Yang Lu-ch'an



Yang Lu-ch'an or Yang Luchan, 楊露禪, also known as Yang Fu-k'ui (楊福魁) (1799-1872), born in Kuang-p'ing (Guangping), was an influential teacher of the soft style martial art known as tai chi chuan in China during the second half of the 19th century, known as the founder of Yang style tai chi chuan.

History
According to several accounts, Yang first started studying tai chi chuan in the Ch'en family village from Ch'en Chang-hsing in 1820. He was subsequently given permission by his teacher to go to Beijing and teach his own students, including Wu Yu-hsiang and his brothers, who were officials in the Imperial Qing dynasty bureaucracy. Yang Lu-ch'an became known on his arrival in the capital as Yang the Invincible. In 1850, Yang was hired by the Imperial family to teach tai chi chuan to them and several of their élite Manchu Imperial Guards Brigade units in Beijing's Forbidden City, in whose number was Yang's best known non-family student, Wu Ch'uan-yü. This was the beginning of the spread of tai chi chuan from the family art of a small village in central China to an international phenomenon. Due to his influence and the number of teachers he trained, including his own descendants, Yang is directly acknowledged by 4 of the 5 tai chi chuan families as having transmitted the art to them.

Subsequent lineage
Yang Lu-ch'an passed his art to:
 * his second son but oldest son to live to maturity, Yang Pan-hou (楊班侯, 1837-1890), who was also retained as a martial arts instructor by the Chinese Imperial family. Yang Pan-hou became the formal teacher of Wu Ch'uan-yü (Wu Quanyou), a Manchu Banner cavalry officer of the Palace Battalion, even though Yang Lu-ch'an was Wu Ch'uan-yü's first T'ai Chi Ch'uan teacher. Wu Ch'uan-yü's son, Wu Chien-ch'üan (Wu Jianquan), also a Banner officer, became known as the co-founder (along with his father) of the Wu style. Yang Pan-hou is also said to have taught a student named Wong. Wong taught Kuo Lien Ying. Kuo's method is called the Kuang P'ing (Guangping) style.
 * his third son Yang Chien-hou (Jianhou) (1839-1917), who passed it to his sons, Yang Shao-hou (楊少侯, 1862-1930) and Yang Ch'eng-fu (楊澄甫, 1883-1936).
 * Wu Yu-hsiang (Wu Yuxiang, 武禹襄, 1813-1880) who also developed his own Wu style, which eventually, after three generations, led to the development of Sun style tai chi chuan.

Family tree
This family tree is not comprehensive.

LEGENDARY FIGURES | Zhang Sanfeng* circa 12th century NEI CHIA | Wang Zongyue* T'AI CHI CH'ÜAN | THE 5 MAJOR CLASSICAL FAMILY STYLES | Chen Wangting 1600-1680 9th generation Chen CHEN STYLE |   +---+    |                                                                   | Chen Changxing                                                     Chen Youben 1771-1853 14th generation Chen                                    circa 1800s 14th generation Chen Chen Old Frame                                                    Chen New Frame |                                                                  | Yang Lu-ch'an                                                      Chen Qingping 1799-1872                                                         1795-1868 YANG STYLE                                                         Chen Small Frame, Zhao Bao Frame |                                                                  |    +-+-+   |    |                                 |                             |   | Yang Pan-hou                      Yang Chien-hou                   Wu Yu-hsiang 1837-1892                        1839-1917                        1812-1880 Yang Small Frame                     |                             WU/HAO STYLE |                                +-+                      |    |                                 |                 |                      | Wu Ch'uan-yü                      Yang Shao-hou     Yang Ch'eng-fu          Li I-yü 1834-1902                        1862-1930         1883-1936               1832-1892    |                              Yang Small Frame  Yang Big Frame            | Wu Chien-ch'üan                                       |                    Hao Wei-chen 1870-1942                                          Yang Shou-chung         1849-1920 WU STYLE                                           1910-1985                 | 108 Form                                                                     | |                                                                       Sun Lu-t'ang Wu Kung-i                                                                  1861-1932 1900-1970                                                                  SUN STYLE |                                                                         | Wu Ta-kuei                                                                  Sun Hsing-i 1923-1970                                                                  1891-1929

Note to Family tree table

Names denoted by an asterisk are legendary or semilegendary figures in the lineage, which means their involvement in the lineage, while accepted by most of the major schools, isn't independently verifiable from known historical records.