Is there really a Yang Men female general in history?

According to the newspaper, Field Marshal Montgomery (a Briton), who had led the Allied forces in Europe to victory over fascist Germany, visited China in the early 1960s. While on foreign affairs, he was perplexed by a Peking Opera play, "Yang Men Women Generals," arranged for him to watch by the Chinese side, and through the interpreter, Mr. Montgomery questioned the impossibility of a woman being the Field Marshal. The Chinese staff member, who was young and impetuous and also convinced by the story of Yang Men Women Generals, retorted, "Why is it impossible? Isn't your queen the commander of the three armies?" The staff member was severely criticized afterwards. Obviously, in addition to making a mistake in diplomatic etiquette, the staff member, like thousands of Chinese, believed that Yangmen's female generals were historically proven, and thus had unwittingly entered into a misunderstanding.

Yangmen women's generals from the "Yang Family House generations of loyal and courageous popular play" and "Yang Family Generals" two books attached to the main characters are She Taijun, Wang Huai female, Mu Guiying and so on. Some of these characters because of good artistic image, y loved by the people, but the examination of the history, but are "false" stream.

In order to illustrate the "Yang Women General", we might as well take a look at the "Yang Family General".

Yang family generals half-true half-false confusing

In people's traditional impression, the genealogy of the Yang family generals is this:

The first generation, the Golden Sword Order of the Lord Yang Jiye, Jiye has eight sons, the sixth son named Yang Yanzhao, also known as Yang Sixth son, Sixth son named Wenguang, Wenguang's son Zongbao, Zongbao's son named Huaiyu.

Are these impressions reliable?

Our opinion is:

(1) Yang Jiye is a real person in history, but most of the popular rumors about the grudges between him and Pan Renmei are false, so we may as well use history as evidence.

Song history - Yang Ye biography: "Yang Ye, and state Taiyuan people. ...... Weak crown thing Liu Chong for the defense of the commanding officer. With the prima donna known. Accumulated relocation to Jianxiong army section minister, repeated war successes, the direction of the Ketsu, the country's people called 'invincible'. (Song) Taizong conquered Taiyuan, known for its name, taste purchase. Both the isolated base is very dangerous, industry persuade its Lord Jiyuan surrender, to protect the gathering of life. Jiyuan both surrendered, the emperor sent in the ambassador summoned to see the industry, great joy, as the right general of the army guards, the division is still, awarded the Zhengzhou assassin. ...... Yongxi three years, the army northern expedition, to Zhongwu army sectional make Pan Mei for the cloud should be road camping are deployed, the order of the industry vice. To the west on the cabinet door to make, the Uizhou assassin Wang Susumu, military weapon library to make, the Shunzhou regiment to make Liu Wenyu to protect his army. ...... when the qidan mother xiao with her minister yelu hanning, north and south pi room and five押惕隐领众十余万万，复陷寰州。 The industry said: 'now the Liao troops are more and more abundant, not with the war! The court stops to take the people of several states, but lead the troops out of the Dashi Road, first sent people to inform the cloud, Shuo state guards, once the army left Daizhou day, so that the crowd of cloud state first. My division should be state, the Khitan will come to reject, that is, let Shuo state people out of the city, straight into the Shijie Valley. Send crossbow thousands of people, listed in the mouth of the valley, to the knight aid in the middle, then the three states of the people to protect ten thousand carry on! Susumu frustrated his proposal said: 'leading tens of thousands of troops and fear of cowardice so? But tend to Yanmen North Chuanzhong, drum line and go! Wen Yu is also in favor of it. Ye said: 'No! This is bound to lose the momentum also!'' Susumu said: 'Junhou Su No. invincible, now see the enemy to tease and not fight, can not have other will?' Ye said: 'non-avoidance of death, cover the time there is not favorable, in vain to kill and maim soldiers and merit not established! Now you are responsible for industry to avoid the enemy, when for the public first! Will travel, sobbed and said: 'This trip will be unfavorable! Ye, Taiyuan surrendered generals, points should die, on not kill, favor to even marshal, awarded the military handle, not indulge the enemy does not hit, cover wait for its convenience, will be the size of the work to repay the country. Today, you are responsible for the industry to avoid the enemy, industry when the first death of the enemy! Because pointing to the Chenjia Valley mouth said: 'all gentleman in this infantry crossbow, for the left and right wing to aid, once the industry turned to this, that is to infantry attack to save it, otherwise, there is no class to be left behind! The United States and Susumu led the soldiers under the banner of Chen in the valley, from the c to the Si. Susumu made people climbed to the log platform to look at, thought the Khitan defeat, want to fight for its success. That is to lead the troops away from the mouth of the valley, the United States can not control, is the edge of the Cross River southwest of the line has twenty miles, Russia heard the defeat of the industry, that is, the banner troops but go. Ye fought hard, from noon to twilight, the fruit to the mouth of the valley, looking at no one, that is, bent over in deep mourning, and then led the troops to fight, body was dozens of wounds, soldiers were exhausted, Ye is still hand to kill dozens of hundreds of people. The horse was seriously injured and could not advance, so he was captured by the Khitan. His son Yan Yu also died. Ye because of too much sigh, said: 'on the encounter with me thick, the period of the thieves to defend the border to the extreme, but instead for the treacherous ministers forced, resulting in the defeat of the king's division, how to face to seek to live?' He died without eating for three days."

From this account, we can see: Yang Ye and Pan Mei (novelists as "Pan Renmei") is not a feud. Chenjiagou forced Yang Ye to march, and then the troops will receive the withdrawal of the person is Wang Susumu rather than Pan Mei. According to the Song History - Wang Susumu biography, Wang Susumu word secret power, Kaifeng Joon Yi people, his father Wang Park, served as a Privy Councilor of the latter Zhou Dynasty, because of the policy on the preparation of the border and famous for a while. Although Wang Susumu is a famous family, I also have a war, but its people "sex headstrong", "in order to stimulate Yang Ye, Ye because of the force of the war, trapped in the array, Susumu sat in the name of removal, with the affiliation of the Jinzhou".

The Pan Renmei (Pan Mei), who was so bad in the novelist's writing, was not that bad, at least, he did not plan Yang Ye at the mouth of Chenjiagou, and he did not stay still and shoot Yang Qilang, as depicted in popular novels or TV dramas. If he had any faults in this battle, it was only because he mistakenly believed in the words of Wang Susumu.