Dandridge Martial Arts School

The Hung Ga system began in the Ching dynasty during the reign of Yung Jing (1723-1736 a.d.). Hung Ga was the number one style among five family styles of the south. These were:

Hung Ga:	Founded by Hung Hei Guen
Lau Ga:	Founded by Lau Sam Ngan
Choy Ga:	Founded by Choy Gau Yee
Lei Ga:	Founded by Lei Gum Lun
Mok Ga:	Founded by Mok Ching Gui

Each of these systems is unique and possesses distinctive and special techniques. Originally, Hung Hei Guen’s surname was Jyu. His grandfather was an official of the Ming government and the family was well off. Hung was originally a tea merchant before becoming a student of master Jee Sim and graduating from the south Siu Lam temple. As a staunch supporter of the deposed Ming regime, he changed his surname from Jyu to Hung in honor of the first Ming emperor Jyu Hung Mo (1271-1368 a.d.). Hung would have referred to his martial arts as Siu Lam kung fu, but out of fear that the Siu Lam connection would get him and his followers in trouble, he called the art Hung Ga of Hung family kung fu to hide its true source. Later, his followers would continue this practice, in honor of their venerated master. After the burning of the Siu Lam temple in Fukien, he met and married Fong Wing Chun, a former student of Buddhist nun Ng Mui. Fong was knowledgeable in Crane style kung fu. He later moved to Fa city in Gwang Dung province and later died there at the advanced age of 90 years. His tomb is still located there. In addition, historical records at Fukien Chan Jau Fu Ji indicated that Hung Hei Guen killed someone there with a single punch. In addition to this as evidence of Hung’s existence, it also attests to the devastating power of Hung’s fist.

Hung Kuen became known for two things:

1. The “thousand pound foundation” or horse stance

2. The “iron fist” and “iron arm” or fists and forearms continuously conditioned on sandbags and wooden posts.

For example, when Hung Hei Guen sank into a horse stance, more than ten people with staffs were unable to move him. This is a difficult achievement, requiring 3-7 years practice. Some others occasionally say that Hung Kuen is slow. This is untrue. Like many systems, Hung Kuen emphasizes fast strikes. However, it believes that a firm root is the most indispensable feature of the training. It is that when people are mobile and flexible but do not have a solid foundation it is easy for them to lose. Thus, Hung Kuen is solid first, and mobile and flexible secondly.

Wong Fei Hung

In recent times in southern China, there were many famous masters of martial arts. On the Hung shuen or red boats, which carried the Chinese opera companies, Leung Yee Tai and Wong Wah Bo, both of Siu Lam descent, were well known. On land, the strongest masters were known as the “ten tigers of Gwan Dung”. Their names were:

1. Wong Yan Lum	6. Tit Ji Chan
2. Tit Kiu Sam	7. Wong Ching Haw
3. Jao Tai	8. Sou Hut Yee
4. Wong Kay Ying	9. Tam Jai Kwan
5. Sou Hak Fu	10. Wong Fei Hung

These were the ten best martial artists as seen by their peers in south China. After Wong Fei Hung’s induction, it was known that his martial skills had to be good. His life story has been immortalized in books and movies for 40 years. During a party at the Ying Ging restaurant in Hong Kong for the opening of Wong Fei Hung’s school there, the plans for the movie starring Kwen Tak Hing were made. The first movie played to packed housed and this continued until over 100 Wong Fei Hung pictures were filmed. These movies made his name famous and his legend grew steadily to fold-hero status. In fact, fictionalized accounts of Master Wong’s life are again popular in cinema.

When he was a young man Wong Fei Hung taught martial arts to the army. Wong Fei Hung has married four times. His first wife surname Law died three months after they were married from an illness. His second wife, surnamed Ma, bore him two sons, Hawn Sum, and Hawn Lum. She died soon after. Wong’s third wife also bore him two sons, Hawn Hei, and Hawn Hsu, but she also did not live long. By this time, the word was out that Wong Fei Hung was bad luck for women, and no women wanted any part of him. Even Wong resigned himself to this, and stopped trying to remarry. Unfortunately, Wong’s son Hawn Sum was killed by gangsters with pistols after an altercation. This caused Wong to withhold his knowledge from the other sons, in order to protect them. In addition, he had several good students including Lueng Foon, famous for his horse stance, and Ling Wan Gai, who was famous for his kicking skill. These two good students died at a young age and did not go on to having their own schools and disciples. Other famous students of Wong Fei Hung include the popular Lam Sai Wing, a former pork butcher who had many students and wrote three volumes on Hung Kuen, and Tang Fong, of whom we will speak later.

Many years later, in Fatsan Dip Gao Heung, Wong’s school was performing a lion dance in honor of the anniversary of the Lam Hoi Association. Wong Fei Hung’s good students Leung Foon and Ling Wan Gai performed the head and tail respectively. After the lion dance, a martial arts demonstration was held outside on the stage. After all the students had show their shown their kung fu, Wong stepped up to the platform to perform the Yu family trident, a type of weapon now considered the king of southern Chinese weapons. During his performance, he accidentally kicked his shoe off into the crowd. The shoe struck a young woman, and she was incensed. Despite attempted apologies by Wong, she slapped him in the face, yelling that he had no excuse, since he was a famous master of martial arts. “What if that had been your weapon”, she retorted, “I could have been killed”. After this, a rather chastened Wong returned to the stage to perform his set. Later on, though the woman was plain in appearance, he could not get her out of his mind. She was young and strong and, he thought, maybe she would last longer than the other women! He investigated and found out that her name was Mok Gwai Lan and was in town with her number two aunt looking for a husband. As it turned out, the aunt, fearing that Wong would want revenge for his humiliation sought him out to apologize and he told her of his feelings. She agreed to act as a go-between and eventually Mok Gwai Lan and Wong Fei Hung were married. Mok Gwai Lan had a strong foundation in her Mok Ga kung fu, so Wong Fei Hung taught her Hung Kuen. She eventually became the instructor for a all woman’s class in Hung Kuen, Which women had not had a chance to learn form before.

She lived long, indeed, surviving her husband by many years and later teaching as Tang Fong’s assistant.

Tang Fong

Tang Fong was born in Sam Soy village. In these days, the oldest mail member of the village was in charge. Villages often hired martial arts instructors to teach them so the village could protect itself. During his youth, Tang Fong Learned from Sifu Wong Yau, and Sifu Yuen Yin, learning “village” style Hung Ga, also know as “old style” to distinguish it from the orthodox line of Wong Fei Hung, and Mau Shan, a form of folk sorcery. Later, he studied with Wong Fei Hung, completing the traditional Hung Ga style. During his tenure with Wong, he was classmates with Lan Sai Wing. During this period, there was a famous incident. A rival of Wong Fei Hung trapped Lam Sai Wing, Tang Fong, his brother Tang Yee and others inside the Luk Sin theater. Having only 10 people, and being outnumbered 6 to 1, Tan and Lam were hard pressed to escape. During the fight Tang Fong used an iron ruler to douse the light, and they fought their way out. They escaped, despite the fact that Tang was stabbed during the incident. After this both Lam and Tang left town to avoid trouble. Lan Sai Wing went to the Gwang Dung/Gwang Sai border area because there were fewer people there. Tang Fung went to work in Singapore as a miner. Later, Tang Fong returned to Gwang Dung. After Wong Fei Hung was quite old, Tang Fong and his brother opened a school called Yee Ying Ton or “chivalrous/brave hall”. Also, he renewed his relationship with Lan Sai Wing, learning forms that were not part of Wong Fei Hung’s original curriculum. Because of this period, many erroneously considered him Lam’s disciple, but as he had mastered all of Wong Fei Hung’s curriculum before leaving Wong’s school, he is rightly considered a junior classmate of Lam Sai Wing. Eventually, Tang Fong took over the position of head of security at the Sau Kay Wan fish market from Lam Sai Wing. Tang Fong had several well-known students, of which Ho Lap Tin was most senior, and Yuen Ling, who was considered the best. It was Yuen Ling who would eventually take Tang’s place at the fish market when Tang was elderly.

Yuen Ling

Yuen Ling was originally born in Fatson, Gwang Dung province China. He learned “old style” Hung Ga, Which is a branch of the art from Hung Hei Guen, but not through Wong Fei Hung. He learned this system from Sifu Luk Fung Seh. He also learned Dog Boxing from Sifu Gum Yuen Dang. In 1949, he went to Hong Kong and began to learn Hung Kuen with Tang Fong until the latter’s death, where upon he took over Tang’s position at the Sau Kay Wan fish market. During his tenure at the market, he had a school at 73 Dong Tai Street, in Hong Kong.