Biography of Wu Peifu (Vol. 1 & 2)

Author: Guo Jianlin
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-03-01
Features: Wu Peifu was one of the most outstanding figures in the period of political and military dominance by the Beiyang faction in the history of the Republic of China. He joined the military with the elegance of a scholar during the height of the Self-Strengthening Movement and gradually rose from a low-ranking officer to become a general and eventually reached the pinnacle of power. On August 2, 1918, Wu Peifu first issued a telegraph from the front lines in Hengyang, Hunan, calling for a ceasefire and peace negotiations, withdrawing his troops northward, and urging his subordinates to resist orders and take military action against the authorities. He advocated for a nationwide ceasefire, opposed division, and sought a peaceful unification of the country. This was his second major act of patriotism and his political debut, which had a profound and far-reaching impact, earning him nationwide praise. By 1937, following the "September 18th Incident," Wu retreated to the capital and lived as a reclusive scholar in the Yan Mountains, studying Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism, and writing on the meaning of the Spring and Autumn Annals. After the Japanese occupation of Beijing and Tianjin, he refused the enemy's surrender offers and, with an indomitable and righteous spirit, fought against the enemy and maintained his integrity in his later years, bringing his tumultuous and arduous, yet full of ups and downs and somewhat legendary and mysterious life to an end. This book, guided by historical materialism, approaches the analysis and research of this unique traditional military figure and patriotic national leader from new perspectives and viewpoints.