Life

Raised in a poor family in Wenzhou City, Zhejiang Province, Chen was nevertheless an able student, becoming a "supreme scholar" (太学生, student of the imperial academy). Along with six of his classmates including Huang Yong (黄镛) and Lin Zezu (林则祖) Chen sent a letter to politician Ding Daquan (丁大全) accusing him of mishandling defences against Mongol invaders from the north. As a result, Ding cancelled all the students' qualifications. Banished to a military outpost in Jianchang County in Liaoning Province, the six students became known as the "six nobles" (六君子). In 1263, the third year of Emperor Lizong of Song's Jingding 景定 Era, Chen was placed second in the Imperial examinations. Thereafter he became a government civil servant in Shaoxing City, Zhejiang Province. Later Chen moved to the Imperial censor's office where Chancellor Jia Sidao encouraged him to accuse Chen Yuanfeng (程元凤/程元鳳) of misconduct. In the spring of 1275 CE, Jia Sidao was sacked from his position and Chen appointed Prime Minister by Grand Empress Dowager Xie (謝太皇太后), who held power on behalf of the underage Emperor Gong of Song.

The Song army were defeated by the Mongols at Jiaoshan, Jiangsu Province in April 1276, the second year of Emperor Gong's Deyou 德祐 era. A man named Han Zhen 韩震 suggested relocating the capital whereupon Chen personally murdered his family. Timid and afraid, Chen wavered between advocating war and suing for peace. Top scholar Liu Jiugao (刘九皋) and others wrote a letter criticizing Chen's mismanagement of his country's affairs in ten points. The letter claimed that the Prime Minister was a hesitant and vacillating army commander who could not direct his soldiers properly - "Zhang Shijie's brave infantry are at sea whilst the navy is on the march". The indictment also stated "Chen's orders are inappropriate and we face defeat, his mistakes in governance of the country are neverending!". When Cheng learned of these accusations he quit his post and fled but his mother later persuaded him to return to the court where he became Minister of the East (右丞相).

In December of the same year, Chen despatched minister Liu Yue (柳岳) to approach the camp of the advancing Mongol army and sue for peace but its commander Bayan of the Baarin refused to negotiate. Chen then sent Lu Xiufu with an offer of money but Bayan refused to accept it. In the first lunar month of the second year of the Deyou era (1277 by the Julian Calendar), the Mongol Army arrived at Nieiting Mountain (臬亭山), in the northern suburbs of modern-day Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province. On the 18th of the same month, Dowager Empress Xie sent minister Yang Yingkui (杨应奎) into the Mongol army camp to surrender and offer up the Imperial Seal. The soon to be Yuan Dynasty leaders requested talks with Prime Minister Chen but that night he fled to Lin'an (modern day Hangzhou) then later to Wenzhou in the south east. During November 1276, the first year of Emperor Duanzong of Song's Jingyan 景炎 Era, the Mongol army entered Fuzhou in Fujian Province and the government surrendered. Chen and Zhang Shijie accompanied Emperor Duanzong to the sea when not long afterwards Chen again fled.

By the time of the destruction of the Southern Song Dynasty, Chen had already taken his wife and children to Champa (in modern-day Vietnam).

生平

少家貧，為太學生，和同學黃鏞（福建莆田人）、林則祖等6人聯名上書攻擊丁大全。丁大全暗使監察御史關衍彈劾宜中，取消其太學生資格。謫為建昌軍，時稱「六君子」。

景定三年（1263年）廷試第二，任紹興府推官校書郎。依附權臣賈似道，遷監察御史，賈似道授意他參劾程元鳳。

德佑元年初蒙元占領建康；春，賈似道被革職，謝太皇太后任命陳宜中為右丞相。 殿前指揮使韓震提議遷都，陳宜中將其騙到自己家中誅殺。陳宜中組織宋軍反攻。收複江南大片失地。

德祐元年七月，宋軍兵敗焦山。大學生劉九皋等人伏階上書陳列陳宜中過失數十條：「宰相當出督而畏縮猶豫，第令集議而不行。」「張世傑步兵而用之于水，劉師勇水兵而用之于步，指授失宜，因以敗事，臣恐誤國不止于一似道矣！」陳宜中知道後，憤而棄職而去。後由其母親說服回朝，任右丞相。

德佑元年十二月，宜中派將作監柳岳前往元軍大營求和，伯顏不肯，又派正少卿陸秀夫前往，請求稱臣納幣，伯顏也不答應。

德祐二年正月，元軍至臬亭山（浙江杭州市東北郊）。正月十八日，謝太皇太后派大臣楊應奎向元軍獻上降表和傳國玉璽，元朝要求與宰相會談，陳宜中大懼當夜逃離臨安，逃往溫州，漂泊在海上。

德祐二年五月，陳宜中等擁立端宗于福州，組織宋末行朝繼續抵抗。

德祐二年十一月，元軍進福建，福州知府王剛中投降。陳宜中與張世傑將端宗護送到海上，到橫琴島，澳門一帶。

南宋滅亡之時，陳宜中於占城（今越南境內），過吳川極浦亭，曾賦詩明志：

「顛風吹雨過吳川，極浦亭前望遠天，有路可通外嶼外，無山堪並首阻巔；淡去起處潮細長，夜月高時人入眠，異人北歸湏記取，平蕪盡處一峰園。」，並希望可以向占城借兵抗元，不果。

至元十九年（1282年），元朝軍隊進攻占城時，陳宜中再逃往暹國（暹羅），並於當地終老。近年有人以《漳浦積美趙氏譜序》等文章考證，認為陳宜中曾試圖參與厓山海戰，甚至在其後仍在華南一帶進行抗元活動。

十字門海戰

十字門海戰，又稱井澳海戰，澳門與珠海橫琴島交界的十字門，成為宋、元兩軍廝殺的戰場，南宋行朝在此留下一段悲壯而又可歌可泣的故事。當時宋軍在左丞相陳宜中及樞密副使張世傑的指揮下堅守十字門，與元軍多個主力輪番大戰，持續一個多月，最後以宋軍堅守十字門一帶陣地為告終。

1276年（宋景炎元年），南宋端宗趙昰、楊太后與衛王趙昺、左丞相陳宜中、右丞相陸秀夫、張世傑率領軍民48萬人（包括君臣家眷和地方勤皇義士）及戰船1,000艘離開福州，從水路南撤廣東尋求出路，於次年十月移駐香山縣南十字門。富豪馬南寶、高添、趙若舉等當地人士到井澳（大橫琴島）謁見端宗，帶頭獻糧饗軍，並募集民軍勤皇。不久，元軍探知宋軍下落，立即發動攻擊。劉深率領自福建追來的元軍，宋軍以十字門為中心展開戰場佈署，爆發了中國歷史上最大規模的海戰，也是世界史上參戰人數最多的海戰，在一個多月內打了四仗。

第一仗，井澳初戰。時在十一月中，元水師突襲井澳，進行試探性進攻，獲勝後撤走。

第二仗，香山島血戰。時在十一月下旬，元將哈喇歹、宣撫使梁雄飛、招討使王天祿合兵圍攻香山島南端的濠鏡澳（今澳門）。宋軍大敗，被奪去大批戰船和軍資器械。陳宜中、張世傑帶領數千官兵和800艘戰船突圍而出，急護端宗北逃秀山（今虎門），在中流遇大風覆舟，大部分軍士溺死江中。

戰事未完，又遇天災。十二月丙子日，颶風吹襲十字門，無數船隻翻沉，半數宋軍被滔天巨浪捲走，葬身魚腹。端宗也幾乎溺死，雖被救起，但從此一病不起。

第三仗，井澳反擊戰。時在十二月中，元將劉深襲井澳。元軍戰船從路環島南北兩邊水道反覆向西猛攻停泊在大小橫琴之間水道岸邊長50丈分外顯眼的御船，被駐守在了哥崖一帶的宋軍矢石火炮所阻。宋師順風放火反攻，擊退元軍，取得一次難得的勝利。

第四仗，謝女峽（小橫琴島）追逐戰。時在十二月下旬。劉深重整隊伍攻謝女峽，宋軍潰敗向大洋逃跑。元軍追至七洲洋（今澳門東北部九洲洋），再奪宋船200艘，但誤把俘獲的帝舅俞如珪當作端宗，立即停止追擊，端宗從而僥幸脫險。儘管，宋軍最後在新會崖門戰敗於元軍，10萬餘軍民與宋帝一起投海殉難，寧死不降。

家族

弟陳自中，大都督行軍司馬。 提兵拒守閩浙交界分水關， 護送秀王趙與擇入閩，自中于分水關阻擊南侵的元軍十餘日，多次給蒙古鐵騎迎頭痛擊。最後「食盡援絕，軍帥欲降之，不從，朝服南向，再拜而死」，追封溫國公，諡康順。

評價

• 《宋史》評：「陳宜中心存社稷，忠貞事君。」

爭議

「元朝要求與宰相會談，陳宜中大懼當夜逃離臨安，逃往溫州，漂泊在海上。」 南宋精英全部匯合溫州，必然是有計劃的。 陳宜中與張世傑同一天帶兵撤離，陸秀夫也是撤離的。（見《元史》）

明朝

明定天下，太祖慕宋相陳宜中為人，欲厚禮貸其裔還。陳氏子孫固辭。乃為祠浙里，歲時遣祭。宋史列傳並存陳自中事跡，暹羅有兄弟後人。