Zhang Zhizhong

Zhang Zhizhong or Chang Chih-chung (27 October 1895 – 6 April 1969) was a military commander in the National Revolutionary Army of the Republic of China. He was born in Chaohu, Anhui, and attended the Baoding Military Academy from which he graduated in 1916. He attended Shanghai University in 1923 for one year. He then served in the local warlord armies of Yunnan and Guangxi before heeding the call of Nationalist leader Sun Yat-sen and moving to Guangzhou to become an instructor at the Whampoa Academy. He participated in the Northern Expedition, and after the Nationalists established the new republican government in Nanjing, became the commandant of the Central Military Academy. He joined in Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek's campaign against Yan Xishan and Feng Yuxiang, and led the 5th Army in the 1932 battle at Shanghai against Japan. Later, as the head of the 9th Army Group (第九集團軍), Zhang personally supervised the defense of Shanghai against Japan in 1937. Zhang is generally regarded as one of Chiang's close confidants.

Not to be confused with fellow general Zhang Zizhong.
This is a Chinese name; the family name is Zhang.

Zhang Zhizhong
張治中
General Zhang Zhizhong as pictured in The Most Recent Biographies of Important Chinese People
Governor of Sinkiang[1]
In office
March 1946 – June 1947
Preceded byTao Zhiyue
Succeeded byMasud Sabri
Personal details
Born27 October 1890
Chaohu, Qing dynasty
Died6 April 1969(1969-04-06) (aged 78)
Beijing, People's Republic of China
Alma materBaoding Military Academy
Military service
Allegiance Republic of China
 People's Republic of China
Years of service1928–1939
RankGeneral 2nd Class
CommandsBeijing Shanghai Garrison Corps
5th Army
9th Army Group
Battles/warsBattle of Shanghai (1932), (1937)
Battle of Changsha (1939), Ili Rebellion
Zhang Zhizhong
Traditional Chinese張治中
Simplified Chinese张治中

Later in the Second Sino-Japanese War, Zhang was later appointed Governor of Hunan and was responsible for the Great Fire of Changsha, a fire that got out of control when he ordered key buildings razed in anticipation of a coming Japanese attack (which failed to materialize at the expected time). He was relieved of his duty after this event and several individuals responsible for the faulty intelligence were executed. In 1940, he became the political director of the Military Affairs Commission.

He was Governor of Xinjiang from 1945–1948 during the Ili Rebellion.

In 1949 Zhang chose to remain on the mainland when Chiang and the remaining KMT forces fled to Taiwan, as he joined the Communists.

Timeline of military career
  • 1929–1937: Commandant of the Central Military Academy
  • 1932: General Officer Commanding V Corps
  • 1937: General Officer Commanding Nanking-Shanghai Garrison
  • 1937: Commander in Chief 9th Army Group
  • 1937: Commander in Chief Central Forces 3rd War Area
  • 1940: Chief Aide-de-Camp to the Generalissimo
  • 1940–1945: Minister of Political Training
  • 1940–1945: Member of the Military Affairs Commission
  • 1940–1945: Secretary-General of the Youth Corps San Min Chu I
  • 1945–1949: Director of Nationalist North-western Headquarters
  • 1946–1947: Chairman of the Government of Xinjiang Province
  • 1954: Vice-Chairman of the National Defense Council, People's Republic of China
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References
  1. Ondřej Klimeš (8 January 2015). Struggle by the Pen: The Uyghur Discourse of Nation and National Interest, c. 1900–1949. BRILL. p. 197. ISBN 978-90-04-28809-6.
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