Feng Yunshan
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Feng Yunshan was an important leader during the Taiping Rebellion against the Qing government 1850-1864. Feng was a companion of Hong Xiuquan from the very earliest days of the Rebellion. Feng was the founder of the "God Worshipers" during the 1840s. This was the very first form the Taiping Rebellion took. He was one of the first Taipings to be baptised and Hong publically announced how Feng was a deep friend of his.
Feng assembled thousands of believers in the time Hong spent in Canton in 1847, founding the base of the Taiping Rebellion. Feng was later announced as the "South King" of the Taiping Rebellion.
On May 24th 1852 as the Taiping march by Quanzhou with no intention of invading, a Qing gunner fatally wounds Feng as he sits in his sedan chair. Rallied by the news, the Taiping surround Quanzhou and in the space of days breach the walls and slay every citizen who had not fled. Feng finally succumbs to his wounds in June that year.