Qiu Jin

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Lore & Background

Qiu Jin was born into a wealthy family in Fuzhou and spent her childhood in her ancestral home, Shaoxing, Zhejiang. Her grandfather worked in the Xiamen city government and was responsible for the city's defense. Her father, Qiu Shounan, was a government official, and her mother came from a distinguished literati-official family. Qiu had her feet bound and began writing poetry at an early age. With family support, she also learned to ride a horse and use a sword—activities usually only permitted to men. In 1896, at age 21—considered late for a woman at the time—she married Wang Tingjun, the youngest son of a wealthy merchant in Hunan province. Unhappy in the marriage, she sought fulfillment by studying in Japan. In 1903, she left her two children behind and traveled to Tokyo, initially entering a Japanese language school in Surugadai, then transferring to the Girls' Practical School in Kōjimachi, run by Shimoda Utako. While in Tokyo, she helped establish the Encompassing Love Society, a women's group that promoted women's education and protested the Russian presence in northeast China. She joined the anti-Qing society Guangfuhui, led by Cai Yuanpei, which in 1905 merged with other groups to form the Tongmenghui, led by Sun Yat-sen. Within the Revolutionary Alliance, Qiu was responsible for Zhejiang Province. At a meeting of Zhejiang students, she thrust a dagger into the podium, declaring, 'If I return to the motherland, surrender to the Manchu barbarians, and deceive the Han people, stab me with this dagger!' She single-handedly edited the journal Vernacular Journal, writing in vernacular Chinese as revolutionary propaganda. In one issue, she wrote 'A Respectful Proclamation to China's 200 Million Women Comrades,' lamenting bound feet and oppressive marriages. Between 1905 and 1907, she wrote a novel, Stones of the Jingwei Bird, in traditional ballad form, about five wealthy women who flee their families and arranged marriages to study and join revolutionary activities in Tokyo.

Reader's Guide

Qiu Jin's significance lies in her role as a female revolutionary and feminist who challenged both the Qing dynasty and traditional gender roles. She called herself 'Female Knight-Errant of Jian Lake' and 'Vying for Heroism,' adopting a prototypically male figure known for swordsmanship, bravery, faithfulness, and self-sacrifice. After returning to China in 1906 along with about 2,000 students, she founded China Women's News with fellow poet Xu Zihua in Shanghai, though only two issues were published before authorities closed it. In 1907, she became head of the Datong School, which Xu Xilin had established to develop revolutionaries. While teaching there, she kept secret connections with the Restoration Society, which aimed to overthrow the Manchu government. In 1907, Xu Xilin was executed for attempting to assassinate his Manchu superior. Soon after, authorities arrested Qiu at the Datong School for involvement in a failed attempt to overthrow the Qing government. She was tortured but refused to admit involvement; instead, authorities used her own writings as incrimination. A few days later, she was publicly beheaded in her home village, Shanyin, at age 31. Her death poem reads: 'Autumn wind, autumn rain — they make one die of sorrow.' After her execution, her sworn sisters Xu Zihua and Wu Zhiying buried her near West Lake, fulfilling her wish to be near heroes of earlier periods. Qing officials ordered her tomb razed, but her brother retrieved her body in time. Wu Zhiying took possession of the memorial stele, selling rubbings to commemorate her.

Did You Know?

• Qiu Jin called herself 'Female Knight-Errant of Jian Lake' and 'Vying for Heroism,' adopting a traditionally male role from the Han dynasty.
• At a meeting of Zhejiang students in Tokyo, she thrust a dagger into the podium and dared anyone to stab her if she surrendered to the Manchus.
• She single-handedly edited the journal Vernacular Journal, writing in vernacular Chinese as revolutionary propaganda.
• Her death poem reads: 'Autumn wind, autumn rain — they make one die of sorrow.'
• After her execution, her sworn sisters Wu Zhiying and Xu Zihua buried her near West Lake, but Qing officials ordered her tomb razed.