The Southern Man

In Chapter 3 the threat to the Tang’s borders shifts south when in 863 the multiethnic kingdom of Nanzhao in modern Yunnan invades the neighboring Tang Protectorate of Annan in today’s northern Vietnam, with the help of rebellious cross-border tribes. To deal with the emergency, Gao Pian is redeployed to the deep South. The section “Ethnic Warfare” lays out the ethnic composition of the regional population. “The War Experienced by Civilians” describes the impact of the Tang defeat of 863 on the civilian populations of Annan and the mainland Tang prefectures that had provided the men and supplies of the destroyed garrison. In “Staging Posts,” Gao Pian approaches the new theatre of war via Yongzhou (Nanning) and Haimen, a sea port on the northern coast of the Gulf of Tonkin, while preparing the counter invasion. In “The Southern Campaign,” he ships his troops across the Gulf and begins attacking Nanzhao positions in the Red River delta, a major conduit for Tang maritime trade with Southeast Asia. “The Siege of Jiaozhi” describes the ferocious campaign for the recovery of Jiaozhi (Hanoi) through a battle narrative from Gao Pian’s own hand.