Ma Zhongying
Encyclopedia
Chinese
Chinese refers to anything pertaining to the Chinese people.* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, or one of several Chinese ethnicities** Zhonghua minzu（中華民族）, the supra-ethnic Chinese nationality...
Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
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...
during 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,...
of China. Ma Zhongying's birth name was Ma Buying . Zhongying was a 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...
of Gansu
Gansu
' is a province located in the northwest of the People's Republic of China.It lies between the Tibetan and Huangtu plateaus, and borders Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, and Ningxia to the north, Xinjiang and Qinghai to the west, Sichuan to the south, and Shaanxi to the east...
province in China during the 1930s. He allied himself with 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...
, which gave his soldiers an official designation, the 36th Division
36th Division (National Revolutionary Army)
The 36th Division was a cavalry division in the National Revolutionary Army. It was created in 1932 by the Kuomintang for General Ma Zhongying, who was also its first commander. It was made almost entirely out of Hui Muslim troops, all of its officers were Hui, with a few thousand Uighurs forced...
, with Zhongying as its commander. He was ordered to overthrow Jin Shuren
Jin Shuren
Jin Shuren , governor of Xinjiang, succeeded Yang Zengxin after Yang was assassinated in 1928. Jin ruled Xinjiang for about half a decade, and his reign was characterized by corruption and suppression. Under his rule, both ethnic and religion conflicts were greatly deepened, resulting in numerous...
, the governor of Xinjiang
Xinjiang
Xinjiang is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China. It is the largest Chinese administrative division and spans over 1.6 million km2...
. After several victories over Provincial and White Russian
White movement
The White movement and its military arm the White Army - known as the White Guard or the Whites - was a loose confederation of Anti-Communist forces.The movement comprised one of the politico-military Russian forces who fought...
forces, Ma Chung-ying attempted to expand his territory into southern Xinjiang
Xinjiang
Xinjiang is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China. It is the largest Chinese administrative division and spans over 1.6 million km2...
by launching campaigns from his power base in Gansu, but was eventually stalled by Xinjiang warlord Sheng Shicai
Sheng Shicai
Sheng Shicai was a Chinese warlord who "ruled" Xinjiang province from April 12, 1933 to August 29, 1944....
in 1934.
The rise of Ma Chung-ying
Ma Zhongying joined the Muslim militia in 1924 when he was 14 years old.Ma Zhongying seized Hezhou
Hezhou
-Administration:Hezhou has 2 urban district, 2 counties, and 1 autonomous county.Urban District:*Babu District *Pinggui District Counties:*Zhongshan County *Zhaoping County -Administration:Hezhou has 2 urban district, 2 counties, and 1 autonomous county.Urban District:*Babu District (八步区)*Pinggui...
, and vanquished his great-uncle Ma Lin
Ma Lin (warlord)
Ma Lin, , chairman of the government of Qinghai ; brother of Ma Qi. A Muslim born in 1873, Linxia, Gansu, China, he mainly succeeded to the posts of his brother, being general of southeastern Gansu province, as well as councillor of the Qinghai provincial government and acting head of the...
's army which was sent to recapture the city from Ma Zhongying. Ma Zhongying's commander, his uncle Ma Ku-chang, discharged Ma Zhongying for disobeying orders because he did not order Hezhou to be captured.
Ma Zhongying attended the Whampoa Military Academy
Whampoa Military Academy
The Nationalist Party of China Army Officer Academy , commonly known as the Whampoa Military Academy , was a military academy in the Republic of China that produced many prestigious commanders who fought in many of China's conflicts in the 20th century, notably the Northern Expedition, the Second...
in Nanjing
Nanjing
' is the capital of Jiangsu province in China and has a prominent place in Chinese history and culture, having been the capital of China on several occasions...
in 1929.
Xinjiang during the 1930s
"He was like the rider on the pale horse, which appeared when the fourth seal war broken: 'And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with the sword, and with hunder and eath, and with the beasts of the earth.'"
Sven HedinSven HedinSven Anders Hedin KNO1kl RVO was a Swedish geographer, topographer, explorer, photographer, and travel writer, as well as an illustrator of his own works...
on Ma Zhongying
Ma Zhongying battled against the forces of pro-Soviet Governor Jin Shuren
Jin Shuren
Jin Shuren , governor of Xinjiang, succeeded Yang Zengxin after Yang was assassinated in 1928. Jin ruled Xinjiang for about half a decade, and his reign was characterized by corruption and suppression. Under his rule, both ethnic and religion conflicts were greatly deepened, resulting in numerous...
, leading the Chinese Muslim 36th Division (National Revolutionary Army)
36th Division (National Revolutionary Army)
The 36th Division was a cavalry division in the National Revolutionary Army. It was created in 1932 by the Kuomintang for General Ma Zhongying, who was also its first commander. It was made almost entirely out of Hui Muslim troops, all of its officers were Hui, with a few thousand Uighurs forced...
in the name of the Chinese government against the white Russian and Chinese forces of Jin Shuren in the Kumul Rebellion
Kumul Rebellion
The Kumul Rebellion was a rebellion of Kumulik Uyghurs who conspired with the Chinese Muslim General Ma Zhongying to overthrow Jin Shuren, governor of Xinjiang. The Kuomintang wanted Jin removed because of his ties to the Soviet Union, so it approved of the operation while pretending to acknowledge...
.
Ma Zhongying then battled against the Russians in the Soviet invasion of Xinjiang
Soviet Invasion of Xinjiang
The Soviet invasion of Xinjiang was a military campaign in the Chinese northwestern region of Xinjiang in 1934. White Russian forces assisted the Soviet Red Army.- Background :...
.
Ma Chung-ying returns
"He was a silly boy. He went mad. He murdered everyone."
Rewi AlleyRewi AlleyRewi Alley, 路易•艾黎, Lùyì Àilí, QSO, , was a New Zealand-born writer, educator, social reformer, potter, and member of the Communist Party of China....
on Ma Zhongying
The Kuomintang wanted Jin removed because he had signed an illegal arms treaty with the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
without their approval.
Ma used Kuomintang Blue Sky with a White Sun
Blue Sky with a White Sun
The Blue Sky with a White Sun serves as the design for the party flag and emblem of the Kuomintang , the canton of the flag of the Republic of China, the national emblem of the Republic of China , and as the naval jack of the ROC Navy....
banners in his army, and 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...
Blue Sky with a White Sun
Blue Sky with a White Sun
The Blue Sky with a White Sun serves as the design for the party flag and emblem of the Kuomintang , the canton of the flag of the Republic of China, the national emblem of the Republic of China , and as the naval jack of the ROC Navy....
armbands. He himself wore a Kuomintang armband, and a 36th Division uniform to show that he was legitimate representative of the Chinese government.
Personal character
His troops sang Chinese Muslim marching songs, Ma Zhongying himself had a harmoniumHarmonium
A harmonium is a free-standing keyboard instrument similar to a reed organ. Sound is produced by air being blown through sets of free reeds, resulting in a sound similar to that of an accordion...
with him, and he spent hourse playing Muslim hymns on it. He had Mauser pistols. Ma Zhongying quoted as his models Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan , born Temujin and occasionally known by his temple name Taizu , was the founder and Great Khan of the Mongol Empire, which became the largest contiguous empire in history after his death....
, Napoleon, Hindenburg
Paul von Hindenburg
Paul Ludwig Hans Anton von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg , known universally as Paul von Hindenburg was a Prussian-German field marshal, statesman, and politician, and served as the second President of Germany from 1925 to 1934....
, and Zuo Zongtang
Zuo Zongtang
Zuo Zongtang , spelled Tso Tsung-t'ang in Wade-Giles and known simply as General Tso in the West, was a Chinese statesman and military leader in the late Qing Dynasty....
.
The western traveler Peter Fleming reported that in 1935, Xinjiang was the only Chinese territory where Japanese agents were not at work.
Downfall
In April 1934, Ma Chung-ying gave a speech at Id Kah MosqueId Kah Mosque
The Id Kah mosque is a mosque located in Kashgar, Xinjiang, in the western People's Republic of China. It is the largest mosque in China. Every Friday, it houses nearly 10,000 worshippers and may accommodate up to 20,000....
in Kashgar, telling the Uighurs to be loyal 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...
government at Nanjing.
"Ma denounced Sheng Shicai
Sheng Shicai
Sheng Shicai was a Chinese warlord who "ruled" Xinjiang province from April 12, 1933 to August 29, 1944....
as a Soviet puppet, and reaffirmed his alleigance to the Chinese government of Nanjing
Nanjing
' is the capital of Jiangsu province in China and has a prominent place in Chinese history and culture, having been the capital of China on several occasions...
".
During the Soviet invasion of Xinjiang
Soviet Invasion of Xinjiang
The Soviet invasion of Xinjiang was a military campaign in the Chinese northwestern region of Xinjiang in 1934. White Russian forces assisted the Soviet Red Army.- Background :...
Ma Zhongying played a major role in fighting the invaders but his troops had to withdraw again and again. The last defense line was set up around Khotan
Khotan
Hotan , or Hetian , also spelled Khotan, is the seat of the Hotan Prefecture in Xinjiang, China. It was previously known in Chinese as 于窴/於窴 and to 19th-century European explorers as Ilchi....
from where Ma finally fled into Soviet territory and was not seen again.
The book "Who's who in China" mistakenly claimed that Ma Zhongying came back from the Soviet Union in 1934 to Tianjin
Tianjin
' is a metropolis in northern China and one of the five national central cities of the People's Republic of China. It is governed as a direct-controlled municipality, one of four such designations, and is, thus, under direct administration of the central government...
, China, and was residing there that year.
Aftermath
In 1936, Zhang GuotaoZhang Guotao
Zhang Guotao was a founding member and important leader of the Chinese Communist Party and bitter rival to Mao Zedong. During the 1920s he studied in the Soviet Union and became a key contact with the Comintern and organized the CCP labor movement in the United Front with the Guomindang...
's forces crossed the Yellow River
Yellow River
The Yellow River or Huang He, formerly known as the Hwang Ho, is the second-longest river in China and the sixth-longest in the world at the estimated length of . Originating in the Bayan Har Mountains in Qinghai Province in western China, it flows through nine provinces of China and empties into...
in attempt to expand the communist base into Xinjiang and make a direct connection with the former USSR. Some sources allege that Ma Chung-ying enlisted in the Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
and became a high-ranking special adviser to the proposed Soviet force that was planning to take action according to Zhang Guotao's forces. Ma Chung-ying's tasks were, reportedly, to advise Soviets on the situation in Xinjiang and to help the Soviets negotiate with his cousins Ma Bufang
Ma Bufang
Ma Bufang was a prominent Muslim Ma clique warlord in China during the Republic of China era, ruling the northwestern province of Qinghai. His rank was Lieutenant-general...
, Ma Hongbin
Ma Hongbin
Ma Hongbin , was a prominent muslim Ma clique warlord in China during the Republic of China era. He was the acting Chairman of Gansu and Ningxia Provinces for a short period.- Life :...
, and their families so that these warlords would not hinder Zhang Guotao's forces. However, the Soviet plan did not materialize because Zhang Guotao's communist force was met, in accordance with the order of Chiang Kai-shek, and rapidly annihilated by the united 100,000-soldier Ma clique
Ma clique
The Ma clique or Ma family warlords is a collective name for a group of Muslim warlords in Northwestern China who ruled the Chinese provinces of Qinghai, Gansu and Ningxia from the 1910s until 1949. There were 3 families in the Ma clique , each of them respectively controlled 3 areas, Gansu,...
Kuomintang Army (Ma Bufang forces from Qinghai
Qinghai
Qinghai ; Oirat Mongolian: ; ; Salar:) is a province of the People's Republic of China, named after Qinghai Lake...
, a remnant of Ma Chung-ying forces from Gansu, and Ma Hongkui
Ma Hongkui
Ma Hongkui , was a prominent warlord in China during the Republic of China era, ruling the northwestern province of Ningxia. His rank was Lieutenant-general. His courtesy name was Shao-yun .- Life :...
and Ma Hongbin forces from Ningxia
Ningxia
Ningxia, formerly transliterated as Ningsia, is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China. Located in Northwest China, on the Loess Plateau, the Yellow River flows through this vast area of land. The Great Wall of China runs along its northeastern boundary...
). Zhang Guotao's considerable 21,600-soldier Fourth Red Army force (in comparison with 8,000-soldier First Red Army force, led by Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong, also transliterated as Mao Tse-tung , and commonly referred to as Chairman Mao , was a Chinese Communist revolutionary, guerrilla warfare strategist, Marxist political philosopher, and leader of the Chinese Revolution...
) collapsed much faster than the Soviets had expected, and not one of Chinese communist soldiers reached Sinkiang alive.
Nothing more was heard from Ma Chung-ying after 1936. There are at least five different versions of Ma's end by various sources:
- Ma was killed in a crash prior to World War IIWorld War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. - Ma was executed after being taken to Moscow in 1936.
- Ma was imprisoned at a labor camp and later executed during the Great PurgeGreat PurgeThe Great Purge was a series of campaigns of political repression and persecution in the Soviet Union orchestrated by Joseph Stalin from 1936 to 1938...
of Army in 1937–1938. - Some writers, such as Red Army General Konstantin RokossovskyKonstantin RokossovskyKonstantin Rokossovskiy was a Polish-origin Soviet career officer who was a Marshal of the Soviet Union, as well as Marshal of Poland and Polish Defence Minister, who was famously known for his service in the Eastern Front, where he received high esteem for his outstanding military skill...
, allege that Ma was first arrested during the Great Purge but was later released and participated in the Great Patriotic WarEastern Front (World War II)The Eastern Front of World War II was a theatre of World War II between the European Axis powers and co-belligerent Finland against the Soviet Union, Poland, and some other Allies which encompassed Northern, Southern and Eastern Europe from 22 June 1941 to 9 May 1945...
. - According to Sheng Shicai's memoir, "Red Failure in Sinkiang," (Michigan University Press, 1958) Ma was killed by Stalin, together with all his staff, in MoscowMoscowMoscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
during the summer or spring of 1937.