Shen Baozhen | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Viceroy of Liangjiang | |
| In office 1875–1879 | |
| Preceded by | Liu Kunyi |
| Succeeded by | Liu Kunyi |
| Governor of Jiangxi | |
| In office 1861–1865 | |
| Preceded by | Yuke |
| Succeeded by | Sun Changfu (acting) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Shen Zhenzong (沈振宗) (1820-04-09)9 April 1820 |
| Died | 18 December 1879(1879-12-18) (aged 59) |
| Relations | Lin Zexu (father-in-law) |
| Education | Jinshi degree in theImperial Examination |
| Occupation | Politician |
| Shen Baozhen | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Traditional Chinese | 沈葆楨 | ||||||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 沈葆桢 | ||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||
Shen Baozhen (1820–1879),formerlyromanizedShen Pao-chen, was an official during theQing dynasty.
Born inMinhou inFujian province, he obtained thehighest degree in theimperial examinations in 1847 and was soon appointed to theHanlin Academy.
His great administrative abilities attracted the attention ofZeng Guofan, who enlisted him in the effort to suppress theTaiping Rebellion.
Following the suppression of the rebellion in 1864, Shen became actively involved in theSelf-strengthening movement and later worked on theFoochow Arsenal inFuzhou. There he established the Qiushi Tang Yiju (求是堂藝局), which became theFoochow Arsenal School [zh], and utilized the skill of French technicians and workers – notablyProsper Giquel – to construct modern warships for theImperial Navy prior to the destruction of the arsenal and the fleet itself during theBattle of Fuzhou in the 1883–1885Sino-French War. Concurrently, he also improved the land tax collection system inJiangxi province.[1]
He also took part in obtaining a peace settlement withJapan, following theMudan Incident and Japan'sinvasion of Taiwan in response to imperial disavowals of sovereignty over the islands'native tribes. He was appointed as theViceroy of Liangjiang in 1875. He personally visited Taiwan and reformed its administration. The island had consisted of a singleprefecture atTaiwan (Tainan); the threesubprefectures ofTamsui [zh],Penghu [zh] andKemalan [zh]; and the fourcounties ofTaiwan [zh],Fengshan [zh],Chiayi [zh], andChanghua [zh]. Shen elevated 2 prefectures, 4 subprefectures, and 4 counties, making the territories smaller and easier to administer. He also launched a military campaign against the aborigines and initiated a building program in southern Taiwan intended to establish a stronger Qing presence and prevent Japanese or European colonization of the area.[2] He died in office in 1879. He was posthumously awarded the title of Senior Guardian of the Heir Apparent.
He is chiefly remembered in European histories for his belated opposition to theWoosung Road Company's railroad, which he purchased and dismantled in its first year of operation,[3] limiting Shanghai's development for twenty years. Shanghai remained unconnected to China's growing rail network until the line's reconstruction in 1898 and its subsequent extension toNanjing in 1908.
Shen was married toLin Puqing(林普晴; 1821–77), the third daughter ofLin Zexu. She exhibited great courage and determined tenacity when under siege by the Taiping rebels at Guangxin when she bandaged troops, cooked for them and cut her finger to write a message in blood.
| Government offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Viceroy of Liangjiang 1875–1879 | Succeeded by |
