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47-723: The completion of the Wuhan Yangtze River Bridge in 1957 finally linked the two lines into a single contiguous railway and its former track now forms the southern leg of the Beijing–Guangzhou railway . In 1897, a concession for the Beijing–Hankou railway was awarded to a Belgian consortium backed by French financing. The British were then the dominant foreign power in China, and the Belgian concession would keep

94-539: A large stake in the company in November 1904, but the concession was cancelled on November 19, 1904. Morgan demanded US$ 18 million in compensation but settled for US$ 6.75 million, representing treble damages for the US$ 1 million already spent on the construction of the railway, plus US$ 3.75 million to redeem the concession. The railway was completed in 1936. This People's Republic of China rail-related article

141-505: A massive uproar by the Chinese literati ensued, some of them calling for Chonghou's death. Zhang demanded for Chonghou's execution and urged the Qing government to stand up to Russia and declare the treaty invalid. He said, "The Russians must be considered extremely covetous and truculent in making the demands and Chonghou extremely stupid and absurd in accepting them... If we insist on changing

188-846: A member of the Grand Council . He took a leading role in the abolition of the Imperial examination system in 1905. The Red Guards destroyed his tomb in 1966 during the Cultural Revolution . His remains were rediscovered in 2007 and reburied. Zhang Zhidong was also known by other names. An older Wade–Giles form was Chang Chih-tung. His courtesy name was Xiaoda ( 孝達 ; 孝达 ; Xiàodá ) or Xiangtao ( 香濤 ; 香涛 ; Xiāngtāo ). His pseudonyms were Xiangyan ( 香岩 ; Xiāngyán ), Hugong ( 壺公 ; 壶公 ; Húgōng ), Wujing Jushi ( 無競居士 ; 无竞居士 ; Wújìng Jūshì ) and Baobing ( 抱冰 ; Bàobīng ). The posthumous name given to him by

235-420: A method of relatively conservative reform, summarized in his phrase " Chinese Learning as Substance, Western Learning for Application " (中學為體，西學為用). In Exhortation to Study (勸學篇), Zhang brought up reform methodology of implementing new schools at the expense of Buddhist and Taoist monasteries. While doing so, reservation of 30 percent of the monasteries and introduction of Confucianization were also part of

282-500: A mint, tanneries, tile and silk factories, as well as paper, cotton, and woolen mills, among other industries. In Wuchang, Zhang effectively trained and equipped modern units of sappers, engineers, cavalry, police, artillery and infantry. Of the 60,000 men under his command, 20,000 men were directly trained by foreign officers, and a military academy was established in Wuchang in order to train future generations of soldiers. Zhang armed

329-560: A possible bridge location. At the same time, Peking University President Yan Fu submitted the initial proposal for bridge construction to the Department of Transportation. The earliest designs for the bridge were modeled after the Forth Bridge , near Edinburgh , which had been completed in 1890. Although their work never proceeded past the planning phase, the area identified in the 1913 surveys proved to be an excellent site, and

376-858: A railway bridge over the Yangtze at Wuhan were put forward by Zhang Zhidong in the late 19th century. In May 1912, railroad engineer Jeme Tien Yow was made head of the Wuhan-Guangzhou railway association by the Beiyang Government . While working on the Wuchang railroad station, Jeme incorporated plans for connection of the Beijing and Guangzhou lines into the railroad's construction. In 1913, Peking University professor of engineering George Miller brought Xia Changchi ( Chinese : 夏昌熾 ), Li Wenji ( Chinese : 李文驥 ), and 13 other Chinese engineering students to Wuhan to do surveying for

423-666: A suitable site, but economic limitations and the combination of World War II and the Chinese Civil War prevented the bridge's building until the 1950s. Actual construction began in September 1955 and was completed in October 1957. The upper level of the bridge is a two-way, four-lane automobile highway. The lower level is a double-track railway on the Beijing-Guangzhou railway line. The Wuhan metropolis

470-544: A tunnel constructed under the first turn of the Yangtze at Wuhan to connect the two banks. Moreover, there ought to be a tunnel or bridge at the mouth of the Han River to link the three cities of Wuchang, Hankou, and Hanyang together into one metropolis." However, contemporary work on the railway bridge over the Yellow River at Zhengzhou sapped China of its limited bridge-building resources. In 1949, shortly after

517-593: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Wuhan Yangtze River Bridge The Wuhan Yangtze Great Bridge ( simplified Chinese : 武汉长江大桥 ; traditional Chinese : 武漢長江大橋 ; pinyin : Wǔhàn Chángjiāng Dàqiáo ), commonly known as Wuhan First Yangtze Bridge , is a double-deck road and rail bridge across the Yangtze River in Wuhan , in Central China . At its completion in 1957,

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564-584: Is an amalgamation of three cities situated at the confluence of the Han River and the Yangtze: Wuchang , located on the southern bank of the Yangtze, Hanyang , located on the northern bank of the Yangtze and the west bank of the Han, and Hankou , located on the northern bank of the Yangtze and the eastern bank of the Han. Wuhan lies at the heart of Central China and is a hub from transportation between

611-439: Is another subordinate who shared Zhang's academic visions, and Chen coauthored a memorial to the court with Zhang to suggest the reform of Civil Service Exam . Zhang had a strong grasp of the progress of reforms as he had more temporary confidants and informants from other regions. In the third month of 1898, Zhang published his work Exhortation to Study (勸學篇), which addresses the questions of educational reform. He insisted on

658-487: Is the location where the bridge was eventually built. Wang Yuan Tang also contributed to this work. He was a lead engineer in designing this bridge. Sun Yat-sen 's treatise The International Development of China , published in 1919, emphasized the economic importance of finding a suitable location for building a bridge over or a tunnel under the Yangtze along the Wuhan railway line. At the time, Sun wrote, "There ought to be

705-642: The juren class. In 1863, he sat for the palace-level examination and emerged as tanhua ( 探花 ), the third highest-ranked candidate of the jinshi class. He was then admitted to the Hanlin Academy as a bianxiu (編修; editor) before taking up other positions, including jiaoxi ( 教習 ), shidu ( 侍讀 ) and shijiang ( 侍講 ). In 1882, he was transferred as the xunfu (provincial governor) of Shanxi Province . Empress Dowager Cixi promoted him to Viceroy of Huguang in August 1889. During

752-521: The Central Plain in northern China and the trading ports of Guangzhou and Hong Kong in southern China. The Beijing-Wuhan railway line went into full service in 1906, followed in 1936 by the Wuhan-Guangzhou railway line. Between that time and the bridge's completion in 1957, railway cars travelling between northern and southern China had to be ferried over the Yangtze on barges, a laborious and dangerous practice. Early formulations of plans for

799-604: The Chinese Communist Party 's victory in the Chinese Civil War and its founding of the People's Republic of China , former Peking University engineering student Li Wenji, by then 63 years old, and bridge engineer Mao Yisheng ( Chinese : 茅以升 ) submitted a proposal to the new government for the construction of the Wuhan bridge as "a memorial to the success of the new democratic revolution." Li and

846-879: The Dungan Revolt of 1862–1877 , the Russian Empire occupied the Ili region in Xinjiang . After Qing imperial forces successfully crushed the Dungan Revolt, they demanded that the Russians withdraw from Ili, which led to the Ili Crisis. After the incompetent negotiator Chonghou , who was bribed by the Russians, without permission from the Qing government, signed a treaty granting Russia extraterritorial rights, consulates, control over trade, and an indemnity,

893-538: The Eight-Nation Alliance . Zhang assured the foreigners during negotiations that he would do nothing to help the central government. He told this to Everard Fraser. This clique was known as The Mutual Protection of Southeast China . Zhang's troops later became involved in politics. In 1911, the Wuchang garrison led the Wuchang Uprising , a coup against the local government that catalyzed

940-647: The State Council of the People's Republic of China gave approval for a 28-person delegation of Soviet engineers, led by Konstantin Sergeyevich Silin (1913–1996), to travel to China and assist the Chinese with the bridge's design and construction. Construction officially began on 1 September 1955. Silin had predicted that using pressured-air caissons would be impractical due to the Yangtze's unpredictable water level, which made drilling holes for

987-571: The Viceroy of Huguang , an area comprising Hubei and Hunan provinces. Zhang drew on his experience in Nanjing to modernize the military forces under his command in Huguang. He additionally proposed construction of a railway from Hankou to near Beijing, of which he was appointed in charge of. The railway was not completed until 1906. Further advocating for the industrialization of China, he founded

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1034-609: The Hubei Military Academy ( 湖北學堂 ) in 1896, where he employed instructors from the Guangdong Academy. The majority of the staff were Chinese. He also hired some German officers as instructors. While serving as the governor of Nanjing in 1894, Zhang invited a German training regiment of 12 officers and 24 warrant officers to train the local garrison into a modern military force. In 1896, acting under an imperial decree, Zhang moved to Wuchang to serve as

1081-526: The Japanese crossed the Yalu River into China in late October, threatening the northeastern provinces. In early 1895, the Japanese had begun an assault on Shandong , and Zhang telegraphed the governor Li Bingheng in an emergency that suggested fast civil recruitments, the building of strong forts, and the use of landmines , to prevent further Japanese advance. He had also sent arms and munitions to aid

1128-514: The Japanese. In addition, he proposed giving mining rights to the British on Taiwan for about 10 to 20 years. In May 1895, the Qing government ordered all civil and military officials to evacuate Taiwan. Zhang also refused to provide aid to the remaining Qing forces in Taiwan, especially after the fall of Keelung and with Taipei as the sole remaining Qing stronghold in Taiwan. On 19 October 1895,

1175-591: The Qing government was Wenxiang ( 文襄 ; Wénxiāng ). Zhang was born in Xingyi Prefecture ( 興義府 ), Guizhou Province , but his ancestral roots were in Nanpi , Tianjin , Zhili Province . He was the cousin of Zhang Zhiwan . In 1852, he sat for the provincial-level imperial examination in Shuntian Prefecture (present-day Beijing ) and achieved the top position as jieyuan ( 解元 ) in

1222-622: The Western troops, which had better firepower, mobility, and individual combat capability. When Zhang created the Guangdong Military Academy, also known as Guangdong Naval and Military Officers Academy, and the Guangdong Victorious Army ( 廣勝軍 ), he set physical admission standards high and hired German officers as instructors to address the weaknesses of the Chinese troops. Specifically, in modernizing

1269-700: The Yangtze River using the bridge, officially started operations. It continues to utilize this bridge till today. On January 31, 2018, Theresa May , Prime Minister of the United Kingdom , visited Wuhan and took pictures on the Wuchang District side of the Yangtze River at the First Yangtze River Bridge. Zhang Zhidong Zhang Zhidong ( Chinese : 張之洞 ) (2 September 1837 – 4 October 1909)

1316-548: The bridge was the easternmost crossing of the Yangtze, and was often referred to as the "First Bridge of the Yangtze". The bridge extends 1.6 kilometers (1 mile) from Turtle Hill in Hanyang , on the northern bank of the Yangtze, to Snake Hill in Wuchang , on the southern bank of the Yangtze. Plans for the bridge's construction were first made in 1910. A total of four exploratory surveys were made between 1913 and 1948 to identify

1363-466: The bridge's supports much more difficult. The cantilever bridge design was used, and construction proceeded for over two years. Mao Zedong returned to Wuhan on 6 September 1957 to inspect the nearly-completed bridge, and was able to walk from the Hanyang side to the Wuchang side. The bridge formally opened to public traffic on 15 October 1957. On 20 September 1958, trolleybus route 1 , which crosses

1410-422: The bridge, with Peng Min ( Chinese : 彭敏 ) as bureau chief and party secretary and Wang Juqian ( Chinese : 汪菊潜 ) as chief engineer. Chinese engineers in the 1950s were still heavily reliant on Russian expertise on major projects. Between July and September 1953, Chinese engineers brought a large number of the bridge's plans and blueprints to Moscow for consultation with Soviet engineers. In July 1954,

1457-496: The campaign. Zhang held on a strong opinion on the issue of ceding Taiwan to the Japanese, per the 1895 Treaty of Shimonoseki that ended the First Sino-Japanese War . In late February 1895, he made his stance clear to the Qing government, and even offered ideas on how to prevent the loss of Taiwan. He suggested that they take huge loans from the British, who would in turn send their navy to defend Taiwan from

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1504-711: The east bank of the Pearl River. The 49-kilometer (30 mi) branch line to Sanshui ("Samshui") via Foshan ("Fatshan") was constructed westward from the west bank of the Pearl from 1902 to 1904. A diplomatic crisis erupted when it was discovered that a Belgian consortium had purchased a controlling interest in the American China Development Company. This subverted the original intention of awarding different railway lines to different foreign powers. The American financier J. P. Morgan bought

1551-649: The founders of Sanjiang Normal College. Zhang espoused Japanese educational system and principles, and announced his plan to hire 12 Japanese teachers(教习) in a communication with Moriyoshi Nagaoka ( 長岡護美 ) before the establishment of the college. In 1900, he advocated the suppression of the Boxer Rebellion . When the Eight-Nation Alliance entered Beijing , Zhang, along with Li Hongzhang and others, participated in The Mutual Protection of Southeast China . He quelled local revolts and defeated

1598-421: The frontline. He initially advocated foreign aid from European forces near Tianjin in fighting the Japanese. In October 1894, he telegraphed Li Hongzhang , the Viceroy of Zhili , proposing the purchase of naval equipment, and loans from foreign banks. He further advocated this, and in addition the purchase of arms, alliance with European powers, and the "clear division of rewards and punishments" for troops, once

1645-602: The important route out of British hands. To prevent the French from controlling the entire route between Beijing and Guangzhou, the Chinese government actively sought American involvement in the Guangzhou–Hankou railway. A concession for the southern railway was awarded to the American China Development Company in 1898. Construction on the project began in 1900, with the southern terminus on

1692-489: The last of the Qing forces in Taiwan, led by Liu Yongfu , withdrew to Xiamen . After China's defeat in the Sino-French War in 1885, Zhang was said to reflect on the events of the war and expressed his desire to establish a modern military to match up to that of the Western forces in a memorial to the throne . Upon Zhang's reflection, the weaknesses of traditional Chinese troops were identified in comparison with

1739-457: The methodology to help the two religions subsist. Zhang Zhidong's reform on education is said not to eliminate religious institutions, but to better allocate resources. Kang Youwei , another late Qing reformist, later expressed similar mode of thinking - he also advocated aiding modern education at the cost of temples. However, Kang Youwei is more radical as he envisions destruction of religions in comparison to Zhang's conservative approach. Zhang

1786-518: The nationwide Xinhai Revolution . The Xinhai Revolution led to the collapse of the Qing dynasty and its replacement by the Republic of China . Zhang Zhidong's reformist faction in the late Qing court was extremely influential. Yang Rui , one of the Six Martyrs , was Zhang's political informant in Beijing who carried out Zhang's instructions during Hundred Days' Reform of 1898. Chen Baozhen

1833-493: The others were invited to the first Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference in September 1949 to participate in discussions on the bridge's construction. The proposals were accepted, and a bridge committee was created in January 1950. Li was able to participate in the first year of the planning and building work before he became ill and died in August 1951. Between 1950 and 1953, three conferences were held to discuss

1880-567: The plans, designs, and construction of the bridge as they developed. In February 1953, Mao Zedong traveled to Wuhan to receive reports on the project's progress, and was taken to the Yellow Crane Tower to view the proposed bridge site. On 1 April 1953, Zhou Enlai approved the creation of the Wuhan Great Bridge Engineering Bureau, which was responsible for overseeing the design and building of

1927-479: The rebel army of Tang Caichang . He was appointed the Minister of Military Affairs in 1906, and worked in Beijing for the central government. He was aware that a change in Chinese affairs was necessary, and at the same time realized that the Chinese officials and people clung with unyielding tenacity to their traditional ideas and institutions and penned his ideas in a book: China's only hope: An Appeal . The book

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1974-457: The sake of China's defense, he ordered an iron-and-steel smelting plant from England. This came with issues as Zhang was not intimately familiar with the processes of metallurgy; Zhang was not previously aware of the availability of ores for said plant, nor was the plant located near a coal-mining area. The plant began production in 1894. The losses stemming from the misstep were substantial, leading to some political ridicule. Zhang also established

2021-481: The treaty, there may not be trouble; if we do not, we are unworthy to be called a state." The Chinese literati demanded the Qing government mobilize their armed forces against the Russians. The Qing government allocated important posts to officers from the Xiang Army , while British military officer Charles George Gordon advised the Chinese. Zhang became involved in the First Sino-Japanese War , although not on

2068-480: The troops in Guangdong, Zhang made newly trained troops to be "the nucleus" of newer troops, passing the training unit to unit. In addition, Zhang synthesized Chinese traditional learning and Western military learning in Guangdong Military Academy under his guiding principle of tiyong (體用), which stresses Chinese traditional values and deems Western imports to be for practical uses only. Seeking to industrialize for

2115-430: The troops with German Mauser rifles and other modern equipment. Foreign observers reported that, when their training was complete, the troops stationed in the Wuchang garrison were the equal of contemporary European forces. During the Boxer Rebellion , Zhang, along with some other regional governors who commanded substantial modernized armies, refused to participate in the central government's declaration of war against

2162-402: Was a Chinese politician who lived during the late Qing dynasty . Along with Zeng Guofan , Li Hongzhang and Zuo Zongtang , Zhang Zhidong was one of the four most famous officials of the late Qing dynasty. Known for advocating controlled reform and modernization of Chinese troops, he served as the governor of Shanxi Province and viceroy of Huguang , Liangguang and Liangjiang , and also as

2209-450: Was supportive of Kang's vision of scholarly learning, but rejects Kang's proposal of Confucian religion . Historians commonly regard Zhang Zhidong's reform as an attempt to reconcile modernity and China's existing social fabric. He succeeded Liu Kunyi as Viceroy of Liangjiang in 1901, and moved to Nanjing , where he laid the foundations for the modern University of Nanjing . Zhang Zhidong, along with Liu Kunyi and Wei Guangtao, were

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