The Imperial Chinese Navy was the modern navy of the

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...

of China established in 1875. An Imperial naval force in China first came into existence from 1132 during the

Song dynasty The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...

and existed in some form until the end of the Qing dynasty in 1912. However, the "Imperial Chinese Navy" usually only refers to the Qing navy which existed between 1875 and 1912.

History

Precursors

In the 1860s, an attempt to establish a modern navy via the British-built Osborn or "Vampire" Fleet to combat the Taiping rebels' US-built gunboats. The so-called "Vampire Fleet" fitted out by the Chinese government for the suppression of

piracy Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...

on the coast of China, owing to the non-fulfilment of the condition that British commander Sherard Osborn should receive orders from the imperial government only, was scrapped.

Establishment of the Qing navy

In 1865, the

Jiangnan Shipyard Jiangnan Shipyard () is a historic shipyard in Shanghai, China. The shipyard has been state-owned since its founding in 1865 and is now operated as Jiangnan Shipyard (Group) Co. Ltd. Before 2009, the company was south of central Shanghai at ...

was established. In 1874, a Japanese incursion into

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

exposed the vulnerability of China at sea. A proposal was made to establish three modern coastal fleets: the Northern Sea or Beiyang Fleet, to defend the

Yellow Sea The Yellow Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean located between mainland China and the Korean Peninsula, and can be considered the northwestern part of the East China Sea. It is one of four seas named after common colour terms ...

, the Southern Sea or Nanyang Fleet, to defend the

East China Sea The East China Sea is an arm of the Western Pacific Ocean, located directly offshore from East China. It covers an area of roughly . The sea’s northern extension between mainland China and the Korean Peninsula is the Yellow Sea, separated b ...

, and the Canton Sea or Yueyang Fleet, to defend the

Taiwan Strait The Taiwan Strait is a -wide strait separating the island of Taiwan and continental Asia. The strait is part of the South China Sea and connects to the East China Sea to the north. The narrowest part is wide. The Taiwan Strait is itself a s ...

and the

South China Sea The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by the shores of South China (hence the name), in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan and northwestern Phil ...

. The Beiyang Fleet, with a remit to defend the section of coastline closest to the capital

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

, was prioritised. A series of warships were ordered from Britain and Germany in the late 1870s, and naval bases were built at Port Arthur and

Weihaiwei Weihai (), formerly called Weihaiwei (), is a prefecture-level city and major seaport in easternmost Shandong province. It borders Yantai to the west and the Yellow Sea to the east, and is the closest Chinese city to South Korea. Weihai's popu ...

. The first British-built ships were delivered in 1881, and the

Beiyang Fleet The Beiyang Fleet (Pei-yang Fleet; , alternatively Northern Seas Fleet) was one of the four modernized Chinese navies in the late Qing dynasty. Among the four, the Beiyang Fleet was particularly sponsored by Li Hongzhang, one of the most trust ...

was formally established in 1888. In 1894 the Beiyang Fleet was on paper the strongest navy in Asia at the time. However, it was largely lost during the

First Sino-Japanese War The First Sino-Japanese War (25 July 1894 – 17 April 1895) was a conflict between China and Japan primarily over influence in Korea. After more than six months of unbroken successes by Japanese land and naval forces and the loss of the po ...

in the Battle of the Yalu River. Although the '' Zhenyuan'' and '' Dingyuan'' modern battleships were impervious to Japanese fire, they were unable to sink a single ship and all eight cruisers were lost. The battle displayed once again that the modernisation efforts of China were far inferior to the

Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...

. The Nanyang Fleet was also established in 1875, and grew with mostly domestically built warships and a small number of acquisitions from Britain and Germany. The admiralty or naval board (''haijun yamen'') was established in 1885. The Nanyang Fleet fought in the

Sino-French War The Sino-French War (, french: Guerre franco-chinoise, vi, Chiến tranh Pháp-Thanh), also known as the Tonkin War and Tonquin War, was a limited conflict fought from August 1884 to April 1885. There was no declaration of war. The Chinese arm ...

, performing somewhat poorly against the French in all engagements. The separate

Fujian Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its capi ...

and

Guangdong Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020) ...

fleets became part of the Imperial navy after 1875. The Fujian Fleet was almost annihilated during the Sino-French War, and was only able to acquire two new ships thereafter. By 1891, due to budget cuts, the Fujian Fleet was barely a viable fleet. The Guangdong Fleet was established in the late 1860s and based at Whampoa, in Canton (now

Guangzhou Guangzhou (, ; ; or ; ), also known as Canton () and alternatively romanized as Kwongchow or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of Guangdong province in southern China. Located on the Pearl River about north-northwest of Hong Kon ...

). After the First Sino-Japanese War,

Zhang Zhidong Zhang Zhidong () (4 September 18375 October 1909) was a Chinese politician who lived during the late Qing dynasty. Along with Zeng Guofan, Li Hongzhang and Zuo Zongtang, Zhang Zhidong was one of the four most famous officials of the late Qing ...

established a river-based fleet in

Hubei Hubei (; ; alternately Hupeh) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, and is part of the Central China region. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Dongting Lake. The prov ...

. In 1909, the remnants of the Beiyang, Nanyang, Guangdong and Fujian Fleets, together with the Hubei fleet, were merged, and re-organised as the Sea Fleet and the River Fleet. And There are plans to re-develop the fleet. With a budget of 7-8 million taels per year with a small amount of loan from the United States of America. Sak Deng-bing2

In 1911, Sa Zhenbing became the Minister of Navy of the Great Qing. Chinese sailors-1911

One of the new ships delivered after the war with Japan, the cruiser ''Hai Chi'', in 1911 became the first vessel flying the Yellow Dragon Flag to arrive in American waters, visiting

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

as part of a tour.

Successors

After the

Xinhai Revolution The 1911 Revolution, also known as the Xinhai Revolution or Hsinhai Revolution, ended China's last imperial dynasty, the Manchu-led Qing dynasty, and led to the establishment of the Republic of China. The revolution was the culmination of a d ...

in 1911 and the establishment of the

Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeast ...

in 1912, the Imperial Chinese Navy was replaced by the

Republic of China Navy The Republic of China Navy (ROCN; ), also called the ROC Navy and colloquially the Taiwan Navy, is the maritime branch of the Republic of China Armed Forces (ROCAF). The service was formerly commonly just called the Chinese Navy during World Wa ...

. The

People's Liberation Army Navy The People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN; ), also known as the People's Navy, Chinese Navy, or PLA Navy, is the maritime service branch of the People's Liberation Army. The PLAN traces its lineage to naval units fighting during the Chinese ...

was established in early 1949 by the

Communist Party of China The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victorious in the Chinese Civil ...

, and after the establishment of the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

later that year became the main navy of China.

Fleets

- North Sea Fleet based from

Nanyang Fleet The Nanyang Fleet () was one of the four modernised Chinese naval fleets in the late Qing Dynasty. Established in the 1870s, the fleet suffered losses in the Sino-French War, escaped intact in the Sino-Japanese War, and was formally abolished i ...

- South Sea Fleet based from

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 flow ...

Guangdong Fleet The Guangdong Fleet (Chinese: 廣東水師) was the smallest of China's four regional fleets during the second half of the nineteenth century. The fleet played virtually no part in the Sino-French War (August 1884–April 1885), but several of it ...

- based from Canton (now

) *

Fujian Fleet The Fujian Fleet ( or ) founded in 1678 as the Fujian Marine Fleet was one of China's four regional fleets during the closing decades of the nineteenth century. The fleet was almost annihilated on 23 August 1884 by Admiral Amédée Courbet's ...

- based from

Fuzhou Fuzhou (; , Fuzhounese: Hokchew, ''Hók-ciŭ''), alternately romanized as Foochow, is the capital and one of the largest cities in Fujian province, China. Along with the many counties of Ningde, those of Fuzhou are considered to constitute t ...

, founded in 1678 as the ''Fujian Marine Fleet''

Bases

* Beiyang Fleet:

Liugong Island Liugong Island () is a small island located on the northeastern edge of Shandong Peninsula, China at the mouth of Weihai Bay. It is known as the "birthplace of China's first modern navy" and is also the site of its defeat in the First Sino-Japane ...

(1888-1895); occupied by Japan 1895-1898, leased to Britain 1898-1940 (until 1930 as part of

); re-occupied by Japan 1940-1945; used by Communist forces from 1945 **

Tianjin Tianjin (; ; Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Tientsin (), is a municipality and a coastal metropolis in Northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the nine national central cities in Mainland China, with a total popul ...

, home to the Tianjin Naval Academy ** Lüshunkou,

Dalian Dalian () is a major sub-provincial port city in Liaoning province, People's Republic of China, and is Liaoning's second largest city (after the provincial capital Shenyang) and the third-most populous city of Northeast China. Located on the ...

(1888-1895); occupied by Japan 1895-1898, leased to Russia 1898-1904; occupied by Japan 1904-1945; leased to Soviet Union 1945-1955; returned to China in 1955 * Nanyang Fleet:

Nanjing Nanjing (; , Mandarin pronunciation: ), alternately romanized as Nanking, is the capital of Jiangsu province of the People's Republic of China. It is a sub-provincial city, a megacity, and the second largest city in the East China region. T ...

* Fujian Fleet:

Foochow Arsenal The Foochow Arsenal, also known as the Fuzhou or Mawei Arsenal, was one of several shipyards created by the Qing Empire and a flagship project of French assistance to China during the Self-Strengthening Movement. The shipyard was constructed unde ...

, near

(1866—1884) - fleet base of the

Qing The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speaki ...

navy and naval yard and School of Naval Administration in the late 19th century; ancient shipbuilding centre * Guangdong Fleet: Whampoa, Canton

Governance

In 1885, after the

, the Qing court set up a Navy Office to oversee the navy. In 1910, as part of the reform of the Qing government structure, the Navy Office was replaced by a Navy Ministry, headed by a Navy Secretary. The highest ranks of the navy after the merger of the fleets in 1909 were: * Admiral of the Imperial Chinese Navy (Zheng Dutong) * Vice Admiral of the Imperial Chinese Navy (Fu Dutong) * Rear Admiral of the Imperial Chinese Navy (Xie Dutong) * Commodore of the Imperial Chinese Navy (Tongdai) * Fleet leader of the Imperial Chinese Navy (Duizhang) When it was first developed by

Empress Dowager Cixi Empress Dowager Cixi ( ; mnc, Tsysi taiheo; formerly Romanization of Chinese, romanised as Empress Dowager T'zu-hsi; 29 November 1835 – 15 November 1908), of the Manchu people, Manchu Nara (clan)#Yehe Nara, Yehe Nara clan, was a Chinese nob ...

, the

was said to be the strongest navy in East Asia. Before her adopted son,

Emperor Guangxu The Guangxu Emperor (14 August 1871 – 14 November 1908), personal name Zaitian, was the tenth Emperor of the Qing dynasty, and the ninth Qing emperor to rule over China proper. His reign lasted from 1875 to 1908, but in practice he ruled, wi ...

, took over the throne in 1889, Cixi wrote out explicit orders that the navy should continue to develop and expand gradually. On the eve of the First Sino-Japanese War, the German General Staff predicted a victory for China and William Lang, who was a British advisor to the Chinese military, praised Chinese training, ships, guns, and fortifications, stating that "in the end, there is no doubt that Japan must be utterly crushed". However, after Cixi went into retirement, all naval and military development came to a drastic halt. The military defeats suffered by China has been attributed to the factionalism of regional military governors. For instance, the Beiyang Fleet refused to participate in the Sino-French War in 1884, the Nanyang Fleet retaliating by refusing to deploy during the Sino-Japanese War of 1895. Li Hongzhang wanted to personally maintain control of this fleet, many top vessels among its number, by keeping it in northern China and not let it slip into the control of southern factions. China did not have a single admiralty in charge of all the Chinese navies before 1885; the northern and southern Chinese navies did not cooperate, therefore enemy navies needed only to fight a segment of China's navy.

Ship types

Pre-19th-century ships were wood and of various sizes. * fu po (warship) - 19th-century ships * hai hu or sea hawks * combat

junks A junk (Chinese: 船, ''chuán'') is a type of Chinese sailing ship with fully battened sails. There are two types of junk in China: northern junk, which developed from Chinese river boats, and southern junk, which developed from Austronesian ...

louchuan Louchuan (traditional Chinese: , simplified: , pinyin: ''lóuchuán'', lit. ''tower ships'') were a type of Chinese naval vessels, primarily a floating fortress, which have seen use since the Han dynasty. Meant to be a central vessel in the fleet ...

(樓船) - tower ships of the Ming dynasty * mengchong or covered swoopers (艨艟): leather-covered assault warship - ships of the Three Kingdoms period * river boats - Song Dynasty *

wugongchuan The ''wugongchuan'' (蜈蚣船), or centipede ship, is a Chinese oared vessel of the 16th century inspired by the Portuguese galley. The defining characteristic of the ''wugongchuan'' is its numerous oars on its sides, evoking the image of a cent ...

, or centipede ship - 16th century galley based on Portuguese types * yu ting or patrol boats * zhan xian or combat junks * zou ge or flying barques Following the

First Opium War The First Opium War (), also known as the Opium War or the Anglo-Sino War was a series of military engagements fought between Britain and the Qing dynasty of China between 1839 and 1842. The immediate issue was the Chinese enforcement of the ...

, the

improved their naval fleet with modern ships from

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

: Battleships: * Dingyuan class ** ''Dingyuan'' (1881) ** ''Zhenyuan'' (1882) Coastal Defense Ships: *'' Pingyuan'' (1890) Cruisers: * ''Chaoyung'' class ** (1880) ** (1881) * '' (1883)'' * ''Kai Che'' class ** ''Kai Che'' (1882) ** ''King Ch'ing'' (1886) ** ''Huan T'ai'' (1886) * ''Nan Thin'' class ** ''Nan Thin'' (1883) ** ''Nan Shuin'' (1884) ** ''Fu Ch'ing'' (1893) * ''Chih Yuan'' class ** (1886) ** (1886) * ''King Yuan'' class ** (1887) ** (1887) * ''Lung Wei'' (1888) * ''Tung Chi'' class ** ''Tung Chi'' (1895) ** ''Fu An'' (1894) * Hǎi Qí class ** '' Hai Tien'' (1897) ** (1898) * Hai Yung class ** (1897) ** ''Hai Chou'' (1897) ** (1898) * ** (1912) ** (1913) Corvettes:

Flags

Flags shown are for the Imperial Chinese Navy during the period 1909 to 1911: File:Flag of the Qing Dynasty (1889-1912).svg, Naval Ensign of the Imperial Chinese Navy File:Imperial Chinese Navy Secretary's Flag (1909-1911).svg, Flag for the Imperial Chinese Navy Secretary File:Imperial Chinese Navy Admiral's Flag (1909-1911).svg, Command flag for Imperial Chinese Navy Admiral File:Imperial Chinese Navy Vice Admiral's Flag (1909-1911).svg, Command flag for Imperial Chinese Navy Vice Admiral File:Imperial Chinese Navy Rear Admiral's Flag (1909-1911).svg, Command flag for Imperial Chinese Navy Rear Admiral File:Imperial Chinese Navy Senior Officer's Flag (1909-1911).svg, Command flag for Imperial Chinese Navy Commodore File:Imperial Chinese Navy Fleet Leader's Flag (1909-1911).svg, Command flag for Imperial Chinese Navy Senior Officer's/Fleet Leader File:Imperial Chinese Navy Duty Ship Pennant (1909-1911).svg, Imperial Chinese Navy Duty Ship Pennant File:Imperial Chinese Navy Commission Pennant (1909-1911).svg, Imperial Chinese Navy Commission Pennant ''Notes:The Commodore was not a substantive rank, but rather a captain commanding a squadron.''

References

Citations

Sources

* Cole, Bernard D. ''The Great Wall at Sea: China's Navy in the Twenty-First Century'' (2nd ed., 2010) * Graff, David Andrew and Robin Higham (2002). ''A Military History of China''. Boulder: Westview Press. * Miles Li, (2007) "Fujian Arsenal" temporary exhibition at the Hong Kong Museum of Coastal Defence. * Needham, Joseph (1986). Science and Civilization in China: Volume 4, Physics and Physical Technology, Part 3, Civil Engineering and Nautics. Taipei: Caves Books Ltd. * *

External links

China: Its History and Culture

Naval Warfare and Refraction of China's Self-Strengthening Reforms into Scientific and Technological Failure - 1860-1895
{{Ancient and Dynastic Chinese Military History Navies by country Naval history of China Military history of the Qing dynasty Disbanded navies