Nave once denied the world, and thousands of history books denied him.
Li Hongzhang (1823~ 190 1), a native of Hefei, Anhui Province, is also called Li Hefei. His real name is, his name is gradually Fu or, and his name is Shao Quanlin (Spring). In his later years, he became a musical instrument, and his other name was trouble.
Li Hongzhang's life is legendary. In his own words, he was a teenager, a soldier in his prime, a border guard in his middle age, and a westernization in his later years. He, Zeng Guofan, Zuo and Zhang Zhidong are also called the four famous ministers of ZTE in the late Qing Dynasty. Japanese Prime Minister Hirofumi Ito said that he was the only person in the late Qing Empire who could compete with the world powers. Empress Dowager Cixi said that she was a "recreated person"; Liang Qichao said: "I respect Li Hongzhang's talent, I cherish Li Hongzhang's knowledge, and I feel sad for Li Hongzhang's experience."
It can be said that Li Hongzhang is a person who cares about the country and the people. If we only evaluate Li Hongzhang, we can say that there are not many stains and faults in this person's life. Even if there were stains and faults, they were imposed on him by the rulers and caused by the social environment at that time.
Li Hongzhang was an ambitious and passionate young man when he was young. He was interested in foreign advanced western science and technology. In the later Westernization Movement, Li Hongzhang even introduced the principle and structure of the steam engine to Cixi in detail, which was unique in the Qing Dynasty.
In his early years, Li Hongzhang followed Zeng Guofan's Northern Expedition to suppress the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. The Huai Army led by Li Hongzhang and the Xiang Army led by Zeng Guofan cooperated with each other to destroy the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. After Zeng Guofan dissolved the Xiang Army, Li Hongzhang's Huai Army attacked the Nian Army in Shandong and Anhui. After two years' efforts, the Nian Army riot finally subsided.
Li Hongzhang made great contributions to the peace and territorial integrity of the country in these two wars, and the most important point was to win a peaceful and stable internal environment for the development of the Westernization Movement.
In the late Qing Dynasty, after the fiasco of two Opium Wars, many dignitaries did not realize the earth-shaking changes in the world and still regarded the advanced science and technology of foreigners as strange tricks.
As the star of the Westernization Movement, Li Hongzhang met with great resistance, but he never gave up. Instead, he broke through many obstacles and completed dozens of firsts in China's history, such as the first railway, the first cable, the first coal mining company, the first China Merchants Company, the first western-style hospital, the first modern navy and the first western-style military academy. All these can be said to be the most direct embodiment of Li Hongzhang's patriotic spirit.
The biggest stain and fault of Li Hongzhang's life is that he didn't sign many unequal treaties humiliating his power and country for Yixianqing government. After signing a treaty with Japan for the first time, Li Hongzhang secretly said, "This is a shameless treaty." This treaty is the Tianjin Treaty. At that time, Cixi was about to celebrate her 40th birthday. In the case of her initiative, she ordered Li Hongzhang to settle the Sino-Japanese dispute as soon as possible and chose to compromise with Japan. This shows that Li Hongzhang will call it a shameless treaty.
In the subsequent Sino-Japanese negotiations and Eight-Nation Alliance negotiations, Li Hongzhang, who was in an extremely weak position, tried to maximize the national interests, which was recognized by historians. Unfortunately, the main responsible person who brought the country to the brink of extinction was still at large after the war, and Li Hongzhang was put in a position of being reviled by thousands of people. It can be said that history is extremely unfair and full of prejudice against Li Hongzhang.
1896, at the opening ceremony of the World Games in Paris, the national flags of all countries rose in turn with the national anthem. When it was China's turn, they just got up slowly in silence. From beginning to end, there was no music, no applause and no national anthem. After a while, everyone present began to laugh. They laughed at China, and China was so big that it didn't even have a national anthem. Amid the jeers, the 70-year-old man stood up on crutches and walked to the banner of Huanglong. He stood upright, with a firm expression, and sang the hometown minor Jasmine with deep affection. After singing a song, thunderous applause immediately sounded. This man who resolutely defends national dignity is called Li Hongzhang.
After the defeat of Sino-Japanese War, Li Hongzhang went to Shimonoseki, Japan to negotiate. On the way back after the third round of negotiations, a Japanese man suddenly appeared in the chaotic crowd and was hit in the face. Li Hongzhang was shot in the left cheek, stained with blood and fell in a pool of blood. His followers panicked and cried, but the first thing he woke up was: "don't cry, don't cry, I can't die!" This blood can serve the country! " He didn't allow the doctor to operate on him, only let the doctor simply sew up the wound. Three days later, Li Hongzhang, wrapped in white gauze, sat at the negotiating table. World public opinion was in an uproar and began to condemn Japan. Under the pressure of public opinion, Ito Bowen offered to reduce the compensation by1.200 million silver. On the last day of the negotiation, Li Hongzhang was exhausted. At the negotiating table, we can't see Li See Hongzhang, the powerful minister of Sun Yat-sen, who is under tens of thousands of people, but a lonely old man who buys food and haggles at the vegetable market. He bargained with Ittenbowen: "Can you reduce it by another 50 million?" ? Rejected by Ito Bowen, Li Hongzhang made a counter-offer: "50 million taels won't do, let's reduce it by 20 million taels"? Finally, the helpless Li Hongzhang said: "Anyway, reduce the travel expenses for returning to China as an old lady!" ! Wait or refuse. Weak country, weak country, Li Hongzhang put down all dignity, just to save some money for China. Everyone only saw Li Hongzhang's "traitorous behavior", but didn't see the hardships of the adults in the main hall!
This year, Li Hongzhang and Ai Xinjue Luo Yi Kuang attended the signing ceremony of the Xin Chou Treaty. As the highest representative of China at that time, Wang Qing should sign, and Wang Qingzheng was preparing to sign. The old man said, "The most difficult word in the world is your own name. You still have a long way to go, so let the old minister sign it. " That year, Li Hongzhang was 78 years old and Wang Qing was 63 years old. Li Hongzhang took the pen in his hand and gingerly signed the word "Li Hongzhang" into the word "Su". These three words look weak and bitter together. After signing the treaty, Li Hongzhang coughed violently and vomited blood.
Li Hongzhang helped others, which exhausted his efforts as a dying empire, but a small ZTE could not escape the historical torrent. If it weren't for his first signing, maybe he wouldn't bear so much blame. In his life, he signed more than 30 unequal treaties, and he knew that from the day he signed it, he would bear a lifelong shame. But history is like this. If it weren't for Li Hongzhang, he would have ruthlessly chosen another "back pot man", full of blood and tears, full of lamentations. For the times, Li Hongzhang is very small, but the small people in the waves of this era finally let history spit out an important breath.