Li Jinglin

Li Jing-lin 李景林
Born	1885 Zaoqiang County, Hebei, China
Died	1931 (aged 45–46)
Other names	Li Fangchen "China's First Sword" "God of the Sword"
Nationality	Chinese
Style	Yang-style taijiquan Wudangquan Wudang Sword

Li Jing-lin, also known as Li Fangchen^[1] (1885–1931) was a deputy inspector-general and later army general for the Fengtian clique^[2] during the Chinese warlord era. He hailed from Zaoqiang County, Hebei province, China. After his military career was over he settled in Nanjing, and in 1927 moved to Shanghai.^[3] A renowned swordsman, he was known as "China's First Sword."

Military and administrative career[]

In 1924, during the Second Zhili–Fengtian War, Li was commanding the Fengtian Second Army^[4] which aided Zhang Zongchang in his decisive victory at ; the engagement has been termed "probably the single most important engagement in Zhili's defeat."^[5] In November his troops occupied Tianjin,^[6] where they picked up half of Wang Chengbin's forces,^[7] and under his command a "repressive and predatory" regime was established--especially noted is the extent to which the local merchants were extorted.^[8] The US 15th Infantry Regiment, whose mission was to keep the Peking-Mukden Railway open, was based in Tianjin, and small skirmishes occurred between US troops and Li's forces.^[9] Like many other warlords who ruled Tianjin, Li was a member of the Green Gang.^[10] From December 1924 to December 1925 he was the administrator of Hebei province.^[11]

Martial arts[]

One of Li's nicknames is "Magic Sword".^[12] He displayed great skill as a swordfighter and great interest in martial arts, especially Wudang chuan. Li was nicknamed "China's First Sword" and "God of the Sword."^[13] He was an expert in a variety of sword techniques, and later learned Wudang Sword from Sung Wei-I, a renowned swordsman who also taught Fu Chen Sung.^[14] His sword techniques were an amalgamation of the ancient Taoist and the newer Baguazhang styles.^[15]

After his military career he opened a martial arts center in Nanjing,^[16] and became vice-president of the National Martial Arts Academy,^[17] also known as Central Hall for National Martial Arts (Zhongyang Guoshuguan),^[18] and now called the Central Guoshu Institute. On his initiative, a Yang-style t'ai chi ch'uan was formalized, with Yang Chengfu as the most important of the contributors.^[19]

References[]

Notes

Bibliography

• Allen, Frank; Tina Chunna Zhang (2007). The Whirling Circles of Ba Gua Zhang: The Art and Legends of the Eight Trigram Palm. Blue Snake Books. ISBN 978-1-58394-189-8. Retrieved 23 October 2010.
• Chevrier, Yves (2010). Citadins et Citoyens Dans la Chine Du XXe Siècle: Essai D'histoire Sociale. En L'honneur de Marie-Claire Bergère. Editions MSH. ISBN 978-2-7351-1177-0.
• Cornebise, Alfred E. (2004). The United States 15th Infantry Regiment in China, 1912-1938. McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-1988-3.
• Hershatter, Gail (1993). The Workers of Tianjin, 1900-1949. Stanford UP. ISBN 978-0-8047-2216-2.
• Lin, Chao Zhen; Wei Ran Lin; Rick L. Wing (2010). Fu Zhen Song's Dragon Bagua Zhang. Blue Snake Books. ISBN 978-1-58394-238-3. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
• Sun, Lutang; Tim Cartmell (2003). A Study of Taijiquan. North Atlantic Books. ISBN 978-1-55643-462-4. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
• Vercammen, Dan (2009). "Modernity Contra Tradition? Taijiquan's Struggle for Survival: A Chinese Case Study". In Rik Pinxten, Lisa Dikomitis (ed.). When God comes to town: religious traditions in urban contexts. Berghahn Books. pp. 114–44. ISBN 978-1-84545-554-5. Retrieved 23 October 2010.
• Waldrun, Arthur (2003). From War to Nationalism: China's Turning Point, 1924-1925. Cambridge UP. ISBN 978-0-521-52332-5.
• Chen, Weiming; Barbara Davis (2000). Taiji Sword. North Atlantic Books. ISBN 978-1-55643-333-7. Retrieved 22 October 2010.