Such, However, Was His
Reputation That The Imperial Commanders Before Nankin Sent Many Of Their
Men To Assist The Officers Operating Against Him, And Chung Wang, Seizing
The Opportunity, Made His Way By Forced Marches Back To Nankin, Overcoming
Such Resistance As The Enfeebled Besiegers Were Able To Offer.
The whole
of the year 1859 was passed in practical inaction, but at its close the
Taepings only retained possession of four towns, besides Nankin, on the
Yangtse.
It again became necessary for Chung Wang to sally forth and
assume the offensive in the rear and on the line of supplies of the
beleaguering imperialists. His main difficulty was in obtaining the
consent of Tien Wang, who was at this time given over to religious
pursuits or private excesses, and Chung Wang states that he only consented
when he found that he could not stop him. In January, 1860, Chung Wang
began what proved to be a very remarkable campaign. He put his men in good
humor by distributing a large sum of money among them, and he succeeded in
eluding the imperial commanders and in misleading them as to his
intentions. While they thought he had gone off to relieve Ganking, he had
really hastened to attack the important city of Hangchow, where much spoil
and material for carrying on the war might be secured by the victor. He
captured the city with little or no loss, on March 19, 1860, but the
Tartar city held out until relieved by Chang Kwoliang, who hastened from
Nankin for the purpose. Once again the imperial commanders in their
anxiety to crush Chung Wang had reduced their force in front of Nankin to
an excessively low condition, and the Taeping leader, placed in a
desperate position, seized the only chance of safety by hastening from
Hangchow to Nankin at full speed, and attacking the imperial lines. This
battle was fought early in the morning of a cold snowy day - May 3, 1860 -
and resulted in the loss of 5,000 imperialists, and the compulsory raising
of the siege. The Taeping cause might have been resuscitated by this
signal victory if Tien Wang had only shown himself able to act up to the
great part he assumed, but not merely was he incapable of playing the part
of either a warrior or a statesman, but his petty jealousy prevented his
making use of the undoubted ability of his lieutenant Chung Wang, who
after the greatest of his successes was forbidden to re-enter Nankin.
The energy and spirit of Chung Wang impelled him to fresh enterprises, and
seeing the hopelessness of Tien Wang, he determined to secure a base of
operations for himself, which should enable him to hold his own in the
warring strife of the realm, and perhaps to achieve the triumph of the
cause with which he was associated. It says much for his military energy
and skill that he was able to impart new vigor to the Taeping system, and
to sustain on a new field his position single-handed against the main
forces of the empire.
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Words from 137794 to 138310
of 191255