Who Was Chen Zhaopei?
When people discuss the history of Chen Style Tai Chi, they often focus on great masters such as Chen Wangting, Chen Changxing, and Chen Fake.
Yet one of the individuals most responsible for ensuring that Chen Style survived into the modern era was Chen Zhaopei (陳照丕, 1893–1972).
A highly respected member of the eighteenth generation of the Chen family, Chen Zhaopei dedicated his life to preserving and teaching traditional Chen Style Tai Chi during a period of enormous political and social change in China.
Without his efforts, the art practiced by millions around the world today might have been very different—or perhaps not survived in its traditional form at all.
At Dragon Phoenix, we teach authentic Chen Style Tai Chi because generations of masters like Chen Zhaopei devoted their lives to preserving this remarkable martial art.
Born Into the Chen Family
Chen Zhaopei was born in 1893 in Chenjiagou (Chen Village), the birthplace of Tai Chi.
He belonged to the eighteenth generation of the Chen family and inherited a martial tradition that had already been passed down for more than two centuries.
From a young age, he studied the traditional curriculum, learning:
solo forms
Push Hands
martial applications
weapons
silk-reeling body mechanics
internal training methods
Like generations before him, he viewed these subjects as parts of one complete martial system.
Teaching Beyond Chen Village
During the early twentieth century, Chen Zhaopei spent many years teaching outside Chen Village.
He taught in cities such as Beijing and Nanjing, introducing authentic Chen Style Tai Chi to students who had previously known little about the original family art.
At a time when Yang Style had become the most widely practiced form of Tai Chi, Chen Zhaopei helped maintain awareness of Chen Style's unique traditions and martial heritage.
His teaching ensured that the original family system continued to reach new generations.
Returning Home
One of Chen Zhaopei's greatest contributions came later in life.
After years of teaching elsewhere, he returned to Chen Village.
China had undergone tremendous upheaval.
Many traditional arts had declined, and relatively few young people were continuing the family practice.
Recognizing the danger, Chen Zhaopei devoted himself to teaching the next generation of Chen practitioners.
His return marked a turning point in the preservation of Chen Style.
Teaching a New Generation
Among Chen Zhaopei's students were individuals who would later become internationally recognized masters, including:
Chen Xiaowang
Chen Zhenglei
Wang Xian
Zhu Tiancai
These four practitioners later became known as the "Four Buddha's Warrior Attendants" or simply the "Four Tigers of Chen Village," playing a central role in introducing authentic Chen Style to practitioners around the world.
Through them, Chen Zhaopei's influence continues to reach countless students across every continent.
Preserving Laojia
Chen Zhaopei is most closely associated with preserving Laojia (Old Frame).
Laojia represents the oldest continuously transmitted form of Chen Style Tai Chi and preserves many of the characteristics that define the system:
rooted footwork
silk-reeling energy
spiral body mechanics
changes of speed
explosive fajin
practical martial applications
His careful teaching helped ensure these methods remained intact during a period when much traditional knowledge faced the risk of disappearing.
A Teacher of Fundamentals
Students remembered Chen Zhaopei as a teacher who emphasized fundamentals.
Rather than rushing students toward advanced techniques, he insisted on developing:
posture
balance
whole-body connection
correct stepping
relaxation
structural integrity
He believed that advanced skill grew naturally from strong fundamentals.
This philosophy continues to shape traditional Chen Style instruction today.
Preserving More Than Movements
Chen Zhaopei understood that preserving Tai Chi meant more than teaching forms.
Students also learned:
martial applications
Push Hands
weapons
body mechanics
training methods
traditional theory
Without these elements, forms risk becoming little more than choreography.
His teaching ensured that Chen Style remained a living martial art rather than simply a sequence of movements.
Chen Zhaopei and Chen Zhaokui
Modern Chen Style owes much to both Chen Zhaopei and Chen Zhaokui.
Although they are sometimes compared, their contributions complemented one another.
Chen Zhaopei became the principal teacher responsible for preserving and transmitting Laojia to the younger generation in Chen Village.
Chen Zhaokui later returned to the village and further transmitted the detailed methods associated with Xinjia (New Frame) that he had learned from his father, Chen Fake.
Together, their efforts helped preserve the remarkable depth of modern Chen Style.
Rather than competing traditions, Laojia and Xinjia represent different expressions of the same underlying principles.
Learning Traditional Chen Style at Dragon Phoenix
At Dragon Phoenix, students study authentic Chen Style Tai Chi through forms, Push Hands, silk-reeling exercises, martial applications, and traditional weapons.
Understanding masters such as Chen Zhaopei helps students appreciate that every movement they practice has been carefully preserved through generations of dedicated teachers.
The goal is not merely to imitate postures.
It is to understand the principles that give those movements life.
A Guardian of Tradition
History often celebrates innovators.
It should also celebrate those who preserve.
Chen Zhaopei lived during one of the most difficult periods in Chinese history, yet he remained committed to ensuring that Chen Style Tai Chi survived intact.
His dedication to teaching the next generation helped safeguard one of the world's greatest martial arts.
Today, nearly every practitioner of traditional Chen Style benefits from his work, whether they realize it or not.
Every carefully aligned posture.
Every spiral movement.
Every lesson passed from teacher to student.
Each reflects the quiet but extraordinary legacy of Chen Zhaopei.
His greatest achievement was not creating something new.
It was ensuring that something priceless would never be lost.