WWI’s Forgotten Army 一战中被遗忘的中国军队

There was a huge Army which nearly 140,000 people participate in the World War I. They were contributed to the victory of WWI but were unremembered or ignored by most people.
在第一次世界大战时有一支将近14万人的中国军队战斗在欧洲战场第一线。他们为第一次世界大战的胜利做出了极大贡献，然而却被大多数人遗忘或故意忽视了整整一个世纪。

From 1916-1918, China began to seed people to join WWI, but not officially. Until 1917, the Chinese government declared to join the war. However, they not sent troops to the war but given by about 140,000 northern farmers to alleviate the humanitarian crisis in Britain and France. It called the Chinese Labor Corps.
从1916年到1918年，中国开始非官方的输送人力资源到一战战场。直到1917年，中国政府宣布加入第一次世界大战，为了解决人力资源危机，中国官方开始组织人员输送至英国和法国战场。直到到一战结束，将近14万中国人被送到了欧洲战场第一线，他们被称为，中国劳工团。

The France newspaper L’Excelsoir reported on August 22, 1916, as，"These Chinese labors are through the carefully selected from Chinese north area to France, they are more adept to our Climate than the south.” The selection of these Chinese labors is very strict. People with any eye diseases, tuberculosis, venereal diseases and dental diseases were rejected. Then they get some simple military trained and sent to France and Britain.
法国的 报纸《L’Excelsoir》在1916年的8月22日报道称：“这些中国劳工是经过精挑细选来的，他们来自北方，比起南方人能更适应法国的寒冷天气。” 这些挑选是非常严格的，任何有眼病，性病，肺结核，牙病的人都一律被拒绝。 他们在经过一些简单的军事训练后被送到法国和英国。

According to the original agreement, the Chinese laborers were based on the work of the army and don’t need to join the war, but in fact, the works of the Chinese laborers were always at the forefront.
根据最初的协定，中国劳工团是不参战的，只是做基础的战争后备工作。 然而中国劳工却奋斗在战争的最前线。

Almost all the Chinese labors in Britain were put on the front lines, they were asked for digging trenches, building works, digging up bodies, clearing mines, building roads, and transporting grain and supplies. The need for war is almost everywhere and everywhere. Some Chinese labors were excavating bodies on the front lines to bury them in military cemeteries. Many Chinese laborers suffered mental stimulation and were confined to a specialized lunatic asylum. About 20,000 people died in the war, but most of them even not leave names.

几乎所有在英国的中国劳工都被放到了第一线。 他们被要求挖战壕，运输尸体，清理地雷，运输粮食和物资。他们无所不在。一些中国劳工在前线挖掘尸体，将他们埋葬在军事公墓。许多华工受到精神上的刺激，被关在专门的精神病院。大约有2万人在战争中丧生，但大多数人甚至没有留下姓名。
After November 1918, WWI ended. France still needs thousands of workers, so some Chinese labors continue to work in factories, hospitals, and building sites. Some of the workers were sent to clear the battlefield and bury the bodies. All of the Chinese labors in Britain were sent back to China. The Chinese laborers who were wounded in the war were given a subsidy of 12 months wage for compensation, and they would never be taken care of again when they returned home.
1918年11月之后，一战结束。法国仍然需要数千名工人，因此一些中国劳工继续在工厂、医院和建筑工地工作。一些工人被派去清理战场，掩埋尸体。英国所有的中国劳工都被送回中国。在战争中受伤的中国劳工得到了12个月的工资补偿，他们回家后再也不会得到照顾。

On November 15, 2017, there has sculpture build to commemorate the Chinese Chinese Labor Corps on the border of France and Belgium, after 99 years’ forgotten of the Chinese Labor Corps in the European world war I.
2017年11月15日，在法国和比利时的边界上，一座纪念中国劳工兵团的雕塑终于树立。这是在欧洲第一次世界大战中被遗忘的中国劳工党99年之后。


100% of the SBD rewards from this #explore1918 post will support the Philadelphia History Initiative @phillyhistory. This crypto-experiment is part of a graduate course at Temple University's Center for Public History and is exploring history and empowering education to endow meaning. To learn more click here.