- Battle of Cixi
Infobox Military Conflict
conflict=Battle of Cixi
partof= theTaiping Rebellion
caption=
date=September 20 ,1862
place=Cixi,Zhejiang
result=Imperial Chinese victory
combatant1=Imperial China
combatant2=Taiping Rebels
commander1=Frederick T. Ward †
commander2=He Men Heng
strength1=Ever Victorious Army
strength2=?
casualties1=?
casualties2=?|The Battle of Cixi (no relation to the reigning Empress at the time) or Battle of Tzeki (慈溪之戰) was a decisive victory for Qing imperial forces led by the American soldier of fortune,
Frederick Townsend Ward against Taiping Rebels in late Qing DynastyChina . By 1862 Ward, who recently scored several victories for the imperial forces, had raised an army for the defense ofShanghai . On20 September he attacked the walled city of Cixi (Tzeki) ten miles outside Ningbo. During the attack Ward was mortally wounded but remained in the field until victory was assured. Ward died the next day and command of his army eventually passed toCharles George Gordon .Background
When Shanghai was successively attacked by Taiping Rebels in 1862, western inhabitants favored removing the potential threat and cooperating with imperial forces, as a result combined British and French naval troops under the command of Admiral James Hope were involved in military conflict with the Taiping Rebellion. One of the communities inhabited by the rebels was
Ningbo , a port and walled city located south ofHangzhou Bay .The imperial
army laid siege against Ningbo’s occupiers on 6 May. Dismayed, the rebels opened fire at British and French ships docked atharbor . The western ships returned fire and sent theircrew s into the city, overpowering rebel forces and giving charge of Ningbo to the imperial army. With Ningbo secure, Ward’ssoldiers and the Qing forces began launching attacks in the surrounding areas against the Rebellion. During this time Cixi was one of the encircling cities ravaged byviolence .ources
* Compton's Home Library: Battles of the World
* [http://www.kouroo.info/war/WahWard.pdf#search='Frederick%20Townsend%20Ward'|Frederick Frederick "Wah" Ward]
*Hahn Boxer, E. (1963). CHINA ONLY YESTERDAY.External links
*http://baike.baidu.com/history/id=1709236 zh icon
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