As we all know, the first group of Chinese International students in modern China were sent to the USA in the Qing Dynasty Westernization Movement, which owed to Li Hongzhang and other ministers' suggestion and hard work to push it. But behind it, there was a man who has played a major role, known as the "father of Chinese international students" Rong Hong (widely known as Yung Wing).
In 1872 China's first group of international students supported by the government went abroad and they were led by Rong Hong who had gathered them together. He gathered 120 young children in total from Shanghai, Guangdong and Hong Kong. From the tenth year to the thirteenth year of Tongzhi's reign, thirty students would be sent overseas each year and Yung Wing was responsible for their education in the USA until the twentieth year of Tongzhi's reign when the Qing government called them back.
Rong Hong (1828.11.17-1912.4.21), formerly known as Guangzhao, whose family name was Meng, with English name YungWing, was born in Nanping Village of Xiangshan County in Guangdong Province. He was a well-known Chinese educator, Diplomat and social activist in near modern China. Yung Wing was the first Chinese student graduated from a U.S. university, the Yale University.
He was a forerunner of the cause of Chinese international students, known as the "father of Chinese international students." At the same time, his other identity is a Christian who loved his country at his core. When China was in serious crisis, he exhausted himself making effort in education and culture and other areas to help his country and became the light and salt of that era. After nearly 20 years of efforts, "The study program for young promoted by him raised many talents for the country."
Yung Hong's family was poor and when his father saw a free school opened by a British missionary where offering free lunch and lodging, he sent his child there to study. Yung Wing studied there for six years, reading the Bible and learning English and other thoughts of the West about humanity and science. At that time the principal was an American, called Samuel Brown, graduated from Yale University. Afterward, Brown brought Yung Wing and two other Chinese students to the United States.
With the precious opportunity to study abroad, Yung Wing first entered the prestigious university's preparatory school - Meng Song secondary school where he learned Latin, Greek and British literature. During this period, he accepted the salvation of Christ as a believer in the Congregational Church. And later he was admitted to Yale University as China's first international student in the USA. He had a good academic performance there and finished his four-year study doing part-time job. In 1854, Yung Wing completed his study and returned to China.
It is worth mentioning that in 1852, Yung became a citizen of the United States, and he married a woman and had a child in the United States. But his life proved that he was always striving for China's prosperity. A pastor persuaded him to stay in the United States but Yung Wing still decided to return home believing that "since he had the chance to study abroad and benefit from his study, he should go back and help his country in her work of civilization."
He wrote in the" Western Learning " that to achieve that, he determined to bring more Chinese students to study in the United States. In 1855, when Yung Hong returned home with his dream, the domestic situation did not allow him to achieve his goal so he had to hide dream, waiting for the right time to appear.
He first entered the business circle as a translator. Successively he worked in the United States Embassy in Guangzhou, Hong Kong Advanced Court, Shanghai Customs and other places, and later he became of businessman of silk and tea in Shanghai. In the meantime, he made many friends in politics and business and had contact with the senior officials of the Qing government, to prepare for his dream of bringing more children to study abroad by influencing the government.
In 1863, ordered by Zeng Guofan, Yung went to the United States to purchase machinery to equip the Western-style machine factory founded in Shanghai by the party for Westernization movement- Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau. Yung Hong met the expectation and completed his mission. When he returned home in 1865, he was appointed an official with the recommendation of Zeng Guofan.
In 1868, China and the United States signed a reciprocal agreement to allow Chinese students to study in any public school in the United States. In 1863, Zeng Guofan sent a letter to Yung Hong and as a result, Yung Wing began to learn from Zeng Guofan helping with the cause of foreign affairs.
In 1870, Zeng Guofan went to Tianjin to deal with "Tianjin Missionary Case" and Yung Wing was his translator. Yung Wing believed that the time had come for his dream, so he boldly put forward his overseas education program and immediately got Zeng Guofan's approval. Zeng presented his program to the court with Li Hongzhang right away and it was passed. Prior to this, Yung Wing's study program for young children had been blocked by the conservative party in the court for seven years.
In 1871, the Qing government finally approved Yung's program and set up the Chinese Education Group. When Yung Hong heard the news, he was too excited to eat for two days. "He walked back and forth in excitement and silently praised God. and from his return to China 16 years has passed and finally God answered his prayer. " With nearly 20 years of effort, Yung Wing's dream finally became a reality. Yung Wing was appointed to be the supervisor over the program in the USA in a long term, in charge of international student affairs.
At that time, the vast majority of people considered studying abroad to be dangerous especially to go to study in the United States, far away from China. Many people thought that the USA was such a brutal and uncivilized place that they even had the Chinese skin peeled to put it on dogs.
It was extraordinarily difficult for parents to accept the fact that they had to sign the life and death contract with the government before they sent their kids aged around 10 abroad for at least 15 years. Therefore, Yung Wing could not gather even 30 students although he had tried his best. He had to return to his hometown Xiangshan County to persuade the villagers to register, and at the same time worked in the vicinity but he still could not fill up the number.
With a few students he gathered in Hong Kong, he finally gathered enough students and they went to the USA from Shanghai on August 11, 1872. It was easier for him to gather the other 90 students in three groups later but still difficult. However, due to Yung Wing's dedication, 120 children were sent to the USA according to their schedule and he finally opened the door for Chinese government to send international students. Most of the 120 children came from Guangdong and other southeast coastal areas, which was consistent with the open policy at that time.
These international students in the United States would go to the church on Sundays following the families who received them, to participate in church worship, Sunday school and Bible study classes and other parties. Over time, some students became Christians, one of whom was Yung Wing's nephew. Later they also set up a "Chinese Christian mission." In 1884, Rong Kui was appointed secretary of the Chinese Embassy in Washington, serving the country for fifty years.
From 1872 to 1875, the Qing government sent a total of 120 people to study abroad, sending 30 people a year. These Chinese students were loyal to their own country and made an indelible contribution to China's path to becoming strong. They became pioneers in China's modern diplomatics, railway, mining and military fields. 13 of them were in the diplomatic field; six were dedicated to the management of the Kailuan's mining work; 14 became the chief engineer or senior manager of the Chinese railway system; 17 served for the Chinese Navy, 7 of whom were killed on Battlefield, two people as naval generals; 15 people became government telegraph officials; 4 people engaged in the medical industry; 3 people joined in building China's first university.
In 1883, Yung Hong returned to the United States to take care of his wife. In the winter of 1885, Mrs. Rong's condition deteriorated and finally died in May 1886. Yung Hong felt great pain when he lost his wife, but his two sons gave him great comfort. After returning home, Yung first met with Governor Zhang Zhidong. Afterward, he went to Shanghai, trying to implement his plan to open banks and construct the railway but he failed due to domestic corruption and international tension. Then Rong Hong came to know Kang Youwei, Liang Qichao and others, and actively participated in the reform, supporting the young Emperor Guangxu's reform. In 1898, the Empress Cixi launched a coup, ordered the imprisonment of Emperor Guangxu and began to arrest the reformers.
In order to escape the arrest, Yung Wing hid in Shanghai's areas rented to the foreigners and immediately fled to Hong Kong. In 1900, Tang's self-reliance association was renamed "China Congress" in Shanghai. Yung Wing was elected the president, and was responsible for drafting its Declaration in English to the country abroad. When the association was suppressed, Yung Wing was again wanted by the government, and he fled to the United States.
Yung Wing encountered Sun Yat-sen in the escape period and later actively supported his revolution to found the Republic. After the success of the Revolution in 1911, in January 1912, Yung wrote a congratulatory letter to Sun Yat-sen as president of the Republic of China's temporary president. When Sun Yat-sen invited Rong Hong to return to serve the new government, he was too weak. On April 22, 1912, Yung Wing died in Hartford residence, at the age of 84. Dying, he was still worried about the prosperity of the motherland, and advised two children around to go back to China.
In 1998, at the 170th anniversary of Rong Hong's birth, Connecticut where was the Yale Universit announced that September 22 when Yung Wing brought the first group of Chinese international students into the United States to study is to be called Yung Wing and Chinese international students' Day. Today, Yung Wing's portrait is hanging on the Yale campus, along with the same graduate of the school such as Bush, Clinton and other political celebrities.
"Rong Hong 's Biography (Author: Chen Han only) An Evaluation of Yung Wing, said: Yung Wing was a great pioneer in Chinese Modernization and he loved his country very much. After graduation, he returned to the motherland. He initiated, planned, led and succeeded in bringing the first group of Chinese international students funded by the government abroad to study. He was actively engaged in social reform activities and suggested to the government several times that they should build and develop China's modern military, political and cultural fields, strongly advocated the development of national economy, education and industry, put forward the development of China's modern railway, water transport, mining, business, the establishment of a good blueprint for the National Bank, and later joined the Westernization Movement and reform movement in his later years to support Sun Yat-sen's revolution. In keeping with the change of time, he kept working to bring the good things from West to East to proper his country and made a great contribution in China's modernization.
Dugir (Pastor, Yung Wing's American friend) said: He did everything out of his most sincere love for the motherland - because he was a patriot from head to toe. He loved China and trusted her, convinced that she has a great future, worthy of his noble and magnificent mountains and rivers and his great long history.
Translated by Alvin Zhou
