210 Khayr al-Din studies through reading all available translations; they helped him form views on how to strengthen China against the threat of foreign encroachment Kang wrote two books, the Datong Shu (or Ta-tung Shu, The Great Commonwealth) and Confucius as a Reformer A utopian and syncretic thinker, he redefined the Confucian way to include Western methods to legitimize the inclusion of Western institutions inside the Confucian framework He also established a school to teach his unorthodox and controversial ideals In 1895 Kang went to Beijing (Peking) to take part in the triennial metropolitan examinations The date coincided with China’s disastrous defeat at the hands of Japan and the humiliating Treaty of Shimonoseki that ended the Sino-Japanese War In response, Kang and his student Liang Qichiao (Liang Ch’i-ch’iao) coauthored a long memorial to the throne to protest the peace treaty and to urge the Qing (Ch’ing) court to initiate institutional reforms It was cosigned by 603 of the candidates also gathered in Beijing to take the exams Kang passed the exams with flying colors and was appointed to a government position in Beijing Between 1895 and 1898 he and his friends established a number of study societies throughout China that sponsored public lectures, translated foreign books into Chinese, published newspapers and magazines, and established libraries and museums He also continued to submit memorials (a practice he had begun in 1888) to the court with specific recommendations for reforms Despite objections from conservative high officials, the young Emperor Guangxu (Kuang-hsu) was impressed with his arguments and granted him an audience on January 24, 1898 Many more followed that culminated in the appointment of Kang and his allies to important positions For 103 days, between June 11 and September 20, more than 40 decrees were promulgated that mandated thorough reforms in government administration, the military, and education Inevitably, they aroused strong opposition from inside and outside the court and served as the pretext for the emperor’s aunt, the dowager empress Cixi (Tz’u-hsi), to retake control in a coup d’état, put the emperor under permanent detention, and rescind all the reforms Kang escaped arrest with the help of British diplomats and continued to write, raise funds and recruit followers against Cixi during his long exile He never wavered in his belief that a constitutional monarchy was a necessary transition stage from autocracy to democracy in China As leader of the Constitutional Party, he opposed the 1911 republican revolution led by Sun Yatsen and was critical of the political system it established He was involved in the abortive attempts to restore the monarchy in 1917 and 1923, which tarnished his reputation as a utopian and reformer But he never abandoned his vision that China could be peacefully transformed into a model democracy by combining the best of both Western institutions and Confucian ideals See also Hundred Days of Reforms Further reading: Hsiao, Kung-chuan A Modern China and a New World, K’ang Yu-wei, Reformer and Utopian, 1858–1927 Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1975; Lo, Jung-pang, ed K’ang Yu-wei, A Biography and a Symposium Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 1967 Jiu-fong L Chang Khayr al-Din (1810–1889) Tunisian and Ottoman reformer Khayr al-Din was one of the foremost reformers within the Ottoman Empire during the 19th century He was of Circassian Mamluk origin and had been brought to Istanbul, where he entered the service of Ahmad Bey, the de facto hereditary ruler of Tunisia Khayr al-Din was given a religious and secular education; he studied French as well as Arabic He was impressed by Western technology, particularly in the fields of transportation and education, which he observed serving as an envoy in France Like other Arabic reformers of the age, Khayr al-Din believed that Muslim society could assimilate modern technological developments while remaining true to religious tradition and practice He also supported the earlier Tanzimat reforms of the Ottoman Empire While in the service of both the bey of Tunis and the Ottoman sultan, Khayr al-Din sought to balance French, British, and Italian imperial ambitions in North Africa with the survival of the Ottoman Empire His diplomacy demonstrated that the Ottoman Empire was not only a passive subject of the diplomatic maneuverings of the 19th century but an active participant seeking to thwart European designs to take territory and establish economic control over the empire To prevent French incursions into Tunisia, Khayr al-Din negotiated with a reluctant sultan to affirm Tunisian autonomy under the Husaynid family, who, as in the past, would continue to pay the annual tribute to the sultan After being rebuffed several times, Khayr al-Din’s proposals regarding Tunisian autonomy were reluctantly accepted