Battle of Hulao
Hulao Pass, Henan, China
What happened
The Tang army of Li Shimin fought the army of Dou Jiande, ruler of Xia, who was trying to rescue his ally Wang Shichong in Luoyang. After the fall of the Sui dynasty, rival rulers fought to control China. Li Shimin held the Hulao Pass for weeks and refused to fight in the open while his forces besieged Luoyang. When the Xia army grew tired one late morning, a Tang cavalry probe grew into a full attack, and the much larger Xia army was routed and Dou Jiande captured.
Why it matters
Why it matters: Historian David Graff called it the most decisive battle of the civil wars after the fall of the Sui. It gave the Tang control of the north-eastern plain and made reuniting China possible.
What came next
Wang Shichong surrendered Luoyang a week later. The civil wars finally ended in 628, and Li Shimin, by then Emperor Taizong, had a monastery built on the battlefield.
Did you know?
Monks from the Shaolin Monastery helped Li Shimin against Wang Shichong, and a stone tablet put up in 728 records his thanks.
Timeline
- 28 May 621The Tang win at Hulao.
- 4 June 621Wang Shichong surrenders Luoyang.
- June 628The last rebel is defeated and the civil war ends.
- 728The Shaolin Monastery stele is erected.
- 1 August 2010Shaolin becomes part of a World Heritage Site.