History of the Sino-French War

Author: Liao Zonglin
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-07-01
Features: What is history? History is what has happened in the past. Since that is the case, history is an objective fact. However, our understanding of history is limited by various factors such as cultural cultivation, level of cognition, access to information, and different perspectives, which result in different interpretations of historical facts in people's minds. When expressed, these interpretations vary greatly, leading to diverse viewpoints and conflicting opinions. In feudal society, history was portrayed as the history of emperors, kings, and generals, where only the activities of the ruling class were visible, while the shadows of the vast working class were rarely seen. During the era of rampant imperialism, history became the age when the West brought civilization, as if five thousand years of Chinese civilization were insufficient and needed to be reimported from the West. In the era that emphasized class struggle, history became the history of class struggle, as if the entire society was engaged in a fierce battle between only two classes, with others merely serving as onlookers. Thus, a philosopher once called history a girl dressed as she pleases. Clearly, the "history dressed as one pleases" he referred to is not objective history but rather the same historical facts interpreted and expressed differently by different people. This book is divided into ten chapters: China-Vietnam Relations Before the Sino-French War, Liu Yongfu's Early Anti-French Struggle, The Storm Before the Rain, The Black Flag Army's Battle in Tonkin, The Battle of B?c Ninh, The Qing Government's Reorganization of Taiwan's Defense, The Renewed Sino-French Conflict, and the Anti-French Struggle in Taiwan, among others, examining the historical course of the Sino-French War.