Leighton Stuart was an American but was born in China. He was once the president of Yenching University. Under his governance, Yenching University became a top-notch university in China at that time.

Preface

"Compared to an American, I am actually more Chinese." This is a sentence that Stuart often said in his later years. Leighton Stuart was an American but was born in China. He was once the president of Yenching University. Under his governance, Yenching University became a top-notch university in China at that time.

After the September 18th Incident, Leighton Stuart encouraged students to take to the streets to condemn the Japanese aggression. Because he encouraged students to participate in anti-Japanese demonstrations, he spent several years in Japanese prison after the Japanese army invaded China.

At first glance, Leighton Stuart seems like an international friend of China, but in fact he is not. After the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, Truman appointed Stuart as the U.S. Ambassador to China, considering his reputation in China.

From the day he became the US ambassador, he was no longer a friend of the Chinese. All he did was to maximize the interests of the United States in China, and became a tool for the United States to control China after the war.

In 1949, the Chiang Kai-shek government supported by the United States was gone, which also marked the bankruptcy of the United States' China policy at this stage. On August 2, Stuart left China where he had lived for many years.

When his plane landed in Hawaii to resupply, he learned a piece of news that made him disheartened. The U.S. government released a white paper on "Relations between the United States and China," which comprehensively elaborated on the failure of the U.S. policy of "supporting Chiang Kai-shek and opposing the Communist Party." At the same time, it also exposed some of Leighton Stuart’s one-sided reports on China.

At this time, Stuart had mixed feelings. He knew in his heart that his political career was over. After learning the news, Chairman Mao wrote the article "Farewell, Stuart" with great enthusiasm. The article revealed the true face of Stuart to the point.

Picture | Leighton Stuart

"Leighton Stuart, who had run a church school in China for many years, and was imprisoned by the Japanese during the Anti-Japanese War. He usually pretended to love the United States and China. He was quite able to confuse some Chinese people, so he was favored by Marshall , became the ambassador to China, and became one of the influential figures in the Marshall system. "

1. Chinese-born Americans

In the late Qing Dynasty , the government was corrupt and incompetent. The Western powers that had experienced the industrial revolution showed overwhelming power when facing the once brave children of the Eight Banners.

China's door was opened, and many Western missionaries came to China to preach, and John Stewart was one of them. At that time, Hangzhou was an important city in the Jiangnan region. It had a relatively developed economy since ancient times and was close to the trading port. It was a paradise for Christians.

Stewart and his wife built a small house near West Lake and began their life in China. Soon after, the couple gave birth to their first child, Layden Stewart, in Hangzhou.

In order to allow him to live conveniently in China, his parents gave him a Chinese name - Stuart Leighton based on the Chinese pronunciation of his name.

In order to preach, Leighton Stuart’s parents built a small church near their residence. Leighton Stuart had played with the Chinese children in his neighborhood since he was a child.

Although he has a white face, he speaks authentic Hangzhou dialect, and his living habits are the same as those of ordinary Chinese people.

In 1887, Leighton Stuart was 11 years old at the time. In order to give him a better education, his parents decided to send him back to the United States. Although he was an American, this was the first time in his life that he had set foot on the American continent.

Just returned to the United States, Stuart was very uncomfortable with it. He was used to Chinese food, and it took him a long time to get used to the taste of cheese and cheese. Not only can he not speak English well, but his living habits are also very different from those of children of the same age. Others use knives and forks when eating, but he uses chopsticks. He gradually becomes an alien in the eyes of his peers.

Picture | In his later years, Leighton Stuart

Despite the difficulties, he still worked hard to adapt to life in the United States. Under the guidance of his parents, he came to study at Union Theological Seminary.In 1904, Stuart graduated from Union Theological Seminary. At this time, he had become a true American.

But at this time, he missed his life in China very much, so he decided to inherit his parents' business and return to China to preach. Leighton Stuart's newlywed wife Eileen also supported her husband's career very much. She gave up the superior living conditions in the United States and came to Hangzhou with her husband.

Leighton Stuart knew very well that traditional feudal ideas were deeply ingrained in the hearts of the Chinese people, and overthrowing their thinking habits formed over thousands of years could not be accomplished overnight.

Therefore, Leighton Stuart changed the boring preaching method of previous missionaries. He gave full play to his talent in language. He not only regained the Hangzhou dialect, but also taught himself Shanghai dialect. He used storytelling to promote Christianity in China. His fluent dialect and vivid stories made him full of affinity.

In 1913, Nanjing Jinling Theological Seminary sent him an invitation letter, hoping that he would become a Greek professor at the school. From then on, Stuart began his coaching career.

Although he has a new identity as a professor, he has never forgotten his old identity as a missionary. In 1918, the Northern and Southern Presbyterian Churches in the United States wrote to Leighton Stuart, hoping that he could organize a comprehensive university in China.

At that time, there were many religious schools in Beijing, including Huiwen University and North China Union University. At that time, the two universities were preparing to merge.

Picture | A group photo of Leighton Stuart and his teachers.

At that time, the two schools reached an agreement to hire a highly respected principal after the merger. He must meet the following conditions: 1. Must love education;

2. Have close ties with the Christian Church;

3. Have no relationship with the two schools before.

After Leighton Stuart saw the news, he was overjoyed. Isn't this a position specially prepared for him? So he naturally became the principal of the two schools after the merger.

But after Leighton Stuart arrived in Beijing, he found that what he inherited was a mess. Not only was the equipment of this university backward, but the level of teachers was also uneven. There were less than a hundred students, and the school had only five classrooms and three rows of dormitories.

However, Stuart quietly started the preparation work for the school. The most scarce thing at that time was funds. Stuart traveled to major cities in China and traveled between China and the United States many times. He contacted various foundations like a beggar. After several years of hard work, he finally collected enough funds.

Stuart Leighton bought a piece of land near Tsinghua University as a new campus. He spent a lot of money to hire masters such as Fei Xiaotong, Chen Yinke and Qian Xuantong to teach in the school.

Although he is a missionary, he never cares whether religious courses are compulsory courses in school. He just likes education from the bottom of his heart. He does not regard organizing universities as the task of the church. He only wants to cultivate talents for China.

Leighton Stuart devoted all his efforts to this university, and eventually it became a university as famous as Tsinghua University and Peking University . This is the well-known Yenching University.

With his efforts, the school has begun to take shape, but he chose to hand over power and take a back seat. He thinks this school should belong to China.

Picture | Former Yanjing University

But after he retreated to the second line, it didn't take long for the Japanese to launch the " September 18th Incident" and the entire Northeast China fell. Although Leighton Stuart was an American and the matter itself had nothing to do with him, he still led the students to take to the streets. He walked at the forefront of the team and shouted: " Down with Japanese imperialism!"

Influenced by him, Yenching University established a petition group and went to the National Government residence in Nanjing to demonstrate. Chiang Kai-shek immediately contacted the U.S. Ambassador to China, and Stuart was asked to stop the student demonstrations.

But Leighton Stuart said: " If the students of Yenching University do not participate in this petition, then this will be a complete failure of my education over the years."

After the Anti-Japanese War broke out, many people moved to the rear, but Leighton Stuart firmly stayed in Beijing and continued to run schools. At that time, many patriotic students were arrested by the Japanese military police. He traveled to the U.S. and Japanese embassies many times and protected countless students. Health.

At that time, the United States was still a neutral country, and Japan's military expansion still relied on trade with the United States, so the Japanese did not dare to make things difficult for the American Leighton, but Japan also hated him htm. l7

In December 1941, the Pearl Harbor incident broke out, and the United States and Japan finally broke apart. American citizenship could no longer be regarded as Leighton Stuart's "gold medal to avoid death." He was soon arrested by the Japanese army, and then spent the rest of the Anti-Japanese War in prison.

While in prison, Leighton Stuart completed his autobiography - "Fifty Years in China". Although Leighton Stuart had become a prisoner at this time, he still deeply loved China and the Yenching University he founded.

The Anti-Japanese War finally ended with China's victory, and Leighton Stuart also regained his freedom. The day after he got out of prison, Leighton Stuart returned to Yenching University and announced the resumption of classes.

Picture | A photo of Leighton Stuart and his students

During that time, Leighton Stuart’s actions of leading students to bravely resist the Japanese invaders became a household name in China, and his reputation reached its peak.

If he can continue to work in education, maybe he will always be China An international friend in the hearts of the people, but sometimes fate is so unpredictable. Leighton Stuart got involved in politics at this stage. For a literary man, the political field is like an abyss, and his destiny will be changed from then on.

2. The "abandoned son" of American politics

Although China has won the Anti-Japanese War, China's political environment is undercurrent, and there are irreconcilable ideological contradictions between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party. This contradiction had already begun to emerge as early as the Anti-Japanese War. The armies of the two parties were in conflict. There were constant frictions, the most famous of which was the "Southern Anhui Incident".

Under the pressure of the United States and the Soviet Union, Chiang Kai-shek could only temporarily put away his weapons and negotiate with our party in Chongqing. In the end, the Kuomintang and the Communist Party signed the " Double Ten Agreement". During the negotiations, Zhou Enlai also met with Leighton Stuart in person and expressed some of our party's ideas to him. Also received support from Leighton Stuart.

However, Chiang Kai-shek tore up the "Double Ten Agreement" in June 1946 and launched a massive attack on the Central Plains Liberated Areas. In the past, we have been vigorously promoting the national Marshall, who was negotiating peace talks with the Communist Party, also had to declare the failure of his plan, and the United States' China policy also changed to "supporting Chiang and opposing the Communists."

On July 12, 1946, Marshall, taking into account Leighton Stuart's reputation in China, recommended him as the U.S. Ambassador to China. This suggestion was adopted by Truman. At this time, the 70-year-old Leighton Stuart made his debut on the political stage.

Picture | Marshall

Leighton Stuart was an excellent educator, but He is not a qualified politician. After he became the ambassador to China, he did not clearly understand the situation in China. He still tried to use his own efforts to bring the Kuomintang and the Communist Party back to the negotiating table.

But at that time, Chiang Kai-shek had already launched a massive attack on the liberated areas, and the word peace had already drifted away from China. At that time, our party had clearly realized that Leighton Stuart was not purely thinking about China at this time.

He only has the interests of the United States in his eyes. The "coalition government" he proposed to establish is actually based on the national government. Once his proposal is realized, not only will China not be able to gain democracy, but its national unity will also be affected.

Maybe it will return to the situation of warlord separatism during the Republic of China. One is a China divided by warlords, and the other is a united and increasingly powerful China. In Stuart's eyes, the former is definitely more beneficial to the United States.

seemed to be considering the interests of the United States, but the U.S. government did not buy it. After all, the U.S. government had decided to "support Chiang Kai-shek to fight the Communists" and cultivate a Chiang Kai-shek government that was completely surrendered to the United States.

Unexpectedly, Chiang Kai-shek, with the help of the United States, still fought the War of Liberation in a mess. After the three major battles of , the main force was basically lost. Chiang Kai-shek announced his resignation, while Stuart Leighton was still dreaming of promoting peace talks, and began to fully support Li Zongren to come to power, and hoped that Li Zongren would manage southern China.

At that time, the People's Liberation Army had almost reached Nanjing, so there was no need for negotiation. The decision to support Li Zongren made Leighton Leighton offend Chiang Kai-shek. At this point, Leighton Leighton, a novice in politics, did not fare well in front of the Communist Party, Kuomintang , and the US government.

In addition to arousing the disdain of the three parties on its China policy, during the War of Liberation, Leighton Stuart also publicly supported the United States' policy of "supporting Japan and anti-communism." At the end of World War II, the United States mainly implemented a "restriction and weakening" policy towards Japan. However, with the rise of the Soviet Union after the war, the United States hoped to turn Japan into a frontline against the Soviet Union.

Picture | The People's Liberation Army occupied the Nanjing Presidential Palace

Strictly speaking, the policy of "supporting Japan and anti-communism" was against the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, but at that time there was almost no ideological difference between the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and the Communist Party of China. This also reflects that on the surface, Leighton Stuart tended to mediate the civil war , but in fact, deep down in his heart, he had the same anti-communist gene as the US government.

Under this policy, the United States engaged in fraud during the trial of Japanese war criminals and shielded many war criminals with serious crimes. Many anti-American demonstrations broke out in the country, but Leighton Stuart still went his own way and supported the United States' policy toward Japan. At this time, he is no longer an "international friend" in the hearts of the Chinese people, but an accomplice of US imperialism.

In 1949, the War of Liberation was basically coming to an end. In order to prevent New China from falling to the Soviet Union, Stuart proposed to go to Beijing to negotiate with our party. This plan was rejected by the US government and he was asked to return to the United States immediately.

He believed that now that the deal was done, it was not a good thing for the United States to establish an enemy in Asia. When his plane arrived in Okinawa, he issued a statement supporting the Communist Party, but due to restrictions by the U.S. government, this statement was not made public.

As soon as the plane arrived in Hawaii, the U.S. government published the white paper " The Relationship between the United States and China ". The white paper elaborated on the failure of the policy of "supporting Chiang and anti-Communism" and exposed some of Leighton Stuart's previous biased remarks about the CCP.

After seeing the white paper, Stuart was disheartened. Only then did he realize that he had become an outcast of the US government and the "scapegoat" for the failure of the policy of "supporting Chiang and anti-communism".

After Chairman Mao read the white paper, he personally wrote five articles criticizing it, of which "Farewell, Leighton Stuart" is the most famous.

After Leighton Stuart became the U.S. ambassador to China, it seemed that he was working for peace in China. In fact, this peace was only obtained at the expense of the interests of the masses. He only had the interests of the United States in his heart. Chairman Mao pointedly pointed out: " Leighton Stuart was just the first worker of U.S. imperialism to colonize China. Tools. "

Picture | "Farewell, Stuart" published by "People's Daily"

"The People's Liberation Army crossed the Yangtze River . What did Stuart see besides seeing the People's Liberation Army marching team by team? However, in addition to workers, farmers, and students rising up in groups, he also saw a phenomenon, that is, Chinese liberals or democratic individualists also shouted slogans and talked about revolution together with the workers, peasants, and soldiers students. "

" In short, no one paid attention to him, leaving him "alone and alone," with nothing to do but to pick up his briefcase and walk. "

The article seems to be mocking Leighton Stuart, but in fact it is mocking the American imperialism behind him. The article seems to be announcing to the world: " The United States' anti-communist policy will never succeed, and the rise of China is inevitable."

3. The sad old age

Leighton Stuart returned to the United States with a depressed mood. As the former ambassador to China, no one greeted him at the airport. A cool breeze hit his face, making him look like a walking zombie. So.

Although he briefly entered the political arena, he was soon ignored by the US government. At this time, Stuart was alone. His son had been preaching in other places all year round and did not have much time to accompany him. His wife Eileen had died of illness in China 20 years ago.

After returning to the United States, this 70-year-old man was always looked down upon by others. He could only resume religious activities and barely make ends meet.

But fate once played a trick on this experienced old man. During a missionary activity, Leighton Stuart unfortunately fell down, which made his already suffering from a stroke worse. After this activity, he became paralyzed and could only spend his days in a wheelchair.

Since he spent most of his time in China, he has no real estate in the United States, and most of his previous savings were taken out. To prepare for the establishment of Yenching University, he was rejected by the U.S. medical insurance system and his life was extremely miserable.

In the early 1950s, the U.S. Senate McCarthy set off an anti-communist upsurge, and McCarthyism became popular in the United States. Especially after the Korean War , anti-communist sentiment in the United States became increasingly high.

McCarthyists thought that Stuart once advocated communication between the United States and the CCP, so they defined him as a "lackey" of communism. Some extreme People even broke into his temporary residence and insulted and abused Stuart, who was unable to take care of himself.

When Stuart was desperate, a former student named Fu Jingbo extended a helping hand to him. As early as when he was the president of Yenching University, Fu Jingbo admired Leighton Stuart very much, so he applied for Leighton Stuart. Later, he became Leighton Stuart's assistant and helped him handle many affairs.

picture | McCarthy

Fu Jingbo took Stuart to his home and took care of him as his own father. Fu Jingbo's wife did not dislike the old man and often cooked authentic Chinese dishes for him.

Whenever he eats the Chinese food cooked by Fu Jingbo’s wife, Leighton Stuart will recall his years in China and the former campus of Yenching University. As the past events continued to resurface in his mind, tears flowed out uncontrollably.

In the next dozen years, Leighton Stuart was always carefully cared for by the Fu Jingbo family. Stuart Lei Before his death, Deng expressed a wish to Fu Jingbo, hoping that he could be buried at Yenching University like his wife after his death.

On September 19, 1962, Leighton Stuart died of illness in the United States. In accordance with his last wish, Fu Jingbo came to China to communicate with multiple departments. But the former Yenching University has long ceased to exist. As early as 1952, Yenching University had been abolished. Its liberal arts and sciences were merged into Peking University, engineering into Tsinghua University, and law and sociology into China University of Political Science and Law.

ht The original campus of ml2 has been taken over by Peking University. Fu Jingbo contacted Peking University about burying Leighton Stuart. However, due to the sensitive period of Sino-US relations at the time, coupled with Leighton Stuart's anti-communist remarks, Peking University ultimately rejected the request.

Picture | Left Bai Chongxi, middle Stuart Leighton, right Fu Jingbo

Fu Jingbo spent forty years of hard work until 2008, when Stuart Leighton’s ashes finally returned to his arms The China he missed was buried in his birthplace, Hangzhou, and his last wish was half fulfilled.

Leighton Stuart is a tragic figure. In fact, he could have been a beloved educator forever, but in the end he became a victim of politics.

In fact, this is a common problem in the American academic field. Some people in China always boast about how pure the academic environment in the United States is. In fact, this is not the case. Professors in American universities have the habit of participating in politics, both today and in the past. This seems to have become an unspoken rule in American universities.

If we don’t talk about his position, Leighton Stuart was an excellent educator. Although he later went astray, it is undeniable that he made a contribution to China’s education.