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'''Chiang Kai-shek''' (or '''Jiang Jieshi''' in the [[pinyin]] version)<ref> His last name is Chiang, his first name is Kai-shek.  When the Communists came to power they changed the system of translation and made his name Jiang Jieshi in English. Most English language books call him Chiang Kai-shek.  ([[Traditional Chinese]]: 蔣介石; [[Simplified Chinese]]: 蒋介石; [[Hanyu Pinyin]]: Jiǎng Jièshí; [[Jyutping]]: Zoeng² Gaai³ Sek⁶)</ref> (1887-1975) was the leader of the the [[Chinese Nationalists]], controlling the [[Kuomintang]] or '''"KMT"''' party from 1925 following the death of [[Sun Yat-sen]]. In command of the KMT armies, he unified all of China (except Manchuria) in 1927-29. From 1928 until his death in 1975 was the paramount leader and (with brief interruptions) president of the [[Republic of China]]. Chiang converted to Christianity when he married [[Soong May-ling]], a [[Methodist]] educated in the U.S. The husband and wife became widely popular in the U.S., and under Chiang's leadership China received very strong U.S. support during World War II in order to fight the Japanese who took over most of China in 1937. Although Chiang was nominally in charge of the "China-Burma-India" theater, actual command was held by American and British generals, especially [[Joseph Stilwell]]. Relatively little fighting took place in China. Nevertheless, Chiang gained world stature, and China was given a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council in 1945. Chiang became an ardent opponent of Communism in the late 1920s, but lost to [[Mao Zedong]] in the Chinese civil war, fleeing with his government and army to Taiwan in 1949.   

'''Chiang Kai-shek''' (or '''Jiang Jieshi''' in the [[pinyin]] version)<ref> His last name is Chiang, his first name is Kai-shek.  When the Communists came to power they changed the system of translation and made his name Jiang Jieshi in English. Most English language books call him Chiang Kai-shek.  ([[Traditional Chinese]]: 蔣介石; [[Simplified Chinese]]: 蒋介石; [[Hanyu Pinyin]]: Jiǎng Jièshí; [[Jyutping]]: Zoeng² Gaai³ Sek⁶)</ref> (1887-1975) was the leader of the the [[Chinese Nationalists]], controlling the [[Kuomintang]] or '''"KMT"''' party from 1925 following the death of [[Sun Yat-sen]]. In command of the KMT armies, he unified all of China (except Manchuria) in 1927-29. From 1928 until his death in 1975 was the paramount leader and (with brief interruptions) president of the [[Republic of China]]. Chiang converted to Christianity when he married [[Soong May-ling]], a [[Methodist]] educated in the U.S. The husband and wife became widely popular in the U.S., and under Chiang's leadership China received very strong U.S. support during World War II in order to fight the Japanese who took over most of China in 1937. Although Chiang was nominally in charge of the "China-Burma-India" theater, actual command was held by American and British generals, especially [[Joseph Stilwell]]. Relatively little fighting took place in China. Nevertheless, Chiang gained world stature, and China was given a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council in 1945. Chiang became an ardent opponent of Communism in the late 1920s, but lost to [[Mao Zedong]] in the Chinese civil war, fleeing with his government and army to Taiwan in 1949.   

American conservatives greatly admired and supported Chiang and his wife. Long derided by liberals, his reputation has been improving among scholars. Taylor (2009) argues that, far from being incompetent, Chiang was a farsighted, disciplined and canny strategist who repeatedly predicted major geopolitical events and worked effectively for China, given its poverty. Chiang laid the foundation not only for Taiwan's prosperity, but also for its transformation into the only democracy in the Chinese-speaking world, and one of the few in Asia.   

American conservatives greatly admired and supported Chiang and his wife. Long derided by liberals, his reputation has been improving among scholars. Taylor (2009) argues that, far from being incompetent, Chiang was a farsighted, disciplined and canny strategist who repeatedly predicted major geopolitical events and worked effectively for China, given its poverty. Chiang laid the foundation not only for Taiwan's prosperity, but also for its transformation into the only democracy in the Chinese-speaking world, and one of the few in Asia.  Even the mainland, where he was the great enemy for a half century, Chiang is now widely regarded as a national patriot who made valuable contributions to the modernization of China. The Communist leaders in Beijing have looked to Taiwan as a model for what a prosperous and free Chinese society might be like. Mainstream Chinese scholars are suggesting that the country might have been better off had Chiang triumphed in 1949 instead of Mao.