In the Sino-Japanese Naval Battle, the performance of the officers of the Beiyang Marine Division was really disappointing. Miscommanding, conspiring against each other, and forming parties for personal gain, this water army, which was highly valued by the imperial court, was a mediocre army with a glamorous appearance and internal corruption.
From the perspective of modern people, in this naval battle that concerns the survival of the country, if a general has unfavorable command, is cowardly and cowardly, and defies the orders of his superiors to transfer his warships away from the battlefield without permission, what is the crime of such an act?
Presumably, everyone's opinion is the same: deserter, pull out and cut!
In the historical data, Fang Boqian was such a cowardly coward, and the Qing government's handling of him was also pulled to the mouth of the vegetable market to "click". This was originally a very gratifying thing, but in recent years, many historians have begun to reorganize that period of history, and all kinds of indications show that Fang Boqian may have been wrongfully killed!
In other words, he was not a cowardly deserter, but a naval hero.
According to Fang Boqian's wife, during the Battle of Toshima, when Officer Fang saw that the Guangyi ship on the way was severely damaged, he ordered the sailors to sail forward and exchange fire with three Japanese ships, blocking three enemy ships with the strength of one ship.
Later, Officer Fang's warship was difficult to support, and only then did he begin a strategic retreat. In the process of retreating, the Fang officer used the method of deception to trick the commander of the enemy ship into relaxing his vigilance, and took this opportunity to use the tail gun to inflict heavy damage on the enemy ship, and severely damaged the pursuing Japanese ship.
According to this, this person is a rare great hero in the world, and should be remembered by future generations like Deng Shichang. However, why did the Qing court kill such a hero and erase his exploits?
To understand this inside story, we also have to study the cattiness of the top brass of the Beiyang Fleet.
In this battle, the top brass of the commanding fleet was not united enough, which was obvious to all. At that time, the fleet commander-in-chief Ding Ruchang and the right-wing commander-in-chief Liu Butou issued the wrong order, so that a large number of Qing ships fell into a passive position.
On this occasion, the top level of the Beiyang Marine Division thought not of turning the tide, but of throwing the pot as soon as possible. Because, planting stolen goods and marrying pots and urinating pots has become a common practice in the Qing court officialdom at that time.
So, who should carry this black cauldron?
Fang Boqian is the best choice.
First of all, the Tactical Detour of the Jiyuan ship is a fact, and it is only necessary to add fuel to the process to slander the "strategic retreat" as "escape".
Secondly, the Jiyuan ship was the only Qing ship in this naval battle that severely damaged the enemy ship, and killing Fang Boqian could take this credit alone.
In the end, Fang Boqian had no personal relationship with Ding, Liu and others, and was not Li Hongzhang's "own person".
There is no doubt that these three "counts" sentenced Officer Fang to death.
After Fang was beheaded, his wife would take out the military uniform that her husband wore during the battle every year after the Dragon Boat Festival and put it in the sun to dry. On this dress, there were traces of blood. It is said that these blood stains were left when the second and third mates of the Jiyuan ship died in battle, when the second mate was shot, and the blood and brain plasma spilled on Fang Boqian's clothes.
What does this mean?
Instead of "retreating without a fight," the officers and men on the Jiyuan warship engaged in a fierce battle with the enemy. If the Jiyuan ship chose to avoid local fire from the beginning, how could there be several casualties?
Unfortunately, this hero's suit was lost during the Cultural Revolution, and we have not been able to find this precious cultural relic.
In fact, as early as when Officer Fang was beheaded, there were already various indications that his death was a strange injustice:
First, in the work "Narrative of the Wronged Sea", the beginning and end of this naval battle are recorded in detail. The author personally interviewed the seafarers on the Jiyuan ship at that time, and the parties explained the ins and outs of the matter. At that time, after the publication of this work, the Qing court did not give any response. Even the rulers have not refuted it, which shows that the grievances mentioned in the book are true.
Second, according to the "Miscellaneous Records of Lu Jia's Jia Wu Before and After Noon", on the day that Fang Guan Belt was beheaded, his sailors personally went to the execution ground to bid farewell, and "the soldiers and soldiers who heard it" all ran to the corpse and wept, and they heard for miles, and they all saw tears. It can be seen that the square pipe belt has a high prestige in the army and is deeply loved by soldiers. Imagine how a timid and cowardly officer could be loved by a soldier?
Third, the "Chronicle of The Eastern Soldiers" said that Fang Guan had escaped from the battlefield and was to blame himself. However, the author Yao Xiguang belongs to the Li Hongzhang family. How much credibility does the article written from this standpoint have?
Fourth, a "Naval Chronicle" published in the early years of the Republic of China contains a record that "Fang Boqian was slandered as a fugitive from the army before the law, and the military was wronged." It is reported that this historical material is based on the oral past experience of the Minchu Navy, when many veterans participated in the Sino-Japanese Naval Battle.
Fifth, when Fang Guan Belt died, there were many literati who complained about it, such as the sentence in the "Lamenting Liaodong Fu": "The three words of the finger become unjust, and the Bad Great Wall loses its position", which implies the grievances of the Fang Guan Belt.
All kinds of indications show that there were many hidden feelings in the naval battle that year. At least, the death of Officer Fang was mostly a misjudgment by the Qing court. In fact, for a hero, death is not terrible, what is terrible is to be accused of being a coward.
Source: Historical Stories