Enemy of the Ming — Jia Jing Da Wo Kou (嘉靖大倭寇) — Part 2

UNDER REVISION

A period of strife was also a period of heroics (or villainy) and tragedies. A great many Wokou leaders rose to prominence during the chaotic period. Many of them met tragic ends, but not before carving out a legend of their own.

Shuangyu Port period (1526 – 1548)

Jin Zi Lao (金子老, “Gold elder”) (active ? – 1542)

A sea trader hailing from Fujian who was shrouded in mystery, Jin Zi Lao first appears in written records when he hooked up with the Portuguese at the smuggling port of Shuangyu in 1538, making him one of the earliest known Chinese smugglers to set up operation at Shuangyu port (Portuguese had seized control of the island since 1526). At some point Jin Zi Lao recruited Li Guang Tou under his wing, however in 1542 he suddenly returned to Fujian and was never to be heard from again. It is speculated that he was usurped by his right-hand man.

Li Guang Tou (李光頭, “Baldy Li”) (active 1529 – 1548)

Also known as Li Qi (李七), Li Guang Tou was a convict serving in Fuzhou prison until a massive and bloody prison break in 1529 allowed him to escape to the sea. Leading fellow fugitives, Chinese outlaws and Portuguese alike, Li Guang Tou quickly emerged as a powerful pirate, and was soon recruited by Jin Zi Lao to be his right-hand man. After the latter returned to Fujian, he took over the smuggling business at Shuangyu port and became a powerful pirate lord, terrorising the coasts of Zhejiang and Fujian for years. Li Guang Tou finally met his end when rampant smuggling and piratical activities at Shuangyu caught the attention of Ming court. Although he survived the destruction of Shuangyu at the hands of Grand Coordinator Zhu Wan (朱紈) in 1548, he was captured then executed during the subsequent Battle of Zoumaxi (走馬溪) one year later.

Xu Dong (許棟) (active 1529 – 1554)

Also known as Xu Er (許二), Xu Dong was a fellow inmate of Li Guang Tou and escaped prison during the same prison break incident. He began his clandestine business after reuniting with his younger brother Xu Nan (許楠), who was a smuggler that mostly traded in Malacca and Patani, and was soon joined by his other brothers, the eldest brother Xu Song (許松), and the youngest brother Xu Zi (許梓). In 1543 Xu Dong joined force with Li Guang Tou and began to operate out of Shuangyu port, and the joining of Wang Zhi (王直) in 1544 enabled him to establish trade relation with Japan. His smuggling business did not always go smoothly, however, with Xu Song captured and executed by Ming Dynasty in 1545, Xu Nan died in a shipwreck, and Xu Zi fled Shuangyu to join another pirate Lin Jian (林剪) after failing to deliver his promised shipment to the Portuguese due to the aforementioned shipwreck. Despite the setbacks, Xu Dong continued to grow his power by essentially conning unsuspecting Chinese merchants to join his smuggle operation. To repay his missed shipment to the Portuguese, he enticed them to raid the coasts of Fujian and Zhejiang, and in 1547 he joined up with Lin Jian to launch a large-scale raid himself, causing a massive turmoil in Fujian and Zhejiang. The raid was also one of the major triggers that lead to Ming Dynasty deciding to take action against Shuangyu port.

Xu Dong survived the destruction of Shuangyu in 1548 and seems to continuously elude capture (despite a few accounts of Ming army capturing or killing him), resuming piratical activities a mere two months later. In July 1548 he raided the relatively defenceless Funing County (福寧, a Ming period administrative division that encompass present-day Xiapu County, Ningde City, Fuding City, and Fu'an City) with more than 300 remnants from Shuangyu, looting dozens of households and killed five guards as well as seven resisting locals, then escaped to the sea through Pingyang County. He once again raided Fu Ning on August 6~7, 1548, this time with a much larger force of more than 40 ships, over 1,000 pirates, as well as significant numbers of Portuguese and Southeast Asians (mainly Pahangnese). However, Ming army under commander Ke Qiao (柯喬) was much more prepared this time around and decisively crushed the pirates, killing and drowning many and scattering the rest, although Xu Dong managed to get away. The last time Ming military had seen of him was during a incidental naval encounter near the border of Fujian and Zhejiang in September 1548. Although Ming navy defeated the pirate fleet, Xu Dong once again escaped. 

Xu Dong was said to be still active as late as 1554, trying to recruit Wokou from Japan to raid Guangzhou, although it is said that he met his end at the hands of tribal natives of Xiaoliuqiu (小琉球, likely referring to Taiwan) during his return trip for trying to steal the plantation on the island.

Lin Jian (林剪) (active ? – 1547)

A powerful Fujianese pirate that terrorised the coasts of Fujian and Zhejiang for decades, but largely kept his distance from the Portuguese at Shuangyu. In 1547 he went to Pahang Sultanate and recruited significant numbers of Pahangnese pirates to launch a joint pirate raid with Xu Dong (許棟), however later in the same year he was utterly wiped out by the Portuguese for reasons unknown.

Free-for-all period (1548 – 1553)

after the destruction of Shuangyu

Wang Zhi (王直) (active ? – 1559) (Undergoing revision)

Bronze statue of Wang Zhi outside of Matsura Historical Museum, Japan.

Self-titled Wu Feng Chuan Zhu (五峰船主, lit. 'Captain of the Five Peaks'), Jing Hai Wang (淨海王, lit. 'King of the Clean Ocean') and later Hui Wang (徽王, King of Huizhou), Wang Zhi was perhaps the most famous and most powerful of the Wokou leaders. In fact, many prominent Wokou leaders were his former collaborators or subordinates.

Originally a sea trader, Wang Zhi traded between China, Japan, and even ventured as far as Siam. He accumulated great wealth, and commanded the respect of both Portuguese and Japanese. In 1544, Wang Zhi came into contact with the smuggler-pirates at the haven of Shuangyu, and joined their smuggling business. After Shuangyu was destroyed by Zhu Wan (朱紈) in 1548 in an attempt to clamp down on illegal trade, he retreated to Japan, and set up a new base of operation on Gotō Islands on the invitation of Matsura Takanobu (松浦隆信). Wang Zhi assisted Ming army to attack one of his competitors, a pirate named Chen Si Pan (陳思盼) in 1552, and captured his nephew Chen Si (陳四). He used Chen Si as a bargaining chip to acquire Ming's unofficial permission to continue his business, and set up a new port at Li Gang (瀝港), Zhejiang. However, an ambush led by Yu Da You (俞大猷) in 1553 destroyed Li Gang. Although Wang Zhi escaped to Japan, his family was arrested by Yu Da You.

No longer trustful of the Ming court that went back on its word, Wang Zhi began overseeing Wokou raids from Japan, turning Jia Jing Da Wo Kou into overdrive.

In 1554, Hu Zong Xian (胡宗憲) took office as the Grand coordinator of Zhejiang (浙江巡按監察御史) and sent two envoys to Japan to negotiate with Wang Zhi. He promised Wang Zhi legal trade rights on the condition that Wang Zhi would assist him to get rid of the Wokou. To show his sincerity, Hu Zong Xian set Wang Zhi's family free and left one of his envoys at Japan as hostage. Although Wang Zhi was tempted by the prospect of legal trade, he wasn't so foolish as to fall to empty promise once again, so he sent his adopted son Wang Ao (王滶) back to China first. For a time, Wang Ao assisted Hu Zong Xian to clear out other Wokou. He also wrote a letter to inform Xu Hai (徐海) about Wang Zhi's negotiation of surrender upon the request of Hu Zong Xian.

Wang Zhi was eventually persuaded by his adopted son Wang Ao, now trustful of Hu Zong Xian, and returned to China. While Hu Zong Xian did intend to uphold his part of the bargain, pressure from Ming court forced him to change his mind. Wang Zhi was arrested in 1558 and executed in 1559.

Nowadays Wang Zhi is best remembered for (indirectly) introducing matchlock firearms to Japan in 1543, as well as his contribution in developing Hirado into a bustling trading port.

Chen Si Pan (陳思盻) (active ? – 1552)

Chen Si Pan was a powerful pirate from Guangdong (although some sources claim he was from Fujian), and the largest competitor of Wang Zhi before the latter's ascendance to primacy. Based in Heng Gang (橫港) port, Chen Si Pan frequently preyed on Wang Zhi's shipment as Heng Gang was strategically positioned to allow for easy interdiction of ships coming in and out of Lie Gang, Wang Zhi's base of operation. And exceedingly cruel person, in 1552 Chen Si Pan murdered an ally that come to join him and forcibly absorbed his subordinates into his own faction. While sources disagree on the identity of the victim, who was either Wu Mei Gan (吳美幹, see below) or a sea trader named Wang Dan (王丹), they all agree that this act of cruelty ultimately proves to be Chen Si Pan's undoing. Harbouring resentment over the death of their former master, Chen Si Pan's new but browbeaten subordinates secretly got into contact with Wang Zhi, who had long desired to get rid of him. Thus, with helps from these turncoats, as well as support from coastal gentry and fellow smuggler Chai De Mei (柴德美), Wang Zhi launched a surprise attack on Heng Gang on the night Chen Si Pan was holding his birthday banquet, killing him and taking over his pirate crew.

Wu Mei Gan (吳美幹) (active after the destruction of Shuangyu)

A Yi Guan (義官, lit. 'Honourary official', a directly nominated or awarded position that can engage in local government affairs, but is not paid) from Fuqing County that was called to take part in Zhu Wan's anti-smuggling campaign, but instead engaged in smuggling activities himself. When it became apparent that his despicable conduct was causing troubles, Wu Mei Gan was ordered to disband his followers immediately. However, he only dismissed half his men, and led the other half to openly engage in illegal activities. Depending on the source, he either joined Wang Zhi's faction directly, or joined Chen Si Pan's faction but was later murdered by him.

He Ya Ba (何亞八) (active at least since 1551 – 1553~4)

He Ya Ba was a notorious Cantonese pirate that terrorised Pearl River Delta region. Unlike many of his peers in Zhejiang, he mostly traded in Southeast Asia, notably Patani Sultanate, while using the pirate hub at Shangchuan Island as a base to launch raids on Guangdong's coasts. Following the destruction of Shuangyu, He Ya Ba also formed a loose cooperation with the Portuguese that returned to Guangdong and used Shangchuan Island as a temporary foothold.

In 1553 He Ya Ba went to Patani and recruited significant numbers of Patani pirates. Upon returning, he recruited thousands more from Fujian, then launched a massive simultaneous pirate raid against the coasts of Guangdong and eastern Zhejiang along with other prominent pirate lords including Wang Zhi. The sheer scale and mayhem caused by the raid finally prompted Ming court to decide to permanently get rid of He Ya Ba. Nevertheless, to directly confront such powerful pirate was no easy task, so Guangdong Provincial Admiral Wang Bo (汪柏) secretly contacted Captain-Major Leonel de Sousa and made peace with the Portuguese, in exchange for them looking the other way while Ming navy focus on the destruction of the pirates. The Portuguese gladly complied, and He Ya Ba's pirates were thus destroyed in a Ming ambush while he himself was captured and executed shortly after. For their cooperation, the Portuguese successfully got on the good side of the Chinese, fast-tracking them towards the Luso-Chinese agreement of 1554.

Li Da Yong (李大用) (active ? – 1550)

Li Da Yong was a pirate that terrorised the sea of Guangdong, as well as the leader of a powerful pirate crew, of which some of its members like Lin Guo Xian (林國顯) later became legendary pirate lords in their own right. Ironically, despite his notoriety most historical records about him speak of his defeats. 

Li Da Yong seems to work with Wang Zhi since his earliest days, although at some point they drifted apart, with Wang Zhi turning his focus on Zhejiang and Fujian whereas Li Da Yong going to Guangdong. In 1544 he launched a raid on Zhelin Town (柘林鎮) inside Raoping County with more than a hundred ships, but the raid was resisted through the combined effort of local Ming garrison and militia from Zhelin Town and Xiadai Village (下岱村). Later that night the pirates were ambushed by the militia and fled to the sea in a panic, causing many to drown. Some sources claim that Li Da Yong also drowned when his pirate fleet was subsequently hit by a storm with all but two ships lost, but this appears not to be the case, as he was still able to launch a raid on Hui'an County in 1546, pillaging several villages but eventually repelled by Ming commander Zhu Rong (朱肜). Outraged by the failure, Li Da Yong launched another raid on Hui'an in 1550, only to be defeated by Zhu Rong once again. 

Li Da Yong faded into obscurity afterwards, presumably died. His pirate crew was subsequently broken up by his subordinates to form their own crews.

Lin Guo Xian (林国顯) (active at least since 1550 – 1565)

Lin Guo Xian, also known by his moniker Xiao Wei Lao (小尾老, lit. 'Little tail elder'), was one of the most notorious and powerful pirate lords in Guangdong and Chaozhou during this period. Born in Zhao'an County, Lin Guo Xian had been a pirate pretty much since he was of age, initially working as an underling of pirate lord Li Da Yong (李大用) along with several of his fellow countrymen such as Shen Men (沈門) and Tian Lang Guang (田浪廣). After Li Da Yong's death, he absorbed the remnants of his crew and stroke out on his own, quickly growing in power and influence and eventually becoming a pirate lord in his own right. 

Soon after, Lin Guo Xian relocated to Japan, leaving the operation of his pirate crew in China in the hands of Shen Men, although an incident involving some Wokou seizing the cargo of another Chinese smuggler later reunited the two in Japan. While in Japan, they planned and then launched the first ever large-scale Wokou raid on Chinese soil in 1552, unleashing tens of thousands of Wokou and pirates on the entire coasts Zhejiang as well as Zhangzhou and, for the first time ever, managed to capture and pillage a county-level city—Huangyan City. This nation-shaking incident later came to be known as Renzi Crisis (任子之變), and marked the beginning of the height of Jia Jing Da Wo Kou. Unable to openly oppose such a powerful pirate, local authorities attempted to rein him in by first arresting his son, then release him from jail but demand him to persuade his father to surrender. Unsurprisingly, the attempt backfired, as once freed Lin Guo Xian's son immediately joined up with his father, and their outlawry had only become ever more blatant. 

In 1554, Xu Wei Xue (徐惟學), uncle of Xu Hai (徐海) and subordinate of Wang Zhi (王直), had a falling out with his leader and broke off from his crew to join Lin Guo Xian. He swore Lin Guo Xian as his blood father, and guided him to take over the strategic pirate lair of Nan'ao Island, while he himself continued to operate in Huangyan County. Fortunately, their cooperation was short-lived. On November 29, 1554, an untimely gale blew their smuggling voyage to Japan off-course, forcing the duo to change their plan into raiding Zhelin Town instead. However, the raid didn't go as planned, as Ming navy under commander Hei Meng Yang (黑孟陽) crushed the pirate fleet and pursued them to Nan'ao Island. Xu Wei Xue was either captured or drowned during escape, whereas Liu Guo Xian fled to Japan.

Lin Guo Xian spent several years in Japan rebuilding his pirate crew, returning to China in 1563. He immediately pillaged Shang Li (上里, part of present-day Beiliu City) and set up a new base of operation at the outskirts of Lin Cuo (林厝), resuming his smuggling business as well as launching frequent raids against the surrounding villages, essentially unopposed. He finally met his end in 1565, after unexpectedly running into a Ming patrol during a pirate raid in Chaoyang County.

Renzi Crisis / Height of Jia Jing Da Wo Kou (1553 – 1558)

Wang Zhi escaped to Japan and unleashed the Wokou

Xu Hai (徐海) (active ? – 1556) (Undergoing revision)

Xu Hai was originally a Buddhist monk from Huizhou, but gave up the life as an ascetic and joined the smuggling syndicate of Wang Zhi (汪直) with his uncle Xu Wei Xue (徐惟學). After some time, Xu Wei Xue broke off from Wang Zhi's crew and started his own smuggling business. Unfortunately, Xu Wei Xue's attempt was a failure, and he ended up indebted. To pay off his debt, Xu Hai was sold by his uncle to a band of Japanese pirates.

In a strange twist of fate, Xu Hai eventually became the leader of said pirate band. He quickly expanded his influence by forming a coalition with Chen Dong (陳東) and Ye Ma (葉麻), and commanded a Wokou fleet of more than ten thousand men. He also married a famous prostitute Wang Cui Qiao (王翠翹). Xu Hai fought with Ming general Zong Li (宗禮) at Zhejiang in 1556 and was defeated thrice, but managed to mount a counterattack that defeated Ming army and killed Zong Li. Along with Chen Dong and Ye Ma, he laid siege to Tongxiang in the same year, almost succeeding in capturing it. Hu Zong Xian (胡宗憲) was forced to bribe him with heavy ransom. Xu Hai called off the siege after he received ransom, while Chen Dong and Ye Ma were forced to retreat along with him, as they no longer had enough troops to continue the siege.

Knowing he couldn't defeat Xu Hai's Wokou coalition without suffering innumerable loss, Hu Zong Xian devised a cunning plot to get rid of him. He sent Luo Long Wen (羅龍文), a fellow of Xu Hai from Huizhou, as an undercover agent into Xu Hai's Wokou coalition. Luo Long Wen sowed discord between Wokou leaders, and slowly gained the favour of Wang Cui Qiao with gifts. He deceived her into believing that they would be pardoned and put into favourable position if they surrender to Hu Zong Xian. To add more weight to his word, Hu Zong Xian also brought the news of Wang Zhi's negotiation of surrender to Xu Hai through a letter written by Wang Ao (王滶).

Shocked by the news and persuaded by his concubine, Xu Hai too agreed to surrender. To prove his loyalty, he lured Chen Dong into a trap by forging a letter from Satsuma Island. After Chen Dong's capture, Hu Zong Xian immediately forced Chen Dong to write a letter to inform his subordinates about Xu Hai's betrayal. Furious, Chen Dong's subordinates attacked Xu Hai's Wokou band, but both were annihilated by Ming army unleashed by Hu Zong Xian, who had waited for this moment all along. Realising the betrayal of Hu Zong Xian, Xu Hai drowned himself in despair.

Legend has it that Wang Cui Qiao also drowned herself after she realised that her words cause the death of Xu Hai. Wang Cui Qiao's tragic fate earned the sympathy of the people, and her story was adapted into many novels and operas during Qing period.

Chen Dong (陳東) (active ? – 1556) (Undergoing revision)

Chen Dong originally worked as a clerk for "Lord of the Satsuma Island and his brothers", most likely referring to Shimazu Yoshihisa (島津義久) and his younger brothers, Shimazu Yoshihiro (島津義弘) and Shimazu Toshihisa (島津歳久). He later joined the smuggling syndicate of Wang Zhi (汪直) and became a collaborator of Xu Hai (徐海).

He was betrayed and captured by Xu Hai due to the machination of Hu Zong Xian (胡宗憲), and was executed shortly after.

Ye Ma (葉麻) (active at least since 1554 – 1556)

Ye Ma, also known as Ye Ming (葉明) and Ma Ye (麻葉), was one of the co-leaders of a huge Wokou coalition along with Xu Hai (徐海) and Chen Dong (陳東), and was particularly renowned for his ferocity in battle. He seemed to be originally a salt peddler from Tongxiang, although how or why he later turned to a life of crime have remained unknown. In any case, Ye Ma led a pirate crew consisted of mostly Japanese Wokou from Chikuzen (筑前, present-day Fukuoka Prefecture), Izumi, Hizen, Satsuma, Kiinokuni, Hataka, and Bungo (丰后, present-day Ōita Prefecture) and was active around Laohezui (老鶴嘴, lit. 'Old crane's beak', at the river mouth of Yangtze River) and Huangwan Town (黃灣鎮, southeast of Haining City).

Ye Ma's first known raiding activity was a raid against Yuanhua Town (袁花鎮, east of Haining City) on May 13, 1554 with more than a thousand Wokou, where he abducted a beautiful woman known only by her surname Zhu (祝) to be his slave-consort. He also attacked Haining City itself and the nearby Xiashi Town (硤石鎮, now Xiashi Neighbourhood) but was repelled, although he still pillaged other nearby villages and settlements. Later in that year Ye Ma joined up with Xu Hai to form a powerful Wokou coalition and launched a large-scale raid against Zhapu and its surrounding area, as well as capturing and devastating the county seat of Chongde County. Thereafter, Ye Ma temporarily split away from Xu Hai to continue terrorising Jiangnan region.

At some point, Ye Ma took a pity to his slave-consort who had been separated from her family for a long time, and decided to free her. However, Xu Hai, who was known to be lecherous, requested to take the women as his concubine during a feast between Wokou coalition leaders, which greatly angered Ye Ma. Although Xu Hai quickly dropped the issue, resentment and suspicion inevitably began to form between the two. Ye Ma even dispatched six ships to Yuanhua Town to re-kidnap the woman on June 25, 1555 in case Xu Hai went back on his words.

On the other hand, due to the severity of the incursion, Ming army under Zhang Jing (張經) was mobilised to contain the situation. The brilliant Ming commander was able to deal a major blow to the Wokou coalition during Battle of Wangjiangjing, forcing Xu Hai to eventually retreat to Japan, although Ye Ma remained in China to continue resisting Ming army. However, Xu Hai quickly rebuilt his strength and returned to China on March 1556 to rejoin the Wokou coalition. The strengthened coalition immediately struck out to terrorise Jiangnan and beyond again, and was able to crush a Ming army as well as laying siege to Tongxiang City.

It was at this point Hu Zong Xian (胡宗憲) realised that he could not defeat the Wokou with brute force alone, and resorted to cunning deceptions and schemes instead. Unfortunately for Ye Ma, Xu Hai fell right into Hu Zong Xian's ploy and sold him out to Ming authorities on August 7, 1555. Ye Ma was subsequently executed in Jiaxing on October 10, 1555, and his head was paraded through the streets of Beijing.

Xiao Xian (蕭顯) (active ? – 1553)

(to be updated)

The "Fifty-three Rōnin" (active 1555) (Undergoing revision)

Fifty-three (sources vary from sixty to seventy-two) unnamed Wokou that landed at Shangyu in June 1555 and rampaged through Zhejiang, Wun Sheng (皖省, present-day Anhui) and Jiangsu, raiding no less than twenty towns and villages over the course of two months. They even attempted to lay siege on Nanjing with only fifty-three men. By the time these Wokou were defeated, they had rack up a body count of no less than three thousand, including several mandarins and military officers.

Some sources suggest that unlike other Wokou, their only purpose was to kill, and did not engage in plundering or rape.

Wokou remnants period (1558 – 1566)

after the arrest and execution of Wang Zhi

Most prominent Wokou of Jiajing period were single-handedly eradicated by Hu Zong Xian (胡宗憲) through guile and plot. Nevertheless, the death of Wokou leaders, particularly Wang Zhi (王直), caused Wokou to lose all semblance of self-control, and Wokou raids quickly intensified.

Mao Hai Feng (毛海鋒) (active 1556 – ?) (Undergoing revision)

Also known as Mao Lie (毛烈), Mao Hai Feng was the adopted son of Wang Zhi (汪直), from him he received another name Wang Ao (王滶). Like his adopted father, he stayed at Japan during much of the early phase of the Jia Jing Da Wo Kou. In 1556, He returned to China on the invitation of Hu Zong Xian (胡宗憲), and helped him to curb the Wokou problem on the promise that Ming court would grant Wang Zhi legal trade rights.

Little did he know, he was merely a pawn in Hu Zong Xian's plan to get rid of Xu Hai (徐海), Chen Dong (陳東), and earn the trust of Wang Zhi. After Wang Zhi was betrayed and captured, a furious Mao Lie swore vengeance. He dismembered Xia Zheng (夏正) a trusted aide of Hu Zong Xian, gathered Wang Zhi's men and occupied Cen Gang (岑港) in an attempt to enact vengeance.

Xie He (謝和) (active ? – 1559)

Also known as Xie Ce (謝策) and Xie Lao (謝老, “Elder Xie”), Xie He had been Wang Zhi's partner in crime since his earliest days as a sea trader. He followed Wang Zhi when the latter fled to Japan in 1553, although he appeared to return to China ahead of Wang Zhi, possibly on the same voyage as Mao Hai Feng, Ye Zong Man, and Ming envoy Chen Ke Yuan (陳可願). On July 20, 1557 he suddenly joined force with Xu Chao Guang (許朝光) and raided Yue Gang (月港) at the mouth of Jiulong River, burning down thousands of households and taking thousands of slaves, then split up with him again after the raid.

Xie He stayed in Cen Gang during Wang Zhi's negotiation with Ming court, and was one of the pirate leaders that swore vengeance and fought a year-long siege with Ming army after Wang Zhi's arrest in 1558. After Cen Gang fell in July 1558, survivors of the siege hastily relocated to the nearby Kemei (柯梅, part of Dinghai District) and continued to resist Ming army for some time, until Xie He and Hong Di Zhen (洪迪珍, see below) led 2~3,000 remnants to set up a new base of operation on Wuyu Island (浯嶼島) on December 22, 1558. Xie He was known to take part in Hong Di Zhen's raid against Yue Gang and Fu'an City in 1559, although he seems to fade into obscurity afterwards.

Hong Di Zhen (洪迪珍) (active 1556 – 1563)

Also known as Hong Ze Zhen (洪澤珍) and Hong Lao (洪老, "Elder Hong"), Hong Di Zhen was a follower of Wang Zhi and became his sort-of successor after the latter's downfall. Originally a sea trader, Hong Di Zhen amassed vast wealth by bringing rich Japanese smugglers to trade in Nan'ao Island in 1555~1556, and unlike many of his peers he did not engage in piracy initially and even helped to ransom captives from the Wokou, making him a well-liked local hero. All this changed in 1558, however, as he went to reactivate his old base on Wuyu Island, and many ruffians and undesirables flocked under his banner. To slow the uptick of crime and illegal activities, local authorities tried to set up sea patrols, but the patrols failed to arrest anyone, and in their incompetence even detained legitimate merchant ships to pass them off as smugglers. This caused Hong Di Zhen to begin to look down on Ming authorities. To make the matters worse, local authorities then arrested family members of Hong Di Zhen, which enraged him and pushed him to openly rebel against Ming Dynasty.

On April 27, 1558, Hong Di Zhen led thousands of Wokou and landed in Putian. After pillaging several villages, he went on to attack Xinghua City on May 1, 1558. The city was only saved because it just happened that thousands of Ming troops (Miao auxiliary) from Hunan were passing by, and the locals hired them at a high price to defend the city. In the following month, Hong Di Zhen burnt down his lair on Wuyu Island, then launched a raid on Tong'an, although the attack was driven back by county magistrate Xu Zong Shi (徐宗奭). He then launched another raid on Tongshan (銅山, now part of Dongshan County), Zhangpu County and Zhao'an County in November or December 1558, however the second attack also failed. Not to be deterred easily, on December 22, 1558 Hong Di Zhen and Xie He (謝和, see above) led several thousand Wokou—survivors of Siege of Ceng Gang that included significant numbers of Japanese under direct command of Ōtomo Sōrin (大友宗麟) from a tribute mission-turned-piracy—and established a new base of operation on Wuyu Island. 

Now bolstered by large numbers of battle-hardened veterans and deadly Japanese warriors, Hong Di Zhen became far more dangerous than before. He launched a new raid in February or March 1559, first pillaging Yue Gang and seizing a number of large ships from the port, then dispersing his men to attack Zhupu (珠浦, present-day Jincheng Township), Guanyu (官嶼, part of Jinsha Township) and several other places on Kinmen before returning to Wuyu. He then joined force with other Wokou freshly arriving from Japan to launch a large-scale raid against Funing in April or May 1559, capturing Fu'an City and massacring more than 3,700 people, then attacked Fuzhou and laid waste to Yongfu County. It was only through the effort of Ming commander Li Peng Ju (黎鵬擧) that he was finally defeated. Fujian's grand coordinator Wang Xun (王詢) and several Ming commanders then took to the sea to pursue him, successfully sinking 78 pirate ships and killing, drowning and capturing thousands of Wokou. Hong Di Zhen fled to Haitan Island whereas some of his men retreated to Nan'ao Island, although he quickly resumed piratical activities in Zhangzhou and raided Dadeng Island in the same month. Nevertheless, he noticeably scaled down his piratical activities in the following year and even agreed to help Ming authorities to put down a rebellion in Yue Gang for a price in 1561, likely due to considerable numbers of Wokou from Ceng Gang leaving him and returning to Japan after his recent defeat.

Hong Di Zhen made a strong resurgence in 1562 just as Fujian was plunged into an unprecedented maelstrom of violence and chaos. With new waves of Wokou freshly arriving from Japan, Wokou remnants from Zhejiang surging into Fujian after being defeated by Ming commander Qi Ji Guang (戚繼光), and Chinese pirates elsewhere coming to Wuyu Island, Fujian now faced possibly the largest ever Wokou incursion of Jia Jing Da Wo Kou period. Countless Wokou rampaged across Fujian, laying waste to numerous villages, towns and cities, even setting up many strongholds and stockades on China's soil. The crisis was so dire that Qi Ji Guang was eventually called in to deal with the Wokou. Mustering his elite army, Qi Ji Guang swiftly eradicated the pirate lair on Hengyu Island (橫嶼島) and a series of Wokou strongholds around Niutian (牛田, present-day Longtian Town, Fuqing City), then pursued Wokou remnants to Lindun (林墩, part of Putian City) before utterly annihilating them. Meanwhile, Ming commander Yu Da You (俞大猷) and Liu Xian (劉顯) were also called in to destroy the pirate lair on Wuyu Island. Eventually, anti-Wokou operation in Fujian cumulated into a major military action where all three Ming commanders join force to destroy the last Wokou stronghold at Pinghaiwei (平海衛, now part of Xiuyu District) on May 12, 1563. With his power base severely diminished after suffering a series of devastating losses at the hands of Ming army, Hong Di Zhen was left with no other choice but to surrender to Ming authorities later in the same year. He was promptly executed.

Yan Shan Lao (嚴山老) (active at least since 1558 – 1559)

Yan Shan Lao was a pirate based in Yue Gang who seemed to be closely associated with Hong Di Zhen (洪迪珍, see above). His first appearance in historical records was due to a raid on Andong County (安東縣, present-day Lianshui County) in 1558, although he was already a notorious and cruel pirate by then. 

Yan Shan Lao took part in Hong Di Zhen's large scale raid against Fujian in April 1558, as part of the tens of thousands of Wokou that besieged Fuzhou City for fifty days. The city was only saved thanks to the valiant and astute effort of Ming minister and famous poet Zong Chen (宗臣), although the victory did little to deter the Wokou, as they quickly dispersed to pillage smaller cities nearby. Yan Shan Lao himself led four thousand Wokou and swiftly captured Fuqing City after battering its city walls with cannons from a nearby hill. He brutalised the hapless populace of Fuqing for two days, only leaving due to the long overdue arrival of Ming army. 

After the Fuqing massacre, roughly a thousand Wokou split off to attack Putian (the city was only saved thanks to locals hiring a contingent of passing-by Guangdong auxiliary troops to resist the Wokou, although the auxiliaries later pillaged the city themselves), whereas Yan Shan Lao brought the other three thousand to Quanzhou and besieged Chongwu Garrison as well as the nearby county seat of Hui'an. Qian Chu (錢儲), battalion commander of Chongwu Garrison, resolutely resisted the Wokou, going so far as to using his personal wealth to fund the operation of the entire garrison, and finally repelled the siege after nearly twenty days even though both sides suffered considerable casualties.

Meanwhile, resigned county magistrate Lin Xian (林咸) and retired official Li Kai (李愷) were recalled to defend Hui'an City with only several hundred soldiers. The Wokou employed then cutting-edge matchlock guns to inflict heavy casualties on the defenders, made several attempts to climb over city wall using rope ladders, and at one point even built several siege towers to attack the city. Fortunately, thanks to the valiant effort of Lin Xian and Li Kai, the timely reinforcement of Li Feng (李鳳) and forty Ming arquebusiers, the city managed to hold out for seven days until a larger relief force forced Yan Shan Lao to lift the siege. Yan Shan Lao then split out his crew into two groups. One group returned to Hui'an mere three days later to enact vengeance, attacking the nearby Yashan (鴨山) to lure out Lin Xian and killing him in an ambush, while the other group rampaged through Nan'an County (which was already evacuated) and attempted to besiege Quanzhou City and Yongnin City, although both attempts were repelled. The next month, Yan Shan Lao returned to Fujian and attacked Zhendong Garrison (鎮東衛, inside Haikou Town), killing the local volunteer leader Xie Jie Fu (謝介夫) who tried to resist him.

Fortunately, Yan Shan Lao's reign of terror wouldn't last for much longer, as he was soon caught up in the Ming counterattack against Hong Di Zhen in 1559. While Hong Di Zhen managed to escape and even made a resurgence several years later, Yan Shan Lao wasn't as lucky and became one of the prominent Wokou leaders to be captured by Ming navy in that operation.

Wu Ping (吳平) (active 1557 – 1566) (Undergoing revision)

Wu Ping was born in Zhao'an. He was a slave since youth and suffered abuses from his employer, but later escaped and joined a band of Wokou, where he served as their scout. Wu Ping gradually rose to power by absorbing Wokou remnants defeated by Ming forces elsewhere. At the height of his power, he commanded more than ten thousand men, and earned the respect from other Wokou leaders.

Wu Ping frequently raided the coasts of Chaozhou and Huizhou, causing untold mayhem. In 1564, Ming army led by Yu Da You (俞大猷) cleared out most of the Wokou at Chaozhou and Huizhou, and Wu Ping was forced to surrender and received pardon. However, Wu Ping rebuilt his fleet in secret and reverted to his old way in the same year.

Yu Da You wrote to Wu Gui Fang (吳桂芳) and Qi Ji Guang (戚繼光) and devised a plan to surround Wu Ping from three sides and destroy him once and for all. However, his plan was rejected and Ming army from Fujian attacked prematurely (in part fearing Wu Ping might be able to regroup with the rest of his Japanese allies). Alerted, Wu Ping fled to Nan'ao Island and built a fortified base. In 1565, a thirty thousand strong combined force led by both Yu Da You and Qi Ji Guang laid siege and captured Wu Ping's holdout, forcing him to fled to Annam (present-day Vietnam) on captured ships. He was defeated again by Tang Ke Kuan (湯克寬) at Wanqiaoshan (萬橋山), but managed to escape once more. Finally, Tang Ke Kuan surrounded and defeated Wu Ping at Yazhou Bay (崖州灣) in 1566.  

Wu Ping's defeat marked the last major victory of the anti-Wokou campaign, and the passing of Wokou era.

Zeng Yi Ben (曾一本) (active ? – 1569) (Undergoing revision)

A former member of Wu Ping's crew, Zeng Yi Ben stroke out on his own after the demise of his former leader. Before long, he absorbed and consolidated the remnants of Wu Ping's pirates and became the leader of a massive pirate fleet numbering more than two hundred ships and tens of thousands of pirates. Later he also expanded his organisation to include Japanese Wokou and even rebel Ming troops.

Unusual among the Wokou, Zeng Yi Ben's pirate fleet consisted of scores of large Wu Wei Chuan (烏尾船) warships captured from Dongguan and was, up until that point, the most powerful war fleet ever encountered by Ming navy. With his powerful fleet, Zeng Yi Ben terrorised Chaozhou, Leizhou and Qiongzhou essentially unopposed. He even managed to kidnap the county magistrate of Chenghai for three months, attacked the Portuguese in Macau, and launched a surprise attack against a fleet of half-completed Ming warships in Guangzhou, making away with several finished Ming warships and put the rest to the torch.

To counter this unprecedented threat, Ming navies from Fujian, Guangdong and Guangxi launched a massive naval operation—the largest since Zheng He's Treasure Voyages—with a combined fleet of 24 ironclad Feng Zhou (封舟), 120 large Fu Chuan (福船), 70 large Wu Chuan (烏船), and 210 smaller warships of various classes. Zeng Yi Ben showed no sign of fear against such a powerful Ming fleet, and even launched a preemptive attack against the docked Guangdong fleet. Unfortunately for Zeng Yi Ben, not even his powerful warships stood a chance against the massive iron-armoured hulls of Feng Zhou, and the pirate fleet suffered massive casualties as a result. The timely reinforcement of combined Fujian and Guangxi fleet that attacked Zeng Yi Ben from behind decisively crushed the pirate fleet, forcing him to flee. The combined Ming fleet then proceeded to launch a series of counterattack in the following days, destroying the pirates for good. Zeng Yi Ben was captured after his flagship was sunk by cannon fire in one of the battles, and he died in captivity soon afterwards.

Post-Jiajing period

Lin Dao Qian/Lim To Khiam (林道乾) (active 1561 – early 17th century) (Undergoing revision)

Original Seri Patani cannon, also known as Phraya Tani, currently kept outside of Ministry of Defence building, Bangkok.

Also known as Lin Wu Liang (林悟梁), Vintoquián in Spanish and Tok Kayan in Malay, Lin Dao Qian was born in Chenghai. He briefly served as a county servant before turning to piracy. Lin Dao Qian's career as a pirate is shrouded in mystery. It is known that he raided Zhao'an in either 1563 or 1566 (or both), but was defeated by Yu Da You (俞大猷) and forced to flee to Cambodia. He later converted to Islam and settled in Sultanate of Patani, where he either held a high government position, or wed Ratu Hijau (Malay for Green Queen), Queen Regent of Sultanate of Patani.

Legend has it that Lin Dao Qian cast two heavy siege cannons, known as Seri Patani and Seri Negara, for Ratu Hijau. However he lost his life trying to cast the third cannon, which resulted in a catastrophe. After the fall of Sultanate of Patani to Rattanakosin Kingdom of Siam in 1785, the Siamese attempted to bring the cannons back to Bangkok as spoils of war. Though they successfully brought Seri Patani back to Bangkok, where it still stands to this day, Seri Negara was lost to the storm during transit.

Lin Feng/Lim Hong (林鳳) (active 1567 – 1589) (Undergoing revision)

'Ang Pagsalakay ng mga Kawal ni Limahong', an oil painting by Juanito Torres in 2011, depicting Lin Feng's siege of Manila.

Also known as Lin A Feng/Limahong (林阿鳳), Lin Feng joined the pirate band of Tia La Ong/Tial Lao (泰老翁) at the age of nineteen, and soon succeeded him as leader of the pirate band. Many sources (including some Ming records) mistaken Lin Feng and Lin Dao Qian (林道乾) to be the same person, while in reality they were two different figures, contemporary but also rival of each other. Lin Feng rose to prominence in 1573 and managed to defeat and absorb the pirate fleet of Lin Dao Qian, replacing him as the largest pirate faction of the time.

After he suffered repeated defeats by Ming navy in 1574, he retreated to Penghu, then to Wang Gang (魍港, present-day Budai, Taiwan), defeated and terrorised the aboriginals. Ming navy sent out a pursuit force and got into contact with the aboriginals, and the combined force defeated Lin Feng's pirates. In November 1574, Lin Feng retreated to Penghu to gather the remnant of his fleet and set sail to Philippines. He laid siege to Spanish colony of Manila and killed Martín de Goiti, Maestre de Campo of Manila. Nevertheless, his pirates were met with strong resistance and eventually driven away. Lin Feng relocated to Lingayen, subjugating the locals and set up a pirate base/kingdom. With the help from five thousand Filipino warriors hired by Ming official Wang Wang Gao (王望高, known as Omoncon in Spanish records) sent to capture him, Spanish colonists eventually dislodged Lin Feng from Lingayen after a four month long siege, but he somehow managed to slip away unscathed.

Lin Feng returned to China and resumed his pirate operation once again. He was still active as late as 1589, and escaped several attempts by Ming army to capture or kill him. He eventually fled to Siam, never to be heard from ever since.

Li Mao (李茂) (active ? – 1589)

(to be updated)

Late Ming period

The conclusion of Sengoku Jidai (戦国時代) and the enforcement of Sakoku (鎖国) isolationist policy caused pirates of this period to lose almost all of their Japanese characteristics. While some pirates maintained good relationship with Japan, and even acquired shuinjō (朱印状) trading permit from Japan, Japanese pirates became a rare sight.

Despite this, Wokou raids not associated with these pirate leaders still occurred from time to time.

Yan Si Qi (嚴思齊) (active 1603 – 1625)

(to be updated)

Zheng Zhi Long (鄭芝龍) (active ? – 1646) (Undergoing revision)

Eighteenth century European impression of Zheng Zhilong, taken from the cartouche of the map 'Iles aux environs de la Chine où se tenoient autrefois les fameux pirates Yquen et Koxinga, suivant les mémoires d'un fidèle voyageur' by Van Der Aa, Pieter.

Also known as Nicholas Iquan Gaspard and father of the legendary Koxinga, Zheng Zhi Long was born in Nan'an, Fujian. He learnt the trade of merchantmanship from his uncle Huang Cheng (黃程) at Macau, and later joined the pirate confederation of another Chinese pirate Li Dan (李旦, also known by his baptismal name Andrea Dittis and nickname "Captain China") and Yan Si Qi (顏思齊), where he served as a translator and negotiator. They set up a smuggling port at Formosa (present-day Taiwan), and assisted the Dutch to settle on Tayouan (大圓, present-day Anping, Taiwan) after they were chased away from Penghu in 1624.

Zheng Zhi Long succeeded Li Dan as the leader in 1625. He went into conflict with Xu Xin Su (許心素), a former subordinate of Li Dan that sided with the Ming Dynasty, and killed him. Nevertheless, Zheng Zhi Long himself surrendered to Ming Dynasty in 1628 and was appointed an admiral. His surrender made him an enemy of his former allies and subordinates, but he managed to defeat them all (including the Dutch during Battle of Liaoluo Bay) and effectively monopolised China's maritime trade business with Japan, Portuguese, Spanish, Dutch and Southeast Asia.

After the fall of Ming Dynasty in 1644, Qing army began to approach Zheng Zhi Long's base at Anping (安平, present-day Anhai). He decided to defect to Qing Dynasty on the promise of great reward, but was put under house arrest and later executed in 1661.

Liu Xiang (劉香) (active ? – 1635) (Undergoing revision)

Liu Xiang was also known as Liu Xiang Lao (劉香佬). He was a former ally of Zheng Zhi Long, but disagreed with his decision to surrender to Ming Dynasty, so they went their separate ways. Since then, he participated in a series of three-sided conflicts between Ming navy (under Zheng Zhi Long), Dutch East India Company (under Hans Putmans) and Chinese pirates.

Liu Xiang sided with Dutch East India Company during the Battle of Liaoluo Bay, but was defeated by Zheng Zhi Long. The defeat caused the Dutch to reconsider their foreign policy with China. As the Dutch distanced themselves from Chinese pirates and tried to normalise trade relation with Ming Dynasty, Liu Xiang, feeling betrayed, attacked the Fort Zeelandia in 1634 with six hundred pirates. He was repelled by the Dutch, but managed to blockade Dutch trading port with fifty junks. Unfortunately, Liu Xiang suffered six consecutive defeats and killed by Zheng Zhi Long in the next year.

Other blog posts about my Wokou series:
Enemy of the Ming — Jia Jing Da Wo Kou — Part 1
Enemy of the Ming — Jia Jing Da Wo Kou — Part 2
Enemy of the Ming — Jia Jing Da Wo Kou — Part 3 (Temporary hidden for future revision)