Li Hongzhang, Marquess Suyi (Chinese: 李鴻章; also Li Hung-chang; February 15, 1823 – November 7, 1901) was a Chinese statesman, general and diplomat of the late Qing dynasty. He quelled several major rebellions and served in important positions in the Qing imperial court, including the Viceroy of Zhili, Huguang and Liangguang.

Although he was best known in the West for his generally pro-modern stance and importance as a negotiator, Li antagonised the British with his support of Russia as a foil against Japanese expansionism in Manchuria and fell from favour with the Chinese after their defeat in the First Sino-Japanese War. His image in China remains controversial, with criticism on one hand for political and military defeats and praise on the other for his success against the Taiping Rebellion, his diplomatic skills defending Chinese interests in the era of unequal treaties, and his role pioneering China's industrial and military modernisation. He was presented the Royal Victorian Order by Queen Victoria. The French newspaper Le Siècle described him as "the yellow Bismarck".

At the time of Li's death, he was the most famous person from China outside of China, better known than members of the imperial family.

Li Hongzhang was also known by other names. His courtesy names were Zifu (子黻) and Jianfu (漸甫). His art names were Shaoquan (少荃), Yisou (儀叟) and Shengxin (省心). The posthumous name awarded to him by the Qing government was Wenzhong (文忠). He was also referred to as Li Zhongtang (李中堂) and Li Fuxiang (李傅相); "Zhongtang" and "Fuxiang" referred to his honorary appointments as Grand Secretary and Crown Prince's Grand Tutor respectively. He also held the noble peerage First Class Count Suyi (一等肅毅伯) and was posthumously honoured as First Class Marquis Suyi (一等肅毅侯).

Li was born into a scholar-gentry family in Qunzhi Village (群治村), Modian Township (磨店鄉), 14 kilometres (8.7 mi) northeast of central Hefei, Anhui Province, China. In 1843, he sat for the entry-level imperial examination in Lu Prefecture and obtained a yougong (優貢; or gongsheng 貢生) position. His father, who was serving as an official in the imperial capital Beijing, was eager to see his son succeed, so he encouraged his son to come to Shuntian Prefecture to take the district-level examination. Li then travelled to Beijing. Along the way, he wrote ten poems under the collection Entering the Capital (Rù Dū 入都) to express his feelings.

In 1844, Li obtained a juren (舉人) position in the district-level examination, but failed to make it in the metropolitan-level examination. He then started taking classes under Zeng Guofan. In 1847, he sat for the metropolitan-level examination again and obtained a jinshi (進士) position at the young age of 24, and was admitted to the Hanlin Academy as a shujishi (庶吉士). At the same time, he also continued taking classes under Zeng Guofan to improve his knowledge. Three years later, he took the sanguan (散館) examination in the academy and earned the position of a bianxiu (編修; an editor).

In January 1851, the God Worshipping Society led by Hong Xiuquan started the Taiping Rebellion in Guangxi Province. Within about two years, the rebels had conquered many territories in southern China and established the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom with Nanjing as their capital. In 1853, the rebels, advancing from Wuhan, captured Anqing and killed Jiang Wenqing [zh; ja] (蔣文慶), the xunfu of Anhui Province. The Xianfeng Emperor commissioned Lü Xianji [d] (呂賢基), the Left Vice Secretary of Works, to travel to Anhui Province and recruit civilians to form militias to counter the rebels. Lü Xianji knew that Li was familiar with the local situation in Anhui Province so he secured permission from the imperial court to bring Li along with him as an adviser and assistant. Li was later ordered to remain in Anhui to oversee the militia. In late 1853, the Taiping rebels defeated imperial forces and captured Shucheng County; Lü Xianji committed suicide. In the following year, Jiang Zhongyuan (江忠源), the xunfu of Anhui Province, committed suicide after Lu Prefecture fell to the rebels. Li then became a subordinate of Fu Ji [zh] (福濟), the new xunfu, who ordered him to lead troops to attack the rebels, with Li often leading them in person. Li recaptured two counties and Lu Prefecture from the rebels within the following year. For his achievements, he earned the appointment of a daotai (道台; circuit administrator) and the privilege of wearing a single-eyed peacock feather in his hat. Later, he led troops into the Huai River area, but could not get along with his subordinates and was forced to abandon his mission.

In the winter of 1858, Li was reassigned to serve in Zeng Guofan's office, where he was in charge of drafting documents. Li led a carefree life, flouted rules and regulations, and often woke up late. Zeng Guofan once chided him, "Shaoquan, now that you're working in my office, I only have this piece of advice for you: 'Commitment' is the only thing that matters to us here." Li was shocked and he improved his behaviour after that. In the same year, Weng Tongshu [zh; ja] (翁同書), the xunfu of Anhui, abandoned his post when he came under attack by the Taiping rebels. Zeng Guofan drew from Li's draft when he wrote a memorial to the imperial court to accuse Weng Tongshu of failing in his duty. The lines from Li's draft that were included in Zeng Guofan's actual memorial included: "It is my duty, as Your Majesty's subject, [to point out the failures of my colleague.] I do not dare to let this pass just because of Weng Tonghe's fame and prestige." Although Li earned Zeng Guofan's praise for drafting the memorial, he also caused Weng Tonghe (Weng Tongshu's brother) to bear a grudge against him for what he wrote. While serving under Zeng Guofan, he was put in charge of Yanjianshao Circuit (延建邵道) in Fujian Province but did not take up his appointment and remained with Zeng.