Wen Tianxiang ( Chinese trad. 文天祥 , Pinyin : Wén Tiānxiáng ; Man Tin Cheung; June 6, 1236 - January 9, 1283 ) - Chinese poet, teacher and military figure during the reign of the Song Dynasty .
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Content
Biography
Born on June 6, 1236 in Jizhou , Lulin County (modern Jian County, Jiangxi Province). Came from an official’s family. Received a good education. In 1254, he successfully passed the provincial exam, receiving a degree of gunshi . In 1256, he passed the capital exam, which received the title of Zhuanyuan . After that, he held low government posts, in particular, in the Office of Punishment and the Prosecutor General of Ganzhou City. Since 1259 he became an approximate of the first minister of the empire.
With the beginning of the invasion in 1275, the Mongolian troops took an active part in defending the country: created a detachment of 30 thousand soldiers, acting as partisan. The struggle continued until 1276, when the Mongol military leader Bayan (1236–1295) surrounded the army of Wen Tianxiang. Hoping to give rest to his warriors, Wen went to the camp to the Mongols. At that time, news came that the South Song government had ordered Wen Tianxiang to disband. Taking advantage of this circumstance, Bayan tried to arrest the latter, but he escaped. After that, Wen continued to defend the southern Chinese cities from the Mongols, in particular Fuzhou , Longyan , Meizhou .
In 1277, Wen Tianxiang was able to defeat the Mongols and restore Song's power in 10 counties of Ganzhou . However, soon the Chinese were again defeated. Finally, in 1278, Wen Tianxiang was defeated in the territory of the modern province of Guangdong and was captured. He refused to accept the offer to go to the Mongol service, spent 4 years in prison and was executed on January 9, 1283.
Poetry
He was one of the most talented poets of the Southern Song period. His poems “Sailing on the Sea of Lindin”, “ Song of My Direct Spirit ” became classics in Chinese literature.
Memory
Wen Tianxiang is a national hero of China. Along with Lu Xiufu and Zhang Shiji, he is recognized as one of the “Three Outstanding Personalities in the Last Years of the Song Dynasty.” Monuments were erected to him in Beijing , Taipei, and Jian .
Bibliography
- William Andres Brown, WEN T'IEN-HSIANG: Studio biografico di un patriota Song, Chinese Materials Center Publications, 1986. ISBN 0-89644-643-3