The Westernization Movement was a campaign carried out by the Westernization Movement in the late Qing Dynasty from the 1860s to the 1990s with the slogans of "self-improvement" and "seeking wealth" to introduce Western military equipment, machine production and science and technology to save the country. Self-rescue movement under the Qing Dynasty. Although the Westernization Movement objectively stimulated the development of China's capitalism and resisted the economic import of foreign capitalism to a certain extent, it did not put China on the road to prosperity.
Background of the Westernization Movement
After the failure of the two Opium Wars and the attack of the Taiping Rebellion, the Qing Dynasty was in trouble both internally and externally. Some bureaucrats in the Qing Dynasty began to realize the power of Western ships and artillery. In order to eliminate internal and external troubles, enrich the country and strengthen the military, and maintain the rule of the Qing Dynasty, they began to learn Western culture and advanced technology. These people were called Westernizationists. Prior to this, some scholars had proposed learning the advantages of Western countries to enhance national strength. For example, Wei Yuan advocated in "Hai Guo Tu Zhi" to "learn from the foreigners and develop skills to control the foreigners", and Feng Guifen advocated in "Xiaobinlu Protest" to "use China's ethics are always based on famous teachings, supplemented by the techniques of prosperity and power of other countries."
After the two Opium Wars, the ruling class of the Qing government was divided on how to solve a series of internal and external troubles, called the Westernizers and the die-hards. The Westernizers advocated using Western advanced production technology to strengthen the army and enrich the country, and get rid of the Dilemma, using industrial and commercial means of capitalist development to maintain the feudal rule of the Qing Dynasty, and set off the Westernization Movement across the country. Main figures of the Westernization Movement
Li Hongzhang
Li Hongzhang (February 15, 1823 - November 7, 1901), whose real name was Zhang Tong, also named Jianfu, Zifu, and Shaoquan In his later years, he called himself Yisou and nicknamed Shengxin. He was born in Hefei, Anhui Province. He was a statesman, diplomat and military general in the late Qing Dynasty of China. People in the world often call him "Li Zhongtang", also known as "Mr. Li Er", "Li Fuxiang" and "Li Wenzhong".
Li Hongzhang was one of the main leaders of the Westernization Movement. Together with Zeng Guofan, Zhang Zhidong, and Zuo Zongtang, he was known as the "Four Famous Officials of the ZTE". The Empress Dowager Cixi regarded him as "assisting the ZTE and overcoming the great disaster." And people who "help people in difficult situations and make peace with China and foreign countries". At the same time, some people in the West regard him as one of the "Three Heroes of the World". However, it also attracted a lot of criticism because of its signing of a series of unequal treaties on behalf of the Qing government, as well as personal corruption, decision-making errors and other issues.
Zeng Guofan
Zeng Guofan (November 26, 1811 - March 12, 1872), originally named Zicheng, courtesy name Bohan, and nicknamed Disheng, was a politician in the late Qing Dynasty , strategist, Neo-Confucianist, writer, calligrapher, and the leader of the Hunan Army armed by Han landlords in the late Qing Dynasty.
The rise of Zeng Guofan had a profound impact on the politics, military, culture, economy and other aspects of the Qing Dynasty. The rise of the Han landlords headed by Zeng Guofan changed the power of the Qing feudal officials from the powerful to the power of the economics faction, prompting a change in the proportion of Manchus and Han among local officials in the Qing Dynasty. The strengthening of the power of local governors and the strengthening of centrifugal tendencies. He once advocated and promoted the Westernization Movement, adhering to "putting restraint first" externally; internally, he cultivated political affairs, urgently sought talents, and introduced Western military and technology.