Misplaced Pages

#521478

46-521: Zeng Jize (1839–90), a native of Hunan province, was the eldest son of Zeng Guofan ( 曾國藩 ), a leading reformist minister at the Qing court, who was a descendants of Zengzi . Zeng had inherited his father's title of Marquis in 1877. He received a traditional Chinese education, but was also one of the few Chinese officials who learned English and took an interest in European affairs. With these advantages he

92-528: A baturu , and to his being decorated with a yellow riding-jacket . Meanwhile, in his absence, the rebels retook Wuchang and burnt the protecting fleet. The tide quickly turned, however, on May 1, 1854, Zeng defeated the Taiping at Xiangtan and in July at Yuezhou . Zeng succeeded in clearing the country round Poyang Lake , and subsequently in ridding Jiangsu Province of the rebels. In January–February 1855

138-446: A bodyguard, theoretically each ying was to possess 2 light mortars and 48 jingals with spears swords and matchlocks compromising the rest of the armament by 1864 foreign rifles equipped several squads per Ying. 2 to 10 battalions formed a brigade under a Brigadier General with 2 or more Brigadier Generals being able to form an army. The senior commanders often appointed their junior commanders from amongst relatives and friends. In 1856

184-541: A famous diplomat in the late Qing dynasty. Zeng's ninth brother, Zeng Guoquan , was an ambitious general in the Xiang Army . He was later appointed Viceroy of Liangjiang in 1884. Zeng's great-granddaughter, Zeng Baosun , was a feminist, historian, and Christian educator. Zeng is said to be a descendant of Zengzi , who in turn was said to be a descendant of King Shao Kang of the Xia dynasty . Zeng's legacy in history

230-513: A fleet of war junks and multiple arsenals, with which he attacked the rebels. This force eventually became known as the Xiang Army (a.k.a. Hunan Army or Chu Army). In training and commanding the Xiang Army, Zeng emphasized "family ties, individual responsibility, flexible yet responsible discipline, enhanced military pay, respect for intellectuals serving in the army, and a strong bond between officers and soldiers." In his first engagement with

276-554: A new field of thought aiding in business or bureaucratic dealings, as in the "self-help" 99 Strategems from Zeng Guofan . Xiang Army The Xiang Army or Hunan Army ( Chinese : 湘軍 ; pinyin : Xiāng Jūn ) was a standing army organized by Zeng Guofan from existing regional and village militia forces called tuanlian to contain the Taiping Rebellion in Qing China (1850 to 1864). The name

322-644: A regular Green Standard soldier's salary of about 1.5 tael of silver per month. After the Taiping Rebellion was crushed, the Hunan armies petitioned to the Manchu Court to disband themselves, for fear of rumored rebellion against the Manchus as they had grown too powerful in the eyes of the Manchus. The Manchu Court only agreed to turn Peng Yulin's army into a navy. Zeng Guofan began disarming

368-569: A small naval army. Headquarters were located in Qimen County , Anhui from 1853 to 1861. After recovering Anqing , then capital of Anhui in September 1861, the headquarters was moved there because of its proximity to Nanjing. The Hunan army's official Ying (battalion) consisted of 5 officers 500 soldiers and when the administration and carriers are added the number reaches 688 men. With each battalion being divided into 4 shao (company) and

414-540: Is taken from the Hunan region where the Army was raised. The Army was financed through local nobles and gentry, as opposed to through the centralized Manchu -led Qing dynasty. The army was mostly disbanded by Zeng after the re-capture of the Taiping capital at Nanking . Although it was raised specifically to address problems in Hunan, the Army formed the core of the new Qing military establishment, and as such, forever weakened

460-649: Is twofold. On one hand he is criticised as a staunchly conservative traitor, but on another he is seen as a hero in preserving order and stability. Many in China and abroad admire his ability to successfully survive in the ruthless bureaucracy of the late Qing dynasty. Many have blamed Zeng for all the civilian losses and damages done during the Taiping Rebellion , while others criticise him for being too friendly with certain foreign ideas. Much Chinese language historiography, including numerous biographies, has questioned what made him fight for an essentially foreign dynasty. Since

506-683: The Black Flag Army to entrench its protectorate in Tonkin, and arguably made war between France and China inevitable. In August 1883, during a series of discussions in Paris with the French foreign minister Paul-Armand Challemel-Lacour , Zeng used the good offices of the American chargé d'affaires E. J. Brulatour to convey Chinese proposals to the French, in an attempt to give the impression that

SECTION 10

#1732765421522

552-806: The Bắc Ninh Campaign (March 1884), complied with this demand on 28 April, paving the way for the conclusion of the Tientsin Accord between France and China in May 1884. Xu Jingcheng ( 許景澄 ), an emollient career diplomat, was appointed China's minister-general to France, Germany, Austria and Italy, and Zeng was simultaneously relieved of his position as minister to France, ostensibly to allow him to devote more time to his duties as minister to Britain and Russia. Pending Xu's arrival from China (he set sail in September 1884 and only arrived in Europe in early 1885),

598-747: The Cultural Revolution , criticism of Zeng gradually began to disappear. Tang Haoming published in 1992 his three-book trilogy Zeng Guofan , a novelisation of Zeng's life during and after the Taiping Rebellion. This trilogy characterised Zeng as a common person, but had adopted a much more positive view of Zeng. Mao Zedong and Chiang Kai-shek also praised Zeng's ability in military and political affairs. In recent years, Zeng's life and his works have been widely celebrated, especially as an example of local pride in Hunan Province . Zeng's leadership and military skills had been used by many as

644-675: The Dungan Revolt (1862–1877) . Remnants of the Xiang Army which also fought in the war were then called the "Old Hunan Army". The Taiping rebellion started in December 1850 in Guangxi Province, growing after a series of small victories over the local Qing forces. The revolt rapidly spread northward. In March 1853, between 700,000 and 800,000 Taiping soldiers directed by commander-in-chief Yang Xiuqing took Nanjing, killing 30,000 Manchu civilians and bannermen . The city became

690-541: The Green Standard Army , totaled about 2,300,000 (included the Xiang Army). Taiping Rebellion soldiers amounted to about 1,800,000 (including 300,000 local gang members who repeatedly changed sides). After 1864 a significant portion of the Army was disbanded on orders from Zeng. However at units under Zuo Zongtang continue to exist. They numbered around 120,000 by the 1870s. The Xiang Army also had

736-499: The Taiping Rebellion after encountering them for the first time. Unlike his contemporaries, who had multiple wives or kept concubines , Zeng was officially married only once, to a woman of the Ouyang family when he was in his late teens. He had three sons and five daughters with her, and two of his eldest children died young. His eldest son, Zeng Jize , who inherited his noble peerage "First Class Marquis Yiyong", went on to become

782-583: The Viceroy of Zhili , where, after the Tianjin Massacre (1870), Zeng failed to carry out the wishes of the imperial court. Instead of the desired policy towards foreigners, Zeng took on a more diplomatic stance. After this rebuff, he retired to his viceroyalty at Nanjing, where he died in 1872 mysteriously in Hong Xiuquan 's former mansion. Zeng was a voluminous writer. His papers addressed to

828-673: The imperial examination , a prestigious achievement in China. He had earned the jinshi degree, the highest level in the civil service examinations, which led to his appointment to the Hanlin Academy , a body of outstanding Chinese literary scholars who performed literary tasks for the imperial court. It was at the Hanlin Academy where Zeng changed his given name to "Guofan", which sounded more prestigious. Zeng served in Beijing for more than 13 years, and remained devoted to

874-486: The Beijing attack failed. Zeng Guofan was tasked with limiting the rebel's attempts to take control of Hunan. In 1852, he was appointed by the Qing court as commissioner of militia organization for Central China. Zeng Guofan expanded the pre-existing tuanlian militia into an armed force with a total of 17,000 men, including thirteen battalions consisting of 6500 men and a navy of ten battalions consisting of 5000 men. It

920-494: The Chinese minister to Germany Li Fengbao ( 李鳳苞 ) was appointed interim minister to France. Zeng Guofan Zeng Guofan, Marquis Yiyong ( traditional Chinese : 曾國藩 ; simplified Chinese : 曾国藩 ; pinyin : Zēng Guófān ; Wade–Giles : Tseng Kuo -fan ; 26 November 1811 – 12 March 1872), birth name Zeng Zicheng , courtesy name Bohan ( 伯涵 ), was a Chinese statesman and military general of

966-584: The Ever Victorious Army was clearing the cities on the lower waters of the Yangtze River with support from Li Hongzhang, Zeng drew closer his besieging lines around the city. In July 1864, Tianjing fell into Zeng's hands, and he was rewarded with the noble peerage "First Class Marquis Yiyong" ( 一等毅勇侯 ) and the right to wear the double-eyed peacock's feather . He, Zuo Zongtang and Li Hongzhang were collectively called "Zeng, Zuo, Li" –

SECTION 20

#1732765421522

1012-593: The French soldiers has been so widely praised that one might almost think that they had captured Metz or Strasbourg rather than Sơn Tây'). To add insult to injury, he arranged for this article to be published in Germany, in the Breslau Gazette . This and earlier provocations goaded the French government into demanding his replacement in April 1884. The Qing court, dismayed by the rout of China's Guangxi Army in

1058-417: The Hunan army possessed approximately 60,000 soldiers all being Hunanese with later recruitment being expanded beyond Hunan it was reported the army numbered 200 Ying or 137,600 soldiers. One of Zeng Guofan's priorities for the Xiang Army was finance, understanding that good pay was crucial for battlefield morale. As a result, a Xiang Army soldier's salary was four tael of silver every month, compared to

1104-618: The Manchu influence within the military ( Eight Banners ). This devolution of centralized command is commonly pointed to as a major reason for the eventual downfall of the Qing and the emergence of regional warlordism in China during the first half of the twentieth century. The Xiang Army was one of two armies known as the Hunan Army. Another Hunan Army, called the Chu Army , was created by former Xiang commander Zuo Zongtang to fight in

1150-591: The United States was more closely associated with China's diplomatic position on Tonkin than it really was. The manoeuvre was easily detected, and irritated both the French and the Americans. In January 1884, in the wake of Admiral Amédée Courbet 's capture of Sơn Tây (16 December 1883), Zeng wrote a provocative article that made wounding references to the Franco-Prussian War ('The bravery of

1196-531: The Xiang Army sufferers a disastrous defeat at Jiujiang , Jiangxi , leading to Zeng attempting suicide. His father died in 1857, and after a brief mourning he was ordered to take supreme command in Zhejiang Province , and to cooperate with the governor of Fujian Province in defence. Subsequently, the rebels were driven westwards, and Zeng would have started in pursuit had he not been called on to clear Anhui Province of rebel forces. In June 1860, he

1242-471: The capture of Nanking, Zeng disbanded the 120,000 soldiers under his command, although Zuo kept his forces intact. After the fall of the Taiping , from 1864 to 1890, over half of the viceroys in China were Xiang Army leaders . In 1860, the power of the Xiang Army was unsurpassed, totalling almost 360,000 soldiers. The large main group was led by Zeng Guofan with 130,000 troops. The Qing regular army ,

1288-463: The city itself started on March 14, 1864, when Zeng's forces attempted to force the city walls using ladders, but were beaten back. A second attempt used tunnels, but counter-digging and a second wall prevented a breakthrough. On July 3 the Xiang forces had their first victory, taking Dibao Castle . This position allowed them to dig new tunnels and pack them with explosives with the intention of destroying

1334-559: The city walls. A counterattack failed, and on July 19 the explosives were set off, collapsing a large portion of the wall. The city fell after a fierce three-day battle. The Xiang Army pillaged and robbed the city, killing 100,000 Taiping soldiers and civilians according to Zeng Guofan and setting it on fire. The city burned until July 26, 1864. Zeng was promoted to Marquess (of the First Class) Yiyong ( 毅勇侯 ) (Yiyong: 毅 = Endurance 勇 = Courage) . Almost immediately after

1380-528: The direct cause of the Warlord era . These Tuanlian were turned into the Yong Ying Xiang Army. To fund the army, Zeng convinced the Hunan governor to divert funds from the provincial network of commercial good toll collection stations. Eventually the army founds ways of collecting funds from local landholders and merchants. His lieutenants recovered the capital, Changsha , and then Zeng led

1426-491: The former to the governorship of Zhejiang and the latter to that of Jiangsu. In 1862, he was appointed Assistant Grand Secretary of State . At this time, the Qing imperial forces, assisted by the Ever Victorious Army , had checked the progress of the Taiping Rebellion, and Zeng was able to carry out a scheme which he had long formulated of besieging Tianjing , the rebel capital. While Charles George Gordon of

Zeng Jize - Misplaced Pages Continue

1472-578: The interpretation of the Confucian classics . He moved relatively quickly up the ranks with the aid of his teacher, Mujangga ; within five years, he had become a second-grade official. In 1843, Zeng was appointed as the chief literary examiner in Sichuan Province . Six years later, he was made Senior Deputy Secretary of the Board of Rites . When holding the office of Military Examiner (1851), he

1518-815: The late Qing dynasty . He is best known for raising and organizing the Xiang Army to aid the Qing military in suppressing the Taiping Rebellion and restoring the stability of the Qing Empire. Along with other prominent figures such as Zuo Zongtang and Li Hongzhang of his time, Zeng set the scene for the Tongzhi Restoration , an attempt to arrest the decline of the Qing dynasty. Zeng was known for his strategic perception, administrative skill and noble personality on Confucian practice, but also for his ruthlessness in repressing rebellions. Born Zeng Zicheng in Xiangxiang , Hunan Province in 1811, Zeng

1564-535: The military leaders who suppressed the Taiping Rebellion. After the suppression of the rebellion, the Nian Rebellion , closely related to the former Taiping movement, broke out in Shandong Province , and Zeng was sent to quell it. Success did not, however, always attend him on this campaign, and by imperial order he was relieved of his command by Li Hongzhang, who in the same way succeeded him as

1610-561: The movement's capital and was renamed Tianjing ("Heavenly Capital"). By this point the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom encompassed much of prosperous south and central China, centered on the Yangtze river valley . They continued in their attempts to expand northward, and sent two armies to take the upper Yangtze, while another two attempted to take the new Imperial capital, Beijing . The western drive met with some success, but

1656-478: The rebels, Zeng was defeated, but his lieutenants were more successful. They recovered the provincial capital, Changsha , and destroyed the rebel fleet. Following up these victories of his subordinates, Zeng recaptured Wuchang and Hanyang , near Hankou , and was rewarded for his success by being appointed vice-president of the Board of War . The Xiang Army under Zeng contained some integrated Hangzhou drill groups. In 1853, other triumphs led to Zeng being made

1702-406: The recapture of Wuchang and Hanyang , near Hankow , and was rewarded for his success by being appointed vice-president of the Board of War . His Army was so successful that the Qing leaders quickly started using it in place of their own troops, turning it into an Imperial force rather than the local force as it had been raised. In 1860 Zeng was called on to use the Xiang Army to clear Anhui , and

1748-561: The summer of 1883, and reached a climax immediately after the Sơn Tây Campaign in December 1883. In July 1883 Zeng's optimistic assessment that the French government had no stomach for a full-scale war with China influenced the Qing government's decision to terminate the Shanghai negotiations between Li Hongzhang and Arthur Tricou over the future of Tonkin. The failure of the Shanghai negotiations stiffened France's resolve to confront

1794-495: The throne and his literary disquisitions are held in high esteem by Chinese scholars, who treasure the edition of his collected works in 156 books, which was edited by Li Hongzhang in 1876, as a memorial of a great and incorruptible statesman. Zeng enjoyed reading and held a special interest in the Twenty-Four Histories and other Chinese classics . Zeng called Hakka females "big foot hillbilly witches" during

1840-457: Was appointed Viceroy of Liangjiang (covering Jiangxi , Anhui and Jiangsu provinces) and Imperial Commissioner , overseeing military affairs. At this time, and for some time previously, he had been fortunate in having the active support of Zuo Zongtang , who at a later period recovered Kashgar for the Qing Empire, and of Li Hongzhang . Like all true leaders of men, Zeng knew how to reward good service, and when occasion offered he appointed

1886-455: Was appointed Viceroy of Liangjiang (两江总督, which consisted of the provinces of Jiangxi, Anhui, and Jiangsu). While Charles George Gordon and his " Ever-Victorious Army " were clearing the rebel heartland, Zeng took the opportunity to launch a campaign to retake Nanjing. The entire area around the city had been cleared of rebel forces in a series of battles starting in June 1863. The battle for

Zeng Jize - Misplaced Pages Continue

1932-486: Was compelled by the death of his mother to return to Hunan Province to carry out filial mourning , which is supposed to last three years. Around the time, the Taiping rebels had overrun Hunan Province and captured the cities and strongholds on both shores of the Yangtze River . By a special decree, Zeng was ordered to assist the provincial governor in raising a volunteer force, and, on his own initiative, he built

1978-486: Was generally considered a diplomatic triumph for China. Zeng's duties as minister to Paris were dominated by the confrontation between France and China over Tonkin that eventually culminated in the Sino-French War . Zeng's denunciations of French policy in Tonkin began softly enough in April 1882 after the capture of the citadel of Hanoi by Henri Rivière , grew more insistent as French ambitions became clearer in

2024-532: Was given the name of Xiang Army, with Zeng Guofan as the Commander-in-chief , accepting orders from Zeng alone. The new rule was termed "Soldiers followed the general, soldiers belonged to the general"( 兵隨將轉，兵為將有 ), contrary to the old military rule before the Northern Song dynasty 's "Soldiers had no fixed commander, commander had no fixed soldiers" ( 兵無常帥，帥無常兵 ). This new military rule was

2070-468: Was persuaded to represent China's interests abroad as a diplomat. Zeng was appointed minister to Britain, France and Russia in 1878, and lived in Europe for seven years (1879–1885). He made his name as a diplomat in 1880 and 1881, by renegotiating the infamous 1879 Treaty of Livadia with Russia. The resulting Treaty of Saint Petersburg (February 1881), which reversed most of the Russian gains of 1879,

2116-547: Was the grandson of Zeng Yuping , a farmer with social and political ambitions. He was also a descendant of the philosopher Zengzi , a student of Confucius . He studied in Yuelu Academy in Changsha Prefecture , where he passed the prefectural examination in 1833, only a year after his father, Zeng Linshu. He passed the provincial examination ( juren ) a year later, and by 1838, at age 27, he had passed

#521478