Fan Chengmo 范承謨

Fan Ch'êng-mo 范承謨 (T. 覲公 H. 螺山, 髡翁), 1624-1676, Oct. 22, official, was a native of Shên-yang, Liao-tung, and belonged to a family which was affiliated with the Chinese Bordered Yellow Banner. He was the second son of Fan Wên-ch'êng [q.v.]. Becoming a chin-shih in 1652, he was made a compiler in the Hung-wên-yüan 弘文院. When occupied as a reader in the Pi-shu (秘書) yüan, in 1668, he was appointed governor of Chekiang. Three years later he asked to resign on account of ill health, but his request was refused owing to the pressure of public opinion and the recommendation of other officials who applauded his administration. In the winter of 1672 he was promoted to the post of governor-general of Fukien. Perceiving that it was impossible to decline this appointment, he requested an audience with the emperor before proceeding to his new post. This audience took place in Peking in the summer of 1673. South China was then in ferment owing to the approaching San fan rebellion (see under Wu San-kuei).

Shortly after Fan Ch'êng-mo assumed his post at Foochow, Kêng Ching-chung [q.v.], the third Prince Ching-nan (靖南王), was assigned the territory of Fukien but rebelled and threw in his lot with Wu San-kuei. Failing to induce Fan to become an accomplice in the plot, Kêng had him imprisoned on April 20, 1674. Bitterly opposed to the rebels, Fan attempted to starve himself to death, but failed. When hope of the success of the rebellion dwindled, Kêng Ching-chung was ready to reaffirm his allegiance to the Manchus, but fearing that his share in the revolt would be reported to the government, he ordered Fan Ch'êng-mo to hang himself on the night of October 22, 1676. Fan's corpse and those of fifty-three others of his staff who suffered a similar fate were burned. In 1677 Fan Ch'êng-mo was given the posthumous name, Chung-chên 忠貞, and in 1695 a temple was erected in Foochow to his memory. His friend, Li Yü [q.v.], was deeply affected by his death and composed an obituary notice in which he compared Fan to the famous Sung patriot, Wên T'ien-hsiang (see under Chiang Shih-ch'üan). While imprisoned in Foochow, Fan Ch'êng-mo styled his cell Mêng-ku, 蒙谷, "Dark Valley", and on its white-washed walls he scrawled essays and poems with the charred ends of halfburned sticks. These drafts were copied and were published in 1708, under the title 畫壁遺稿 Hua-pi i-kao, to which Emperor Shêng-tsu wrote a preface in 1718 at the request of Fan's son, Fan Shih-ch'ung 范時崇 (T. 自牧 H.蒼崖, d. 1721), president of the Board of War (1717-20). The Hua-pi i-kao was included in the collected works of Fan Ch'êng-mo, entitled Fan Chung-chên kung wên-chi 公文集, 10 chüan, printed by Fan Shih-ch'ung in 1708.

A younger brother of Fan Ch'êng-mo, Fan Ch'êng-hsün 范承勳 (T. 蘇公, H. 蘇公) who died in 1714 at the age of seventy-four (sui), held posts as governor of Kwangsi (1685-86), governor-general of Yunnan and Kweichow (1686-94), and president of the Board of War (1699-1704). Fan Ch'êng-hsün's son, Fan Shih-i 范時繹 (d. 1741), rose in his official career to the presidency of the Board of Works (1732-34). Among the fifty-three who died with Fan Ch'êng-mo was Chi Yung-jên 稽永仁 (T. 留山 H.抱犢, 山農 1637-1676), a man of letters who also was skilled in medicine. The latter's literary remains, 抱犢山房集 Pao-tu shan-fang chi, in 6 chüan, were edited by his son, Chi Tsêng-yün [q.v.], and were printed in 1704.

[ 1/258/2a; 3/341/28a; 4/119/2b; 29/2/5b; 盛京通志 Shêng-ching t'ung-chih (1769) 86/2b; Ssŭ-k'u 173/3b, 6a; Li Yü, 一家言 I Chia Yen series 2, 4/15b; China Review IX, 1880-81, p. 97-98; 稽氏宗譜 Chi-shih tsung-p'u (1907) 4/4a, 7/16a.]

TU LIEN-CHÊ

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范承謨 ，字覲公，漢軍鑲黃旗人，文程次子。順治九年進士，選庶吉士，授弘文院編修。累遷秘書院學士。康熙七年，授浙江巡撫。時去開國未久，民流亡未復業，浙東寧波、金華等六府荒田尤多。總督趙廷臣請除賦額，上命承謨履勘。承謨遍歷諸府，請免荒田及水衝田地賦凡三十一萬五千五百餘畝。杭州、嘉興、湖州、紹興四府被水，民飢，承謨出布政使庫銀八萬，糴米湖廣平糶，最貧者得附老弱例，肩鹽給朝夕，全活甚眾。並疏請「漕米改折，石銀一兩。明年麥熟，補徵白糧，以三年帶徵。災重者如例蠲免」。得旨允行。十年，以疾請解職，召還。總督劉兆麒、提督塞白理疏言浙民請留承謨一百五十餘牒，給事中姜希轍、柯聳，御史何元英等亦言：「承謨受事三載，愛民如子，不通請謁饋遺。劾罷貪墨，廉治巨猾，剔除加耗、陋規、私派諸弊。浙民愛戴，深於飢渴。」上命承謨留任。十一年，承謨復疏言湖、嘉兩府白糧加耗，多寡不一，請每石加四斗五升為限；又奏蠲溫、台二衛康熙九年以前逋賦及石門、平陽未完輕齎月糧：皆下戶部議行。

十月，擢福建總督，疏辭未允，請入覲。十二年七月，至京師，入對。承謨疾未愈，命御醫診視，賜藥餌。疾稍差，趣赴官，賜冠服、鞍馬。福建總督初駐漳州，至是以將撤藩，命移駐福州。吳三桂反，承謨察精忠有異志，時方議裁兵，承謨疏請緩行。又報巡歷邊海，欲置身外郡，便徵調防禦。事未行而精忠叛，陽言海寇至，約承謨計事。巡撫劉秉政附精忠，趣同行。承謨知有變，左右請擐甲從，承謨曰：「眾寡不敵，備無益也。」遂往。精忠之徒露刃相脅，承謨挺身前，罵不絕口。精忠拘之土室，加以桎梏，絕粒十日，不得死。精忠遣秉政說降，承謨奮足蹴之仆，叱左右掖之出，曰：「賊就僇當不遠，我先褫其魄！」為賊困踰二年，日冠賜冠，衣辭母時衣，遇朔望，奉時憲書一帙懸之，北嚮再拜。所居室迫隘，號曰蒙谷。為詩文，以桴炭畫壁上。

時有部曲張福建者，手刃奪門入，連斬數賊，力竭死。蒙古人嘛尼為偽散騎郎，精忠遣守承謨，感承謨忠義，謀令出走。事泄，精忠將磔之，大言曰：「吾寧與忠臣同死，不願與逆賊同生！」

十五年，師克仙霞關，精忠將降，冀飾詞免死，愳承謨暴其罪。九月己酉朔，甲子夜半，精忠遣黨偪承謨就縊。幕客嵇永仁、王龍光、沈天成，從弟承譜，下至隸卒，同死者五十三人。語互詳忠義傳。舊役王道隆奉遣他出，還至延平，聞變，自刎死。賊焚承謨尸，棄之野，泰寧騎兵許鼎夜負遺骸藏之。十六年，喪還京師。上遣內大臣侍衛迎奠，贈兵部尚書、太子少保，諡忠貞，御書碑文賜其家。十九年，精忠伏誅。赴市曹日，承謨子時崇臠其肉祭墓。福建民請建祠祀之，御書「忠貞炳日」扁於楣。承謨所為畫壁集，上親製序。

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