The source above is an article on the Taiping Rebellion and how it originated as well as the events that occurred throughout. It starts off by explaining some statistics on the number of deaths of civilians and how long the rebellion lasted. From this it explains how the rebellion started and how it quickly gained popularity and strength to begin with. It then goes on to explain how many fellow Taiping rebels began to abandon Hong Xiuquan, the leader of the rebellion, as they started to fear for their lives. Finally, it explains what changed in China due to the Taiping rebellion. Some important information to know from this source is the reason Hong Xiuquan began the Taiping Rebellion, "Xiuquan had a series of visions and believed himself to be the son of God, the younger brother of Jesus Christ, sent to reform China." From this Feng Yunshan (a friend of Xiuquan) organized a new religion based on Xiuquan vision/dream which was called the God Worshipper's Society. Three years later Xiquan joined the society and led them in the Taiping Rebellion. Other important information is what changed in China due to the rebellion. This article states that the Chinese language was simplified, it was legally ordered that men and women were to be equal, all property was available to anyone and there was to be equal distribution of land.
This source is extremely important for us to know for many reasons. The biggest reason is because it gives us a very good idea on how the Taiping Rebellion began and why it began. This whole rebellion, that killed approximately twenty million people, started because of one man's dream. Reading this I was initially very shocked, but I think it also gives us a good idea on the way people thought during the 19th century and how influenced they could be by a "sign" or "message" from God. I think knowing some of the things that were changed in China during this time is also important because we get an idea on what the Taiping rebels were trying to achieve. By the sounds of it, they wanted more equality, and it is very similar to the beliefs of socialists in today's world. All of this information gives us a good basic understanding of the Taiping Rebellion, why and how it started, and how China was affected. It allows us to see more of what Xiuquan and the other Taiping rebels wanted from China during this time.