📖 Meaning
Literally 'sturdy ships and powerful cannons,' this idiom describes a formidable navy with superior warships and firepower. It is often used to characterize military might, especially naval strength, and by extension any overwhelming technological or material advantage used to dominate others.
📜 Origin Story
The idiom originates from a memorial to the throne jointly submitted by Lin Zexu and other Qing Dynasty officials, titled 'A Report on the Repeated Bombardments of Foreign Ships at Chuanbi and Jianshazui.' In it, they described how British naval commander Captain Smith and others came to provoke hostilities, relying solely on their sturdy ships and powerful cannons to bully others and satisfy their greed. The phrase captured the technological gap between Qing China and Western naval powers during the Opium War era. Sun Yat-sen later referenced it in his letter to Li Hongzhang, arguing that Europe's true strength lay not in military hardware but in fully utilizing human talent and natural resources.
💡 Example Usage
西方列强当年靠船坚炮利打开了中国国门。
The Western powers, relying on their sturdy ships and powerful cannons, forced open China's doors back then.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 船坚炮利
- Pinyin: chuán jiān pào lì
- Literal Translation: ship, sturdy, cannon, powerful
- Category: Power
- Characters: 4