LI HUNG CHANG (le-hoong-chahng) (1823-1901), Chinese statesman, was born on Feb. 16, 1823 at Hofei, in Ngan-hui. In 1847 he became a Chin-shih, or graduate of the highest order, two years later entering Hanlin university. He raised a regi ment of militia against the Taiping rebels, thus earning the good will of the commander-in-chief, Tseng Kuo-fan. In 1859 he was transferred to the province of Fukien, where he was given the rank of taotai, or intendant of circuit. But at Tseng's request Li was recalled to take part against the rebels. He found his cause supported by the "Ever Victorious Army," which, after having been raised by an American named Ward, was finally placed under the command of Charles George Gordon. With this support Li gained victories which led to the surrender of Suchow and the capture of Nanking. For these exploits he was made governor of Kiangsu, was decorated with the yellow jacket, and was created an earl. An incident connected with the surrender of Suchow lef t a lasting stain upon his character. By an arrangement with Gordon the rebel wangs, or princes, yielded Nanking on condition that their lives should be spared. In spite of the assurance given them by Gordon, Li ordered their instant execution. This breach of faith so enraged Gordon's indignation that he seized a rifle and would have shot Li if he had not saved himself by flight. On the suppression of the rebellion (1864) Li took up his duties as governor, but on the outbreak of the rebellion of the Nienfei, a remnant of the Taipings, in Ho-nan and Shantung (1866) he was ordered again to take the field, and suppressed the movement. A year later he was appointed viceroy of Hukwang, where he remained until 187o, when the Tientsin massacre led to his transfer to the scene. He was appointed to the viceroyalty of the metropolitan province of Chihli, where he actively repressed anti-foreign sentiment. For his services he was made imperial tutor and member of the grand council of the empire, and was decorated with many-eyed peacocks' feathers.
To his duties as viceroy were added those of the superintendent of trade, and from that time until his death, with a few intervals of retirement, he practically conducted the foreign policy of China. He concluded the Chifu convention with Sir Thomas
Wade (1876), and thus ended the difficulty caused by the murder of Mr. Margary in Yunnan; he arranged treaties with Peru and Japan, and he actively directed the Chinese policy in Korea. On the death of the emperor T'ungchi in 1875 he effected the coup d'etat by' which the emperor Kwang Sii was put on the throne under the tutelage of the two dowager empresses; and in 1886, on the conclusion of the Franco-Chinese war, he arranged a treaty with France. When viceroy of Chihli he had raised a large, well drilled and well-armed force, and spent vast sums both in fortify ing Port Arthur and the Taku forts and in increasing the navy. For years he had watched the successful reforms effected in Japan, and he feared and hated a conflict. But in 1894 events forced his hand, and war broke out. Both on land and at sea the Chinese forces were ignominiously routed, and in 1895, on the fall of Wei hai-wei, the emperor sued for peace. Li represented the emperor at the Shimonoseki conference.
With great diplomatic skill Li pleaded the cause of his country, but finally had to agree to the cession of Formosa, the Pescadores, and the Liaotung peninsula to the conquerors, and to the payment of an indemnity of 200,000,00o taels. By a subsequent arrange ment the Liaotung peninsula was restored to China, in exchange for an increased indemnity. During the peace discussions at Shimonoseki an attempt was made on his life. He was wounded, but soon recovered. In 1896 Li represented the emperor at the coronation of the tsar, and visited Germany, Belgium, France, England and the United States of America. For some time after his return to China he was virtually constituted minister for foreign affairs ; but in 1900 he was transferred to Canton as viceroy of the two Kwangs. The Boxer movement induced the emperor to recall him to the capital, and the peace of Sept. 1901 was largely secured by his efforts. He died on Nov. 7, 1901. He left three sons and one daughter.