His Family
Tan Sitong was born in Beijing though his family came from Liuyang, Hunan Province. His father, Tan Jixun (谭继洵), was the governor of Hubei Province. His mother, Xu Wuyuan (徐五缘), a traditional Chinese housewife, was quite strict with her children. Tan Sitong had nine siblings in total.
Unfortunately, at the age of 12, Tan Sitong lost his mother, his eldest brother and his second eldest sister died one after another within a span of 5 days due to diphtheria contracted from one of his cousins when they went to visit her. He himself also fell gravely ill and only recovered three days later which was deemed to be a miracle. This event struck him so much that his outlook in life completely changed. Ever since he lost his mother, his father’s concubine treated him badly. He was married to Li Run (李闰) at the age of 19 and together had a son named Tan Lansheng (谭兰生) who died within a year. His wife was known to be extremely devoted to him even years after his execution. She established a special school for girls in his hometown. Schools dedicated to the education of girls/women were almost unheard of at that time in rural China.
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