Iron Men in Taiwan: Late Ming Dynasty's "Iron Men Army" : 明郑- 铁人军
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Music: It Was You
Armorer: Cold Light Armor (寒光甲胄工作室)
"Some were armed with bows and arrows hanging down their backs; others had nothing save a shield on the left arm and a good sword in the right hand; while many wielded with both hands a formidable battle-sword fixed to a stick half the length of a man. Everyone was protected over the upper part of the body with a coat of iron scales, fitting below one another like the slates of a roof; the arms and legs being left bare..."
"...This afforded complete protection from rifle bullets and yet left ample freedom to move, as those coats only reached down to the knees and were very flexible at all the joints. The archers formed Koxinga's best troops, and much depended on them, for even at a distance they contrived to handle their weapons with so great skill that they very nearly eclipsed the riflemen."
— Frederick Coyett, Final Dutch Governor of Formosa (Taiwan)
They were the last ember of a dying empire- who then became the spark that ignited a new outlaw kingdom. When the Ming dynasty fell to the Manchu invaders, a loyalist Ming admiral took his clan's large armada and conquered Taiwan from it Dutch colonial garrison. The context was quite extraordinary, mid 17th century was the Dutch Golden Age and the apex of their global preeminence. By contrast it was also the death knell of once- great Ming in the Far East. It was in these uncertain times and these treacherous waters than an unyielding loyalist outlaw took Taiwan with a motely band of patriots and cutthroats with the dream of taking back his vanquished nation.
THE ZHENG 郑 CLAN- SEALORDS OF EAST CHINA SEA
The Zheng 郑 clan rose to prominence at the tail end of the Ming dynasty under the cunning guidance of Zheng Zilong, a Fujianese merchant, privateer, and then sealord of the East China Sea. Zheng Zilong was a highly shrewd businessman and diplomat, and was able to amass a large trading fleet under his sway and conduct business across the East China Sea.
The East China Sea in the 1610s- 1640s was highly chaotic, the Ming had previously engaged in multiple naval battles with the Portuguese around Hong Kong and thereafter maintained a fast and loose relationship with the Portuguese empire. More stable trade remained between the Ming and the Spanish via Manilla. The Dutch by this time made inroads with the isolationist Tokugawa Shogunate by positioning themselves as none- disruptive Protestants (compared to the expelled Catholics,) and were granted sole privileges. The Dutch had also began to establish a foothold in the southwest of Taiwan as a regional staging point.
European Arquebusier- 17th century. From "Ran: Lost Islands." The Dutch after the 80 Year's War and continental Europe after the devastating 30 Years War had made immense revolutions in firepower, fortifications, and massed artillery production with royal patronage. The Dutch colonial empire at this time spans multiple continents and was sprawling overseas territories.
In time, Zheng Zilong worked with the Dutch East India company- initially as translator, then was entrusted as one of their maritime enforcers- giving him valuable European military sailing and technology. Emboldened with these advantages, Zheng soon began to conducting raids against the Ming as a privateer at the head 400 junks and tens of thousands of soldiers of Chinese, Japanese, European, even African heritage.
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Zheng Zilong's own elite bodyguard corps was composed of former black slaves had who ran away from the Portuguese, equipped with muskets and prized for their marksmanship, they were known as "Black Boys." However by 1630s, after raising his fiery son Zheng Chenggong to become a formidable heir and defeated all of his rivals in the region Zheng made an unpredictable turn and pledged his loyalty and his entire fleet under Ming service. Despite their troubled past, the Ming then made him the Admiral of these coasts. The move, though unexpected is actually quite logical from a financial and pragmatic point of view. With his clan controlling all shipping in the South and East China Sea from Japan to Taiwan to Vietnam he has no need for troubles, and securing cooperation with the largest state in the region ensured that he would be free of trouble from them and able to exact a massive financial empire as the sealords of all of the sea lanes in the region.
By this time, Zheng Zilong had in possession of 800 junks and the backing of the Ming imperial government, with his western flank secured, Zheng Zilong turned on the Dutch East India Company and crushed them in a decisive naval battle- securing vast spoils in his plunder. Zhilong then made use of the proceeds and purchased large tracts of lands in Fujian, becoming the regions foremost landlords.
Unfortunately for Zheng Zilong and his plans for a leisurely future, everything changed by 1644 when the Manchus were let into the empire (after the anti- Ming rebels had defeated the Ming at the capital and forced its last emperor to commit suicide) the Manchus- after declaring a new dynasty called "Qing" in Beijing then swiftly stormed most of the imperial heartlands, and by 1645, drove most of the Ming- loyalists out of the Nanjing region as well.
Reenactor: 雨泽佚. Heavy Ming dynasty guards.
Ever true to his pragmatic nature, Zheng Zilong- seeing that the Manchus had overran nearly all of the interior hinterlands of the Ming empire, made secret arrangements with the Qing and- with most of the mouth of the Yangtze river and Fujian Coast still under the direct control of the Zheng clan, he ordered several subcommanders and brothers to defect to the Manchus and allow the Manchu army march into the region. However, his fiery son, Zheng Chenggong- who was raised in the traditional Confucian traditions, staunchly refused to follow his father's commands- instead, he continued to resist the Manchus. Seeing such inconsistency from their would-be new partners, the Manchus began to suspect Zheng Zilong of treachery, Zheng Zhilong was later arrested by the Qing, -with all of his loyal black bodyguards slain trying to protect their master, and Zheng Zilong was dragged back to Beijing and beheaded as a rebel. However Zilong's son continued the resistance and turned his eyes eastward from Fujian to the Dutch- held Taiwan.
Unlike his father who was a life long pragmatist, Zheng Chenggong chose to continue the resistance even despite the staggering odds. Though he was raised in Hirado under a Japanese mother and was raised in the martial samurai traditions ~ a point claimed by some 19th century Japanese publishers justifying Japan's historical associations with Taiwan as a pretext for the island's annexation~ Zheng Chenggong remained a stubborn Ming loyalist. Popularly, the younger Zheng was known as Koxinga 国姓爷- local rendering of the honorable title bestowed upon him Guo Xingye (lit. "Lord of the Imperial Last Name.")
The Zheng clan's thalassocrat domain around 1640s- 1660s. The Manchus had swiftly conquered most of the Ming interior, however the coastal regions regained staunchly defiant of the Qing invaders. During those years the remnants of the Ming imperial family escaped across southern China until they were captured. Because the Zheng clan possessed a formidable navy of over 800 junks, the Manchus possessed no immediate means nor talents to dislodge this threat. Eventually the stubborn Ming coastal holdouts would remain such a persistent threat that the Manchus began to incrementally strip away populace from the coastal regions and leaving large tracts of the coast barren, leading to derisive mocking observations that the Manchus "feared water." From the perspective of maintaining a formidable rear guard and staging point, Zheng Chenggong set his eyes on Taiwan.
This article will not cover his own lengthy military career, nor the decisive battle that took Taiwan- which were done in much beat by beat detail in Youtube videos such as SandRhoman History. Instead it will focus far more on the unit itself and its specificities.
SEALORD- LORD OF THE IMPERIAL LAST NAME
Ride or Die: Zheng Chenggong (alternatively "Koxinga") : the younger Zheng received formal Confucian education and rose to his position in the Ming court through the deeply Confucian Imperial Examination System. After his father's death pledged to continue to serve the Ming remnants. Popularly, the younger Zheng was known as Koxinga 国姓爷- local rendering of the honorable title bestowed upon him Guo Xingye (lit. "Lord of the Imperial Last Name.")
Music: Black Wind King's Pride
ZHENG CHENGGONG'S "IRON MEN"
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铁人 "Iron Men" were the vanguards of the Zheng family army- a fact attested by both Zheng and Dutch sources. During the chaotic rise of the Zheng clan they were deployed extensively against both the Manchu Qing forces and also the Dutch in Taiwan. In battle they wore very heavy bullet- proof armors made of distinctive square lamellar pieces (reverse brigandine) that looked like slates of roofs in addition, they also wore ferocious iron masks with only the eyes, ears, mouth and nose exposed, painted in colorful colors. Despite this heavy configuration, they were still able to retain great agility in battle and move with great dexterity, able to wield double bladed Pudao and horse choppers- alternatively blow and arrows with great ease. They fight in mixed formations, and are covered by other Iron Men wielding rattan shields and pikes.
"In February, the bravest men from each governor were selected as the personal soldiers, and a martial arts pavilion was built in Xiamen Port for training. Each man had to lift a stone weighing 500 jin 觔 (23 kg or 50 pounds), and 5,000 men were paraded around the training ground. The model was given to the engineering officer Feng Chengshi, who supervised the production of thick iron helmets, iron armor, arms, skirts, iron shoes, etc., which could not be penetrated by arrows. Iron masks were also made, with only the eyes, ears, mouth and nose exposed, painted in colorful colors like ghosts, and holding horse-slashing swords in their hands. Each man was assisted by two soldiers, each holding a weapon, specializing in chopping the horses' feet. They would advance and never retreat in battle, and were called iron men."
— Taiwan Waiji 台湾外记 "Taiwan Foreign Records" Vol. 4.
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Diversely Armed (Above) Qing dynasty rattan shield. (Below) Diverse array of arms Iron Men would have used- including rattan shields on the image left. Iron Men- similar to earlier centuries' combined arms formations operated in companies wielding a variety of weapons and shields. Aside from those wielding 2 handed choppers and bows, other Iron Men protected their advances and exposed flanks with pikes and rattan shields. As such even isolated formations under extreme pressure- including Manchu cavalry charges and Dutch bombardments- can stabilize their own situation and if needed, retreat in good order. Because they were both archers and skilled heavy melee troops supplemented with pike wielding allies their blocks were well equipped to deal with a wide host of enemies.
It should be noted that in both Zheng and Dutch sources the armor's ability to be arrow proof (Zheng) and impervious to rifle (arquebus) bullets- (attested by Dutch) were attested, with the Zheng source to further provide details on their iron masks. Originally numbered some 3000 men, their strength eventually increased to 10,000. Their prowess were well attested, and were able to contend on the field against even heavy Manchu cavalry and withdraw in good order. Their versatile arms allowed these units to act as both archers as well as polearm troops and stubbornly hold out on their own.
ENEMIES
MANCHU QING
The strides made by the Manchus were nothing short of astonishing- having taken Beijing peacefully, the Manchu (by now officially Qing dynasty) swiftly conquered much of what once was the interior heartland of Ming. Having ruthlessly crushed stubborn resistance in Yunnan and Anhui- the Qing did not held back in their attempt to dislodge the Zheng from the Zhejiang and Fujian coast. At this time, the Qing army had well integrated musketry into its Banner armies and after initial persistent setbacks against Ming (western styled) artillery garrisons, by the middle of the 17th century had also developed their own reverse engineered canons.
Interior of a Qing dynasty brigandine armor displaying the square iron plates that are sewn into the interior. Where as the Iron Men wore reversed brigandine with the square scales on the outside the Qing had a more conventional design. The heavies of early Qing harnesses were extremely well protected, and their heavy cavalry excelled both as archers and lancers and were very difficult to contend with on the battlefield.
In all, at this time the Qing army was well- led, well-organized, and soon would be bolstered with the vast resources of the interior of the empire. It's heavy cavalry were ferocious, and with the augmentation of the newly conquered populace (Green Standard Army) would assuredly steamroll the coastal holdouts underneath. However, even against these uneven odds in numbers and resources, the Iron Men and the Zheng army proved they were capable soldiers- either as defenders or in thick melee fighting against Manchu cavalry on the field.
IRON MEN ARMY VS QING
When the Qing attempted to capture Xiamen Island (Amoy Island) in 1660, the Iron Men Army performed with distinction. During the assault the Qing attempted to land and conduct beach landing and were repelled back several times. Then, the Iron Men Army cooperated with Koxinga's navy on the beach and defeated the Qing. A large number of Manchu soldiers were killed, not the largely ethnic Han Green Standard Army but of the Manchu core, thus the losses for the original Manchu war machine was high.
Against the Qing the strict discipline of the Iron Men Army made it very unyielding on the battlefield, able to withstand the impact of cavalry in the open, and when needed, was required to deploy smoke screens to cover retreats in good order. Often, Iron Mens legs and feet may not be armored, but as an example of their strict discipline and morale, records accounted that even if they were shot in the foot by the enemy, they would break off the arrow shaft and continue to fight.
In time, the number of the Iron Men Army expanded from 5,000 to 10,000 at their peak- becoming a feared and well trusted core of Koxinga's army. However, despite their high performance as an elite unit, often limitations in strategic coordination from the higher ranks of Zheng leadership lead to disaster for them. Before the previously cited Battle of Xiamen Island in 1660, one year earlier the Zheng army met disaster when the attempted to storm and capture Nanjing. The plan was extremely ambitious and Koxinga gambled heavily for its capture in one fell swoop.
Near- contemporary Korean flail- armed cavalry
However uneven coordination, lack of support, and inability to seize critical moment in battle resulted in costly failure. Thereafter the Zheng lost a realistic change to rebuilding the Ming from a southern capital. What's more the Iron Men suffered very heavy casualties- according to source primarily to flail armed (2 handed flail) armed cavalry from the Green Standard Army. It was with this context in mind- the inability to resurrect the Ming from a secure southern Chinese capital- that prompted Koxinga to ponder about relocating his base to Taiwan.
THE DUTCH GOLDEN AGE
The Art of Firepower: the mid 17th century was still the height of the Dutch Golden Age and the apex of their global preeminence. Militarily it was half a century after Maurice of Orange had dramatically revolutionized warfare on land, and in matters of naval prowess, well after the Dutch had made themselves one of the foremost maritime empires. By contrast, the 1660s was nearly 20 years after the Ming had collapsed and Beijing fell to the Manchu conquerors.
Artwork from "Ran: Lost Island"
The Dutch were the heralds of military innovation in the early 17th century, with its stadholder Maurice of Orange among the first to successfully maximize fire power by drilling his arquebusiers to counter march and maximize volley firepower against approaching enemies. His innovations, augmented by later admirers such as Gustavus Adolphus would resoundingly secure turning the largely bulky pike and shot squares that dominated European warfare in previous centuries into one of long firing lines of fire- belching musketeers.
Additionally, with the later invention of socket bayonets- the musket with bayonet in the 18th century would completely make pike formations redundant, turning each line of musketeer both gunner and spearmen. Though the latter goes beyond the scope of our coverage, it is a critical piece of context to illustrate the advances the Dutch had made by this time in the art of firepower.
Above: (Late) Ming musketeers from late Ming "The Illustrated Guide of Arms." The Chinese were no strangers to either gunpowder or volley fire, with both already understood by the late Tang dynasty in the 1st millennium, the Ming early on even invented primitive handguns such as the 3 eyed gun which is a highly effective short range weapon not unlike a blunderbuss or shotgun. The cavalrymen of the Ming northern garrisons well liked the weapon and they are readily seen in manuals or artworks from the mid Ming period. However, because the vast majority of Ming warfare revolved around countering threats from the steppes who did not possess many walled cities, for the majority of the dynasty the trajectory of Ming firepower were focused on rate of fire- even inaccurate indirect fire over a large area- such as the usage of the nest of bees rockets and rocket pods. By the late 16th century and the early 1600s, this trend would change.
(Late) Ming arquebusier. The Ming was initially introduced to arquebus around the time Japan received them- with the Tanegashima examples exemplified by Portuguese styled downward curved stocks. However the dynasty did not adopt them in large degrees until after fighting against the Japanese invasion of Korea launched by Hideyoshi. The Japanese army by the Imjin War had adopted massed arquebus fire and ashigaru and samurais wielding firearms composed of 1/4 of Hideyoshi's invasion force. The type of arquebuses that Ming favored the most were Ottoman and especially Vietnamese ones, which they deemed to be even better than "Frankish" (European) and Japanese variants. Unfortunately for the Ming, despite able to reach a level of parity with its regional neighbors, the aforementioned loss of imperial homeland stymied this development. Even in such matters, the Zheng clan often found their own trusted soldiers to supplement his gap. Like his father Zheng Zilong- the younger Zheng came against the Dutch with his own 2 companies of "Black Boys"- black former Dutch slaves who had been trained with the use of musketry and rifles.
DEPICTION OF THE IRON MEN & THEIR CONTEXT IN THE WAR
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A print from 'Reise nach Java, Formosa, Vorder-Indien und Ceylon' by Albrecht Herport, an artist, soldier of the Dutch East India Company or the VOC, and witness of the battle between Koxinga and the Dutch defenders.
Interior of a brigandine armor: Armorer: Cold Light Armor (寒光甲胄工作室)
Koxinga himself was likely inspired by the use of such heavy armors by the Manchus. Although the tendency to still rely on heavy armor may be inspired by the Japanese, and also the Europeans. Brigandine armors were first widely adopted in China during the Mongol- led Yuan dynasty- around the same time that due to Mongol conquests such armors made into the west. However unlike their cousins which consisted of a cover over the iron scales, reverse brigandines had the square iron plates that's usually sewn within the armor exposed to the outside. Similar armors could also be seen in other East European countries.
(BELOW) Armor Made by: 函人堂 Studio
Ming northern frontier cavalry man with hat trimmed with mufflers in reverse brigandine armor.
When his commanders protested that raw men would be unaccustomed to fight in such heavy gears it was mandated they would train with heavy sand bags tied to their feet at all times. Only the most athletic and promising soldiers were selected to ranks of the "Iron Men." Their training was such that they were forced to perform their drills in armor and with heavy sandbags tied to their legs.
The Iron Men depicted in Age of Empire III as "Iron Troop" - the depiction is largely faithful with the soldier's armors exhibiting external square scales reminiscent of roof slates (albeit missing a face mask) and with 2 handed poled choppers plus bow and arrow. Zheng's own records
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Alternative depiction of the Iron Men: this time depicted more in the silhouette of a contemporary European cuirassier including with ribboned sash and prominent plumage. Though the face is well covered- coincidentally corresponding to Zheng records of such troops.
In war they were both disciplined and suicidally brave, and in battle were known to obediently butcher as ordered, and if ordered on suicidal attacks, charge without hesitation nor complaints. The Dutch defenders recorded these Iron Men were extremely skilled with arrow fire in such a way that it compensated for their lack of firearms. Archery skill according to Zheng sources were indeed highly prized from these men.
FACE MASKS CONSTRUCTION
Because no extant suits of Iron Men armor had been recovered, there still exists extensive debates as to the styling and appearance of Iron Men face masks. Examples included designs that are largely similar to Japanese menpō- to other variations. Though it should be noted, iron face masks had existed in Chinese warfare long before this period, from references stretching from Warring States all the way to the Ming.
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In fact just a few decades before this era, the late Ming《武备要略》Wubei Yaolue- "Outline of Military Equipment" reported great admiration for a style of plate armor with face mask called the "Full Iron Armor" which looked quite similar to samurais and ^ above proposals.
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Song dynasty bronze visor unearthed in Liaocheng, Shandong.
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Liao/ Song dynasty iron mask.
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VARIATION 1 AND VARIATION 2
Heavy Jin Dynasty iron visor. Nose slits distinguish this from burial masks as seen from the near contemporary Liao dynasty funerary masks which also did not have eye slits.
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Jin dynasty mask visors- contemporary of the Iron Pagoda cavalry.
Bi fu 臂縛 lit. "Arm Binding"- frequently worn by Ming cavalrymen made up of segmented armored bands that coincidentally resembles Roman manica armguards.
Aside from being suicidally brave- the Iron Men were well trained in a variety of arms and could be modularly equipped. When the situation required they could fill up a variety of roles. Only their hands are left exposed and some times their feet to give them purchase during scaling attacks.
AFTER KOXINGA'S VICTORY
Ming guardsman in hypothetical mask.
(Below) altar of Koxinga- Zheng Chenggong in Taiwan
Haven expelled the Dutch from Taiwan the Zheng clan established the state of Dongning 东宁国 (or Kingdom of Tunging) on the island- with the Zheng rulers raised to Prince of Yanpin. Taiwan was made the staging point the aim of launching further invasions into the mainland to restore Ming rule. Koxinga was mulling over invading the Spanish Philippines over the massacre of Chinese Filipinos by the authorities there when he suddenly died at the age of 37, only months later after he captured the island, likely due to Malaria. After his death, his son Zheng Jing would take up the mantle and preside over the great Zheng fleet and keep out the sea wolves at bay.
At one point the Dutch allied with the Qing to crush the Zheng with Zheng Jing's fleet violent wrecking revenge upon the Dutch. The Zheng by this time also largely abandoned any pretense of recovering the rest of Qing China. With the Qing ascendant under the energetic and competent Kangxi Emperor who successfully stripped away much of the Zheng holdings on Fujian's coast the Zheng's prospects were limited. After a brief coup, Zheng Jing's son Zheng Keshuang sued for peace with the Qing and was pardoned and ennobled by the Qing. Taiwan then became part of the Qing dynasty for the next 2 centuries until the Japanese annexation in 1895.
Art by Craig Mullins for Age of Empires 3, the Asian Dynasties
Qing dynasty army.
Qing dynasty map of a fortified settlement in Taiwan, 1807
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