Ever Victorious Army The Ever Victorious Army ( ) was the name given to an imperial army in late - 19th – century China . The Ever Victorious Army fought for the Qing Dynasty against the rebels of the Nien and Taiping Rebellion s . The Ever Victorious Army consisted of Chinese soldiers trained and led by a European officer corps . Though the Army was only active for a few years , from 1860 to 1864 , it was instrumental in putting down the Taiping Rebellion . It was the first Chinese army which was trained in European techniques , tactics , and strategy . As such , it became a model for later Chinese armies . History . Origins . The Ever Victorious Army had its beginnings as a force formed under the command of Frederick Townsend Ward in 1860 . Ward introduced what were , for the time , radical ideas involving force structure , training , discipline , and weaponry ( though there are historians who question whether his lieutenant and confidant Li Hongzhang was also responsible for some of the then - unique ideas that forged the Ever Victorious Army ) . He believed that well trained , disciplined , mobile units could defeat larger forces lacking these qualities . He believed in a more flexible command structure . Following several early victories , the Qing Dynasty officially bestowed the title " Ever Victorious Army " in March 1862 . Change in command . Following Ward ' s death in September 1862 after the Battle of Cixi , command of the Ever Victorious Army passed , after a short period of time , to Charles George Gordon , known as " Chinese " Gordon . Under Gordon the Ever Victorious Army , in collaboration with the Chinese Imperial forces , would fight some of the final and decisive battles that ended the Taiping Rebellion . Tactics . The Ever Victorious Army numbered around 5 , 000 soldiers at its height . It often defeated rebel forces which were numerically much larger because it was better armed , better commanded , and better trained . It was the first Chinese army to incorporate western style training and tactics , modern weaponry , and most important , the concept of light fast moving infantry units which could move faster than their opponents . Though Gordon has received most of the credit for the victories , it was Ward who originated the concepts that resulted in the Ever Victorious Army , and its ability to win those victories for Gordon . In recent years , there has been an effort to pay tribute to the man who molded the Ever Victorious Army , Ward , aided by Li Hongzhang , rather than Gordon . Composition . The new force originally comprised about 200 mostly European mercenaries , enlisted in the Shanghai area from sailors , deserters and adventurers . Many were dismissed in the summer of 1861 , but the remainder became the officers of 1 , 200 Chinese soldiers recruited by Ward in and around Sungkiang . The Chinese troops were increased to 3 , 000 by May 1862 , all equipped with Western firearms and equipment by the British authorities in Shanghai . Throughout its four - year existence the Ever Victorious Army was mainly to operate within a thirty mile radius of Shanghai . Structure . The infantry of the Ever Victorious Army was organised into battalions , usually referred to during the period of Gordon ' s command as regiments . By 1864 there were six regiments numbering between 250 and 650 men . Each comprised six companies , with a nominal establishment of two foreign officers , seven Chinese non - commissioned officers and up to 80 Chinese privates . There was one Chinese interpreter per regiment , although commands were given exclusively in English which had to be learnt by rote . Bodyguard . Ward created a separate Bodyguard of Filipinos numbering 200 – 300 . Under Gordon this force comprised a company of foreigners ( including both Africans and Europeans ) and 100 handpicked Chinese soldiers . Artillery . By 1863 the Ever Victorious Army included a separate artillery arm , comprising six batteries of Heavy and Light Artillery . Each had an establishment of five foreign officers , 19 Chinese non - commissioned officers and 120 – 150 Chinese gunners . River - boat fleet . Ward bought and chartered a flotilla of about twelve armed paddle steamers , supported by 30 – 50 Chinese gunboats . Under Gordon this small navy dwindled to two steamers , subsequently increased to six . Both steamers and gunboats were fitted with 9 - or 12 - pounder bow - guns . The largest vessel was the " Hyson " , which was 90 feet long and carried a 32 - pounder gun as well as a 12 - pounder howitzer . Uniforms . According to the " North China Herald " , the Bodyguard wore blue uniforms with scarlet facings and green shoulder straps bearing unit identification in Chinese characters . Artillerymen wore light blue uniforms with red facings and trouser stripes . Infantry wore dark green in winter dress with red facings and shoulder straps in regimental colours . In summer all branches wore white uniforms with scarlet facings . All units wore green turbans . End of the Ever Victorious Army . Gordon ' s stringent discipline led to an increase in desertions and several small scale mutinies . Accordingly by June 1863 the force had declined in numbers to 1 , 700 men . In the final year of its existence , the Ever Victorious Army was largely recruited from former Taiping rebels who had been taken prisoner and persuaded to change sides . By April 1864 the Army had become less effective and had suffered several setbacks . It was disbanded in May 1864 with 104 foreign officers and 2 , 288 Chinese soldiers being paid off . The bulk of the artillery and some infantry transferred to the Chinese Imperial forces . Literary allusions . Robert Jordan named the Seanchan army in his " Wheel of Time " fantasy series after the Ever Victorious Army . Ward turns up in George MacDonald Fraser ' s fictional Flashman Papers ( Flashman and the Dragon ) as a Yangtse opium smuggler ( apocryphal ) and as the embryonic leader of the Ever Victorious Army . Ward appears as Fletcher Thorson Wood in the novel " Yang Shen " by James Lande , which relates the tale of the first three years of the Ever Victorious Army , from its beginning as the Foreign Rifles in 1860 through September 1862 .