1642 Yellow River flood: Difference between revisions
No edit summary |
Chomik1129 (talk | contribs) →References: default sort Tags: Mobile edit Mobile web edit Advanced mobile edit |
||
| (36 intermediate revisions by 30 users not shown) | |||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
{{Short description|Man-made disaster in China}} |
|||
The '''1642 Yellow River flood''' or '''Kaifeng flood''' was a [[list of man-made disasters|man-made disaster]] principally located in [[Kaifeng]], now a prefecture-level city in the [[People's Republic of China]]'s [[Henan]] province and a former [[capitals of China|capital of China]]. The city is located on the south bank of the [[Yellow River]], which has been prone to violent flooding throughout its history. The 1642 flood, however, was not natural but directed by the [[Ming dynasty|Ming]] governor of the city in the hopes of using the flood waters to break the six-month siege the city had endured from the peasant rebels led by [[Li Zicheng]].<ref>Lorge, Peter Allan ''War, Politics and Society in Early Modern China, 900-1795'' Routledge; 1 edition (27 Oct 2005) ISBN 978-0-415-31691-0 p.147 [http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=SE2Gw8rjuXQC&pg=PA147&dq=1642+flood+++Ming+Kaifeng&num=100&ei=S9ybS9H_LpTWNuWN1K0H&client=firefox-a&cd=35#v=onepage&q=1642%20flood%20%20%20Ming%20Kaifeng&f=false]</ref> |
|||
The '''1642 Yellow River flood''' or '''Kaifeng flood''' was a [[anthropogenic hazard|man-made disaster]] in October, 1642, that principally affected [[Kaifeng]] and [[floods in Xuzhou's history|Xuzhou]]. |
|||
Kaifeng is located on the south bank of the [[Yellow River]], prone to violent flooding throughout its history. During the early [[Ming dynasty]], the town was the site of major floods in [[1375 Yellow River flood|1375]], [[1384 Yellow River flood|1384]], [[1390 Yellow River flood|1390]], [[1410 Yellow River flood|1410]], and [[1416 Yellow River flood|1416]].<ref name="eunuch">Tsai, Shih-Shan Henry.<!--sic--> ''SUNY Series in Chinese Local Studies'': ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=Ka6jNJcX_ygC&pg=PA200 The Eunuchs in the Ming Dynasty]''. SUNY Press, 1996. {{ISBN|0791426874}}, 9780791426876. Accessed 16 Oct 2012.</ref> By the mid-15th century, the Ming had completed restoration of the area's [[flood-control]] system{{how|date=May 2019}} and operated it with general success for over a century. |
|||
| ⚫ | |||
The 1642 flood, however, was not natural, but directed by the Ming governor of the city{{who|date=May 2019}} in the hopes of using the floodwaters to break the six-month siege the city had endured from the peasant rebels led by [[Li Zicheng]].<ref>Lorge, Peter A. ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=SE2Gw8rjuXQC&pg=PA147 War, Politics and Society in Early Modern China, 900-1795],'' p. 147. Routledge, 2005. {{ISBN|9780415316910}}.</ref> |
|||
After this disaster the city was abandoned until 1662 when it was rebuilt under the rule of the celebrated Qing emperor [[Kangxi]]. It remained a rural backwater city of diminished importance thereafter and experienced several other less devastating floods. |
|||
The dikes were burst in an attempt to flood the rebels, but the water destroyed Kaifeng. According to another account, the rebels under Li Zicheng intended to use the river to flood the imperial forces. "Both the defenders and Li then tried using the Yellow River against each other," John W. Dardess of the University of Kansas wrote, "the defenders attempted to breach the dikes and wash away Li's army, while Li did the same to flood the city and destroy it. Li won. On October 8, 1642, Li's men cut the dikes, and a rain-swollen Yellow River burst through with a tremendous war, flooding Kaifeng..."<ref>John W. Dardess, ''Ming China, 1368-1644: A Concise History of a Resilient Empire'' (Rowman & Littlefield, 2012) p. 132</ref> Harry Miller of the University of South Alabama wrote that "Both sides tried to puncture the dikes on the Yellow River, in order to enlist flood as an ally. Finally, on October 7, the rain-swelled river burst through the weakened dikes in two places."<ref>Harry Miller, ''State Versus Gentry in Late Ming Dynasty China, 1572-1644'' (Palgrave Macmillan, 2009) p. 155</ref> |
|||
| ⚫ | The flood also brought an end to the "golden age" of the [[Jews in China|Jewish settlement of China]], said to span |
||
| ⚫ | In any event, 300,000 of the 378,000 residents were killed by the flood and ensuing peripheral disasters such as famine and plague.<ref name="XX">Xu Xin. ''The Jews of Kaifeng, China: History, Culture, and Religion'', p. 47. Ktav Publishing Inc, 2003. {{ISBN|978-0-88125-791-5}}.</ref> If treated as a natural disaster, it would be one of the [[List of natural disasters by death toll#Ten deadliest floods .2F landslides|deadliest floods in history]]. {{citation needed|date=October 2011}} |
||
==Footnotes== |
|||
| ⚫ | |||
After this disaster the city was abandoned until [[1662 in China|1662]] when it was rebuilt under the rule of the [[Kangxi Emperor]] in the [[Qing dynasty]]. Archaeological research in the city has provided evidence for the 1642 flood and subsequent occupation in 1662.<ref>Storozum, Michael J., et al.''[https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-020-60169-1 Geoarchaeological evidence of the AD 1642 Yellow River flood that destroyed Kaifeng, a former capital of dynastic China], '' Scientific Reports, 2020.</ref> It remained a rural backwater city of diminished importance and experienced several other less devastating floods. |
|||
| ⚫ | The flood also brought an end to the "golden age" of the [[History of the Jews in China|Jewish settlement of China]], said to span about 1300–1642. China's small Jewish population, estimated at around 5,000 people, was centered at Kaifeng. Furthermore, the flood destroyed the synagogue and most of the community's irreplaceable [[Torah]]. |
||
==See also== |
|||
* [[Floods in Xuzhou's history]] |
|||
* [[1938 Yellow River flood]], a similar tactic of environmental warfare |
|||
==References== |
|||
| ⚫ | |||
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yellow River flood, 1642}} |
|||
[[Category:History of Kaifeng]] |
[[Category:History of Kaifeng]] |
||
[[Category:Ming |
[[Category:Disasters in Ming dynasty]] |
||
[[Category:1642 in China|Kaifeng Flood, 1642]] |
[[Category:1642 in China|Kaifeng Flood, 1642]] |
||
[[Category:Yellow River floods]] |
[[Category:Yellow River floods]] |
||
[[Category: |
[[Category:17th-century floods]] |
||
[[Category:Man-made disasters in China]] |
|||
[[Category:Shun dynasty]] |
|||
[[Category:Jewish Chinese history]] |
|||
{{China-hist-stub}} |
{{China-hist-stub}} |
||
{{flood-stub}} |
{{flood-stub}} |
||
[[no:Oversvømmelsen av Guleelven i 1642]] |
|||
Latest revision as of 00:21, 1 July 2024
The 1642 Yellow River flood or Kaifeng flood was a man-made disaster in October, 1642, that principally affected Kaifeng and Xuzhou.
Kaifeng is located on the south bank of the Yellow River, prone to violent flooding throughout its history. During the early Ming dynasty, the town was the site of major floods in 1375, 1384, 1390, 1410, and 1416.[1] By the mid-15th century, the Ming had completed restoration of the area's flood-control system[how?] and operated it with general success for over a century.
The 1642 flood, however, was not natural, but directed by the Ming governor of the city[who?] in the hopes of using the floodwaters to break the six-month siege the city had endured from the peasant rebels led by Li Zicheng.[2]
The dikes were burst in an attempt to flood the rebels, but the water destroyed Kaifeng. According to another account, the rebels under Li Zicheng intended to use the river to flood the imperial forces. "Both the defenders and Li then tried using the Yellow River against each other," John W. Dardess of the University of Kansas wrote, "the defenders attempted to breach the dikes and wash away Li's army, while Li did the same to flood the city and destroy it. Li won. On October 8, 1642, Li's men cut the dikes, and a rain-swollen Yellow River burst through with a tremendous war, flooding Kaifeng..."[3] Harry Miller of the University of South Alabama wrote that "Both sides tried to puncture the dikes on the Yellow River, in order to enlist flood as an ally. Finally, on October 7, the rain-swelled river burst through the weakened dikes in two places."[4]
In any event, 300,000 of the 378,000 residents were killed by the flood and ensuing peripheral disasters such as famine and plague.[5] If treated as a natural disaster, it would be one of the deadliest floods in history. [citation needed]
After this disaster the city was abandoned until 1662 when it was rebuilt under the rule of the Kangxi Emperor in the Qing dynasty. Archaeological research in the city has provided evidence for the 1642 flood and subsequent occupation in 1662.[6] It remained a rural backwater city of diminished importance and experienced several other less devastating floods.
The flood also brought an end to the "golden age" of the Jewish settlement of China, said to span about 1300–1642. China's small Jewish population, estimated at around 5,000 people, was centered at Kaifeng. Furthermore, the flood destroyed the synagogue and most of the community's irreplaceable Torah.
See also[edit]
- Floods in Xuzhou's history
- 1938 Yellow River flood, a similar tactic of environmental warfare
References[edit]
- ^ Tsai, Shih-Shan Henry. SUNY Series in Chinese Local Studies: The Eunuchs in the Ming Dynasty. SUNY Press, 1996. ISBN 0791426874, 9780791426876. Accessed 16 Oct 2012.
- ^ Lorge, Peter A. War, Politics and Society in Early Modern China, 900-1795, p. 147. Routledge, 2005. ISBN 9780415316910.
- ^ John W. Dardess, Ming China, 1368-1644: A Concise History of a Resilient Empire (Rowman & Littlefield, 2012) p. 132
- ^ Harry Miller, State Versus Gentry in Late Ming Dynasty China, 1572-1644 (Palgrave Macmillan, 2009) p. 155
- ^ Xu Xin. The Jews of Kaifeng, China: History, Culture, and Religion, p. 47. Ktav Publishing Inc, 2003. ISBN 978-0-88125-791-5.
- ^ Storozum, Michael J., et al.Geoarchaeological evidence of the AD 1642 Yellow River flood that destroyed Kaifeng, a former capital of dynastic China, Scientific Reports, 2020.
  | This article related to the history of China is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
 | This article about a flood is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |