He Yingqin file photo [16235]

He Yingqin

SurnameHe
Given NameYingqin
Born2 Apr 1890
Died21 Oct 1987
CountryChina
CategoryMilitary-Ground
GenderMale

Contributor:

ww2dbaseHe Yingqin (Wade-Giles romanization: Ho Ying-chin) was born in the city of Xingyi, Guizhou Province, China in 1890 (Guangxu 16) to father He Minglun. He had a private tutor starting from the age of 7. In 1905, he found his father's Mauser pistol and accidentally set it off, damaging the ceiling of the room. In fear of punishment, he ran off to a relative's home to spend the night. On the following day, while on his way back home, he came across a teacher of the local school registering students for entrance exams; on a whim, he took the test and was admitted. In the winter of 1907, he entered the Guiyang Military Elementary School. In early 1908, he was transferred to the Wuchang Third Army Middle School. In the fall of 1908, after achieving high scores in qualifying exams, he was chosen by the Defense Department of the Qing Dynasty to study military science in Japan. In 1909, he joined the revolutionary Tongmenghui, also known as the Chinese United League. In 1910, he traveled to Japan and enrolled in the Tokyo branch of the Japanese Army Academy that was establish especially for foreigners; it was in Japan he would first come in contact with Chiang Kaishek, who attended the same academy at one level He's senior. In 1911, he returned to China to participate in the revolution that would overthrow Qing Dynasty and establish the Republic of China. He once again departed China for Japan when Yuan Shikai usurped power and briefly toppled the republic. In 1913, he completed his studies at the Tokyo branch of the Japanese Army Academy, and then in 1916 he completed the main curriculum of the Japanese Army Academy. In the fall of 1916, he was given the rank of colonel and named the commanding officer of the 4th Regiment of the local forces of Guizhou Province, with particular responsibility of training Guizhou troops. In Apr 1917, he married Wang Wenxiang, the sister of Guizhou leader Wang Wenhua. In 1920, a power struggle broke out in Guizhou Province, and he sided with Wang, who would emerge victorious. After Wang assumed power, He was given the positions of the head of the local military academy, head of the police forces, and the head of the Guizhou 5th Brigade. Between Jan and Jul 1921, he was the commandant of Guizhou's military academy. In Mar 1921, Wang was assassinated in Shanghai. Finding himself at odds with Wang's successor, which would soon turn violent, he fled to Yunnan Province, where he would be named the commandant of the local military academy in Yunnan in 1922. In Yunnan, the faction ousted by Wang in 1920 attempted to assassinate He, wounding him in the chest and legs; he recuperated in Shanghai at the home of Wang Boqun, He's brother-in-law. In 1924, he was recruited by Chiang to Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China to assist in the establishment of the Whampoa Military Academy. As the chief instructor of the academy, he successfully led a regiment of trainees in actions against a local warlord Chen Jiongming. Later in 1924, he was made a divisional commander in the newly reorganized National Revolutionary Army. In 1926, he was named a senior instructor at Whampoa Military Academy. In Oct 1926, he was named the commanding officer of the 1st Cadet Regiment consisted of Whampoa trainees, and participated in the Northern Expedition. Later in the year, he was assigned greater number of troops and saw action in Guangdong Province, Fujian Province, and Zhejiang Province during the Northern Expedition.

ww2dbaseEarly 1927 was key in He's ascend to wider influence, as he began his involvement in national politics, played a leadership role in the bloody purge of communists in Shanghai, and conducted a successful military campaign at the Battle of Longtan (also part of the Northern Expedition) in Aug. In Jul 1927, however, the situation took a risky turn. Wang Jingwei, Li Zongren, Bai Chongxi and others challenged Chiang Kaishek and successfully ousted Chiang, forcing Chiang to exile to Japan. During this struggle, He refused to show support for Chiang, believing that it would not be wise to position himself against the apparent victors in the coup. Unexpectedly for He, Chiang was able to maneuver himself back into power in Dec 1928. Holding a grudge against He for the act of disloyalty, Chiang sacked He (now the chairman of Zhejiang Province in eastern China, a position he would hold until Nov 1928) in Feb 1928 and personally took over all troops previously assigned to He. For the following several months, He would remain in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, claiming health problems. In Jun 1928, after being courted by Chiang, he would decide to swallow his pride and return under Chiang. In Oct, he was returned to high position as the deputy director of the Department of Training of the Chinese Army. In 1929, amidst the Central Plains War, his father passed away. Due to his military responsibilities, He was unable to return to his home town to attend the funeral. When Chiang heard of this, the Chinese leader personally attended the funeral in He's place, thus marking the end of their first disagreement. In Mar 1930, he would be named Chiang's chief of staff for military affairs, a position he would hold for many years to come. In Dec 1930, he was further made the head of the political section of the Chinese Army.

ww2dbaseIn 1931, He led troops against forces of the Jiangxi Soviet, during which campaign he suffered great casualties, and his reputation as a military leader faltered slightly.

ww2dbaseAs Japanese aggression toward China materialized into invasions in northeastern China (also known as Manchuria), Shanghai, and other locations, he supported Chiang Kaishek's belief that the communist threat must be eliminated before Japan could be dealt with. In Mar 1933, he was made the head of the Beiping Military Committee, which oversaw the defense against Japanese aggression in northern China, replacing Zhang Xueliang. In this role he de-escalated the situation with Japan and engineered the Tanggu Truce. In Jun 1935, he signed the secret He-Umezu Agreement with Japan, appeasing Japanese aggression in northern China so that the Nationalist Party could continue to focus on anti-communist campaigns. During the Xi'an Incident of 1936 during which Zhang Xueliang kidnapped Chiang in an attempt to force him to unite with the communists, He briefly held control of the Nationalist forces. He briefly clashed with Chiang supporters during the incident, including Chiang's influential wife Song Meiling, but after Chiang's safe return Chiang calmed He by giving him the honor of officially speaking on his behalf during a major rally in Nanjing, China.

ww2dbaseChina and Japan plunged into full scale war in 1937. On the first day of the invasion, He was overseeing a military reorganization effort in Sichuan Province in central China. Rushing back to Nanjing, He Yingqin was made commanding officer of the 4th War Area shortly upon his arrival. Between Oct 1940 and early 1941, He undermined communist efforts in infiltrating the Chinese Army. In Nov 1944, his 14-year tenure of being Chiang Kaishek's chief of staff for military affairs came to an end as Chen Cheng was given this title. Later in the same month, he was placed in charge of the China War Area, which encompassed southwestern China. Shortly after, he was also given party leadership of Guizhou Province. In late 1944 and early 1945, he personally commanded the Burma-bound Chinese Expeditionary Army; in this role, he frequently clashed with Joseph Stilwell, who viewed He as a poor military leader. In 1945, he oversaw a series of Chinese offensives in China, seeing several victories leading up to the end of the Second Sino-Japanese War and WW2 overall. On 9 Sep 1945, he accepted the surrender of Yasuji Okamura in Nanjing, China, representing China and all Allied nations in southeast Asia.

ww2dbaseImmediately after the war, He personally interfered with the deportation of Japanese military servicemen from China; while it was initially noted that each Japanese servicemen could only take 15 kilograms of belongs, He attempted to increase the limit to 50 kilograms (ultimately the compromise would be set at 30 kilograms). He also interfered with the inspection of such belongings being taken out of the country, favoring allowing the Japanese troops to leave with minimal inspection, thus he was being accused of allowing some Japanese to leave China with stolen property. He was also instrumental in the lenient treatment of Okamura after the war for that Okamura had good intelligence on the inner workings of the Chinese communists, something that interested Chiang Kaishek. Thus He was accused of being far too pro-Japanese at a time when the Chinese people wanted justice; He would argue that he was re-establishing a foundation for better long term Sino-Japanese relations.

ww2dbaseIn May 1946, the Chinese military was reorganized with Chen Cheng and Bai Chongxi at the helm, leaving He Yingqin with the mere position of the commanding officer of the Chongqing garrison. Shortly after, he was sent out of China to serve as a member of the delegation to the United Nations. In late 1947, he was recalled to China as the Chinese Civil War kicked into high gear. In 1948 and 1949, he was twice made the Minister of Defense (the second time in acting capacity only); he would resign from this position by the end of the year as there was little he could do as minister when the Nationalist military was falling apart at this stage of the Chinese Civil War. Between Mar and Jun 1949, he also served as the head of the Executive Yuan. He fled to Taiwan in late 1949. In early 1950, he failed to secure any important postings as Chiang formally resumed power again, thus marking the end of his political career; from this point on and until his death, he would only hold the position as a senior military advisor attached to the Office of the President of the Republic of China, which held little political influence. His wife Wang Wenxiang was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1952, but would survive until Apr 1978; in his wife's last sixteen years, they traveled to Japan frequently to receive medical treatment, and He was well known as a devoted husband during her illness. In Jan 1954, he was named the head of an organization that encouraged economic cooperation between the Republic of China and Japan. In Apr 1977, he was named the chairman of the committee that administered the Sun Yatsen Memorial Hall in Taipei, Taiwan. In Jan 1980, he was named the head of the Chinese Red Cross. In the same year, for his 90th birthday, master artist Zhang Daqian presented him with a painting; this painting would remain one of the most valuable possessions to He. In 1982, he was named the first chairman of the League for a United China Under the Three Principles of the People. He was suffered apoplexy during a stroke in Apr 1986 and became hospitalized. He passed away in Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China in 1987. He was buried at the Wuzhi Mountain Military Cemetery in northern Taiwan.

ww2dbaseSource:
Baidu Baike
Wikipedia

Last Major Revision: Nov 2012

He Yingqin Interactive Map

Photographs

He Yingqin as the chief instructor of Whampoa (Huangpu) Academy, China, 1924Dr. Sun Yatsen (seated) posing with He Yingqin, Chiang Kaishek, and Wang Boling, Whampoa Military Academy, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, Republic of China, 16 Jun 1924Portrait of He Yingqin, circa 1920sGroup portrait of Army reorganization conference attendees, China, 25 Jan 1929
See all 37 photographs of He Yingqin

He Yingqin Timeline

2 Apr 1890 He Yingqin was born in Nidang township, Xingyi city, Guizhou Province, China.
12 Oct 1926 He Yingqin was named the commanding officer of the 1st Cadet Regiment consisted of trainees of the Whampoa Military Academy in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China.
13 Oct 1926 He Yingqin was named the director of academy affairs at the Whampoa Military Academy in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China.
11 Mar 1927 He Yingqin was made a committee member of the Chinese government.
10 Apr 1927 He Yingqin led troops in an anti-communist purge in Nanjing, China.
12 Apr 1927 He Yingqin's troops clashed with communists in Nanjing, China; there were several deaths on both sides.
19 May 1927 He Yingqin crossed the Yangtze River in China during the Northern Expedition campaign.
1 Feb 1928 He Yingqin was made a member of the construction committee.
11 Apr 1928 He Yingqin was made a member of the finance committee.
25 Jul 1928 He Yingqin was made a member of the drug enforcement committee.
28 Aug 1928 He Yingqin stepped down as a member of the finance committee.
29 Aug 1928 He Yingqin was made a member of the budget committee.
24 Oct 1928 He Yingqin was named the deputy director of the Department of Training.
31 Jan 1929 He Yingqin was made a member of the finance committee.
4 Mar 1929 He Yingqin stepped down as a member of the budget committee.
10 Mar 1930 He Yingqin was named Chiang Kaishek's chief of staff for military affairs.
5 Jul 1930 He Yingqin stepped down as a member of the finance committee.
15 Nov 1930 He Yingqin stepped down as a member of the military logistics committee.
12 Nov 1931 He Yingqin was made a member of the treasury committee.
30 Dec 1931 He Yingqin stepped down as the deputy director of the Department of Training.
30 May 1932 He Yingqin stepped down as a member of the treasury committee.
13 Mar 1933 He Yingqin was named the head of the Beiping Military Committee.
2 Apr 1935 He Yingqin was promoted to the rank of general first class.
26 Dec 1936 He Yingqin welcomed Chiang Kaishek's arrival after the conclusion of the Xi'an Incident at the airport of Nanjing, China.
27 Dec 1936 He Yingqin addressed a crowd of 200,000 people in a rally in Nanjing, China on behalf of Chiang Kaishek; the rally was held to celebrate Chiang's safe return after the Xi'an Incident.
6 Aug 1937 He Yingqin was made the commanding officer of the 4th War Area.
7 Feb 1943 He Yingqin departed Chongqing, China for India.
3 Mar 1943 He Yingqin arrived in Chongqing, China.
1 Sep 1943 Chinese General He Yingqin tentatively planned to organize 45 divisions stationed in southern China into a cohesive force, Zebra Force, which Joseph Stilwell wished to establish.
20 Nov 1944 He Yingqin stepped down as Chiang Kaishek's chief of staff for military affairs.
25 Nov 1944 He Yingqin was named the commanding officer of all ground troops in the China War Area, with headquarters in Kunming, Yunnan Province, China. In this role he was responsible for all actions in southwestern China.
2 Dec 1944 He Yingqin traveled from Chongqing to Guiyang, Guizhou Province, China.
12 Aug 1945 He Yingqin arrived in Kunming, Yunnan Province, China.
13 Aug 1945 He Yingqin arrived in Chongqing, China.
20 Aug 1945 He Yingqin arrived in Zhijiang, Hunan Province, China and met with China Expeditionary Army representative Takeo Imai to negotiate surrender terms.
23 Aug 1945 He Yingqin ordered Japanese generals in northern and eastern China to continue to maintain peace until Nationalist forces would arrive to relieve them.
27 Aug 1945 He Yingqin began an inspection tour of several Chinese cities including Xi'an, Shaanxi Province and Nancheng, Jiangxi Province to oversee the Japanese surrender process.
8 Sep 1945 Escorted by eight fighters, He Yingqin arrived in Nanjing, China by air at 0900 hours; later in the day he would meet with General Yasuji Okamura to work out the surrender ceremony details.
9 Sep 1945 At 0900 hours, the main Japanese surrender ceremony in China took place at the auditorium of the Central Military Academy in Nanjing, China. General Yasuji Okamura, Commander-in-Chief of Japanese Army's China Expeditionary Army, represented Japan; his delegation also included chief of staff of the China Expeditionary Army Asasaburo Kobayashi. General He Yingqin represented China. In pursuit of Chiang Kaishek's wishes to treat the Japanese with benevolence, the Chinese had wanted the ceremony to be taken place at a round table so that the Japanese representatives would be viewed as peers, but the American liaisons sent to Nanjing succeeded in preventing such a friendly gesture. General He was said to have apologized to Okamura, an old acquaintance at the Japanese Army Academy in the 1910s, for subjecting him to such an embarrassing arrangement forced by the Americans. As a part of the surrender agreement, Japanese troops in China were to remain in power to maintain order, to care for prisoners of war, and to guard important locations against Chinese Communists.
4 Oct 1945 He Yingqin arrived at Hanoi, French Indochina to meet with Lu Han.
12 Aug 1946 He Yingqin was made a member of the committee overseeing the care of Sun Yatsen's tomb in Nanjing, China.
18 Oct 1946 He Yingqin was ordered by Chiang Kaishek to travel to the United States as a member of the Chinese delegation to the United Nations.
10 May 1947 He Yingqin was named the chairman of the military committee of the Office of the President of the Republic of China.
31 May 1948 He Yingqin was transferred from the Office of the President of the Republic of China to the Executive Yuan of the Republic of China.
3 Jun 1948 He Yingqin was named the Minister of Defense.
21 Dec 1948 He Yingqin stepped down from his position as the Minister of Defense.
22 Dec 1948 He Yingqin was detached from the Executive Yuan of the Republic of China.
12 Mar 1949 He Yingqin was named the third head of the Executive Yuan of the Republic of China and the chairman of the US aid committee.
22 Apr 1949 He Yingqin was named the acting Minister of Defense.
13 May 1949 He Yingqin resigned his government postings and would soon depart China for Hong Kong and later Taiwan.
6 Jun 1949 He Yingqin stepped down from his position as the head of the Executive Yuan of the Republic of China and as the chairman of the US aid committee.
13 Jun 1949 Yan Xishan became the head of the Executive Yuan and the Minister of National Defense, replacing He Yingqin in both roles.
21 Sep 1949 He Yingqin was named the chairman of the military committee of the Office of the President of the Republic of China.
15 Jan 1980 He Yingqin was named the head of the Chinese Red Cross.
20 Oct 1987 He Yingqin's blood pressure began dropping to dangerous levels while at the Taipei Veterans General Hospital in Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China.
21 Oct 1987 He Yingqin passed away at the Taipei Veterans General Hospital in Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China at 0730 hours.




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More on He Yingqin
Event(s) Participated:
» First Battle of Hebei
» Xi'an Incident
» Battle of Zhijiang
» Japan's Surrender

Document(s):
» Japanese Instrument of Surrender to China
» Memorandum from He Yingqin to Yasuji Okamura

He Yingqin Photo Gallery
He Yingqin as the chief instructor of Whampoa (Huangpu) Academy, China, 1924
See all 37 photographs of He Yingqin


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