Who's Who in China (3rd edition)/Chang Ching-hui

General Chang Ching-hui

張景惠字敘五

General Chang Ching-hui was born in 1873 at Tanan, Fengtien, and brought up at a place which was thickly infested with a class of highwaymen called "Hunghutzu." The environment much influenced him and he soon became a leader commanding thousands of those persons. He showed bravery in many encounters with government troops. Later, together with General Chang Tso-lin, General Chang surrendered to the authorities and became an officer of the government army. While serving in the Manchurian Army, he enrolled himself as a student of the Military Academy where he graduated after a few years. The first military rank he received from the Republican government was that of a Colonel in the Infantry. He was commander of the 105fh Regiment of the 27th Division, and later became that of the 28th Cavalry Regiment. Shortly afterwards he was transferred to the command of the 27th Cavalry Regiment. Third Class Chiaho and Fourth Class Paokuang Chiaho were the decorations conferred upon General Chang in the first few years of the Republic. In 1916 he was made a Major General. In December 1917 General Chang was promoted to be the Commander of the Fifty-Third Brigade of the Twenty-Seventh Division. A year later he was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant-General. In 1919 General Chang was promoted to be Commander of the Twenty-Seventh Division. In December 1919 he was conferred the Fifth Order of Merit. In June 1920 he was appointed Commanding General of the Chinese Eastern Railway Defence Force.

Upon the outbreak of the Chihli-Anfu War, General Chang sent the First Division of the Fengtien Provincial Army which was under his command into Shanhaikuan to side with Chihli. In September 1920, when the war was over, he was appointed by the Peking government the Tutung (Civil & Military Governor) of Charhar and concurrently the Commander of the 16th Division of the National Anny and was also given the brevet rank of Full General. A month later, he was given the Third Order of Merit. In November 1920 General Chang was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Forces for the defence of Urga against the pending' attack by reactionary Russians. Through his negligence Urga finally fell into the hands of the enemy. This however, did not affect his position and he held the Tutungship until May 1922 when he participated in the Chihli-Fengtien conflict and was defeated by Wu Pei-fu's forces at Changsintien. Since that time. General Chang has been devoting himself to bringing the two contending parties to friendly terms again. In April 1922, he was conferred the First Order of Wenfu. In February 1924, General Chang was appointed director-general of the National Highway Preparation Bureau.