This article is published with the permission of the public account "Memory Islands"
The remnants of the Taiping Army threatened South America, and this rumor spread on the Internet for a decade, and was even cited as information by some regular publications. However, a lie that is repeated a thousand times is not the truth, and a closer look reveals the absurdity of it.
The earliest version I found dates back to 2008, and the original story is roughly like this: in 1865, li Shixian of the Taiping Army was cornered under zuo Zongtang's slaughter, and more than 10,000 troops had no choice but to sell themselves as contract laborers (piglets), and crossed the ocean to Iquique, Peru, suffering from the labor of digging up bird droppings and saltpeter. Coinciding with the Saltpeter War between Peru, Bolivia and Chile in 1866, the remnants of the Taiping Army rose up, repelled the Peruvian army that came to suppress it, and joined forces with the Chilean army, like the heavenly gods, and finally made the Peruvian and Bolivian alliances to make peace.
After accepting the Order of the Chilean Congress, the leader of the Taiping Army declined the invitation to continue his service and led his troops to live the life of an ordinary person in Iquique. Due to the wide circulation, there are other strange versions on the Internet, which interested readers will know at a glance.
A legend full of absurd words
The fabricated story looks beautiful, but it doesn't stand up to scrutiny. Combined with the real history of Chinese immigration in Peru, a few doubts are mentioned, and this pseudo-history can be self-defeating.
Suspicious point one, the timeline in the rumor is messy. Rumors claim that in 1866 chile and Peru and Bolivia there was a saltpeter war, but this war actually broke out 13 years later. As soon as the pen is dropped, the flaws are revealed, and the timeline behind it is naturally full of loopholes. In several versions that have emerged in recent years, most of them have corrected the battle time to 1879, which is a kind of improvement. Coincidentally, Peru in 1866 was indeed embroiled in a skirmish against the former suzerainty of Spain, focusing on Basque laborers working on plantations.
At one point, Spain captured Chincha Island, which was rich in bird droppings, but was quickly repelled by the Peruvian Navy. After the crisis, Peruvian plantation owners recruited a large number of Chinese workers to replace the low-cost workers in southern Europe. The Peruvian government is also aware of the urgency of bird droppings mining on Chincha Island and has also recruited a large number of Chinese workers. The confluence of the two created a wave of immigration to Peru in 1870-1874. Chile, on the other hand, had just reached an agreement with Bolivia on the northern border, positioning the 24 degrees south latitude as the official dividing line, opening a brief honeymoon period between the two countries. Even soon after Chilean prospectors discovered silver north of the border, Bolivia generously granted concessions.
Doubt two, is it possible that 10,000 Taiping troops will quietly blend into the Peruvian Chinese workers? The rumored remnants of the Taiping Army numbered 10,000 people, mostly working as coolies in plantations near Iquique. But according to the 1876 Peruvian Census, the total number of Chinese workers in the province of Tarapacá, to which Iquique belonged, was only 791, and there were only 185 Chinese workers in the nearby province of Tacna. The so-called Taiping Army attacked the enemy's mokgua, but there were only 586 Chinese workers.
It can be seen that there is a huge discrepancy between the fabricated figures and the facts. So, what is the concept of the remnants of the 10,000 Taiping Army? Fu Yunlong, a later envoy sent by the Qing court to various Latin American countries, recorded that the Overseas Chinese Peruvian, starting from the eighteenth year of Daoguang (should be twenty-eight years, 1848 AD), counted to the Guangxu year, did not worry about 110,000 wonders. If there were really 10,000 remnants of the Taiping Army, the President of Peru would have said that he would have shuddered and pondered in horror. Moreover, in the entire saltpeter war, Chile only had 9,500 troops from the sea landing combat troops, and the reinforcements in the later stages of the war were only 25,000.
Attaching another figure, the regular army controlled by the Mitre government in Argentina, which was carried out earlier in the Paraguayan War, was no more than 6,000 people. It seems that if there were ten thousand Taiping troops, it would indeed be enough to "threaten South America." In other versions, the Taiping Army was exiled to Peru with their families, and did not investigate how the family members got on the coolie transport ship, and in the case of 19th-century Peruvian Chinese workers, the proportion of women was long less than 1%, and these Taiping soldiers must only have male dependents.
Doubt three, if there were really 10,000 Taiping Army "piglets" who crossed south America, would they be able to distribute the whole system in neighboring plantations? The answer is: very little! The people who made up the story must not be familiar with the process of selling indentured Chinese workers in Peru, and when the "piglets" arrived at the port, they would first publish advertisements in newspapers such as the "Business Daily", such as the advertisement on October 8, 1855: "Chinese is of vital importance to Peruvian planters and residents." The American three-masted Indian has brought the first Chinese immigrants into the port of Callao. Those who wish to obtain the right to transfer the contract, please go to Romel Company to negotiate. Jesús Dnasarenov, 134. ”
In the eyes of Westerners, this process is like the trade in the cattle and horse market: "Their clothing, generally only wears a pair of fat pants of ochre color, short tops and common Chinese clogs that have been worn on the body during the journey, a rattan hat covers the entire face, and in order to avoid the wind, they carefully tie the hat to their chins." Pinching the biceps on the coolie's arm, pinching the ribs, and then turning the coolie twice like a top in order to examine his constitution as a whole seemed legitimate, and in the process Chinese's face often showed a confused expression. ”
To the planters, the Chinese workers were like talking cattle and horses, and a similar scene was repeatedly staged in the American black slave trade: "Brothers and cousins are always eager to be distributed together, and if the employer does not agree, these Chinese guys often strive to fight, they often rely on the eloquence and gestures of the people of the Heavenly Dynasty to get their wishes, and the vast majority of coolies are resigned to fate." Therefore, if there were really 10,000 Taiping troops, they would not have been concentrated in southern Peru, and it should be known that the coastal plantations north of Lima are the big buyers of Chinese workers. There are also examples of the purchase of coolies on the whole ship, but the buyer has a very clear record - the American tycoon Meggs, who built the railway in Peru, is also difficult to confirm.
Suspicious point four, neither Chinese nor Western newspapers have reported anything about this. Peru's "Business Daily", which has always been concerned about the Chinese issue, often accused the Various Dangers of Chinese Immigrants, but did not report on the Taiping Army during the sensitive period of the war. The missionary Lin Lezhi's "Bulletin of nations" and the late Qing dynasty newspaper pioneer Wang Tao's "Circular Daily" also reported on the frontline battles of the saltpeter war every few days, and never mentioned this detail. If there is news that the Chinese have broken the enemy, they will not miss it, nor will they let this "feat" be turned over after more than a hundred years.
Catching the wind and catching the shadows to create rumors
Behind the layers of doubts, is this rumor a rootless water? Not all of them, but at least it had nothing to do with the Taiping Army. Chinese workers were oppressed in Peru, and many coolies who did not support the contract period died of exhaustion or illness in a foreign country. In their submissions to the Qing court, they spoke of bitterness: "When we recruit workers in our country, they are called servants, and when they come ashore, they are called servants, and when they come ashore in other countries, they are sold, and when they come ashore, they are called slaves, they are scolded, they are not clothed and fed, and they are engraved between their cheeks, such as distribution, locking double shackles on their feet, xi jiao prisoners, ploughing fields and ponds, day and night, under the cane, countless unjust souls, although they have made a contract, there are a few who walk according to the regulations." In addition, the Chinese workers also had to endure the humiliation of the black overseers, and once these former slaves became the confidants of the plantation owners, they rode on the necks of the latecomers as a blessing, and the newcomers dared to be angry, but the emotions of resistance were always accumulating.
The deed of sale signed by the Chinese worker
The first chinese riot took place in September 1870 in the Bativalka Valley, a coastal area 125 miles north of Lima. The reaction to the incident was so great that it even alarmed the U.S. consul Williamson, who described in detail in a letter to the Secretary of State: "When Mr. Cabanal and Mr. Ballesteros accompanied two other gentlemen, Named Antonio Davila and Dr. Pareja, to dinner at the table, they were stunned by a group of Chinese with guns, spears and machetes who suddenly broke in from different doors.
These Chinese carried out an indiscriminate massacre against them, killing them all and crushing them into pieces in a terrible way. Chinese plundered everything they could find in the house, and they seized 50 horses, and some Chinese mounted their horses to form a cavalry team, and they specialized in robbing the house, and their strength had reached 600 at that time. ”
Furious Chinese workers rushed to storm the entire plantation, and the residents rushed to the church Chinese the wind. It was one of the strongest buildings in town, and according to Williamson, "a man named Ariata and several others heroically defended the church against the riotous crowds." They killed about 50 Chinese and forced other Chinese to stop outside the effective range to dodge the shellless rifle fire. ”
Equally hot and cold, the Chinese workers were unable to capture the church guarded by several people, and they had to turn to attack another village, Baranga, but still did not return, which is the real combat strength of the Peruvian Chinese workers.
The Chinese workers' rebellion was quickly suppressed, and then Peruvian President José Barta ordered Colonel Ramirez to organize a crusade to go to the valley to calm the situation. Ramirez led 120 policemen, 20 gendarmes and about a battalion of soldiers, slaughtered more than a hundred people, and asked the Chinese workers to lay down their weapons and return to the owner's plantation, many refused to be cattle and horses, so they fled into the mountains, and there were no shortage of poor people who committed suicide because they were cornered.
The rumors of the Taiping Army have many shadows of this Chinese workers' uprising, with similar times and slightly the same beginnings, but the real history ends in tragedy. It was also around this time that some plantation owners ordered dead Chinese workers to be cremated. Because most Chinese workers believe that only the remains that are intact can be expected to return to their homeland and reincarnate, which is also the harshest punishment of the rebels by their employers.
There were indeed Chinese in the Chilean army
So, are there any Chinese in the saltpeter war? Yes! But it had nothing to do with the Taiping Army, nor did it really go into battle.
Quintin Quintana
In September 1880, the Patricio Lynch expedition under the Chilean army attacked the Peruvian coast, many plantations were captured, and many Chinese workers regarded the Chileans as liberators and came to vote. Lynch participated in the Second Opium War, knew a little about China, and spoke a few words of Chinese, which Chinese workers called the "Red Prince". Along the way from Pisco to Ruhring, Lynch took in a large number of Chinese and entrusted them to the Chinese he trusted, Quintin Quintana (Chinese workers often followed their master's surname, of course, Quintana was free when he defected to Lynch).
The Peruvian historian Rodriguez described Quintana this way: "He was the Spartacus of the East, an energetic and fearless agitator, who infected his fellow countrymen with enthusiasm. "There are more than 2,000 Chinese under Quintana's command (1,500), which does not contradict the previous figures, because they come from coastal areas with many Chinese workers, and according to the 1876 census, there were 4,920 Chinese workers in Ica Province where Quintana lived.
The Chinese in the Saltpeter War
The Lynch Expedition drove out Peruvian plantation owners, giving hope to the suffering Chinese workers, who joined the Liberators mostly voluntarily. On behalf of the Chinese workers, Quintana swore an oath: "If you want me to work, you will kill people, if you want me to set fire, you will set fire, and if you want me to die, you will die.", which is evident in his determination.
There are also clear-eyed people who see through the rumors of the Taiping Army, but are convinced that the Chinese workers once killed peruvians in the war, as evidenced by a Rodriguez account: the Chileans organized the Chinese workers into the Vulcan camp and let them participate in the battles of San Juan and Miraflores. However, this kind of French speaking is not clear, but in fact, the real situation is supported by more detailed information.
After swearing allegiance to Kaya'o in 1881, Chilean officers recorded the distribution of the Chinese forces: 500 young warriors were selected to be part of Captain Villaroel's bridge-building team, specializing in mine clearance and bomb removal; 300 men formed an ambulance team to transport the wounded on the battlefield; 200 were sent to the equipment depot to carry and reload ammunition for the artillery; 100 men were guarded, distributed hay, and raised livestock; 300 were assigned to the general logistics department, loading and unloading supplies on the backs of mules, delivering packages, sewing military uniforms, and internally mixing wine and meat food The rest were under the command of Quintin Quintana and at the uniform dispatch of their superiors.
The Chinese in the Chilean army are wearing domed military hats, wearing thick canvas uniforms, and stepping on the special military boots of the Chilean Logistics Department, which is inevitably misunderstood, they are already members of the Chilean combat troops. Moreover, later generations criticized the field discipline of these Chinese workers, and the Peruvian historian Bassadré once mentioned that the role of the Chinese in the saltpeter war was overestimated, and he quoted a Chilean front-line officer complaining: "I have not seen any benefit from the presence of the Chinese on the battlefield, and as soon as the fire was exchanged, they scattered and fled, and did not dare to appear until the end of the battle to complete the mission of burying the corpses and transporting the wounded." ”
There is also a rather interesting detail that proves that these Chinese workers have nothing to do with the remnants of the Taiping Army. In 1881, the Chilean physician Kunli recorded the pre-war mobilization of Chinese workers: "In front of the portrait of Guan Gong, Chinese performed a mass-like ceremony, then slaughtered a rooster, drained the blood into a large bowl, swore a blood pact, prayed for the victory of the Chilean army, and then mixed the chicken blood with water and drank it all." ”
Chilean Captain Aklan, who was also present at the time, described it this way: "More than 2,000 Chinese held a grand ceremony in the temple, killing chickens and drinking blood, throwing shells, and vowing to help Chile win." "This bloody alliance in front of Guan Gong is by no means a pre-war ceremony of the Taiping Army.
Zeng Guofan clearly said in the "Discussion of Cantonese Bandits": "The Cantonese bandits (Taiping Army) burned the scholar officials of Chenzhou, destroyed the Wood Lord of Xuansheng, and the ten zhe and two chambers were full of chaos. He was the county he passed, and destroyed the temple first, that is, loyal and righteous soldiers such as the King of Guandi Yue, also defiled his palace and mutilated his head. "Unlike the Taiping Army, which believed in God and destroyed the statue of Guan Gong, the Heaven and Earth Society, which had deep roots in Guangdong, the homeland of the Chinese workers, would more use the ritual of blood as an alliance, and interestingly, in 1862, before the fall of the Li Shixian Department, which belonged to the Taiping Army in South America, it was also fiercely fought with Tan Xing and Chen Rongbu of the Heaven and Earth Society in western Zhejiang.
The bloody revenge of the Peruvians
The Peruvians never faced the Chinese workers on the battlefield, but Chile broke through all the way to the heart of Lima, and when the shame of defeat needed to be vented, the Chinese became the only choice for the punching bag.
In January 1881, almost at the same time as the Chinese under Quintana swore allegiance to Chile, an anarchic revolt broke out in the city of Lima. Chinese shops were looted countless times, and 300 Asians (sometimes not strictly distinguished between Asians and Chinese in Peruvian statistics) died from the war. After the recollection of the Chinese merchants in the city: (The Peruvian army) forced the Chinese shops to sell hard to give them military supplies, and some people who suspended the market arrested and fined silver. Before the general offensive of the Zhi Army, the secret army retreated, and in the middle of the night, there was a military disturbance, and the crowd robbed and looted such as a Chinese shop, and if they resisted, they were shot or set on fire, and from three o'clock to eight o'clock the next day, dozens of Chinese people were killed, more than 100 people were wounded, and more than a million gold were lost.
Also in 1881, the plantations along the coast were in a state of disorder due to the war, and the Blacks in the Cañet Valley rioted and slaughtered the Chinese everywhere. According to historian Arona in "Immigrants in Peru", as many as 1,000 Chinese died. Nearly a thousand other Chinese workers stood in the deep courtyard of the plantation, waiting for the Chilean army to rescue them after four months of siege.
The Reason for the Peruvians' Bloody Revenge was simple: the Chinese were suspected of helping the Chilean army. But the Chinese spoke out through the newspaper: "The Zhijun Tun Li Ma (Lima), well-sheltered and thoughtful, is really worthy of the teacher of benevolence and righteousness." However, although he was temporarily given a peaceful residence, he would inevitably suffer from hunger and cold. The reason for the controversy was probably caused by the hundreds of Chinese people in the Zhi Army carrying heavy loads, and according to Yi and other subordinates, it was actually because they were captured in Tianliao, a foreign port, and they had to be forced to follow.
If we are indignant for this purpose, why build a fort on the mainland, make a pit on the battlefield, and use the Chinese? Although this statement avoids the historical fact that Chinese workers voluntarily defected, it also points out another problem: The Peruvian army also hired Chinese workers to carry and rebuild fortifications, is it really the original sin to be involved in the war? Under the pressure of the Peruvians, the Chinese even issued such a naïve request to the Qing court: "Publicize the countries, divide their merits, withdraw the peace treaty, ban exchanges, and all the Chinese people will return to find another livelihood", of course, there is no response.
Since the Qing envoys had not yet settled in Peru at that time, the Chinese who had no way to retreat could only turn to great powers such as Britain and the United States. Fortunately, the British minister stepped forward to save the Chinese from the fire and water, while "teaching the art of war, patrolling the streets, and protecting the funds", while "giving the British flag door number hanging on the head of the door, so that the soldiers of the two countries could not see it and did not dare to wreak havoc", which avoided further violence by the Peruvians.
Although the Chinese escaped the disaster, after the saltpeter war, Peru immediately set off the first wave of Chinese exclusion. The Chinese were once representatives of model labor, but at this time they were regarded as a scourge on Peruvian society, and one writer belittled the Chinese settlement: "Entering the Chinese neighborhood, you will find a new world, and you can see the pigsty and the latrine in the distance, which is like a labyrinth." The atmosphere is oppressive, with cracked pipes and peeling wall skins everywhere. It was filthy, but far more than that, and worse, opium, and every family and all walk of life hid behind a screen to smoke, while also gathering at the gambling table to spend thousands of dollars.
This hatred intensified with the Yellow Peril theory, and in the next half century, Peru staged a scene of anti-Chinese bloodshed, and the Qing court and the Beiyang government made several solemn negotiations almost to no avail. Looking back on this period of history now, the suffering experienced by overseas compatriots has been interpreted into a carnival of self-talk, and I don't know who has inspired and comforted whom?