The naval Battle of Tangdao (唐岛之战) took place in 1161 between the Jurchen Jin and the Southern Song Dynasty of China on the East China Sea. It was an attempt by the Jin to invade and conquer the Southern Song Dynasty, yet resulted in failure and defeat for the Jurchens. The Jin Dynasty navy was set on fire by firearms and Fire Arrows, suffering heavy losses. For this battle, the commander of the Song Dynasty squadron, Li Bao, faced the opposing c...
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The naval Battle of Tangdao (唐岛之战) took place in 1161 between the Jurchen Jin and the Southern Song Dynasty of China on the East China Sea. It was an attempt by the Jin to invade and conquer the Southern Song Dynasty, yet resulted in failure and defeat for the Jurchens. The Jin Dynasty navy was set on fire by firearms and Fire Arrows, suffering heavy losses. For this battle, the commander of the Song Dynasty squadron, Li Bao, faced the opposing commander Zheng Jia, the admiral of the Jin Dynasty. On the fate of Zheng Jia, the historical text of the Jin Shi states:
This battle was followed by another naval confrontation, the Battle of Caishi (采石之战) taking place in 1161. On the significance of these battles and the development of China's first permanent standing navy during the Song, the historian Joseph Needham stated that from a total of 11 squadrons and 3,000 men the Song navy rose in one century to 20 squadrons totalling 52,000 men, with its main base near Shanghai. The needs of the...
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