16 Facts About Tan Sitong

Tan Sitong, courtesy name Fusheng, pseudonym Zhuangfei, was a well-known Chinese politician, thinker, and reformist in the late Qing dynasty.

Tan Sitong was executed at the age of 33 when the Hundred Days' Reform failed in 1898.

Tan Sitong was one of the six gentlemen of the Hundred Days' Reform, and occupies an important place in modern Chinese history.

Tan Sitong was one of nine siblings and was born in Beijing, although his family originally came from Liuyang, Hunan Province.

Tan Sitong began his formal education at 5 and was tutored by a famous scholar called Ouyang Zhonggu when he was 10.

Tan Sitong fell gravely ill but recovered three days later, which many people deemed to be a miracle.

In 1879, Tan Sitong studied under another scholar, Xu Qixian, with whom he began a systematic study of representative works in Chinese, as well as natural science.

Tan Sitong composed more than 200 poems during the trip.

At the age of 19, Tan Sitong married a woman named Li Run and had a son named Tan Sitong Lansheng, who died within a year of being born.

Tan Sitong later created the newspaper Hunan Report to publicize the advantage of reform policies.

Early in 1898, Tan Sitong was introduced to Emperor Guangxu, who was considering enacting reform policies.

Tan Sitong was appointed a member of the Grand Council, and within two months the Hundred Days' Reform began with the issuing of an Imperial order titled Ming Ding Guo Shi.

Tan Sitong had been encouraged to escape to Japan, where the government had expressed sympathy for Reformist scholars.

However, Tan Sitong refused to go with the reason that his sacrifice would serve as a catalyst for Reformation ideals among the nation.

Consequently, Tan Sitong was escorted to the Caishikou Execution Grounds outside Xuanwu Gate of Peking on the afternoon of September 28,1898, where he was executed by beheading along with five others: Yang Shenxiu, Lin Xu, Liu Guangdi, Kang Guangren, and Yang Rui.

Tan Sitong died in 1925,14 years after the collapse of the Qing dynasty and 27 years after her husband's death.