What is history: it is the echo of the past to the future, the reflection of the future on the past. - Hugo
The four famous ministers of the late Qing Dynasty refer to Zeng Guofan, Zuo Zongtang, Li Hongzhang, and Zhang Zhidong.
Zeng Guofan's greatest credit in life was his participation in the destruction of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. In order to reward Zeng Guofan, the Qing court made him a first-class Marquis of Yiyong and hereditary succession. Among the famous courtiers in the late Qing Dynasty, Zeng Guofan had the highest title.
Zeng Guofan
The greatest credit of Zuo Zongtang's life was to lead his troops to the west to recover Xinjiang with an area of more than 1 million kilometers, creating a miracle of the loss and recovery of China's territory in the late Qing Dynasty. In order to reward Zuo Zongtang, the Qing court promoted him from a first-class Kejingbo to a second-class Kejing Marquis.
As a result, Li Hongzhang participated in the attack on the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and was given the title of Count of Suyi of the First Rank. When Li Hongzhang died of illness in 1901, the Qing court promoted him to the rank of First Class.
Zeng Guofan, Zuo Zongtang, and Li Hongzhang all had titles, and only Zhang Zhidong did not receive knighthoods during his lifetime or after his death.
Zhang Zhidong
This is because Zhang Zhidong has not made any military achievements.
During the Qing Dynasty, the imperial court managed the rewards of knighthood very strictly. For the Han Chinese, only civilian and military generals who had participated in wars and won military merits had the opportunity to obtain knighthoods. Zeng Guofan, Zuo Zongtang, and Li Hongzhang all charged on the battlefield, experienced the test of life and death, and made achievements that were obvious to all, which was the title of Qing court.
Let's take a look at Zhang Zhidong's resume and find that he has rubbed shoulders with the war many times.
Born in September 1837, Zhang Zhidong passed the 1863 entrance examination and won the third place in the temple examination. During this period, China experienced two Opium Wars and the Taiping Rebellion. Zhang Zhidong was too young to participate in these 3 wars.
Opium war
From 1863 to 1880, Zhang Zhidong served as a Beijing official for 17 years. During this period, China entered a longer period of peace (pacifying the Twister Army and recovering Xinjiang on a smaller scale). Zhang Zhidong, as a rising star in the "Qingliu", waved fangs in the imperial court, stirred up words, and often expressed sharp views on current politics, gradually entering the vision of Empress Dowager Cixi.
In 1881, Empress Dowager Cixi appointed Zhang Zhidong as the Governor of Shanxi. This was Zhang Zhidong's first time as a feudal official. From 1881 to 1884, Zhang Zhidong served as the governor of Shanxi for a total of three years. During the last year of his term, the famous Sino-French War took place.
Sino-French War
The Sino-French War took place mainly in northern Vietnam and the southeast coast of China, and had nothing to do with Zhang Zhidong, the governor of Shanxi. Because Zhang Zhidong advocated the War of Resistance, he was transferred by the Qing court from the post of Inspector of Shanxi to the governor of Liangguang and supervised the Sino-French War. However, Guangzhou, where Zhang Zhidong was stationed, was still far away from the front line of the Sino-French War, and Zhang Zhidong did not have the opportunity to charge the battlefield and passed by this war. In addition, for the Qing court, the Sino-French war was an "undefeated defeat" and a loss of face, of course, it was impossible to discuss merits and rewards after the war.
Therefore, Zhang Zhidong could not have been knighted in the Sino-French War.
From the Sino-French War to 1894, Zhang Zhidong successively served as the governor of Liangguang and the governor of Huguang, and presided over the foreign affairs movement during his tenure, causing wind and fire, and the effect was remarkable, whether it was breadth or depth, surpassing Zeng Guofan, Zuo Zongtang, Li Hongzhang and others, but these did not help Jiajue.
The Hanyang Iron Works established by Zhang Zhidong
In 1894, the Sino-Japanese Sino-Japanese War broke out. The Qing court transferred Zhang Zhidong from the governorship of Huguang to Jiangning (江宁, in present-day Nanjing, Jiangsu Province) to act as the viceroy of Liangjiang. The Liangjiang area is far from the front line, and there is no war. Zhang Zhidong was only responsible for raising salaries and dispatching ordnance, but he did not ignore it, but made many suggestions to the Qing court and Li Hongzhang. For example, he reminded the Qing court to pay attention to strengthening the defense of Shengjing, Tianjin and other places; suggested that Li Hongzhang "buy troop ships, borrow foreign funds, and form strong reinforcements"; when the Japanese army besieged Lushun, it was suggested that Li Hongzhang and Li Bingheng urgently rescue Lushun... Unfortunately, these suggestions were not accepted by the parties and were not put to rest.
In 1896, Zhang Zhidong returned to serve as the governor of Huguang. Subsequently, Zhang Zhidong actively supported the Restoration Law and tried to rescue his proud protégé Yang Rui after the failure of the "Peng Shu Change", but was unsuccessful.
In 1900, the Eight-Nation Alliance invaded China, and Empress Dowager Cixi ordered all kinds of armies to enter The King of Jingqin. Zhang Zhidong did not take care of it, but together with Liu Kunyi, the governor of Liangjiang, Li Hongzhang, the governor of Liangguang, and Xu Yingqi, the governor of Fujian and Zhejiang, and other governors and inspectors of the southeast region, signed the "Regulations on Mutual Protection of southeast China" and reached an agreement with the participating countries.
The Eight-Power Coalition
The invasion of China by the Eight-Power Alliance was the last war Zhang Zhidong had ever experienced in his life. At this time, the Qing court's control over the whole country was further weakened, and it did not matter whether Zhang Zhidong had obtained a knighthood or not.
On October 4, 1909, Zhang Zhidong died of illness at the baimi xiejie apartment (now no. 11 baimi xiejie street on the shore of Shichahai Lake in Xicheng District, Beijing) at the age of 73.
The Qing court posthumously gave Zhang Zhidong the title of "Wenxiang", which was exactly the same as Zuo Zongtang. During the Qing Dynasty, the title of "Wenxiang" was usually awarded to ministers with a background as a university scholar and military merit. It is reasonable that Zuo Zongtang was given the title of "Wenxiang", so why did Zhang Zhidong get this title? Does this show that the Qing court affirmed Zhang Zhidong's hard work and achievements in his life?