Tang Zhengcai (, 1816–1863, born in

Qiyang County Qiyang () is a county-level city of Hunan Province, China. It is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Yongzhou. Located on the south central part of the province, it is adjacent to the city proper of Yongzhou. The county is b ...

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 ...

) was an eminent navy leader of the

Taiping Rebellion 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 ...

, known during his tenure as the King of Hang (). He led the Taiping fleet in many battles, nearly destroying the

Xiang Army file:Zeng Guofan.png, 150px, Zeng Guofan, the leader of the Xiang Army The Xiang Army or Hunan Army () was a standing army organized by Zeng Guofan from existing regional and village militia forces called ''tuanlian'' to contain the Taiping Rebel ...

. He trained other naval officers, including Li Rongfa and Li Xiucheng. Tang was killed in action in 1863. Tang Zhengcai employed wooden bridges similar in design to the

Bailey bridge A Bailey bridge is a type of portable, Prefabrication, pre-fabricated, Truss Bridge, truss bridge. It was developed in 1940–1941 by the British Empire in World War II, British for military use during the World War II, Second World War and saw ...

later developed by Donald Bailey.

Battles

In the a battle near

Nanjing Nanjing or Nanking is the capital of Jiangsu, a province in East China. The city, which is located in the southwestern corner of the province, has 11 districts, an administrative area of , and a population of 9,423,400. Situated in the Yang ...

on March 10, 1853, Tang commanded the first offensive, successfully cutting off every river pass that could reinforce Nanjing. In 1854, at

Lake Dongting Dongting Lake () is a large, shallow lake in northeastern Hunan Province, China. It is a flood basin of the Yangtze River, so its volume depends on the season. The provinces of Hubei and Hunan are named after their location relative to the la ...

, Tang's fleet surrounded the Xiang Army's fleet and destroyed much of it. Tang's fleet later transported 30,000 of

Shi Dakai Shi Dakai (1 March 1831 – 25 June 1863; ), born in Guigang, Guangxi, also known as the Wing King () or phonetically translated as Yi-Wang, was one of the most highly acclaimed leaders in the Taiping Rebellion and a poet. Early life Shi Dak ...

's troops along the

Yangtze The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ) is the longest river in Eurasia and the third-longest in the world. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains of the Tibetan Plateau and flows including Dam Qu River the longest source of the Yangtze, i ...

in a swift surprise attack. In 1857, Tang's fleet moved to

Wuhu Wuhu () is a prefecture-level city in southeastern Anhui province of China, province, China. Sitting on the southeast bank of the Yangtze River, Wuhu borders Xuancheng to the southeast, Chizhou and Tongling to the southwest, Hefei City to the n ...

, between

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 ...

and

; it remained there to defend the location until 1861, when a Xiang counterattack forced Tang to retreat to Nanjing. In 1863, he was killed in action – shot by the

Huai Army The Huai Army (), named for the Huai River, was a military force allied with the Qing dynasty raised to contain the Taiping Rebellion in 1862. It was also called the Anhui Army because it was based in Anhui province. It helped to restore the stabil ...

Wuxi Wuxi ( zh, s=无锡, p=Wúxī, ) is a city in southern Jiangsu, China. As of the 2024 census, it had a population of 7,495,000. The city lies in the southern Yangtze delta and borders Lake Tai. Notable landmarks include Lihu Park, the Mt. Lings ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tang, Zhengcai 1816 births 1863 deaths Military leaders of the Taiping Rebellion People from Qiyang County Generals from Hunan Navy officers