Qu Hongji
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Qu Hongji (; 1850–1918),
style name A courtesy name ( zh, s=字, p=zì, l=character), also known as a style name, is an additional name bestowed upon individuals at adulthood, complementing their given name. This tradition is prevalent in the East Asian cultural sphere, particula ...
Zijiu (), and
art name An art name (pseudonym or pen name), also known by its native names ''hào'' (in Mandarin Chinese), ''gō'' (in Japanese), ' (in Korean), and ''tên hiệu'' (in Vietnamese), is a professional name used by artists, poets and writers in the Sinosp ...
Zhi'an (), was a politician of the Chinese
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 ...
who served in several ministerial positions, most notably being the first Minister of Foreign Affairs.


Biography

Qu Hongji was born in 1850 in a small town called Shanhua in the Changsha city area of
Hunan Province Hunan is an inland province in Central China. Located in the middle reaches of the Yangtze watershed, it borders the province-level divisions of Hubei to the north, Jiangxi to the east, Guangdong and Guangxi to the south, and Guizhou and Chon ...
. He passed the highest level of the
Imperial Examinations The imperial examination was a civil service examination system in Imperial China administered for the purpose of selecting candidates for the state bureaucracy. The concept of choosing bureaucrats by merit rather than by birth started early i ...
(''
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 referre ...
'') in 1871 and went to the
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. It has also been translated as "College of Literature" and "Academy of the Forest of Pen ...
. During 1875 he took first place in the Daijiang Bachelor Examinations. He was promoted to Neige Bachelor in 1897, and organized Town Examinations of
Fujian Province Fujian is a province in southeastern China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its capital is Fuzhou and its largest prefecture city by population is Qua ...
and
Guangxi Province Guangxi,; officially the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China, located in South China and bordering Vietnam ( Hà Giang, Cao Bằng, Lạng Sơn, and Quảng Ninh Provinces) and the ...
. He also supervised local government as Provincial Education Commissioner of Henan Province, Zhejiang Province and Sichuan Province. During the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895, Qu carried the Four Troops Assaults plan to the emperor. Then he followed the emperor's royal family when it went hunting in the west, and was raised to the position of the Minister of Work Department. Later when he returned to
Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...
, he became Minister of the Military and Minister of Government Affairs. He changed the Imperial Examinations into discourses on politics, and added economy examinations. He simplified the Headquarters of All Countries Business Department into the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and became the first Minister of Foreign Affairs. He was also a member of the Grand Council. He followed the
Dowager Empress Cixi Empress Dowager Cixi ( ; 29 November 1835 – 15 November 1908) was a Manchu noblewoman of the Yehe Nara clan who effectively but periodically controlled the Chinese government in the late Qing dynasty as empress dowager and regent for almost 50 ...
’s imperial edict, and among other things proposed peace plans, was honoured by the Emperor with a gold jacket, and tutored the crown prince. Qu Hongji was actively involved in the reform of the Imperial Examination system, and was a key proponent of the establishment of the Jinshi Bureau and reorganisation of the Hanlin Academy around 1901. During the ‘New Political Affair’, government money was stolen by the ‘Building School, Commercial Intercourse and encourage Jobs’ organisation. Qu asked the Emperor to forbid this fraudulent group. During 1906, he worked with the Grand Secretary, to plan Provisional Constitutionalism, and nominated Ministers. During 1907
Cen Chunxuan Cen Chunxuan (1861 – 27 April 1933), courtesy name Yunjie, was a Zhuang Chinese politician who lived in the late Qing dynasty and Republic of China. Early career Cen was born in 1861 during the late Qing dynasty in Xilin, Guangxi. His fa ...
, one of his allies, became Minister of Telecommunications, Cen took advantage of the Case of Yang Cuixi (a scandal involving the prince
Zaizhen Zaizhen (31 March 1876 – 31 December 1947), courtesy name Yuzhou, was a Manchu prince and politician of the late Qing dynasty. Romanised forms of his name include Tsai-chen, Tsai-Chen, Tsai-Cheng. Life and service under the Qing dynasty Za ...
), and secretly impeached Zaizhen's father Prince Yikuang. Qu used 'Minister Slayer' Cen Chunxuan against his political enemy
Yuan Shikai Yuan Shikai (; 16 September 18596 June 1916) was a Chinese general and statesman who served as the second provisional president and the first official president of the Republic of China, head of the Beiyang government from 1912 to 1916 and ...
, which also made Prince Yikuang unhappy and he became jealous of Qu. The Empress Dowager Cixi was also becoming uncomfortable with Qu's blunt speaking and withdrew her support. Daijiang Bachelor Yun Yuding () impeached Qu for the reason that ‘Qu grasps authority to form a despotic government’, and the Emperor dismissed him from office and sent him back to his hometown. After the
Revolution of 1911 In political science, a revolution (, 'a turn around') is a rapid, fundamental transformation of a society's class, state, ethnic or religious structures. According to sociologist Jack Goldstone, all revolutions contain "a common set of elemen ...
, Qu escaped to Shanghai, and he died there in 1918.


Famous

Qu Hongji( 瞿鸿禨) was famous not only because of his erudition, but also because his face looked like that of the
Tongzhi Emperor The Tongzhi Emperor (27 April 1856 – 12 January 1875), also known by his temple name Emperor Muzong of Qing, personal name Zaichun, was the ninth emperor of the Qing dynasty, and the eighth Qing emperor to rule over China proper. His reign, w ...
, 10th emperor of Qing Dynasty who died in 1875.


Publications of Authority

'Collections of Zhi An's Poems'《止庵诗文集》 'Annotations for Book of Han'《汉书笺识》 'Collections of Chaolan lou Library Poems'《超览楼诗稿》 'Handwriting by Duke Wenzhen of Qu'《瞿文慎公诗选遗墨》 ‘Diary of Serving Henan Province and Fujian Province’《使豫, 使闽日记》 ‘Love and Kindness History’《恩遇纪略》 'Old Anecdote History'《旧闻纪略》etc.


Family

Son - Qu Xuanzhi (瞿宣治), Diplomat in Chinese Embassies to Switzerland and Netherlands, died in
Marseille Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region. Situated in the ...
, France, in 1923. Son - Qu Ruizhi(瞿兌之), Chinese historian, author and painter. Grandson - Qu Tongzu (瞿同祖), Chinese modern historian, was famous for his investigations into History of Law and Social History. Nephew - Qu Qiling (朱啟鈐), Chinese politician, businessman, Historical Architect.


References

*
Zhao Erxun Zhao Erxun (23 May 1844 – 3 September 1927), courtesy name Cishan, art name Wubu, was a Chinese political and military officeholder who lived in the late Qing dynasty. He served in numerous high-ranking positions under the Qing government, i ...
() etc., ''
Draft History of Qing The ''Draft History of Qing'' () is a draft of the official history of the Qing dynasty compiled and written by a team of over 100 historians led by Zhao Erxun who were hired by the Beiyang government of the Republic of China. The draft was publ ...
'', Inspected by Chinese Publication Department {{DEFAULTSORT:Qu, Hongji 1850 births 1918 deaths Grand Councillors of the Qing dynasty Assistant grand secretaries Politicians from Changsha