The Gongche Shangshu movement (Traditional Chinese: 公車上書, Simplified Chinese: 公车上书) was a politcal movement in late Qing dynasty China, seeking reforms and expressing opposition to the Treaty of Shimonoseki in 1895. It is considered the first modern political movement in China. Leaders of the movement later became leaders of the Hundred Days' Reform. Traditional Chinese characters are one of two standard character sets of printed contemporary Chinese written language. ... The Qing Dynasty (Chinese: ; Pinyin: QÄ«ng cháo; Wade-Giles: Ching chao; Manchu: daicing gurun), occasionally known as the Manchu Dynasty, is a Chinese term for the Empire of the Great Qing (Traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: dàqÄ«ngguó), founded by the Manchu clan Aisin Gioro, in what... The Shunpanrō hall where the Treaty of Shimonoseki was signed The Treaty of Shimonoseki (Japanese: 下関条約, Shimonoseki Jōyaku), known as the Treaty of Maguan (T. Chinese: 馬關條約, S. Chinese: 马关条约;) in China, was signed at the Shunpanrō hall on April 17, 1895 between the Empire of Japan and the Qing Empire. ... 1895 (MDCCCXCV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ... The Hundred Days Reform (Chinese: 戊戌变法, wùxÅ« biànfÇŽ, or 百日維新, bÇŽirì wéixÄ«n) was a 103-day reform from 11 June to 21 September 1898. ...

Events

In 1895, China was defeated by Japan in the First Sino-Japanese War and was forced to signed the Treaty of Shimonoseki, which ceded Taiwan and Liaodong to Japan in perpetuity, and imposed reparation obligations of 200 million (not billion) taels of silver on China. At the time, the imperial civil service examination was in progress in Beijing. When news reached the candidates, they became agitated, especially candidates from Taiwan whose province was about to become Japanese. 1895 (MDCCCXCV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ... Combatants Qing Empire (China) Empire of Japan Commanders Li Hongzhang Yamagata Aritomo Strength 630,000 men Beiyang Army, Beiyang Fleet 240,000 men Imperial Japanese Army, Imperial Japanese Navy Casualties 35,000 dead or wounded 13,823 dead, 3,973 wounded The First Sino–Japanese War (Traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: Zh... The Shunpanrō hall where the Treaty of Shimonoseki was signed The Treaty of Shimonoseki (Japanese: 下関条約, Shimonoseki Jōyaku), known as the Treaty of Maguan (T. Chinese: 馬關條約, S. Chinese: 马关条约;) in China, was signed at the Shunpanrō hall on April 17, 1895 between the Empire of Japan and the Qing Empire. ... The Liaodong Peninsula (sim. ... Beijing [English Pronunciation] (Chinese: 北京 [Chinese Pronunciation]; Pinyin: Běijīng; IPA: ), a city in northern China, is the capital of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC). ...

Five days after the signature of the treaty, on April 22, civil examination candidates led by Kang Youwei signed a ten-thousand-word petition to the Emperor, against the Treaty of Shimonoseki. The petition had 5 main points: April 22 is the 112th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (113th in leap years). ... Kang Youwei (Chinese: 康有為; March 19, 1858–March 31, 1927) was a Chinese scholar and political reformist. ... The Shunpanrō hall where the Treaty of Shimonoseki was signed The Treaty of Shimonoseki (Japanese: 下関条約, Shimonoseki Jōyaku), known as the Treaty of Maguan (T. Chinese: 馬關條約, S. Chinese: 马关条约;) in China, was signed at the Shunpanrō hall on April 17, 1895 between the Empire of Japan and the Qing Empire. ...

• Cancel the Treaty of Shimonoseki
• Refuse peace talks with Japan
• Move the capital to Shanghai
• Modernization of Qing Imperial Army
• Implement Reforms

After the Qing Government refused, on May 2, thousands of Beijing scholars and citizens protested against the Treaty of Shimonoseki in front of the Ducha Yuan. Shanghai (Chinese: ; pinyin: ; Shanghainese: ), stuated on the banks of the Yangtze River Delta in East China, is the largest city of the Peoples Republic of China. ... May 2 is the 122nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (123rd in leap years). ...

Name

The name of this incident, Gongche Shangshu, literally means "Public Vehicle Petition". Gongche, or "Public Vehicle", was a poetic name for civil service candidates from various provinces, and is an allusion to the practice in the Han dynasty where candidates would be transported to the capital by publicly funded transport. The Han Dynasty (Traditional Chinese: ; Simplified Chinese: ; Hanyu Pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Han Chau; 206 BC–AD 220) followed the Qin Dynasty and preceded the Three Kingdoms in China. ...

Legacy

Although the movement was unsuccessful in asking the Qing Government to start reforms, many people in the traditional Chinese community began to realise the importance of reforms. Leaders of the movement such as Kang Youwei, Liang Qichao, Tan Sitong and Yan Fu started published newspapers in Beijing, Shanghai, and other cities, rised attention to the emperor, who later invited them to enter the government to implement reforms. Although both the movement and later the reforms in 1898 failed, many scholars in big cities swifted from supporting the traditional thinking to support reforms or revolution. Kang Youwei (Chinese: 康有為; March 19, 1858–March 31, 1927) was a Chinese scholar and political reformist. ... Portrait of Liang Qichao (Tung Wah News, 17 April 1901) Liang Qichao (Chinese: 梁啟超, Liáng Qǐchāo; Courtesy: Zhuoru, 卓如; Pseudonym: Rengong, 任公) (February 23, 1873–January 19, 1929) was a Chinese scholar, journalist, philosopher and reformist during the Qing Dynasty (1644–1911) who inspired Chinese scholars with his writings and... Tan Sitong (Chinese:谭嗣同, Courtesy: Fusheng 复生, Pseudonym Zhuangfei 壮飞; 1865—1898) was an eminent Chinese revolutionary in the late Qing Dynasty who was in support of liberal reform. ... Yan Fu (1853–1921) Yan Fu (Traditional Chinese:嚴復; courtesy name:幾道, Jidao) (December 10, 1853–October 27, 1921) was a Chinese scholar, most famous for introducing Western thoughts, including Darwins ideas of natural selection and survival of the fittest, into China during the late 19th century. ... Beijing [English Pronunciation] (Chinese: 北京 [Chinese Pronunciation]; Pinyin: Běijīng; IPA: ), a city in northern China, is the capital of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC). ... Shanghai (Chinese: ; pinyin: ; Shanghainese: ), stuated on the banks of the Yangtze River Delta in East China, is the largest city of the Peoples Republic of China. ... 1898 (MDCCCXCVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Monday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ...

Reference

• Kang Youwei and Gongche Shangshu Movement

External Links

• Original text in Chinese Wiki Source