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Text | Edit: Shi Zai has no money
Preface
At the turning point of history at the end of the Ming Dynasty and the beginning of the Qing Dynasty, a magnificent struggle was staged in the land of China. Although the Eight Banners Army of the Qing Dynasty swept the world, many unwilling Han gentry and ordinary people refused to accept foreign rule, and the Tiandihui was the banner of their rebellion.
As Qing rule gradually became more secure, the anti-Qing and Ming restoration movement of the Tiandihui seemed to have lost its foundation, and some members did not give up, and went into exile in Southeast Asia, even establishing a country twice the size of Japan. What kind of story is this? How does this mysterious country exist? Let's take a look at the following history.
In the last years of the Qing Dynasty, an organization called the Tiandihui quietly emerged among the people, stemming from the common belief of its members to "worship heaven and earth as parents" and a radical but attractive goal to "oppose the Qing Dynasty and restore the Ming Dynasty". Although this goal was ostensibly a banner against the Qing regime, it was actually seen more as a strategy to expand the organization's influence and enhance internal cohesion.
As the Qing regime declined, especially in civil administration, the Qing government increasingly exploited the people instead of reflecting on and correcting its policy mistakes. In order to escape heavy taxes, the broad masses of peasants had to leave their homeland and wander in a foreign land in an attempt to survive.
In particular, when the Qing government issued a ban on the sea, prohibiting commercial activities in coastal areas, coastal residents who had already relied on maritime trade for their livelihoods fell into a desperate situation. The short-sightedness and selfishness of this policy have led to the misery of a large number of people living in the coastal areas, making them completely lose confidence in the government.
So the Heaven and Earth Society initiated by Monk Hong Er is such an organization. In the beginning, the Heaven and Earth Society was just a small group of people, based on the principle of helping each other, trying to find a trace of peace in the turbulent times. But over time, the size of the organization expanded rapidly, and the original small group gradually evolved into a large organization with social influence.
As the number of members increased, the activities of the organization also began to diversify, and some members took advantage of the numerical advantage and began to engage in predatory activities to infringe on the interests of ordinary people. Although this behavior increased the financial resources of the organization in the short term, it also forced those who had lost their livelihoods to join the Heaven and Earth Society, hoping to find a new way out of life in the organization.
As a result, the Tiandihui soon developed into a vast force, and a group of visionary leaders emerged within it, who began to plan a larger goal, which was to challenge the rule of the Qing government, to raise the banner of anti-Qing restoration and to try to achieve broader political and social influence through this movement.
Later, the policies of the Qing Dynasty severely limited the ability of the people to self-organize, because as the power of the Tiandihui grew, they began to carry out uprisings to challenge the rule of the Qing government. The most famous of these was the Lin Shuangwen Uprising in Taiwan, which was carried out under the strategy and support of the Tiandihui, and although it did not succeed, it made the Qing regime feel threatened like never before.
The activities of the Tiandihui were much more than that, and they launched a series of rebellions of various scales in Guangdong, Guangxi, and other places to challenge the rule of the Qing Dynasty. These rebellions forced the Qianlong Emperor to devote enormous energy and resources to suppress them, but the spirit of resistance of the Heaven and Earth Society was not extinguished.
In the Taiping Rebellion, the Heaven and Earth Society once again became an important part of the anti-Qing forces. The active participation of the Heaven and Earth Guilds in various places provided strong support for Hong Xiuquan's uprising, mobilizing millions of people to participate in this epic struggle. In its decades-long history, the Heaven and Earth Society has won people's respect and admiration for its unswerving belief in opposing the Qing Dynasty and restoring the Ming Dynasty.
In the late Qing Dynasty, there was a diversified development path within the Heaven and Earth Society. Some members adhered to their original intentions and continued to pursue the ideal of opposing the Qing Dynasty and restoring the Ming Dynasty; others turned to underground social activities and formed organizations with the character of an underworld; and others, such as Sun Yat-sen and others, turned their goals to revolutionary activities to overthrow the Qing Dynasty and establish a new regime. Among these changes, none has been more striking than the establishment of a massive state overseas, the Republic of Lanfang.
Luo Fangbo, the founder of the Lanfang Republic, was also a member of the Heaven and Earth Society. Driven by domestic repression, Lo and his brothers embarked on a journey to find a new lease of life, with their destination being the resource-rich island of Borneo. In 1777, the discovery of gold in Borneo gave them new hope. With his business talents, Luo Fangbo quickly rose to prominence in the local area, not only building a business empire, but also laying the foundation of a political empire.
Borneo's environment is full of opportunities, but it is also full of challenges. The frequent attacks of pirates have become a major obstacle to Luo Fangbo's development. With his experience in the Heaven and Earth Society, Luo Fangbo has his own unique methods and strategies against foreign enemies. He rallied the local population oppressed by pirates and united his fellow Han brothers to fight against the threat posed by pirates. Through a series of battles, they managed to repel the pirates and protect the safety and property of the inhabitants.
It was after this series of battles and victories that Luo Fangbo seized the best opportunity to establish his own power and proclaimed the establishment of the Republic of Lanfang. The newly formed state grew rapidly, doubling the size of Japan at its heyday, and became a Chinese regime with significant influence overseas.
The wild land of Borneo has become a new starting point for them, this land is rich and undeveloped, and the aboriginal way of life is still in the primitive stage, which makes Luo Fangbo shocked and excited at the same time. He saw an opportunity to change the land and help the people here enter civility.
Initially, they established a trade-focused organization in the name of doing business, the Lanfang Company. Unlike the East India Company, which aimed to plunder, the Lanfang Company focused more on integration and development with the local community. Using his knowledge and experience, Luo Fangbo introduced advanced agricultural technology and management methods, taught the locals to grow crops and use natural resources, and gradually improved their living standards.
He was well aware of the importance of education, so he spent a lot of money to invite scholars to impart knowledge, open schools, teach Chinese characters and Chinese, and let the seeds of civilization take root in this land. When the shadow of the Dutch colonizers loomed over the land, Luo Fangbo showed extraordinary leadership and strategic vision. He organized and led the local population, successfully resisted the invasion of the Dutch, and protected the land and its people.
Under Luo Fangbo's leadership, the Society and its followers gradually established influence in the West Kalimantan region of Borneo. Through good interaction with indigenous communities, they not only gained widespread support, but also effectively eradicated local anarchy and laid the foundation for peace and order in the region.
Using his wisdom and insistence on justice, Luo Fangbo soon became a leader recognized by both Chinese and indigenous people. The army he created was well-equipped and combat-ready, which not only protected the local population, but also gradually controlled the political and economic life of West Kalimantan, laying a solid foundation for the development of the Heaven and Earth Society overseas.
In 1776, under the strategic direction of Luo Fangbo, the Lanfang Company was established in the Eastern Wanlu area, and this commercial entity quickly became an influential organization. In 1777, with the change of name of the "Ranfang Company" to the "Great Republic of Ranfang", the country quickly demonstrated its strength, and its territory expanded to far exceed the size of two Japanese countries. During this period, Borneo became almost a Chinese-dominated territory.
In addition to the Republic of Lanfang, there are also several small kingdoms founded by the Chinese, which are mostly based on family governance and cannot compete with the Republic of Lanfang under Luo Fangbo's leadership in terms of influence or territory. Despite the success of the initial battle against the Dutch forces, the Dutch colonists did not stop there, but gathered a more powerful fleet in an attempt to completely annex the Republic of Lanfang.
Faced with the continued Dutch invasion, Luo Fangbo urgently needed to find foreign aid, and naturally set his sights on the Qing Dynasty, an East Asian power at the time, hoping to make the Lanfang Republic a vassal of the Qing Dynasty and thus obtain its protection. However, at this time, the Qing Dynasty was in the Qianlong period, and the Qianlong Emperor regarded himself very highly, turning a blind eye to the plight of the Chinese in Nanyang, and even derogatorily calling all the Chinese operating in Nanyang "the abandoned people of the country".
At that time, Luo Fangbo was well aware of the crises and challenges faced by the new country, so he soon sent an envoy to the north, carrying a letter, across the ocean, to ask for support and protection from the Qianlong Emperor in the Central Plains. At that time, the Qing Dynasty was at its peak, and its glorious civilization and military power were in awe of the surrounding countries, and the Western powers followed suit and did not dare to offend easily.
Luo Fangbo's motives were not difficult to understand, what he longed for was a strong backer, a barrier enough to deter the marauders. In fact, the covetousness and invasion of the Dutch colonists never stopped, but under the strong deterrence of the Qing Dynasty, they never dared to act rashly. The people of the Republic of Lan Phong enjoyed a brief period of peace and prosperity in such an environment.
Unfortunately, although the Qing Dynasty did not officially recognize the legitimacy of the Lan Fang Republic, the two sides maintained some degree of contact based on the interests of trade. With the passage of time, the Qing Dynasty gradually fell into the predicament of being closed and backward, and its external majesty and strength began to waver.
The Dutch colonists noticed this change and began to plan an all-out attack on Lan Fang, intending to incorporate it into their colonial territory. The people of the Republic of Lan Phong did not give in, they organized a militia and resisted bravely with their weapons.
Due to the lack of support from the Qing Dynasty, the Republic of Lanfang led by Luo Fangbo suffered from military pressure from the Netherlands for a long time. Despite the disadvantage of the Dutch in advanced weapons, the Republic of Lanfang showed tenacity and fought against the Dutch colonial power for more than a hundred years, until it was finally forced to give in in 1888.
Although the Republic of Lanfang is no longer there, its pursuit of freedom and independence has become an important source of inheritance and development of the national spirit in the Nanyang region, leaving an indelible contribution to the formation of the modern Nanyang region.
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