The Battle of Jiangnan (1860), also known as the Second rout of the Jiangnan Battalion () was a battle between the Qing government's
Green Standard Army
The Green Standard Army (; Manchu: ''niowanggiyan turun i kūwaran'') was the name of a category of military units under the control of Qing dynasty in China. It was made up mostly of ethnic Han soldiers and operated concurrently with the Manchu- ...
and the army of the
Taiping Heavenly Kingdom during the
Taiping Rebellion
The Taiping Rebellion, also known as the Taiping Civil War or the Taiping Revolution, was a massive rebellion and civil war that was waged in China between the Manchu-led Qing dynasty and the Han, Hakka-led Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. It lasted fr ...
. The Green Standard Army twice attempted to besiege
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 ...
, capital of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, but was unable to break through. To break the siege of Nanjing, the Taiping forces maneuvered to divert Qing forces by sacking
Hangzhou
Hangzhou ( or , ; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), also romanized as Hangchow, is the capital and most populous city of Zhejiang, China. It is located in the northwestern part of the province, sitting at the head of Hangzhou Bay, whi ...
, before quickly moving back to Nanjing to counter-encircle the Qing siege forces and routing the Green Standard Army garrison completely, breaking the siege of Nanjing.
Jiangnan
The eastern campaign began in 9 February. Gen.
Li Xiucheng
Li Xiucheng (; 1823 – August 7, 1864) was a military rebel commander opposing the Qing dynasty during the Taiping Rebellion. He was born to a peasant family. In 1864, he was captured and interrogated following the third and final Battle of ...
of the rebel forces encircled the region of
Jiangnan
Jiangnan or Jiang Nan (; formerly romanized Kiang-nan, literally "South of the River" meaning "South of the Yangtze") is a geographic area in China referring to lands immediately to the south of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, incl ...
. They approached the
Zhejiang
Zhejiang ( or , ; , also romanized as Chekiang) is an eastern, coastal province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable cities include Ningbo and Wenzhou. Zhejiang is bordered by Jiang ...
provincial capital,
Hangzhou
Hangzhou ( or , ; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), also romanized as Hangchow, is the capital and most populous city of Zhejiang, China. It is located in the northwestern part of the province, sitting at the head of Hangzhou Bay, whi ...
, disguised as Qing troops. At Hangzhou, the 60,000 Taiping troops were outnumbered by Qing defenders, so they used several deception tricks such as placing hundreds of flags on a hill giving the impression of large numbers. The city walls were destroyed with explosives on 19 March, and the city was taken soon after. The Mayor of Hangzhou committed suicide after the loss.
Li's daring act attracted the attention of
Zhang Guoliang, who ordered Gen. Tidu
Zhang Youliang Zhang may refer to:
Chinese culture, etc.
* Zhang (surname) (張/张), common Chinese surname
** Zhang (surname 章), a rarer Chinese surname
* Zhang County (漳县), of Dingxi, Gansu
* Zhang River (漳河), a river flowing mainly in Henan
* ''Zha ...
(), in command of 36,000 troops, to track Li's corps. Li routed Zhang's troops and crippled Army Group Jiangnan. When Zhang Youliang arrived in Hangzhou he believed that Li was occupying the city, but Li's corps had left two days earlier on 19 March and attacked another city while waiting for reinforcements.
In Nanjing
Hong Rengan
Hong Rengan (; 18 February 1822 – 23 November 1864) was an important leader of the Taiping Rebellion. He was a distant cousin of the movement's founder and spiritual leader Hong Xiuquan. His position as the Gan Wang (干王, lit. "the Shield Ki ...
ordered Chen Yucheng's troops to cross the river. Chen commanded over 100,000 men along the river and on 29 April he received the signal to attack from Hong Rengan and began the crossing.
Zeng Guofan
When Chief commander
Zhang Guoliang and
Imperial Commissioner
Imperial commissioner is an ambivalent English language term, used to render foreign language titles of various – mostly gubernatorial – officers whose ' commission' was in the gift of an Emperor, including China, the Russian Empire and the Hol ...
Her Chyun died the Qing government promoted
Zeng Guofan. This changed the course of the war in favor of the Qing and their western allies.
See also
*
First Rout of the Jiangnan Battalion
*
Second Opium War
The Second Opium War (), also known as the Second Anglo-Sino War, the Second China War, the Arrow War, or the Anglo-French expedition to China, was a colonial war lasting from 1856 to 1860, which pitted the British Empire and the French Emp ...
*
Draft History of Qing
References
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Second Rout The Army Group Jiangnan
Jiangnan
Jiangnan or Jiang Nan (; formerly romanized Kiang-nan, literally "South of the River" meaning "South of the Yangtze") is a geographic area in China referring to lands immediately to the south of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, incl ...
1860 in China
Jiangnan
Jiangnan or Jiang Nan (; formerly romanized Kiang-nan, literally "South of the River" meaning "South of the Yangtze") is a geographic area in China referring to lands immediately to the south of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, incl ...
History of Nanjing
Green Standard Army