Li Xiucheng (; 1823 – August 7, 1864) was a military rebel commander opposing the Qing dynasty 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 last ...

. He was born to a peasant family. In 1864, he was captured and interrogated following the third and final Battle of Nanjing. He was then executed by

Zeng Guofan Zeng Guofan, Marquis Yiyong (; 26 November 1811 – 12 March 1872), birth name Zeng Zicheng, courtesy name Bohan, was a Chinese statesman and military general of the late Qing dynasty. He is best known for raising and organizing the Xiang ...

Name

He was sometimes called the Loyal King, or Zhong Wang (). This title was bestowed after he refused a bribe from a

Qing 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-speak ...

general officer to kill

Hong Xiuquan Hong Xiuquan (1 January 1814 – 1 June 1864), born Hong Huoxiu and with the courtesy name Renkun, was a Chinese revolutionary who was the leader of the Taiping Rebellion against the Qing dynasty. He established the Taiping Heavenly Kingdo ...

, the founder and leader of the rebellion.

Biography

Second rout of the Jiangnan Army Group

Army Group Jiangnan (江南大營) was an important

army barracks in

Nanjing Nanjing (; , Mandarin pronunciation: ), Postal Map Romanization, alternately romanized as Nanking, is the capital of Jiangsu Provinces of China, province of the China, People's Republic of China. It is a sub-provincial city, a megacity, and t ...

. Forces led by Li Xiucheng besieged the barracks in an attempt to force its occupants to surrender. Beginning from March 1858 during the second encirclement, the

army commanded 200,000 soldiers to fight with Taiping forces , but they were routed by Li Xiucheng in May 1860. After that, Li went on to occupy all of

Jiangsu Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with it ...

provinces except

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Chinese, Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four Direct-administered municipalities of China, direct-administered municipalities of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the ...

Nanking

Li worked together with fellow Taiping General

Chen Yucheng Chen Yucheng (), born Chen Picheng (; 1837May 1862), was a Chinese general during the Taiping Rebellion and later served as the Heroic (Ying) Prince (or Brave King) of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom in the later stages of the rebellion, nicknamed ...

to defend and release the capital during the siege of Nanking in 1860.

Two attacks on Shanghai

* * Battle of Shanghai (1861), the second time

Escape from Suzhou

Li Xiucheng's palace in

Suzhou Suzhou (; ; Suzhounese: ''sou¹ tseu¹'' , Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Soochow, is a major city in southern Jiangsu province, East China. Suzhou is the largest city in Jiangsu, and a major economic center and focal point of trad ...

is the only one from the Taiping Rebellion that exists today. In July 1863, Li ordered his daughter's husband,

Tan Shaoguang Tan Shaoguang () (1835 – December 1, 1863) was a military leader of the Taiping Rebellion. During his military tenure he was known as the King of Mu (慕王) ("Seeker Prince"). As a young soldier he joined the Jintian Uprising. After several ...

, to capture Suzhou. But

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 ...

led the

Huai Army The Huai Army (), named for the Huai River, was a military force allied with the Qing dynasty raised to contain the Taiping Rebellion in 1862. It was also called the Anhui Army because it was based in Anhui province. It helped to restore the stab ...

combined by the "Ever Victorious Army," which, having been raised by an American named

Frederick Townsend Ward Frederick Townsend Ward (; November 29, 1831September 22, 1862) was an American sailor and soldier of fortune known for his military service in Imperial China during the Taiping Rebellion. Early life and education Ward was born in Salem, Massa ...

, was placed under the command of

Charles George Gordon Major-General Charles George Gordon CB (28 January 1833 – 26 January 1885), also known as Chinese Gordon, Gordon Pasha, and Gordon of Khartoum, was a British Army officer and administrator. He saw action in the Crimean War as an officer in ...

. With this support,

gained numerous victories leading to the surrender of

Trivia

According to one legend, three months after Donkey Jiang (蔣驢子) became the manager of Li Xiucheng's stables in 1864 — and before the fall of Nanjing — Li Xiucheng took his wealth (including much plunder) to Donkey Jiang. At Li's request, Jiang quickly transported that wealth outside the Nanjing area, planning to meet back up with Li later. Jiang delivered on his promise to accompany the transport with 20 horses and an ox, but Li was captured and executed before he could rendezvous with Jiang. Jiang was left with wealth that he was able to bring back to Nanjing after the war.

Writing

''Loyal Prince Li Xiucheng In His Own Words'' (《忠王李秀成自述》) is his autobiographical account written shortly before his

execution Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that ...

Li's sword

When Li withdrew from

, his sword - the symbol of power - was given to his young brother

Li Shixian Li Shixian (; 1834 – 23 August 1865) was a pre-eminent military leader of the late Taiping Rebellion. He was the cousin of military leader Li Xiucheng and was known for being very tall for a native of Guangxi province, standing at tall. Dur ...

. Li Shixian took this sword, but it was confiscated when Li was captured by

Liyang Liyang () is a county-level city under the administration of Changzhou in the Jiangsu province of the People's Republic of China. In 2011, it had a population of about 781,500. It borders the prefecture-level divisions of Wuxi to the east, Xuanc ...

. When Charles George Gordon returned to the UK with Li's sword, he presented it to

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previ ...

's cousin, Chief Commander of the Military the

Duke of Cambridge Duke of Cambridge, one of several current royal dukedoms in the United Kingdom , is a hereditary title of specific rank of nobility in the British royal family. The title (named after the city of Cambridge in England) is heritable by male de ...

. On 30 August 1961, the sword ended up in the hands of a history professor at the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degr ...

. In 1981, this sword was returned to China where it is currently stored in the

National Museum of China The National Museum of China () flanks the eastern side of Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China. The museum's mission is to educate about the arts and history of China. It is directed by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the People's Republic ...

Children

Li Xiucheng had a son Li Ronfar and three daughters. Li's daughters married Taiping generals, including

and Chen Binwen.

Sources

* * Tiān Guó Zwi(天國志)
李秀成：太平天国后期军事统帅
*

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Li, Xiucheng 1823 births 1864 deaths 19th-century executions by China Hakka generals Executed people from Guangxi Executed Taiping Heavenly Kingdom people Military leaders of the Taiping Rebellion People executed by the Qing dynasty People from Wuzhou