Assignment question, Moonstone will write an essay for you temporarily?
Ahem, let’s get back to the subject. Since he is a modern historical figure, we can talk about Zeng Guofan (PS: Regarding Zeng Guofan, Moonstone bought a biography of the character, and I still admire him after reading it)
Zeng Guofan was born in the middle and late Qing Dynasty. He is a pivotal figure in modern Chinese history. He is known as the first of the "Four Famous Officials of the Late Qing Dynasty" and the 70th generation grandson of the famous Zengzi. Zeng Guofan, who came from a well-known family, actively strived to improve himself. He passed the reading examination and was admitted as a scholar, a scholar, and a Jinshi. Although he passed the examination many times, he was different from his contemporary Hong Xiuquan. His repeated failures also showed Zeng Guofan's perseverance. His character - this also laid the foundation for his Hunan Army to later defeat the Taiping Army.
Zeng Guofan is known as the first famous official in the late Qing Dynasty, which is inseparable from his contribution to the Qing court and even modern China. After Zeng Guofan suppressed the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and the Nian Army, he successively served as local officials, including the governor of Liangjiang and the governor of Zhili, the highest local officials in the Qing Dynasty. He actively promoted the Westernization Movement and became a local representative of the Westernization Movement. With his efforts, China established the first batch of modern industries and sent the first batch of Western students abroad, which laid the foundation for China's later modernization.
In rectifying the administration of officials, Zeng Guofan recognized the corruption and depravity of the Qing government at that time and advocated reforming officials and the army. His troops were usually selected from the villagers, and a considerable number of the generals in the army were Confucian scholars. His reforms made his troops extremely combat effective. The Qing court later adapted the New Army based on Zeng Guofan's reforms of the troops.
In terms of culture, Zeng Guofan also made his own unique achievements. He was the founder of the "Xiangxiang School" in Wanqing and a master of calligraphy. , many ancient buildings have been protected and repaired, leaving precious cultural wealth for future generations.
As well as his character cultivation and family management. He advocated diligence and thrift and opposed corruption and waste. This was commendable in the era of court corruption, and he left a lot for future generations. Valuable experience.
However, no one is perfect. Zeng Guofan made great contributions in politics, economy, culture and other aspects. However, some of his practices also produced a lot of negative impacts and evaluations.
When suppressing the Taiping Army and the Nian Army, Zeng Guofan used cruel methods. Especially after capturing Nanjing, he massacred the Taiping Army and gained the notoriety of "Zeng Shaved"; although he advocated the Westernization Movement, in his thoughts There is still a lot of feudal loyalty to the emperor, which also makes the Westernization Movement retain a lot of feudal remnants and cannot change the situation of the Qing Dynasty at that time; in the "Tianjin Mission Case", Zeng Guofan showed compromises and concessions, although they were in line with the Qing court's views at the time, But it damaged the feelings of the Chinese nation and became a stain on his life; most importantly, his reforms in the army, although solving the problem of low combat effectiveness of the Qing army due to corruption and other reasons at that time, also brought about the "subordination of soldiers to generals". "The problem - this was also the basis for Yuan Shikai's ability to control the New Army and the emergence of the Beiyang warlord regime, which brought modern China into an era of Beiyang warlords.
In any case, as one of the four famous officials of the late Qing Dynasty, Zeng Guofan should be recognized for his historical achievements. From him, we should find the essence: the stupid bird flies first, because he is stupid in reading, many times You have to take exams, but this kind of perseverance is worth learning for young people; being able to accept new things and find the essence from tradition should also be praised.