Li Hongzhang
Names
Simplified Chinese:	李鸿章
Traditional Chinese:	李鴻章
Pinyin:	Lǐ Hóngzhāng
Wade-Giles:	Li Hung-chang
Courtesy names (字):	Jianfu (漸甫) Zifu (子黻)
Pseudonyms (號): (Yisou and Shengxin used in his old age)	Shaoquan (少荃) Yisou (儀叟) Shengxin (省心)
Nickname:	Mr. Li the Second (李二先生) (i.e. 2nd son of his father)
Posthumous name:	Wenzhong (文忠) (Refined and Loyal)

Li Hongzhang (February 15, 1823 – November 7, 1901) was a Chinese general who ended several major rebellions, and a leading statesman of the late Qing Empire. Li Hung Chang, photo from 1899 book This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... Chinese personal names follow a number of conventions different from those of Western personal names. ... Simplified Chinese characters (Simplified Chinese: 简体字; Traditional Chinese: 簡體字; pinyin: jiǎntǐzì; also called 简化字/簡化字, jiǎnhuàzì) are one of two standard character sets of printed contemporary Chinese written language. ... Traditional Chinese characters are one of two standard character sets of printed contemporary Chinese written language. ... Pinyin (Chinese: 拼音, pÄ«nyÄ«n) literally means join (together) sounds (a less literal translation being phoneticize, spell or transcription) in Chinese and usually refers to HànyÇ” PÄ«nyÄ«n (汉语拼音, literal meaning: Han language pinyin), which is a system of romanization (phonemic notation and transcription to Roman script) for Standard... Wade-Giles, sometimes abbreviated Wade, is a Romanization (phonetic notation and transliteration) system for the Chinese language based on Mandarin. ... A Chinese style name, sometimes also known as a courtesy name, is an extra name that could be used in place of the given name. ... A Chinese style name, sometimes also known as a courtesy name, is an extra name that could be used in place of the given name. ... A nickname is a short, clever, cute, derogatory, or otherwise substitute name for a person or things real name (for example, Tom is short for Thomas). ... A posthumous name (Traditional Chinese: 諡號/謚號 Simplified Chinese: 谥号; Pinyin: shì hào; Romaji: shigō/tsuigō; Revised Romanization of Korean: siho) is a honorary name given to royalty in some cultures posthumously, that is, after the persons death. ... February 15 is the 46th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1823 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... November 7 is the 311th day of the year (312th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 54 days remaining. ... 1901 (MCMI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... General is a high military rank, used by nearly every country in the world. ... The Qing Dynasty (Manchu: daicing gurun; Chinese: 清朝; pinyin: qīng cháo; Wade-Giles: ching chao), sometimes known as the Manchu Dynasty, was founded by the Manchu clan Aisin Gioro, in what is today northeast China expanded into China proper and the surrounding territories of Inner Asia, establishing the...

Life

Li Hongzhang was born Li Tongzhang (李銅章) in the village of Qunzhi (群治村) in Modian township (磨店乡), 14 kilometers (9 miles) northeast of downtown Hefei, Anhui. From very early in life he showed remarkable ability, and he became a shengyuan when at a young age. In 1847 he obtained jinshi degree, the highest level in the Imperial examination system. Two years later gained admittance into the Imperial Hanlin College (翰林院). Shortly after this the central provinces of the empire were invaded by the Taiping rebels, and in defence of his native district he raised a regiment of militia. His service to the imperial cause attracted the attention of Zeng Guofan, the generalissimo in command. Hefei (Chinese: 合肥; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Hofei) is the capital of Anhui Province of China. ... Anhui (Chinese: 安徽; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: An-hui; Postal System Pinyin: Ngan-hui, Anhwei or An-hwei) is a province of the Peoples Republic of China. ... The imperial examinations (科舉, kējǔ) in dynastic China determined positions in the civil service, which had promoted upward mobility among the people for centuries. ... The Taiping Rebellion (1851 - 1864) was the second bloodiest conflict in history, a clash between the forces of Imperial China and those inspired by a Hakka self-proclaimed mystic named Hong Xiuquan, who was also a Christian convert who had claimed that he was the new Messiah and younger brother... Zēng Guófán (曾國藩; Wade-Giles: Tseng Kuo-fan, Courtesy name Bóhán 伯函, Hao: Díshēng 滌生) (November 21, 1811 – March 12, 1872) was an eminent Han Chinese official of the Manchu Qing Dynasty. ...

In 1859 Li Hongzhang was transferred to the province of Fujian, where he was given the rank of taotai, or intendant of circuit. But at Zeng's request Li was recalled to take part against the rebels. He found his cause supported by the "Ever Victorious Army," which, having been raised by an American named Frederick Townsend Ward, was placed under the command of Charles George Gordon. With this support Li gained numerous victories leading to the surrender of Suzhou and the capture of Nanjing. For these exploits he was made governor of Jiangsu, was decorated with a imperial yellow jacket, and was enfeoffed as an earl. Fujian (Chinese: 福建; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Fu-chien; Postal System Pinyin: Fukien, Foukien; local transliteration Hokkien from Min Nan Hok-kiàn) is one of the provinces on the southeast coast of China. ... Circuits in the common law In law, a circuit is an appellate judicial district commonly seen in the court systems of many nations. ... Frederick Townsend Ward (1831-1862) was a sailor, mercenary and soldier of fortune famous for his military victories for Imperial China during the Taiping Rebellion. ... Chinese Gordon as Governor of Sudan Charles George Gordon, C.B. (January 28, 1833 - January 26, 1885), known as Chinese Gordon, Gordon Pasha, and Gordon of Khartoum, was a British army officer and administrator. ... Suzhou (Simplified Chinese: 苏州; Traditional Chinese: 蘇州; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Su-chou; sometimes seen transliterated as Su-chow, Suchow, or Soochow) is one of the most famous cities in China. ... Nanjing (Chinese: 南京; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Nan-ching; Postal System Pinyin: Nanking), is the capital of Chinas Jiangsu Province and a city with a prominent place in Chinese history and culture. ... Jiangsu (Simplified Chinese: 江苏; Traditional Chinese: 江蘇; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Chiang-su; Postal System Pinyin: Kiangsu) is a province of the Peoples Republic of China, located along the east coast of the country. ...

An incident connected with the surrender of Suzhou, however, soured Li's relationship with Gordon. By an arrangement with Gordon, the rebel princes yielded Nanjing on condition that their lives should be spared. In spite of the agreement, Li ordered their instant execution. This breach of faith so infuriated Gordon's that he seized a rifle, intending to shoot the falsifier of his word, and would have done so had Li not fled. On the suppression of the rebellion (1864) Li took up his duties as governor, but was not long allowed to remain in civil life. On the outbreak of the Nian Rebellion in Henan and Shandong (1866), he was ordered again to take to the field, and after some misadventures he succeeded in suppressing the movement. A year later he was appointed viceroy of Huguang, where he remained until 1870, when the Tianjin massacre necessitated his transfer to the scene of the outrage. He was, as a natural consequence, appointed to the viceroyalty of the metropolitan province of Zhili, and justified his appointment by the energy with which he suppressed all attempts to keep alive the anti-foreign sentiment among the people. For his services he was made imperial tutor and member of the grand council of the empire, and was decorated with many-eyed peacocks' feathers. The Nien Rebellion was an uprising that took place in northern China from 1851-1863. ... Henan (Chinese: 河南; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Ho-nan), is a province of the Peoples Republic of China, located in the central part of the country. ... Shandong (Simplified Chinese: 山东; Traditional Chinese: 山東; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Shan-tung) is a coastal province of eastern Peoples Republic of China. ... A viceroy is a royal official who governs a country or province as a substitute for the monarch. ... Huguang was a province of China during the Ming Dynasty. ... Tianjin (Chinese: 天津; pinyin: ; Postal System Pinyin: Tientsin) is one of the four municipalities of the Peoples Republic of China. ... The Viceroy of Zhili (直隸總督/直隶总督), fully referred to as the Governor General of Zhili and surrounding areas; Overseeing Military Affairs, Food Production; Manager of Waterways; Director of Civil Affairs (總督直隸等處地方，提督軍務、糧餉、管理河道兼巡撫事), was one of eight viceroys of the Qing Dynasty. ... Not to be confused with the unrelated province of Hubei Hebei (Chinese: 河北; pinyin: Hébĕi; Wade-Giles: Ho-pei; Postal System Pinyin: Hopeh), is a northern province of the Peoples Republic of China. ...

Li Hongzhang with Lord Salisbury and Lord Curzon

To his duties as viceroy were added those of the superintendent of trade, and from that time until his death, with a few intervals of retirement, he practically conducted the foreign policy of China. He concluded the Chifu convention with Sir Thomas Wade (1876), and thus ended the difficulty caused by the murder of Mr Margary in Yunnan; he arranged treaties with Peru and Japan, and he actively directed the Chinese policy in Korea. On the death of the Tongzhi Emperor in 1875 he, by suddenly introducing, a large armed force into the capital, effected a coup d'etat by which the Guangxu Emperor was put on the throne under the tutelage, of the two dowager empresses; and in 1886, on the conclusion of the Franco-Chinese War, he arranged a treaty with France. Li was always strongly impressed with the necessity of strengthening the empire, and when viceroy of Zhili he raised a large well-drilled and well-armed force, and spent vast sums both in fortifying Port Arthur and the Taku forts and in increasing the navy. For years he had watched the successful reforms effected in Japan and had a well-founded dread of coming into conflict with that empire. Download high resolution version (518x744, 165 KB)This image is from Memoirs of Li Hung Chang, edited by William Francis Mannix. ... Download high resolution version (518x744, 165 KB)This image is from Memoirs of Li Hung Chang, edited by William Francis Mannix. ... The Most Honourable Robert Arthur Talbot Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury, KG, GCVO, PC (3 February 1830–22 August 1903), known as Lord Robert Cecil before 1865 and as Viscount Cranborne from 1865 until 1868, was a British statesman and Prime Minister. ... George Nathaniel Curzon, 1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston (January 11, 1859 – March 20, 1925), was a conservative British statesman who served as Viceroy of India. ... Sir Thomas Francis Wade (August 25, 1818 - July 31, 1895) was a London-born British diplomat and Sinologist linguist who invented what was to become the Wade-Giles Romanization for Mandarin Chinese. ... Yunnan (Simplified: 云南; Traditional: 雲南; Hanyu Pinyin: ; Vietnamese: Vân Nam) is a province of the Peoples Republic of China, located in the far southwestern corner of the country. ... Korea is a country divided into two independent nations, South Korea and North Korea, whose people share history, language, and ethnicity. ... The Tongzhi Emperor (April 27, 1856–January 12, 1875) was the ninth emperor of the Manchu Qing dynasty, and the eighth Qing emperor to rule over China, from 1861 to 1875. ... A coup détat, or simply a coup, is the sudden overthrow of a government, usually done by a small group that just replaces the top power figures. ... The Guangxu Emperor (August 14, 1871–November 14, 1908), born Zaitian(載湉), was the tenth emperor of the Manchu Qing dynasty, and the ninth Qing emperor to rule over China, his reign lasting from 1875 to 1908, but in practice ruling from 1890 to 1898. ... Empress Dowager (Chinese and Japanese: 皇太后; Chinese pinyin Húang Tài Hòu, Japanese pronunciation: Kōtaigō) was title given to the mother of a Chinese emperor. ... The Franco-Chinese War was a war fought between the French Third Republic and Qing Empire that lasted from September 1884 to June 1885. ... Location within China Lüshun city or Lüshunkou or (literally) Lüshun Port (Simplified Chinese: 旅顺口; Traditional Chinese: 旅順口; pinyin: , formerly in historic references both Port Arthur and Ryojun, is a town in the southernmost administrative district of Dalian of the Peoples Republic of China. ... The Taku Forts (or Dagu Fort; Chinese: 大沽船坞; pinyin: dagu paotai) are forts located by the Hai He (Peiho River) estuary, in Tanggu District, Tianjin municipality, in northeastern China. ...

Because of his prominent role in Chinese diplomacy in Korea and of his strong political connections in Manchuria, Li Hongzhang found himself leading Chinese forces during the disastrous Sino-Japanese War (1894-1895). In fact, it was mostly the armies that he established and controlled that did the fighting, whereas other Chinese troops led by his rivals and political enemies did not come to their aid. The fact that some of his men were extremely corrupt further disadvantaged China from the beginning of the war. For instance, one official used ammunition funds for personal use. As a result, shells ran out for the some of the battleships during battle such that one navy commander, Deng Shichang, resorted to ramming the enemies' ship. The defeat of his relatively modernized troops and a small naval force at the hands of the Japanese greatly undermined his political standing, as well as the wider cause of the Self-Strengthening Movement. Extent of Manchuria according to Definition 1 (dark red), Definition 3 (dark red + medium red) and Definition 4 (dark red + medium red + light red) Manchuria (Manchu: Manju, Simplified Chinese: 满洲; Traditional Chinese: 滿洲; pinyin: ) is name given to a vast territorial region in northeast Asia. ... Japan and Qing China fought the First Sino-Japanese War (or the Qing-Japanese War) during 1894 and 1895, primarily over control of Korea. ... Self-Strengthening Movement (Chinese: 洋务运动 or 自強運動; c 1861–1894) was a period of political reforms aimed at modernizing and liberalizing Chinese institutions toward the end of the Qing Dynasty, following a series of military defeats and concessions to foreign powers. ...

In 1896 he toured Europe and the United States of America, where he advocated reform of the American immigration policies that had greatly restricted Chinese immigration after the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 (renewed in 1892). 1896 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... A satellite composite image of Europe // Etymology Picture of Europa, carried away by bull-shaped Zeus. ... The Chinese Exclusion Act may be: Another name for the Chinese Immigration Act of 1923 in Canada, coined by the Chinese-Canadian community. ...

Li Hongzhang played a major role in ending the Boxer Rebellion. In 1901 he was the principal Chinese negotiator with the foreign powers who had captured Beijing, and on September 7, 1901 he signed the treaty ending the Boxer crisis, obtaining the departure of the foreign armies at the price of huge indemnities for China. Exhausted, he died two months later in Beijing. Boxer forces, 1900 photograph The Boxer Uprising (Traditional Chinese: 義和團起義; Simplified Chinese: 义和团起义; pinyin: ; The Righteous and Harmonious Fists) was an uprising against Western commercial and political influence in China during the final years of the 19th century, from November 1899 to September 7, 1901. ... 1901 (MCMI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... ▶(?) (Chinese: 北京; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Pei-ching; Postal System Pinyin: Peking) is the capital of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC). ... September 7 is the 250th day of the year (251st in leap years). ... 1901 (MCMI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... ▶(?) (Chinese: 北京; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Pei-ching; Postal System Pinyin: Peking) is the capital of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC). ...

Opinions and legacy

Li Hongzhang has been generally a target of criticism by the CPC government and was portrayed in many ways as a traitor to the Chinese people, an infamous name that lives in history. Such a message is echoed through textbooks and other forms of propoganda. The CCTV production Towards the Republic was the first public portrayal of Li Hongzhang in Mainland China that enforced a heroic image upon him. The series was later banned. Many historians and scholars consider Li an adept politician and diplomat that prolonged peace in the later Qing Dynasty era of Chinese history. Towards the Republic (走向共和) is a 60-episode Chinese television series produced by CCTV and subsequently banned by the Chinese government for portraying certain characters (i. ... In this map of China, the light-coloured areas represent Mainland China, while yellow coloured area refers to Taiwan. ...

Zēng Guófán (曾國藩; Wade-Giles: Tseng Kuo-fan, Courtesy name Bóhán 伯函, Hao: Díshēng 滌生) (November 21, 1811 – March 12, 1872) was an eminent Han Chinese official of the Manchu Qing Dynasty. ... 1865 is a common year starting on Sunday. ... 1866 is a common year starting on Monday. ... Zēng Guófán (曾國藩; Wade-Giles: Tseng Kuo-fan, Courtesy name Bóhán 伯函, Hao: Díshēng 滌生) (November 21, 1811 – March 12, 1872) was an eminent Han Chinese official of the Manchu Qing Dynasty. ... 1867 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... 1870 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... Zēng Guófán (曾國藩; Wade-Giles: Tseng Kuo-fan, Courtesy name Bóhán 伯函, Hao: Díshēng 滌生) (November 21, 1811 – March 12, 1872) was an eminent Han Chinese official of the Manchu Qing Dynasty. ... The Viceroy of Zhili (直隸總督/直隶总督), fully referred to as the Governor General of Zhili and surrounding areas; Overseeing Military Affairs, Food Production; Manager of Waterways; Director of Civil Affairs (總督直隸等處地方，提督軍務、糧餉、管理河道兼巡撫事), was one of eight viceroys of the Qing Dynasty. ... 1899 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... 1900 (MCM) is a common year starting on Monday. ... The Viceroy of Zhili (直隸總督/直隶总督), fully referred to as the Governor General of Zhili and surrounding areas; Overseeing Military Affairs, Food Production; Manager of Waterways; Director of Civil Affairs (總督直隸等處地方，提督軍務、糧餉、管理河道兼巡撫事), was one of eight viceroys of the Qing Dynasty. ... Yuan Shikai in military uniform Yuan Shikai (Courtesy Weiting 慰亭; Pseudonym: Rongan 容庵 Traditional: 袁世凱; Simplified: 袁世凯; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Yüan Shih-kai) (September 16, 1859 – June 6, 1916) was a Chinese military official and politician during the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China. ...

See also

• Self-Strengthening Movement
• Military history of China
• Beiyang Army

Self-Strengthening Movement (Chinese: 洋务运动 or 自強運動; c 1861–1894) was a period of political reforms aimed at modernizing and liberalizing Chinese institutions toward the end of the Qing Dynasty, following a series of military defeats and concessions to foreign powers. ... The military history of China extends from around 1500 BCE to the present day. ... The Beiyang Army (北洋軍 běiyáng-jūn) was a powerful and Western-appearing Chinese military force created by the Qing dynasty government in the late 19th century. ...

References