Chen Yucheng (), born Chen Picheng (; 1837May 1862), was a Chinese general 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 laste ...

and later served as the Heroic (Ying) Prince (or Brave King) of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom in the later stages of the rebellion, nicknamed "Four-eyed Dog" because of two prominent

moles Moles can refer to: * Moles de Xert, a mountain range in the Baix Maestrat comarca, Valencian Community, Spain * The Moles (Australian band) *The Moles, alter ego of Scottish band Simon Dupree and the Big Sound People *Abraham Moles, French engin ...

below his eyes. Born to a peasant family in Guangxi around 1836, Chen Yucheng joined Taiping rebel forces during the March to the Yangtze in 1851. 15 years old at the time of his enlistment, Chen quickly rose through the ranks and in 1856, in the aftermath of the Tianjing incident, an internal power struggle within the Taiping leadership, he was promoted to a general. He was awarded the '' E An'' in 1857. After commanding a series of successful military operations west of

Nanking 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 ...

(

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 ...

) between 1856 and 1858, Chen was given the title of Prince Ying by the Taiping Kings in the following year. Together with fellow Taiping General

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 ...

, Chen defended and released the capital during the siege of Nanking in 1860. In February 1861, Chen Yucheng led 100,000 troops in a preparation to attack

Wuhan Wuhan (, ; ; ) is the capital of Hubei Province in the People's Republic of China. It is the largest city in Hubei and the most populous city in Central China, with a population of over eleven million, the ninth-most populous Chinese city an ...

, leading one half of a

pincer movement The pincer movement, or double envelopment, is a military maneuver in which forces simultaneously attack both flanks (sides) of an enemy formation. This classic maneuver holds an important foothold throughout the history of warfare. The pin ...

in an offensive against Imperial forces. However, he was on the defensive and forced to withdraw. After his retreat the Xiang Army concentrated all its forces on the Siege of Anqing. Chen was executed by Imperial Qing forces in May 1862.

References

* *Michael, Franz. ''The Taiping Rebellion: History and Documents (Vol. II/III)'', Seattle, 1971. *Michael, Franz and Chang Chung-li, ''The Taiping Rebellion: History and Documents (Vol. I)'', Seattle, 1966. *Teng, Ssu-yu. ''New Light on the Taiping Rebellion'', Cambridge, Mass., 1950. {{DEFAULTSORT:Chen, Yucheng 1836 births 1862 deaths 19th-century executions by China Hakka people Hakka generals Executed people from Guangxi Executed Taiping Heavenly Kingdom people Military leaders of the Taiping Rebellion People executed by flaying People executed by the Qing dynasty People from Wuzhou Qing dynasty people