Gule Mountain City

Gule Mountain City

Gule Mountain played a crucial historical role in the society of the Jurchens during the Ming Dynasty. The Jianzhou Jurchens rose to prominence here several times, only to decline just as often. The legendary chieftain Wang Gao, during his time at Gule Mountain, led his people in large-scale construction, building fortresses and training soldiers. Using Gule Mountain as their base, they frequently raided the borders of the Ming Dynasty. During this period, since Wang Gao’s followers were all Jurchens who did not know how to handle boats or engage in naval battles, he secretly sent trusted men into Ming territory to hire skilled shipbuilders and water warfare experts with large sums of money. These experts came to Gule City to train the soldiers. They forged iron chains to block the Suizi River, deployed patrol boats to monitor waterways, and completely controlled the land and water routes used by Jurchen tribes such as Hada and Ula for trade and for paying tribute to the Ming court. At that time, merely mentioning Wang Gao’s name was enough to strike fear into the hearts of Ming soldiers, causing them to flee without battle.

During his time at Gule Mountain, Wang Gao repeatedly led raids on the Fushun Horse Market, sometimes merely cursing the city guards while drunk, other times forcibly buying and selling goods. As tensions with the Ming officials of Liaodong escalated, Wang Gao eventually lured the Ming-appointed defender Pei Chengzu and his 300 men out of Fushun and had them killed, provoking the fury of the Ming Dynasty. The Ming court dispatched a large army to crush Gule City and executed Wang Gao.

After Wang Gao’s death, his son A Tai inherited his father’s legacy and once again united the scattered Jianzhou Jurchens. He led his people in repairing the war-damaged Gule City, trained soldiers, and sought to avenge his father’s death. During this time, Nurhaci’s father, Taksi, and grandfather, Giocangga, also frequently visited Gule City and followed A Tai’s orders.

As A Tai repeatedly attacked key Ming military strongholds, the security of the Ming Dynasty’s Liaodong region was severely threatened. Under these circumstances, the Ming court decided to deploy a major force to eliminate A Tai and remove the border threat.

During this large-scale military campaign by the Ming army, A Tai was betrayed by the Jurchen Nikan Wailan and killed by the Ming forces. Also killed in Gule City were Nurhaci’s father, Taksi, and grandfather, Giocangga. Even the young Nurhaci and his brother were captured by the Ming Liaodong commander Li Chengliang.

Qing Taizu Nurhaci witnessed the bloody atrocities of the Ming army in Gule City, which planted the seeds of vengeance deep in his heart. The rise and fall of the Wang Gao family at Gule City laid the foundation for Nurhaci’s military campaigns. In 1583, after reflecting on the lessons from the failures of the Wang Gao family, Nurhaci raised an army with just thirteen sets of armor and began his war to unify the Jurchen tribes. In the 19th year of the Wanli era (1591), when Nurhaci’s forces were not yet very powerful, the chief of the Yehe tribe of the Hulun Jurchens, Narimbulu, demanded that Nurhaci cede part of the land near the Yehe tribe for their control. Nurhaci firmly refused. Enraged, Yehe chieftain Narimbulu, in an attempt to curb the expansion of the Jianzhou Jurchens under Nurhaci, formed an alliance with the Ula, Hada, and six other tribes, creating a coalition army of over 30,000 troops that marched toward Nurhaci’s Hetu Ala City. Nurhaci adopted a strategy of engaging the enemy outside Hetu Ala, luring the coalition deep into the Gule Mountain area, concentrating his superior forces, and defeating the nine-tribe alliance piece by piece, emerging victorious.

Gule Mountain City symbolizes the rise of the Jianzhou Jurchens. Today, the city’s outline remains intact, and its ruins still exist. Here, the sounds of ancient battle horns echo, and shepherds may find old weapons—reminders that stir our imagination about the indomitable and persevering spirit of the Manchu ancestors.

Source: Xinbin County People's Government Website