[lastexodus] A little more on General Tso

From: "William A. Peterson" <WillyPete@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: <lastexodus@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Fri, 19 Apr 2002 20:12:27 -0500
From The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition.  2001.

Tso Tsung-t’ang


(dzô dzng-täng) (KEY) , 1812–85, Chinese general and statesman of the Ch’ing
dynasty. He directed (1852–59) resistance to the Taiping Rebellion in his
native Hunan and later organized (1860) a volunteer corps that fought the
Taipings in Jiangxi and Anhui provs. Appointed governor of Zhejiang
(1862–63) and governor-general of Zhejiang and Fujian (1863–66), Tso drove
the Taipings from those provinces and planned rehabilitation. He led troops
that participated (1868) in the encirclement and annihilation of the Nian
forces (see Nian Rebellion). As governor-general of Shaanxi and Gansu
provs., Tso suppressed (1868–77) the Muslim rebellion on the northwest
frontier.

    {Hmmm... It seems that the General didn't care for ANY of the teachings
of Ahura Mazda!}

In the struggle for military funds between those officials who stressed
coastal defense (notably Li Hung-chang) and those who stressed frontier
defense, he argued that Western powers fought for commercial privileges and
could be contained by skillful diplomacy, whereas strong frontier defense
was necessary to forestall Russia’s territorial ambitions. In retirement
after 1882, he was recalled in 1884 to plan defense of the Fujian coast
during the war with France (1884–85) for control of Annam (Vietnam).    1
See biography by W. L. Bales (1937).

And, for a little more on who he was fighting (I love Google!):

The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition.  2001.

Taiping Rebellion


1850–64, revolt against the Ch’ing (Manchu) dynasty of China. Perhaps the
most important event in 19th-century China, it was led by Hung Hsiu-ch’üan,
a visionary from Guangdong who evolved a political creed influenced by
elements of Christianity. His object was to found a new dynasty, the Taiping
[great peace].

    {Sounds like a Messiah to me...}

Strong discontent with the Chinese government brought him many adherents,
especially among the poorer classes, and the movement spread with great
violence through the eastern valley of the Chang River. The rebels captured
Nanjing in 1853 and made it their capital. The Western powers, who at first
sympathized with the movement, soon realized that the Ch’ing dynasty might
collapse and with it foreign trade. They offered military help and led the
Ever-Victorious Army, which protected Shanghai from the Taipings.

    {Hmmm... I wonder who influenced that decision?  Oh, Ahriman, you
naughty, naughty boy!}   :->

The Taipings, weakened by strategic blunders and internal dissension, were
finally defeated by new provincial armies led by Tseng Kuo-fan and Li
Hung-chang.    1
See J. M. Callery and M. Yvan, History of the Insurrection in China (tr.
1853, repr. 1969); W. J. Hail, Tseng Kuo-fan and the Taiping Rebellion
(1927, repr. 1964); E. P. Boardman, Christian Influence upon the Ideology of
the Taiping Rebellion, 1851–1864 (1952); F. H. Michael, The Taiping
Rebellion (3 vol., 1966–71).

Good Luck,
William A. Peterson
willypete@xxxxxxxxxxxx
"In the end, after having exhausted all other possible
options, you can trust that the Americans will do the right
thing." - Winston Churchill
[lastexodus] A little more on General Tso

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