Early life

Ding was a native of what is now part of Chaohu City in Anhui Province, China. He joined the Taiping Rebellion in 1854, but he later surrendered with Cheng Xueqi in the Battle of Anqing in 1861, and defected to the imperial cause. He joined Li Hongzhang』s Huai Army as a cavalryman to help suppress the Taiping Rebellion, serving with Liu Mingchuan. Afterwards, he was active in helping suppress the Nian Rebellion, and was awarded with the equivalent in rank to colonel. In 1874, he protested against the Qing dynasty government's decision about reduction of the army size. He went back to his hometown to avoid being killed.

Self-strengthening movement

In 1875, Li Hongzhang recruited Ding to be a commander of the Beiyang Fleet, the most modern of China's regional navies. In 1880, he travelled to Newcastle upon Tyne in Great Britain to accept delivery of the cruiser Chaoyun where he was photographed by Newcastle-based photographer H.S. Mendelssohn. He also visited Germany and France to familiarize himself with their shipbuilding techniques. Ding was a supporter of the Self-Strengthening Movement in China, and urged Li Hongzhang to create shipyards in China able to build modern armored cruisers, rather than relying on foreign imports. Ting took an active role in the creation of the naval bases at Weihaiwei and Lushunkou.

In 1882, Ding was an observer during the negotiations resulting in the normalization of trade between Korea and the United States. He later helped suppress the Imo rebellion, with his marines arresting Heungseon Daewongun of the father of King Gojong, after arriving at Incheon with a fleet of seven ships.

During the Sino-French War of 1884, Ding was awarded the Yellow Riding Jacket by the Qing Emperor, traditionally the highest military awards in the Qing Empire.

Nagasaki incident

In 1886, Ding participated in a show of force, with the Beiyang Fleet touring Hong Kong, the Japanese port of Nagasaki, the Korean ports of Busan and Wonsan, and the Russian naval base of Vladivostok. While in Nagasaki on 13 August 1886, a number of drunken sailors from Zhenyuan became involved in a brawl in a local brothel, during which a Japanese police officer was fatally stabbed. In what came to be called the Nagasaki incident two days later in a riot between locals, police and Ding's sailors, six sailors were killed and 45 wounded, along with five Japanese policemen killed and 16 wounded. The riot resulted in a diplomatic incident, but Ding was able to make a second trip to Japan with the Beiyang Fleet in 1891.

Ding was promoted to admiral and commander of the Beiyang Fleet from 1888 to 1894, and was promoted to the position of vice naval minister in 1894.

Sino-Japanese War

During the First Sino-Japanese War of 1894–95, Ding pushed for a direct confrontation with the Imperial Japanese Navy, but was ordered by Beijing not to operate east of the mouth of the Yalu River, for fear that China's prized modern warships would be damaged or destroyed. However, this is what happened at the Battle of the Yalu River on 17 September 1894, during which Ding lost five of the ten ships in his fleet. He also became a casualty of the battle from the opening shot of his own vessel, Dingyuan, which had a construction defect, along with a number of officers also present on the bridge. An alternative theory is that the incident occurred due to the deliberate misfiring of the ship's main battery by the commanding captain.

Death

During the Battle of Lushunkou, Ding was ordered to withdraw his ships to the safety of Weihaiwei without giving battle to the Japanese. During the subsequent Battle of Weihaiwei, his ships were kept within the protective confines of the harbor, but the situation proved hopeless once the Imperial Japanese Army had seized the shore fortifications and lowered the boom enclosing the harbor to permit attacks by Japanese torpedo boats. Ding refused offers of political asylum by Japanese admiral Itō Sukeyuki and committed suicide by an overdose of opium in his office at his Liugong Island headquarters. His deputy, Admiral Liu Buchan, after ordering that his warship be scuttled by explosives, also committed suicide. The remnants of the Beiyang Fleet surrendered to the Japanese.

After his death, Ding was blamed by the Qing government for the defeat, and posthumously stripped of all ranks and positions. However, the manner of his death earned him the respect of the Japanese as well as of many members of the Chinese military. At the request of surviving generals in 1911, he was restored to all of his ranks, and his family was able to give him a proper burial in 1912 after the Xinhai Revolution overthrew the Qing dynasty.

生平

1836年11月18日（清道光十六年十月初十日），丁汝昌出生於安徽省廬江縣丁家坎村。丁汝昌早年家庭雖不富裕，幼時曾入私塾。1854年（清咸豐四年），太平軍攻佔廬江城之後，丁汝昌參加太平軍，成為程學啟部將，1860年（清咸豐十年），清軍攻打安慶，丁汝昌隨程學啟投入湘軍，1861年隨程學啟改入淮軍。1862年，丁汝昌即參加劉銘傳的銘軍水師營並參與攻克常州、廣德等戰役。1864年太平天國敗亡，丁汝昌隨劉銘傳北上與捻軍作戰，原水師營改編為馬隊，丁汝昌即為馬隊軍官。1866年，丁汝昌取得壽光大捷。1868年，東捻軍失敗，丁汝昌授總兵，加提督銜，賜協勇巴圖魯勇號。1877年，朝廷擬調任丁汝昌往甘肅，途經天津時，因傷病複發而滯留。後為李鴻章看中，調往新購的蚊子船「飛霆」號熟悉海軍知識。

籌建水師

1879年，丁汝昌在李鴻章的舉薦下，先留用北洋海防，後出任北洋海防兵船督操。翌年，李鴻章推舉丁汝昌帶團前往英國，接收向英國訂購的「超勇」「揚威」號巡洋艦。在英期間，丁汝昌獲得英國女王維多利亞的接見，同時與英國海軍部及艦船設計師交流。期間，丁汝昌親自研讀海圖，制定航線。整個活動期間，丁汝昌率領的接艦團受到英國各界的好評。

1880年，丁汝昌率林泰曾、鄧世昌等官兵赴英國接收「超勇」、「揚威」巡洋艦回國。

1882年，朝鮮爆發壬午兵變，丁汝昌率北洋水師艦船開赴朝鮮，擒獲朝鮮大院君李昰應，使日本幹涉朝鮮計劃落空，防止事態進一步惡化，獲奏賞。

北洋水師成軍

1888年，北洋水師正式建軍，丁汝昌出任提督。負責全局人事、後勤與艦隊活動的方針。具體事務由旗下總兵負責，期間受到留外海軍軍事學校正科班出身的劉步蟾等人為主的中高級官員的排擠，無視提督軍令，軍紀失控不振，後得李鴻章惜才力挺，以及中下級軍官和外籍顧問的歡迎。

黃海海戰

1894年，中日甲午戰爭爆發。在朝廷內以翁同龢為首的清流煽動下，光緒帝下令要尋戰。李鴻章因北洋數年未添一艦，同時後勤彈藥補給嚴重缺乏的情況下，要求丁汝昌儘量「棄戰保船」。7月26日，丁汝昌率軍出巡，意圖尋求日軍主力以報豐島海戰之仇。後無所獲，遂返回威海衛，同時布置海軍基地內水雷，以防日軍魚雷艇偷襲威海衛軍港。但8月2日，清廷嚴厲申飭李鴻章，指責丁汝昌怯懦所以未能尋獲敵軍。丁汝昌因此再度率軍出洋，但仍未所獲。言官攻擊更甚，禮部滿侍郎志銳甚至要求處死丁汝昌。8月9日，丁汝昌再次進行出洋巡邏，但第二天日軍軍艦即出現在渤海灣內。由此，引發光緒帝和言官的巨大震動和憤怒。8月23日，清廷繞過李鴻章，直接指揮丁汝昌。在不了解前方形勢的情況下，清廷嚴令丁汝昌不得離開旅順威海一線，直接將北洋艦隊困于渤海灣內。兩天後，清流言官上疏彈劾丁汝昌，翁同龢親自上陣，要求革去丁汝昌的提督職務。光緒帝在26日即刻下旨，革去丁汝昌的提督職務。8月29日，李鴻章終于上奏朝廷，指出北洋艦隊補給存在的重大問題，以及海軍作戰的苦衷。最終，丁汝昌一事驚動慈禧太后。9月1日，清廷收回成命，暫免處分丁汝昌。

9月，丁汝昌奉命率北洋水師主力護送陸軍增援朝鮮駐軍，18日返航時在鴨綠江口的大東溝附近海域遭遇日本艦隊，雙方發生黃海海戰。海戰中，丁汝昌在旗艦「定遠」艦飛橋上指揮，被炮火所傷。經過5個小時鏖戰，北洋水師在缺乏大量彈藥的情況下惜敗，致遠、經遠、超勇三艘巡洋艦被擊沉，揚威艦被濟遠撞沉，廣甲號逃逸擱淺自毀，共計損失5艘巡洋艦，餘艦均受傷嚴重，而日本聯合艦隊有5艘軍艦被重傷。

戰役結束，北洋艦隊返回旅順修理廠修理，但船塢工人大部分逃跑，以致維修進程極度緩慢。11月13日，由于日軍從陸路逼近旅順，在未修複的情況下，北洋艦隊被迫離開旅順港，返回無修理廠的威海衛基地。11月16日，清廷卻下令指責丁汝昌避戰，革去其頂戴。

北洋水師覆滅

丁汝昌返回威海衛以後，便全力布置威海衛海防。但11月26日，清廷卻下令革去丁汝昌職務。11月27日，御史言官在翁同龢授意下，聯名上奏要求處死丁汝昌。12月12日，日後坐視日軍登陸榮成灣合圍威海衛的山東巡撫李秉衡，也上奏清廷，要求處死丁汝昌。12月17日，清廷下旨將丁汝昌交刑部治罪。他對陸軍的戰力表示擔心，建議做好炸毀陸路海岸炮台的準備，結果反成了「通敵誤國」的罪証，清廷下令將其交刑部治罪。在劉步蟾等將領的通電請願，李鴻章的極力申辯下，清廷命令，待丁汝昌手頭事務結束後，解送刑部。

1895年1月20日，日軍在山東半島榮成登陸，隨後，日軍從陸路攻克威海陸上炮台，海陸合圍北洋水師，丁汝昌與北洋水師殘部固守劉公島待援。定遠艦中日軍魚雷失去行動能力，北洋水師被迫炸毀旗艦「定遠」以免資敵，2月11日在威海英國海軍顧問鼓動投降獻艦，部份水師叛軍持械要脅，丁汝昌向日軍投降，後丁汝昌服鴉片自殺，享年59歲。同名電視劇考証與演出不一樣是，室外水兵譁變，丁退回室內無路可走只好傳出槍響自盡，北洋水師全軍覆沒。軍人應以武器自裁較為可能，丁汝昌自盡符合日本的武士道精神，贏得了日本軍人的敬重，伊東佑亨以商船將丁汝昌遺體送回中國。另一說法是丁汝昌拒絕投降而自殺，後事托與英國人副提督，馬格祿、浩威（George Howie）等人以丁汝昌的名義起草了投降書，向日軍投降。據孫建軍研究，筆跡鑑定與史實證據支持丁汝昌拒降自盡的說法。

日本政治人物勝海舟曾為丁汝昌作祭文，並非傳說中丁汝昌是明治維新志士日軍聯合艦隊司令伊東佑亨的同學，而是因為丁汝昌在1886年和1891年曾經兩次率領北洋艦隊訪問日本。

平反

清廷將甲午戰爭之敗，歸因于丁汝昌缺乏海軍經驗，因而下旨「籍沒家產」，清廷命丁汝昌死後穿上黑色囚衣，棺材漆成黑色，外加三道銅箍捆綁，意為枷鎖，昭示棺主有罪，用磚封在其原籍村頭，不許埋葬，直至宣統二年（1910年），經載洵及薩鎮冰等人奔走，清廷為丁汝昌平反。民國元年（1912年），靈柩始歸葬于安徽無為縣西鄉小雞山梅花地，入土為安。

評價

丁汝昌是淮軍出身，缺乏海軍經驗。在海上訓練期間，劉步蟾等軍官一直不服丁汝昌。1890年，琅威理與劉步蟾發生衝突後離職，新聘任的總教習漢納根原為陸軍尉官，對指揮海戰同樣一竅不通；唯北洋艦隊日益為暮氣所籠罩。甲午海戰的慘敗在很大程度上是因為丁汝昌指揮不力，但丁汝昌僅將海戰失利完全歸罪於濟遠艦管帶方伯謙。戰後方伯謙被丁汝昌處以極刑，其結果就是北洋艦隊軍心渙散，紀律更加鬆弛，指揮更加不靈。旅順失守後，僅存威海衛，北洋海軍面臨生死存亡的最後關頭，丁並未積極主動措施打破敵人的海上封鎖，反是坐以待斃。身陷絕境，指揮不靈，最後只有自殺明志一途。