Zuo Baogui (左寶貴) | 24 Histories

Overview

Zuo Baogui was a general and Martyr.

Other names

Type	English	Chinese	Pinyin
Courtesy name	Guanting	冠廷	Guanting
Posthumous name	Zhongzhuang	忠壯	Zhongzhuang

Life and dates

Death

AD 1894 光緒二十年
Killed in battle · Cause Cannon fire · At Pyongyang 平壤
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passages 13, 25
Cause killed by shellfire 為砲所中而殞 · At Xuanwu Gate Ridge, Pyongyang 玄武門嶺
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 462, passage 86
AD 1894 光緒二十年
Died in battle · At Pyongyang 平壤
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 494, passage 161

Attested activity

AD 1894 光緒二十年
Dated from the passage context · Draft History of Qing 494, passage 161
AD 1894 光緒二十年
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 443, passage 41
AD 1894 光緒二十年
Dated from the passage context · Draft History of Qing 460, passages 13-14; Draft History of Qing 461, passage 142; Draft History of Qing 462, passages 67, 84
AD 1875 光緒初
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passage 8
AD 1851 to AD 1853 咸豐初
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passage 4

Family

Immediate relationships attested in the translated histories.

Parent of Guoji (國楫)
son 子
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passage 27
Sibling of Bao Xian (寶賢)
younger brother 弟 · Full siblings
younger brother 弟
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passages 2, 28
Sibling of Bao Qing (寶清)
younger brother 弟 · Full siblings
younger brother 弟
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passage 28

Key source chapters

Career and standing

commander of the Gaozhou garrison 高州鎮總兵
Appointed
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passage 11
guerrilla officer 游擊
Held
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passage 7
registered nominal provincial commander 記名提督
Promoted to
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passage 10
vice commander 副將
Promoted to
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passage 7
double-eyed peacock feather 雙眼花翎
Granted
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passage 12
Kense Batulu 鏗色巴圖魯
Granted
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passage 10

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yellow riding jacket 黃馬褂
Granted
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passage 12
Grand Guardian of the Heir Apparent 太子少保
Posthumously granted
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passage 27
Commandant of Cavalry with one Yun Commandant 騎都尉兼一云騎尉
Granted hereditary
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passage 27
Died
AD 1894 光緒二十年 · Martyr
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 494, passage 161

Places and affiliations

Qing 清
Relation Served
Strongly inferred · Draft History of Qing 460, passage 4
Polity Qing 清 · Relation Served
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 461, passage 142; Draft History of Qing 494, passage 161
Polity Qing 清 · Relation Served
Strongly inferred · Draft History of Qing 462, passage 84
At Fei County, Shandong 山東費
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passage 3
At Fengtian 奉天 · Relation Posted to
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passages 8, 11
At Shenyang 瀋陽 · Relation Stationed at
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passage 12

Events and relationships

Beheaded
Military · Executioner · With Gao Xizhen (高希珍) · At Tumen 土門
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passage 9
Captured
Military · Commander · With Miao Peilin (苗沛霖) · At Jinling/Nanjing 金陵
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passage 6
Defeated at Pyongyang
AD 1894 光緒二十年 · Military · Commander · At Pyongyang 平壤
Dated from the passage context · Draft History of Qing 461, passage 142
Defended city
AD 1894 光緒二十年 · Military · Commander · At Pyongyang 平壤
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passages 15, 17
Executed
Military · Executioner · With Song Sanhao (宋三好) · At Shibazi 石砬子
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passage 9
Fought with
Military · Commander · With Fengshen'e (丰紳阿)
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passage 18

Show 7 more source-backed claims

Held defile
AD 1894 光緒二十年 · Military · Commander · At Pyongyang 平壤 · Summary Alone held a defile and fought to the end 扼險惡戰
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 494, passage 161
Held gate
Military · Commander · At Xuanwu Gate 玄武門
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passage 21
Held Xuanwu Gate Ridge to death
Military · Defender
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 462, passage 86
Prevented Ye from fleeing
Military · Guardian · With Ye Zhichao (葉志超)
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 462, passage 85
Resisted Japanese at Pyongyang
Military · Defender
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 462, passage 84
Relation Served under · Person Sengge Rinchen (僧格林沁)
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passage 7
Relation Accompanied · Person Chong Shi (崇實)
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passage 8

Assessments and attributes

Assessment brave and capable general · Mode named-source-report Source Person Id Zhang Baixi (張百熙)
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 443, passage 41
death was the most heroic 死最烈
Assessment his death was the most heroic · Mode historian-judgment
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 494, passage 161
Assessment paired as One of the Two Loyal Ones with Deng Shichang · Mode historian-judgment
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 460, passages 82, 154
badly wounded resisting Japanese
Injury
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 462, passage 84

Source notes

Historicity historical
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 461, passage 142; Draft History of Qing 494, passage 161
has a separate biography 自有傳
Field separate-biography · Statement Has a separate biography in this history
Directly stated · Draft History of Qing 494, passage 161

References in the histories

Search passages

History

20 passages

Draft History of Qing, Chapter 443Volume 443 Biographies 230: Sun Jianai, Zhang Baixi, Tang Jingchong, Yu Shimei, Shen Jiaben · 1 passage

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百熙疏劾李鴻章陽作戰備，陰實主和，左寶貴、聶士成皆勇敢善戰之將，以餉械不繼，遂致敗績，咎在鴻章； Baixi memorialized against Li Hongzhang, charging that he made a show of preparing for war while secretly favoring peace. Zuo Baogui and Nie Shicheng were both brave and capable generals, but because pay and arms were not supplied in time they were defeated—the blame lay with Hongzhang.

Draft History of Qing, Chapter 460Volume 460 Biographies 247: Zuo Baogui Younger Brother: Bao Xian, Yong Shan, Deng Shichang, Liu Buchan, Lin Taiceng, Dai Zongqian · 14 passages

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左寶貴弟寶賢等永山鄧世昌劉步蟾林泰曾等戴宗騫 Zuo Baogui (and his younger brother Bao Xian and others), Yong Shan, Deng Shichang, Liu Buchan, Lin Taiceng and others, and Dai Zongqian

左寶貴，字冠廷，山東費人。 Zuo Baogui, styled Guanting, was a native of Fei County in Shandong.

嘗令當前敵，陣既接，旗兵中砲，殪，寶貴持其幟衝鋒入，大捷，繇是知名。 Once placed in the forefront against the enemy, he saw the standard-bearer cut down by cannon fire as battle was joined; Baogui seized the banner and led the charge himself, winning a great victory, and from that day his name was known.

光緒初，尚書崇實巡視奉天、吉林，奏自隨。 Early in the Guangxu reign, when Minister Chongshi toured Fengtian and Jilin, he memorialized that Baogui accompany him.

邊外東北廟溝金宮四構黨圖大舉，复捕治之，餘燼悉平，賜號鏗色巴圖魯，晉記名提督。 When conspirators beyond the border at Dongbei Miaogou and Jingongsi plotted a major uprising, he captured and punished them again until every ember of revolt was extinguished; he was granted the title Kense Batulu and advanced to registered nominal provincial commander.

朝議既決戰，衛汝貴、馬玉昆、丰紳阿各率所部往御之，寶貴自奉天來會，是為四大軍。 Once the court resolved on war, Wei Rugui, Ma Yukun, and Fengshen'e each led their commands to resist the invader; Baogui came down from Fengtian to join them — the force known as the Four Great Armies.

於是汝貴、玉昆軍南門外大同江，志超部將江自康軍北門外小山，寶貴任城守。 Rugui and Yukun took position on the Datong River south of the southern gate; Ye Zhichao's subordinate Jiang Zikang held the hill north of the northern gate; and Baogui was charged with defending the city itself.

未止舍，日軍猝至，寶貴與丰紳阿擊卻之。 They had scarcely made camp when Japanese troops struck without warning; Baogui and Fengshen'e drove them back.

時寶貴扼玄武門，日軍大隊至。 Baogui was holding the Xuanwu Gate when a large Japanese column came up.

志超將潰圍北歸，寶貴不從，以兵守志超勿令逸。 Ye Zhichao was preparing to break out northward; Baogui refused to go along and posted troops to keep Ye from slipping away.

寶貴狃於捕馬賊之功，頗輕敵。 Baogui, overconfident after years of chasing down mounted bandits, took the enemy too lightly.

事聞，贈太子少保，諡忠壯，予騎都尉兼一云騎尉世職，子國楫襲。 When the court learned of his death, he was posthumously made Grand Guardian of the Heir Apparent, given the posthumous name Zhongzhuang (Loyal and Stalwart), and granted a hereditary rank as Commandant of Cavalry with one additional Yun Commandant rank; his son Guoji inherited the title.

世昌臨戰以忠義相激勵，死狀尤烈，世與左寶貴並稱雙忠云。 Before battle Shichang roused his men with appeals to loyalty and duty, and his death was especially heroic; he and Zuo Baogui were paired in their own day as the "Two Loyal Ones."

論曰：中東之戰，陸軍皆遁，寶貴獨死平壤； The historian comments: In the war with Japan, the land armies all fled, but Baogui alone died at Pyongyang;

Draft History of Qing, Chapter 461Volume 461 Biographies 248: Song Qing, Lv Benyuan, Xu Bangdao, Ma Yukun, Yi Ke Tang A, Rong He, Zhang Shun · 1 passage

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左寶貴軍失利平壤，日軍西進，命移駐九連城。 After Zuo Baogui's defeat at Pyongyang and the Japanese push westward, he was ordered to Jiuliancheng.

Draft History of Qing, Chapter 462Volume 462 Biographies 249: Ding Ruchang, Wei Rugui Younger Brother: Ru Cheng, Ye Zhichao · 3 passages

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日軍乘間以濟，據山阜，左寶貴出御之，被巨創。 The Japanese seized a gap in the line, crossed the river, and seized the heights; Zuo Baogui went out to meet them and was badly wounded.

志超將私逸，寶貴不從，以兵監之。 Zhichao tried to slip away on his own; Baogui refused to allow it and set guards over him.

寶貴自守玄武門嶺，矢必死，登城指麾，為砲所中而殞。 Baogui held Xuanwu Gate Ridge himself, swearing to die there; he climbed the wall to direct the defense and was killed by shellfire.

Draft History of Qing, Chapter 494Volume 494 Biographies 281: Loyal and Righteous 8 · 1 passage

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獨左寶貴扼險惡戰，死最烈，自有傳。 Only Zuo Baogui held a defile and fought to the end; his death was the most heroic, and he has a separate biography.