Gu Cheng's Academic Pursuits and Historiography Achievements-Preface of Complete Works of Gu Cheng

Gu Cheng is a famous historian of the Ming and Qing Dynasties,a remarkable representative of historian after the foundation of the Republic of China.He has both profound theoretical knowledge of Marxism and textual research ability.He is good at connecting Marxist historiography with traditional positivist historiography,macroscopic study with microscopic study,thus forming his own unique style.His monographs of the Ming and Qing Dynasties are not only rich in historical materials and solid in textual research,but also deep in exposition and rich in original ideas.History of Peasant War in the Late Qing Dynasty and History of Southern Ming Dynasty,his judgment of Ming territory administrative system and coastal defense system,are viewed as the highest level in this field and outstanding contribution to it.