This account of the history of Wing Chun is based on histories as passed down from Ip Man to his sons, Ip Chun and Ip Ching.

     Legend has it that Wing Chun was developed by Ng Mui, a Buddhist Abbess at the Shaolin Monastery of Mt. Sung in Honan Province. During the rule of Emporer K’angshi in the Ching Dynasty (1662-1722), the Manchu government grew fearful of the growing power of the Shaolin Monastery and attacked it. After several failed attempts, the Manchu army finally succeeded in burning the monastery to the ground. The surviving monks fled and scattered, among them Ng Mui.

While taking refuge at a Shaolin Temple on Mt. Tai Leung, Ng Mui met Yim Wing Chun, the daughter of a merchant in a nearby village. Yim Wing Chun had attracted the attention of a local bully, so Ng Mui took Yim Wing Chun under her tutelage and instructed her in Kung Fu. The system Ng Mui had developed and taught to Yim Wing Chun took advantage of the various weaknesses that Ng Mui perceived in other Shaolin systems. As time passed, the system of Kung Fu would become known as Wing Chun, after Ng Mui’s first student.

     Wong Wa Bo was an actor in an opera which traveled on the “Red Boats” who knew Wing Chun (some say he learned it from Leung Lan Kwai). During his travels, he made the acquaintance of Leung Ye Tay, who worked the boats with his pole; that is he pushed the boats in the waterways. Leung Ye Tay was also a student of Kung Fu, and had learned the Lok Dim Boon Kwan (six and a half strike pole) from Gee Shin, who was reputed to be one of the five elder monks who escaped the burning of the Shaolin Monastery. Wong Wa Bo and Leung Ye Tay exchanged techniques and together they refined the pole techniques by applying Wing Chun principles, such as centerline theory, economy of motion, chew ying (facing), and the like.

     Leung Ye Tai eventually taught the Wing Chun system to Dr. Leung Jan of Fatsan, located in Southern China. Leung Jan was a pharmacist by occupation and enjoyed a good, cultured life. Leung Jan became an accomplished Wing Chun fighter and brought public attention to the art of Wing Chun. Leung Jan passed his knowledge onto his two sons, Leung Chun and Leung Bik, and to a street vendor by the name of Chan Wa Shun. Chan was reported to be a man of the streets and not well educated, and had numerous opportunities to use his Wing Chun skills. Chan Wa Shun took on 16 disciples with the last one being the 13 year old Ip Man.

Grand Master Ip Man

     Ip Man, who grew up to become a police officer in Fatsan, studied with Chan Wa Shun until Chan’s death. Ip Man initially did not teach his Wing Chun to the public, only to his two sons, Ip Chun and Ip Ching. During World War II the Japanese invaded China and plundered the Ip family estate. In 1949 Ip Man moved to Hong Kong and began to teach Wing Chun for a living. In addition to his two sons, Ip Man had many famous students, including Bruce Lee (Lee Jun Fan), Wong Shun Leung, Hawkins Cheung, Tsui Sheung Tin, Moy Yat, and William Cheung. Around 1970 Ip Man retired from actively teaching, passing away in 1972 at the age of 81. In 1968 Ip Man had founded the Hong Kong Ving Tsun (Wing Chun) Athletic Association, which carries on his memories and teachings to this very day.