困顿的守护者:庚子国难中的“京师团练大臣”王懿荣

Wang Yirong in Gengzi National Disaster

1900年8月北京陷落后,数以百计的殉难官员在自裁之前均经历了近两个月的惶恐、观望和最终的绝望。作为临危受命的京师团练大臣,勉力履职的王懿荣更是在经历这一切的同时,还因相互交织的政策扦格、人事倾轧、事权不属而饱受困顿之苦。清廷抚团御侮策略与维护治安需求之间的冲突连同枪械无从筹措、团练总局内五城御史的排挤,导致手中仅掌握1500名练勇的王懿荣在维护京城秩序的过程中深感“无权无饷”“劳心劳力”,从而在庚子盛夏义和团掀起的惊涛骇浪中只能扮演“看街老兵”的悲剧性角色。相较于那些因兵败自裁或含冤而死者所具有的壮烈和悲情色彩,王懿荣的赴死淡然而从容,或最能体现传统士人对“主辱臣死”这一忠君观念的践行。

After the fall of Beijing in August 1900,hundreds of martyred officials experienced nearly two months of fear,hesitation and ultimate despair before committing suicide.As Capital T’uan-Lien Commissioner,Wang Yirong,who worked hard to perform his duties,experienced all this.At the same time,he also suffered from difficulties due to intertwined policies,personnel disputes and lack of authority:the conflict between the Qing Dynasty’s strategy of utilizing the Boxers and the need to maintain public security,together with the inability to raise guns,and the exclusion by imperial censors of Five-Cities in the T’uan-Lien General Administration.As a result,Wang Yirong,who had only 1500 militiamen,felt deeply powerless and unpaid and mentally and physically exhausted in the process of maintaining the order of the capital.Therefore,he could only play the tragic role of“street veterans”in the stormy waves caused by the boxers in midsummer of 1900.Compared with the heroic and tragic colors of those who died due to self-determination or injustice,Wang Yirong’s death was still and calm,or best reflected the traditional scholars’practice of the loyal concept of“the monarch was humiliated,the minister willing to die”.