Wang Ya-chiao

Wang Ya-chiao
王亞樵
Born(1886-09-02)2 September 1886
Hefei, Anhui Province
Died20 September 1936(1936-09-20) (aged 50)
Wuzhou, Guangxi Province
Cause of death
Assassination (gunshot wounds)
CitizenshipRepublic of China
OccupationsUnderworld leader, assassin, political activist
Employer(s)Regional warlords, Nationalist Regional Cliques
Organisation(s)Anhui clique, New Guangxi Clique

Wang Ya-chiao (Chinese: 王亞樵) was a Chinese political activist, assassin, and underworld figure active during the Republican era. He was a member of the Tongmenghui and an assassin active during the Republican period of China.[1]

Biography

Wang was born in Hefei, Anhui Province. In his early years, Wang joined the Tongmenghui. After the Wuchang Uprising, he and fellow villagers Li Yuanfu and Wang Chuanzhu attempted an uprising in Luzhou in support of the revolution, but it failed, forcing him to flee to Shanghai. In 1913, Wang became associated with anarchist circles and adopted the concept of "propaganda by the deed".[2] Chinese scholarship notes that anarchist ideology influenced radical activism in the late Qing and early Republican period.[3]

In 1921, he organised an association of Anhui natives in Shanghai "Anhui Labor Union Federation" (Chinese: 安徽劳工总会) and later merged another association "Anhui Compatriots Association in Shanghai" (Chinese: 安徽旅沪同乡会) into a single union, which competed with underworld figures such as Huang Jinrong and Du Yuesheng. The group became known as the "Axe Gang" (Chinese: 斧头帮) because they are armed with small axes commonly carried by dockworkers for cutting ropes. [4] During this period, Wang mentored Dai Li, who would later become Chiang Kai-shek's spymaster and chief of the chinese secret police.[5][6]

In 1923, Wang orchestrated the assassination of Xu Guoliang, the Shanghai Songhu Police Department Chief appointed by Jiangsu warlord Qi Xieyuan; an event linked by historians to the escalation of tensions leading to Jiangsu–Zhejiang War.[7] Wang subsequently developed ties with Zhejiang military governor and Anhui clique warlord Lu Yongxiang, as Xu Guoliang had been a close associate of Jiangsu military governor and Zhili clique warlord Qi Xieyuan.[5][6][8] In 1924, Lu Yongxiang’s forces were defeated by those of Qi Xieyuan during the Jiangsu–Zhejiang conflict. Following this defeat, Wang subsequently worked with elements of the Nationalist-aligned New Guangxi clique. Historians note that assassination and irregular violence were common tools in warlord-era politics.[9]

During the January 28 Incident, Wang supported the 19th Route Army and reportedly organised attacks against Japanese naval forces using his Axe Gang. After the ceasefire, he contacted Korean nationalist leaders in exile. In cooperation with Korean activist Yun Bong-gil, a bombing was carried out on 29 April 1932, at Hongkew Park in Shanghai during a Japanese celebration. The attack killed and injured several high-ranking Japanese officials, including General Yoshinori Shirakawa, who later died of his wounds.[10] Research highlights the role of transnational anti-Japanese cooperation in this attack.[11]

In 1933, Wang joined the Fujian Rebellion against the Nationalist government. After its failure, he continued to be associated with plots targeting Chiang Kai-shek and other Nationalist leaders. Wang was sometimes described in contemporary accounts as the "King of Assassins" for his reported involvement in multiple assassination plots targeting Japanese military personnel and individuals associated with Japanese interests, as well as Chinese government officials in the context of opposition to Nationalist government's policies of appeasement towards Japan. He was reported to have been involved in an assassination attempt against T. V. Soong in 1931. In November 1935, an associate of Wang attempted to assassinate Wang Jingwei, seriously injuring him.[12]

He was assassinated in Guangxi in 1936. Scholarly accounts differ on whether the killing was ordered by the Nationalist Juntong or rival political actors.[13]

Legacy

Former Republic of China intelligence officer Shen Zui described Wang as a feared figure among both political leaders and underworld elites.

Hua Kezhi, a former Juntong agent who later became a vice minister in the People's Republic of China, described Wang as a complex individual with egalitarian tendencies, sympathy for workers, and a disregard for authority, though impulsive and unpredictable.

Historians describe Wang as a figure representing the intersection of political radicalism and organized violence in Republican China.[14]

Bibliography

  • Wakeman, Frederic (2003). Spymaster : Dai Li and the Chinese secret service. Berkeley, California: University of California Press.

References

  1. ↑ Wakeman, Frederic Jr. (1995). Policing Shanghai, 1927–1937. University of California Press. ISBN 9780520207615.
  2. ↑ Dirlik, Arif (1991). Anarchism in the Chinese Revolution. University of California Press. ISBN 9780520082649.
  3. ↑ Li, Jinzheng (2004). "中国近代无政府主义思潮研究". 近代史研究 (Modern Chinese History Studies) (3).
  4. ↑ Wakeman, Frederic Jr. (1995). Policing Shanghai, 1927–1937. University of California Press. ISBN 9780520207615.
  5. 1 2 "炸日本军舰刺杀蒋介石：揭秘历史上真实的斧头帮主". 军武次位面. 31 August 2020.
  6. 1 2 暗杀风云王亚樵. 1 September 2014. ISBN 978-7511722751.
  7. ↑ Wakeman, Frederic Jr. (1995). Policing Shanghai, 1927–1937. University of California Press. ISBN 9780520207615.
  8. ↑ Sexton, John (12 November 2018). Alliance of Adversaries: The Congress of the Toilers of the Far East. p. 105. ISBN 978-9004280670.
  9. ↑ Yang, Kuisong (2011). 中华民国史（1912–1949）. Social Sciences Academic Press.
  10. ↑ Duus, Peter (1995). The Abacus and the Sword. University of California Press. ISBN 9780520213616.
  11. ↑ Jin, Guangyao (2008). "虹口公园爆炸案与中韩抗日合作". 抗日战争研究 (Studies of the War of Resistance Against Japan) (4).
  12. ↑ Wakeman, Frederic Jr. (1995). Policing Shanghai, 1927–1937. University of California Press. ISBN 9780520207615.
  13. ↑ Wakeman, Frederic Jr. (2003). Spymaster: Dai Li and the Chinese Secret Service. University of California Press. ISBN 9780520234079.
  14. ↑ Wakeman, Frederic Jr. (1995). Policing Shanghai, 1927–1937. University of California Press. ISBN 9780520207615.
This page is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.