Hundred-day reform

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The Hundred Day Reform ( Chinese  戊戌 变法 , Pinyin wùxū biànfǎ , also 百日维新、戊戌维新、维新 变法 ) was the failed plan of the Chinese Emperor Guangxu in 1898 to reform China.

After the defeat in the first Sino-Japanese War in 1894/95 it became clear that the superiority of foreign powers in the economic, technological and military fields could only be countered by a fundamental revision of the traditional Confucian structures of the country. Guangxu was decisively advised in his reform attempts by the young Confucian scholar Kang Youwei (1858-1927) and his student and colleague Liang Qichao (1873-1929).

After visiting the now modern concessions in Shanghai and Hong Kong, Kang decided to become China's reformer. After attaining the jinshi degree and an unsuccessful petition, Kang submitted a memorandum for a memorandum to transform China into a modern state in a single generation, following the example of the Meiji Restoration in Japan. Kang developed a new view of Confucianism in theoretical writings . His writings finally reached the emperor, and with Kang's help he tried to push through the reforms in China with him.

With the decree issued on June 11, 1898 , Guangxu announced a dismantling of the bureaucratic apparatus, a modernization of the examination system and military training, a strengthening of the right to petition, and the expansion and improvement of the education system. The Manchurian population should also be given access to civil professions, for example in the commercial sector, which are traditionally denied them.

When implemented, many reform measures would have curtailed the power and privileges of the conservative bureaucrats (e.g. the abolition of nominal offices without duties). Therefore, the relevant ordinances piled up for 100 days in the offices of the mandarins , who did nothing to implement the decrees.

The emperor's aunt, the widow of the empress Cixi , recognized the balance of power at court and the massive resistance of conservative circles in the bureaucracy. So she rallied princes and mandarins of the highest ranks who were unwilling to reform, had her nephew interned in the New Summer Palace on the morning of September 22, 1898 , and announced that he was seriously ill. After this Coup d'État , she reigned as regent in his name - a role she had already taken on for the young emperor. Crucial to her success was that she had the three newly created modern Beiyang armies behind her in Beijing 's Zhili Province , which was commanded by her friend Rong Lu. Yuan Shikai , who was supposed to get rid of Rong Lu, betrayed the Emperor Guangxu when he sided with Cixi.

The reforms were reversed, most of which had not yet taken effect. The only thing left to do was to create a modern university in Beijing, the predecessor of Beijing University. The initiators of the reforms, Kang Youwei and Liang Qichao, fled to Japan to avoid execution. From exile they tried to win supporters for a constitutional monarchy in China. Six other counselors were executed, including Kang's brother and Tan Sitong, who refused to flee. In China, these six intellectuals (戊戌 六君子) are revered as martyrs.

See also

literature