Shi Kefa

Shi Kefa
史可法
Portrait of Shi Kefa
Senior Grand Secretary
In office
1644
MonarchZhu Yousong
Preceded byLi Jiantai (acting)
Succeeded byGao Hongtu
Minister of War
In office
1644
MonarchZhu Yousong
Preceded byZhang Jinyan
Succeeded byMa Shiying
Minister of War, Southern Capital
In office
1643–1644
MonarchChongzhen Emperor
Preceded byXiong Mingyu
Succeeded byMa Shiying
Minister of Personnel, Southern Capital (acting)
In office
1643–1644
MonarchChongzhen Emperor
Preceded byLi Yuzhi
Succeeded byZhang Shenyan
Personal details
Born(1601-02-04)4 February 1601
Kaifeng, Henan, Ming dynasty, China
Died20 May 1645(1645-05-20) (aged 44)
Yangzhou, Jiangsu, Qing dynasty, China
OccupationOfficial, calligrapher

Shi Kefa (4 February 1601 – 20 May 1645), courtesy names Xianzhi and Daolin, was a government official and calligrapher who lived in the late Ming dynasty. He was born in Xiangfu (祥符; present-day Kaifeng, Henan) and claimed ancestry from Daxing County, Shuntian Prefecture (順天府大興縣; in present-day Beijing). He was mentored by Zuo Guangdou (左光斗). He served as the Minister of War in Nanjing during the early part of his career. He is best remembered for his defence of Yangzhou from the Qing dynasty and was killed when Yangzhou fell to Qing forces in April 1645. After his death, the Southern Ming granted him the posthumous name "Zhongjing" (忠靖; means "loyal and peaceful"). Nearly a century later, the Qianlong Emperor of Qing granted Shi Kefa another posthumous name, "Zhongzheng" (忠正; means "loyal and upright".) His descendants collected his works and compiled them into a book titled Lord Shi Zhongzheng's Collections (史忠正公集).