Zheng Qi (pirate)

{{short description|18th-century Chinese pirate}}

{{family name hatnote|Cheng|lang=Chinese}}

{{Infobox pirate

| honorific_prefix =

| name = Zheng Qi

| honorific_suffix =

| image =

| image_size =

| alt =

| caption =

| native_name = 鄭七

| native_name_lang = zh

| birth_name = Zheng Yaohuang (鄭耀煌)

| birth_date = {{birth date text|1760}}

| birth_place = Xin'an County, Guangdong, Qing China

| baptised =

| disappeared_date =

| disappeared_place =

| disappeared_status =

| death_date = {{death year and age|1802|1760}}

| death_place = Nguyễn Vietnam

| death_cause = execution

| body_discovered =

| resting_place =

| resting_place_coordinates =

| monuments =

| residence =

| nationality =

| other_names =

| citizenship =

| education =

| alma_mater =

| occupation =

| years_active =

| era =

| employer =

| organization =

| agent =

| known_for =

| notable_works =

| style =

| home_town =

| salary =

| net_worth =

| height =

| weight =

| television =

| title =

| term =

| predecessor =

| successor =

| party =

| movement =

| opponents =

| boards =

| criminal_charge =

| criminal_penalty =

| criminal_status =

| spouse = unknown

| partner =

| children = Zheng Baoyang (son)
Zheng Weifeng (son)

| parents = Zheng Lianfu (father)
Lin Xiu (mother)

| relatives = Zheng Yaori (brother)
Zheng Yaoyue (brother)
Zheng Yaoxing (brother)
Zheng Yaoming (brother)
Zheng Yaohuang (brother)
Zheng Yaozhen (brother)
Zheng Yi (cousin)
Ching Shih (cousin-in-law)
Zhang Lianke (nephew)
He Song (adopted son)

| callsign =

| awards =

| website =

| nickname = Zheng Qi

| alias =

| type = Pirate

| allegiance = Pirates of the South China Coast

| serviceyears = late 1700s

| base of operations = Guangdong, South China Sea

| rank = fleet commander

| commands =

| battles =

| wealth =

| laterwork =

| signature =

| signature_alt =

| signature_size =

| footnotes =

}}

{{Infobox Chinese

|c=

|t= 鄭七

|s= 郑七

|p= Zhèng Qī

|j=

|w = Cheng Ch'i

|l = Zheng the Seventh

|vie = Trịnh Thất

|altname = Zheng Yaohuang

|c2=

|t2= 鄭耀煌

|s2= 郑耀煌

|p2= Zhèng Yàohuáng

|j2=

}}

Zheng Qi (also spelled Ching Tsih or Cheng Chi; born Zheng Yaohuang; 1760 – September 1802){{cite book|url=https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015027616732;view=1up;seq=9|page=3|title=History of the pirates who infested the China Sea from 1807-1810|year=1831|first=Karl Friedrich|last=Neumann|series=Publications - Oriental Translation Fund, London; 20|publisher=Printed for the Oriental Translation Fund}} was a powerful Chinese pirate operating from Canton (Guangdong) and throughout the South China Sea in the late 1700s.

History

He was born Zheng Yaohuang in Xin'an County, Guangdong, Qing China (modern Shenzhen and Hong Kong), in 1760. He was the seventh son of his pirate father Zheng Lianfu (鄭連福) and his wife Lin Xiu (林秀), hence the nickname Zheng Qi.

Zheng Qi was recruited by the Tay Son dynasty in 1788, and later became one of the most important subordinates under Chen Tianbao. From 1788 to 1799, Zheng frequently attacked the southern coast of Qing China together with Mo Guanfu, Liang Wengeng (梁文庚) and Fan Wencai (樊文才). The Qing navy feared them.

In 1795, Zheng Qi abducted a 12-year-old boy named He Song (何送) and raised him as his adopted son. A few years later, Zheng Qi gave him a captive female as his bride and seven hundred pieces of silver (liang) to set up store for the pirate trade. He would later bestow three ships under He Song's command.

Tay Son army was defeated by his rival the Nguyen lord in 1801, and his three comrades Mo Guanfu, Liang Wengeng and Fan Wencai were captured. Zheng Qi returned to his base in Quảng Ninh and did not want to get involved in the civil war. However, he was later persuaded by Chen Tianbao, heading his troops to Thăng Long (modern Hanoi) to aid the king.{{Clarify|date=January 2023}} He was appointed as the Grand Marshal (Vietnamese: Đại Tư Mã, chữ Hán: 大司馬) by the Tay Son emperor Nguyễn Quang Toản.

Death

Zheng Qi got involved in the siege of Đồng Hới, and his fleet was defeated in the mouth of Nhật Lệ River by the Nguyễn general Nguyễn Văn Trương, he had to flee back to his base area. In September 1802, he was captured and executed by the Nguyen dynasty.

His cousin Zheng Yi then took over.{{cite book |last1=Antony |first1=Robert |title=Like Froth Floating on the Sea: The World of Pirates and Seafarers in Late Imperial South China |date=2003 |publisher=Institute of East Asian Studies, University of California, Berkeley |isbn=9781557290786 |pages=42–45}}

See also

References

{{reflist}}

  • {{Cite book |last= Murray |first= Dian H. |title= Pirates of the South China Coast, 1790-1810 |publisher= Stanford University Press |year= 1987 |isbn= 0-8047-1376-6}}

{{pirates}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zheng, Qi}}

Category:Chinese pirates

Category:Tây Sơn dynasty generals

Category:People executed by the Qing dynasty

Category:People executed by Vietnam by decapitation

Category:1760 births

Category:1802 deaths

Category:18th-century pirates