Chen Lanbin (陈兰彬|s=陈兰彬; Hanyu Pinyin: Chén Lánbīn; 1816–1895), courtesy name
Li Qiu (荔秋) was the first Chinese Minister to the United States during the
Qing Dynasty.
Born in Wuchuan City, Guangdong, he passed the Chinese imperial examination in 1853 at the age of 24, and entered the Hanlin Academy. He soon became the head of two departments of the Qing government in successio, and in 1872 he was sent to the United States and named commissioner of the Chinese Educational Commission in Hartford, Connecticut, despite knowing no English. He occupied numerous other positions until 1875, when he began acting as the government's representative in the United States. He was formally named the Chinese Ambassador to the United States, Spain, and Peru in 1878, a position that he held until 1881. A conservative, Chen was often at odds with Yung Wing, the first Chinese student to graduate from an American university, and a colleague of his.
In 2015, Chen was featured in a article by China Daily, which remembered his efforts in promoting Sino-US relations.
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陈兰彬（1816年 - 1895年），字
荔秋，中国广东省吴川市黄坡镇黄坡村人，首任中国驻美公使。
Read more...: 生平 身后
生平
陈兰彬22岁中选贡生，咸丰元年（1851年）中举人，三年（1853年）以二甲七名中进士，入翰林院为庶吉士，不久改任刑部主事，后升任员外郎。十年（1860年），丁忧回乡，主讲高文书院，之间曾入曾国藩幕。
同治二年（1863年），陈兰彬丁忧期满，回刑部任职。不久因黄河决口，赴大名府赈灾，写出《治河刍言》8卷。后任江南制造局上海广方言馆总办。同治九年（1870年），在曾国藩的推荐下，以太常寺正卿衔被任命为留美学生委员，会同副委员容闳制定了《挑选幼童前赴泰西肄业章程》十二条。同治十一年（1872年），陈兰彬率领从广方言馆毕业生中挑选出来的30名幼童赴美国留学。次年，受命前往古巴调查华工情况，迫使西班牙当局于1877年签订《会订古巴华工条款》，对华工进行保护。
光绪四年（1878年），陈兰彬以宗人府丞衔被正式任命为驻美国、西班牙和秘鲁公使。七年（1881年）奉诏回国。期间受到吴嘉善的影响，转而反对继续进行幼童留学计划，最终导致留学计划夭折。
回国后，陈兰彬入总理各国事务衙门，任大臣，最终以礼部左侍郎职致仕。回乡后重新主讲高文书院，先后主持纂修《高州府志》24卷、《吴川县志》10卷、《吴川风俗志》1卷、《石城县志》10卷等地方志。还著有《毛诗札记》、《使美记略》、《使美百咏》、《重次千字文》等诗文集。
光绪二十年年末逝世于家中，谥文毅。
身后
故居遗址：湛江吴川黄坡镇黄坡村，面积420平方米，砖木结构四合院式平房，是县级文物保护单位。
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