In early 1851, the worshippers headed by Hong Xiuquan followed the example of "predecessors" Han Shantong and launched an uprising in Jintian, Guangxi wearing red scarves. Under his response and call, farmers in more than a dozen provinces and cities across the country rose up. This peasant uprising, which lasted for more than a decade, was at its strongest and almost spread all over the country. But in the end, due to various reasons, it was defeated by the Hunan Army under the leadership of , Zeng Guofan, and others. Although the mighty Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Movement withdrew from the stage of history, the legends it left behind are still people talked about today.
Just like in a TV series, is the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom movement really the people's will and invincible? The answer is of course no. The real Taiping Heavenly Kingdom movement in history is full of horror and cruelty. So today, let's take everyone to see what the real Taiping Heavenly Kingdom movement looks like!
Actually, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Movement was not like what we have seen on the surface. This movement caused tremendous damage to the society, economy and environment at that time, and countless people died in this peasant uprising. With the gradual victory of the Taiping Army, some leaders of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom movement have deviated from their original intentions. They forgot the purpose of the movement and their goals. A small victory made them all drunk in a gentle country. So far drunk and not awake. Looking at it this way, if this movement succeeds, it will be a retrogression in the history of the Chinese nation.
How cruel is the Taiping Rebellion? What kind of disaster did it bring to the people at that time?
People only know that this movement was caused by farmers who opposed the Qing government and continued to win. But I don’t know how many innocent civilians died in this so-called movement. According to relevant historical research, about 70 million people died during the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Movement; after the failure of this movement, according to relevant statistics, China reduced its population by about 40%.The damage caused to China is as high as 160 million, which has a huge relationship with the brutal massacre of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.
Wherever the Taiping Army went, local village officials and landlords would be killed, local houses and land were burned, and all local people were forced to replenish the army. This is also the reason why the Taiping Army has rapidly developed one. The Taiping army and the Qing army fought fiercely for more than ten years. If they break a city, they will order the massacre, and all the people in the city will be spared. At that time, Jiangnan Province had a large population, and the deaths caused at that time were even worse.
Hong Xiuquan attacked Jintancheng twice in 1856 and 1860, with the purpose of opening up the way of communication between Suzhou and Changzhou and Tianjing , and breaking through the threat of Qing Dynasty troops to Tianjing in the Jiangnan area. However, two stubborn resistance from Jintancheng led to the massacre of the people in the city by the Taiping Army. According to local county chronicles, there were only more than 30,000 people left here after the war, with a population loss of more than 600,000, and a loss rate of more than 95%.
In the society at that time, the countryside mainly relied on autonomy, and the participation of the squire was indispensable. The Taiping Army's killing of squires made many rural squires afraid to participate in the governance of the countryside. So far, civil order was in chaos and bandits were rampant, causing the people to lose their livelihood and the people to be miserable.
The Taiping Army also stipulates that husband and wife cannot be together, they can only meet once a week, and they will send someone to supervise them. Once you find those who are whispering and loving each other, they will be killed without mercy. In addition, Hong Xiuquan has also set up "men's halls" and "women's halls" in various places, stipulating that husbands and wives are not allowed to meet, and brothers and sisters are not allowed to meet. This kind of regulation destroyed family relations and violated ethics and morals. The prohibition of emotional communication between men and women completely violated the laws of human natural development and caused great harm to society at that time.
The formation of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom as a new peasant regime, of course, must promote its own dictatorship and unique criminal law system. The penalty at the time can be said to have reached the peak of history. This is a cruel and innocent history,In the scorching summer, some people were forced to shave their hair because of sores on their backs, but they were said to be monsters. The criminal law used is “in addition to beating with a stick, or tying your hands and feet with your back against a hot copper furnace, and burning them with fire, the screams of the tortured person will be deafened. Some even take off their clothes and use hot red iron. Put the block on the calf and burn it until you can hear the sound of oily iron."
The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom also forbids women's foot binding, which is a bad practice in China since ancient times. However, Hong Xiuquan, who started his career by admiring Western religions, not only did not abandon it, but even "bringed it forward." If a woman refuses to execute it, she will be beaten with a stick if it is lighter, and her foot will be chopped off if it is severe.
In addition, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom also has tortures such as beheading, dismemberment, and lighting sky lanterns. Among them, the most cruel and inhumane is "drinking", which is to pour hot oil into the prisoner's stomach, which hurts to death. The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom was based on all ancient penalties, and in addition created a large number of tortures, with a very wide range of penalties. Such severe punishment is naturally against the trend of history.
It can be seen that if the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Movement is really successful, it will push the Chinese nation into a bottomless abyss, which is absolutely intolerable. How can this tyrannical feudal dynasty be allowed to exist in China's ethics and morals for more than two thousand years? Fortunately, thanks to the efforts of Zeng Guofan and many other Qing Dynasty rulers, Taiping Heavenly Kingdom was finally destroyed.
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