Luo Zenan (1807–1856) was a Neo-Confucian scholar of the late

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...

Cheng–Zhu school The School of Principle ( zh, p=Lǐxué, t=理學, s=理学), or the Cheng–Zhu School ( zh, p=Chéng Zhū lǐxué, t=程朱理學), is one of the major philosophical schools of Neo-Confucianism, based on the ideas of the Neo-Confucian philosoph ...

born in Shiniuwanzhou,

Xiangxiang Xiangxiang () is a county-level city under the administration of Xiangtan, Hunan province, China. Located on Central Hunan and the west of Xiangtan, Xiangxiang is bordered by Ningxiang County and Shaoshan City to the north, Xiangtan County to th ...

Hunan Hunan is an inland Provinces of China, province in Central China. Located in the middle reaches of the Yangtze watershed, it borders the Administrative divisions of China, province-level divisions of Hubei to the north, Jiangxi to the east, Gu ...

. He served as the chief envoy to Ningshaotai Road in

Zhejiang ) , translit_lang1_type2 = , translit_lang1_info2 = ( Hangzhounese) ( Ningbonese) (Wenzhounese) , image_skyline = 玉甑峰全貌 - panoramio.jpg , image_caption = View of the Yandang Mountains , image_map = Zhejiang i ...

. One of the founders of the Hunan Army, his disciples

Li Xubin Li Xubin (; 1817 – November 16, 1858), courtesy name Di'an () or Kehui (), was a Chinese military general who lived in the Qing dynasty. He was a commander of the Xiang Army, a military force raised by the Qing government to help the imperial f ...

, Li Xuyi,

Zeng Guoquan Zeng Guoquan (12 October 1824 – 13 November 1890), courtesy name Yuanfu, art name Shuchun, was a Chinese official and military leader of the late Qing dynasty. He was the ninth brother of Zeng Guofan, a prominent statesman and general, and a ...

, Zeng Guohua, Jiang Yili, and Wang Hao were all generals of the Hunan Army. Together with

Taqibu Taqibu (, ; 1816–1855), courtesy name Zhiting, member of the Tao Jia clan, a native of Manchuria's Bordered Yellow Banner, was promoted to the rank of Retainers in early China, retainer in his early years as an officer of the guards. Thereafte ...

, he was known as "Ta Luo". In the sixth year of Xianfeng, he died in battle outside

Wuchang City Wuchang is one of 13 urban districts of the prefecture-level city of Wuhan, the capital of Hubei Province, China. It is the oldest of the three cities that merged into modern-day Wuhan, and stood on the right (southeastern) bank of the Yangtz ...

Early years

His father died young, and his family was poor in his early years. "The family property was in ruins, and the walls were desolate." He could not afford ointment, so he still studied diligently by moonlight and burned rice husks in the middle of the night, or under the snow light on winter nights, and transferred to rural classrooms to teach apprentices. He had excellent knowledge and was a scholar in the scientific examination. In the first year of Xianfeng (1851), he was promoted to be filial, honest and upright. He was fond of studying the military books

Zuo Zhuan The ''Zuo Zhuan'' ( zh, t=左傳, w=Tso Chuan; ), often translated as ''The Zuo Tradition'' or as ''The Commentary of Zuo'', is an ancient Chinese narrative history traditionally regarded as a commentary on the ancient Chinese chronicle the '' ...

and the

I Ching The ''I Ching'' or ''Yijing'' ( ), usually translated ''Book of Changes'' or ''Classic of Changes'', is an ancient Chinese divination text that is among the oldest of the Chinese classics. The ''I Ching'' was originally a divination manual in ...

Founding of the Hunan Army

In 1852, the

Taiping Army The Taiping Rebellion, also known as the Taiping Civil War or the Taiping Revolution, was a civil war in China between the Qing dynasty and the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. The conflict lasted 14 years, from its outbreak in 1850 until the fall of ...

invaded Hunan, and Hunan gentry organized militia to protect themselves. Luo Zenan responded to the call of Xiangxiang County Magistrate Zhu Sunyi and took up arms, establishing the Hunan Army.钱基博在《近百年湖南学风》中称：“时为之语曰：‘无湘乡，不成军。’藉藉人口。而不知无泽南，无湘军。”李元度在《忠节公事略》中云：“楚勇始自江忠烈，湘勇则自罗忠节公始。” He was successively promoted to the post of Zhejiang Ningshao Prefecture, and given the titles of Provincial Surveillance Commissioner and Provincial Administration Commissioner. He "captured 20 cities and fought more than 200 battles, large and small." Luo led his own army from 1853 to his death in 1856, fighting in Hunan,

Jiangxi ; Gan: ) , translit_lang1_type2 = , translit_lang1_info2 = , translit_lang1_type3 = , translit_lang1_info3 = , image_map = Jiangxi in China (+all claims hatched).svg , mapsize = 275px , map_caption = Location ...

, and

Hubei Hubei is a province of China, province in Central China. It has the List of Chinese provincial-level divisions by GDP, seventh-largest economy among Chinese provinces, the second-largest within Central China, and the third-largest among inland ...

. He planned and recaptured

Wuhan Wuhan; is the capital of Hubei, China. With a population of over eleven million, it is the most populous city in Hubei and the List of cities in China by population, eighth-most-populous city in China. It is also one of the nine National cent ...

in eight days, and made outstanding military achievements. He was known as a "scholar-general" because he often told his soldiers about the

Four Books and Five Classics The Four Books and Five Classics are authoritative and important books associated with Confucianism, written before 300 BC. They are traditionally believed to have been either written, edited or commented by Confucius or one of his disciples. S ...

during training, and once said that his military strategy was based on the phrase "knowing when to stop and then being determined" in the

Great Learning The ''Great Learning'' or ''Daxue'' was one of the " Four Books" in Confucianism attributed to one of Confucius' disciples, Zengzi. The ''Great Learning'' had come from a chapter in the '' Book of Rites'' which formed one of the Five Classi ...

Killed in Action

In the sixth year of Emperor Xianfeng's reign (1856), Luo participated in the Third Battle of Wuhan and defeated Taiping general Wei Jun. On the second day of March, Luo led his troops to chase and kill Wei Jun at the Dadong Gate of

Wuchang Wuchang is one of 13 urban District (China), districts of the prefecture-level city of Wuhan, the capital of Hubei, Hubei Province, China. It is the oldest of the three cities that merged into modern-day Wuhan, and stood on the right (southea ...

. In the fog, he was shot by a young Taiping soldier with a bird gun. He still insisted on commanding the battle and retreating with his entire army. On March 8, Luo died of his injuries. More than two years after Luo Zenan's death,

Zeng Guofan Zeng Guofan, Marquis Yiyong (; 26 November 1811 – 12 March 1872), birth name Zeng Zicheng, courtesy name Bohan (), was a Chinese statesman and military general of the late Qing dynasty. He is best known for raising and organizing the Xiang ...

's third daughter Zeng Jichen married Luo Zenan's fifth son Luo Zhaosheng. The ceremony was held in the Golden Hall, and Zeng Guofan's wife Ouyang personally sent the bride off.

References

{{Reflist 1807 births 1856 deaths Chinese diplomats 19th-century Chinese generals