Origins and History of Wing Chun

While the origins of Wing Chun (also known as Wing Tsun, Ving Tsun or Yong Chun 詠春) are lost in the mists of history, one telling of the legend is that the art was created by the Buddhist Abbess Ng Mui (五枚). During the Qing Dynasty, the Shaolin Temple was a refuge for the loyalists of the prior Ming Dynasty who sought to "overthrow the Qing and restore the Ming" (反清復明). The Shaolin Temple also took in lay disciples and taught them the temple's martial art systems in a bid to aid the loyalists' cause. ​ Concerned by this, the Imperial Court dispatched agents to infiltrate the Shaolin Temple and learn its martial arts systems. When these agents attained mastery, they poisoned the monks and burnt down the Shaolin Temple. In the resulting carnage, only a handful escaped. The Abbess Ng Mui was one of the Five Elders who escaped. ​ Ng Mui knew that the traitors of Shaolin Temple had mastered its arts and that despite her own skill and mastery, she also knew that she would be no match for their youth, strength and speed. In order to counter these traitors, Ng Mui created a new martial art that would be effective against stronger opponents. To aid the rebel cause, she also designed it so that it could be learnt in a relatively short period of time. ​ Legend has it that Ng Mui's first disciple of this fighting system was a woman named Yim Wing Chun (嚴詠春, Yan Yong Chun) who used it to fight and defeat the local bully who tried to force Wing Chun to marry him. She eventually taught it to Leung Bok Chau (梁博儔, Liang Bo Chau) who named the art after her. ​​ The system was eventually passed to 2 performers belonging to the Red Boat opera troupe; Wong Wa Bo (黃華寶) and Leung Yee Tai (梁二娣, Liang Er Di). These 2 masters had very different body shapes and temperaments. As such, their manifestation of the art was very different. Their student, a skilled physician called Leung Jan (梁贊, Liang Zhan) benefited from this and became known as a skilled fighter in Foshan, Guangdong. One of Leung Jan's top students was Chan Wah Soon (陳華順, Chen Hua Shun), who had many students. In his seventies, he taught a young man named Ip Man (Yip Man, 葉問), who continued training with Chan Wah Soon until his passing. Ip Man moved from Foshan to Hong Kong to study, where he was involved in many fights with his European schoolmates. One day, he challenged an older man, reputed to be a skilled fighter and was soundly defeated. This man was Leung Jan's son, Leung Bik (梁璧, Liang Bi). Ip Man continued his training with, and learned the entire system, from Leung Bik. Ip Man returned to Foshan but eventually went back to Hong Kong after World War II. In 1949, Ip Man started teaching Wing Chun to the public and taught many students until he passed on in 1972. History continues to be created as Ip Man's martial art descendants and practitioners make their mark in the global Wing Chun community. ​