The Heavenly Host has arrived at the great provincial capital of Hunan - Changsha. The mighty bastion that will prove to be the first city on the long march north that simply refuses to fall. For two months in late 1852, the largest army the Taiping has yet fielded throws everything it knows at these walls... but the city endures. This is the story of the underground war fought by nameless men in the dark

Time Period Covered:

Oct. – Dec. 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]

Shi Dakai, Wing King [1831–1863]

Qing Dynasty:

Luo Bingzhang, Governor of Hunan [1793–1867]

Zeng Guofan, Commissioner of Local Defence for Hunan [1811–1872]

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.

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