World War II Database

Contributor: C. Peter Chen

ww2dbaseLiu Yuzhang, courtesy name Linsheng, was born in Xingping County, Shaanxi Province, Qing Dynasty China in 1903. In 1925, he was accepted into the infantry program at Whampoa Military Academy in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China. He saw action in the Northern Expedition of 1926 and the Central Plains War of 1930. In 1933, he led troops at the battalion level at the Gubeikou pass of the Great Wall during the First Battle of Hebei; he suffered a bullet wound to the right shoulder during this battle. When the Second Sino-Japanese War broke out, he was promoted to command the 5th Regiment of the 2nd Division in Sep 1937. In the early phases of WW2, he participated in the Battle of Tai'erzhuang of Mar-Apr 1938 and the Battle of Wuhan of Jun-Oct 1938. In Sep 1939, he participated in the First Battle of Changsha, during which he was promoted to brigade command. In May-Jun 1940, he led troops at the Battle of Yichang. In 1941, he was promoted by General Guan Linzheng to command the 2nd Division of Guan's 52nd Corps. This promotion caused some controversy as Liu was selected over a few others who had seniority; Liu Ping, Deng Shifu, and Zhong Zuyin were among those who formally lodged complaints, all to no success. Later in 1941, he saw action in the Second Battle of Changsha.

ww2dbaseWhen the war ended in 1945, Liu and his 2nd Division performed occupation duties in the Hanoi-Haiphong region in Tonkin, French Indochina (now Vietnam), and accepted the surrender of several Japanese general officers . In late Oct 1945, with the rest of the 52nd Corps, he was transported by the US 7th Fleet from Do Son near Haiphong to northeastern China in an attempt to prevent communist capture of key cities. In Mar 1946, he achieved a victory against communist forces near Mukden, opening a flank against weaker communist positions in Andong Province further east, which he would secure in 5 days. He was promoted to the rank of lieutenant general after the victory at Mukden. When the tide turned in 1948, he personally commanded troops of the 52nd Corps in a rearguard action in the Huludao, Liaoning region against oncoming communist troops as other Nationalists withdrew via transports. He boarded the very last evacuation ship on 31 Oct 1948; it was said that he shed a tear, noting that he thought the Nationalists would never see northeastern China again. In the summer of 1949, he saw action against the communists in Shanghai as the commanding officer of the Shanghai Defense Command. As the Nationalist government continued to suffer losses against the communists, he and his troops eventually fled to Zhoushan, Zhejiang Province, China, and ultimately to Taiwan in 1950.

ww2dbaseIn Taiwan, Liu was made the commanding officer of Central Region Defense in 1953. Between May 1954 and Nov 1957, he was made the commanding officer of the Kinmen Defense Command, in which role he led Nationalist troops through the First and Second Taiwan Strait Crisis. In Jul 1957, he was made the deputy commander-in-chief of the Republic of China Army. In 1958, he was made the general in charge of training of the Army Reserve. In Dec 1959, he studied at the US Army Command and General Staff College, and subsequently, with US Army advisors, reformed several training programs. In 1960, he was promoted to the rank of General 2nd Class. In 1963, he was assigned to the Taiwan Garrison Command. In Jul 1967, he was made the commanding officer of the Taiwan Garrison Command. In Jun 1970, upon his retirement, he was promoted to the rank of General 1st Class, and shortly after made a special advisor to President Chiang Kaishek. Later, he was made a member of the Tenth and then Eleventh Central Committee of the Nationalist Party. He passed away in Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China in Apr 1981.

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Liu Yuzhang Timeline