Hu Zongxian

Hu Zongxian (Chinese: 胡宗憲; November 4, 1512 – November 25, 1565), courtesy name Ruzhen (汝貞) and art name Meilin (梅林), was a Chinese general of the Ming dynasty who presided over the government's response to the wokou pirate raids during the reign of the Jiajing Emperor. As supreme commander, he was able to defeat Xu Hai's (徐海) substantial raid in 1556 and capture the pirate lord Wang Zhi the next year through ruses. Despite his accomplishments, Hu Zongxian's reputation had been tarnished by his association with the clique of Yan Song and Zhao Wenhua, traditionally reviled figures in Ming historiography. He was rehabilitated decades after his death and was given the posthumous name Xiangmao (襄懋) by the emperor in 1595.

He is a direct ancestor of Hu Jintao, President of the People's Republic of China from 2003 to 2013.

Early life and career

Hu Zongxian was born in the year 1512, in the Hu ancestral village of Longchuan (龍川) in Jixi County, part of Huizhou prefecture at the time. At the age of 23, he passed the provincial imperial examination and became a juren (舉人). This was followed him passing the palace examination in 1538, becoming a jinshi (進士) and paving the road to officialdom.