Battle of Shanhai Pass

Battle of Shanhai Pass
Part of the Qing conquest of the Ming
An old Chinese illustration
Date May 27, 1644 Location Shanhaiguan, China Result Decisive Qing victory
Belligerents
Qing dynasty Ming defenders of Shanhai Pass	Shun dynasty
Commanders and leaders
Dorgon Wu Sangui	Li Zicheng
Strength
100,000 men Qing: 60,000 men Wu Sangui: about 100,000 men, including tens of thousands from local militia	Disputed: between 60,000 and 100,000 men
Casualties and losses
Unknown	Unknown

100,000 men

The Battle of Shanhai Pass, fought on 27 May 1644 at Shanhaiguan (山海關) at the eastern end of the Great Wall of China, was a decisive battle leading to the formation of the Qing dynasty in China. There, Qing Prince-Regent Dorgon allied with former Ming general Wu Sangui to defeat rebel leader Li Zicheng of the Shun dynasty, allowing Dorgon and the Manchus to rapidly conquer Beijing and replace the Ming dynasty.

As the Ming dynasty faltered and the threat from northern enemies grew, Ming emperors saw the strategic value of Shanhai Pass and frequently garrisoned troops there, armies which sometimes reached up to 40,000 men. Under Emperor Hung Taiji (r. 1626–1643), the Qing were becoming more aggressive against the Ming. After an intermittent siege that lasted over ten years, Qing armies led by Jirgalang captured Songshan and Jinzhou in early 1642. The garrison of Ming general Wu Sangui in Ningyuan became the only major army standing between the Qing forces and the Ming capital in Beijing. In the summer of 1642, a Qing army managed to cross the Great Wall and ravaged northern China for seven months before withdrawing in May 1643, with prisoners and booty, without having fought any large Ming army.

In September 1643, Hung Taiji suddenly died without having named an heir. To avert a conflict between two strong contenders for succession – namely Hong Taiji's eldest son Hooge and Hung Taiji's agnate brother Dorgon, a proven military leader – a committee of Manchu princes chose to pass the throne to Hong Taiji's five-year-old son Fulin and appointed Dorgon and Jirgalang as co-regents. Because Jirgalang had no political ambition, Dorgon became the prime ruler of the Qing government.

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