As a major minister of the late Qing Dynasty, Li Hongzhang was the founder and commander of the Huai Army and the Beiyang Naval Division, and one of the leaders of the Foreign Affairs Movement, and established China's first Western-style navy, the Beiyang Naval Division, and was a member of the Third Division of the Eastern Palace, a scholar of the Wenhuadian University, a minister of trade and commerce in Beiyang, a viceroy directly subordinate to the Beiyang, and a first-class Su Yibo.
In his lifetime, Li Hongzhang participated in a series of major historical events: including the suppression of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Movement, the suppression of the Twister Rebellion, the Foreign Affairs Movement, the Sino-Japanese War, etc., and signed a series of unequal treaties on behalf of the Qing government, such as the Treaty of Vietnam, the Treaty of Maguan, the Concise Treaty between China and France, and the Treaty of Xinugu.
Li Hongzhang was a student of Zeng Guofan, and he was also proud of the spring breeze in the official arena, and he was also deeply taught and cultivated by Zeng Guofan, and his career was Huang Tengda, and he was Cixi's favorite favorite favorite, known as "Li Zhongtang".
Li Hongzhang was a heavy minister of the late Qing Dynasty, and the big and small affairs of foreign affairs basically passed through his hands, equivalent to our current premier and foreign minister! Zeng Guofan was also a famous general of the Qing Dynasty, Wen Tao Wuluo, single-handedly cultivated Li Hongzhang, but unfortunately Li Hongzhang only learned one aspect of Zeng Guofan Wen, and the wu side was seriously unbalanced, resulting in the most failed diplomat in the late Qing Dynasty!
Zeng Guofan's famous sayings and aphorisms are very many, and they are very powerful, but Li Hongzhang only used half of Zeng Guofan's "Golden Words", resulting in diplomatic and military defeat and retreat!
Zeng Guofan: "People should save things, they should not be afraid of things; People should be vulgar, not vulgar"!
In handling diplomacy and military affairs, Li Hongzhang used half of it, not the other half! From the signing of a series of treaties handled by Li Hongzhang, they were all compromises and concessions step by step, and everything was to save trouble. To put it bluntly, it is to be afraid of things!
Rising step by step in the official arena, he became Cixi's favorite courtier, which can be described as otherworldly; Vigorously engage in the foreign affairs movement to establish the Beiyang Marine Division, and in the face of the great enemy, it is so vulgar that it has gradually retreated until it collapses!
Many people say that the defeat of the late Qing Dynasty was caused by Cixi, and it can also be said that It was caused by Li Hongzhang, because there is a saying called: "When the general is outside, the king will not obey!" ”
To put it bluntly, Li Hongzhang did not use Zeng Guofan's "Golden Words", only half of it, resulting in a fiasco in the late Qing Dynasty!