The Wuwei Corps () or Guards Army was a modernised army unit 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-spea ...
. Made up of infantry, cavalry and artillery, it was formed in May or June 1899 and trained by western military advisers. The guard took responsibility for the security of Peking (
Beijing
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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 ...
) and the
Forbidden City
The Forbidden City () is a palace complex in Dongcheng District, Beijing, China, at the center of the Imperial City of Beijing. It is surrounded by numerous opulent imperial gardens and temples including the Zhongshan Park, the sacrifi ...
, with
Ronglu
Ronglu (6 April 1836 – 11 April 1903), courtesy name Zhonghua, was a Manchu political and military leader of the late Qing dynasty. He was born in the Guwalgiya clan, which was under the Plain White Banner of the Manchu Eight Banners. ...
as its supreme commander. This move was an attempt by the Qing imperial court to create a western-style army equipped with modern weaponry following the Qing Empire's defeat in the
First Sino-Japanese War. Three out of the five divisions of the Wuwei Corps were disbanded after two years due to attrition caused by the
Boxer Rebellion.
Formation
Empress Dowager Cixi
Empress Dowager Cixi ( ; mnc, Tsysi taiheo; formerly romanised as Empress Dowager T'zu-hsi; 29 November 1835 – 15 November 1908), of the Manchu Yehe Nara clan, was a Chinese noblewoman, concubine and later regent who effectively controlled ...
held supreme power at the Qing imperial court after she placed the
Guangxu Emperor
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, w ...
under house arrest.
Ronglu
Ronglu (6 April 1836 – 11 April 1903), courtesy name Zhonghua, was a Manchu political and military leader of the late Qing dynasty. He was born in the Guwalgiya clan, which was under the Plain White Banner of the Manchu Eight Banners. ...
, who controlled the
Grand Council and the
Ministry of Defence, subsequently received orders to recruit a 90,000-men army drawn from various units under the control of
Nie Shicheng,
Song Qing,
Dong Fuxiang
Dong Fuxiang (1839–1908), courtesy name Xingwu (), was a Chinese general who lived in the late Qing dynasty. He was born in the Western Chinese province of Gansu. He commanded an army of Hui soldiers, which included the later Ma clique gene ...
and
Yuan Shikai.
Five Divisions of the Wuwei
The corps consisted of five "divisions" described as "regiments" by some sources: Left, Right, Front, Rear, and Center
[Although the Chinese names for these units featured the stem ''jun'', literally "corps" or "army", recent studies in English appear to coalesce around referring to these units as "divisions" (, , etc. probably after ). The transition from "army" to "divisions" was expressed in one study as follows: "Jung-lu ongluthen proceeded to reorganize the four armies (now divisions)".]
Of these, "by far the strongest" was Yuan Shikai's Right Division, which was merely a rebranding of his existing
New Army
The New Armies ( Traditional Chinese: 新軍, Simplified Chinese: 新军; Pinyin: Xīnjūn, Manchu: ''Ice cooha''), more fully called the Newly Created Army ( ''Xinjian Lujun''Also translated as "Newly Established Army" ()), was the modernised ...
formed in 1895, while Nie Shicheng's Front Division, trained by German military advisers, ranked as second best. These two divisions enjoyed the advantage of a modernised infantry military system and training, while the other three divisions still employed the traditional
Manchu Banners Army system. Differences in the prowess of the divisions became apparent during training, even though the entire Guards Army had the same modern weaponry.
Prior to the creation of the Wuwei Corps, Nie Shicheng's Front Division was known as the "Tenacious Army" ( ''Wuyi jun'',
), while Song Qing's troops previously bore the name "Resolute Army" (毅軍 ''Yi jun''). These armies were similarly armed with
Mauser rifle
Mauser, originally Königlich Württembergische Gewehrfabrik ("Royal Württemberg Rifle Factory"), was a German arms manufacturer. Their line of bolt-action rifles and semi-automatic pistols has been produced since the 1870s for the German arme ...
s and
Maxim machine guns.
Dong Fuxiang () led an army of Muslim warriors, dubbed "the 10,000 Islamic rabble" in the West at the time. In China, Dong's troops were familiarly known as the "Gan army" (甘軍
) which used the abbreviated name of
Gansu Province where many of these soldiers originated. "Gan army" is a literal translation, but English sources usually use the paraphrased name "
Kansu Braves".
By imperial edict, Ronglu received nominal command of the entire Wuwei Corps. His initial task was to incorporate the four pre-existing divisions within the new structure of the Wuwei Corps. Ronglu later added the Centre Division with himself as commander, a unit composed mostly of Manchu bannermen.
Boxer Uprising
During the war against the
Eight-Nation Alliance, the Front Division, Rear Division and the Center Division suffered heavy casualties and were disbanded following signature of the
Boxer Protocol. The Right Division and the Left Division remained in
Shandong Province to suppress a group of Boxers known as the ''Yihetuan'' rebels. Both these units remained at full strength as they had not come up against troops of the foreign powers.
From March 1899 onwards at the height of the Boxer conflict,
Ma Yukun
Ma Yukun, courtesy name Jingshan was a Chinese army general who primarily served the Huai Army and the Resolute Army; he served during the First Sino-Japanese War and the Boxer Rebellion.
Biography Early Years
Ma was born in 1838, at Maji, Anh ...
(
馬玉崑) and
Jiang Guiti became co-commanders alongside Song Qing at the head of the Left Division.
Explanatory notes
Citations
References
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abstract*
* (Cited by below as a reference for English translation of terminology.)
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abstract Reprinted in .
{{Qing dynasty topics
Military units and formations of the Qing dynasty
Military history of the Qing dynasty
Military units and formations of the Boxer Rebellion
Military units and formations established in 1899