Some time ago, I said that in fact, the weapons of the army in the late Qing Dynasty were not bad. Taking the arms warehouse seized in Eight-Nation Alliance as an example, this paper lists how many advanced firearms are stored in it. At that time, I wanted to ask: did those guns send troops? Can anyone use it?

My family lives in Hohhot, and there is a Suiyuan General Office in Hohhot (it seems to be under renovation now), and it will open soon. There are some weapons and equipment of the Qing army on display: a cracked wooden stick with a long gun tip at the front end, which is a standard equipment-spear; The so-called waist knife can be more than one inch wide and two feet long, like a rusty iron piece; There is also a weapon called "hook", which has no armguards and shiny half-moon sharp hooks in martial arts movies. I swear to God, it definitely gave me my first impression-the furnace hook! It's exactly the same as that used in the northern briquette furnace!

As an important military general at that time, General Suiyuan's equipment should be able to represent the equipment level at that time, but those iron pieces and furnace hooks can win breech rifles and revolvers, which can only happen in "anti-Japanese dramas".

Suiyuan General House was built in Qianlong for two years. Here, let's talk about Qianlong, the culprit of the backward weapons and equipment of the Qing army.

During the Qianlong period, the United States of America was founded. Everyone must know "Gunfire in Lexington". The American War of Independence has completely used flintlock rifles, even rifled rifles and powerful cannons. From 39 years of Qianlong to 48 years of Qianlong, the United States won. What was Gan Long doing then? He often reviews the Eight Banners Army to test their riding and shooting level, and regrets that he can't bow and shoot arrows. He also makes excuses in his poems. His poems are almost like jingles. We simply tell them in vernacular: I used to be an archer, but now I am old, my arm hurts and I can't open a bow. Let my grandchildren perform. In this way, the performance of the Eight Banners soldiers can be imagined: the rider fell off his horse and all the arrows were empty.

While Qianlong was addicted to bows and spears, Watt had improved the steam engine, and Moscow University, Columbia University and American Academy of Sciences were established one after another. Fulton invented the ship after ten years of meditation in Qianlong, and Stephenson invented the steam locomotive after nineteen years. At this time, Qianlong was confident and satisfied with "China is everywhere" and resolutely closed the door, much like one of our neighbors today.

In fact, Qianlong has every opportunity to open his eyes and see the world, recognize his own technological gap and catch up. However, the old fool turned a deaf ear to the astronomical telescopes, advanced weapons, vehicles and ship models sent by the British ambassador (then called the minister): "There is nothing to recommend for foreigners except clocks and watches. "

While science and technology in other countries are advancing by leaps and bounds, old people in Gan Long are busy holding imperial examinations. There are actually 1 16 elderly people over 80 years old in this country, and Gan Long has given these old candidates great rewards. What did those people in their eighties take? Of course, it is the "eight-part essay" of Confucius' poem!

Civil servants learn stereotyped writing, and martial arts schools learn riding and archery. Some people say that the weapons of the Qing army, especially muskets, have made great progress than those of the Ming army-more than 300 years. Many Europeans and Americans who eat birds and animals use breech rifles and machine guns, and "being more advanced than the Ming army" has become a proud capital for some people. ...