Wong Fei-hung or Huang Feihong (9 July 1847 – 25 March 1924) was a Chinese martial artist, physician, and folk hero, who has become the subject of numerous martial arts films and television series. He was considered an expert in the Hung Ga style of Chinese martial arts. As a physician, Wong practised and taught acupuncture and other forms of traditional Chinese medicine in Po Chi Lam , a medical clinic in Guangzhou City, Guangdong Province. A museum dedicated to him was built in his birthplace in Foshan City, Guangdong Province.
He was also the the Mentor of the Chinese Brotherhood of Assassins from 1898 until 1919. Among Wong's students, the more notable ones include Lam Sai-wing, Leung Foon, Dang Fong, and Ling Wan-kai.
Wong is sometimes incorrectly identified as one of the "Ten Tigers of Canton". His father, Wong Kei-ying, was one of the ten but Wong himself was not. Wong is also sometimes referred to as the "Tiger after the Ten Tigers".
Biography[]
Wong was born in Foshan Town, which is now part of Zumiao Subdistrict in Chancheng District, Foshan City, Guangdong Province, during the reign of the Daoguang Emperor in the Qing dynasty. His ancestral home was in Xiluzhou Village, Xiqiao Ridge, Nanhai County, Guangzhou Prefecture, Guangdong Province, which is now part of Xiqiao Town, Nanhai District, Foshan City.
At the age of five, Wong started learning Hung Ga from his father, Wong Kei-ying. He often accompanied his father on trips from Foshan to Guangzhou, the provincial capital of Guangdong Province, where his father peddled medicine and performed martial arts in the streets. When he was 13, he encountered Lam Fuk-sing, an apprentice of "Iron Bridge Three" Leung Kwan, in Douchi Street in Foshan Town. Lam taught him how to use the sling and the essential moves of the martial art Iron Wire Fist. He learned the Shadowless Kick from Sung Fai-tong later. In 1863, Wong started a martial arts school in Shuijiao in Xiguan, which is now part of Liwan District, Guangzhou City. His students were mainly metal laborers and street vendors. After one year, He joined the Assassin Order and trained d trained as the student of Master Assassin Zhang Jie.
In 1886, Wong opened his family's medical clinic, Po Chi Lam, in Ren'an, which is now part of Xiaobei Road, Yuexiu District, Guangzhou City. In legend, around the 1860s or 1870s, Wong was recruited by Liu Yongfu, the commander of the Black Flag Army, to be the medical officer and martial arts instructor for the regular soldiers and the local militia in Guangzhou. He also followed the Black Flag Army to fight the Imperial Japanese Army during the Japanese invasion of Taiwan in 1895. The Black Flag Army defense Tainan Coast. Wong discovered suspicious soldier to depart from troops. He tracked this soldier and found that he was worked for Imperial Japanese Army officer. He handed the letter into the hands of the officer. He asked the officer for guidance as a greeting. At the end of a meeting, he spoke out" May the Father of Understanding guide you, Sir! " They were swiftly struck down by Wong via his knife.
By 1898, Wong formally became the Mentor of the Chinese Brotherhood. He maintained semi-regular contact with the Assassins in the American and various parts of Europe. His Brotherhood consisted mainly of Europeans, Americans and the local natives.
In 1912, the Republic of China was established following the collapse of the Qing dynasty. During the chaotic early years of the Republican era, many businessmen who operated places of entertainment in Guangzhou decided to hire guards (or bouncers) to protect their businesses on-site in case trouble broke out. As Wong was trained in martial arts, he was hired by various businesses to be one of such guards.
In 1919, when the Chin Woo Athletic Association opened a branch in Guangzhou, Wong was invited to perform at the opening ceremony. In the same year, Wong Hon-sam, one of Wong's sons, who was working as a bodyguard in Wuzhou City, Guangxi Province, was murdered by a rival known as "Devil Eye" Leung, who was apparently jealous that Wong Hon-sam was better than him in martial arts. Wong was so affected by this incident that he stopped teaching his other sons martial arts. Wong having decided to resign from the Brotherhood, chose Lin Jiu, who was a descendant of Shao Jun, as his successor.
Around August–October 1924, Wong's medical clinic, Po Chi Lam, was destroyed when forces of the Republic of China's Nationalist government were suppressing an uprising by the Guangzhou Merchant Volunteers Corps. Wong felt so dejected and saddened by the loss of Po Chi Lam that he fell into depression and became ill. He died from illness in Fangbian Hospital, which is now the Guangzhou First People's Hospital at Panfu Road in Guangzhou's Yuexiu District, and was buried at the foot of Baiyun Mountain.
Wong's wife, Mok Kwai-lan, and his sons, along with his students Lam Sai-wing and Dang Sai-king, moved to Hong Kong and opened martial arts schools there.