History

Chen Style Tai Chi (Taijiquan) was created in the Chenjiagou village, Wenxian County, Henan Province, China in the late Ming Dynasty, almost 400 years ago by the 9th generation Chen family member General Chen Wangting. Following a successful decorated military career General Chen retired to Chenjiagou where he began formulating an internal martial arts system.

This new fighting system incorporated the wisdom of the ancient philosophy of Ying and Yang with specialised breathing techniques and his profound understanding of the internal energy meridians ?jingluo? used in Traditional Chinese Medicine. Such was its intrinsic power that the art was only passed from master to student in great secrecy and remained hidden for almost 300 years.

It was not until the 14th generation of the Chen family (around 120 years ago), that Grandmaster Chen Changxing taught the family tradition of Taijiquan to an outsider, Yang Luchan, a household servant. Yang Luchan (founder of Yang Style Tai Chi) was then the first to take the art away from the village.

The reputation of this fascinating art quickly spread throughout China due to the unbeatable skills of Master Yang Luchan. This occurred after he took his skills to Beijing, where he taught ?Yang Style? to the Palace Officials.

The story that Chang San-feng created Tai Chi was introduced by the grandson of Yang Luchan whilst writing a book on Taiji. Wanting to give it a much grander origin than from a poor rural village, he looked for a famous Daoist that he could give credit to, and came across Chang San-feng from the Wudan Mountain. However Chang San-feng was a scholar and not a martial artist. He also lived at the wrong time in History. This book went out to Taiwan and Hong Kong before China closed its doors. There was no one to criticise or dispute the story, which then spread to the West. This story has long been disproved in China, but many Western Tai Chi teachers, with a lack of knowledge, keep this story alive.

All Taijiquan originates from within the Chen village and the Chen family, this then evolved into the Yang, Wu, Sun and Woo styles. These are the only recognised Taiji styles in China. During popularisation of the Yang Style, Chen Style Tai Chi remained within Chenjiagou, the village members being dedicated to the advancement and preservation of all aspects of the tradition, just as their ancestors had done for almost 300 years. Chen Style Tai Chi has only recently made it?s appearance outside of China and is fast becoming the most popular form of Tai Chi in the world today. Both old and new students are beginning to appreciate why generations of the Chen family were determined to maintain their sacred art in its purest form so that everyone may experience the maximum benefits, under their guidance.