In September 1898, after the failure of the Penghu Reform Law, the contradictions between the old and new factions of ministers within the Qing court began to become increasingly serious, and the two factions took advantage of the liquidation of the Kang Youwei Yu party to attack each other. In the twenty-fourth year of Guangxu (1900), the conservative faction led by Gang Yi and Xu Tong instigated Empress Dowager Cixi to depose the Guangxu Emperor, and then created a farce of "building a reserve in his own sea". This farce was strongly opposed by the new ministers headed by Rong Lu and Li Hongzhang at that time, and thus evolved into a tragic tragedy of the "Eight-Power Alliance invading China."
Then, as Cixi's favorite vassal and representative of the new faction, what was the attitude in the "Self-Hai Jian chu"?
Curtain down to listen to the government
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="3" > the political situation after the coup d'état</h1>
In 1898, after the coup d'état, with the Guangxu Emperor imprisoned, the conservative faction led by Cixi regained power. Officials who had supported the change were expelled, dismissed, or exiled. The conservative ministers such as Gang Yi and Xu Tong, who had vigorously obstructed the New Deal, were promoted and favored by Cixi. At this time, those officials who were regarded as "honest and loyal" by Gang Yi and others were given the opportunity to enter the core of power, and the promotion and transfer of imperial court officials were influenced and manipulated by them.
However, in the face of the conservative faction's wanton seizure of power, the new faction forces were not willing to sit still, and the plots of Gang Yi, Xu Tong and others were strongly opposed by Rong Lu and Yi Li and others. The struggle between the old and new factions intensified as a result, making the political situation after the coup even more turbulent.
The Guangxu Emperor
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="19" > the conspiracy</h1>
In January 1900, DuanWang Zaiyi and chancellor Gang Yi proposed to Empress Dowager Cixi to depose the Guangxu Emperor and establish a new monarch, which was opposed by Rong Lu. As a courtier, why did he dare to discuss the abolition of the establishment at this time? There are actually two reasons:
First of all, depose Guangxu and establish a new monarch, so that Gang Yi and others will not only have the merit of supporting the establishment, but will certainly reward and reuse them after the new monarch takes the throne, but also be able to strike at the new faction. Empress Dowager Cixi was also 64 years old at this time, Guangxu was in her prime, and once the empress dowager died and Guangxu regained power, Gang Yi and others would definitely be liquidated, so they were also looking for a way back for themselves.
Empress Dowager Cixi
Finally, Guangxu was now an adult and should have been pro-government, while Empress Dowager Cixi's "discipline" at this time was not in line with the traditional "family law". Therefore, Empress Dowager Cixi also needed to find new reasons to consolidate her position as a "disciplined government". If at this time, a new emperor who is younger can be supported again, then it is reasonable for Cixi to bow to the government again.
From the above two reasons, it can be seen that after the coup d'état, the power within the ruling class of the Qing Dynasty was facing a redistribution situation, so it was timely to propose a conspiracy to abolish the establishment at this time.
Empress
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="20" > has been built</h1>
After Gang Yi and others put forward the proposal to depose Guangxu, Rong Lu, as Empress Dowager Cixi's favorite courtier, did not directly oppose it, but adopted a strategy of delaying the army, and advised Cixi: Only by abolishing such a big thing, only with the support of the governors of various places, it will not be criticized by the people of the world, or let me explore their tone first, and then make a decision before it is too late (Xinjiang surrenders, Si Tianxia does not dare to discuss it. The courtiers are requested to first observe the movement of the four directions with their own intentions, and then act in a hurry.) After receiving Cixi's approval, he revealed the matter to the local governors.
fortitude
First of all, the most fierce opposition was liu kunyi, the governor of Liangjiang, who sent a telegram to Ronglu: the righteousness of the monarch is the most important, and the mouths of China and foreign countries are difficult to defend. Kun Yi is here to report to the country, so the newspaper is also here. Secondly, the General Office of the Shanghai Telegraph Bureau, led by Yuanshan, sent a telegram to oppose the deposing of the emperor, and issued a "Notice to the Provinces", stating that if the imperial court did not withdraw its mandate, it would call on industry and commerce in various places to strike the market, and local newspapers also expressed concern about the Guangxu Emperor. Finally, the offices of the great powers also sent notes to the Qing court, inquiring about the situation of the Guangxu Emperor and warning about the deposing of Guangxu.
In the face of many opposition voices, Rong Lu took the opportunity to propose to Cixi: in the name of the Guangxu Emperor, he issued an edict saying that he could not give birth to a prince, so Pu Jun, the son of King Liduan, was the eldest brother, and passed on to the Guangxu Emperor, concurrently the Tongzhi Emperor, and raised Xu to usurp the unification in the palace, so that those opposing voices could be blocked.
Liu Kunyi
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="21" > reason for Ronglu's objection</h1>
After the coup d'état, Rong Lu was appointed as a scholar of the Mandarin Temple and a viceroy directly subordinate to him, and was in charge of the Armed Guard Army, and entered the military aircraft department, which can be described as a power tilted to the opposition. At this time, if Guangxu was deposed, the most likely to inherit the throne could only be the Duanwang Zaiyi branch, which was closest to the royal family, and the Duanwang and Gangyi and Xu Tong were of the same faction. Once the new emperor ascended the throne, Duan Wang and Gang Yi and others were bound to be reused, and in the case of such strong opposition at home and abroad, deposing the Guangxu Emperor would not only affect the power and prestige of Empress Dowager Cixi, but also the status of Rong Lu. At this time, after the Sino-Japanese Sino-Japanese War, the Penghu Rebellion, and the reshuffle of power after the Wushu coup, only by maintaining the stability of the korean situation could the Qing Dynasty on the verge of collapse be preserved.
Ronglu
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="22" > History Inquiry</h1>
Although he temporarily prevented the old-fashioned faction's plot to depose the Guangxu Emperor, due to the opposition and obstruction of the great powers, the conservative faction has always held a grudge against the "foreigners". At this time, the "Boxer Rebellion" movement arose in the north, and Zaiyi, Gangyi, and others took the opportunity to encourage Cixi to wage war against the great powers, hoping to use the strength of the Boxers to achieve the goal of expelling and attacking the forces of the great powers. It can be said that there is already a certain connection between the jianchu and the invasion of China by the Eight-Power Alliance, and the struggle between the ruling classes of the decadent Qing Dynasty not only damaged the sovereignty of the country in the end, but also brought a heavy burden to the common people.
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