Hu Lien

Hu Lien
胡璉
Hu Lien as a Colonel
Republic of China Ambassador to South Vietnam
In office October 14, 1964 – December 20, 1972
Preceded by	Yuan Zijian
Succeeded by	Xu Shaochang
Personal details
Born	(1907-10-01)October 1, 1907 Hua County, Shaanxi, Qing dynasty (now Huazhou District, Weinan, Shaanxi)
Died	June 22, 1977(1977-06-22) (aged 69) Taipei, Taiwan
Awards	Order of Blue Sky and White Sun
Nickname	"The Old Man"
Military service
Allegiance	Republic of China
Branch/service	National Revolutionary Army Republic of China Army
Years of service	1926–1977
Rank	General
Unit	11th division
Commands	11th Division 18th Army 12th Army Group (Deputy) Kinmen Defense Command
Battles/wars	Northern Expedition Central Plains War Second Sino-Japanese War Battle of Shanghai Battle of Western Hubei Battle of West Hunan Chinese Civil War Nanma–Linqu Campaign Shuangduiji Campaign Battle of Guningtou Battle of Nanri Island Second Taiwan Strait Crisis

In this Chinese name, the family name is Hu.

Hu Lien (traditional Chinese: 胡璉; simplified Chinese: 胡琏; pinyin: Hú Liǎn, courtesy name Boyu (伯玉); October 1, 1907 – June 22, 1977) was a Chinese NRA general. His career spanned the Northern Expedition, the Encirclement Campaigns, the Central Plains War, the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Chinese Civil War. He later served as the Republic of China's ambassador to South Vietnam from 1964 to 1972.

Early career

Hu was born in Hua County (now Huazhou District), Shaanxi in 1907. He studied at the Whampoa Military Academy, and graduated alongside Lin Biao in 1925. After graduating, he joined the National Revolutionary Army and fought during the Northern Expedition. Following the end of the Northern Expedition, a coalition of warlords led by Feng Yuxiang, Yan Xishan and the New Guangxi clique who had supported the National Revolutionary Army attempted to wrestle control from Chiang Kai-shek's Nanjing government in the Central Plains War. Hu was ordered to command a company against Feng Yuxiang's forces, and despite heavy artillery fire, Hu's company held its position. At the end of the conflict Hu was promoted to battalion commander. During the first phase of the Chinese Civil War, Hu participated in multiple encirclement campaigns against the Chinese Communists, eventually being promoted to deputy commander of the 11th Division just prior to the outbreak of the war with Japan.

Second Sino-Japanese War

Hu was a regiment commander in the 11th division during the Battle of Shanghai. He was wounded several times (including a shot through the jaw) and was promoted to division commander after the Chinese defeat. As part of their proposed Sichuan invasion plan, the Imperial Japanese Army attacked Western Hubei, hoping to destroy the Chongqing government's last remaining power base. Under Hu's command, the newly formed 18th Corps repulsed the Japanese attack. Afterwards, he was awarded with the Order of Blue Sky and White Sun for his brave actions.

Chinese Civil War

Following the end of the Second Sino-Japanese War, the Second United Front dissolved, and the Chinese Civil War quickly resumed. As a result of Hu's military record, his unit was deployed around Central and Eastern China as a firefighting brigade against the Chinese Communists. His campaigns were successful in defeating the communist forces, defeating communist commanders such as Liu Bocheng and Su Yu. Before the Huaihai Campaign in 1948, Hu's father died and he had dental problems from jaw wound suffered in battle of Shanghai, and thus he was absent from the military front. When the 12th Army Group was surrounded by the communist troops in Anhui, Hu was flown in a small airplane to the battlefield, and personally led a rescue mission and breakout from the encirclement with the remnant of his troops. After a week of retreat, he reached Nanjing and Chiang Kai-shek tasked him with reorganizing the 12th Army Group. He had twice been appointed as commander of the Kinmen Defense Command, and defeated the People's Liberation Army forces sent to attack Kinmen during the Battle of Guningtou. Hu also commanded the Republic of China Army forces sent to raid Nanri Island in October 1952. During the Second Taiwan Strait Crisis in August 1958, he was nearly killed by the People's Liberation Army artillery barrage that killed three deputy commanders of the Kinmen Defense Command, Ji Xingwen, Zhao Jiaxiang, and Zhang Jie. By September 11, the Republic of China's position had improved enough for their forces to start shelling Xiamen on the mainland. In late 1958, Hu's command in Kinmen was replaced by Liu Anqi.

Later career

Hu's House in Kinmen

In Taiwan, Hu played a major role in Taiwan–Vietnam relations, serving as the ambassador to South Vietnam in Saigon from 1964 to 1972. He survived multiple attempts on his life, such as the 1967 Saigon Chinese embassy bombing. His appointment to the Republic of Vietnam was part of the Republic of China's policy of sharing its expertise in anti-communist affairs with other countries in the region. Chiang Kai-shek had deep faith in his military leadership and gave a sword with inlaid jewels to Hu. He was promoted to four-star general in 1975 after nearly fifty years of army service. Hu died from a heart attack in 1977 and was buried in Kinmen, the same island where he had defeated communist forces in 1949 and 1958.