The Battle of Beijing (Yenching) was a battle in 1214 between the Mongols and the JurchenJin Dynasty, which controlled northern China. It saw the Mongols win and allowed them to continue their conquest of China.
The year 1211 marked the beginning of the war between the Mongols and the Jin Dynasty. The Jin Dynasty was very powerful and was able to hold Genghis Khan (Temüjin) and his Mongol army at bay for the first two years of the war.
Throughout this time however, Temüjin continued to build his forces and by 1213 had an army so powerful that they conquered all of the Chin territory up to the Great Wall of China. From this strategic location, Temüjin made the decision to split up his forces into three smaller armies in an attempt to break through the wall and finish his conquest of China. He sent his brother, Kasar, as the head of one of these armies east into Manchuria. He sent another army south toward Shan-si under command of his three oldest sons. Temüjin led the third army, along with his son Tuli, towards Shan-Tung. The plan was a success as all three armies broke through the wall in different places.
The battle for Beijing was long and tiresome, but the Mongols proved to be more powerful as they finally took the city in 1214, massacring its inhabitants. This opened the Yellow River valley to further Mongol ravages.
Following the Battle of Lugou Bridge in 1937, the Japanese occupied Shanghai, Nanjing and Southern Shanxi as part of campaigns involving approximately 200,000 Japanese soldiers, and considerably more Chinese soldiers.
While the battle was a military defeat for the Chinese, it proved that China was not willing to be defeated and showcased the Chinese determination to the world.
The battle lasted over three months and proved to be an enormous morale booster as it ended the Japanese taunt of conquering Shanghai in three days and China in three months.
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