Ep. 280 | The Taiping Rebellion (Part 1)
Now's as good a time as any to finally feature this well-known, regularly requested topic from Qing history. This is arguably the pivotal event that got the dominos falling that led to the Warlord Era and the later founding of the PRC. For anyone unfamiliar with the Taiping Rebellion, how it got started, and the situation in China during the mid 19th century, over the next few episodes, I'll try and lay it all out for you. We'll get to about 1851 this time around. This epic history has a cast of thousands. Feel free to check out the episode page at the website to view all the terms.
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Terms in Episode
| Pinyin/Term | Chinese | English/Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Tàipíng Rebellion | 太平天国起义 | Civil War in China led by Heavenly King Hong Xiuquan that lasted 1850-1864 |
| Qīng Dynasty | 清朝 | The Qing Dynasty 1644-1911 |
| Hóng Xiùquán | 太平天王 | Tàipíng Heavenly King |
| Hóng Xiùquán | 洪秀全 | 1814-1864, Chinese revolutionary and leader of the Taiping Rebellion. Claimed to be God's son and the younger brother of Jesus Christ |
| Yángzǐ River | 扬子江 | The Yang-Tze River, longest river in China. Bisects the Chinese mainland into north and south |
| Wǔhàn | 武汉 | Mega-city in Hubei Province made up of the cities of Wuchang, Hankou and Hanyang |
| Qīng Shùnzhì Emperor | 清顺治 | Qing emperor who reigned 1643-1661, succeeded Hong Taiji to become the first Qing emperor to rule over China |
| Qiánlóng | 乾隆帝 | Qing Emperor who reigned 1735-1796 but pretty much stayed in the game as the top guy till 1799 |
| Guǎngdōng | 广东 | Southernmost province in China (not including Hainan) |
| Fújiàn | 福建 | Coast province in southern China |
| Jiāqìng Emperor | 嘉庆帝 | Qing emperor who reigned 1796 to 1820...but had to wait till his dad, the Qianlong emperor, died in 1799 before he got to rule. |
| Xiánfēng Emperor | 咸丰帝 | Emperor from 1850-1861. Had to deal with the Taiping Rebellion his entire reign |
| Huīzōng | 宋徽宗 | Song Emperor from 1100-1126 |
| Northern Sòng | 北宋 | The part of the Song Dynasty that lasted 960-1127. The capital was at Kaifeng, Henan |
| Dàoguāng Emperor | 道光帝 | Qing emperor who reigned 1820-1850. First Opium War happened on his watch |
| Huādū | 花都 | Known as Hua County during Hong Xiuquan's time, Huadu is a city located north of Guangzhou |
| Hakka | 客家 | are a Han Chinese subgroup whose ancestral homes are chiefly in the Hakka-speaking provincial areas of Guangdong, Fujian, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Sichuan, Hunan, Zhejiang, Taiwan, Hainan and Guizhou. |
| Méizhōu | 梅州 | Large city in eastern Guangdong near the Fujian border |
| Jiāngxī | 江西 | Province in China west of Fujian and Zhejiang and south of Hubei |
| Guǎngxī | 广西 | Province in southwest China just west of Guangdong |
| Guìzhōu | 贵州 | Province north of Guangxi |
| Shēngyuán | 生员 | A“Xiucai", someone who has passed the imperial examonation at the county level |
| Xiùcái | 秀才 | (See above),Someone who has passed the imperial examonation at the county level |
| Liáng Āfā | 梁阿发 | The second Chinese to convert to Christianity. He lived 1789-1855. |
| Quànshì Liángyán | 劝世良言 | Liang Afa's book entitled “Good Words to Admonish (or Exhort) the Age” |
| Féng Yúnshān | 冯云山 | 1815-1852, The Southern King of the Taiping Heavenlyt Kingdom, a cousin of Hong Xiuquan and early comrade in building up The God Worshipping Society |
| Dà Gē | 大哥 | Older Brother |
| Yāo | 妖 | demons |
| Tàipíng | 太平 | Great Peace |
| Hóng Réngān | 洪仁玕 | 1822-1864, distant cousin of Hong Xiuquan, a.k.a. The Shield Prince, later on became Hong's Prime Minister and main interlocutor with the foreigners |
| Bài Shàngdì Huì | 拜上帝会 | The God Worshipping Society |
| Guìpíng | 桂平 | City in eastern Guangxi, under the administration of Guigang 桂港 City |
| Zǐjīngshān | 紫荆山 | Thistle Mountain |
| Yán’ān | 延安 | City in Shaanxi Province where the Communists regrouped following the Long March |
| Zhuàng | 壮族 | are a Tai-speaking East Asian ethnic group who mostly live in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in Southern China. Some also live in the Yunnan, Guangdong, Guizhou and Hunan provinces. |
| Yáo | 瑶族 | a government classification for various minorities in China and Vietnam. |
| Tiāndìhuì | 天地会 | a secret society known in English as the Heaven and Earth Society |
| Punti | 本地 | The Native people of southern Guangdong. They fought constantly with the Hakka's once they started arriving in great numbers |
| Yáng Xiùqīng | 杨秀清 | 1821-1856, The Eastern King of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. He had a direct pipeline to the Lord God |
| Xiāo Cháoguì | 萧朝贵 | 1820-1852, The Eastern King of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. He had a direct pipeline to Jesus |
| Shí Dákāi | 石达开 | 1831-1863, The Wing King of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. One of the five key leaders of the Taiping's. More of him in Part 3 |
| Jīntián | 金田 | A town at the base of South of Thistle Mountain in Guangxi |
| Zhōu Lǐ | 周礼 | The Rites of Zhōu, a work on bureaucracy and organizational theory |
| Jiébài xiōngdì | 结拜兄弟 | sworn brothers |
| Kāngxī | 康熙帝 | Qing emperor from 1661-1722 |
| Yǒng’ān | 永安 | Site of an early battle during the Taiping Rebellion on April 8, 1852 |
Resources
Books
God’s Chinese Son: The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom of Hong Xiuquan by Jonathan Spence
The Search for Modern China, 2nd Edition by Jonathan Spence
A History of Chinese Civilization by Jacques Gernet
Fall of Imperial China by Frederick Wakeman
The World of a Tiny Insect: A Memoir of the Taiping Rebellion and Its Aftermath by Zhang Daye
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