Xue Fucheng or Hsieh Fucheng (12 April 1838 – 21 July 1894) was a Chinese diplomat of the Qing dynasty in the late 19th century. Born in Wuxi, Jiangsu to a literati family. Late Qing dynasty writer/essayist, diplomat to England, France, Belgium, Italy, and one of the leaders and advocate for modernization and adoption of Western technology as well as proponent for the development of capitalist industries in China during the late 19th century. Eschewing the traditional literati pursuits of writing poetry and calligraphy, Xue proposed that the government should promote pragmatism application of new technology and knowledge in strengthening China.
Xue was a prolific writer – his works included: Essays from a Commonplace Hut (), More Essays from a Commonplace Hut (), Essays from Across the Ocean (), Diplomatic Journal from 4 Countries (), Notes from a Commonplace Hut (), Preliminary proposals concerning Western Affairs (), Diplomatic Memorials to the Throne (). His seminal works are included in the Complete Works from the Commonplace Hut ().
During his tenure as the Qing government's ambassador to the United Kingdom, France, Belgium and Italy, he wrote a diary describing his diplomatic activities and his impressions of European countries. Apart from documenting records of historical events such as the Taiping Rebellion, he also wrote essays on local legends, the macabre and the supernatural. As a proponent of introducing Western technology into China, Xue wrote about witnessing new technology such as the telephone while he was abroad.
Lineage and Life
The Xue family had been in Wuxi since the Ming dynasty (1368–1644), the first ancestor moving to Wuxi being a veteran of the Chinese-Annam War (Ming–Hồ War of 1406–1407), and General of the Nanjing Imperial Capital Guards known as “Running Tigers”. Xue's great-grandfather was a scholar that died young. His grandfather passed the local civil service exam but did not achieve higher success. His father Xue Xiang was a notable writer and essayist and after passing the provincial civil service exam, became a teacher in the government academy at Zhenjiang. Xue Xiang's unique prose style was admired and imitated by many. In 1845, Xue Xiang passed the national civil service exam with the title of “Jinshi” or “Advanced Scholar”, and became a professor. Later he was promoted to the post of Anfu County Commissioner in Hunan Province. In Anfu, Xue Xiang organized the local militia that fought and defeated bands of invading Taiping rebels, and also led the militia in defense of two other local counties against the rebels. As a result, he was promoted to be governor of Xunzhou in Guangxi province (home province of the Taiping rebels), but died in 1858 before he was able to take up the new assignment.
Xue Fucheng was the third of six surviving sons and had one older sister. His mother and grandmother were both from the prominent literati Gu () family of Wuxi, of which other notable members include scientist and polymath Y. H. Ku.