Tang Shengzhi
Encyclopedia
Tang Shengzhi (Wade-Giles
: Tang Sheng-chih) (1889 – April 6, 1970) was a Chinese warlord during the Warlord Era
, a military commander during the Second Sino-Japanese War
, and a politician after World War II
.
After participating in the Xinhai Revolution
, Tang graduated from the Baoding Military Academy in 1914. He participated in the National Protection War
, and Constitutional Protection Movement. Tang Shengzhi was appointed commander of the Hunan Fourth Division and came into conflict with the governor Zhao Hengti
. He was defeated and forced to withdraw from Changsha and decided to join the Northern Expeditionary Army and was given command of the Eighth Army
of the National Revolutionary Army
. By 2 June 1926 his troops had reoccupied Changsha. On 11 March 1926 Tang Shengzhi became the military and civil governor of Hunan. While his military office ended 14 July 1926 once his province had been secured, he remained as civil governor until April 1927.
Tang sided with Chiang Kai-shek
and helped him to secure the control of northern Beijing
and Tianjin
region by removing Bai Chongxi
, a Guangxi
warlord who was in actual control of the region but ostensively allied with Chiang Kai-shek
. Later, Tang commanded armies to fight other warlords for Chiang Kai-shek with great success. However, after these potential rivals were defeated, Chiang Kai-shek enraged Tang when he attempted to remove Tang, and as a result, Tang defected to warlords in Guangxi
and Guangdong
to help them to fight Chiang Kai-shek.
During the Second Sino-Japanese War
, most warlords in China
begun to nominally unite against the Japanese invaders and Tang became an important member of Chiang Kai-shek's national defense committee. After repeated pleas from Chiang Kai-shek, Tang finally accepted the command of the Nanjing
Garrison during the city's siege
in December 1937 by the Japanese, and promised to fight the Japanese unto his death. (Note: There exists another claim. Some writers pointed out that it was Tang who volunteered to serve as the commander of the Nanjing garrison and promised to fight until his death without any pressure from Chiang Kai-Shek. Before 1937, Tang had served as a general under Chiang but without really much true power. It can be imagined that Chiang Kai-Shek appointed Tang as commander of the capital garrison only because there were not too many alternatives.
against the Japanese attack. In a press release to foreign reporters, he announced the city would not surrender and would fight to the death. General Tang Shengzhi gathered about 100,000 soldiers, mostly untrained, including a few defeated troops from the Shanghai
battlefield, to defend the capital. He also placed the 35th and 72nd divisions at the port to prevent people from fleeing Nanjing, as instructed by Chiang Kai-shek
's general headquarters at Wuhan
. The defense force blocked roads, ruined boats, and burnt nearby villages, preventing many citizens from evacuating.
As events played out, the defense of Nanjing
was not at all according to the plan formulated by Chiang and Tang. The defense plan fell apart from the very beginning because the defenders were overwhelmed by Chinese troops fleeing from battles in the area surrounding Nanking. These troops just wanted to escape to safer ground and, in their panic, discipline had broken down to the point where units were refusing to obey any orders. In some case, regimental commanders of units defending the capital were shot and killed by the company commanders of units in flight simply because the regimental commanders refused to move out of the way so that the fleeing units would have a more direct route to escape further from the Japanese. Chiang Kai-shek
, who had already left for Wuhan
, granted Tang the right to shoot anyone who disobeyed his order on spot, but Tang could not carry out this directive because there were hundreds of thousands of troops in open flight. To carry out Chiang's directive, Tang would have had to have the Nanking Garrison wage battle against the fleeing Nationalist troops before facing the Japanese assault on the city.
As it became obvious that the plan was falling apart because the total collapse of discipline among the troops in flight, Tang realized the city could not be defended. Given the grim circumstances, Chiang's staff and even Chiang himself had resigned themselves to this reality. However, Chiang was extremely reluctant to give up the capital without a fight and nobody else would dare to make such decision and face the angry Chinese public either. At the same time, Chiang was also extremely grateful to Tang for assuming command of the Nanking Garrison and thus allowing Chiang to avoid the dilemma posed by the situation. Chiang Kai-shek
ordered Tang to continue the hopeless fight for symbolic meanings at least long enough to save face and then Tang would have the prerogative to decide to withdraw. Tang was now in the very difficult position of trying to conduct a defense he knew was futile and that he knew he would abandon in the near future. The tension was palpably obvious at a press conference that Tang held to boost morale prior to the siege of Nanking; it was noted by reporters that Tang was extremely agitated. He sweated so profusely that someone handed him a hot towel to dry his brow.
While the Japanese army were dropping leaflets ordering the city to capitulate, Tang had publicly expressed his outrage. Privately, however, Tang negotiated for a truce. Despite his original promise to fight to the last man, he seemed eager to do anything to avoid a showdown in the city to save the capital and its inhabitants. At the same time, he also had to carry on the hopeless symbolic fight to defend the capital for the Chinese government to face the Chinese public.
's permission to retreat when needed, a decision to be made by Tang's headquarter. As Tang asked everyone's opinion and got the answer he was waiting for, which was unanimously concurring to retreat, Tang made everyone to sign their names on Chiang's order before giving out the general retreat order.
On December 12, after two days of defending against an enemy with an overwhelming numerical superiority, enduring heavy artillery fire and aerial bombardment, and with many of his troops in open flight, General Tang Sheng-chi ordered a general retreat. That evening, Tang Shengzhi himself escaped from the city through the Yijiang Gate on the northern side of the city walls—the only gate that was available as an escape route then—without officially announcing to the Japanese military authorities any intention of surrendering the city.
What ensued was nothing short of chaos; what supposed to be an organized retreat rapidly turned into a chaotic and panicked flight.
By late evening the unorganized retreat had become a complete rout. Many commanders simply abandoned their troops and fled on their own, without giving any orders to retreat. Of the 100,000 defenders of the capital and thousands more Chinese troops fleeing back to the capital from the battles in the areas around Nanking, only two regiments managed to successfully retreat according to the original plan, and both survived intact. The other units that did not retreat according to the original plan became the victim of the enemy.
Frank Tillman Durdin of the New York Times and Archibald Steele of the Chicago Daily News saw many of the Chinese troops loot shops for food and other supplies, cast away their arms and shed their uniforms in the street. Some soldiers donned civilian clothes, sometimes by robbing civilians of their garments, and others ran away in their underwear. "Streets became covered with guns, grenades, swords, knapsacks, coats, shoes, and helmets," wrote Durdin.
's support and protection, Tang was blamed for the failure that resulted in the consequent Nanjing Massacre. Then Tang lived a more or less retired life and devoted his time to study Buddhism
.
After World War II
, Tang Shengzhi was not noticed until the fall of the Kuomintang
regime, when Bai Chongxi
asked Tang to go with him as the nationalist force withdrew further south. Tang refused to flee China, disguising himself and hiding in different places to avoid being captured by the nationalist forces, breaking one of his legs in the process. He became a commander and governor in Hunan
after 1949.
Wade-Giles
Wade–Giles , sometimes abbreviated Wade, is a romanization system for the Mandarin Chinese language. It developed from a system produced by Thomas Wade during the mid-19th century , and was given completed form with Herbert Giles' Chinese–English dictionary of 1892.Wade–Giles was the most...
: Tang Sheng-chih) (1889 – April 6, 1970) was a Chinese warlord 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,...
, a military commander during 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...
, and a politician after World War II
World War II
World 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...
.
After participating in the Xinhai Revolution
Xinhai Revolution
The Xinhai Revolution or Hsinhai Revolution, also known as Revolution of 1911 or the Chinese Revolution, was a revolution that overthrew China's last imperial dynasty, the Qing , and established the Republic of China...
, Tang graduated from the Baoding Military Academy in 1914. He participated in the National Protection War
National Protection War
The National Protection War , also known as the anti-Monarchy War, was a civil war that took place in China between 1915 and 1916. The cause of this war was Yuan Shikai's proclamation of himself as Emperor. Only three years earlier, the last Chinese dynasty, the Qing Dynasty, had been overthrown...
, and Constitutional Protection Movement. Tang Shengzhi was appointed commander of the Hunan Fourth Division and came into conflict with the governor Zhao Hengti
Zhao Hengti
Zhao Hengti, 赵恒惕, , general and warlord of Hunan during the Warlord Era.In 1922, he was made commander of the New Xiang Army of the Beiyang Government. A trusted subordinate of Tan Yankai, he went to war with Tan with the support of Wu Peifu and forced Tan's resignation from the governorship of...
. He was defeated and forced to withdraw from Changsha and decided to join the Northern Expeditionary Army and was given command of the Eighth Army
Eighth Army
A number of nations have, or have had, an Eighth Army:* Eighth Route Army, a Chinese Communist force that fought against the Japanese during World War II* Eighth Army * Eighth Army...
of the National Revolutionary Army
National Revolutionary Army
The National Revolutionary Army , pre-1928 sometimes shortened to 革命軍 or Revolutionary Army and between 1928-1947 as 國軍 or National Army was the Military Arm of the Kuomintang from 1925 until 1947, as well as the national army of the Republic of China during the KMT's period of party rule...
. By 2 June 1926 his troops had reoccupied Changsha. On 11 March 1926 Tang Shengzhi became the military and civil governor of Hunan. While his military office ended 14 July 1926 once his province had been secured, he remained as civil governor until April 1927.
Tang sided with 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....
and helped him to secure the control of northern Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
and 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...
region by removing Bai Chongxi
Bai Chongxi
Bai Chongxi , , also spelled Pai Chung-hsi, was a Chinese general in the National Revolutionary Army of the Republic of China and a prominent Chinese Nationalist Muslim leader. He was of Hui ethnicity and of the Muslim faith...
, a Guangxi
Guangxi
Guangxi, formerly romanized Kwangsi, is a province of southern China along its border with Vietnam. In 1958, it became the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China, a region with special privileges created specifically for the Zhuang people.Guangxi's location, in...
warlord who was in actual control of the region but ostensively allied with 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....
. Later, Tang commanded armies to fight other warlords for Chiang Kai-shek with great success. However, after these potential rivals were defeated, Chiang Kai-shek enraged Tang when he attempted to remove Tang, and as a result, Tang defected to warlords in Guangxi
Guangxi
Guangxi, formerly romanized Kwangsi, is a province of southern China along its border with Vietnam. In 1958, it became the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China, a region with special privileges created specifically for the Zhuang people.Guangxi's location, in...
and Guangdong
Guangdong
Guangdong is a province on the South China Sea coast of the People's Republic of China. The province was previously often written with the alternative English name Kwangtung Province...
to help them to fight Chiang Kai-shek.
During 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...
, most warlords in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
begun to nominally unite against the Japanese invaders and Tang became an important member of Chiang Kai-shek's national defense committee. After repeated pleas from Chiang Kai-shek, Tang finally accepted the command of the 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...
Garrison during the city's siege
Battle of Nanjing
The Battle of Nanking began after the fall of Shanghai on October 9, 1937, and ended with the fall of the capital city of Nanking on December 13, 1937 to Japanese troops, a few days after the Republic of China Government had evacuated the city and relocated to Wuhan...
in December 1937 by the Japanese, and promised to fight the Japanese unto his death. (Note: There exists another claim. Some writers pointed out that it was Tang who volunteered to serve as the commander of the Nanjing garrison and promised to fight until his death without any pressure from Chiang Kai-Shek. Before 1937, Tang had served as a general under Chiang but without really much true power. It can be imagined that Chiang Kai-Shek appointed Tang as commander of the capital garrison only because there were not too many alternatives.
Plans for the defense of Nanjing
General Tang Shengzhi was now in charge of defending NanjingNanjing
' 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...
against the Japanese attack. In a press release to foreign reporters, he announced the city would not surrender and would fight to the death. General Tang Shengzhi gathered about 100,000 soldiers, mostly untrained, including a few defeated troops from the Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
battlefield, to defend the capital. He also placed the 35th and 72nd divisions at the port to prevent people from fleeing Nanjing, as instructed 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....
's general headquarters at 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...
. The defense force blocked roads, ruined boats, and burnt nearby villages, preventing many citizens from evacuating.
Battle of Nanjing
By early December, the Japanese troops had reached the outskirts of Nanking.As events played out, the defense 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...
was not at all according to the plan formulated by Chiang and Tang. The defense plan fell apart from the very beginning because the defenders were overwhelmed by Chinese troops fleeing from battles in the area surrounding Nanking. These troops just wanted to escape to safer ground and, in their panic, discipline had broken down to the point where units were refusing to obey any orders. In some case, regimental commanders of units defending the capital were shot and killed by the company commanders of units in flight simply because the regimental commanders refused to move out of the way so that the fleeing units would have a more direct route to escape further from the Japanese. 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....
, who had already left for 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...
, granted Tang the right to shoot anyone who disobeyed his order on spot, but Tang could not carry out this directive because there were hundreds of thousands of troops in open flight. To carry out Chiang's directive, Tang would have had to have the Nanking Garrison wage battle against the fleeing Nationalist troops before facing the Japanese assault on the city.
As it became obvious that the plan was falling apart because the total collapse of discipline among the troops in flight, Tang realized the city could not be defended. Given the grim circumstances, Chiang's staff and even Chiang himself had resigned themselves to this reality. However, Chiang was extremely reluctant to give up the capital without a fight and nobody else would dare to make such decision and face the angry Chinese public either. At the same time, Chiang was also extremely grateful to Tang for assuming command of the Nanking Garrison and thus allowing Chiang to avoid the dilemma posed by the situation. 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....
ordered Tang to continue the hopeless fight for symbolic meanings at least long enough to save face and then Tang would have the prerogative to decide to withdraw. Tang was now in the very difficult position of trying to conduct a defense he knew was futile and that he knew he would abandon in the near future. The tension was palpably obvious at a press conference that Tang held to boost morale prior to the siege of Nanking; it was noted by reporters that Tang was extremely agitated. He sweated so profusely that someone handed him a hot towel to dry his brow.
While the Japanese army were dropping leaflets ordering the city to capitulate, Tang had publicly expressed his outrage. Privately, however, Tang negotiated for a truce. Despite his original promise to fight to the last man, he seemed eager to do anything to avoid a showdown in the city to save the capital and its inhabitants. At the same time, he also had to carry on the hopeless symbolic fight to defend the capital for the Chinese government to face the Chinese public.
The decision to order a general retreat
Once the news reached Tang's headquarters that several units had abandoned their positions and fled against orders, it became obvious that a general retreat was inevitable. The problem was that that whoever gave the order to retreat would be blamed for losing the capital and face a very angry Chinese public, Tang was very reluctant to share the responsibility and the consequent blame alone, so he called a meeting that included every divisional commander and those with higher ranks, and he showed them Chiang Kai-shekChiang 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....
's permission to retreat when needed, a decision to be made by Tang's headquarter. As Tang asked everyone's opinion and got the answer he was waiting for, which was unanimously concurring to retreat, Tang made everyone to sign their names on Chiang's order before giving out the general retreat order.
On December 12, after two days of defending against an enemy with an overwhelming numerical superiority, enduring heavy artillery fire and aerial bombardment, and with many of his troops in open flight, General Tang Sheng-chi ordered a general retreat. That evening, Tang Shengzhi himself escaped from the city through the Yijiang Gate on the northern side of the city walls—the only gate that was available as an escape route then—without officially announcing to the Japanese military authorities any intention of surrendering the city.
The general retreat turns into a rout
However, just as the defensive battle had not played out according to the plan, the general retreat did was not conducted as planned.What ensued was nothing short of chaos; what supposed to be an organized retreat rapidly turned into a chaotic and panicked flight.
By late evening the unorganized retreat had become a complete rout. Many commanders simply abandoned their troops and fled on their own, without giving any orders to retreat. Of the 100,000 defenders of the capital and thousands more Chinese troops fleeing back to the capital from the battles in the areas around Nanking, only two regiments managed to successfully retreat according to the original plan, and both survived intact. The other units that did not retreat according to the original plan became the victim of the enemy.
Frank Tillman Durdin of the New York Times and Archibald Steele of the Chicago Daily News saw many of the Chinese troops loot shops for food and other supplies, cast away their arms and shed their uniforms in the street. Some soldiers donned civilian clothes, sometimes by robbing civilians of their garments, and others ran away in their underwear. "Streets became covered with guns, grenades, swords, knapsacks, coats, shoes, and helmets," wrote Durdin.
Life after Nanjing
Despite Chiang Kai-shekChiang 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....
's support and protection, Tang was blamed for the failure that resulted in the consequent Nanjing Massacre. Then Tang lived a more or less retired life and devoted his time to study Buddhism
Buddhism
Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...
.
After World War II
World War II
World 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...
, Tang Shengzhi was not noticed until the fall of 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...
regime, when Bai Chongxi
Bai Chongxi
Bai Chongxi , , also spelled Pai Chung-hsi, was a Chinese general in the National Revolutionary Army of the Republic of China and a prominent Chinese Nationalist Muslim leader. He was of Hui ethnicity and of the Muslim faith...
asked Tang to go with him as the nationalist force withdrew further south. Tang refused to flee China, disguising himself and hiding in different places to avoid being captured by the nationalist forces, breaking one of his legs in the process. He became a commander and governor in Hunan
Hunan
' is a province of South-Central China, located to the south of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and south of Lake Dongting...
after 1949.
Career
- 1926 Military - Governor of Hunan Province
- 1926 - 1927 Governor of Hunan Province
- 1929 General Officer Commanding 5th Army
- 1932 - 1934 President of the Military Advisory Council
- 1934 - 1937 Director-General of Military Training
- 1937 General Officer Commanding Nanking Garrison Command
- 1945 Member of the National Military Council
Links
- The Generals of WWII; Generals from China; Tang_Shengzhi with photo
- 唐生智