During The Reign Of Tongzhi In The Evolution Of The Governor Of Hunan Power Analysis

At the time of Emperor Xianfeng and Tongzhi Period(Year 1851-Year 1865),the Hunan army and Hunan military group grew up.The governor of Hunan Province,Luo Bingzhang,eo-founded the Hunan army,controlled the Hunan army personally,and was able to direct and coordinate the Hunan army effectively.He established Hunan as a stable rear base of the Hunan army,and the Hunan array also became the backup force of his power.He exercised military power by his powers and combined provincial and district power with military and political power to create a precedent for military and political integration.In addition,Luo Bingzhang became the longest-serving,most prestigious and powerful Hunan governor in late Qing Dynasty because of the following reason:first,the Qing government needed to suppress Zeng Guofan,second he could get strong support and advocacy from Hunan gentry,Last,he could handle his relations with the three sides of the Hunan army,Hunan gentry and the Qing government skillfully.In the eighth year of Xianfeng Period,after the "Fan Xie case,"the Qing government appointed Zuo Zongtang to Hunan to crack down the power of Luo Bingzhang.In June 1860,Luo Bingzhang was sent to the Sichuan to supervise amry.In order to weaken the power of Luo Bingzhang in Hunan,the Qing government intentionally appointed Mao Hongbi,who had many conflicts with Luo Bingzhang,as the successor to Hunan governor.After Mao Hongbin’ s succession,the original decree of Luo Bingzhang was largely abolished.After this,Luo Bingzhang’ s influence was gradually removed from Hunan.After Governor Luo bing zhang’ s term,the power of Hunan Governor is wearing off due to the following reasons:First,the central government of Qing Dynasty give up the unified management of finance,military and administration of the whole country which leads to the expansion of power of governors and the weakening of the power of central government due to the civil war,however the central government can still control the local government by the appointment of officials of the local government,and has the absolute rights in this field.Second,the forces of the Xiang Army were decentralized because of the dividing and conquering policy that Qing Government took.So that Hunan Governor could only get the support and response from the Hunan army controlled by Zeng Guofan,who was the Minister of Logistics of the Hunan Army,The relative weakening of Zeng Guofan’ s strength and his friction with other Hunan forces also made the power of the succeeding governors of Hunan lose its strong support comparing with Governor Luo Bingzhang.Third,the Qing government gradually reduced the local financial power through the abolition of the business tax called ’lika’,the appointment of officer in charge of this’lika’ tax imposing and report system standardization since the civil war came to an end.Forth,the Elder Brother Society of Hunan extended among the army and the people because of tax imposing and the bad aftermath of the war.The Elder Brother Society of Hunan developed to a point where it could almost stand in opposition to the government.This greatly weakened the cohesiveness and union of the Xiang Army,increased its centrifugal tendency,and greatly restricted the expansion of local power.Fifth,the gentry level of Hunan grew up under this circumstances and became an important force that restrains the power of Hunan Governors,which means winning or losing all rely on the gentry level of Hunan.Last,succeeding Hunan governors such as Mao hongbin,Yun shilin and Li Hanzhang cannot deal with relationship with the gentry level of Hunan,the central government and Hunan forces effectively and successfully.Their capabilities,prestige,and influence are far less than those of Governor Luo Bingzhang.Lacking support from the Hunan Army and the gentry level of Hunan,the influence and execution power of the Hunan governor’s decree have been greatly weakened.During their terms,they are difficult to exercise their power,and it is even harder for them to remain in office.The power of the governor in Hunan is greatly reduced.In conclusion,it was entirely alien from the theory most historians accepted that the Governors has exclusive power and the Governors expands its power after 1860.At the very least,the power of the governors in Hunan Province has not been expanded but has been greatly weakened.It shows that in this process,the situation is much more complicated,and even in some places,this is not the case.In some places,the power of governors is not being enhanced but weakened.The Qing government still has considerable control over its local government.