Li Zhaoluo (李兆洛)

Li Zhaoluo (李兆洛; 1769 - 1841), courtesy name Shenqi (申耆), was a scholar and educator in the mid-Qing Dynasty. Born in Yanghu (now Changzhou), Jiangsu, he passed the provincial-level imperial exams and took the jinshi rank in 1805. Seen as an especially promising young scholar, he was chosen to be a 'Gentleman of Virtue' (shujishi, 庶吉士) at the Hanlin Academy, a position which carried significant prestige as such shujishi were advisors to the emperor and provided him consultation relating to classical texts, though the position had become less influential in the Qing era than had been the case in the Ming. After this scholarly service to the emperor, in which he spent much of his time compiling classical texts, Li was assigned to government service as a magistrate in Fengtai County, Anhui Province not so far from his native Yanghu (but, as standard in Qing assignments, far enough to preclude any nepotism for family members and associates). Li prioritized education while in Fengtai, opening free schools and setting up an academy for higher education. He left government service when his father died, entering the expected period of mourning according to filial piety precepts. Afterwards, he went on to lecture for twenty years at the Jiyang Academy (暨阳书院) in Jiyang (now Jiangyin), Suzhou. Li was considered an expert in many fields, amassing a personal library of more than 50,000 volumes, so large that it had to be dispersed across several locations. Much of his work dealt with historical geography, dealing with the history of placenames and evolution of administrative divisions, including his twenty-volume Modern Commentary on the Rhymed Compendium of Historical Geographical Treatises (歷代地理志韻編今釋). In cartographic terms, he edited a map published in 1832, originally completed a decade earlier by Dong Fangli (董方立), titled 'Complete Map of the Unified Territory of the Empire' (皇朝壹統輿地全圖), which was a landmark Chinese map of the early-mid 19th century. The Draft History of Qing (清史稿) colorfully describes him as 'short in stature and large in belly, with a leopard-like head and piercing eyes, appearing unapproachable at first glance. Yet, he was easy to get along with and never spoke harshly or showed a rude expression. He generously provided financial assistance to his old friends and acquaintances in need.'