On November 18, 1945 my father was in the Forbidden City. The photos featured here are from that day. All photos were taken by him.
One photo shows KMT troops entering the Forbidden City. Another shows Chiang Kai-shek’s Minister of War and his staff. His name, I believe, was Chen Cheng.
So far I have found very little information about him with the exception of this English-language profile on Wikipedia. I am not the fondest fan of Wikipedia, though in this case it provides a starting off place for further research. Go to this link for Chen Cheng’s biographical profile.
Chen Cheng was appointed by Generalissimo Chiang Kai-sek to serve as the Chief of the General Staff, a rank and title that sounds similar to a Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in the American military. According to this source Chen implemented Chiang’s orders to attack areas controlled by the Communist Red Army. This apparently instigated the Chinese Civil War.
I have no idea yet why he was in the Forbidden City on November 18, 1945. His presence there occurred just after an incident in Chineangtao in which gunfire was exchanged between members of the 1st Marine Division and Red Army forces. No one was hurt or killed. The New York Times reported that a Communist spokesman justified the incident as necessary so long as American troops transported “Government troops” (KMT forces). The incident was reported in the November 18 edition of the New York Times. Again, I’d be interested in knowing where Chen Cheng was at the time.
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