Gelaohui

The Gelaohui (Chinese: 哥老會; Pinyin: Gēlǎohuì; lit. Elders Brothers Society), also called Futaubang, or Hatchet Gang (Chinese:斧头帮), as every member allegedly carried a small hatchet inside the sleeve, was a secret society and underground resistance movement against the Qing dynasty. Although it was not associated with Sun Yat-sen's Tongmenhui, they both participated in the Xinhai Revolution.

Originating in western China, likely in Sichuan or Guizhou, the society engaged in several uprisings across China, notably in Hunan province during 1870 and 1871. Numerous individuals notable in late-19th and early-20th Chinese history (including Zhu De, Wu Yuzhang, Liu Zhidan and He Long) were Gelaohui members.

Strongly xenophobic and anti-Qing, the Gelaohui were active in the Xinhai Revolution of 1911, as well as taking part in attacks on Catholic missions and converts in 1912.

Originally quite willing to take on other "oppressed" Chinese minorities, several Chinese Muslim Gelaohui members participated in the Ningxia Revolution, and there was a substantial number of Muslim Gelaohui in Shaanxi.

In Xinjiang in 1912 there were troubles related to the Gelaohui.

According to some accounts, the Gelaohui clique emerged as part of the wider group of Ming secret societies, such as the Tiandihui (Heaven and Earth Society) and Bailianjiao (White Lotus Sect), that railed against the Manchu Qing dynasty. However, it is more likely it began as an offshoot or alternative name of the so-called "Brotherhood Clique" within the Xiang Army It is believed that some 30% of the Xiang Army may have been Gelaohui members, and after the disbandment of the army in the aftermath of the Taiping Rebellion it spread along the Yangtze to become a Triad order. The Geolaohui became increasingly associated with the revolutionaries of Dr. Sun Yatsen's Tongmenhui during the 1880s, participating in the Xinhai Revolution against the Qing, and infiltrating the army and education system.

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