Sun Fo (; 21 October 1891 – 13 September 1973),
courtesy name
A courtesy name ( zh, s=字, p=zì, l=character), also known as a style name, is an additional name bestowed upon individuals at adulthood, complementing their given name. This tradition is prevalent in the East Asian cultural sphere, particula ...
Zhesheng (), was a Chinese politician and high-ranking official in the government of the
Republic of China
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
. He was the son of
Sun Yat-sen
Sun Yat-senUsually known as Sun Zhongshan () in Chinese; also known by Names of Sun Yat-sen, several other names. (; 12 November 186612 March 1925) was a Chinese physician, revolutionary, statesman, and political philosopher who founded the Republ ...
, the founder of the
Republic of China
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
, and his first wife
Lu Muzhen.
Biography

Sun was born in
Xiangshan (now
Zhongshan),
Guangdong
) means "wide" or "vast", and has been associated with the region since the creation of Guang Prefecture in AD 226. The name "''Guang''" ultimately came from Guangxin ( zh, labels=no, first=t, t= , s=广信), an outpost established in Han dynasty ...
,
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
. He studied abroad, graduated in 1911 from Saint Louis College (now
Saint Louis School, K-12, Honolulu, Hawaii), earned a
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...
from the
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...
in 1916 and a
Master of Science
A Master of Science (; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree. In contrast to the Master of Arts degree, the Master of Science degree is typically granted for studies in sciences, engineering and medici ...
from
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...
in 1917. He also received an honorary
LL.D. from Columbia. He married Chen Suk-ying and had two sons (Sun Tse-ping and Sun Tse-kiong) and two daughters (Sun Sui-ying and
Sun Sui-hwa). He had two more daughters;
Sun Sui-fong with Yan Ai-juang, and
Sun Sui-fen with Lan Yi. Most of his children, including daughters, went on to have successful careers in public.
After returning to China, Sun was appointed Mayor of
Guangzhou
Guangzhou, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Canton or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, southern China. Located on the Pearl River about nor ...
(Canton), where the
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang (KMT) is a major political party in the Republic of China (Taiwan). It was the one party state, sole ruling party of the country Republic of China (1912-1949), during its rule from 1927 to 1949 in Mainland China until Retreat ...
's government headed by his father was headquartered, serving from 1920 to 1922 and again from 1923 to 1925 (between 1922 and 1923, Sun Yat-sen was exiled by
Chen Jiongming). As recorded in a China Mail (a Chinese newspaper) on 4 June 1923, there was controversy in relation to a case involving 50,000 yuan and Sun Fo. The case was voiced in public through
Chan Po-yin (陳步賢; 1883–1965), a Senator of Guangzhou. In the Nationalist government, Sun served as
Minister of Communications from 1926 to 1927, as
Minister of Finance from 1927 to 1928 and
Minister of Railways from 1928 to 1931.
In 1928, he became President of
Chiao Tung University in
Shanghai
Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
, and made many administrative and educational reforms, including introducing a Moral Education Department. He created the Science College, which incorporated three departments (
Mathematics
Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, Mathematical theory, theories and theorems that are developed and Mathematical proof, proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many ar ...
,
Physics
Physics is the scientific study of matter, its Elementary particle, fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge whi ...
, and
Chemistry
Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a physical science within the natural sciences that studies the chemical elements that make up matter and chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules a ...
).
In 1931, the near civil war caused by the arrest of
Hu Hanmin and the
invasion of Manchuria forced
Chiang Kai-shek to resign. For one month, he was President of the
Executive Yuan (Premier). He found the government was paralyzed by the absence of the party's Big Three: Hu, Chiang, and
Wang Jingwei. High level negotiations brought the latter two back into politics with Wang becoming premier.
Sun disagreed with Chiang extensively on their objectives, Sun desired to put off war against the
Chinese Communist Party
The Communist Party of China (CPC), also translated into English as Chinese Communist Party (CCP), is the founding and One-party state, sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Founded in 1921, the CCP emerged victorious in the ...
(CCP) in favor of war against Japan, and reach an agreement with the CCP.
Sun became President of the
Legislative Yuan from 1932 to 1948 (the first to head the Legislative Yuan under the
1947 Chinese Constitution, which he helped frame). From 1947 to 1948 he was Vice Chairman of the
Nationalist Government
The Nationalist government, officially the National Government of the Republic of China, refers to the government of the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China from 1 July 1925 to 20 May 1948, led by the nationalist Kuomintang (KMT ...
and he served again as President of the Executive Yuan from 1948. During this time, he gained the reputation of having an "iron neck" —an outspoken liberal against Chiang Kai-shek's authoritarian tendencies, he could not be purged because he was the son of Sun Yat-sen. In the first election for president and vice president under the new Constitution in 1948, Sun stood for the vice presidency against
Li Zongren and
Cheng Chien.
[U.S. Department of State, ''The China White Paper'' (Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1967), 275.] Despite his previous veiled criticisms of Chiang, Sun remained the favored choice of Chiang, but Li (one of Chiang's rivals in the Kuomintang) won the election.
He was a member of the Kuomintang Central Executive Committee from 1926 to 1950. Leading the left wing of the Kuomintang, he advocated cooperation with the CCP in the fight against the Japanese military occupation of 1931–1945, and represented his party in negotiations with
Zhou Enlai
Zhou Enlai ( zh, s=周恩来, p=Zhōu Ēnlái, w=Chou1 Ên1-lai2; 5 March 1898 – 8 January 1976) was a Chinese statesman, diplomat, and revolutionary who served as the first Premier of the People's Republic of China from September 1954 unti ...
.
Following the full-scale Japanese invasion of 1937, Sun Fo was tasked with obtaining military assistance from the
Allied Powers. Turned down by the U.S., Britain, and France, he turned to the
Soviet Union
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
. In direct talks with
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...
in 1937, 1938, and 1939, he secured the crucial arms and ammunition that prevented the total defeat of Nationalist forces. But while Chiang Kai-shek wanted the arms primarily to fight the CCP, Sun Fo insisted that the threat to China's national integrity came foremost from the invading outside forces.

At the end of the
Chinese Civil War
The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led Nationalist government, government of the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China and the forces of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Armed conflict continued intermitt ...
in 1949, he exiled himself to
Hong Kong
Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
until 1951, and moved to Europe (stops in Paris and Spain) from 1951 to 1952, and finally resided in the United States (Los Angeles) from 1952 to 1965.
After years of political differences with Chiang Kai-shek, Sun Fo returned to serve in the government of the
Republic of China
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
in Taipei as a senior advisor to President Chiang from 1965, and as President of the
Examination Yuan from 1966 until his death in 1973. He was also Chairman of the Board of Trustees of
Soochow University in Taiwan from 1966 to 1973.
Sun Fo and his wife are buried at Yangmingshan Private Cemetery, in the
Beitou District,
Taipei
, nickname = The City of Azaleas
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, pushpin_map = Taiwan#Asia#Pacific Ocean#Earth
, coordinates =
, subdivision_type = Country ...
,
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
.
References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sun, Fo
1891 births
Cantonese people
1973 deaths
20th-century mayors of places in China
Columbia Law School alumni
Chinese Christians
Hakka people
Chinese anti-communists
Politicians from Zhongshan
Mayors of Guangzhou
Taiwanese politicians of Hakka descent
Members of the 1st Legislative Yuan
Presidents of the Legislative Yuan
Family of Sun Yat-sen
Premiers of the Republic of China
Taiwanese presidents of the Examination Yuan
Republic of China politicians from Guangdong
Members of the Kuomintang
Children of national leaders of China
Taiwanese people of Hakka descent
Children of presidents
Chinese Civil War refugees
Taiwanese people from Guangdong
Presidents of Shanghai Jiao Tong University
Chinese people in rail transport