Life

Zhang Zhiwan was born into a prestigious local gentry family in Nanpi. His father Zhang Yuce served as a low rank official in Zhili.

Zhang's career as an official started after he passed the imperial examination as one of the three highest rank Jinshi. His first post, in the Hanlin Academy, was the compiler of chronicles. During the Taiping Rebellion, he worked as an advisor for the Qing court. Around the year of 1863, he defeated the peasants of Nian rebellion in Nanyang and Runan, at the time, he was under the military command of Sengge Rinchen. He was then moved to northern Jiangsu and was in charge of the defensives against Nian peasants until the end of the Nian rebellion.

Zhang Zhiwan held the post of viceroy of water transport between 1866 and 1870. In 1871, he served shortly as the viceroy of Minzhe before being promoted to the position of the minister of war.

In 1882, he was conferred the title of Secretary of Grand Secretariat. In 1884, he gained the access to the Grand Council and worked there for ten years. His colleague and superior in the council was prince Shiduo of Li. Upon the touching off of the First Sino-Japanese War, he retired himself due to his old age. He died in the year of 1897, aged 87. The imperial court bestowed the posthumous name Wenda on him. The title he held before his death was the grand secretary of the eastern pavilion.

Family

Zhiwan had two sons

• Zhang Jiayin(1822-1882)

• Zhang Ruiyin(1867-1922)

and four grandchildren.

• Zhang Chongfu, spouse of Li Fuzeng

• Zhang Yuanji

• Zhang Kuizheng

• Zhang Baohua

Great Grandson

• Zhang Jigao

生平

出身

張之萬生于嘉慶十六年（1811年），道光十七年（1837年）丁酉科拔貢，十九年（1839年）以七品京官分刑部學習行走，二十年（1840年）考中庚子科舉人，二十七年（1847年）中試丁未科一甲第一名進士（狀元），授翰林院修撰。

仕途早期

道光二十九年（1849年），出任湖北鄉試副考官。咸豐二年（1852年），出督河南學政。太平軍北伐攻克歸德，進逼開封，之萬上言防剿事宜，多被採納。不久，之萬被召還京師，教授鍾郡王讀書。由侍讀累遷內閣學士。同治元年（1862年），擢升禮部侍郎，兼署工部。

出任封疆

河南州縣因「苛派擅殺」而被御史劉毓楠奏劾，朝廷命之萬前往考察，證明屬實，巡撫鄭元善等人被處分，由之萬代理巡撫職務。此後盡力鎮壓捻軍。同治四年（1865年），改任河道總督。僧格林沁在曹州戰死，之萬也被牽連，革職留任。同治五年（1866年），移漕運總督。同治六年（1867年），淮軍在揚州捕獲捻軍首領賴文光，東捻軍被剿滅。之萬被賜花翎、頭品頂戴。同治七年（1868年），圍剿西捻軍得勝。同治九年（1870年），調任江蘇巡撫，次年遷閩浙總督，同年即因母老乞求歸養。

起復軍機

光緒八年（1882年），張之萬被起用為兵部尚書，調刑部。光緒十年（1884年），入軍機處，兼署吏部，充任上書房總師傅、協辦大學士。光緒十五年（1889年），授體仁閣大學士，轉東閣大學士。甲午戰爭事起，之萬罷退。又二年，因病致仕。光緒二十二年（1897年）卒，贈太保，諡文達，入祀賢良祠。

著作

工詩詞，善書畫。與許彭壽等編纂《治平寶鑒》。