#329 - Taiping 6: River of Souls

The army that marches north out of Quanzhou in June 1852 is not the same one that left Jintian 18 months prior. It has left its prime architect in an unmarked grave, massacred the city that killed him, and crossed into the unknown territory of Hunan. At Daozhou, for the first time, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom starts speaking to Empire at large, calls upon brotherhood to honor their blood-oaths, & dares name the emperor himself a demon. It's beginning to get real, and all roads - it seems - lead toward Changsha... Time Period Covered: June – October 1852 Major Historical Figures: Taiping Heavenly Kingdom: Hong Xiuquan, Heavenly King, Second Son of God [1814–1864] Yang Xiuqing, East King, Voice of God the Father [d. 1856] Xiao Chaogui, West King, Voice of Jesus Christ [d. 1852] Wei Changhui, North King [1823–1856] Shi Dakai, Wing King [1831–1863] Qing Dynasty: Luo Bingzhang, Governor of Hunan [1793–1867] Other: Lan Chengzun, Yao tribesman, White Lotus chieftain [fl. 1836] Lei Zaihao, Yao chieftain [fl. 1847] Li Yuanfa, Han Triad rebel leader [fl. 1849] Major Sources Cited: Kuhn, Philip A. "Ch. 6, The Taiping Rebellion" in The Cambridge History of China, Vol. 10. Platt, Stephen R. Autumn in the Heavenly Kingdom. Spence, Jonathan D. God's Chinese Son: The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom of Hong Xiuquan.