What kind of person is Li Hongzhang?

Li Hongzhang tried his best to safeguard the interests of China and make Westernization stronger, but he could not change the backward reality of China. He advocated signing unequal treaties, but the country was weak and had to accept humiliating demands. He and Zeng Guofan led the Westernization Movement, which was a sign of his progress.

He also has the deeds of defending China diplomatically. For example, after Eight-Nation Alliance captured Beijing, he went to negotiate alone, and finally calmed down the incident and did not cede territory; When the Sino-Japanese War was in an unfavorable situation, he took the initiative to reach a settlement at the least cost, which was all conducive to his defense of the country. ?

However, later generations also criticized Li Hongzhang's wrong decision. If you pay too much attention to avoiding war and coastal defense, you are willing to sacrifice the whole of Xinjiang to give up Xinjiang's defense; 1885 The special terms of the Sino-Japanese Tianjin Conference signed when Japan was completely defeated gave Japan the right to send troops to North Korea.

1894- 1895 The command error with Japan in the Sino-Japanese Sino-Japanese War of 1895 led to the total annihilation of warships in Ahava. After the victory of the Sino-French War, the unequal treaties were signed instead. Although these unfavorable treaties and practices are restricted by various objective conditions, he still has to bear heavy responsibility for the illegal acts of these incidents.

In addition, he killed too many people in the early campaign to suppress the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. This also involves the overall evaluation of Xiang Army and Huai Army. The Westernization Movement and his series of measures did not change the continuous decline of China, and his contribution was not significant.

Extended data:

Historical evaluation of Li Hongzhang

1, Cixi praised him as a man who "recreated Huang Xuan". When the news of Li Hongzhang's death came, Cixi shed tears on the spot and sighed: "The overall situation has not been decided. If there is anything, no one will share it. "

2. Zeng Guofan's evaluation: "Shao Quan's talent is the closest to the public, and he will make extraordinary achievements in the future, even shining on you."

Interpretation: Li Hongzhang's talent and qualifications are closest to those of a public official, and his future achievements must be extraordinary, and he may do better.

Japanese Prime Minister Hirofumi Ito regards him as "the only person in the Qing Empire who has the ability to compete with the world powers".

4. The Japanese's evaluation of Li Hongzhang is: learn the general trend from the west, understand foreign civilizations, strive to emulate self-improvement, have a great vision and have a quick wrist.

5. American's evaluation is: as a scholar, he is outstanding; As a soldier, he made valuable contributions to the country in important battles; As far as politics is concerned, he has provided recognized excellent facilities for the people of the oldest and most populous country on earth; As a diplomat, his achievements made him one of the best in diplomatic history.

Baidu Encyclopedia-Li Hongzhang