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Chiang Kai-shek dominated th history of the Republic of China’s with the unification of China, the war with Japan, and the fight with the Communists. Chiang was born into a middle-class family (1887). He attended a Chinese Imperial military academy and continued his military education in Japan. While in Japan he became disaffected with the Imperial regime and came to support republican ideals. He served for a time in the Japanese Army. He became a supporter of Sun Yat-sen after the Wuchan Uprising occurred (1911). He was general who became prominent in the Kuomintang (KMT) (1923) and came to lead the movement (1925). He led the Northern Expedition to unite China (1926-28). He was intent on modernizing China. He promoted traditional Confucian ideals. His efforts to modernize China and build the economy were diverted by war, first with the Communists and then with the Japanese. He first cooperated with the Communists who were a part of the KMT coalition, but broke with them and launched a bloody campaign to exterminate them (1927). He married Mei-Ling Soong. She was a graduate of Wellesley and sister-in-law of Sun Yat-Sen. She became an effective spokeswoman for her husband in the United States. Chiang dominated the Chinese Government (1928-48). His campaign against the Communists was interrupted by the full-sale Japanese invasion (1937). He led Chinese resistance to the Japanese. President Roosevelt thought he would be an important ally in the war against Japan. While China occupied the bulk of the Japanese Army, Chiang and the KMT was largely incapable of offensive operations against the Japanese. His Government was accused of corruption which was a major reason KMT units were ineffective. After World War II, the Civil War intensified. The United States attempted to mediate, but that was unrealistic. The Soviets helped arm the Communists, in part with captured Japanese arms. The Communists defeated KMT forces in pitched northern battles. Chiang and his followers fled to Formosa (Taiwan) (1949). The Communists did not have the naval capability to
cross the Straits of Formosa in force. And unlike Hainan Island, there were not substantial Communist forces on Formosa.
Chiang was born into a middle-class family (1887).
Chiang attended a Chinese Imperial military academy and continued his military education in Japan.
Chiang trained at the Tokyo Shinbu Gakkō military school (1908-10). Revolutionary fervor was sweeping China as the Imperial regime began to disintegrate. Developments in China impacted Chinese abroad. While in Japan he became disaffected with the Imperial regime and came to support Sun Yat-sen republican ideals. During the first year of his training, Chiang joined the Tongmenghui (United Allegiance Society) which was founded Sun Yat-sen.
He served for a time in the Japanese Army before returning to China. .
The Xinhai Revolution/Wuchang Uprising led to the foundation of Republic of China Nanjing Provisional Government with a democratic constitution (January 1, 1912). Sun Yat-sen was the Provisional President, but the dissolution of the Imperial government led to Imperial generals turning themselves into regional war lords. Sun has no substantial military force and was was forced to cede control to Yuan Shikai (February). Yuan immediately began moving toward a basically criminal dictatorship exceeding the powers assigned to the president. A second revolution broke out, but failed (1913). Yuan had a substantial army and closed the Parliament, annulling the democratic Provisional Constitution. Sun was forced to flee to Japan. While in Japan, he founded the Chinese Revolutionary Party (CRP) (1914). It is at this time that Chiang came into contact with Sun. The CRP would be reorganized as the Kuomintang (1919). Sun began planning a third revolution. Chiang joined the CRP and supported Sun because he was opposed to Yuan Shikai. Yuan in China announced the creation of a monarchy, renaming the country the Empire of China (December 1915). Yuan crowning himself emperor led to mass protests. Cai E leading the National Protection Army from Yunnan opposed Yuan and Sun's CRP joined them. Yuan was forced to dissolved his monarchy. He died (June 1916). Yuan's death gave Sun another chance to establish the Republic of China, but China was still dominated by war lords. This era is known as the Beiyang Government period. It was primarily an era in which competing warlords fought with each other. Premier Duan Qirui manage to prevent Gen. Zhang Xun from restoring the Manchu dynasty, but did not launch a major effort to establish the Republic of China's constitutional governance. Sun Yat-sen was not a military man, but saw that military force would be needed to establish the Republic's authority throughout China. Sun set the Republic's Military Government in Guangdong (1917). He named termed the effort the Constitutional Protection Movement. Guangdong warlord Chen Jiong-ming revolted (1922). Sun was forced to escape on the gunboat Yongfeng. Chiang Kai-shek who was becoming prominent in the KMT led a force to Guangdong to direct the Republic's military efforts and rescue Sun. Sun had come to the conclusion that the Republic's failure was to military weakness, both th lack nof arms and training. He was impressed with Chiang and ordered him to organize the Whampoa Military Academy. Chiang became its first commandant and set out to crerate the National Revolutionary Army (NRA) which would become the Republic's primary military force. Sun's health was declining and he died (1925).
The NRA was committed to the Northern Expedition to bring the war lords under control. This was the beginning Chiang entering politics. Chiang commanded the NRA (July 1926). It proved to be the Republic's first major military victory. Chiang completed the Expedition and with Sun's death he became the leading national figure. Chiang became Chairman of the National Government. And China began developing a real national government. The Provisional Constitution of the Republic of China for the Period of Political Tutelage was drafted (May 1931). It was a kind of provisional constitution. It basically was Sun's action plan of moving from military rule to constitutional government. Chiang would dominated the Chinese Government (1928-48). He was intent on modernizing China. He promoted traditional Confucian ideals. His efforts to modernize China and build the economy were diverted by war, first with the Communists and then with the Japanese.
He first cooperated with the Communists who were a part of the KMT coalition, but broke with them and launched a bloody campaign to exterminate them (1927).
Chiang married Mei-Ling Soong and commonly became known as Madame Chiang/Chang in the West (1927). Mei-ling was born into the influential Shanghai Song family 1896-97). She was the fourth of six children and youngest girl of Charlie Soong, a wealthy businessman who had begun as a Methodist missionary from Hainan, and his wife Ni Her mother was Kwei-tseng, a force on her own. Mei-ling's siblings were eldest sister Ai-ling, second sister Ching-ling, who married Sun Yat-sen. here were also six boys, including elder brother Tse-ven (T.V. Soong) and younger brothers Tse-liang (T.L.) and Tse-an (T.A.). 【Tyson Li, p. 5.】 Given the fact that her parents were Christian and her father a wealthy businessman, Mei-Ling and her sisters received a Western education. She was a talented student and graduated from Wellesley College in the United States with academic honors. Her sister married Sun Yat-Sen, founder of the Chinese Republic. This is how she came in contact with Chiang. An the family connection with Sun must have been part of Chiang's proposal. Chiang was 11years older than her, already married, and a Buddhist--no exactly the best natch. Mei-ling's mother was appalled and tried to stop the marriage even though Chiang had replaced Sun as the Chinese leader. She eventually consented after Chiang divorced his wife committed to convert. Chinese women traditionally stay in the background and this is how Mei-Ling began, but the Japanese seizure of Manchuria (1931) and subsequent invasion of China proper (1937). Mei-Ling became an became an effective spokeswoman for China in the United States, the only country that could realistically aid china at the time. Here she had support from the influential missionary movement. American missionaries n China reported on the Japanese atrocities and their reports were carried not only by the press, but in churches around the country. She skillfully promoted her country's caused. Because of her education, she understood both Chinese and Western culture and was a popular figure not only at home, but abroad, especially the United States. As a result, President Roosevelt steadily expanded American support for China, including loans and weapon shipments. Madame Chiang encouraged women in China, but understood they needed to remain ostensibly in he background, in contrast to her own prominence. 【Chung, p. 72.】 Madame Chiang appeared on the cover of Time Magazine, three times at a time that it was rare to see a woman on the cover even once. These were factors in President Roosevelt being able to deal wih Japanese aggression more forcefully than German aggression in Europe. Which is why at the time of Pearl Harbor, the American Flying Tigers had already arrived in Burma. Madame Chiang not only promoted the Chinese cause in America, but had an important role in China as well. Her most important contribution was
in the air war. She actively supported te Chinese Air Force and was instrumental in getting American support, including the recruiting U.S. Army Air Corps Major Claire Chennault, an expert on tactical air doctrine (1937). It would be Chennault
and his Flying Tigers that would finally provide an effective air defense for Chinese cities being bombed by Japan (1942). Her detractors point to charges of corruption which permeated the KMT and ostentatious displays of wrath in her attire. (This was mostly missed by Americans because she appeared in Chinese outfits.).
Chiang's campaign against the Communists was interrupted by the Japanese invasion (1937). The Japanese had imperial ambitions in China. Chiang's successes in unifying China was placing an obstacle on these ambitions. The Japanese seized Chinese Manchuria (1931). The Japanese Kwantung Army acting without orders from the Japanese Government staged the Mukden Incident. The Japanese gained control of three northeastern provinces. Chinese hostility toward he Japanese intensified. It was not understood why the Chiang did not resist the Japanese. The power of Japanese arms was not understood. There were demands for the KMT and the Communist to make common cause against the Japanese. The KMT formed Special Foreign Affairs Commission to coordinate foreign affairs and appeal to the League of Nations. It was fruitless. The League condemned the Japanese who simply withdrew from the League. No nation was willing to to do more than send toothless diplomatic notes. Student delegates from universities in Peiping, Shanghai, and Nanjing approached Chiang. They volunteered for military service, but Chiang realized that China did no have the military capability. Chiang was captured as a result of the Xi’an Incident (December 1936). Chiang was held in Xian by Zhang Xue liang and Yang Hu-cheng, after which he temporarily stepped down and began his short wilderness period. The Xi’an Incident resulted in a degree of cooperation between the Kuomintang and the Communists. The cooperation was largely for popular consumption. The Communists rarely confronted the Japanese in force and continuing undermining the KMT. here was some limited cooperation (1937-39), but gradually deteriorated.
Chiang's campaign against the Communists was interrupted by the Japanese invasion (1937). Chiang declined to intervene in Manchurisa, understanding that China did not have the capability of taking on he powerful Japanese military. When China invaded Chin proper (July 1937), he had no choice. A Japanese Army uni, again with out authorization from the Japanese Government, attacked a Chinese position near the Marco Polo Bridge north of Peiking. Soon a full-scale invasion of China was underway--called he China incident but was the Second Sino-Japanese War. China had a limited military capability. There were a few modern divisions. They were use to defend Shanghai. But after that the Japanese Army rolled into China taking one city after another. There brutality is beyond human comprehension. The Roe of Nanking was the most notable action, but similar actions took place on a smaller scale throughout China. China had to fight alone for 4 years. The United States gradually increased pressure on Japan. After the United States embargoed oil, the Japanese attacked the American naval base at Pearl Harbor as well as British possessions, bringing America and Britain into the War (December 1941). While China was not capable of major offensives, the great bulk of the Japanese Army was committed to China as the United States conducted the Pacific War. Chiang signed treaties with the United States and Britain (January 1943). Chiang met with President Roosevelt, and Prime-Minister Churchill (November 1943). The resulting Cairo Declaration, dated that all the territories Japan had seized from from China, including Formosa (Taiwan) and the Pescadores, would be returned to China. The Japanese scored major victories in the Pacific (1942), but The Americans began island hoping campaigns that clawed back Japanese island outposts. The British conducted operations in India and Burma. President Roosevelt thought China he would be an important ally. This did not prove to be the case, but the War in China prevented the Japanese from deploying men and material in full force against America and Britain. British operations were primarily conducted by Indian Army units in the war against Japan. While China occupied the bulk of the Japanese Army, Chiang and the KMT was largely incapable of offensive operations against the Japanese. His Government was accused of corruption which was part of the reason the KMT units were ineffective. This is difficult to assess. There was enormous corruption , but a major KMT problem was that the KMT Army included war lord armies, not under full KMT control. Chiang signed treaties with the United States and Britain (January 1943). Chiang met with President Roosevelt, and Prime-Minister Churchill (November 1943). The resulting Cairo Declaration mandated that all the territories Japan had seized from from China, including Formosa (Taiwan) and the Pescadores, would be returned to China. The fighting in China was largely meaningless. The War was decided in the Pacific. The Americans gained air bases in he Marianas from which Japan could be bombed with the new B-29 Superfortress (June-July 1944). The United States dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki (August 1945). Japan agreed to unconditional surrender, ending the War.. From Chongqing, Chiang broadcasted to the Chinese people. When time came to exchange POWs, the Japanese had to admit that they had killed he POWs they took. China became a founding member of the United Nations and its Security Council.
After World War II, the Civil War intensified. The United States attempted to mediate, but that was unrealistic. The Soviets helped arm the Communists, in part with captured Japanese arms. The Communists defeated KMT forces in pitched northern battles.
Taiwan was part of the Japanese Empire and called Formosa. They had seized the island from China in the First Sino-Japanese War (1894-95). Dung the Pacific War, the U.S, Navy wanted to invade Taiwan rather than the Philippines. China did not regain Taiwan, however, until after the War. China took possession of Taiwan and set up the Taiwan Provincial Government. Chen Yi was named first Provincial Governor. After Communist victories in the Civil War, Chiang and his government fled to Taiwan (1949). The Communists did not have the naval capability to cross the Straits of Formosa in force. And unlike Hainan Island, there were no substantial Communist forces on Taiwan. There were initial problems with KMT rule. But over time Taiwan embraced both democracy and capitalism becoming one of the Asian Tigers. Taiwan's dynamic economy left the failing Chinese Communist economy in the dust until Deng launched a series of market reforms, essentially embracing capitalism.
Chung, Mary Keng Mun. Chinese Women in Christian Ministry: An Intercultural Study (Peter Lang: 2005).
Tyson Li, Laura. Madame Chiang Kai-shek: China's Eternal First Lady (New York: Grove Press, 2006)..
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Created: 9:09 AM 1/24/2016
Spell checked: 7:51 PM 12/28/2024
Last updated: 7:51 PM 12/28/2024
