The Hundred Days' Reform (traditional Chinese: 百日維新; simplified Chinese: 百日维新; pinyin: Bǎirì Wéixīn; lit. '100 Days Reform') or Wuxu Reform (traditional Chinese: 戊戌變法; simplified Chinese: 戊戌变法; pinyin: Wùxū Biànfǎ; lit. 'Reform of the Wuxu year') was a short-lived national, cultural, political and educational reform movement in the Qing Empire, from June 11 to September 21, 1898. It sought to modernize China's institutions during a time of increasing foreign intervention in China following the country's defeat in the First Sino-Japanese War (1894–1895). Although brief, the movement introduced new political concepts of nationhood and sovereignty, inspiring many of the subsequent "New Policies" reforms launched after 1901.
Initiated by the Guangxu Emperor, it was led by reform-minded scholars, including Kang Youwei and Liang Qichao. Over a period of roughly 100 days, the Guangxu Emperor enacted a series of imperial edicts with various goals in mind. These mandates aimed to restructure government organization, reform the civil service examination system, modernize the army, promote industrial and education progress, and adopt elements of constitutional governance.
Some of these measures were implemented, such as the establishment of the Imperial University of Peking (now Peking University). However, most faced resistance from conservative factions. While Empress Dowager Cixi supported principles of the reform, she feared that sudden implementation, without bureaucratic support, would be disruptive and that the Japanese and other foreign powers would take advantage of any weakness. Thus, on September 21, 1898, Empress Dowager Cixi with her allies staged a coup d'état, forcing the emperor under house arrest and further executing six of the leading reformers. She later backed the late Qing reforms after the invasions of the Eight-Nation Alliance.
Following its defeat in the First (1839–1842) and Second (1856–1860) Opium Wars, China embarked on an effort to modernize which became the Self-Strengthening Movement. Military modernization was a high priority from the beginning of the movement, concentrating more on providing the armed forces with modern weapons than reforming governance or society. Following the Taiping Rebellion in 1850, Empress Dowager Cixi conducted a series of reforms that led to a brief period of time, known as the Tongzhi Restoration, which sought to modernize China using imported Western machinery and weaponry.
Several western supporting individuals, such as Li Hongzhang, wanted to create a modernized military that incorporated western innovations with China. He, as well as a majority, believed that through western influence, China could strengthen its economy and protect itself on a global stage. At the same time, the British military had flintlocks, caplocks, breech-loading rifled artillery, while the Qing had matchlock muskets which had far less rounds and lower accuracy. These differences motivated China to purchase and employ western weaponry.
Apart from firearm imports, China also desired to improve its weapon manufacturing proficiency by building more domestic factories. Established in 1865 Shanghai, the Jiangnan Arsenal was the largest factory in China, producing both ships and firearms. The factory acted as a navy shipyard, building wooden and iron-hulled warships, large numbers of breech-loading rifles, as well as artillery shells. However, initiatives such as the Jiangnan Arsenal met significant challenges, still being considered underdeveloped in comparison to Europe's innovations, and ventures were deprived of imperial funding, slowing the pace of production. While dramatic improvements were made to hardware, the military lacked the organization, training and institutions required to sustain forthcoming wars.
The limitations of the Self-Strengthening Movement's emphasis on military and technological projects without fundamental institutional reform were exposed by the First Sino-Japanese War (1894–1895) in which Qing China was defeated by Meiji Japan, a state that had undergone more comprehensive reforms during the same period. The defeat led to additional unequal treaties as European powers took advantage of China's weakness. Specifically, the Treaty of Shimonoseki forced China to recognize Korean independence, cede Taiwan and the Liaodong Peninsula, in addition to paying a large indemnity. The defeat was viewed by Chinese elites as clear evidence of the Self-Strengthening Movement's failure as well as a signal that institutional and constitutional change were required.
Against this backdrop, reformist thinkers such as Tan Sitong (譚嗣同), Kang Youwei (康有爲), and Liang Qichao (梁啓超) responded to what they perceived as China's deep crisis, including political division, insurrection, opium addiction (due to the opium wars) and growing foreign conflicts, by developing influential philosophical systems. These mechanisms, including memorials to the throne, the organization of reform and "study" societies, as well as widely circulated political essays aimed at creating solutions which enacted political reform and a new Chinese reformist movement.
These reformers were influenced by the success of Japan's Meiji constitutional reforms and they argued that China needed more than technical improvements to its armies and its arsenals. Specifically, it required change to its governing institutions, educational systems, as well as social order. Their reforms aimed to move beyond the earlier "Self-Strengthening" model and towards a program of state building. Elements of the Qing government were sufficiently alarmed to permit Kang Youwei and Liang Qichao to propose reforms to Emperor Guangxu who agreed and committed to the ambitious reform agenda Over roughly one hundred days, the throne issued a rapid series of edicts which addressed education, administration, the economy, and the military. Some of Kang's students were also given minor but strategic posts in the capital to assist with the reforms. The reform program included several proposals including:
Establishing Peking University as a place where sciences, liberal arts and the Chinese classics would all be integrated for study.
Building a modern education system (studying mathematics and science instead of focusing mainly on Confucian texts)
Gradual replacing the traditional civil service examination curriculum
Encouraging imperial family members to study abroad
Administration and Governance Reforms:
Transitioning to a constitutional monarchy including plans to establish deliberate institutions and to place limits on autocratic rule, drawing from the Meiji model.
Abolishing the traditional examination system. Reformers saw this system as obstructing the creation of a modern bureaucracy and hindering social mobility.
Economy, Industry, and Infrastructure Reforms:
Eliminating sinecures (positions that provided little or no work but provided a salary)