A-KUEI

born Sept. 7, 1717, China died Oct. 10, 1797, Peking Pinyin Agui general and official during the middle years of the Ch'ing dynasty. The scion of a noble family, A-kuei directed Chinese military expeditions that quelled uprisings in the western provinces of Szechwan and Kansu. He also conquered Ili and Chinese Turkistan, areas on China's northwestern frontier that are today part of the Uighur Autonomous Region of Sinkiang. In addition, he helped subjugate Myanmar (Burma), making it a Chinese tributary state, and directed the campaign to stabilize China's position on the recently conquered island of Taiwan. He was one of the emperor's most trusted ministers, and he served until his 80th year as a senior member of the government's administrative cabinets, the Grand Council and the Grand Secretariat.