Zhang Lingfu
| Zhang Lingfu | |
|---|---|
Lieutenant General Zhang Lingfu
|
|
| Native name | 張靈甫 |
| Nickname(s) | The lame legged general |
| Born |
August 20, 1903 Xi'an |
| Died | May 16, 1947 (aged 43) Mengyin County, Shandong |
| Allegiance |
 Republic of China
|
| Years of service | 1924–1947 |
| Rank | Lieutenant General |
| Unit | 1st division, 1st corps |
| Commands held | 58th division, 74th corps |
| Battles/wars | |
| Awards | Order of Precious Tripod |
Zhang Lingfu (traditional Chinese: 張靈甫; simplified Chinese: 张灵甫; pinyin: Zhāng Língfǔ; August 20, 1903 – May 16, 1947) was a high-ranking general of the Chinese National Revolutionary Army. He successfully fought against the Communists and the Imperial Japanese Army. In 1947, his unit was surrounded by Chinese communist forces commanded by Field Marshal Chen Yi and General Su Yu. Zhang was unable to breakout from the communist encirclement because the relief efforts headed by his nationalist colleagues did not arrive on time, and he was killed in action in the Menglianggu Campaign on May 16, 1947.
Zhang was born with the given name of Zhonglin (鐘麟) in a rural gentry family outside of Xi'an, the capital of Shaanxi province. He was a gifted calligrapher during his middle school days and was praised by his schoolmaster Yu Youren, a famous calligrapher and educator of the time. In 1924, he was admitted to Peking University as a history major. In 1924 he abandoned his studies and traveled with other young students to the south, joining the Whampoa Military Academy, some of his notable classmates included Du Yuming, Fan Hanjie, Li Mi, Qiu Qingquan, Hu Lien, Liu Yuzhang, Guan Linzheng and Lin Biao. As a member of the fourth graduating class of the Academy, he joined the first corps of the National Revolutionary Army, Chiang Kai-shek served as the corps commander as well as commander-in-chief of the North Expedition. After the KMT-CCP split occurred, he stayed with the Chinese Nationalist Party and served at platoon, battalion, and regiment levels during the Anti-Communist Encirclement Campaigns against the Jiangxi Soviet under nationalist general Hu Zongnan. In 1936, he suspected his wife of having affairs, so he shot her dead in his home. Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek sentenced him to ten years in prison.
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