Ep. 319 | The History of Taiwan (Part 10)

The first five years of the 1950s were ones to remember. The Korean War, the Cold War, The First Taiwan Strait Crisis, the Sino-American Mutual Defense Treaty, Formosa Resolution Act, Tuapse Incident, May 24th Incident, the MAAG, the USTDC, and all these other acronyms that surrounded the US-Taiwan alliance. Buckle your seatbelts and sit back for the next forty minutes. If you think tensions in today's whacky world are outta sight, get a load of what was going on off the coast of the People's Republic of China during the immediate years following Liberation on the Mainland.

Listen On Your Favorite Podcast Player


Terms in Episode

Pinyin/TermChineseEnglish/Meaning
Chén Yí陈仪 / 陳儀1883-1950, was the chief executive and garrison commander of Taiwan Province after Japan surrendered. He acted on behalf of the Allied Powers to accept the Japanese Instrument of Surrender in Taipei Zhongshan Hall on October 25, 1945. He is considered to have mismanaged the tension between the Taiwanese and Mainland Chinese
Wèi Dàomíng魏道明1899-1978, ROC diplomat who served as the Chinese diplomat to the US during the war years and later served as the first civilian governor of Taiwan from 1947-1949
Hú Shì胡适1891-1962, Chinese diplomat, essayist, literary scholar, philosopher and KMT politician. He was a giant in 20th century Chinese literature and history
Wellington Koo (Gù Wéijūn)顾维钧1888-1985, ROC statesman and diplomat as well as an author, featured in CHP episodes 214-215
Sòng Měilíng宋美龄1898-2003, known as Madame Chiang Kai-shek, an extremely influential and consewquential figure from the first half of the 20th century. Besides her role as First Lady of the ROC she was active in the diplomacy of the country and tirelessly raised funds and awareness during China's dark years from 1937-1945
Jīlóng基隆Officially known as Keelung City. It's a major port city situated in the northeastern part of Taiwan. The city is a part of the Taipei–Keelung metropolitan area, along with its neighbors, New Taipei City and Taipei.
Běnshěngrén本省人Someone of "this province", meaning the people native to Taiwan (as opposed to the wàishěngrén 外省人 who had migrated to Taiwan during and after the Chinese Civil War)
Dù Yùmíng杜聿明1904-1981, KMT field commander who fought mostly in south China and in Burma during the Sino-Japanese War
Chén Chéng陈诚1898-1965, ROC military leader and one of the main army commanders during the Sino-Japanese War and Chinese Civil War. Alsio served as governor of Taiwan, vice-president of the ROC from 1954-1965 and premier from 1958-1963
Lín Biāo林彪1907-1971, Chinese military great, one of the Marshal's of the PLA. We'll get to him one day in a future CHP episode
Liáoshěn Campaign辽参会战Major military campaign during the final years of the Chinese Civil War that lasted September 12 to November 2, 1948
Huáihǎi Campaign淮海战役The second major military campaign during the final years of the Chinese Civil War that lasted November 6,1948 to January 10, 1949
Píngjìn Campaign平津战役The third major military campaign during the final years of the Chinese Civil War that lasted November 29, 1948 to January 31, 1949
Jiǎng Jīngguó蒋经国1910-1988, Mostly written as Chiang Ching-kuo, he was the son of Chiang Kai-shek and served as president of the ROC from 1978-1988 and premier from 1972-1978
King Wǔ Dīng武丁His personal name was Zi Zhao who served as a king of the Shang dynasty who ruled China around 1200s BC. He is the earliest figure in Chinese history mentioned in contemporary records.
Lǐ Zōngrén李宗仁1890-1969, a Guangxi warlord and KMT military commander during the Second Sino-Japanese War and Chinese Civil War. Also served as vice-poresident and acting president of the ROC 1949-1950 and then vice president from 1948-1954
Hǎinán海南An island province off the coast of western Guangdong
Lú Hàn卢汉1895-1974, a Chinese general from the Yi ethnic minority who served in the ROC military and later defected to the communists
Lǐ Mí李弥1902-1973, ROC general who fought in the Second Sino-Japanese War and in the Chinese Civil War. He is most remembered for retreating south of the Yunnan border into Burma where he kept up the fight against the communists
Dà Chètuì大撤退The retreat of the remnants of the KMT government of the Republic of China to the island of Taiwan after losing the Chinese Civil War in 1949. The KMT, its officers, and approximately 1-2 million ROC troops took part in the retreat, in addition to many civilians and refugees, fleeing the advance of the People's Liberation Army
T.V. Soong. (Sòng Zǐwén)宋子文1894-1971, prominent financier, politician and major mover and shaker for the ROC during the 1930's to 1960's. He was the older brother of Madame Chiang Kai-shek
Zhèjiāng浙江A coastal province in Eastern China, south of Jiangsu and north of Fujian
Qīngtián County青田县A city in Zhejiang halfway between Wēnzhōu 温州 and Lìshǔi 丽水
Whampoa Military Academy中华民国陆军军校The Military academy for the army of the Republic of China, previously known as the Whampoa Military Academy, the military academy produced commanders who fought in many of China's conflicts in the 20th century, notably the Northern Expedition, the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Chinese Civil War. The military academy was officially opened on May 1, 1924, under the Kuomintang
Jiāngxī江西Province in southeast China
Jǐnggāngshān井冈山A county-level city in southwest Jiangxi that served as Mao's Central Revolutionary Base, or Jiangxi-Fujian Soviet from 1931-1935
Jīnmén金门Known as Kinmen or Quemoy, it is an island off the coast of Xiamen that is occupied by the ROC. It will be the site of several battles between the ROC and PRC forces. It lies roughly 10 km east of Xiamen, from which it is separated by Xiamen Bay. Jinmen is located 187 km west from the shoreline of the island of Taiwan across the Taiwan Strait.
Gǔníngtóu古宁头Locasted in northwest Jinmen, Guningtou was the site of a major battle between the PLA and ROC troops from October 25-27, 1949
Xiàmén厦门Major city in southern Fujian, also known as Amoy
Chóngqìng重庆Once a major city in Sichiuan province, Chongqing is now a municipality in its own right
Hokkien福建In the Minnan dialect, the people, language and culture of southern Fujian
Shānxī山西Province in north China
Yán Xīshān阎锡山1883-1960, known as The Shanxi Warlord and The Model Warlord, he controlled Shanxi province from 1911 to 1949. After the Civil War he became a politician in the ROC government
Tàiyuán太原Capital of Shanxi Province
Tāng Énbó汤恩伯1898-1954, onr of Chiang Kai-shek's major generals during the Sino-Japanese War and duirng the Chinese Civil War
Guóguāng Jìhuà国光计划Project National Glory….the most serious attempt by the Nationalists to reconquer the mainland
Sūn Lìrén孙立人1900-1990, known as The Rommel of the East, Sun was one of the major military figures during the Sino-Japanese War and Chinese Civil War. A favorite of American politicians and military figures, Chiang didn't trust him and sidelined him, keeping him under house arrest for 30 years

Enjoy the show and want to support the CHP?

Join the Teacup Patreon

Make a Direct Donation

Buy Laszlo a Cup of Coffee


Previous
Previous

Ep. 320 | The History of Taiwan (Part 11)

Next
Next

Ep. 318 | The History of Taiwan (Part 9)