General Ts'en Ch’un-hsuan was born at Hsi-ling Hsien, Kuangsi province, in 1859. He is the eldest son of Ts'en Yu-yin, famous viceroy of Ching Dynasty. After having received education from regular Confucian schools, he entered official life through the influence of his father. In June 1892 he was appointed Sub-Director of Court of Imperial Entertainments; in 1893, Sub-Director of Court of Imperial Study; and in 1898, Lieutenant Governor of Kuangtung Province. Later he was transferred to be Lieutenant Governor of Kansu. In September 1900, General Ts'en was promoted to be Governor of Shensi. In April 1901 he was transferred to Shansi, where he also functioned as Governor for one year. In January 1902 he was awarded the Yellow Jacket, the highest honor which the Imperial Family had in its power to confer, on account of the protection which he accorded to the Empress Dowager, who fled to Shensi from Peking during the Boxer rising. In May 1902, General Tsen was made Governor of Kwangtung. In October 1902 he was promoted to be Acting Viceroy of Szechuan, which position he held until May 1903. In November 1903 he was appointed Acting Viceroy of Lang-Kuang (or Kuangtung and Kuangsi). In September 1906, General Ts'en was appointed Viceroy of Yunnan annd Kweichow, but he did not proceed to assume office on account of a difference of political views with the ruling authorities. In March 1907, he was appointed Viceroy of Szechuan. Likewise he did not take up this office. On May 3, 1907, he was appointed President of the Board of Communications. In the same month he was, however, re-appointed Viceroy of Kwangtung and Kwangsi. He resigned this office on account of "ill-health” on August 12, 1907. In September 1911, General Ts'en was ordered to proceed to Szechuan to suppress the railway agitation in that province in cooperation with the Viceroy Chao Erh-feng. Before he left Hankow the Revolution of 1911, which resulted in the establishment of the Republic had broken out. On October 14, General Ts'en was appointed Viceroy of Szechuan to cope with the situation, but he did not accept the appointment. Later he was appointed Commissioner of Pacification for Fukien. In February 1913, he was appointed Director-General of the Hukuang Railways, which position he resigned on June 17. The then President Yuan Shih-kai, ordered his arrest on account of his alleged complicity in the rebellion during the summer of 1913. He fled to the South Sea Islands remaining their as a political refugee for some time. General Ts'en was one of the leaders of the revolt against Yuan Shih-kai's monarchical plan which was launched in 1915. In May 1916, a month before the death of Yuan, the Kuangtung and Kuangsi forces organized their headquarters at Shao-ching, Kunagtung, to direct operations against Yuan's forces. General Ts'en was elected the Commander-in-Chief of the allied forces. After the overthrow of Yuan Shih-kai's Administration, the First Parliament was convoked and General Ts'en retired to private life. In June 1917 the First Parliament was again dissolved. In July occurred the Restoration of the Manchu Throne by Chang Hsun. General Ts'en was appointed by the Boy Emperor the President of the House of Peers, but he remained indifferent to this appointment. After the overthrow of this restoration, Marshal Tuan Chi-jui came to power again and refused to reconvoke the Parliament whose members then went down to Canton where he created the Extraordinary Parliament in August 1917 and elected seven directors to form what was then known as the Military government in May 1918. They were Tang Shao-i, Tang Chi-yao, Wu Ting-fang, Ling Pao-hsi. Lu Yung-ting and General Ts'en. In August 1918 General Ts'en became the presiding director of the military government. In May 1920 the Kuangtung faction headed by Sun Yat-sen was ousted by the Kuangsi faction headed by General Lu Yung-ting and the Cheng Hsueh-Hui Party, headed by General Ts'en. In October 1920 the Kuangtung faction returned to Canton again as the result of which General Ts'en and his associates had to leave for Shanghai where he has been living in retirement since that time. In October 1922, the Peking government awarded upon him the First Class Tashou Paokuang Chiaho Decoraton.
