Han Fuju
Encyclopedia
Han Fuju or Han Fu-chü (1890 in Ba county, Hebei
- 24 January 1938 in Hankou
) was a Kuomintang
general in the early 20th century. He rose up the ranks of the Guominjun
clique in the Warlord era
but then went over to the Kuomintang
, and held the position of military governor of Shandong
from 1930 to 1938. Han had one wife, two concubines, and four sons.
, to captain, and after an uprising, to major
. During the warlord upheavals of the 1920s he emerged as commander of General Feng's 1st Army Group.
province by Feng, and in 1929 he was confirmed in office and concurrently named commanding general
of the 11th Division
. When the Christian general revolted later in the year, Han declared his allegiance to the central government of Chiang Kai-shek
. In the Central Plains War
in 1930, Han fought against the rebel troops of Yen Hsi-shan and his former commander Feng Yu-hsiang in Shandong and was rewarded with appointment as governor of that province.
's role as the warlord
in Shandong Province. In autumn 1932, unified the province after defeating the rival warlord Liu Zhennian
, who controlled the eastern part of the province (in particular the sea port of Yantai
) and was known as the "King of Eastern Shandong ". As governor, Han was a stern disciplinarian with civil servants and the military. He had virtually wiped out banditry and traffic in narcotics in campaigns of suppression. Through commercial operations, principally in cotton, tobacco, and real estate, he grew rich and gave generously to schools, hospitals, and civic improvements.
In the mid 1930's he was the target of Japanese attempts to get him to incorporate his province of Shandong into one of the North China puppet states they were attempting to construct. After the onset of the Second Sino-Japanese War
, he commanded the 3rd Army Group
and in 1937 was made Deputy Commander in Chief of the 5th War Area
defending the lower Yellow River valley. Han was suspected of having conducted secret negotiations with the Japanese to spare his province and his position of power. When the Japanese crossed the Yellow River he abandoned his base in Jinan
. Han abandoned his army on January 6 and fled to Kaifeng
, where he was arrested on the 11th and brought to Wuchang and was later executed by Chiang Kai-shek
for disobeying orders from superior commanders and retreating on his own accord.
Chiang did this to set an example for those not following his orders. According to one account, Han Fuju was executed in the sanctuary of the Changchun Temple (长春观), a Taoist temple at the outskirts of Wuchang (now, almost in the center of modern Wuhan
) by a single pistol bullet fired into the back of his head by Chiang Kai-Shek's chief of staff, General Hu Zongnan
. There are only second-hand accounts of the execution.
Besides for his execution as a traitor, Han Fuju is remembered for his bad jokes and poetry. One of his poems is about the Daming Lake
in Jinan:
The Daming (the name "Daming" means "big bright") Lake, the bright lake is big
In the Daming Lake are lotus flowers
On the lotuses are toads
[You] prick them once, [the toads] leap once
Hebei
' is a province of the People's Republic of China in the North China region. Its one-character abbreviation is "" , named after Ji Province, a Han Dynasty province that included what is now southern Hebei...
- 24 January 1938 in Hankou
Hankou
Hankou was one of the three cities whose merging formed modern-day Wuhan, the capital of the Hubei province, China. It stands north of the Han and Yangtze Rivers where the Han falls into the Yangtze...
) was a Kuomintang
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
general in the early 20th century. He rose up the ranks of the Guominjun
Guominjun
The Guominjun , a.k.a Nationalist Army, KMC, or Northwest Army , refers to the military faction founded by Feng Yuxiang, Hu Jingyi and Sun Yue during China's Warlord Era. It was formed when Feng betrayed the Zhili clique during the Second Zhili-Fengtian War with the Fengtian clique in 1924...
clique in the Warlord era
Warlord era
The Chinese Warlord Era was the period in the history of the Republic of China, from 1916 to 1928, when the country was divided among military cliques, a division that continued until the fall of the Nationalist government in the mainland China regions of Sichuan, Shanxi, Qinghai, Ningxia,...
but then went over to the Kuomintang
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
, and held the position of military governor of Shandong
Shandong
' is a Province located on the eastern coast of the People's Republic of China. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history from the beginning of Chinese civilization along the lower reaches of the Yellow River and served as a pivotal cultural and religious site for Taoism, Chinese...
from 1930 to 1938. Han had one wife, two concubines, and four sons.
Biography
Han Fuju was born in Dongshantai Village , Ba County in Hebei Province. He had had little aptitude for schooling. Nonetheless, while quite young, he had worked as a clerk in his hsien ("county") until his gambling debts forced him to run away and enlist in the army of General Feng Yu-hsiang. Han rose quickly, from clerk to chief clerk, to lieutenantLieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
, to captain, and after an uprising, to major
Major
Major is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
. During the warlord upheavals of the 1920s he emerged as commander of General Feng's 1st Army Group.
Governor
In 1928 he was appointed chairman (governor) of HenanHenan
Henan , is a province of the People's Republic of China, located in the central part of the country. Its one-character abbreviation is "豫" , named after Yuzhou , a Han Dynasty state that included parts of Henan...
province by Feng, and in 1929 he was confirmed in office and concurrently named commanding general
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
of the 11th Division
Division (military)
A division is a large military unit or formation usually consisting of between 10,000 and 20,000 soldiers. In most armies, a division is composed of several regiments or brigades, and in turn several divisions typically make up a corps...
. When the Christian general revolted later in the year, Han declared his allegiance to the central government of Chiang Kai-shek
Chiang Kai-shek
Chiang Kai-shek was a political and military leader of 20th century China. He is known as Jiǎng Jièshí or Jiǎng Zhōngzhèng in Mandarin....
. In the Central Plains War
Central Plains War
Central Plains War was a civil war within the factionalised Kuomintang that broke out in 1930. It was fought between the forces of Chiang Kai-shek and the coalition of three military commanders who had previously allied with Chiang: Yan Xishan, Feng Yuxiang, and Li Zongren...
in 1930, Han fought against the rebel troops of Yen Hsi-shan and his former commander Feng Yu-hsiang in Shandong and was rewarded with appointment as governor of that province.
Warlord
He took over Zhang ZongchangZhang Zongchang
Zhang Zongchang , nicknamed the "Dogmeat General" and "72-Cannon Chang" , was a Chinese warlord in Shandong in the early 20th century...
's role as the warlord
Warlord
A warlord is a person with power who has both military and civil control over a subnational area due to armed forces loyal to the warlord and not to a central authority. The term can also mean one who espouses the ideal that war is necessary, and has the means and authority to engage in war...
in Shandong Province. In autumn 1932, unified the province after defeating the rival warlord Liu Zhennian
Liu Zhennian
Liu Zhennian was a Chinese military commander during the Warlord Era and Nanjing decade in the history of the Republic of China....
, who controlled the eastern part of the province (in particular the sea port of Yantai
Yantai
Yantai is a prefecture-level city in northeastern Shandong province, People's Republic of China. Located on the southern coast of the Bohai Sea and the eastern coast of the Laizhou Bay, Yantai borders the cities of Qingdao and Weihai to the southwest and east respectively.The largest fishing...
) and was known as the "King of Eastern Shandong ". As governor, Han was a stern disciplinarian with civil servants and the military. He had virtually wiped out banditry and traffic in narcotics in campaigns of suppression. Through commercial operations, principally in cotton, tobacco, and real estate, he grew rich and gave generously to schools, hospitals, and civic improvements.
In the mid 1930's he was the target of Japanese attempts to get him to incorporate his province of Shandong into one of the North China puppet states they were attempting to construct. After the onset of the Second Sino-Japanese War
Second Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War was a military conflict fought primarily between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. From 1937 to 1941, China fought Japan with some economic help from Germany , the Soviet Union and the United States...
, he commanded the 3rd Army Group
Army Groups of the National Revolutionary Army
The Army Group was the largest conventional mobile formation in the organization of the National Revolutionary Army of the Republic of China during the Second Sino-Japanese War...
and in 1937 was made Deputy Commander in Chief of the 5th War Area
NRA Military Region
Military Regions , or War Areas, were 76 northern military districts and the largest formations of the National Revolutionary Army, under the National Military Council, chaired by Chiang Kai Shek during the Second Sino-Japanese War and World War II...
defending the lower Yellow River valley. Han was suspected of having conducted secret negotiations with the Japanese to spare his province and his position of power. When the Japanese crossed the Yellow River he abandoned his base in Jinan
Jinan
Jinan is the capital of Shandong province in Eastern China. The area of present-day Jinan has played an important role in the history of the region from the earliest beginnings of civilisation and has evolved into a major national administrative, economic, and transportation hub...
. Han abandoned his army on January 6 and fled to Kaifeng
Kaifeng
Kaifeng , known previously by several names , is a prefecture-level city in east-central Henan province, Central China. Nearly 5 million people live in the metropolitan area...
, where he was arrested on the 11th and brought to Wuchang and was later executed by Chiang Kai-shek
Chiang Kai-shek
Chiang Kai-shek was a political and military leader of 20th century China. He is known as Jiǎng Jièshí or Jiǎng Zhōngzhèng in Mandarin....
for disobeying orders from superior commanders and retreating on his own accord.
Chiang did this to set an example for those not following his orders. According to one account, Han Fuju was executed in the sanctuary of the Changchun Temple (长春观), a Taoist temple at the outskirts of Wuchang (now, almost in the center of modern Wuhan
Wuhan
Wuhan is the capital of Hubei province, People's Republic of China, and is the most populous city in Central China. It lies at the east of the Jianghan Plain, and the intersection of the middle reaches of the Yangtze and Han rivers...
) by a single pistol bullet fired into the back of his head by Chiang Kai-Shek's chief of staff, General Hu Zongnan
Hu Zongnan
Hu Zongnan , courtesy name Shoushan , native of Zhenhai, Ningbo, born May 16, 1896. A general in the National Revolutionary Army and then the Republic of China Army. Together with Chen Cheng and Tang Enbo, he formed the triumvirate of Chiang Kai-shek's most trusted generals during the Second...
. There are only second-hand accounts of the execution.
Career
- 1928 - 1930 Chairman of the Government of Henan Province
- 1930 - 1938 Governor of Shandong
- 1937 General Officer Commanding 3rd Route Army
- 1937 - 1938 Commander in Chief 3rd Army Group
- 1938 Deputy Commander in Chief 5th War Area
- 1938 Arrested and executed at a military conference in Hankou for failing to defend Shandong
Besides for his execution as a traitor, Han Fuju is remembered for his bad jokes and poetry. One of his poems is about the Daming Lake
Daming Lake
Daming Lake is the largest lake in the city of Jinan, Shandong, China and one of city's main natural and cultural landmarks. Located to the north of the historical city center, the lake is fed by the artesian karst springs of the area and hence retains a fairly constant water level through the...
in Jinan:
The Daming (the name "Daming" means "big bright") Lake, the bright lake is big
In the Daming Lake are lotus flowers
On the lotuses are toads
[You] prick them once, [the toads] leap once