#349 - Taiping 24: The Bouncer
#349 - Taiping 24: The Bouncer  
Podcast: The History of China
Published On: Sat Oct 03 2026
Description: By the autumn of 1860, the Qing Dynasty had run out of armies to lose. What was left of its war was being run out of a mountain valley in southern Anhui by a half-blind scholar-official who was, at that very moment, politely refusing a direct order from his emperor. Downriver, the Taiping had a plan to end the whole thing. In March of 1861 the Brave King sprinted 200 miles in 11 days to pull it off, and arrived holding the strongest hand any Taiping commander ever would. And then… the British showed up and had a little conversation. And everything went completely off the rails... Time Period Covered:Oct. 1860–Apr. 1861 CE Major Historical Figures:The Qing:Imperial Comissioner Zeng Guofan [1811–1872]Zeng Guoquan, commander of the siege of Anqing [1824–1890]Commander Bao Chao [1828–1886]Duolonga, Manchu cavalry general [1817–1864]Zuo Zongtang, general holding Jingdezhen [1812–1885]Senggelinqin, Mongol prince; commander in the north [1811–1865] The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom:Hong Xiuquan, the Heavenly King [1814–1864]Chen Yucheng, the Brave King [1837–1862]Li Xiucheng, the Loyal King [1823–1864]Hong Rengan, the Shield King [1822–1864]Li Shixian, the Attending King [1834–1865] The British:James Bruce, 8th Earl of Elgin, High Commissioner & Plenipotentiary [1811–1863]Frederick Bruce, British Minister to China [1814–1867]Rear Adm. Sir James Hope [1808–1881]Harry Parkes, interpreter & negotiator [1828–1885] Visitors to Nanjing:Issachar Roberts, American missionary; once the Heavenly King's teacher [1802–1871]Griffith John, Welsh missionary of the London Missionary Society [1831–1912]Yung Wing, Yale graduate & tea trader [1828–1912] Major Works Cited:Jen, Yu-wen. The Taiping Revolutionary Movement.Platt, Stephen R. Autumn in the Heavenly Kingdom: China, the West, and the Epic Story of the Taiping Civil War. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices