Xu Da

Xu Da 徐達
Portrait of Xu Da
Left Chancellor
In office 1371–1371
Preceded by	Li Shanchang
Succeeded by	Hu Weiyong
Right Chancellor
In office 1368–1371
Preceded by	position created
Succeeded by
Personal details
Born	1332 Fengyang County, Anhui
Died	1385 (aged 52–53) Nanjing, Jiangsu
Spouse(s)	Lady Zhang Lady Xie Lady Sun Lady Jia
Children	Xu Huizu Xu Tianfu Xu Tianshou Xu Yingxu Empress Xu three other daughters
Occupation	General, politician

Xu Da (1332–1385), courtesy name Tiande, was a Chinese military general and politician who lived in the late Yuan dynasty and early Ming dynasty. He was a friend of Hongwu Emperor, the founder and first ruler of the Ming dynasty, and assisted him in overthrowing the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty and establishing the Ming dynasty. He was also the father of Empress Xu, who married the third Ming ruler, the Yongle Emperor.

Family[]

• Lady Zhang,of the Zhang clan (妻张氏)
• Lady Xie,of the Xie clan (妻谢氏)
  • Xu Huizu (徐輝祖),first son
  • Xu Tianshou (徐增壽),third son
  • Empress Renxiaowen(仁孝文皇后),first daughter
• Lady Sun,of the Sun clan (孙氏)
  • Xu Yingxu (徐膺緒),fourth son
• Lady Jia,of the Jia clan (贾氏)
  • Lady Xu (徐氏),fourth daughter
• unknown:
  • Xu Tianfu (徐添福),second son-died young
  • Second daughter
  • Third daughter

Life[]

Xu Da was described as a stalwart man with slim face and high cheekbones, he joined the Red Turban rebels in 1353 to overthrow the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty in China. Xu served as a general under Zhu Yuanzhang, a prominent rebel leader, and assisted him in defeating other rival warlords and opposing forces. In 1368, the year when the Ming dynasty was founded, Xu Da and other Ming generals led an attack on Khanbaliq (present-day Beijing), the Yuan capital, and forced the last Yuan ruler, Toghon Temür, to flee northward.^[1]

Xu Da led a pursuit on the retreating Yuan forces and encountered Taejo of Joseon, the founder of the Korean Joseon dynasty, who was ordered by the Mongols to attack the Ming army. Xu Da's presence struck fear into the Korean generals, who in turn, allied themselves with the Ming forces instead. Afterwards, Xu Da's army entered Mongol territory, routed Mongol reinforcements, sacked the Mongol capital at Karakorum,^[1] and captured thousands of Mongol nobles in 1370. His army ventured to Transbaikalia and reached further north than any other Chinese army had ever before.^[1]

Xu Da died in 1385 under mysterious circumstances. He was not accused of plotting an assassination on the Hongwu Emperor – although many other generals who contributed heavily to the founding of the Ming dynasty were put to death by the emperor for allegedly plotting rebellions. According to legend, Xu Da was allergic to goose, so the Hongwu Emperor sent him a goose dish and ordered the emissary to ensure that Xu ate it and died.^[2]

In fiction[]

Xu Da appears as a minor character in Louis Cha's wuxia novel The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber. As a member of the anti-Yuan Ming Cult, Xu Da participated actively in the rebellions to overthrow the Yuan dynasty under the leadership of Zhang Wuji. Zhang passes Xu the Book of Wumu, a text on military strategy written by the Song dynasty general Yue Fei. Xu benefits greatly from reading the book, becomes a brilliant military commander, and assists Zhu Yuanzhang in overthrowing the Yuan dynasty and establishing the Ming dynasty.

References[]