Southern Song Huaixi frontier army organization

Timeline

1. 1161Shouchun to Caishi (modern Shouxian to Ma'anshan, Anhui) · HuaixiWanyan Liang personally led the main force from Shouchun to attack Huaixi; the original commander-in-chief Wang Quan, fearing the enemy, fled south and was dismissed; the Huaixi garrison of about 18,000 men retreated to Caishi, without a commander and with sagging morale, and the frontier army organization faced collapse.
2. 1161Caishi (modern Ma'anshan, Anhui) · CaishiSecretariat drafter Yu Yunwen arrived at Caishi to reward the troops and resolutely consolidated the scattered Huaixi remnants of about 18,000 men along the river; with paddle-wheel Haiqiu boats of the navy supporting the infantry, he defeated Wanyan Liang's attempt to cross the river at Caishi, demonstrating the frontier army organization's capacity for reorganization at a critical moment.
3. 1163–1166Luzhou, Haozhou, Anfeng Commandery in Huaixi · HuaixiAccording to the Military Treatise of the History of Song, the Huaixi frontier forces were garrisoned at Luzhou (Qiangyong, Wuding, Youyi, etc.), Haozhou (Wuding Xuanfeng, Weisheng, Youji, etc.), and Anfeng Commandery (Wuding Front Army, city defense garrison, etc.), using a five-level structure of commander-in-chief—commander—chief/deputy commander—unit, with about 50 men per unit.
4. 1164–1170Huai River–Yangtze defense line · JianghuaiAfter the Longxing Peace of 1164, the court appointed a new commander to reorganize the Huaixi Imperial Front Armies, strengthening the commander-in-chief's control over the front, middle, left, right, and rear armies, and adding units such as the Chizhou Commander's Right Army at places like Chao County in Wuwei Commandery, forming a echelon defense system from the Huai River to the Yangtze.