Hundred Days' Reform

The Hundred Days' Reform (traditional Chinese: 百日維新; simplified Chinese: 百日维新; pinyin: Bǎirì Wéixīn; lit. '100 Days Reform') or Wuxu Reform (traditional Chinese: 戊戌變法; simplified Chinese: 戊戌变法; pinyin: Wùxū Biànfǎ; lit. 'Reform of the Wuxu year') was a failed 103-day national, cultural, political, and educational reform movement that occurred from 11 June to 22 September 1898 during the late Qing dynasty.^[1] It was undertaken by the young Guangxu Emperor and his reform-minded supporters. Following the issuing of the reformative edicts, a coup d'état (Wuxu Coup) was perpetrated by powerful conservative opponents led by Empress Dowager Cixi.^[2] While Empress Dowager Cixi supported the principles of the Hundred Days' Reform, she feared that sudden implementation, without bureaucratic support, would be disruptive and that the Japanese and other foreign powers would take advantage of any weakness.^[3] She later backed the late Qing reforms after the invasions of the Eight-Nation Alliance.

Hundred Days' Reform
Traditional Chinese	戊戌變法
Simplified Chinese	戊戌变法
Literal meaning	Wuxu (year) reform
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin wùxū biànfǎ
Alternative Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	百日維新
Simplified Chinese	百日维新
Literal meaning	Hundred Days' Reform
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin bǎirì wéixīn

Beginning

See also: Self-Strengthening Movement

China embarked on an effort to modernize, the Self-Strengthening Movement, following its defeat in the First (1839–1842) and Second (1856–1860) Opium Wars.^[4] The effort concentrated on providing the armed forces with modern weapons, rather than reforming governance or society. The limitations of this approach were exposed by the First Sino-Japanese War (1894–1895) when China was defeated by Meiji Japan, which had undergone comprehensive reforms during the same period. The defeat led to additional unequal treaties as European powers took advantage of China's weakness.^[5] As Tan Sitong (譚嗣同), Kang Youwei (康有爲), and Liang Qichao (梁啓超) saw the utter destruction and political problems of China at this time, such as political division, insurrection, opium addiction (due to the opium wars) and foreign conflicts. Therefore, they developed influential philosophical systems for creating solutions which enacted political reform and a new Chinese reformist movement.^{[6][page needed]}

Elements of the Qing government were sufficiently alarmed to permit Kang Youwei and Liang Qichao to propose reforms to Emperor Guangxu; Guangxu agreed.^[7] Some of Kang's students were also given minor but strategic posts in the capital to assist with the reforms. The goals of these reforms included:

• Abolishing the traditional examination system^[1]
• Eliminating sinecures (positions that provided little or no work but provided a salary)^[1]
• Establishing Peking University as a place where sciences, liberal arts and the Chinese classics would all be available for study^[1]
• Establishing agricultural schools in all provinces and schools and colleges in all provinces and cities^[1]
• Building a modern education system (studying mathematics and science instead of focusing mainly on Confucian texts)
• Encouraging imperial family members to study abroad^[1]
• Transitioning to a constitutional monarchy^[1]
• Applying principles of capitalism to strengthen the economy
• Modernizing the military and adopting modern training and drill methods^[1]
• Establishing a naval academy^[1]
• Utilizing unused military land for farming^[1]
• Rapid industrialization through manufacturing, commerce, and capitalism
• Establishing trade schools for the manufacture of silk, tea, and other traditional crafts^[1]
• Establishing a bureau for railways and mines^[1]

The reformers declared that China needed more than "self-strengthening" and that innovation must be accompanied by institutional and ideological change.

Opposition to the reforms was intense among the conservative ruling elite who condemned it as too radical and proposed a more moderate and gradualist alternatives.^[1] Conservatives like Prince Duan suspected a foreign plot due to the introduction into the Qing government of foreign advisors like Timothy Richards and Ito Hirobumi; Duan wanted to expel foreigners completely from China.^[8][9]

In addition to the reforms, the reformers plotted to forcefully remove Empress Dowager Cixi from power.^[1] Tan Sitong asked Yuan Shikai to kill Ronglu, take control of the garrison at Tientsin, and then march on Beijing and arrest Cixi. However, Yuan had previously promised to support Ronglu; rather than kill him, Yuan informed Ronglu of the plot.^[1][8]

Failure of the Reform

On September 19, 1898 (lunar calendar August 4) in the evening, Empress Dowager Cixi suddenly left the Summer Palace and returned to the Forbidden City. From this day onwards, the Guangxu Emperor was moved to reside in Yingtai. Kang Youwei sought help from British missionary Timothy Richard and later from Itō Hirobumi to lobby Cixi, but without success. That same evening Huang Shaoji urged Kang to leave Beijing immediately. Late at night, Liang Qichao, Kang Guangren and others pleaded with Kang to escape as soon as possible.

In the early morning of September 20 (August 5), Kang Youwei left Beijing with his servant Li Tang. The Guangxu Emperor held his third audience with Yuan Shikai, who afterwards returned to Tianjin. That day, Cixi and the emperor received former Japanese Prime Minister Itō Hirobumi. Late at night, Grand Councilor Ronglu reported in secret that the emperor planned to place Cixi under house arrest.^[10]

On September 21 (August 6) at dawn, Empress Dowager Cixi took control of state affairs, declared martial law, halted railway traffic, placed the emperor under house arrest in Hanyuan Hall, abolished the reform decrees, and ordered the arrest of reformers. She then issued an edict in the emperor’s name, declaring that the emperor, unable to cope with burdensome government affairs, had requested Cixi to resume the regency.

Imperial Edict, August 6, Guangxu 24 (1898):

The Empire is being beset with grave difficulties, and manifold affairs require diligent attention. I (The Emperor) have labored unceasingly day and night, attending to the myriad duties of state with utmost caution and devotion. Yet, despite my vigilance, I am still often troubled by the excessive burdens.

Recollecting that since the Tongzhi (the former emperor) reign, the Empress Dowager Cixi twice assumed the regency and administered the government, guiding the realm through critical times with perfection and without fault. Considering the supreme importance of the ancestral dynasty, I have repeatedly and earnestly implored the Dowager to resume the direction of affairs. Graciously, She has condescended to accede to my request. This is indeed the great fortune of all subjects nationwide.

From this day forth, state business shall be conducted in the side hall under the Dowager’s direction. On the 8th day of this (lunar) month, I shall lead the princes and ministers to the Qinzheng Hall to perform the prescribed rites. All relevant offices are hereby ordered to prepare reverently and with due propriety. Respect this.

That day, the Commander of the Metropolitan Guards surrounded the South Seas Guildhall to arrest Kang Youwei, but did not find him; instead they captured his brother Kang Guangren and disciples Cheng Dazhang and Qian Weiji. Later they searched the residence of Guangdong official Zhang Yinhuan, arrested him but did not find Kang.

On September 24 (August 9), Imperial Commissioner Gangyi began arresting reformers. Yang Rui and Lin Xu were seized that day, while Liu Guangdi surrendered himself. Yang Shenxiu, after questioning Cixi about deposing the emperor, was arrested at the Wenxi Guildhall.

On September 25 (August 10), Tan Sitong was captured at the Liuyang Guildhall. On the same day, Cixi issued another edict in the emperor’s name claiming that Guangxu was ill, laying the groundwork for both the regency and plans to depose him, while summoning doctors to the palace.

Imperial Edict to the Grand Council:

Since the fourth month of this year, I (The Emperor) have repeatedly suffered indisposition. Despite prolonged treatment, little improvement has been seen. If there are men of proven skill in medicine, whether within or outside the capital, officials are to recommend them sincerely for my treatment. Those residing in the provinces are to be dispatched immediately to the capital, without the slightest delay. Respect this.

This aroused the concern of Britain, Japan, and other powers, who questioned the truth of the emperor’s illness and suspected danger to his life. They demanded access to treat him. Afterwards, a French legation doctor examined Guangxu and publicly concluded that his ailments stemmed from weakness, exposing Cixi’s fabrication.

On September 28 (August 13), the court issued an edict condemning six reform leaders—Tan Sitong, Yang Rui, Lin Xu, Liu Guangdi, Yang Shenxiu, and Kang Guangren—to immediate execution without trial. They were executed by beheading the same day and became known as the "Six Gentlemen" of the Reform. As ordered, Gangyi supervised the execution.

Imperial Edict, August 13, Guangxu 24 (1898):

Kang Youwei, harboring treacherous designs, has gathered factions and formed unlawful associations. His crimes are most heinous and admit of no pardon. Kang Guangren, Yang Shenxiu, Tan Sitong, Lin Xu, Yang Rui, and Liu Guangdi have conspired together, assisting one another in their wickedness; their guilt is manifest and cannot be excused.

Except for Zhang Yinhuan, who is not of Kang’s faction and shall be held in custody awaiting further disposition, and Xu Zhijing, who shall remain under guard pending interrogation, all the aforementioned six—Kang Guangren, Yang Shenxiu, Tan Sitong, Lin Xu, Yang Rui, and Liu Guangdi—are hereby sentenced to immediate execution. Gangyi is commanded to supervise the execution, and the Metropolitan Commandant Chongli is ordered to deploy sufficient troops to maintain order.

Let this decree be known and obeyed. Respect this.

Earlier that day, court official Yi Gu submitted a memorial urging immediate punishment of the reformers, which scholars believe triggered the execution of the Six Gentlemen.

Memorial by Yi Gu, Assistant Director of the Imperial Academy, August 13, Guangxu 24 (1898):

Since the rebel Kang Youwei and his followers rely on foreign support, the law must act swiftly lest leniency embolden them. It is most urgent that sentence be rendered without delay, thereby upholding the majesty of the law and forestalling foreign interference. Prolonged deliberation would only provide opportunity for external powers to intercede, leaving the law powerless and the state dishonored. I therefore most earnestly implore a prompt and resolute judgment, so that the conspiracy may be extinguished and discipline restored.

On September 29 (August 14), an edict was issued under the emperor’s name explaining the crackdown, alleging that reformers plotted to seize the Summer Palace and kidnap Cixi and the emperor. It justified executing the six without trial to avoid wider implication.

Imperial Edict, August 14, Guangxu 24 (1898):

Recently, the Court has sought diligently to strengthen the state and to pursue reform, all for the preservation of the dynasty and the welfare of the people. Day and night I (The Emperor) have been anxious and vigilant. Unexpectedly, the junior official Kang Youwei has propagated pernicious doctrines, deceiving the populace and gathering a faction of disloyal followers. Under the pretext of reform, they have harbored rebellious intent.

It has even come to pass that these conspirators plotted to surround the Summer Palace and to seize and coerce the Empress Dowager and myself. Fortunately, the plot was uncovered and foiled. Furthermore, they established the so-called “Protect the Nation Society,” declaring loyalty to China but not to the Dynasty, a doctrine most disloyal and outrageous.

Kang Youwei, the principal instigator, is at large. All governors-general and governors are commanded to pursue him with utmost rigor. Liang Qichao, his accomplice, is likewise to be apprehended and punished. His brother Kang Guangren, with Yang Shenxiu, Tan Sitong, Lin Xu, Yang Rui, and Liu Guangdi, conspired in these seditious designs. Their crimes are grave beyond pardon. After full consideration, I decreed yesterday that these six be executed forthwith, lest delay bring untoward consequences and wider implication.

This affair being of extraordinary seriousness, it is necessary to proclaim to the realm. Kang Youwei’s guilt is boundless and he shall not escape retribution. Those who were misled into temporary complicity shall not be pursued further, to manifest my clemency. Henceforth, all officials must take warning from this case, uphold orthodoxy, and assist in overcoming the crisis.

All measures of self-strengthening that benefit the people and the state must not be abandoned. Those already enacted shall be firmly carried out; those not yet begun shall be progressively advanced. Upon this I place my high expectations. Respect this.

The coup ended the "Hundred Days’ Reform" after only 103 days. All new policies were repealed except the founding of Peking University. The immediate cause was linked to the so-called "secret edict" affair attributed to Kang Youwei. With her legitimacy questioned, Cixi soon sought to depose the emperor and install a new heir in the "Ji-hai succession" of 1899.

Among the reformers, Kang Youwei had already fled, Liang Qichao escaped into the Japanese legation, while dozens were arrested. In addition to the Six Gentlemen executed in Beijing, Xu Zhijing was sentenced to life imprisonment (released after the Boxer Rebellion), and Zhang Yinhuan was exiled to Xinjiang, where he was executed in 1900.

Historians note that Cixi had intelligence on the reformers’ plans even while at the Summer Palace. The key informant who betrayed the emperor’s faction was most likely Yang Chongyi, whereas Yuan Shikai merely acted to protect himself, not as the decisive betrayer.

Scholar Yun Yuding in his Records of the Chongling analyzed the coup as follows—

After the loss of Liaodong in the Sino-Japanese War, the emperor, indignant at foreign aggression, sought to reform governance to make the nation strong. Yet senior ministers were cowardly and incompetent. Kang Youwei, having memorialized the throne repeatedly, was known to the emperor. In April 1898, after officials Zhang Baixi and Xu Zhijing recommended him, Kang was summoned and spoke of Japan’s reforms, delighting the emperor. … He promoted reformers Tan Sitong, Yang Rui, Liu Guangdi, and Lin Xu as "the Four Talents," but rumors spread. Censors Yang Chongyi and Pang Hongshu secretly memorialized Prince Qing, requesting Cixi to resume power. On August 4, the emperor visited the palace gates to pay respects, but Cixi had already entered Beijing by a side gate. She seized memorials, confronted the emperor, and declared him unfit. She announced she would govern again due to his illness, reversing all reforms.

The executions of Tan, Yang, Liu, Lin, and Kang Guangren were hastened by censor Huang Guijin, who memorialized that their crimes were evident and needed no trial, allegedly to prevent the emperor’s involvement being exposed. Thereafter officials feared reform like a tiger and avoided it.

Aftermath

The late Qing reforms attempted in the years following the Hundred Days included the abolition of the Imperial examination in 1905, educational and military modernization patterned after the model of Japan, and experiments in constitutional and parliamentary government.^{[citation needed]} The ultimate failure of these reforms gave impetus to revolutionary forces within the country. Changes within the establishment were seen to be largely hopeless, and the overthrow of the Qing increasingly appeared to be the only way to save China. Despite the late Qing reforms of the early 1900s, such sentiments directly contributed to the success of the Xinhai Revolution in 1911.

Leo Tolstoy corresponded with Gu Hongming on the Hundred Day's Reform and agreed that the reform movement was ill-advised.^[11] The reformist Kang Party, formed by students of Kang and Liang, was one of the most alarming groups in the eyes of court conservatives at this time.^[12]

Differing interpretations

Views of the Hundred Days' Reform have grown increasingly more complex and nuanced. The traditional view^[13] portrayed the reformers as heroes and the conservative elites, particularly the Empress Dowager Cixi, as villains unwilling to reform because of their selfish interests.

Failure as Kang's responsibility

However, some historians in the late 20th century have taken views that are more favorable to the conservatives and less favorable to the reformers. In this view, Kang Youwei and his allies were hopeless dreamers unaware of the political realities in which they operated. This view argues that the conservative elites were not opposed to change and that practically all of the reforms that were proposed were eventually implemented.

For example, Sterling Seagrave, in his book "The Dragon Lady", argues that there were several reasons why the reforms failed. Chinese political power at the time was firmly in the hands of the ruling Manchu nobility. The highly xenophobic iron hats faction dominated the Grand Council and were seeking ways to expel all Western influence from China. When implementing reform, the Guangxu Emperor by-passed the Grand Council and appointed four reformers to advise him. These reformers were chosen after a series of interviews, including the interview of Kang Youwei, who was rejected by the Emperor and had far less influence than Kang's later boasting would indicate. At the suggestion of the reform advisors, the Guangxu Emperor also held secret talks with former Japanese Prime Minister Itō Hirobumi with the aim of using his experience in the Meiji Restoration to lead China through similar reforms.

It has also been suggested, controversially, that Kang Youwei actually did a great deal of harm to the cause by his perceived arrogance in the eyes of the conservatives. Numerous rumors regarding potential repercussions, many of them false, had made their way to the Grand Council; this was one of the factors in their decision to stage a coup against the Emperor. Kang, like many of the reformers, grossly underestimated the reactionary nature of the vested interests involved.

The Emperor set about to enact his reforms by largely bypassing the powerful Grand Council; said councilors, irritated at the Emperor's actions and fearful of losing the political power they had, then turned to the Empress Dowager Cixi to remove the emperor from power. Many, though not all, of the reforms came to naught. The council, now confident in their power, pushed for the execution of the reformers, an action that was carried out ruthlessly.

Richard's federation theory

According to Professor Lei Chia-sheng (雷家聖),^[14] Japanese former prime minister Itō Hirobumi (伊藤博文) arrived in China on September 11, 1898, about the same time that Kang Youwei invited British missionary Timothy Richard to Beijing. Richard suggested that China appoint Itō as one of many foreign advisors in order to further push China's reform efforts.^[15] On September 18, Richard successfully convinced Kang to adopt his plan in which China would join a federation (合邦) of ten nations.

Kang nonetheless asked fellow reformers Yang Shenxiu (楊深秀) and Song Bolu (宋伯魯) to report this plan to the Guangxu Emperor.^[16] On September 20, Yang sent a memorial to the emperor to that effect.^[17] In another memorial to the Emperor written the next day, Song advocated the formation of a federation and the sharing of the diplomatic, fiscal, and military powers of the four countries under a hundred-man committee.^[18] Lei Chia-sheng argues that this idea was the reason why Cixi, who had just returned from the Summer Palace on September 19, decided to put an end to the reforms with the September 21 coup.

On October 13, following the coup, British ambassador Claude MacDonald reported to his government that Chinese reforms had been "much injured" by Kang and his friends' actions.^[19] However, the British and American governments had been largely unaware of the "federation" plot, which appears to have been Richard's own personal idea. The Japanese government might have been aware of Richard's plan, since his accomplice was the former Japanese prime minister, but there is no evidence to this effect yet.

See also

• History of China
• Qing dynasty
• Late Qing reforms
• Economy of China
• Economic history of China before 1912
• Economic history of China (1912–1949)