The “China Lobby” in Tokyo: The Struggle of China’s Mission in Japan for General Douglas MacArthur’s Military Assistance in the Chinese Civil War, 1946-1949
In: Journal of Chinese Military HistoryAbstract
The Chinese Mission in Japan, which existed from 1946 until Japan regained its sovereignty as a result of the San Francisco Peace Treaty in 1952, represented the Republic of China in working with the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers (SCAP) in reconstructing postwar Japan. The original objective of the Chinese Mission was to serve as the government’s agency to carry out the repatriation of Japanese troops and civilians from China in coordination with the Allies, secure war reparations from Japan, and try war criminals. However, as President Harry S. Truman terminated US aid to China in 1947 and Guomindang (GMD) military fortunes in the Chinese Civil War declined under the command of Chiang Kai-shek, the Chinese Mission was given an additional assignment: to lobby General Douglas MacArthur to secure military assistance from SCAP. This essay discusses the interaction between the Chinese Mission and General MacArthur during the Chinese Civil War from 1946 to 1949 and examines the way in which the Chinese Mission persuaded him to play a role in the Civil War. This study argues that although it was in opposition to Washington, MacArthur’s determination to assist Chiang Kai-shek was in great part due to the strenuous lobbying of the Chinese Mission in Tokyo. Although MacArthur’s intervention could not reverse the final outcome of the Chinese Civil War, his anti-Communist outlook was formed and played a significant role during the Korean War a year later.
Purchase
Buy instant access (PDF download and unlimited online access):
Institutional Login
Log in with Open Athens, Shibboleth, or your institutional credentials
Personal login
Log in with your brill.com account
-
Chen Cheng fuzongtong wenwu 陳誠副總統文物 [Materials of Vice President Chen Cheng], 25 January 1949. Guoshiguan, 008-010101-00003-209. Academia Historica, Taipei.
-
Chiang Kai-shek Diaries. Hoover Institute, Stanford University (Stanford, California).
-
“Control of Japan: Far Eastern Commission in Washington and Allied Council in Tokyo: Minutes and Decisions.” Code 23 File 2. The National Archives, London.
-
Junshi weiyuanhui waishiju zuzhi tiaoli 軍事委員會外事局組織條例 [Organizational Clause of the Military Affairs Commission’s Foreign Affairs Bureau], December 1941. Guomindang Archives, 防004/0068. Taipei.
-
Shilüe gaoben—minguo sanshiba nian sanyue 事略稿本—民國三十八年三月[Manuscript Short Accounts], 5 March 1949. Guoshiguan, 002-060100-00250-005. Academia Historica, Taipei.
-
Vandenberg, Arthur H. “America’s Foreign Relations.” Cleveland Foreign Affairs Forum, January 11, 1947. Arthur H. Vandenberg Papers: 1884-1974. Bentley Historical Library, University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, Michigan).
-
Woguo zhu Ri daibiaotuan zonghe baogao 我國駐日代表團綜合報告 [General Report of the Chinese Mission in Japan], August 1947 to March 1949. Institute of Modern History Archives, 11-29-01-21-010. Academia Sinica, Taipei.
-
“Work of the Far Eastern Commission and Meetings of the Allied Council for Japan.” Code 23 File 7. The National Archives, London.
-
Ball, W. Macmahon, and Alan Rix. 1988. Intermittent Diplomat: The Japan and Batavia Diaries of W. Macmahon Ball. Carlton, Australia: Melbourne University Press.
-
Blakeslee, George H. 1951. “The Establishment of the Far Eastern Commission.” International Organization 5.3 (August 1951), 499-514.
-
Bland, Larry I., Roger B. Jeans, and Mark F. Wilkinson, eds. 1998. George C. Marshall’s Mediation Mission to China, December 1945-January 1947. Lexington, VA: George C. Marshall Foundation.
-
Boorman, Howard L., ed. 1970. Biographical Dictionary of Republican China. New York and London: Columbia University Press.
-
Cai Mengjian. 1999. “Yi He Shili yu wo zhuri gonghuannan gushi” [Memory of the Tough Days with He Shili in Japan]. Zhuanji wenxue 74.2, 54-58.
-
Finn, Richard B. 1992. Winners in Peace: MacArthur, Yoshida, and Postwar Japan. Berkeley: University of California Press.
-
Iriye, Akira, and Robert A. Wampler, eds. 2001. Partnership: The United States and Japan, 1951-2001. Tokyo and New York: Kodansha International.
-
Jiang Yongjing. 2015. Jiang Jieshi Mao Zedong de tanda yu juezhan [Negotiations and Fighting between Chiang Kai-shek and Mao Zedong]. Taipei: Shangwu yinshuguan.
-
Leffler, Melvyn P., and Odd Arne Westad, eds. 2010. The Cambridge History of the Cold War. Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press.
-
Lin Tongfa. 2009. Yijiusijiu dachetui [The Great Retreat in 1949]. Taipei: Lianjing Press.
-
Liu Fenghan. 1993. Sun Lianzhong xiansheng nianpu changbian [Chronology of Sun Lianzhong]. Taipei: Academia Historica.
-
Lu Fangshang. 2015. Jiang Zhongzheng xiansheng nianpu changbian [A Chronicle of Chiang Kai-shek]. Taipei: Academia Historica.
-
Sebald, William J. 1965. With MacArthur in Japan: A Personal History of the Occupation. London: The Cresset Press, 1965.
-
Tsou, Tang. 1963. America’s Failure in China, 1941-50. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
-
United States. Department of State. Foreign Relations of the United States. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office.
-
Van de Ven, Hans J. 2003. War and Nationalism in China, 1925-1945. Routledge Curzon Studies in the Modern History of Asia 10. London and New York: RoutledgeCurzon.
-
Wang Chaoguang. 2013. Zhongguo mingyun de juezhan [The Final Battle of China’s Destiny]. Nanjing: Jiangsu Renmin Press.
-
Yang Zizhen. 2009. “Zhongguo zhuri daibiaotuan zhi yanjiu—chutan zhanhou Zhongri Tairi guanxi zhi eryuan jiagou” [Research on the Chinese Mission in Japan: A Brief Examination on the Dual Structure of Sino-Japanese and Taiwan-Japanese Relationship]. Bulletin of Academia Historica (March), 68-69.
-
Zhu Ri daibiaotuan [The Chinese Mission in Japan]. 1980. Zai Ri banli peichang guihuan gongzuo zongshu [Summary of Dealing with the Reparations in Japan]. Taipei: Wenhai Press.
| All Time | Past Year | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract Views | 962 | 134 | 0 |
| Full Text Views | 83 | 27 | 0 |
| PDF Views & Downloads | 145 | 65 | 0 |
The “China Lobby” in Tokyo: The Struggle of China’s Mission in Japan for General Douglas MacArthur’s Military Assistance in the Chinese Civil War, 1946-1949
In: Journal of Chinese Military HistoryAbstract
The Chinese Mission in Japan, which existed from 1946 until Japan regained its sovereignty as a result of the San Francisco Peace Treaty in 1952, represented the Republic of China in working with the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers (SCAP) in reconstructing postwar Japan. The original objective of the Chinese Mission was to serve as the government’s agency to carry out the repatriation of Japanese troops and civilians from China in coordination with the Allies, secure war reparations from Japan, and try war criminals. However, as President Harry S. Truman terminated US aid to China in 1947 and Guomindang (GMD) military fortunes in the Chinese Civil War declined under the command of Chiang Kai-shek, the Chinese Mission was given an additional assignment: to lobby General Douglas MacArthur to secure military assistance from SCAP. This essay discusses the interaction between the Chinese Mission and General MacArthur during the Chinese Civil War from 1946 to 1949 and examines the way in which the Chinese Mission persuaded him to play a role in the Civil War. This study argues that although it was in opposition to Washington, MacArthur’s determination to assist Chiang Kai-shek was in great part due to the strenuous lobbying of the Chinese Mission in Tokyo. Although MacArthur’s intervention could not reverse the final outcome of the Chinese Civil War, his anti-Communist outlook was formed and played a significant role during the Korean War a year later.
| All Time | Past Year | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract Views | 962 | 134 | 0 |
| Full Text Views | 83 | 27 | 0 |
| PDF Views & Downloads | 145 | 65 | 0 |