A generation of Confucian scholars are also government officials. How should we evaluate Zeng Guofan?

Zeng Guofan is a great scholar, who saved the day, helped the building collapse and saved the nation. 1840, Britain launched the opium war against Qing dynasty. As a result of this war, Britain gained huge economic and rectification benefits, and the corruption of the Qing Dynasty was exposed completely, which also made many people lose confidence in the Qing Dynasty. As a result, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom movement headed by Guangxi native Hong Xiuquan was in full swing.

In just a few years, the forces of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom controlled the richest areas in Jiangsu and Zhejiang. Taiping Army established political power in Tianjing to compete with the Qing Dynasty. In the process of suppressing the Taiping Army, the children of the Eight Banners, whom the Qing Dynasty relied on, were vulnerable, disintegrated and had no power to suppress them. As a result, Empress Dowager Cixi, the actual ruler of the Qing Dynasty, issued a letter to the landlords in the southeast to form their own rural courage, to save themselves and fight against my neighbor totoro. Obviously, Empress Dowager Cixi made a helpless compromise in order to save her strength.

With the permission of the imperial court, Zeng Guofan, a great scholar, actively set up the Xiang Army in his hometown, and Li Hongzhang also set up Ying Yong among his parents. In the battle with Taiping Army, Zeng Guofan paid a huge price, and Zeng Guofan almost died several times. But later, with the chaos and cannibalism within the Taiping Army, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom movement flourished and declined rapidly. At this time, Zeng Guofan seized the opportunity and carried out a fierce encirclement and suppression of the Taiping Army. Finally, victory was achieved.

Later, Empress Dowager Cixi saw the strength of the Han nationality from this national defense war, and finally let Zeng Guofan and other Han ministers enter the core ruling decision-making level of the Qing Dynasty and serve as government officials. In the Xiang army led by Zeng Guofan, many people also served as government officials in the southeast coast. This is a man loyal to the Qing Dynasty and a minister of Zhongxing in the Qing Dynasty.