Wu Ta-k'uei or Wu Dakui (1923–1972) was a Chinese

Wu-style t'ai chi ch'uan The Wu family style () t'ai chi ch'uan (Taijiquan) of Wu Quanyou and Wu Chien-ch'uan (Wu Jianquan) is the second most popular form of t'ai chi ch'uan in the world today, after the Yang style, and fourth in terms of family seniority. This styl ...

teacher of Manchu ancestry.

Biography

The oldest son of

Wu Kung-i Wu Kung-i or Wu Gongyi (1898–1970) was a well-known teacher of the soft style martial art t'ai chi ch'uan (taijiquan) in China, and, after 1949, in the British colony of Hong Kong. He was also the "gate-keeper" of the Wu family from 1942 unt ...

, he was born in

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 ...

, raised in

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 flowin ...

(where he was first taught t'ai chi ch'uan by his grandfather, Wu Chien-ch'uan) and spent most of his adult life teaching in

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...

. Wu Ta-k'uei was active in the resistance to the

Japanese invasion of China The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Th ...

, yet he later taught martial arts in Japan after the war. Wu Ta-k'uei was reputed to be a fierce fighter, and known as always ready to accept a challenge match. He is reported to have never been defeated, and to have been famous for badly injuring and taunting his opponents in those matches. An attested story circulated about Wu Ta-k'uei was about a fight that started in a Hong Kong dockside bar between an unarmed Wu Ta-k'uei and "over 30" stevedores armed with clubs and boathooks. The dockworkers eventually fled to a local police station for protection from the enraged Wu. Interviews with dockworkers and the police records of this fight led to sensational newspaper headlines in Kowloon and Hong Kong. Wu Ta-k'uei assisted his father and his uncle

Wu Kung-tsao Wu Kung-tsao or Wu Gongzao (1902–1983) was a famous Chinese teacher of t'ai chi ch'uan. He taught in Beijing, Shanghai, Changsha and Hong Kong. The second son of Wu Chien-ch'üan, he was the grandson of the first teacher of Wu-style t'ai ch ...

to set up academies in Hong Kong,

Macau Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a p ...

and

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, bor ...

. He also sat on the Advisory Board of the Martial Art Association in Hong Kong and taught martial arts in the Kowloon Police Force. His oldest son, Eddie Wu Kuang-yu, is the current "gate-keeper" of the Wu family.

Generational senior instructors of the Wu family

''1st Generation'' * Wu Ch'uan-yu (Wu Quanyou, 吳全佑, 1834–1902), who learned from

Yang Luchan Yang Lu-ch'an or Yang Luchan, also known as Yang Fu-k'ui or Yang Fukui (1799–1872), was an influential Chinese practitioner and teacher of the internal style t'ai chi ch'uan (taijiquan). He is known as the founder of Yang-style t'ai chi ch'u ...

and

Yang Pan-hou Yang Pan-hou or Yang Banhou (1837–1890) was an influential teacher of t'ai chi ch'uan (taijiquan) in Ch'ing dynasty China, known for his bellicose temperament. Biography He was the senior son of Yang Luchan to survive to adulthood. Like ...

, was senior instructor of the family from 1870-1902. ''2nd generation'' *His oldest son, Wu Chien-ch'uan (Wu Jianquan, 吳鑑泉, 1870–1942), was senior from 1902-1942. ''3rd Generation'' *His oldest son,

(Wu Gongyi, 吳公儀, 1900–1970) was senior from 1942-1970. *Wu Kung-i's younger brother,

(Wu Gongzao, 吳公藻, 1903–1983), was senior from 1970-1983. *Wu Kung-i's younger sister,

Wu Ying-hua Wu Yinghua (1907–1996) was a famous Chinese teacher of Wu-style t'ai chi ch'uan. She was born in Beijing and died in Shanghai. She was the eldest daughter of Wu Chien-ch'uan, the best known teacher of Wu-style t'ai chi ch'uan. Her older br ...

(Wu Yinghua, 吳英華, 1907–1997), was senior from 1983-1997. ''4th Generation'' *Wu Kung-i's daughter,

Wu Yen-hsia Wu Yen-hsia or Wu Yanxia (1930–2001) was a Chinese t'ai chi ch'uan teacher of Manchu ancestry. Biography She was the daughter of Wu Kung-i (1900-1970) from whom she learned t'ai chi. She also helped in the teaching of her father's studen ...

(Wu Yanxia, 吳雁霞, 1930–2001) was senior from 1997-2001. *Wu Kung-tsao's son, Wu Ta-hsin (Wu Daxin, 吳大新, 1933–2005), was senior from 2001-2005. ''5th Generation'' *The current senior instructor of the Wu family is Wu Ta-k'uei's son Wu Kuang-yu (Wu Guangyu, ''Eddie Wu'', 吳光宇, born 1946).

T'ai chi ch'uan lineage tree with Wu-style focus

External links

Wu Ta-k’uei demonstrating t’ai chi sword form, throws and freestyle applications

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wu Ta-k'uei 1923 births 1972 deaths Manchu martial artists Tai chi practitioners from Shanghai Chinese emigrants to British Hong Kong

Biography

Generational senior instructors of the Wu family

T'ai chi ch'uan lineage tree with Wu-style focus

See also

External links

References