1. Missed opportunity: Emperor Guangxu was obsessed with Kang Youwei's political speculation.
1.1 Don't use the opportunity: The Wuxu year was a good opportunity for the Qing court to become strong.
On June 11, 1898, the Qing court promulgated the Ming Dingguo Shi Edict, and the Wuxu Reform Law was officially launched. However, 100 days later, the heads of the "six gentlemen" fell to the ground, and the reform died abruptly. This failed reform 115 years ago has left a profound lesson for future generations: the banner of reform cannot be lightly handed over to unreliable political opportunists.
1.2. Consensus on change: The government and the opposition are unanimously seeking reform.
Contrary to conventional wisdom, the failure of the Wuxu Restoration was not entirely attributable to the obstruction of the "die-hards". In fact, in 1898, there were no "diehards" at all. There is a consensus on the desire for change both inside and outside the government and the opposition. Important figures from all sides, such as Li Hongzhang, Yuan Shikai, Yan Fu, etc., have all put forward reform plans to varying degrees. Even old-fashioned figures such as Xu Tong and Rong Lu offered advice on the reform of the law in 1898, showing a strong "consensus on reform."
1.3 Wrong choice: Emperor Guangxu favored Kang Youwei.
However, under such a good opportunity for reform, Emperor Guangxu chose Kang Youwei, a political speculator, to become the standard-bearer of the reform. Although there are more systematic reform opinions and more popular candidates in the court, such as Yuan Shikai and Liu Kun.
1. Weng Tong and Zhang Zhidong, but Emperor Guangxu was infatuated with Kang Youwei and regarded him as an ideal reform leader.
1.4 Political struggle: Kang Youwei replaced Weng Tong as the standard-bearer of reform.
Weng Tong was deposed and returned to his hometown because of his dislike of Kang Youwei, and Emperor Guangxu's infatuation with Kang Youwei became more and more obvious. Weng Tong's exit revealed Guangxu's firm trust in Kang Youwei. This fascination not only stems from Kang Youwei's draft reform plan, but also because Kang Youwei's rhetoric touches the pain point in Guangxu's heart, emphasizing the desire for power and dissatisfaction with the political predicament of the DPRK.
2. Selfish Seeking Power: How Kang Youwei Ruined the Possibility of Reform.
2.1 On change**: Kang Youwei changed his words and called for "monarchy to rule the world".
Originally, the main content of the 100-day Restoration was to "make a constitution and open a parliament", but after Kang Youwei went into exile, he changed his tune and shouted that "China only rules the world with the power of the monarch." In his "Examination of the Japanese Political Revolution," he opposed the establishment of a parliament in China, holding that the Chinese atmosphere had not yet been opened, and the monarchy must be arbitrary. Kang's rhetoric caused controversy among the reformers, but he insisted on the supremacy of the monarchy and abandoned the originally envisioned parliamentary system.
2.2 Seeking power: During the Hundred Days Restoration, Kang Youwei constantly wanted to squeeze into the core of supreme power.
During the Hundred Days Restoration, Kang Youwei did not really care about changing the law, but tried every means to squeeze into the core of the highest power. The "Legislative Bureau and New Political Bureau" he proposed is essentially an attempt to concentrate power on the first and the provincial and ministerial administrative system through the system bureau. However, his plan is to create more power for himself, not real reform. His plan put the local administrative system in a secondary position, and clashed with the existing military aircraft department, the prime minister's yamen, etc., which aroused the resentment of bureaucrats and scholars.
2.3 Selfish behavior: Kang Youwei only seeks "reform" for himself
The failure of the reform in the Wuxu year was not because the bureaucrats and scholars opposed the reform, but because Kang Youwei only sought "reform" for himself. His pursuit of power prevented the reforms from having the desired effect, ultimately leading to the defeat of the Hundred Days Restoration.
Summary: Kang Youwei's political speculation, the tragedy of the Hundred Days Restoration.
The year was a good opportunity for the Qing court to become angry, but the infatuation of the Guangxu Emperor and the selfish political speculation of Kang Youwei led to the failure of the Hundred Days Restoration. Kang Youwei only cared about his own power, ruined the hope of reform, and made China's road to reform more and more bumpy. This history has left us with a profound lesson, warning future generations to choose their leaders carefully when promoting reform, and not to hand over the banner of reform to irresponsible political opportunists.
The Hundred Days Restoration was an exploratory attempt in the late Qing Dynasty, but Kang Youwei's political speculation and the fascination of the Guangxu Emperor ultimately led to the failure of this reform. As can be seen from the article, the year was a promising opportunity, and a consensus on change was formed both inside and outside the government and the opposition at that time. However, Kang Youwei, as the standard-bearer of the reform, showed the essence of his political speculation at a critical moment, and the Guangxu Emperor's infatuation with Kang Youwei led the reform to the wrong path.
The article points out that in the process of promoting the reform of the law, Kang Youwei did not really care about the essence of the reform, but pursued his own political power. His proposal of "legislating the system bureau and creating a new political bureau" is actually aimed at concentrating power on the government, rather than really promoting the reform of local administration. This behavior not only brought him into conflict with the existing administrative system, but also distorted and distorted the entire reform process.
Emperor Guangxu's infatuation with Kang Youwei also became an important reason for the failure of the Hundred Days Restoration. Kang Youwei was chosen as the standard-bearer of the reform, not because he had a comprehensive reform plan, but because of the Guangxu Emperor's trust in him. This trust led to the exclusion of more capable and systematic reformers such as Weng Tong and Zhang Zhidong from the core of the reforms, ultimately making the reforms distorted and unable to be effectively implemented.
The article provides an in-depth analysis of Kang's selfish behavior, pointing out his efforts to gain more power in the process of reform. He tried to take power completely into his own hands through the establishment of the Institutional Bureau, and this behavior deviated the direction of the reform, became distorted and impossible to implement. This excessive pursuit of power ultimately became one of the internal reasons for the failure of reform.
Overall, this article provides an in-depth analysis of the reasons for the failure of the Hundred Days Restoration, revealing that Kang Youwei's political speculation and the Guangxu Emperor's infatuation were the core issues that led to the failure of the reform. This history provides us with a profound lesson about the need to choose our leaders carefully when pushing for reform, and to avoid handing over the banner of reform to irresponsible political opportunists.
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