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Sun Li-jen (Traditional Chinese: 孫立人; Hanyu Pinyin: Sūn Lìrén]]) (November 19, 1899–November 19, 1990) was a Kuomintang general, best known for his leadership in the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Chinese Civil War. His achievements earned him the laudatory nickname "Rommel of the East". His New 1st Army was reputed as the "1st [Best] Army under the heaven" and credited with defeating the most Japanese troops. He was also known as Sun Chung-neng (孫仲能, Sūn Zhòngnéng) and had the courtesy name Sun Fu-min (孫撫民, Sūn Fǔmín).
Early life
Sun Li-jen was born in Jinnu Town, Lujiang County, Anhui province, with ancestry in Shucheng County. During the May Fourth Movement, he was part of the Scouts in the march at Tiananmen Square. In the same year (1919) he married Gong Xitao (龔夕濤) and was admitted in 1920 to Qinghua University to study civil engineering. He transfered to Purdue University in the United States to complete his senior year in 1923, where he graduated in 1925. But in the United States, ideological zeal motivated him to dramatically change vocations and pursue a military career instead. China was in the middle of civil war, and Soviet and Japanese invaders seemed poised to devour China. Sun decided that he could better serve his divided nation as a soldier rather than an Engineer.
He applied to the prestigious Virginia Military Institute (VMI), also in the United States, lying about his age by four years so that me would appear young enough to meet the admissions requirements. He graduated from VMI in 1927, and joined Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek in the Northern Expedition against the warlord generals of Beiyang Army. During the Northern Expedition and the latter war against the Chinese Communists in the Chinese Civil War, Sun Li-jen became a highly effective field officer and valued subordinate to Chiang Kai-shek.
In Taiwan Sun was arrested in August 1955, charged for attempting to launch a coup against Chiang Kai-shek. He remained under house arrest until March 20, 1988, shortly after Chiang Ching-kuo's death. He died in his Taichung home at the age of 91 (92 according to the Chinese calendar).
The Control Yuan formally cleared him of charges in January 2001.[1] (http://taipeitimes.com/chnews/2001/01/27/story/0000071269)
References - General Sun memorial website at National Tsing Hua University (http://vm.rdb.nthu.edu.tw/general/index.html)
- Dedication to The Late General Sun Li Jen, designed by his foster son Chieh Chung (http://www.science.uwaterloo.ca/~cchieh/sun/) (permission to use the contents of this website has been granted. see take page)
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