Lin Yongsheng,

courtesy name A courtesy name (), also known as a style name, is a name bestowed upon one at adulthood in addition to one's given name. This practice is a tradition in the East Asian cultural sphere, including China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.Ulrich Theobald ...

Yisheng was a Qing-era Chinese Vice Admiral. He was the commander of the Left Fleet of 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 ...

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 ...

, serving aboard the '' Jingyuan''.

Education and Organization

Lin Yongsheng was born into the prestigious Lin family which was a prominent family within Houguan County. In 1867, Lin was admitted to the first phase of the navigation department of . In 1871, he was transferred to the training ship ''Jianwei'' and served on the ship after graduation. In 1875, he was transferred to the cruiser '' Yangwu'', and later transferred back to the Naval Academy as a teacher with the rank of ensign. In 1876, he was one of the first batch of 12 international students who traveled to the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

to study abroad. He arrived in the UK the following year and was admitted to the Navigation Department of the

Royal Naval College, Greenwich The Royal Naval College, Greenwich, was a Royal Navy training establishment between 1873 and 1998, providing courses for naval officers. It was the home of the Royal Navy's staff college, which provided advanced training for officers. The equiv ...

. Lin then took an internship on the and took the ship to travel the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ea ...

and other places. In 1880, Lin and five other classmates returned to China after finishing their studies. The Qing government promoted him to Lieutenant junior rank. Under the command of

Li Hongzhang Li Hongzhang, Marquess Suyi ( zh, t=李鴻章; also Li Hung-chang; 15 February 1823 – 7 November 1901) was a Chinese politician, general and diplomat of the late Qing dynasty. He quelled several major rebellions and served in important ...

, Lin Yongsheng was transferred to the

as the commander of the gunboat '' Zhenzhong'', and later transferred to the commander of the training ship ''Kangji''. In 1882, as a member of the

Ding Ruchang Admiral Ding Ruchang (; 18 November 1836 – 12 February 1895) was a Chinese military officer in the late Qing dynasty. Early life Ding was a native of what is now part of Chaohu City in Anhui Province, China. He joined the Taiping Rebellion i ...

's fleet, he went to the Korean Peninsula to suppress the

Imo Incident The Imo Incident, also sometimes known as the Imo Mutiny, Soldier's riot or Jingo-gunran in Japanese, was a violent uprising and riot in Seoul beginning on July 23, 1882, by soldiers of the Joseon Army who were later joined by disaffected members ...

. Because of his military service, he was promoted to Lieutenant and awarded the honor of "Dai Hualing". In the spring of 1887, he and

Deng Shichang Deng Shichang (4 October 1849 – 17 September 1894), courtesy name Zhengqing, posthumous name Zhuangjie, was an Imperial Chinese Navy officer who lived in the late Qing dynasty. He is best known for his service in the Beiyang Fleet during the ...

, Ye Zugui, Qiu Baoren and others went to

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

and the United Kingdom to pick up state-of-the-art ships. Lin was responsible for picking up the armored cruiser '' Jingyuan'' in Germany where the '' Zhiyuan'' and ''Jingyuan'' would rendezvous. During the return of the four warships, they stopped in

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

in November 1887 and opened the overseas Chinese to watch the warship. The four warships ordered from abroad returned safely in the spring of 1888 and Lin Yongsheng was promoted to Captain due to his achievements in taking over the ships. In August of the same year, the four warships were formally commissioned and Lin Yongsheng continued to stay on the long-distance warships, and continued to be in charge of the long-distance warships. On December 17, the establishment of the

was officially announced and Lin Yongsheng was appointed as the deputy commander of the left-wing fleet and the commander of the long-distance warship. According to the order of official ranks in the Beiyang Navy Charter, Lin Yongsheng was the sixth commander. Around this time, Lin was noted as being honest and kind-hearted and was described as "sexy and easy-going,... never reprimanding others in front of others."

First Sino-Japanese War

During the Battle of the Yalu River in the Yellow Sea on September 17, 1894, the ''Jingyuan'' was located on the right wing of the Beiyang Navy fleet, next to the '' Zhenyuan'' and the ''Jingyuan''. After the ''Zhiyuan'' sank, the ''Jingyuan'' commanded by Lin Yongsheng, the ''Ji Yuan'' and ''Guangjia'' tried to leave the battlefield and return to the port of Lushun, but were chased by the first guerrillas of the

Combined Fleet The was the main sea-going component of the Imperial Japanese Navy. Until 1933, the Combined Fleet was not a permanent organization, but a temporary force formed for the duration of a conflict or major naval maneuvers from various units norm ...

and finally were besieged by the first guerrillas. Lin Yongsheng was hit by a shell during the battle and was killed in action. Afterwards, the first officer and the second officer on board were shot and killed one after another. At 17:29 on the same day, the ship suffered heavy damage, capsized and sank. Only 17 people on board survived. After the war, the Qing court, in recognition of his service, paid compensation according to the rules of the admiral and posthumously promoted him to Vice Admiral.

References

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lin, Yongsheng 1853 births 1894 deaths Qing dynasty admirals Qing military personnel killed in action Chinese military personnel of the First Sino-Japanese War Beiyang Fleet personnel Chinese expatriates in England People from Minhou County