Ye Xuegang
Yè Xuégāng | |
|---|---|
| 叶学刚 | |
 Ye Xuegang in 1949 | |
| Director of the Shujichu | |
| In office 14th December 1936 – 12th June 1950 | |
| Preceded by | Post established |
| Succeeded by | Han Fuqing |
| Personal details | |
| Born | July 4, 1887 Jiangping, Zhongan Province, Shangea |
| Died | June 22, 1952 (aged 64) Rongzhuo, Shangea |
| Political party | Xiaodong Regeneration Society |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Heavenly Shangean Empire (1906-1934) Shangea (1934-1952) |
| Branch/service | Heavenly Army of Shangea (1906-1934) National Salvation Army (1934-1952) |
| Rank | Brigadier General |
| Battles/wars | Great War (Senrian Front), Shangean Civil War |
- This is a Shangean name; the family name is Ye (叶).
Ye Xuegang (Shangean: 叶学刚, Yè Xuégāng; July 4 1887 - June 22 1952 aged 64) was a Shangean military officer who served as the first Director of the Secretariat to Eliminate Counter-Revolution, more commonly known as the Shujichu, from its creation in 1936 to his removal from power in 1950. Ye is commonly thought to be the primary architect behind the Counter-Revolutionary Suppression Movement, a revolutionary terror during the Shangean Civil War directed at both right-wing and left-wing opponents of the Auspicious Republic of Shangea.
Early life
Ye Xuegang was born in Jiangping district in Zhongan province in 1887 to a wealthy peasant family. His father Ye Hanying was locally prominent whilst his mother Du Wuhan died in childbirth. Ye was the third of five children and the second son, meaning he was early on slated to enter a military career as was common in Shangea at the time. His father ensured his children received a classical Zohist education at the age of 5. Ye was enrolled military cadet school at the age of 10. At school Ye was noted to be interested in Zohist classics whilst having a poor grasp of modern subjects.
Ye was married to Sun Guanting in 1904 in an arranged marriage. Sun was the daughter of a local Zohist scholar and Ye was largely content with her as a bride.
Military career
Ye enrolled in the Ronzhuo Officer Academy in 1899. Ye graduated from the academy in 1907 with the rank of lieutenant ranked 204th out of 415 cadets. He tended to be seen by teachers to be fairly unimpressive and was sent to the Intelligence and Investigation Office, the military intelligence arm of the Heavenly Shangean Army. At the time intelligence work in the Shangean army was considered to be a secondary function and received little support. In 1909 Ye was posted in the Sakata garrison under the command of Qiu Hanjie - Qiu however had him dismissed in 1911 from the garrison due to his perceived republican sympathies. Ye subsequently was posted to a clerical role in Rongzhuo. Whilst posted in Rongzhuo he became a protégé of Lu Keqian who was considered a rising star in the army and a well-regarded expert on logistics. As a result he became an opponent of Zhao Clique and Nanqing Clique in the army, being part of a growing movement of nationalist anti-traditionalist officers.