About this episode
The episode discusses the Taiping Rebellion and the exodus led by Hong Xiuquan as they abandon Thistle Mountain in search of a new capital.
“My hand grasps the killing power in Heaven and earth; To behead the devil ones, spare the just, and ease the people’s sorrow.” – Hong Xiuquan Hong Xiuquan and the leaders of the Taiping must have known there was no going back, even if they wanted to. They had crushed an imperial force at the Battle of Jintian, killing Qing magistrates and officers. Now they prepared to face the consequences. At the beginning of 1851 the Taiping had maybe thirty thousand lightly armed fighters standing against a giant empire, ruled by a dynasty which claimed dominion over more than four hundred million people. But they were running low on food. Hong and the to Taiping commanders knew that Thistle Mountain was not the place to found their Heavenly Kingdom. It was a rural backwater, not the capital of a newly restored Heavenly China. Hong decided it was time to leave Thistle Mountain for good. He told his followers they would be abandoning their homes and likely any hope of returning there soon. They were leaving to find a majestic Earthly Paradise. Anything of value they could not take with them was burned. The exodus had begun. The Taiping would march for close to two years, from…
People in this episode
Host: Mark Chapman
Topics covered
- Taiping Rebellion
- Hong Xiuquan
- Chinese history
- exodus
- military strategy
- 19th century
- imperial China
Keywords
- Taiping Rebellion
- Hong Xiuquan
- exodus
- Battle of Jintian
- 19th century China
- Nanjing
- Qing dynasty
- Heavenly Kingdom
- military history
Mentioned in this episode
Places: Thistle Mountain, Nanjing, Qing, Heavenly Kingdom, Heavenly China
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