Gangyi

Gangyi
Grand Councillor
In office
1894–1900
Assistant Grand Secretary
In office
1898–1900
Minister of Personnel
In office
17 April – 27 October 1900
Serving with Xu Fu
Preceded byXijing
Succeeded byJingxin
Minister of War
In office
10 June 1898 – 17 April 1900
Serving with Xu Fu (until 1899), Xu Yongyi (since 1899)
Preceded byRonglu
Succeeded byJingxin
Minister of Justice
In office
4 August 1897 – 10 June 1898
Serving with Liao Shouheng
Preceded bySonggui
Succeeded byChongli
Minister of Works
In office
6 June 1896 – 4 August 1897
Serving with Xu Yingkui
Preceded byHuaitabu
Succeeded bySonggui
Governor of Guangdong
In office
7 May 1892 – 4 November 1894
Preceded byLiu Ruifen
Succeeded byMa Piyao
Governor of Jiangsu
In office
20 November 1888 – 7 May 1892
Preceded bySongjun
Succeeded bySongjun
Governor of Shanxi
In office
12 April 1885 – 20 November 1888
Preceded byKuibin
Succeeded byWei Rongguang
Personal details
Born1834
Died1900 (aged 65–66)
Houma, Shanxi
Occupationpolitician
Clan nameTatara
Courtesy nameZiliang (子良)
Military service
AllegianceQing dynasty
Branch/serviceManchu Bordered Blue Banner
Battles/warsBoxer Rebellion

Gangyi (Chinese: 剛毅, 1834–1900[1]), from the Tatara clan with the courtesy name Ziliang (子良), was a Manchu politician of the late Qing dynasty. He was a member of the Manchu Bordered Blue Banner.[2][3]

In 1894, Gangyi resolutely advocated war against Japan, which was appreciated by Empress Dowager Cixi. He opposed the Hundred Days' Reform movement initiated by the Guangxu Emperor and his allies. On 22 September 1898 Cixi launched a coup d'état and put Guangxu under house arrest in the Summer Palace. Gangyi sided with Cixi, he advocated to depose the emperor.

Gangyi was one of the main supporters of the Boxers. After the Boxer Rebellion of broke out, he placed in command of Boxer groups to fight against the Eight-Nation Alliance together with Zaixun, Prince Zhuang.[4]

When Beijing fell to the Eight-Nation Alliance in 1900, he fled from Beijing and later died at Houma, Shanxi. The victorious Eight-Nation Alliance named Gangyi as one of the masterminds behind the rebellion. Gangyi was dismissed from all official positions by Qing court posthumously.[4]

  1. ^ "剛毅/Gangyi". China Biographical Database Project (CBDB).
  2. ^ "Jinzheng jiyao 晉政輯要". chinaknowledge.de.
  3. ^ "剛毅".
  4. ^ a b Works related to 清史稿/卷465 at Wikisource (Draft History of Qing Volume 465)