Dark Age Chinese Juggernauts: Five Fang Ships of Sui Dynasty: 巨舰: 隋五牙战舰

Original Character Art by: Xianglong Meng

Imagine that you were one of the drowsy guards posted along a key gorge of the Yangtze river. On your two sides there were nothing but mammoth mountainsides- beneath you, the murderous torrents of the Yangtze. Then suddenly, from beyond the gorge's vanishing point, issued forth a massive floating juggernaut at the heads of hundreds of hostile ships.

Music: Fury, Hammer, and Tongs

The juggernaut was not a phantom illusion but a floating castle with 5 floors, upon each tier of its crenelated wooden walls were bristled with hundreds of armed crossbowmen and archers. On each of its side were two massive free falling hammer- built as tall as ship masts-, ready at an instant to crash upon unfortunate ships that got too close to its structure. 

These were the mighty Wuya 五牙 "Five Fang Ships" of Emperor Wen of Sui's mighty navy, and they would be the vanguard of some hundreds of invading ships that would sail south into the Yangtze- then blaze a warpath along the winding river from its old mountainous heights all the way eastward into the East China Sea. This is a brief excerpt regarding Sui's super weapon, the "Five Fang Ships" which served as the vanguard and battering ram of the Sui fleet.

HISTORICAL BACKDROP

The backdrop of these ships' construction existed during one of the most chaotic periods in Chinese history in what was the last days of the Northern and Southern Dynasties. For nearly 300 years after the fall of the Han dynasty- China experienced a protracted period of political division and high scale warfare. The catastrophic wars of the Three Kingdoms era was quickly followed by the brief unification then rapid implosion of the Jin dynasty- after which northern China became balkanized into a nightmarish patchwork of some 16 non- Han warring kingdoms. After the Xianbei- led Northern Wei dynasty reunited the north, and the South fell under the rule of the Liu Song dynasty (which usurped the Jin,) the era of Northern and Southern dynasties began. 

The period in which the Five Fang Ships were constructed. In the final wars between the ambitious Sui dynasty (Yellow)- which had united all of the north under its sway, and much of the west, and Chen (Orange)- which stubbornly held on to the south and kept Sui at bay using the Yangtze as an impregnable defense. With the north and west secured, Sui amassed several armies and navies that were coordinated to simultaneously break into Chen from several directions. 

YANGTZE: THE ETERNAL MOAT

During this nearly 2 century of conflicts- the steppe- led northern kingdom frequently attempted to conquer the entrenched southern kingdom beyond the Yangtze to no avail. Because of the South's mastery of these highly defensible rivers and their possession of a powerful veteran navy, the steppe- lords of the north had little chance of subduing the south under its sway. Over centuries, the Yangtze became a de facto boarder that long separated the North and the South.

ASCENSION OF SUI- AND UNIFICATION OF THE NORTH

Wen of Sui: Though serious, severe, and a disciplinarian at heart, Emperor Wen was also a workaholic and a dedicated life-long reformer. He implemented many reforms that would see China prosper and be well- governed for centuries in the ensuing Tang dynasty. 

In time, the great Northern Wei- which held all of the north, would break up into 2 rival kingdoms, and both would compete against the south- creating a 3 part division of China. However, in one of these northern kingdoms: Northern Zhou, a powerful father- in law of the Emperor rose to power as the kingdom's Chancellor then usurped the throne. He (the future Emperor Wen) would crown himself as the Emperor of a new dynasty- the Sui, then embark on a rapid series of conquests that made Sui the undisputed master of all of the north, West, and the northern bank of the Yangtze river. 

A Highly Capable and Highly Dangerous Man: Yang Su (楊素 died August 31, 606), courtesy name Chudao (處道), formally Duke Jingwu of Chu (楚景武公), was a powerful general of the Sui dynasty whose authority eventually became nearly as supreme as the emperor Wen's. A cunning fighting general who had long served Northern Zhou for decades with a stellar record against Chen in riverine warfare, and was credited with wrestling much of the Yangtze and Huai river banks from Chen. Upon the ascension of Emperor Wen was made into a key general in the Sui regime. Yang was a man who survived by his flawless records.

Immediately after ascending to the throne, Emperor Wen began a massive war with the powerful Gokturk Khaganate in the north. In an attempt to intervene and disrupt the Gokturk civil war, Wen raised some 400,000 soldiers in the war in China's north. However, he still secretly had ambitions to conquer the south in a lightning campaign. To conceal his true motives- he sent many regular envoys to the kingdom of Chen in the south to placate them into complacency. Still- in order to pierce through to the south, Sui eventually had to contend with Chen's massive navy. In response, Emperor Wen secretly commissioned the building of a massive navy of thousands of boats, and appointed one of his most dangerous generals: Yang Su, the Duke Jingwu of Chu to build an invincible vanguard that would pierce home into Chen.

In 585, Emperor Wen appointed Yang Su the commandant at Xin Province (modern eastern Chongqing in Sichuan- the highwater of the Yangtze River) to prepare an attack against Chen down the Yangtze. Xin Province- part of the western "Bashu" region was only recently conquered by Sui. While at Xin Province, Yang Su supervised the construction of previously unseen mammoth war ships in anticipation of the coming invasion. 

AN UNSTOPPABLE BATTERING RAM

Though Yang Su was perhaps one of the best generals picked for this task- in respect to his experience and past victories against Chen in riverine warfare, Yang's assignment was still a daunting one. Even with internal corruption and weak leadership, Chen is still situated along very defensible terrain, and maintained an extremely powerful navy along a nearly impregnable river- One that is surrounded by mountains and mountain fortresses at every segment. One that- for centuries before prevented great northern dynasties from breaching into the south, and in the future would be pains for the Jurchen and Mongols for centuries. One that- simply put, historically was more rife with failures than successes. Not to mention that even hard pressed, Chen was still able to muster 200,000 soldiers to defend itself.

Music: Silent Ambush

WUYA 五牙- FIVE FANG JUGGERNAUTS 

Wuya Five Fang Ships were super weapons in the age of cold steel warfare. They were built in Baidicheng- or Baidi City at modern Fengjie County in Sichuan on the northern bank of the Yangtze River which guards the gate of the Three Gorges. During the Sui era, it was a large inland wharf- where great ships could be built, then floated downstream into the massive Yangtze. There were several docks responsible for the construction of riverine ships. The Five Fang Ships were built in these shipyards.

To accomplish a break out, Yang Su turned to dimensions for his assault ships. Leading his assaults, these specially designed Wuya 五牙 or "Five Fang Ships" were floating juggernauts of their day. The reason they were called "Five Fang" was because they had five floors- each with crenelated walls in an ascending order. The battle commander likely sat and directed the battle from the tallest pavilion on the highest floor. The wooden walls were not only arranged so that they functioned as castle walls, but stumps were also added so that on the upper tier of the crenellation, archers and crossbowmen could climb up and fire from the higher zigzag of the walls. Perhaps fittingly, they were armed to the teeth in all directions. 

According to the historic record in the "Book of Sui" which covered the life of Yang Su, the Five Fang Ships dimensions were listed as thus. "While at Xin Province, Yang Su build great ships 舰 (especially great ships) called 五牙 'Five Fang Ships," they rose for 5 stories, were several hundreds of chi 尺 (Chinese feet) in height,  they had 6 great cypress booms on the left and the right which was topped with a great stone cap and could be instantly dropped down upon an enemy ship, each boom was 50 chi in height. Each floor was able to accommodate hundreds of soldiers, the whole ship can accommodate 800 crew and soldiers, banners are flown over it." 

At least 2 type of other ships that worked closely with the Five Fang Ships were named, one is Huang Long 黄龙, lit. "Yellow Dragon" which was noted because it carried 200 hundred soldiers, the other Ping Cheng 平乘, lit. "Multiply Peace." The last was Ze Meng 舴艋, though its importance was not elaborated. Another record of the time mentioned that during Yang Su's invasion into Chen, he sailed atop a Ping Cheng 平乘 as his flagship.

SHIP BATTERING- BOOMS

The battleship is equipped with 6 cypress poles, each some 16.7 meters high and could be dropped on on the enemy ships. These so- called "Striking Rods" were shaped like tall masts with a stone boulder serving as a cap. They would be manipulated by a winch set under the deck. In battle, the boulder would be lifted up to the top with a roller wheel, then- upon a striking time, would be released and let fall to smash an enemy ship to pieces. 

Several modern interpretation of the Five Fang Ship's "Striking Rods," with the 3rd option (highlighted) being the most probable as it both offered the most predictable direction of striking as well as made so that the striking action could be repeated easily with the use of winches and rollers. 

MODERN SPECS

According to research by ship historians, as noted in "Chinese Shipbuilding History", Hubei Education Press, 1st edition, January 2000- the Sui Five Fang Ship was 54.6 meters long, 50 meters long at the water line, 15 meters wide, and 2.2 meters draught. 

The Five Fang Ship had a 5-story structure and is more than 30 meters high. Soldiers were placed on the bottom 4 levels, and the top level was the observation and command platform. There were 40 long oars (20 per side) on both sides, which can be used for paddle propulsion. The stern was equipped with 2 rocking sculls for multiple scullers to shake together to control the direction of travel. There were crenelated on the battleship deck, which can hide half of the body. There were crenels on the wall for archery. The ship was equipped with horizontal bulkheads, and longitudinal beams were arranged on the horizontal bulkheads, and wooden boards were laid on the horizontal bulkheads. 

The cabin and combat platform were set above the planks, and heavy earth and rocks were filled under the planks to keep the visually very top heavy ship stable. The battleship is equipped with 6 cypress poles, each some 16.7 meters high and could be dropped on on the enemy ships. These so- called "Striking Rods" were shaped like tall masts with a stone boulder serving as a cap. They would be manipulated by a winch set under the deck. In battle, the boulder would be lifted up to the top with a roller wheel, then- upon a striking time, would be released and let fall to smash an enemy ship to pieces. This capped striking rod could be used repeatedly, and any enemy ship that gets within its striking distance could be smashed to pieces quickly. 

HISTORICAL PRECEDENCE FOR SUCH BOOMS

The interpretation of the tall booms being used this way does have historical precedence in Chinese history. According to the extensive Northern Song dynasty Wǔ jīng zǒng yào 武经总要 "Complete Essentials for the Military Classics" 's section on naval warfare. There was an explicit reference to the Wuya Five Fang Ship where they mentioned pretty much the exact descriptions as related by the "Book of Sui"- however, after that paragraph, the book proceeded to elaborate upon the usage of such striking rods. stating that.  

"每迎战，敌船若逼，则发拍竿，当者船舫皆碎。"

In every battle, if the enemy ship gets too close, it (Five Fang) will release the rods, and the (offending) boat will be shattered.

MOMENT OF TRUTH, SUI'S LIGHTNING WAR INTO CHEN

Music: Silent Ambush

When Sui annexed its weak southern vassal of Liang in 587- which laid on the northern bank of the Yangtze, all the components were in place for a massive simultaneous invasion of Chen. By 588, Sui amassed some 518,000 soldiers for the massive invasion of Chen.

In the winter 588, Emperor Wen launched the well coordinated attack, commissioning his sons Yang Guang and Yang Jun (East- toward Nanjiang,) along with Yang Su (West- down the Yangtze,) to command the three main prongs of the attack, the Crown Prince Yang Guang would as overall command of the operations. In the West, Yang Su's responsibility consisted of sailing down the Yangtze and destroy all obstacles along his way. 

Besides employing Xianbei and other Chinese ethnic groups for the fight against Chen, Emperor Wen also employed the service of people from southeastern Sichuan, which Sui had recently conquered. For this massive undertaking, Yang Su specifically commissioned 1000 tribesmen from the recently subjugated Bashu 巴蜀 region. These native riverine tribesmen were accustomed to Yangtze's water and were good at navigating boats,

Sui mobilizes over 500,000 soldiers and marines for its massive invasion of the south. They would suddenly attack from 8 concentrated spearheads to confuse and paralyze the enemy. A series of land battles near the Chen capital of Nanjiang will keep the Chen forces tied up in the east, while in the west, Yang Su and his massive navy will sail down the Yangtze highwaters and smash all the Chen defenders in his way like an avalanche.

For the Sui- in order to avid the mistake of the past northern dynasties and be bogged down in protracted fighting along the river which would great benefit the naval- savvy Chen defenders, Sui instead prepared for an overwhelming and well coordinated invasion- simultaneously from eight points- each with set objectives to breach deep into Chen. 

EASTERN THEATER: THE PRINCE'S WAR

East: Nanjing Campaign. Hailstorm around the Chen capital. In the east, a dizzying swarm of Sui land armies and naval forces would attack the Chen capital at Nanjing (which laid right on the southern bank of the Yangtze river) from several directions. This sudden onslaught against the Chen seat of power and its royal court would predictably immediately force Chen to mobilize its best troops to protect its capital, tying them to only focus on the theater around the capital.

WESTERN THEATER: THE YANGTZE GAUNTLET

West: Running the Gauntlet along the Yangtze. All the while: in the west Yang Su (Black Circle on Map) would lead a massive riverine armada with transported land troops and crash down from the West like an unstoppable avalanche. In these tight, narrow channels, his massive navy- with these massive floating fortresses would forcibly breach through all the entrenched Chen checkpoints along the way like a hot knife through butter.

In the first month of 589, Yang Su led his massive newly constructed navy and sailed down from the Three Gorges, right in his path was the great Chen navy commanded by general Qi Xin who commanded more than one hundred great warships and thousands of fighting river marines. Along key choke points in the Yangtze gorge, Qi also deployed tens of thousands of soldiers who were stationed at Langwei on the two shores of Yangtze. It was here- if you recall, that we first introduced our story, and where suddenly hundreds of Sui ships, including the massive Five Fang Ships appeared from the gorges.

Music: Fury, Hammer, and Tongs

BATTLE OF LANGWEI GATE 

The ensuing battle became an ambitious matter, in order to dislodge the well defended Chen forces, Yang Su found a good patch of beachhead and unloaded his land forces on the 2 banks of the Yangtze. Then Yang Su attacked the south bank with his foot soldiers and the north bank with his heavily armoured cavalry. Sui boasted some of the best cavalries in the Chinese realm at this point- including the fearsome Yingyang- or "Soaring Hawk" Regiments. The Chen were overmatched on both shores and the Sui captured many defeated Chen soldiers. Now it's up to the ships to do their duty.

Yang Su attached great importance to this battle and personally led thousands of Huanglong warships and attacked the Qi navy directly. Qi Xin was defeated and escaped the battle, with nearly all of his men  taken prisoners.

BATTLE OF THE 3 CHAINS

Late in 589, Yang Su's flotilla again engaged significant Chen defenses. At a key pass on the Yangtze Yang's forces ran into Chen general Lu Zhongsu's army. In order to resist Yang Su's army, Lu ordered his soldiers to drill through the rock walls on both sides of the Yangtze and install three huge iron chains that spanned the whole width of the river. The chains straddled the river, and it was difficult for any warship to break through. Unfortunately, although Lu's plan worked flawlessly against Yang Su's navy, Yang Su discovered the limitations in the Chen defense. He ordered another Sui general, Liu Ren'en, to land in the middle of the night and lead his armored cavalry to advance along the north bank towards Jiangling, then they would attack Lu Zhongsu in a night attack. 

They destroyed the Chen camp at Baisha (now Yichang, Hubei) then destroyed the fastenings for each of the 3 great chains. Lu Zhongsu's army quickly collapsed and routed, with Lu himself fleeing in panic, and the gate of chains was broken. However, general Lu was not done yet. In a few weeks he would return, this time, at the head of a massive Chen fleet. This time it would be personal, and the 3rd round of Yang Su's campaign would be the fiercest yet. And it was also here that the Five Fang Ships shined.

Music: Wave Walker

THE BATTLE OF THE FLOATING FORTRESSES 

When Yang Su's Sui navy arrived in Yanzhou (now west of Jiangling, Hubei), there the two massive navies of Sui and Chen launched a decisive battle. In the previous several battles, the Wuya Five Fang Ships did not play any substantial role. However In this battle, the Wuya ships were at the forefront of the heavy engagements. Knowing this would be a key naval engagement, Yang Su deployed 4 Wuya ships that would lead the assault. 

Upon each of the 4 ships, aside from its huge contingents of archers- Yang Su deployed his 1,000 Bashu 巴蜀 tribesmen as the ship's marines. They would fight as boarding parties if needed, and they would also operate some of the hammer booms against enemy ships that got too close. 

Traction Trebuchets: According to military historian and sinologist Joseph Needham, during this period, traction trebuchets were heavily used by the Chinese navies, both in the wars between Northern Zhou against Chen, and the Sui- Chen wars. In a record from 573, ship mounted trebuchets were used against cities beside the river. Against enemy ships, the marines would have used solid projectiles or oily resin and tar.

At the beginning of the decisive battle, the four Wuya ships raced out- bristling with archers and marines and barreled toward Lu's naval formation as a vanguard. The Wuya battleship were tall fortresses, and far dwarfed the biggest of the Chen ships. They both weathered through the Chen volleys but also approached, firing down volleys of their own against their enemy's exposed decks from a high vantage. When the desperate enemy ships tried to close in and climb the Wuya ships, the boom hammers were released and smashed the enemy ships to pieces. 

In only a short matter of time, the Wuya ships easily sank more than ten enemy warships with their boom hammers and captured more than 2,000 surrendered enemy sailors. In this battle, the Sui Army was invincible, and none of the Wuya ship was even damaged. It was a lopsided overwhelming victory using exactly what the Wuya ships were intentionally built for. The Chen navy was greatly discouraged and took flight and Yang Su maintained a relentless pursuit. However, by this time, Yang received news from the east that the Chen capital of Nanjing had been taken, and the whole Chen royal court was captured. The whole campaign had only lasted little more than 3 months, with the naval Western theater around only 2 months. 

As far as examples of a northern Chinese polity attempting to breaching into and annex a southern one- it was a marvelous lightning campaign that achieved much and without heavy casualties despite having pitted some 500,000 soldiers against the other's 200,000. Finally, after 400 years since the collapse of the Han dynasty, China was fully reunited again. 

CHEN ANNEXED 

The modern American leadership frequently expound the brand of "Shock and Awe"- in selling potentially risky wars. But such a phrase is perhaps the most apt description of the Sui- Chen war. 

The modern American leadership frequently expound the brand of "Shock and Awe"- in selling potentially risky wars. But such a phrase is perhaps the most apt description of the Sui- Chen war. Like Sun Tzu's truism of "let your plans be dark and impenetrable as night and when you move fall like a thunderbolt" the Sui made long logistical preparations for this war and trained meticulously for it. It's generals were given deep objectives and contingencies to follow, and all of them were relied to work simultaneously in concert as if in clockwork. As such, the awed and paralyzed Chen was immediately overwhelmed by the almost modern level of enemy coordination- to such a degree that the deeply corrupt court didn't even inform the Chen ruler of the invasion. All thing considered, it was a decisively well executed campaign. 

Music: Reunion

CHINA FINALLY REUNITED AFTER 400 WARS OF FRAGMENTATION

A war of aesthetics, a side by side comparison of a contemporary northern warrior in armor beside a southern soldier. One could easily distinguish the northern warrior by his round and curvilinear design, by his round pauldrons and his curved helmet- All steppe (and thus foriegn) elements that in the succeeding centuries would influence the armor of the Sui dynasty, and after that- of the Tang dynasty to be implemented across all of China until it became a new default Chinese standard. Conversely, for those familiar with Han dynasty armor, the armor of the Southern soldier on the right still bears a strong resemblance to the soldiers of the preceding Han and Jin dynasties. 

The war ended in little more than 3 months with the Chen court taken captive and Emperor Wen- though a staunch authoritarian at heart, treating both the Chen Emperor and much of his court with kindness. The appearance and mannerisms of the southern nobility and its ways were so strange to the northern court that it immediately sparked a cultural fascination of everything southern in the north. After nearly 400 years of political division, finally there was only one China headed by one throne. Perhaps it is telling that although the customs, even spoken language of both the Emperor of the north and the Emperor of the South were beyond recognition and utterly unintelligible, they were still able to fluently "converse" with each other in their writings. 

Though a severe man and an authoritarian at heart- for either personal but more likely political reasons Emperor Wen treated the deposed Chen emperor and his court kindly- and also instructed his generals and ministers to do so. Evidently setting a personal precedence that now is the time for reconciliation between two Chinese peoples. Both northerners and southerners were one. 

EPILOGUE

Emperor Wen would reign for over 2 decades and would be considered one of the better Chinese Emperors- he was a diligent and decisive emperor. Though forceful, was nonetheless reasonable and ever hard working. Unfortunately his reign suddenly came to an end in the summer of 604 when he suddenly passed away. Many historians considered Wen's death to be suspect and believed that his Crown Prince Yang Guang (if you recall, who led the Eastern campaign in the Sui- Chen wars) and Yang Su (yes, our Yang Su) had Wen assassinated.

 

Prince Yang Guang would ascend the throne as the future Emperor Yang- one of the worst Emperors in Chinese history, and he would promote Yang Su for his role in usurping the throne. He would die 2 years later, when his capable sons rebelled against Emperor Yang in 613, the Emperor had all of the late Yang Su's sons killed. However- when the Sui dynasty eventually collapsed, one of Yang Su's daughters would be married to the future Taizong Emperor of Tang as his concubines. 

FATE OF THE FIVE FANG SHIPS

During the ambitious reign of Emperor Yang of Sui- the Emperor used the Five Fang Ships as transport and helped to construct the massive Grand Canals with labors transported by the Wuya ships. A life- long lover of boats, Emperor Yang's debauched reign was noted in his wasteful bankrupting of the empire's treasury on building many palaces. Yang constructed many pleasure ships for his many tours of China's water ways- and pleasure palace ships with elaborately carved dragon heads. 

It is believed by some historians within China that the Five Fang Ships were deployed on Emperor Yang's 3 disastrous campaigns against the Korean kingdom of Goguryeo, where they were sent from the Yangtze to the Liaodong Penninsula in assisting with the Sui landing forces. 

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