chow towards Ch'angchow, in the capture of which, May 11, Gordon and his men played a leading part. At the same time the French were giving valuable aid in Chekiang, Hangchow falling before their assaults and those of Tso Tsung-tang's men March 31, and, after the fall of Nanking, Huchow on August 18.[1] But when this, the last action of the Franco-Chinese force took place, the "Ever Victorious Army" was no longer in existence, because it had been mustered out of service on May 31, 1864.[2]
In attempting to estimate the place of the army in the suppression of the rebellion we must bear in mind how many important cities were captured through the brilliant strategy of the American, British, and French officers. Without their aid the campaign would doubtless have suffered delays, and difficulties and even dangers might have confronted the imperial cause which were thus obviated. The members were certainly better armed and better drilled than those of the purely Chinese forces coöperating with them. Their intervention added to that of foreign soldiers and sailors saved Shanghai from falling into Taiping hands and this in turn gave Li Hung-chang the revenues to pay his men. When we consider all the facts we cannot deny that their aid was most useful if not indeed vital.
Yet it would be rash to assert or assume that "Chinese" Gordon put down the Taiping Rebellion. He never
- ↑ Journal North China Branch Royal Asiatic Society, December, 1864, p. 120.
- ↑ Morse, II, chronology, XXV.
the North China Herald and proclamation of Li Hung-chang February 14, 1864. This incident, which shows Gordon to have been a man of honor, also shows him to have been saved with great difficulty from a fateful act which would have meant the destruction of his force and have placed him in the position of an outlaw. In none of the accounts, Chinese or foreign, have I found any confirmation of the statement that Gordon personally pledged his word that the lives of the wangs would be saved, though the terms of surrender certainly implied such a pledge from General Ch'en.
