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Yang-style T'ai Chi Ch'uan
Yang family-style () T‘ai-Chi Ch‘üan (Taijiquan) in its many variations is the most popular and widely practised style in the world today and the second in terms of seniority among the primary five family styles of T'ai Chi Ch'uan. History The Yang family first became involved in the study of t'ai chi ch'uan (taijiquan) in the early 19th century. The founder of the Yang-style was Yang Luchan (楊露禪), aka Yang Fu-k'ui (楊福魁, 1799–1872), who studied under Ch'en Chang-hsing (1771–1853) starting in 1820. Yang became a teacher in his own right, and his subsequent expression of t'ai chi ch'uan became known as the Yang-style, and directly led to the development of other three major styles of t'ai chi ch'uan (see below). Yang Luchan (and some would say the art of t'ai chi ch'uan, in general) came to prominence as a result of his being hired by the Chinese Imperial family to teach t'ai chi ch'uan to the elite Palace Battalion of the Imperial Guards in 1850, a position ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yang Chengfu
Yang Chengfu or Yang Ch'eng-fu (1883–1936) is historically considered the best known teacher of the soft style martial art of Yang-style t'ai chi ch'uan (Yang-style Taijiquan). Biography Yang Chengfu was born into the famous Yang Taijiquan family, the son of Yang Chien-hou and grandson of Yang Luchan. With his older brother Yang Shao-hou (楊少侯) and colleagues Wu Jianquan (吳鑑泉) and Sun Lutang (孫錄堂), he was among the first teachers to offer T'ai chi ch'uan instruction to the general public at the Beijing Physical Culture Research Institute from 1914 until 1928. He moved to Shanghai in 1928. Chengfu is known for having "smoothed" out the somewhat more vigorous training routine he learned from his family as well as emphasising a "large frame" or "Da Jia (大架)" with expansive movements in stepping and using large circular motions with the arms. His smooth, evenly paced large frame form and its hundreds of offshoots has been the standard for Yang-style t'ai chi c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aisin Gioro
The House of Aisin-Gioro was a Manchu clan that ruled the Later Jin dynasty (1616–1636), the Qing dynasty (1636–1912), and Manchukuo (1932–1945) in the history of China. Under the Ming dynasty, members of the Aisin Gioro clan served as chiefs of the Jianzhou Jurchens, one of the three major Jurchen tribes at this time. Qing bannermen passed through the gates of the Great Wall in 1644, conquered the short-lived Shun dynasty and the Southern Ming dynasty. The Qing dynasty later expanded into other adjacent regions, including Xinjiang, Tibet, Outer Mongolia, and Taiwan, gaining total control of China. The dynasty reached its zenith during the High Qing era and under the Qianlong Emperor, who reigned from 1735 to 1796. This reign was followed by a century of gradual decline. The house lost power in 1912 following the Xinhai Revolution. Puyi, the last Aisin-Gioro emperor, nominally maintained his imperial title in the Forbidden City until the Articles of Favourable Treatm ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chen Weiming (scholar)
Chen Wei-Ming (1881–1958) was a scholar, taijiquan teacher, and author. He was also known by his name Chen Zengze (), Wei-Ming being his hao, a pen-name. Chen came from an educated family with roots in Qishui, Hubei, China. His great-grandfather was a famous scholar; and his mother was skilled at calligraphy. As a boy, Chen prepared for the civil service exams by studying the Chinese classics, Chinese calligraphy, poetry, and essay-writing. He passed the mid-level exam of ''juren'' in 1902, and received a post in the Qing History Office. His two brothers also became scholars and authors. Chen began to study the Chinese martial arts in Beijing under Sun Lutang (1859–1933), with whom he studied xingyi (hsing-i) and bagua (pa-kua). He then began to study taijiquan (t'ai chi ch'uan) with Yang Chengfu (1883–1936), grandson of Yang Luchan, founder of the Yang family lineage. In 1925, Chen moved to Shanghai and established the Zhi Ruo (Achieving Softness) Taijiquan Association. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shanghai
Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flowing through it. With a population of 24.89 million as of 2021, Shanghai is the most populous urban area in China with 39,300,000 inhabitants living in the Shanghai metropolitan area, the second most populous city proper in the world (after Chongqing) and the only city in East Asia with a GDP greater than its corresponding capital. Shanghai ranks second among the administrative divisions of Mainland China in human development index (after Beijing). As of 2018, the Greater Shanghai metropolitan area was estimated to produce a gross metropolitan product (nominal) of nearly 9.1 trillion RMB ($1.33 trillion), exceeding that of Mexico with GDP of $1.22 trillion, the 15th largest in the world. Shanghai is one of the world's major centers for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sun Lu-t'ang
Sun Lu-t'ang or Sun Lutang (1860-1933) was a renowned master of Chinese neijia (internal) martial arts and was the progenitor of the syncretic art of Sun-style t'ai chi ch'uan. He was also considered an accomplished Neo-Confucian and Taoist scholar (especially in the I Ching), and was a distinguished contributor to the theory of internal martial arts through his many published works. Biography He was born in Hebei and was named Sun Fuquan () by his parents. Years later, his Baguazhang teacher Cheng Tinghua () gave him the name Sun Lutang. (It was common in old China for people to have multiple names). He continued to use his original name in some areas, including the publishing of his books. He was also well-versed in two other internal martial arts: xingyiquan (hsing-i ch'uan) and baguazhang (pa-kua chang) before he came to study taijiquan (t'ai chi ch'uan). His expertise in these two martial arts were so high that many regarded him as without equal. Sun learned Wu (Hao) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sun-style T'ai Chi Ch'uan
The Sun style (孙氏) t'ai chi ch'uan is well known for its smooth, flowing movements which omit the more physically vigorous crouching, leaping and fa jin of some other styles. Its gentle postures and high stances make it very suitable for martial arts therapy. History Sun style t'ai chi ch'uan was developed by Sun Lutang, who is considered expert in two other internal martial arts styles: xingyiquan and baguazhang before he came to study t'ai chi ch'uan. Today, Sun-style ranks fourth in popularity and fifth in terms of seniority among the five family styles of t'ai chi ch'uan. He was also considered an accomplished Neo-Confucian and Taoist scholar, especially in the Yi Jing and the T'ai chi classics. Sun learned Wu (Hao)-style t'ai chi ch'uan from Hao Weizhen, who was Li Yiyu's (李亦畬) chief disciple. Sun style t'ai chi ch'uan is considered to be part of the umbrella of Sun style internal martial arts developed by Sun Lu T'ang. Besides his earlier xingyi and bagua train ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wu Yu-hsiang
Wu Yuxiang (Wu Yu-hsiang, 1812?–1880?) was the founder of Wu (Hao)-style t'ai chi ch'uan. Wu was a scholar from a wealthy and influential family who became a senior student of Yang Luchan, the founder of Yang-style t'ai chi ch'uan. Wu also studied for a brief time with Chen Qingping, a master of Chen-style and Zhaobao-style t'ai chi ch'uan. There is a relatively large body of writing attributed to Wu on the subject of t'ai chi ch'uan theory, writings that are considered influential by other t'ai chi styles were the source of what are now known as the T'ai chi classics. Wu developed his own style of t'ai chi and shared it with members of his family, who also wrote about the art. He trained with his two older brothers Wu Chengqing (武澄清, 1800-1884)) and Wu Ruqing (武汝清, 1803-1887), and took on two nephews as disciples. One of those nephews Li Yiyu (Li I-yu, 李亦畬, 1832–1892), authored several particularly important works on t'ai chi ch'uan. The other nephew, L ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yang Shao-hou
Yang Shaohou (, Pinyin: Yáng Shàohóu; 1862-1930) was a Chinese martial arts master who, along with Yang Chengfu (楊澄甫; 1883-1936), represents the third generation of Yang-style t'ai chi ch'uan. Grandmaster of his generation and known for his compact "small frame" techniques, he was a ferocious fighter and a demanding teacher. Early life Yang began learning t'ai chi ch'uan at age 7, in Beijing under his father Yang Jianhou, his uncle Yang Banhou (who formally adopted him), and his grandfather — the founder of Yang-style t'ai chi — Yang Luchan. His name at birth was Yang Zhaoxiong (楊兆熊, Pinyin: Yáng Zhàoxióng). But as was common in the era, as he reached adulthood he took the courtesy name Yang Mengxiang (楊梦祥, Pinyin: Yáng Mèngxiáng), and after he earned a reputation he changed it to Yang Shaohou. Shaohou can be translated as "young noble", and makes use of the "hou" (侯) character from his father's and uncle's names in a reflection of respect for his ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wu Chien-ch'üan
Wu Chien-ch'uan or Wu Jianquan (1870–1942) was a famous teacher and founder of the neijia martial art of Wu-style t'ai chi ch'uan in late Imperial and early Republican China. Biography Wu Chien-ch'uan was taught martial arts by his father, Wu Ch'uan-yu, a senior student of Yang Luchan, and Yang Pan-hou. Both Wu Chien-ch'uan and his father were hereditary Manchu cavalry officers of the Yellow Banner as well as the Imperial Guards Brigade, yet the Wu family were to become patriotic supporters of Sun Yat-sen. At the time of the establishment of the Chinese Republic in 1912, China was in turmoil, besieged for many years economically and even militarily by several foreign powers, so Wu Chien-ch'uan and his colleagues Yang Shao-hou, Yang Chengfu and Sun Lu-t'ang promoted the benefits of t'ai chi ch'uan training on a national scale. They subsequently offered classes at the Beijing Physical Culture Research Institute to as many people as possible, starting in 1914. It was the firs ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cavalry
Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating as light cavalry in the roles of reconnaissance, screening, and skirmishing in many armies, or as heavy cavalry for decisive shock attacks in other armies. An individual soldier in the cavalry is known by a number of designations depending on era and tactics, such as cavalryman, horseman, trooper, cataphract, knight, hussar, uhlan, mamluk, cuirassier, lancer, dragoon, or horse archer. The designation of ''cavalry'' was not usually given to any military forces that used other animals for mounts, such as camels or elephants. Infantry who moved on horseback, but dismounted to fight on foot, were known in the early 17th to the early 18th century as '' dragoons'', a class of mounted infantry which in most armies later evolved into standard cavalry while ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Banner System
The Eight Banners (in Manchu: ''jakūn gūsa'', ) were administrative and military divisions under the Later Jin and Qing dynasties of China into which all Manchu households were placed. In war, the Eight Banners functioned as armies, but the banner system was also the basic organizational framework of all of Manchu society. Created in the early 17th century by Nurhaci, the banner armies played an instrumental role in his unification of the fragmented Jurchen people (who would later be renamed the "Manchu" under Nurhaci's son Hong Taiji) and in the Qing dynasty's conquest of the Ming dynasty. As Mongol and Han forces were incorporated into the growing Qing military establishment, the Mongol Eight Banners and Han Eight Banners were created alongside the original Manchu banners. The banner armies were considered the elite forces of the Qing military, while the remainder of imperial troops were incorporated into the vast Green Standard Army. Membership in the banners became heredi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Manchu
The Manchus (; ) are a Tungusic East Asian ethnic group native to Manchuria in Northeast Asia. They are an officially recognized ethnic minority in China and the people from whom Manchuria derives its name. The Later Jin (1616–1636) and Qing (1636–1912) dynasties of China were established and ruled by the Manchus, who are descended from the Jurchen people who earlier established the Jin dynasty (1115–1234) in northern China. Manchus form the largest branch of the Tungusic peoples and are distributed throughout China, forming the fourth largest ethnic group in the country. They can be found in 31 Chinese provincial regions. Among them, Liaoning has the largest population and Hebei, Heilongjiang, Jilin, Inner Mongolia and Beijing have over 100,000 Manchu residents. About half of the population live in Liaoning and one-fifth in Hebei. There are a number of Manchu autonomous counties in China, such as Xinbin, Xiuyan, Qinglong, Fengning, Yitong, Qingyuan, Weichang, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
