The 8 Things to Know About Zhang Zhidong

The Tongzhi Restoration ushered a period of stability and progress in the middle of the so-called Century of Humiliation. In this period, local officials went into the forefront of development and modernization supporting industries, education, and the military. Among these local leaders included the prominent Li Hongzhang and Zeng Guofan as well as the lesser-known but nevertheless influential Zhang Zhidong.

1. An Exceptional Youth

Born on September 2, 1837, Zhang Zhidong belonged to a family of scholarly officials. His heritage laid out his path towards becoming also a scholar and official, hence he devoted his youth to prepare for the Civil Service Exams. He delved into the classics until he passed the 1st level of the exams at the age of 13. He went on until finally attaining the highest degree of jinshi at the age of 26. His successful bid landed him into his first official posting.

2. An Educator and Intellectual

Hanlin Academy

After obtaining his jinshi degree, Zhang worked in the respected Hanlin Academy becoming a proctor of civil service examinations at local levels. From 1873 to 1877. He served as Szechwan’s education director during which he founded an academy in Chengdu, a printing office that published various classic for the public to read, and in 1878 published a handbook for students to guide them in their careers.

In 1881, Zhang served as editor-in-chief of a gazette in Beijing before receiving his appointment as Governor of the Shanxi Province from 1881 to 1884. As Governor, he worked to rehabilitate the province’s obsolete and dilapidated education system.

His role as a respected intellectual and a strong advocate of education became ever more evident in 1898 right after China’s humiliating defeat in the Sino-Japanese War. He sent a memorial to the Guangxu Emperor which later called Quanxuepian or Exhortation to Learning (Later published in English in 1901 as China's Only Hope)which embodied the phrase “Chinese Learning as Substance, Western Learning for Application” that guided the Self-Strengthening Movement. He valued western technology, but remained faithful to Chinese traditions stating:

“If the Chinese student is not versed in Chinese literature, he is like a man who does not know his own name. Attempts to govern without a knowledge of Chinese, will be like trying to ride a horse without a bridle, or steer a boat without a rudder. Without a basis of native literature the Chinese who acquires this Western learning, will loathe his country in proportion as his scientific knowledge increases and although his knowledge may be perfected to a high degree, how can our country employ him if he does not know Chinese?”

His suggestions and ideals delighted the Emperor and became an inspiration during the height of the botched Hundred Days’ Reform.

Guangxu Emperor

Into the 20th century, he continued to play a key role in improving China’s education system. In 1904, he drafted massive 8-volume long rules and regulations for a national education system touching from basic rationale, administration, and the establishment of supplementary institutions such as research centers and vocational schools. In 1905, he witnessed the realization of his long-time advocacy when the Court abolished the obsolete civil service exams. Then in 1908, he supported the sending of 475 students to Japan and another 103 to western countries.

3. Seasoned Government Officials

Besides an educator, Zhang also held various local administrative positions. In his various postings, he worked to develop his jurisdiction making a name for himself as a progressive official in the likes of Zeng Guofan, Li Hongzhang, and Yuan Shikai. By the early years of the new century, the Court greatly recognized his talents and honored him with further promotions.

After his stint in Szechwan, Zhang propelled himself in favor of the court. The Treaty of Livadia surrendered to Russia lands pacified and controlled by the Qing in the modern Xinjiang Province. Zhang wrote a memorial condemning this unequal treaty that gained him the attention and the favor of the powerful Empress Dowager Cixi. For his well-received condemnation, he gained a major position as Governor of Shanxi Province in 1881.

Empress Dowager Cixi

From 1884 to 1889, he served as Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi or as the Viceroy of Liangguang. As Viceroy, he oversaw the conflict with the French over Annam in modern-day Vietnam. Against the overwhelming firepower of the French, the conflict ended with China’s loss. Despite the defeat, Zhang remained on good terms with the Empress. In 1889, his support for a railroad line between Hankow and Beijing earned him the appointment of Governor-General of Hubei and Hunan or Viceroy of Huguang.

In 1900, during the height of the Boxer Rebellion, Zhang joined forces with the Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi (Viceroy of Liangguang) Li Hongzhang and the Governor of Shandong Yuan Shikai to form the Mutual Protection of Southeast China that opposed the Boxers and refused to declare war against the foreign powers. Their regions and military emerged unscathed from the catastrophic wrath of the major imperial powers. Moreover, politically, the Empress Dowager Cixi continued to trust them, thus securing Zhang a major role in the reforms in the first decade of the 20th century.

In 1907, after serving as Governor-General he received the prestigious appointment of Grand Secretary and Grand Counselor. Furthermore, he became a chief negotiator for the government to obtain the necessary funding for the construction of a railroad network.

4. Classic Confucian Official

Zhang Zhidong

Zhang, a progressive that extolled the importance of traditional Chinese Confucian values practiced what he preached. He lived as a classic Confucian official dedicated to the improvement of his constituent’s welfare. In his positions as Governor and Governor-General, he curbed corruption, promoted industries, and provided tax amnesties to the peasantry. Moreover, he supported and expanded the local education system.

On a personal level, he did not build a massive personal fortune, unlike the “Yellow Bismarck” Li Hongzhang. He transmitted much of his salary back to the treasury and lived simply. He even pawned his personal effects if he needed additional funds. He effectively passed away in 1909 a poor man.

Li Hongzhang

For his dedication, he posthumously received the extremely coveted title of Wenxiang or “the Learned and Accomplished.” 

5. An Industrialist

Not only did Zhang promoted education, but as a pillar of the Self-Strengthening Movement, he also supported industrialization. The movement which coincided with the Tongzhi Restoration of the 1860s and 1870s called for the adoption of western technology to modernize the military. He along with other progressive officials began to establish modern industries.

As Governor-General, he supported various businesses from tanneries, tile manufacturing, silk production, paper making, and cotton as well as wool mills among others. In 1884, he oversaw the laying of telegraph wire between Canton, Shanghai, and Hong Kong which later covered the whole Viceroyalty under his control.

Drawing of the Canton Mint, 1888

In 1887, as Viceroy of Liangguang, he proposed the establishment of a silver coin mint in Canton to modernize the country’s currency. Beijing approved the plan and the mint he proposed came into fruition in 1889 when the Canton Mint became China’s first modern mint and produced the so-called dragon silver coins for its curled dragon design on the reverse side.

As Viceroy of Huguang, his patronage led to the foundation of the future Han-Ye-Ping Iron and Coal Company, which unfortunately suffered as badly as Zhang’s personal finances. In 1894, he established ironworks in Hanyang ordering extremely expensive machinery from England followed by an iron mine in Daye. All of which meant to produce rail tracks for the planned Hankow-Beijing Railroad line. However, due to the lack of research on the quality of iron ore and an adequate supply of coal in the area, the ironworks and mine failed to maximize its potential. Worst, the rail tracks produced by the works cost twice as much as imports from Europe. The lack of know-how, managerial skills, bureaucratic red tape, and corruption led to huge losses by the early 1900s. The Chinese industrialist Sheng Xuanhuai bought the facilities to form the Han-Ye-Ping Iron and Coal Company, but the dire condition of the company ultimately led to bankruptcy and takeover by Japanese creditors in 1913.

Despite the failure of some of the industrial projects by Zhang, industrial investments in Hankow and surrounding cities that formed modern-day Wuhan turned it into the so-called “Chicago of China.” Besides, he improved the viceroyalty’s finances from an annual income of 7 million Taels in 1889 to 15 million Taels by 1907.

6. Military Modernization Supporter

Hubei New Army

The Self-Strengthening Movement aimed to develop industries and education to ultimately to build a modern military force. In this line, Zhang also dealt with developing his dominion’s military power. In Guangdong and Guanxi, he founded arsenals that produced artillery shells and small firearms. He also expanded the coastal fleet, while greatly supervising also the education of sailors and officers. In 1886 he founded a Torpedo School and hired a German Naval officer as an instructor. In 1887 he reorganized the School of Solid Learning in Whampoa to become the Naval and Military Officers’ Academy. The School of Solid Learning that began operation in 1881 to teach naval engineering soon began to teach military and naval tactics and strategy under Zhang’s supervision.

In Hubei, he organized a new modern army that later became known as the Hubei New Army. He hired once again German instructors to trains the soldiers following the precedence of other modern military units in China such as those trained by Li Hongzhang and Zeng Guofan. He also established the Hanyang Arsenal, one of China’s largest, producing German model guns for the Hubei Army.

Hanyang Arsenal

7. Railroad Advocate

Industrialization and modernization in the 19th century included the laying out of a railroad network which Zhang Zhidong realized. In 1888, he earned his transfer as Huguang Viceroy by supporting the railroad line connecting Hankow and Beijing. He founded the notorious works which later became known as the Han-Ye-Ping Iron and Coal Company to provide the necessary supplies for the project. The Sino-Japanese War, however, delayed the project’s completion which the Boxer Rebellion further hampered. The railroad finally saw operation in 1906. From 1905 to 1909, Zhang also became the chief negotiator to obtain loans for more railroad lines. In 1905, he negotiated a loan to finance the Canton-Hankow Line and in 1909, he stood in the midst of an agreement for a massive loan for the line from a consortium involving the Deutsche Bank, British HSBC, and the French Banque Indosuez when he suddenly passed away.

8. Sow the Seeds of the Xinhai Revolution

Nanjing Road during Xinhai Revolution

Zhang Zhidong strived to preserve the imperial system with his call for reform and supporting the Self-Strengthening Movement. In 1909, the illustrious statesman passed away. A few years later, in 1911, the Xinhai Revolution broke out from Wuchang in Hubei. Many credited Zhang’s reform in setting Hubei as the center of the revolution. He founded the schools that trained the soldiers of the Hubei New Army that played a key role in sparking the Wuchang Uprising that grew to the Revolution. Hubei hosted many industries and financial institutions that financed the Revolution that brought down the dynasty he served.

Summing Up

Despite the dark clouds haunting China, Zhang Zhidong strived and labored to change the fate of the Qing Dynasty and introduce it to the modern age. However, he unintentionally set the stage that finally brought it down. Even from the margins, a lesser figure compared to the Empress Dowager Cixi, Yuan Shikai, Li Hongzhang, Zhang Zhidong served as an example of a progressive striving to balance the old and new and played a major role in the development of the history of modern China.

See also:

Empress Dowager Cixi

Bibliography:

Books:

Esherick, Joseph & C.X. George Wei (eds.). China: How the Empire Fell. New York, New York, Routledge, 2014.

Chen, Zhengping. A Brief History of Finance in China. n.p., n.p.: Paths International Ltd., 2014.

Cameron, Meribeth. “Chang Chih-tung.” Eminent Chinese of the Ch’ing Period (1644 – 1912). Edited by Arthur Hummel. Washington DC: United States Government Printing Office, 1943.

Rhoads, Edward. China’s Republican Revolution: The Case of Kwangtung, 1895 – 1913. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1975.

Websites:
Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica. “Daye.” Encyclopedia Britannica. Accessed on October 9, 2020. URL: https://www.britannica.com/place/Daye#ref1000191

Yi, Chu Wang. “Zhang Zhidong.” Encyclopedia Britannica. Accessed on October 4, 2020. URL: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Zhang-Zhidong