T. V. Soong
T. V. Soong | |
---|---|
宋子文 | |
Kung Hsiang-hsi | |
In office 11 October 1930 – 16 December 1931 | |
Premier | Himself (acting) Chiang Kai-shek |
Preceded by | Feng Yuxiang |
Succeeded by | Chen Mingshu |
Personal details | |
Born | Soong Tse-vung 4 December 1894 St Luke's Hospital, Republic of China |
Political party | Kuomintang |
Spouse | Lo-Yi Chang |
Parent(s) | Charlie Soong and Nyi Kwei-twang (Ni Kwei-tseng) |
Alma mater | Harvard University Columbia University |
Soong Tse-vung, more commonly romanized as Soong Tse-ven or Soong Tzu-wen (Chinese: 宋子文; pinyin: Sòng Zǐwén; 4 December 1894 – 25 April 1971), was a Chinese businessman, banker, and politician who served as Premier of the Republic of China between 1945 and 1947.
Early life and education
T. V. Soong was born at St. Luke's Hospital in the
Career
Upon returning to China, he worked for several industrial enterprises, and was then recruited by
He founded the
In the summer of 1940, Chiang appointed Soong to Washington, D.C., as his personal representative. His task was to win support for China's war with Japan. Soong successfully negotiated substantial loans for this purpose. After Pearl Harbor, Chiang appointed Soong
During his tenure as
During the German invasion of Russia, Soong was in charge of negotiating with the Soviet leader Joseph Stalin regarding Soviet interests in China, and travelled to Moscow to extract from Stalin a guarantee to oppose the Chinese Communist Party. Soong conceded to Stalin the Manchurian railways and Korean independence but refused to allow Soviet interference in Xinjiang or military bases in Manchuria. He also indicated that China and the Soviet Union could share dominion over Mongolia if a "mutual assistance pact" was agreed to.[9] Soong was known for his tough negotiating style with Stalin in getting straight to the point and freely using the threat of American military backing to strengthen his demands. When the Sino-Soviet treaty was signed, China ceded to the Soviets parts of Mongolia, the use of a naval base at Port Arthur (with civilian rule remaining Chinese), and co-ownership of the Chinese Eastern Railway in Manchuria.[10]: 1
In return, Soong extracted from Stalin recognition of the Republic of China as the legitimate regime of China, aid from the Soviets, and an oral agreement to an eventual Soviet withdrawal from Manchuria.[10]: 2 The treaty failed to end tension in China with the communists, which resulted in renewed fighting after Chinese communist revolution.[11] Stalin had previously told the Americans that Franklin Roosevelt should inform Chiang Kai-shek of the Russian demands in Manchuria, at the Yalta Conference, before Stalin informed Soong.[12]
During the war years, he financed the
Criticism of Soong increased as the Nationalist government's financial crisis increased during January and early February 1947.[7]: 138 Rival Nationalist individuals and factions which criticized him included those associated with Sun Ke, Zhang Qun, CC Clique, and the Gexin movement.[7]: 138 The Gexin movement criticized Soong for what the group described as his bureaucratic capitalism, a phrase likely adopted from the communists' criticisms of Soong.[7]: 138–139 The Gexin movement influenced many newspaper's criticisms of Soong.[7]: 138–139 Its criticisms of Soong were also echoed in the Legislative Yuan.[7]: 138
On March 1, 1947, Soong resigned as president of the Executive Yuan.
Death
On 25 April 1971, Soong choked to death in San Francisco at a dinner party hosted by the chairman of the San Francisco branch of the Bank of Canton, when a piece of chicken lodged in his windpipe.[15] Soong was survived by his widow, Lo-Yi Chang (張樂怡; Chang¹ Lê⁴-I²; Zhāng Lèyí), who had taken on the English name of Laura Chang Soong.
See also
References
- ^ "Ex-Premier of China, Soong, Dies in S.F.", San Mateo Times, 26 April 1971, p2. From the article in the Monday paper, Soong "died here Sunday night"
- ^ "Archived". Archived from the original on 29 November 2020. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)[dead link] - ^ "Harvard Graduate Is Leading Chinese Revolutionists to Financial Stability--T. V. Soong '15 Has Modernized Methods | News | The Harvard Crimson". www.thecrimson.com. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
- ^ Kuo, Tai-chun; Lin, Hsiao-ting (2003). T.V. Soong in Modern Chinese History (PDF). Stanford University: Hoover Institution Press.
- ^ "Soong, T.V.," Boorman Vol 3, p. 149.
- ^ "Foreign News: Chiang's Cabinet". Time. 29 October 1928. Archived from the original on 21 November 2010. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-009-29761-5.
- ^ "CHINA: Soong Out". Time. 6 November 1933. Archived from the original on 22 November 2010. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
- ^ "CHINA: Top Secret". Time. 30 July 1945. Archived from the original on 8 November 2011. Retrieved 6 June 2011.
- ^ a b "THE NATIONS: Light in the East". Time. 3 September 1945. Archived from the original on 16 June 2010. Retrieved 6 June 2011.
- ^ "Foreign News: REPORT ON CHINA". Time. 19 November 1945. p. 1. Archived from the original on 8 November 2011. Retrieved 6 June 2011.
- ^ "HISTORICAL NOTES: We Believed in Our Hearts". Time. 13 September 1948. p. 1. Archived from the original on 1 February 2011. Retrieved 6 June 2011.
- John P. Davies, Dragon by the Tail, p.266.
- ^ ISBN 978-0786888627.
- ^ "Soong Choked to Death on Food, Coroner Says", Los Angeles Times, 27 April 1971, p28
Sources
- Halberstam, David (2007). The Coldest Winter: America and the Korean War. New York: Hyperion. ISBN 978-1-4013-0052-4.
- Boorman, Howard (1967). Biographical Dictionary of Republican China. New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 0-231-08957-0.
Seagrave, Sterling (19 April 1986). The Soong Dynasty. Harper Perennial.