MILITARY EDUCATION IN CHINA, 1842-1895
19
altogether. But fears over tampering with inherited institutions and respect for ancestral precedent (tsu-tsung ch'eng-fa) prevented the tests from being either transformed or abandoned. Subsequent attempts to reform or abolish the system of military examinations, such as Shen Pao-chen's famous memorial of 1878, came to nothing.19 As late as 1898, we still find the throne ordering officials to determine what the policy of the imperial ancestors had been regarding military reform before taking concrete steps.20 Small wonder the prestigious civil service examinations also remained essentially unaltered throughout the nineteenth century.
There was, however, room for the reform of military education outside the examination system - particularly during the Taiping period. Not only did the Rebellion allow for the emergence of new civil and military leadership in China; it also resulted in the establishment of new-style military forces which placed comparatively heavy emphasis on military education. The yung-ying armies of Tseng Kuo-fan and others, for example, employed the highly effective training methods of the famous Ming general Ch'i Chi-kuang - techniques that had long since fallen into disuse. In addition to Confucian moral instruction, yung-ying armies received daily drill, which was all but unheard of in Banner and Green Standard forces. They practiced regularly with firearms, swords, knives, spears and other weapons, and were taught tactical formations such as Ch'i Chi-kuang's "mandarin duck" (yuan-yang) and the "three powers" (san-ts'ai).
It is true, of course, that officers received very little, if any, formal military training, since it was deemed sufficient that they be upright gentlemen (chün-tzu) who led by moral example. Moreover, we know that active involvement by officers in troop training was generally considered demeaning. But at least some lower level personnel in yung-ying staff organizations (ying-wu ch'u), and perhaps some high-level officers as well, were more knowledgeable about key aspects of military affairs - planning, command, field maneuvers, discipline, supply, communication and so forth - than the vast majority of their Banner or Green Standard counterparts.25
After 1860, Western influences began to penetrate Chinese military forces. In the latter stages of the Ch'ing-Taiping War, the British and French took an active role in supporting the introduction of foreign-training to Chinese troops. Foreign-officered con-
MILITARY EDUCATION IN CHINA, 1842-1895
19
altogether. But fears over tampering with inherited institutions and respect for ancestral precedent (isu-isung ch'eng-fa) prevented the tests from being either transformed or abandoned. Subsequent attempts to reform or abolish the system of military examinations, such as Shen Pao-chen's famous memorial of 1878, came to nothing,19 As late as 1898, we still find the throne ordering officials to deter- mine what the policy of the imperial ancestors had been regarding military reform before taking concrete steps.20 Small wonder the prestigious civil service examinations also remained essentially un- altered throughout the nineteenth century.
There was, however, room for the reform of military education outside the examination system - particularly during the Taiping period. Not only did the Rebellion allow for the emergence of new civil and military leadership in China; it also resulted in the esta- blishment of new-style military forces which placed comparatively heavy emphasis on military education. The yung-ying armies of Tseng Kuo-fan and others, for example, employed the highly effec- tive training methods of the famous Ming general Ch'i Chi-kuang -techniques that had long since fallen into disuse. In addition to Confucian moral instruction, yung-ying armies received daily drill, which was all but unheard of in Banner and Green Standard forces. They practiced regularly with firearms, swords, knives, spears and other weapons, and were taught tactical formations such as Ch'i Chi-kuang's "mandarin duck” (yuan-yang) and the "three powers" (san-ts'ai).
It is true, of course, that officers received very little, if any, formal military training, since it was deemed sufficient that they be upright gentlemen (chün-tzu) who led by moral example. More- over, we know that active involvement by officers in troop training was generally considered demeaning. But at least some lower level personnel in yung-ying staff organizations (ying-wu ch'u), and per- haps some high-level officers as well, were more knowledgeable about key aspects of military affairs planning, command, field maneuvers, discipline, supply, communication and so forth the vast majority of their Banner or Green Standard counterparts.25
than
After 1860, Western influences began to penetrate Chinese military forces. In the latter stages of the Ch'ing-Taiping War, the British and French took an active role in supporting the introduc- tion of foreign-training to Chinese troops. Foreign-officered con-
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