Liu Bingzhang (; May 20, 1826 – August 23, 1905) was a

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...

Chinese scholar-official and general. He served as Governor of

Jiangxi Jiangxi (; ; formerly romanized as Kiangsi or Chianghsi) is a landlocked province in the east of the People's Republic of China. Its major cities include Nanchang and Jiujiang. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze river in the north into h ...

and

Zhejiang Zhejiang ( or , ; , also romanized as Chekiang) is an eastern, coastal province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable cities include Ningbo and Wenzhou. Zhejiang is bordered by ...

provinces and Viceroy of Sichuan. He was a commander in the civil war against the

Taiping Rebellion The Taiping Rebellion, also known as the Taiping Civil War or the Taiping Revolution, was a massive rebellion and civil war that was waged in China between the Manchu-led Qing dynasty and the Han, Hakka-led Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. It last ...

and Nian Rebellion, and the Battle of Zhenhai during the

Sino-French War The Sino-French War (, french: Guerre franco-chinoise, vi, Chiến tranh Pháp-Thanh), also known as the Tonkin War and Tonquin War, was a limited conflict fought from August 1884 to April 1885. There was no declaration of war. The Chinese arm ...

Early life

Liu passed the imperial civil service examination in 1860 and obtained ''

jinshi ''Jinshi'' () was the highest and final degree in the imperial examination in Imperial China. The examination was usually taken in the imperial capital in the palace, and was also called the Metropolitan Exam. Recipients are sometimes referr ...

'', the highest degree.

Career

After obtaining his degree, Liu Bingzhang began his career at the prestigious

Hanlin Academy The Hanlin Academy was an academic and administrative institution of higher learning founded in the 8th century Tang China by Emperor Xuanzong in Chang'an. Membership in the academy was confined to an elite group of scholars, who performed se ...

, but was soon sent to the battlefields to help stamp out the

. After that, he helped quash the Nian Rebellion. In 1875, he was appointed Governor ('' xunfu'') of

Province, but resigned in 1878 in order to return home and fulfill his filial duty for his elderly mother. In 1882, he was appointed Governor of

Province, and was responsible for the defense of the Zhejiang coast. In this capacity, he fought in the Battle of Zhenhai against the French fleet. To commemorate the victory, the Chinese government built the Zhenhai Coastal Defense History Museum in Zhenhai,

Ningbo Ningbo (; Ningbonese: ''gnin² poq⁷'' , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), formerly romanized as Ningpo, is a major sub-provincial city in northeast Zhejiang province, People's Republic of China. It comprises 6 urban districts, 2 sate ...

in 1997. He was awarded the position of Viceroy of Sichuan in 1886, and dealt with anti-missionary riots in

Sichuan Sichuan (; zh, c=, labels=no, ; zh, p=Sìchuān; alternatively romanized as Szechuan or Szechwan; formerly also referred to as "West China" or "Western China" by Protestant missions) is a province in Southwest China occupying most of th ...

. The Christian missionaries complained that he was not effectively punishing the rioters, and under the pressure of Britain, the Qing court stripped Liu of his position in 1895. He died in 1905.

Legacy

To commemorate the Battle of Zhenhai, the Chinese government built the Zhenhai Coastal Defense History Museum in Zhenhai,

in 1997. In 2011, a memorial park was opened in his hometown Wanshan (), Lujiang County,

Anhui Anhui , (; formerly romanized as Anhwei) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the East China region. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze River ...

Province, to honor his 185th birthday.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Liu, Bingzhang 1826 births 1905 deaths Qing dynasty politicians from Anhui Governors of Jiangxi Governors of Zhejiang Governors of Sichuan Politicians from Hefei Viceroys of Sichuan Huai Army personnel