In 1866, a lot happened during the Qing Dynasty. In Fuzhou, Fujian Province, which is far away from the Beijing Division, there is a happy event, that is, the imperial court approved Zuo Zongtang's request and agreed to open the Fuzhou Shipping Bureau. This was not a big deal for the entire Qing Dynasty, but it was a landmark event in China's modern history, marking the beginning of Chinese's large-scale learning and use of Western advanced technology, which was the beginning of the Western affairs movement. After painstaking management, Fuzhou Shipping Bureau became the largest shipyard in the Far East at that time.
The smooth opening of the Fuzhou Shipping Bureau is inseparable from a person. This person is Zuo Zongtang.
After the Taiping Army was completely suppressed, Zuo Zongtang felt that the technology was lagging behind the West, so he played to the imperial court and explained the advantages and disadvantages. He said that since the Qing Dynasty had exchanged fire with the Western powers, their ships had driven straight into the sea and sailed all the way to Tianjin, and the Qing's defense system was useless. In view of this situation, he suggested that the imperial court spend a lot of effort to build a marine division and open a shipyard. His original words were as follows: "If a subject is foolish enough to reap the benefits of defending the sea, he must not sort out the water master; if he wants to sort out the water master, he must set up a bureau to supervise the construction of ships." Therefore, he asked to open a shipyard, because in his view, the construction of shipyards is an indispensable task for rich countries and strong soldiers and "benefiting the people and businessmen".
The imperial court agreed to his proposal. Therefore, Zuo Zongtang set out to open a shipyard in Fuzhou, Fujian Province.
In fact, Zuo Zongtang's idea of building a shipyard has been germinating for a long time. During the suppression of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, he ordered people to imitate Western ships in Hangzhou, but it took a lot of effort and ultimately failed. This hit Zuo Zongtang very hard. This time in the construction of the shipyard, he learned the lesson of the last time, and specially invited foreign experts to supervise the production.
During the suppression of the Taiping Army, Zuo Zongtang cooperated with the French "Changjie Army" (that is, the so-called Foreign Gun Brigade), got acquainted with the two leaders of the "Changjie Army", and had a good relationship. The two men are Dirk Anderson and Riygg. Thinking of inviting foreigners, Zuo Zongtang first thought more about these two people. After some trial and negotiation, the two agreed to work for the Fuzhou Shipping Bureau. In May 1966 (the fifth year of Tongzhi), Zuo Zongtang reached an agreement with Dikebei and Riyige, and the two "supervised the construction on their behalf", with Riyige being the main supervisor of the Fuzhou Shipping Bureau and Dekebei as the deputy supervisor. In addition, more than 30 foreign technicians have been hired to take charge of specific operations. After that, they carried out site selection work, and after consultation, finally chose the shipyard address at the foot of Mawei Mountain. After the preliminary planning was in place, Zuo Zongtang appointed "all affairs shall be entrusted to these two members to undertake". Zuo Zongtang invested a lot of energy in the construction of the shipping bureau, and at the same time he was full of confidence. When the project was rolled out, he made a brief "five-year plan" for the shipping bureau, clarifying the production targets. In five years, the Bureau of Shipping affairs should follow the "style of foreign warships" and make 11 large ships with 150 horsepower and 5 small ships with 80 horsepower.
However, soon after the completion of the plan, he received orders from the imperial court, and he had a new position: the governor of Shaanxi and Gansu. Jiangnan was pacified, and the imperial court asked him to quell the Hui rebellion in the northwest. Zuo Zongtang was not at ease with the ship's political situation, but the imperial court had to abide by the order. Eventually, he decided to keep a man to continue his shipbuilding career. This person is Shen Baozhen. On the recommendation of Zuo Zongtang, Shen Baozhen became the prime minister of shipping. Shen Baozhen strictly followed the system and plan designed by Zuo Zongtang and continued to promote the shipyard business. Moreover, in the decision-making of many major issues, Shen Baozhen will also seek Zuo Zongtang's opinion. Therefore, after Zuo Zongtang left, the construction of the Shipping Bureau continued under his "remote control". By the thirteenth year of Tongzhi (1874), the Shipping Bureau had a total of 16 factories, 3 ship platforms, 1 ship trough, and an art bureau attached, becoming the largest shipbuilding plant established by the Western affairs faction.
As the most important warship production base in modern China, fuzhou shipping bureau was praised by Li Hongzhang as the "ancestor of the founding mountain". The Fuzhou Shipping Bureau produced a total of 34 ships, including three 2,400-horsepower, 2,400-ton cruiser clippers built for the Nanyang Navy, which was the largest warship built by China itself at that time. Therefore, the establishment of the Fuzhou Shipping Bureau laid the foundation for China to establish its first modern navy. Zuo Zongtang, as the founder of the Fuzhou Shipping Bureau, has made great contributions.