The Conquest Of Central Asia

The Chinese are the most practical and the least imaginative of the

peoples of the earth. During their whole four thousand years and more of

historical existence the idea of military glory seems never to have

dawned upon their souls. They have had wars, abundance of them, but

these have nearly all been fought for the purpose of holding on to old

possessions, or of widening the borders of the empire by taking in

neighbo ing lands. No Alexander, Caesar, or Napoleon has ever been born

on Chinese soil; no army has ever been led abroad in search of the

will-of-the-wisp called glory; the wild fancy of becoming lords of the

world has always been out of touch with their practical minds.



If we consider closely the wars of China the truth of what is here said

will appear. The great bulk of them have been fought within the limits

of the empire, for the purposes of defence against invasion, the

suppression of revolt, the overthrow of the power of feudal lords, or in

consequence of the ambition of successful generals who coveted the

throne. The wars of external conquest have been singularly few,

consisting principally in the invasion of the domain of the Tartars, to

which the Chinese were driven by the incessant raids of the desert

hordes. In addition, there have been invasions of Corea and Indo-China,

but merely as passing incidents in the long era of Chinese history, not

as inaugurating a career of conquest. The great invasion of Japan in the

thirteenth century, the only pure war of conquest of China, was made by

Kublai Khan, a Tartar emperor, and largely with Tartar troops. In brief,

the Chinese have shown themselves in disposition one of the most

peaceful of nations, only asking to be let alone, and are very unlikely

to begin the war of conquest which some modern military writers fear.



Yet there is one instance in Chinese history which seems to contradict

what has here been said, that of the career of a great conqueror who

carried the arms of China over the whole width of Asia, and who seemed

actuated by that thirst for military glory which has inspired most of

the great wars of the world and brought untold misery upon mankind. This

was the great leader Panchow, who lived under three emperors of the Han

dynasty, and whose career is full of interest and event.



Panchow first appears in the reign of the emperor Mingti, who came to

the throne in 57 A.D. His victories were won in the west, in the region

of Kokonor, where he brought to an end the invasions of the Tartar

tribes. Under Changti, the succeeding emperor, Panchow continued his

work in the west, carrying on the war at his own expense, with an army

recruited from pardoned criminals.



Changti died, and Hoti came to the throne, a child ten years of age. It

was under his reign that the events to be described took place. During

the preceding reigns Panchow had made the power of China felt in regions

far west of that realm, bringing several small kingdoms and many tribes

under subjection, conquering the city of Kashgar, and extending the

western borders of China as far into the interior of Asia as the great

upland region of the Pamir. The power of his arms had added Eastern

Turkestan to the Chinese empire, a region which it continues to hold

to-day.



But these conquests were not enough to satisfy the ambition of the

veteran general. Under the boy emperor Hoti he was free to carry out his

designs on a much larger scale. With a powerful army he set out on the

only campaign of ambitious warfare in which China ever indulged. His

previous victories had carried the terror of his name far over the

kingdoms of the west, and he now led his army to conquest after conquest

in the great oases of Western Turkestan, subduing kingdom after kingdom

until no less than fifteen had submitted to the power of his arms, and

his victorious army stood on the far-distant shores of the Caspian

Sea,--the Northern Sea, as it is named in Chinese annals.



To cross this sea would have brought him into Europe, which continent

had never dreamed of invasion from the mysterious land of Cathay, on the

eastern horizon of the world. Panchow's ambition was not yet satiated.

There came to his mind the idea of crossing this seeming great barrier

to his victorious career. He had, with his army, overcome innumerable

difficulties of waterless deserts, lofty mountain ranges, great rivers,

and valiant enemies. Thus far his progress had been irresistible, and

should a mere expanse of water put an end to his westward march?



He was checked by dread of perils in the unknown land beyond. The people

on the borders of the Caspian represented that salt sea as being far

more formidable than it really was. They dilated on its width, the vast

mountains which lay beyond, the fierce tribes who would render a landing

difficult and dangerous, and the desert regions beyond the mountains,

until Panchow reluctantly gave up his scheme. He had already been for

several years warring with savage nature and barbarous man, and had

extended the dominions of his emperor much farther than any Chinese

general had ever dreamed of before. It was time to call a halt, and not

expose his valiant followers to the unknown perils beyond the great

inland sea.



The army remained long encamped on the Caspian, coming into

communication through its envoys with the Roman empire, whose eastern

borders lay not far away, and forming relations of commerce with this

rich and powerful realm. This done, Panchow led his ever-victorious

warriors back to their native land, to tell the story of the marvels

they had seen and the surprising adventures they had encountered.



That Panchow was moved by the mere thirst for military fame may well be

doubted in view of what we know of the character of the Chinese. His

purpose was perhaps the more practical one of opening by force of arms

new channels of trade, and overcoming the obstacles placed by the

Parthians and other nations of Asia in the way of freedom of commerce.

On his return to China he found himself the idol of the people, the

trusted friend of the emperor, and the most revered and powerful subject

of the empire. He died in his eightieth year, enjoying a fame such as no

general of his race had ever before attained.