George Yeh

In this Chinese name, the family name is Yeh.

George Yeh
葉公超
ROC Ambassador to the United States
In office
August 1958 – November 1961
Preceded byHollington Tong
Succeeded byTsiang Tingfu
Minister of the Overseas Chinese Affairs Commission
In office
19 May 1950 – 16 April 1952
Preceded byDai Kuisheng
Succeeded byZheng Yanfen
Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of China
In office
1 October 1949 – 14 July 1958
Preceded byHu Shih
Succeeded byHuang Shao-ku
Personal details
Born20 October 1904
Jiujiang (Kewkiang), Jiangxi, Great Qing
Died20 November 1981(1981-11-20) (aged 77)
Taipei, Taiwan
NationalityRepublic of China
Political partyKuomintang
EducationAmherst College (BA)
University of Cambridge
George Yeh
Traditional Chinese葉公超
Simplified Chinese叶公超
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinYè Gōngchāo
Wade–GilesYeh Kung-ch'ao

George Kung-chao Yeh (1904–1981), also known as Yeh Kung-chao, was a diplomat and politician of the Republic of China. Educated in the U.S. and the U.K., he graduated from Amherst College in 1925[1] and later Cambridge University. He taught English literature at Beijing's Tsinghua University, where his students included renowned 20th century Chinese writer Ch'ien Chung-shu.[2] He was the first Minister of Foreign Affairs since 1949.

On February 6, 1950, the ROC air force bombed Shanghai, causing extensive damage to American-owned property in the city including the Shanghai power company.[3]: 125  The American government responded by sending a diplomatic protest to the Nationalist Ministry of Foreign Affairs.[3]: 125  Yeh defended the bombing to American diplomats and stated that the ROC would provide early warning before such attacks in the future.[3]: 125  The United States rejected the proposed arrangement and the American chargé d'affaires warned Yeh that serious difficulties would arise if such things continued.[3]: 125 

During his tenure, he signed the Sino-Japanese Peace Treaty in 1952 and the Sino-American Mutual Defense Treaty in 1954. He was ambassador to the United States from 1958 to 1961. In 1961, due to the admission of Mongolia to the United Nations, Yeh was removed from the position of ambassador and recalled to Taiwan by Chiang Kai-shek. He then served as Minister without Portfolio.[4]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Amherst College Biographical Record, Centennial Edition (1821–1921)". Archived from the original on 12 December 2009. Retrieved 9 May 2016.
  2. ^ Wen Yuan-ning, and others. Imperfect Understanding: Intimate Portraits of Modern Chinese Celebrities. Edited by Christopher Rea (Amherst, MA: Cambria Press, 2018), pp. 17–24, 153–55.
  3. ^ a b c d Li, Hongshan (2024). Fighting on the Cultural Front: U.S.-China Relations in the Cold War. New York, NY: Columbia University Press. ISBN 9780231207058.
  4. ^ Waggoner, Walter H. (26 November 1981). "George K. C. Yeh, Taiwan Aide". New York Times. Retrieved 24 July 2014.

Further reading

  • Matray, James I., ed. East Asia and the United States: an encyclopedia of relations since 1784. (2 vol, Greenwood, 2002) 2:691–692.
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