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TheHongmen (Vast Family), formerlyTiandihui (Heaven and Earth Society), is a Chinesefraternal organisation and historically asecretivefolk religious sect in the vein of theMing loyalist andanti-QingWhite Lotus Sect, the Tiandihui's ancestral organisation.^[2] As the Tiandihui spread through different Chinese counties and provinces, it branched off into many groups and became known by many names, including theSanhehui. TheHongmen grouping is today more or less synonymous with the wholeTiandihui concept, although the title "Hongmen" is also claimed by some criminal groups. Its current iteration is purelysecular.

During the 19th century, branches of the Hongmen were formed by members of theChinese diaspora in the United States, Canada and Australia, where they became known as "Chinese Freemasons." Following the collapse of theQing dynasty in 1911 as a result of theXinhai Revolution, the Hongmen's central purpose no longer existed, resulted in a divergence among its members, some of whom turned to crime. In modern times, Hongmen associations, particularly in Taiwan, have been associated with united front activities.^[3]

Republican-era scholars generally thought that the Tiandihui was founded by Ming loyalists in the earlyQing dynasty to resist the Manchu invasion of China. In 1964, scholarCai Shaoqing published the articleOn the Origins of the Tiandihui (關於天地會的起源問題) based on his research of Qing archives (now known as theFirst Historical Archives) in Beijing. He concluded that the Tiandihui was founded in 1761 and its roots lay in mutual aid rather than national politics. His interpretation was further developed by his student Qin Baoqi and confirmed by independent research by the Taiwanese scholar Zhuang Jifa.^[4][5]

The founders of the Tiandihui — Ti Xi, Li Amin, Zhu Dingyuan, and Tao Yuan — were all fromZhangpu,Zhangzhou,Fujian, on the border withGuangdong. They left Zhangpu forSichuan, where they joined a local cult and left disenchanted. Of the four, Ti Xi soon left for Guangdong, where he organised a group of followers inHuizhou. In 1761, he returned to Fujian and organised his followers from both provinces to form the Tiandihui.

A century earlier, theQing dynasty made membership in such societies illegal, driving them into the arms of the anti-Qing resistance, for whom they now served as an organisational model. The 18th century saw a proliferation of such societies, some of which were devoted to overthrowing the Qing, such as the Tiandihui, which had established itself in the Zhangpu andPinghe counties of Zhangzhou in 1766. By 1767, Lu Mao had organised within the Tiandihui a campaign of robberies to fund their revolutionary activities.

The Tiandihui began to claim that their society was born of an alliance betweenMing dynasty loyalists and five survivors of the destruction ofShaolin Monastery—Cai Dezhong (蔡德忠), Fang Dahong (方大洪), Ma Chaoxing (馬超興), Hu Dedi (胡德帝), and Li Shikai (李式開)—by the Qing forged at theHonghua Ting ("Vast or Red Flower Pavilion"), where they swore to devote themselves to the mission of "Fan Qing Fu Ming" (Chinese:反淸復明;lit. 'Oppose Qing and restore Ming').[6]

In 1768 anti-Qing Tiandihui rebel Zhao Liangming claimed to be a descendant of theimperial house of theSong dynasty.^[7][8]

The merchantKoh Lay Huan,^[9] who had been involved in these subversive activities, had to flee China, arriving inSiam and theMalay States, to eventually settle inPenang as its firstKapitan China before dying in 1826.^[10]

During the late 19th century, branches of the Hongmen were formed by Chinese communities overseas, notably the United States, Canada, and Australia, where they are nowadays known as "Chinese Freemasons."

Following the overthrow of the Qing Dynasty of China in 1911, the Hongmen suddenly found themselves without purpose. From then on, the Hongmen diverged into various groups. When some Hongmen groups based within China could no longer rely on donations from sympathetic locals; being unable to resume normal civilian lives after years of hiding, they turned to illegal activities – thus giving birth to the modernTriads.^{[citation needed]}

In modern times, Hongmen associations, particularly in Taiwan, have been associated withunited front activities.^[11]

The Hongmen is believed to consist of about 300,000 members worldwide, members found in mainland China,Taiwan, and Chinese overseas communities. Membership is overwhelmingly ethnically Chinese but there are also Japanese members and a few white American members. The Hongmen are divided into branches, of which there are believed to be approximately 180. The largest of the branches, Wu Sheng Shan, consists of perhaps 180,000 members. Membership is said to be primarily working class, and is also said to include a considerable membership in the armed forces of the Republic of China (Taiwan).

Hongmen members worldwide continue to observe certain common traditions: they all stress their patriotic origin; they all revereLord Guan, adeified historic Chinese figure who embodies righteousness, patriotism, and loyalty; and they all share certain rituals and traditions such as the concept of brotherhood and asecret handshake.

Today, the Hongmen is an illegal society in Hong Kong because of its traditional association with thetriads.

InTaiwan, by contrast, the Hongmen is not only legal, but politically influential; this is not surprising, sinceSun Yat-sen, founding father of theRepublic of China, was a senior figure within the Hongmen, as was nationalist leaderChiang Kai-shek.^{[citation needed]} Moreover, theKuomintang, or Chinese Nationalist Party, was formed from theXingzhonghui andGuangfuhui, groups not unlike the Hongmen.^{[citation needed]}

Because of the Hongmen's revolutionary character and mysterious quality, their future was unclear after the Republic of China central government moved to Taiwan. For a long time, the Republic of China on Taiwan did not openly allow the Hongmen to operate. After martial law ended in 1989, Ge Shan Tang formed and started exchange with the outside world.

Under the influence of Chiang Kai-shek, the Hongmen attempted to remain somewhat secretive, but in recent years the organisation's activities have been more transparent.

The organisation also has numerous business interests, and is reportedly trying to open a martial arts school in Taiwan.

On 1 January 2004, Nan Hua Shan Tang was registered with Taiwan's Ministry of the Interior.

Inmainland China, the Hongmen is known as theZhi Gong Party (Chinese:致公党), a political party that participates in theChinese People's Political Consultative Conference.Jiang Zuojun, chairman of the Zhi Gong Party, is currently the only non-Communist Party minister in the Chinese government.

The Canadian branch was established in 1863 inBarkerville, British Columbia. In 1971, Chinese Freemasons National Headquarters of Canada (加拿大洪門民治黨) was incorporated under the Canadian Corporations Act on 31 May 1971, and registered on 22 July 1971.^[12] The Barkerville headquarters were donated to theGovernment of British Columbia.^[13]

The Hongmen continues to exist within numerous overseas Chinese communities, albeit with rapidly aging memberships. Its main purposes today are to act as fraternities among overseas Chinese and to participate in charitable activities. On 28 July 1992, the Hongmen held the 3rd Worldwide Hongmen Conference in the United States. Over 100 worldwide representatives attended for two days of discussion and adopted organisational rules and proclaimed the founding of a worldwide Hongmen association. First session President Li Zhipeng announced the construction of the Hongmen headquarters inHonolulu.

• A biography based on the Canadian Chinese Freemasons documents titled 'History of Hongmen and Chinese Freemasons in Canada' (洪門及加拿大洪門史論) was written byDr. David Chuenyan Lai of University of Victoria.^[14][15][16]

• Murray, Dian H.; Qin, Baoqi (1994).The Origins of the Tiandihui: The Chinese Triads in Legend and History. Stanford University Press.ISBN 978-0-8047-6610-4.
• Ownby, David; Heidhues, Mary (1993)."Secret Societies" Reconsidered: Perspectives on the Social History of Modern South China and Southeast Asia. M.E. Sharpe.ISBN 978-0-7656-4116-8.
• Ownby, David (1995). "The Heaven and Earth Society as Popular Religion".The Journal of Asian Studies.54 (4):1023–1046.doi:10.2307/2059958.JSTOR 2059958.S2CID 162946271.

• Jean Chesneaux; Lucien Bianco (1972).Popular Movements and Secret Societies in China, 1840–1950. Stanford University Press.ISBN 978-0-8047-0790-9.
• Helen Wang, “Coins and Membership Tokens of the Heaven and Earth Society”,The Numismatic Chronicle (1966-) 154 (1994): 167–90.
• Gustaaf Schlegel,Thian ti hwui. The Hung-league, or Heaven-earth-league, a secret society with the Chinese in China and India, Batavia: Lange & Co, 1866.

• Tiandihui (Overseas Chinese Affairs Commission, Republic of China)
• Hongmen website(in Chinese)

• Triad (organized crime)
• Economic history of China
• Chinese secret societies
• 1761 establishments in Asia
• Organizations established in 1761
• Zhangzhou
• 1760s establishments in China
• History of Fujian

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