Liu Ruming, Liu Ju-ming, 刘汝明, (1895–1975) Chinese general 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,...

, 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 Chinese Civil War

Chinese Civil War

The Chinese Civil War was a civil war fought between the Kuomintang , the governing party of the Republic of China, and the Communist Party of China , for the control of China which eventually led to China's division into two Chinas, Republic of China and People's Republic of...

.

Overview

Born in Hebei

Hebei

' is a province of the People's Republic of China in the North China region. Its one-character abbreviation is "" , named after Ji Province, a Han Dynasty province that included what is now southern Hebei...

 province, he became an important military officer in Feng Yuxiang

Feng Yuxiang

Feng Yuxiang was a warlord and leader in Republican China. He was also known as the Christian General for his zeal to convert his troops and the Betrayal General for his penchant to break with the establishment. In 1911, he was an officer in the ranks of Yuan Shikai's Beiyang Army but joined...

's Northwestern Army

Guominjun

The Guominjun , a.k.a Nationalist Army, KMC, or Northwest Army , refers to the military faction founded by Feng Yuxiang, Hu Jingyi and Sun Yue during China's Warlord Era. It was formed when Feng betrayed the Zhili clique during the Second Zhili-Fengtian War with the Fengtian clique in 1924...

. After the 1930 Central Plains War

Central Plains War

Central Plains War was a civil war within the factionalised Kuomintang that broke out in 1930. It was fought between the forces of Chiang Kai-shek and the coalition of three military commanders who had previously allied with Chiang: Yan Xishan, Feng Yuxiang, and Li Zongren...

 he took the post of 29th Army Deputy commander. He became Chairmen of the government of Chahar

Chahar (province)

Chahar , also known as Chaha'er, Chakhar, or Qahar, was a province of China in existence from 1912 to 1936, mostly covering territory in what is part of eastern Inner Mongolia. It was named after the Chahar Mongolians....

 Province in June 1936, holding it until October 1938.

In July 1937 he was commander of the 143rd Division, at the outbreak of the Second Sino-Japanese War. Later during Operation Chahar

Operation Chahar

Operation Chahar, known by the Japanese as チャハル作戦 and by the Chinese as the 长城抗战 , occurred in August 1937, following the Battle of Beiping-Tianjin at the beginning of the Second Sino-Japanese War....

 he commanded the defense of the provincial capital of Kalgan

Kalgan

Kalgan may refer to:* Kalgan, Western Australia, a town*Kalgan River, in Western Australia*An earlier name for Zhangjiakou, in Hebei Province, China*A name used by World Of Warcraft developer Tom Chilton...

 with the 7th Army Group Detachment as the Deputy commander of 7th Army in addition to command of his division. From then on he commanded the 68th Corps in the later phase of the Peiping – Hankow Railway Operation, and during many of the important battles in the war, the Battle of Xuzhou

Battle of Xuzhou

The Battle of Xuzhou was fought between Japanese and Chinese forces in May 1938 during Second Sino-Japanese War. In contemporary accounts in English, the event was usually referred to as the "Battle of Hsuchow", using the Chinese Postal Map Romanization....

, Battle of Wuhan

Battle of Wuhan

The Battle of Wuhan, popularly known to the Chinese as the Defence of Wuhan, and to the Japanese as the Capture of Wuhan, was a large-scale battle of the Second Sino-Japanese War...

, Battle of Suixian-Zaoyang

Battle of Suixian-Zaoyang

The Battle of Suixian–Zaoyang , also known as the Battle of Suizao was one of the 22 major engagements between the National Revolutionary Army and Imperial Japanese Army during the Second Sino-Japanese War.- The battle :...

, Battle of Zaoyang-Yichang

Battle of Zaoyang-Yichang

The Battle of Zaoyang–Yichang , also known as the Battle of Zaoyi was one of the 22 major engagements between the National Revolutionary Army and Imperial Japanese Army during the Second Sino-Japanese War....

, Battle of South Henan

Battle of South Henan

The Battle of South Henan , was one of the 22 major engagements between the National Revolutionary Army and Imperial Japanese Army during the Second Sino-Japanese War.This battle was the first time the NRA engaged the Japanese in southern Henan....

.

During Operation Ichigo, at the time of the Battle of West Henan-North Hubei

Battle of West Henan-North Hubei

The Battle of West Henan-North Hubei , was one of the 22 major engagements between the National Revolutionary Army and Imperial Japanese Army during the Second Sino-Japanese War. It was in northern Hubei and western Henan...

 in 1945 he was in command of the Western Henan Garrison and Western Henan Forces, the 2nd Army Group.

During the Chinese Civil War

Chinese Civil War

The Chinese Civil War was a civil war fought between the Kuomintang , the governing party of the Republic of China, and the Communist Party of China , for the control of China which eventually led to China's division into two Chinas, Republic of China and People's Republic of...

 in 1948 he was in command of 8th Army in the disastrous Huaihai Campaign

Huaihai Campaign

Huaihai Campaign or Battle of Hsupeng was a military action during 1948 and 1949 that was the determining battle of the Chinese Civil War. It was one of the few conventional battles of the war. 550,000 troops of the Republic of China were surrounded in Xuzhou and destroyed by the communist...

. His army tried but failed to relieve other trapped forces in the battle.

In 1949 he moved to Taiwan

Taiwan

Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...

 along with the Nationalist government. In 1952 he retired, and in 1974 died in Taipei

Taipei

Taipei City is the capital of the Republic of China and the central city of the largest metropolitan area of Taiwan. Situated at the northern tip of the island, Taipei is located on the Tamsui River, and is about 25 km southwest of Keelung, its port on the Pacific Ocean...

.

Sources

• Hsu Long-hsuen and Chang Ming-kai, History of The Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) 2nd Ed., 1971. Translated by Wen Ha-hsiung, Chung Wu Publishing; 33, 140th Lane, Tung-hwa Street, Taipei, Taiwan Republic of China.
• China; Administrative divisions
• zh.wikipedia, 刘汝明