486,856 individuals reported during the Han era.
During this period many technological improvements were made, most notably
,from military point of view, repeating crossbow and further development in
metallurgy which enabled better weapons and armor.
As the Han dynasty fell its system of
conscription and checks on military leadership broke down, giving local leaders
the autonomy to recruit their own personal armies. At the heart of each army
was a group of trusted Companions consisting of family members, close friends
and clansmen. There was no need for conscription as the conflicts of the late
Han dynasty created willing recruits who sought protection under a strong army.
This type of soldier, characterized by a lack of loyalty to state or nation,
primarily concerned with survival, made up the majority of the army in this
period. There was no training at this time, the majority of soldiers recruited
during the early stages of the Three Kingdoms period were thus neither
disciplined nor well trained in the use of arms. Formations and drill still
existed, but these were the exceptions rather than the norm, and there is no
evidence of troops engaging in a regular training system or large scale
exercises.
Till
the end of Six Dynasties period China was in constant internal turmoil and at
same time fighting with external enemies. The intervening four hundred years of
Six Dynasties Period, was marked by political struggle and military strife on a
level not seen in China in over a millennium. Yet while many histories describe
the Six Dynasties era as a China's version of Europe's "dark ages,"
it was also a period of great cultural intermingling.
Sui Dynasty
(581-618 AD) In 589 CE, after almost four centuries, China was reunited for the
first time since the end of the Han era. Though the Sui dynasty ruled only for
approximately thirty years, much was accomplished by the first emperor Wendi
(reigned 581-604), formerly a general for the Northern Zhou dynasty. Among
Wendi's many accomplishments was a restructuring of the government to simplify
internal administration, a revision of the penal code, and a number of public
work projects, including the creation of a complex canal system joining the
Yellow, Huai and Yangzi Rivers. Wendi was also a supporter of Buddhism, and
encouraged the spread of the religion throughout his domain.
The
basis of Sui militaries was the fubing
militia system, These militia units also served as reserves, and could be
mobilized quickly in times of war or political instability.The system involved
a network of militia who were assigned tracts of land. Men between 21 and 60
years of age were eligible. Officers received permanent commissions, but regular
troops reported for duty at the province capital on a rotation system that
varied upon living distance. Those who lived 500 li from the capital served one
month every five months, and those over 2000 li away served for two months
every 18 months. When off-duty, they would farm their land, but when a war
occurred, they would be re-mobilized. This supplemented the equal-field system,
which assigned all households a share of land to farm. These units subsequently
became hereditary military families, and ushered forth vast militarized
settlements and communities
Tang Dynsty(618-907AD)
China under the ruling of the Tang Emperors, became the most powerful and
prosperous country in the world. Particularly, in this glorious period, the
economy, politics, culture and military strength reached an unparalleled
advanced level. The national strength and social development reached an
unparalleled prosperity - economy and commerce flourished, the social order was
stable, corruption never existed in the court and the national boundaries were
even open to foreign countries.
At
the beginning basis for the Tang army was the fuping militia system. The Tang
maintained 600 militia units, each containing between 800 and 1,200 men who
were liable to serve between the ages of 21 and 60. Soldiers
were largely exempt from taxation and labor service. Each soldier was given
land that he or his family and serfs could work. He was expected to supply his
own basic arms and provisions, with armor and more elaborate weapons provided
by the state. By the year 737, Emperor Xuanzong discarded the policy of
conscripting soldiers that were replaced every three years, replacing them with
long-service soldiers who were more battle-hardened and efficient. It was more
economically feasible as well, since training new recruits and sending them out
to the frontier every three years drained the treasury. By the late 7th
century, the fubing troops began abandoning military service and the homes
provided to them in the equal-field system. The supposed standard of 100 mu of
land allotted to each family was in fact decreasing in size in places where
population expanded and the wealthy bought up most of the land. Hard-pressed
peasants and vagrants were then induced into military service with benefits of
exemption from both taxation and labor service, as well as provisions for
farmland and dwellings for dependents who accompanied soldiers on the frontier.
By the year 742 the total number of enlisted troops in the Tang armies had
risen to about 500,000 men. At this period more elaborate individual fighting
techniques were developed but only to be used in infantry formations. These
techniques were weapon based and far from what we know as kung fu today.
Five Dynasties.
(907–960) The Five Dynasties was an era of political upheaval in 10th-century
China. Five states succeeded one another in the Central Plain. More than a
dozen states, referred to as the Ten Kingdoms, were established elsewhere,
mainly in south China. Five Dynasties is viewed as a period of
judicial abuse and excessive punishment. Other abuses included the use of
severe torture. Some important developments were still made despite the
apparent political chaos. These include the first use of gunpowder on the
battlefield. It was essentially a time for desperadoes and soldiers of fortune.
Song Dynasty.
(960–1279) In terms of culture, the arts and commerce, the Song
dynasty was the greatest dynasty China has had, and no other dynasties have
lived up to its legacy. During the Song Dynasty technology was highly advanced
in fields as diverse as agriculture, iron-working, and printing. Indeed,
scholars today talk of a Song economic revolution. The population grew rapidly
during this time, and more and more people lived in cities. The Song system of
government was also advanced for its time. The upper-levels of the government
were staffed by highly educated scholar-officials selected through competitive
written examinations.
The
Song inventors were especially good at concocting varieties of gunpowder to use
for different purposes. The varieties of gunpowder and gunpowder products were
important inventions including the evolution of the early flamethrower,
explosive grenade, firearm, cannon, and land mine. This new technology enabled
the Song to ward off their enemies until the Song's ultimate collapse in the
late 13th century.
The
structure of the army, both its bureaucracy and its units, was completely
populated by military officers. The majority of soldiers and
officers were illiterate, and most of those who were functionally literate were
not highly educated. The ability of the famous general Cao Han (924–92)
to compose a poem at court on one occasion surprised the emperor and his civil
officials. We are almost completely uninformed about the tactical training and
organization of the Song army. The basic weapons of the army were swords,
spears, bows, and crossbows. Later gunpowder weapons, fire spears, grenades and
bombs, fire arrows, and even guns were added to the arsenal. Government
arsenals exclusively manufactured gunpowder and gunpowder weapons. Song rulers
were in constant fear from rebellion so they developed the system that does not
allow commanding officers to stay at one place for a longtime and bond with
soldiers. Song rulers were so afraid of rebellion that they persecuted their
most talented and competent generals, notably Yue Fei. There are no evidence
that kung fu as we know it today existed during Song dynasty period while it is
possible that elaborate systems of weapon fighting were developed at the time.
In biography of Yue Fei written by his grandson 60 years after his death there
is no mention of any specific style of fighting , only that Yue Fei was master
archer and master with a spear.
Yuan Dynasty
(1271–1368) During the Yuan dynasty, China—for the first time in its long
history—was completely subjugated by foreign conquerors and became part of a
larger political entity, Mongolian empire. They maintain their separateness
from the native population and utilized foreigners to staff the government
bureaucracy. Revolts in the mid-14th century led to the final overthrow of the
Yuan in 1368, making it the shortest-lived major dynasty of China.
Ming
dynasty (1368–1644) The Ming founder Zhu Yuanzhang set up a
system of soldiery that was largely hereditary. Hereditary soldiers were meant
to be self sufficient. They provided their own food via military farms (tun
tian) and rotated into training and military posts such as the capital, where specialized
drilling with firearms was provided.
The
spear was the most common weapon and soldiers were given comprehensive training
in spear combat, both as individuals and in formation. A complete spear regimen
lasted one hundred days. The dao, also called a saber, is a Chinese category
for single edged, curved swords. It was the basic close fighting weapon of the
Ming dynasty. During the Ming dynasty, most soldiers did not wear armor,
which was reserved for officers and a small portion of the several hundred
thousand strong army.
During
the early Ming period larger and more cannons were used in warfare. In the
early 16th century Portuguese breech-loading swivel guns and matchlock firearms
were incorporated into the Ming arsenal. In the 17th century Dutch culverin
were incorporated as well and became known as hongyipao. At the very end of the
Ming dynasty, around 1642, Chinese combined European cannon designs with
indigenous casting methods to create composite metal cannons that exemplified
the best attributes of both iron and bronze cannons.While firearms never
completely displaced the bow and arrow, by the end of the 16th century more firearms
than bows were being ordered for production by the government, and no crossbows
were mentioned at all. The percentage of gunners climbed and by the 1440s it reached 20 percent. In
1466 the ideal composition was 30 percent. During late Ming first styles of
fighting started to appear. These styles were very different from what we know
today, they were weapon oriented, simple, had no connection to religion, philosophy
and traditional medicine. Also these styles didn’t have names, nor were transmitted
in a way kung fu is taught today. Martial schools if even can be called that
way were reserved for future military officers. Teacher would have only few
students at the time. Style of fighting were determined by teacher’ s name as
it was said before styles didn’t have names nor fixed curriculum. This is also
period when first empty hand styles of fighting started to form but just like
in the case of weapon fighting styles they were far from modern kung fu. Also,
empty hand fighting was not used in the army, nor practiced by military.
Qing dynasty(1644-1911)
is the period when modern Kung fu as we know today appeared for the first time. This is
also the time when the highest number of people who practice martial arts before
20th century. In second half of 19th century during Qing dynasty and that
number was below 1% of general population. This also a time when after Taiping
rebellion and realization how cold weapons is completely useless, Kung Fu
undergone radical change and in few decades from purely weapon fighting systems
became empty hand fighting system with weapon practice preserved only as a
tradition. Before Qing dynasty number of people who practiced something that
could be called Kung fu was extremely low. During Ming dynasty we have first
traces of martial systems that vaguely resembles to modern Kung Fu , still this
ancient systems of empty hand fighting did not used any weapons , on the other
hand completely developed systems of weapon fighting reached their peak during
Ming dynasty period and from these systems modern Kung Fu evolved few hundred
years later. For older dynasties we simply have no evidence that anything that
even resembles kung fu existed. Of course some form of empty hand fighting did
existed , like everywhere in the world . Before Qing dynasty martial arts were
reserved only for soldiers
Before
19th century, although Imperial army had large number of fire arms, some
portion of cold weapons were still in use ,especially in Manchu part of the
army called banners. Green Standard army that made majority of Qing tropes were
poorly trained and poorly equipped. Manchus never trusted Han people so they
used Green Standing Army mostly for a police work , border guards ect. Green standing army simply became utterly
useless for any significant task. There are several reasons for this
1)
soldiers' pay did not rise with inflation, requiring most to seek outside
employment to support their families
2)
wide dispersion of posts prevented centralized training while the armies'
policing and civic responsibilities left little time for drilling
3)
during war forces were created by taking small numbers of soldiers from
numerous existing units rather than using existing units, leading to
"divisive influence, poor coordination, and operative inefficiency"
4)
vacancies in the armies' ranks were either left unfilled so officers could
pocket the missing soldiers' allowances or filled with personal proteges
5)
rampant gambling and opium addictions
6)
the practice of allowing soldiers to hire substitutes, often beggars, to train
and fight in their place 7) infrequent drilling
8)
lax discipline due to a lack of respect for inept officers often appointed due
to favoritism or nepotism.
As
we can see in this atmosphere there was no place for any serious training of
anything. Of course, we have to have in mind that these soldiers didn’t
practiced kung fu as we know it, first because it didn’t still exist and second
,majority of people were armed with rifles. If and when they trained, they
trained classical infantry skills like moving in large groups, using mainly
spears ,shields, sabres and rifles. The
only part of the army that took their training seriously were Manchus but they
were trained in their traditional skills like riding, archery and fencing. If
any of them practiced any form of kung fu, that was purely on individual level
. As we can see kung fu didn’t have any influence on any military campaign
during Ching dynasty period, nor it was practiced on large scale.
During
last hundred years of Ching dynasty rule some social groups started to practice
martial on regular bases. This became possible for two reasons, first kung fu
finally appeared in form that was similar to what we know today and with social
changes under the influence of the west. People who practiced martial arts were
bounty hunters, caravan escorts, street performers and mercenaries.
As
we can see, only people who trained full time were officer core and units of
professional soldiers like imperial guards and similar units. Having full time
training is expensive and that doesn’t include only tuition fees. Having large
number of people training full time would drain country’s resources very
quickly. Food, clothing, equipment, settlement, salaries for large number of
people training full time would be impossible task even for modern economies.
For large campaigns armies were mostly made of conscripted soldiers who were
trained certain period in basic infantry tactics. Even today many countries
still use same system while keeping the small core of professionals active full time. Most of the soldiers in
ancient Chinese armies were simple peasants who had no time, nor resources to
train any kind of fighting, their efforts were aimed at pure survival. Kung fu
didn’t even exist before Qing dynasty and certainly had no influence on any
military campaign or event in history of China besides “Boxer’s rebellion”
which lead to death large number of people
.
On the
other hand Kung fu did play significant role in history of China but not in the
way most people think. Kung fu had significant place in modern history of
China, especially during “Republican” period. After fall of Ching dynasty new
government used martial arts to boost national pride. Many government funded
schools opened all over China teaching various styles of Kung Fu. This period
was also a “golden age for Kung fu literature, thousands of books were printed
on various subjects concerning the art of fighting ,authors mostly presented
their forms and applications and many styles are today known only from these
books. There were also historical books, or at least they were considered as
such at the time. Also that was the time of great pulp fiction popularity. Many
heroes and “historical” characters were born on the pages of these cheap
editions. It is interesting how much these novels influenced common view on
history and development of martial arts in China. All “histories” of different
styles and their origin appeared in this period, and only histories but most of
the “old” ,”traditional” styles were either formed or got their final shape.
Republican period is the time when Kung Fu as we know it today was actually
came to existence. Government, under the slogan that healthy nation is a strong
nation, handsomely supported this course of Kung fu development in all its
aspects, especially “historical” part which held great significance to official
government and their efforts to homogenize different ethnic group and build a
strong feeling national pride and collectivism. Stories about Shaolin, whether
southern or northern were intentionally invented in order to give to something
to what all different people who practiced Kung Fu at the time could relate.
Few years later, story about Wudang was launched with same purpose. While there
are “histories” as much as there are Kung Fu styles, all these stories share
one base message, Kung Fu was invented by Han Chinese hero to fight Manchu
invaders. There are many beautiful stories, with quite high literary value but
vast majority of the styles share basically one story that differ only in few
details and majority of the styles share same “ancestors” or at least place
where those styles came to existence.
In
the first half of 20th century Kung Fu with all its aspects was
carefully designed for the needs of current socio-political situation few
decades later similar thing happened but this time to introduce Chinese culture
to the world. Even before Bruce Lee’s untimely death Kung Fu found its way to
the west but when young actor passed away a social and cultural phenomena known
as “kung fu craze” took over the planet. Suddenly everyone wanted to be like
Bruce Lee and Kung Fu schools were popping out like mushroom after rain. Main
source of information about everything related to Kung Fu were Hong Kong and in
much smaller portion Taiwanese action movies. Common view and believes were
based in these movies and simply things stayed that way till today. Kung Fu
suddenly became good business and extremely large numbers of “masters” appeared
offering everything western consumers were expecting to find. Kung Fu was
considered far superior than any other martial arts that reached or were
practiced on the west and offered something other arts didn’t have or had in
small proportion comparing
to Kung
fu , it offered philosophy (instant philosophy), eastern mysticism ( watered
down and changed so western consumers can easily understand it ) as in not so
rare cases esotery. Kung Fu evolved from purely fighting system to a form of
pseudo religion or at least a way of self-development and
self-realization.
During
cultural revolution Kung Fu in China was forbidden and many practitioners
simply killed. Last few decades, realizing how much influence Kung Fu may have
and is for decades part of popular culture, China put effort in rebuilding Kung
Fu and attracting enormous amount of foreigners who are interesting in learning
traditional Chinese martial arts. Chinese also realized the power of popular
media and they are using Kung Fu as vehicle to achieve certain political goals.
Large amounts of money are invested in film industry and today’s Chinese
cinematography is not behind Holywood production. Excellent historical
spectacles were in recent years along with modern action movies. All these
movies, just like Holywood spectacles portray China and Chinese as always righteous, peace loving, morally and
ethically above others, compassionate … but also fierce warriors with superior
skills and now days superior technology , usually fighting traditional historical
enemies like Japanese or modern criminals who are always westerners.
As
we can see Kung fu played and still plays important social, political and
economic role along with all the benefits that actual practice brings. This all
happened in 20th century and continued to the present day.
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