Zhang Jian is a famous industrialist and educator in China. Ji Zhi was born in Nantong, Jiangsu Province. Guangxu champion in Qing Dynasty. In his early years, he entered the screen of Wu Changqing, the general of Huai Army. 1895, Sheng Da cotton mill was established. Later, Tonghai Reclamation Animal Husbandry Company, Dada Shipping Company, Fuxin Flour Company, Zizhi Metallurgical Company, Huaihai Industrial Bank, etc. Invested in Jiangsu Railway Company, Sheng Da Shipping Company and Zhenjiang Dazhao Electric Light Factory. He also founded Tongzhou Normal School, Nantong Museum and Nugong Training College. Call industry and education the foundation of prosperity. Participated in the constitutional movement, 1906 established the Preparatory Constitutional Association and served as the vice president. 1909 was promoted to the position of Speaker of Jiangsu Advisory Council. After the Revolution of 1911, he served as the chief industrial officer of Nanjing Provisional Government. After that, he organized the United Party to support Yuan Shikai and fight against the Kuomintang. 19 13 served as the chief of agriculture, industry and commerce of Beiyang government. When Yuan was about to become emperor, he resigned and returned to the south. Continue to run industry and education in Nantong, and advocate respecting Confucius and reading classics. 1925, Sheng Da cotton mill was taken over due to serious losses and died the following year. Zhang has nine books, and there is also a Chronicle of Swan. Now there are complete works of Zhang Jian. Zhang Jian was originally from Haimen, Jiangsu, and later lived in Nantong for a long time. Generally speaking, he is from Nantong. At the age of sixteen, he was admitted to a scholar and became a famous local intellectual. At the age of 23, Wu Changqing, a local official of the Qing Dynasty, followed Wu Changqing around the country, gained knowledge and made many celebrities at that time. Great bureaucrats Weng Tong _, Zhang Zhidong, Li Hongzhang and others all appreciate his knowledge. Zhang Zhidong and Li Hongzhang also wanted to hire him as their assistant, but at that time, he was bent on being a successful candidate, so-a person declined to be hired and worked hard for the imperial examination. However, there are too many people taking the imperial examination, and the number of places is limited. Although he passed the Juren exam quickly, he failed to pass the Jinshi exam several times in a row. It was not until the twentieth year of Guangxu that he got his wish. He won the first place in the Jinshi exam and was the envy of people. Naturally, he also got the editorial office of the Hanlin Academy. This year, he is 42 years old. After the Sino-Japanese War broke out, with the deepening of the national crisis, the struggle between the imperial party headed by Guangxu and the post-party headed by Cixi in the Qing government became increasingly acute. Inspired by national indignation and patriotic enthusiasm, Zhang Jian actively participated in teacher Weng Tonghe, including Guangxu, and wrote a letter impeaching Li Hongzhang for the crime of compromise and surrender. However, because the imperial party itself lacked the strength and determination to resist to the end, its main campaign against Li failed to achieve results. In this case, Zhang Jian's world-weary desire is getting stronger and stronger. At this moment, he received the news of his father's death, so in the name of maintaining the system, he walked out of the whirlpool of the struggle between the two parties after the emperor. The signing of the contract greatly stimulated Zhang Jian, who returned to the motherland and kept the system. He wrote down the main contents of the peace treaty in his diary, and pointed out that he paid enough attention to China, regardless of the gains and losses of the state system, to express his indignation. However, out of boredom and disappointment with the political struggle, Zhang Jian did not return to Beijing immediately, nor did he directly participate in the mass movement against the traitorous peace treaty and the cession of Taiwan Province Province. On the contrary, inspired by reformism, he embarked on the road of saving the country through industry and education. He went to Shanghai, Nanjing, Nantong, Haimen and other places to understand the situation. Seeing that there are many kinds of cotton in Nantong, the output is high, and the cotton cloth sells well, he decided to set up a cotton mill in Nantong first, using local materials and selling it locally. however

But after the machine arrived, he had been transferred. The machine was bought by Jiangsu Provincial Department, but it was useless. Now the machine has been exposed to the sun and rain and has rusted. Please ask them to transfer the machine to us! Liu Kunyi ordered Xuzhou Daogui Song Qing to be responsible for selling at a reduced price. Gui Qing valued these machines at 502,000 yuan for Zhang Jian to buy. Zhang Jian said: We can or can't even raise funds to buy land and build factories. How can we have so much money to buy machines? Later, after many discussions, it was decided that the machine price was 502,000 yuan as a formal share, and then the businessman raised 502,000 yuan as a commercial share to organize the factory. However, it took Zhang Jian nearly two years to raise132,000 yuan. Zhang Jian tried every means to make money at the expense of big losses. Finally, Sheng Da Cotton Mill was built in the 25th year of Guangxu. It is no accident that Zhang Jian can become the Sheng Da Cotton Mill in Tongzhou. On the one hand, Tongzhou has many favorable geographical conditions, such as good climate, suitable for cotton production and good quality, and cotton mills can use local materials; At the same time, there is only one large cotton mill in Tongzhou, and the salary is relatively low. On the other hand, because Zhang Jian was closely related to the feudal regime and supported by the governors of Liangjiang, he was invited to accept privileges such as official shares, official transport and relief funds. Due to the above two favorable conditions and Zhang Jian's subjective efforts, Sheng Da Cotton Mill has been operating effectively and developing rapidly, becoming the only successful cotton mill in China before the European War. In the 23 years from 1899 to 192 1, Sheng Da cotton mills have grown from 1 to 4, with a total profit of160,000 silver. In order to solve the problems of transportation and marketing of raw materials and products, maintenance of machinery and equipment, Zhang Jian also founded Tonghai Reclamation Company, Guangsheng Oil Factory, Dalong Oil Soap Factory, Zesheng Water Conservancy Company, Mass Transportation Company, Dada Lunbu Company, Foreign Exchange Third Wheel Company, Ship Lock Company and Capital Pig Iron Factory. More than 30 enterprises including Dachang Paper Factory, Tunnel Match Factory and Dagong Rice Factory. In addition, Huaihe Bank was established, and some service enterprises such as hotels, bathrooms and restaurants were set up. In this way, a relatively complete enterprise system centered on Sheng Da cotton mill, including industry, agriculture, finance, transportation, transportation, service and other industries, has been formed. Although Sheng Da Group gradually declined after the First World War and was eventually annexed by four big families, it still occupied a very important position in the modern economic history of China. Zhang Jian also attached great importance to investment education when he founded the industry. On the one hand, the early development of Sheng Da Group accumulated funds for Zhang Jian to set up education, on the other hand, it also put forward more urgent requirements for talent training. Therefore, in 1902, when the enterprises in Sheng Da began to make profits, Zhang Jian began to establish new education and set up the first normal school in Tongzhou. In the next 20 years, he founded 370 primary schools, 6 middle schools and 10 universities, forming a continuous education system. At the same time, he also founded agricultural schools, textile schools, business schools, embroidery schools and women's workshops and other technical and vocational schools. In order to meet the needs of local autonomy, universal education clubs, business speech clubs and investigation workshops have been established. Law school and other public education, in addition to a school for the blind and the dumb. In short, all general education, normal education, vocational education, mass education, special education and so on. At that time, almost everything owned by capitalist countries was transplanted by Zhang Jian, and a relatively complete educational network was basically established. In the process of establishing these educational undertakings, Zhang Jian ignored the industrial difficulties, invested a lot of financial resources and energy, and showed extraordinary courage and full patriotic enthusiasm. However, Zhang Jian's patriotic spirit of being brave in difficulties and pioneering has undoubtedly set an example for future generations. During the establishment of the cotton mill, Zhang Jian was deeply influenced by the corruption of honest officials, and once participated in the political reform activities advocated by Kang and Liang, hoping to refresh his political outlook and clear the way for future establishment.

1903 during his visit to Japan, Zhang Jian witnessed the rapid development of Japanese industry and education under the leadership of the government, as well as the American policy of encouragement and assistance. He further realized that the prosperity of Japan and the United States lies not only in their industrial and educational development, but also in the superiority of their political systems. If China has to eliminate the root causes of its diseases and change its political system by imitating Japan, it will not be able to save the country's industry and education. However, on the issue of how to change the political system, Zhang Jian still opposed the revolutionary way of radical violence, and advocated enlightening the Qing government through moderate means such as petitions and implementing a constitutional monarchy through top-down reform. Under the guidance of the above ideas, Zhang Jian's attitude towards politics gradually changed from negative to positive, and he became a supporter and promoter of the bourgeois constitutional movement in the late Qing Dynasty. As early as 190 1, when the Qing government announced the New Deal, Zhang Jian, He Sihui, Tang Shouqian and others formulated the treaty of shimonoseki, in an attempt to beg and persuade the Qing government to implement reforms such as setting up the State Council, stopping donating and exporting, and changing the imperial examination with the support of the southeast governors Liu Kunyi and Zhang Zhidong. Although their so-called State Council was only an advisory body in the reform year, their reform plan was still not adopted, because the so-called new government of the Qing government was just a cover-up scam. 1904 After the end of the Russo-Japanese War, Sun Baodi and Hu, the envoys of the Qing government in various countries, jointly called for regime change and constitutionalism on the grounds that Japan defeated authoritarian Russia, and some domestic governors also sought a response. The constitutional movement has become an imminent trend. In order to win over the upper bourgeoisie, the Qing government appointed Zhang Jian as a first-class consultant in March and awarded him three titles. Zhang Jian took the opportunity to discuss with Radio and Television and Tang Shouqian, and drafted a political reform proposal for Zhang Zhidong and Wei Guangtao. At the same time, he organized the compilation and printing of books such as Draft Proposed Constitution, Constitutional Interpretation and Japanese Constitution. And distribute it to all important people, even the Forbidden City in Beijing. During this period, Zhang Jian also actively contacted provincial governors, hoping that they would take concerted action and jointly urge the Qing government to implement constitutional monarchy. At the end of 1905, the bourgeois revolution intensified. In order to ease the situation, the Qing government was forced to accept the suggestions of Zhang Jian and others. First, five ministers, including Zaize and Duan Fang, were sent abroad to study constitutionalism, and then in June of the following year, they officially announced that they were preparing to imitate constitutionalism. Encouraged by this, Zhang Saida, Tang Shouqian, and more than 200 people from the industrial, commercial and academic circles in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Fujian provinces set up a preparatory constitutional association in Shanghai, expressing their support for the Qing government's preparations for constitutionalism and demanding that the Qing government speed up the pace of constitutionalism. Since the winter of 1907, Zhang Jian has repeatedly contacted local constitutionalists, organized letters and visits, and asked for a national conference. Under its pressure, the Qing government had to declare the constitutional preparation period as nine years in August 1908, and at the same time, formulate the so-called Japanese parliamentary history, the outline of imperial constitution and the essentials of parliamentary law and election law as perfunctory measures. Zhang Jian and others were greatly dissatisfied with the lack of constitutional sincerity of the Qing government and demanded that the constitutional preparation period be shortened. 19 1 1 year, the National Assembly was convened, and the responsible cabinet was set up immediately. The advisory bureaus were electrified, and people were sent to the provinces to organize a joint petition. 19 10 in June, 1 representatives of provincial consultation bureaus gathered in Beijing and submitted a joint letter to DuchaYuan, asking for a new job. The Qing government refused and the first petition failed. Therefore, zhangqian joined the 10 petition group, and went to Beijing to petition again in June 19 10. The Qing government rejected the second petition of the petition group and failed. Zhang (surname)

Seeing their repeated petitions, Zhang Jian was disappointed with the Qing government, but he didn't want to overthrow the Qing government by himself. Zhang Jian also actively presided over and participated in the local autonomy and railway rights recovery activities in Jiangsu Province. However, because these activities were divorced from the mainstream of the people, the democratic revolution in the United States ended without results. After Wuchang Uprising broke out, Zhang Jian didn't want to see the Qing government perish, but he also wanted to make a final rescue for the Qing government. First, he went to Nanjing and asked General Jiangning and Governor Zhang of Liangjiang to send troops to help Hubei. Then he rushed to Suzhou to draft a list of constitutional issues for Cheng Dequan, the governor of Jiangsu Province, and persuaded the Qing government to make concessions in order to win the hearts of the people and quell the uprising. However, with the successive uprisings in various places, even some officials, gentry and constitutionalists, such as Cheng Dequan and Tang Shouqian, left the Qing government. Zhang Jian began to realize that the Qing government had lost popular support, so he turned to support the Republic of China. Zhang Jian's transition from constitutionalism to republicanism was a great progress, and he also did some positive work for the development of the Revolution of 1911. 165438+1October 6th, he sent a telegram to dissuade Yuan Shikai from attacking Hubei. 165438+1October 8, he wrote to persuade He Zhang to give up armed resistance and got in touch with the people of Shanghai. The US military helped Tongzhou recover peacefully. In order to urge Yuan Shikai to turn to republicanism, Zhang Jian also talked with Jinyuan, hoping that he would learn from Washington, the great American Republican, stop being stupid and be loyal to the Qing court. When the allied forces of Jiangsu and Zhejiang met with stubborn resistance from Zhang Xun, Zhang Jian actively made suggestions and generously supported the allied forces of Jiangsu and Zhejiang. With the help of Zhang Jian, the Allies finally regained Nanjing and unified Jiangsu Province on February 1 day. However, Zhang Jian's American attitude towards the revolution has not changed. He hates and fears the revolution. I hope that the country will end the turmoil at an early date and restore peace. Seeing that the interim government was in the hands of revolutionaries, Zhang Jian pinned his hope of restoring unity and order on Yuan Shikai. Therefore, although Sun Yat-sen appointed him as the chief industrial officer, he not only refused to take office, but took the attitude of dissolving the interim government. During the North-South peace talks, the Zhangjian area was particularly large, and Yuan Shikai planned to report it. On the other hand, he spread compromise remarks within the revolutionary camp and urged Yuan to make concessions. After Yuan Shikai stole the country, Zhang Jian contacted other constitutionalists in May 19 12 to form a Republican party to help Yuan Shikai consolidate his political power. Then, on the basis of the Republican Party, in 10, Liang Qichao, the American Democratic Party and Yuan formed the Progressive Party to jointly fight against the Kuomintang. 1965438+In March 2003, Kuomintang leader Song was killed by Yuan Shikai as an American agent. As a mediator, Zhang Jian lobbied Huang Xing and others, strongly advocated legal solution and resolutely opposed the southern revolutionary forces to beg Yuan. When the Second Revolution broke out, Zhang Jian blamed the war on revolutionaries, claiming that he supported Yuan's political stance against Sun and became a pawn used by Yuan Shikai. After Yuan Shikai suppressed the Second Revolution, he was asked to be appointed as the chief of agriculture, industry and commerce. Yuan Mei's move was nothing more than to win people's hearts with the help of Zhang Jian, but Zhang Jian was greatly encouraged. After a little concession, he took office on June+10/October 65438+June 6, 65438, and then issued a series of proclamations, such as calling for the reorganization of the cabinet, declaring constitutionalism, putting forward the so-called cotton-iron doctrine, and advocating relying on the support and support of state forces to vigorously develop the cotton textile industry and the steel industry, so as to promote the development of the whole industry and commerce as the center. To this end, he first reformed the Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce by streamlining the organization and tightening the establishment to improve work efficiency. At the same time, he also attached importance to the law and presided over the formulation of some laws and regulations such as the Law on the Protection of Industrial and Commercial Rights, the Mining Law and the Articles of Association. So as to protect and revitalize industry and commerce. thorium

However, due to the contradiction between the United States and other countries and the opposition of domestic public opinion, most of the loan contracts signed by Zhang Jian were not actually fulfilled, and his plan to develop industry could not be put into practice under the social conditions of China at that time. In this case, Zhang Jian witnessed Yuan Shikai's current political darkness and the destruction of people's livelihood and commerce in the melee of warlords, and gradually became disappointed with Yuan Shikai's regime. Besides, Yuan Shikai could not have proclaimed himself before, nor could Zhang Jian. I didn't want to accompany Yuan Shikai to die. 1965438+In March and August of 2005, he resigned as the general manager of the agricultural business and director of the State Water Resources Bureau, and returned to his hometown to start his own factory. After the First World War, with the resurgence of imperialist aggression against China and the intensification of warlord melee, American national industry and commerce in China became increasingly depressed, and Sheng Da cotton mill, which had always been profitable, also lost money. 1925, three cotton mills operated by Zhang Jian were taken over by a bank group with creditors because of high debts. Zhang Jian was disappointed and his thoughts became more and more conservative. He opposed the revolution and died in 1926.