Who are the three famous ministers in the late Qing Dynasty?

Zeng Guofan, Li Hongzhang, Zuo and Zhang Zhidong are all important ministers in the late Qing Dynasty, and they are called "four famous ministers in the late Qing Dynasty". American President Grant even called Li Hongzhang the first of the four great men in the world at that time, just like British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli, French Prime Minister Gambetta and German Chancellor Bismarck at that time.

At that time, Japanese Prime Minister Hirofumi Ito regarded him as "the only person in the Qing Empire who has the ability to compete with the world powers". If it weren't for Li Hongzhang, the Great Qing Dynasty would have been annexed by the great powers.

Europe and the United States also quite appreciate Li Hongzhang, thinking that he is "the greatest figure bred by the Eastern continent, with all kinds of talents, and also the most unique hero in the world in the last century. On writing, he has a wide range of knowledge, studied his army and made great contributions to the country in important battles. He did his best for the people of this oldest and most populous country. He is far-sighted and a leader in international diplomacy. "

Li Hongzhang is indeed a capable person. At that time when China was undergoing unprecedented changes, Li Hongzhang, as an important official in China in the late Qing Dynasty, was also a general and diplomat, one of the main advocates of the Westernization Movement, and the founder and commander-in-chief of the Huai Army. Cixi once praised him as a man who "recreated Huang Xuan" and built a shrine for him in Beijing. Han officials in the Qing Dynasty were the only people who built temples in Beijing.

In his early years, Westernization was strong. He and Zeng Guofan led the Westernization Movement, which was a sign of his progress. He also has the deeds of defending China diplomatically. For example, after Eight-Nation Alliance captured Beijing, he went to negotiate alone, and finally calmed down the incident and did not cede territory; When the Sino-Japanese War was in an unfavorable situation, he took the initiative to reach a settlement at the least cost, which was all conducive to his defense of the country.

Liang Qichao once commented on Li Hongzhang: "I respect and cherish Li's knowledge and mourn Li's encounter." This is because, after all, Li Hongzhang is a puppet of the Qing court. He signed more than 30 treaties on behalf of the Qing government in his life, most of which were unequal treaties.

Because of the signing of many unequal treaties, Li Hongzhang was branded as a traitor and a sinner all his life. During the Cultural Revolution, Li Hongzhang's grave was leveled, and his body in a yellow jacket was well preserved. As a result, he was paraded by the crowd behind the tractor until there were no bones left.

In fact, Li Hongzhang's own evaluation of himself is still very pertinent. He felt that he was just a "paperhanger", and it was enough to renovate the broken house (Qing Dynasty) into a new one. Occasionally you can see it through minor repairs, but when it is windy and rainy, the broken house is exposed. Can one and a half "paperhangers" make up for the subsidy?

This is Li Hongzhang, a man in the contradiction between tradition and modernity, a man in the crevice.