| Zhang Dun made important contribution in the progress of opening up the frontier in the Northwest during the dynasty of Emperor Zhe Zong.Under the historical background of the change of internal political situation in the Song Court and the change of its policy towards the Northwest during the dynasty of Zhe Zong,Zhang Dun actively promoted the Song Court’s war against Xixia and Qing Tang Tu Bo during the nearly seven years of the reign of the independent minister in the years of Shao Sheng and Yuan Fu.With his support,generals defeated the enemy and achieved a decisive victory over Xixia,and also spread the influence of the Northern Song into Qing Tang.The battle achievement in Zhe Zong Dynasty reached a new height of Song Dynasty.Deeply influenced by the family’s emphasis on culture and education,Zhang Dun smoothly embarked on an official career through the imperial examination.Throughout Zhang Dun’s official career,it can be seen that he has extraordinary insights and outstanding talents.He can make policies according to the time and place,absorb different opinions appropriately,and make great contributions to the action of opening up the frontier during Shen Zong Dynasty and New Deals of Xi Feng.However,he also had some problems,such as party homogeneity and so on,which was responsible for the deterioration of the political environment in the late Northern Song Dynasty.As far as Zhang Dun’s character is concerned,there is a conceited,strong and ravening side in Zhang Dun’s personality,but he can still stick to the bottom line and handle things justly in the face of state affairs.His treatment of friends was sincere and forthright enough.During the years of Shao Shu and Yuan Fu,after inheriting the legacy of Shen Zong,Emperor Zhe Zong changed the appeasement policy to Xixia during the years of Yuan You and adopted the reform school represented by Zhang Dun to take the initiative to launch war against Xixia.Zhe Zong and Zhang Dun adopted and carried out reasonable and effective tactics and make good use of generals,thus the Song Court won a decisive victory over Xixia.Although Zhang Dun had some problems,such as seeking quick success and had differences with Zeng Bu and other colleagues,Zhe Zong was able to balance the situation,and effectively contribute to the victory of the war.For the war to Qing Tang,the attitude of Zhe Zong and ministers were always wavering,and Zhang Dun was no exception.Compared with the previous war against Xixia,the war to Qing Tang started with more speculative and urgent factors.After the huge consumption in the war against Xixia,the Song Court was unable to do more in-depth grasp of the situation of Qing Tang in a short time.Although Zhang Dun possessed more comprehensive and detailed intelligence of the frontier affairs,it was difficult for him to make the most effective decisions at the first time at court in the face of the rapidly changing situation of the war,and the pressure was undoubtedly increased by the repeated attacks from his colleagues.Moreover,Zhang Dun’s own desire for more and faster made it difficult for him to deal with things calmly.Zhang Dun’s personnel arrangement in the process of opening up the frontier in the Northwest is a mixed bag.On the one hand,Zhang Dun appointed and supported a number of capable generals to make repeated achievements in opening up the frontier in the Northwest,and his strategy was better implemented through personnel operation.On the other hand,due to his own limitations and many uncertain factors of the war,his personnel operation also had a negative impact on the political atmosphere and the war at that time,which also brought hidden dangers to his own official career.The reason why these strategies were adopted was not only consistent with Zhang Dun’s own character and ordinary governing style,but also closely related to the political environment at that time.Although Zhang Dun exposed problems in opening up the frontier in the Northwest during Zhe Zong Dynasty,his historical contribution still cannot be wiped out.As the main leader of the reform school in Zhe Zong Dynasty,Zhang Dun inherited and realized the unfulfilled ambition of Shen Zong and Wang Anshi to a certain extent,which made New Deals of Shao Shu achieve considerable achievements in military. |
