The picture shows the national flag of the People's Republic of China and the regional flag of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region taken on the streets of Hong Kong on June 19, 2022. Xinhua News Agency reporter Wu Xiaochu/photo
text | Zhao Wangxiao
Everyone knows that on August 29, 1842, representatives of the Qing government, such as Guan Ying, Yili Bu, Niu Jian and others, boarded the British army anchored on the Xiaguan River in Nanjing. On the flagship "Gao Huali", the Sino-British "Treaty of Jiangning", commonly known as the Sino-British "Treaty of Nanjing", was formally signed with the British plenipotentiary representative for the invasion of China, Pu Dingcha , which ceded China's Hong Kong Island to the United Kingdom. However, many people do not know that before this, shortly after the British launched the Opium War against China in June 1840, it made demands to the Qing government for the cession of Hong Kong. At that time, the first person to express his opposition to the cession of Hong Kong was the patriotic minister Deng Tingzhen from Nanjing.
Deng Tingzhen (1775-1846), whose courtesy name was Wei Zhou , also given the alias Yiyun, was born in Jiangning, Jiangsu Province (now Nanjing). He lived in Wanzhuyuan (today's Wufu Street area) on the bank of the Qinhuai River in the southwest corner of Nanjing. He was the fourth emperor of Qianlong. Deng Tingzhen was born here in the tenth year (1775). He later became a feudal official and became a national hero as famous as Lin Zexu for resisting the British and banning smoking.
Guangzhou banned smoking
In the sixth year of Jiaqing (1801), 26-year-old Deng Tingzhen passed the Jinshi examination and became a shujishi. He was awarded the position of editor by Emperor Jiaqing ( Aixinjueluo Yongyan). From then on he entered the official career.
In the fifteenth year of Daoguang (1835), 59-year-old Deng Tingzhen was promoted to governor of Guangdong and Guangxi. At that time, opium smoking became popular and the outflow of silver caused a great disaster. In the 16th year of Daoguang (1836), British merchants used barges to carry opium. Deng Tingzhen banned the transportation of opium and barges were not allowed to enter the port. The British merchants parked the barges overseas. Deng Tingzhen drove the barges away according to the decree issued. The traitors who violated laws and regulations along the coast colluded with each other and made it difficult to cut off the import of opium. Deng Tingzhen and Admiral Guan Tianpei reorganized the coastal defense, strengthened the defense, and successively intercepted barges at Lantau Pass (the largest island in Hong Kong) and Jieshuiyang. The ships carried hundreds of millions of silver, all of which were used as rewards to bust opium dealers. In the eighteenth year of Daoguang's reign (1838), British ships carried more than 500 foreign men and women to live in Macau. Deng Tingzhen drove them away and asked them to return to China.
On the 25th of the first lunar month in the 19th year of Daoguang (1839), Lin Zexu was ordered to come to Guangdong to ban smoking. Deng Tingzhen and Lin Zexu worked together. In a short period of time, they arrested opium dealers in the mainland, raided kiln entrances, attacked and drove away armed opium barges, and personally supervised the seizure of more than 20,000 boxes and bags in Humen, weighing more than 2 million kilograms. The opium was destroyed at Humen Beach from April 22 to May 15. At the same time, the opium smuggling and trafficking dealers were strictly punished; the use of force against British businessmen was successful every time.
A portrait of Deng Tingzhen, painted by Tang Luming, collected by Nanjing Museum
He strongly refused to cede Hong Kong Island
On September 3rd, the 20th year of Daoguang (1840), under the frame of the capitulation faction, Emperor Daoguang issued an edict, accusing Deng Tingzhen, saying that he Problems in Guangdong were not handled properly and troubles gradually arose, and he and Lin Zexu were dismissed at the same time. He sent Qishan as the imperial envoy and succeeded Lin Zexu as the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi. He ordered Deng Tingzhen to immediately return to Guangdong to wait for the matter. During the negotiation process with the British Yilu, Qishan once discussed with Deng Tingzhen whether Xiamen and Hong Kong could be ceded to the British as a commercial port. Deng Tingzhen strongly opposed it. He said:
Xiamen is the gateway to Fujian, and Yi living in Xiamen can get a glimpse of it. Mainland. Moreover, those from Penghu and Taiwan in the east of Xiamen are isolated and cannot be contacted. The harm is so profound that there is absolutely no reason for it. That is to say, Hong Kong is also located in the middle of Guangdong Road. It is surrounded by Tsim Sha Tsui and is surrounded by two islets. Yi boats often use it to avoid wind and waves. They have been coveting it for a long time. Now that it is given, they will build forts, first to defend themselves, and then to enter. Watching, Guangdong cargo ships are docked at Huangpu, with their baggage and baggage there. There are thousands of white and black barbarians living in the official residences, all of which are in Hong Kong, and it is not convenient to deal with them. (Qing · Liang Tingnan "Yi Fen Wen Ji Volume 2")
In the end, although Deng Tingzhen's opinions were not adopted and failed to stop the British armed invasion of Hong Kong, Deng Tingzhen must have been the first person to openly oppose the cession of Hong Kong. .
In the 21st year of Daoguang's reign (1841), Qishan demolished the coastal defense facilities and Humen fell. He also investigated Deng Tingzhen, who had been governor of Guangdong and Guangxi for a long time, but did not pay attention to military affairs. He and Lin Zexu were exiled to Yili, Xinjiang. In the leap seventh month of the twenty-third year of Daoguang's reign (1843), Deng Tingzhen was released and returned to his hometown. Soon, Emperor Daoguang awarded Deng Tingzhen a third-grade title and was appointed Chief Envoy of Gansu Province. He was appointed as the chief envoy of Gansu Province. He suggested that the wastelands should be inventoried and surveyed one by one in person, from the east of Yinchuan to the end of Taozhou, Longxian, and Jiuquan in the west. These properties would be publicly owned, and the regularly cultivated fields would be expropriated. The land that had been depleted by taxes was recruited to be reclaimed, and the emperor issued an edict to commend him for his hard work and restore him to the second rank. In the 25th year of Daoguang reign (1845), he was promoted to governor of Shaanxi and acted as governor of Shaanxi and Gansu.
Deng Tingzhen's "Poetry Fan Presented to Brother Xiaolou from Youli'an Temple", collected by Nanjing Museum
Return to his hometown at the foot of Lingshan Mountain
Deng Tingzhen's political achievements were praised by people. He was dismissed and appointed several times. Emperor Daoguang knew him well. , so he was finally reused. On March 20, the twenty-sixth year of Daoguang (1846), Deng Tingzhen died of illness at the age of 71 while serving as governor of Shaanxi and Gansu. On October 3rd of the same year, he was buried at the foot of Lingshan Mountain in the eastern suburbs of Jiangning.
Deng Tingzhen's tomb is located in Dengjiashan at the foot of Lingshan outside Xianhemen in the east of Nanjing. The tomb is backed by Lingshan Mountain and faces Zhongshan Mountain. There were originally two tombstones of Deng Tingzhen and his wife in front of the tomb. During the reign of Emperor Daoguang, Mei Zengliang (a native of Nanjing and an essayist) was invited to write the epitaph. The two monuments were lost during the construction of the reservoir in 1958. The current tombstone was re-erected in October 1962 by the Nanjing Cultural Management Committee. In 1982, it was listed as a cultural relic protection unit in Jiangsu Province.
[This article was originally published in Jiangsu Province and is reprinted with permission]
