2.36. History of the Mongols: Mongol-Song War #3

<p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">“In the world there is the spirit of righteousness, taking many forms, </span></em></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">bestowed on the ever-changing things.</span></em></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Below they are the rivers and mountains; above they are the  sun and stars,</span></em></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">With people it is called the spirit of honour and fearlessness, so vast it fills the universe.</span></em></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">When the empire is tranquil one pours forth harmony in the splendid court.</span></em></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">When times are extreme true fidelity is seen, and goes down in history case after case.”</span></em></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">   </span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">So goes a poem written by one of the last defenders of the Song Dynasty, Wen Tienxiang, as translated by Feng Xin-ming. Held prisoner by Kublai Khan after the fall of the Song Dynasty, Wen Tienxiang wrote this poem as a part of his refusal to accept to Mongol rule before his ultimate execution. Such defiance was a surprising hallmark of the final years of the fugitive Song court, reduced to a collection of hardliners and loyalists unwilling to peacefully surrender the Mandate of Heaven to the house of Chinggis Khan. Today, we look at the flight of the fugitive Song court after the fall of their capital of Hangzhou in 1276. We will follow brave men like Wen Tienxiang, Zhang Shijie and Lu Xiufu in the final days of the Song Dynasty, a hopeless struggle culminating in the bloody waters of Yaishan in 1279. I’m your host David, and this is Kings and Generals: Ages of Conquest.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">   </span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Our previous episode brought us to the early months of 1276 with the surrender of the Song capital city of Linan, modern day Hangzhou. The child emperor, Gong of Song, and the elderly Empress Dowager, we