Ma Chengxiang

{{Short description|Chinese Muslim general (1914–1991)}}

{{Infobox military person

| name = Ma Chengxiang

| birth_date = 1914

| death_date = 15 April 1991

| birth_place = Gansu

| death_place = Taipei, Taiwan

| native_name = 馬呈祥

| native_name_lang = zh

| image =

| caption = Ma Chengxiang

| nickname =

| allegiance = {{flag|Republic of China (1912–1949)|name=Republic of China}}

| serviceyears = 1936–1969

| rank = Lieutenant General

| commands =

| unit = 5th Cavalry Army{{cite book|author=Charles D. Pettibone|title=The Organization and Order of Battle of Militaries in World War II: Volume VIII ? China|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ud6fkR8lQnEC&pg=PA322|date=May 2013|publisher=Trafford Publishing|isbn=978-1-4669-9646-5|pages=322–}}

| battles = {{tree list}}

• Ili Rebellion
• Pei-ta-shan Incident
• Chinese Civil War
• Ningxia Campaign

{{tree list/end}}

| laterwork =

}}

{{family name hatnote|Ma|lang=Chinese}}

Ma Chengxiang (1914 – 15 April 1991) ({{zh|s=马呈祥|t=馬呈祥|p=Mǎ Chéngxiáng|w=Ma Chêng-hsiang}}, Xiao'erjing: {{lang|zh-Arab|ﻣَﺎ ﭼْﻊ ﺷِﯿْﺎ}}){{cite web |url=http://www.generals.dk/general/Ma_Chengxiang/_/China.html|title=The Generals of WWII Generals from China Ma Chengxiang|author=Steen Ammentorp |date=2000–2009|access-date=31 October 2010}} was a Chinese Muslim general in the National Revolutionary Army. He was the son of Ma Qing (馬慶) and nephew of generals Ma Buqing and Ma Bufang. A daughter of Ma Buqing was married to him. He commanded Hui cavalry in Xinjiang, the 5th cavalry army. Ma was a member of the Chinese Nationalist Kuomintang party and a hardliner.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XeBxAAAAMAAJ&q=ma+chengxiang|title=Under the Soviet shadow: the Yining Incident : ethnic conflicts and international rivalry in Xinjiang, 1944-1949|author=David D. Wang|year=1999|publisher=The Chinese University Press|location=Hong Kong|pages=373, 453|isbn=962-201-831-9|access-date=2010-06-28}}{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1-jhoKbkmdIC&q=ma+chengxiang&pg=PA395|title=De l'Arabie à l'Himalaya: chemins croisés : en hommage à Marc Gaborieau|author1=Marc Gaborieau |author2=Véronique Bouillier |author3=Catherine Servan Schreiber |year=2004|publisher=Maisonneuve & Larose|page=395|isbn=2-7068-1767-4|access-date=2010-06-28}}{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SK7Jdfnf9RIC&q=ma+chengxiang&pg=PA192|title=Dilemmas of victory: the early years of the People's Republic of China|author1=Jeremy Brown |author2=Paul Pickowicz |year=2007|publisher=Harvard University Press|page=191|isbn=978-0-674-02616-2|access-date=2010-06-28}} Ma Chengxiang commanded the Xinjiang First Cavalry Division, which was formerly stationed in Gansu where it was known as the Fifth Cavalry Army.

He commanded Chinese Muslim troops against the Uighur armies of the Second East Turkestan Republic during the Ili Rebellion{{Cite web|url=http://read.dangdang.com/content_714912|title=当当云阅读-数字阅读和听书平台-电子书、网文、漫画、听书}} and the People's Liberation Army in Xinjiang, Ningxia, and Gansu. His cavalry was deployed during the Ningxia Campaign. Ma Chengxiang, the nationalist cavalry commander in Xinjiang, led 200-300 civilians and military men such as officers and soldiers and their families fleeing China to settle in Saudi Arabia, with his uncle, Ma Bufang.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7QEjPVyd9YMC&q=ma+chengxiang&pg=PA115|title=Encyclopedia of diasporas: immigrant and refugee cultures around the world|publisher=Springer Science & Business Media|year=2005|isbn=0-306-48321-1|editor-last=Ember|editor-first=Melvin|editor-link=Melvin Ember|page=115|access-date=2010-06-28|editor-last2=Ember|editor-first2=Carol R.|editor-link2=Carol R. Ember|editor-last3=Skoggard|editor-first3=Ian}} His family fled Qinghai to go to Hong Kong as a stopover, then fled to Egypt.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SK7Jdfnf9RIC&q=ma+chengxiang&pg=PA192|title=Dilemmas of victory: the early years of the People's Republic of China|author1=Jeremy Brown |author2=Paul Pickowicz |year=2007|publisher=Harvard University Press|page=192|isbn=978-0-674-02616-2|access-date=2010-06-28}}

According to Jack Chen, Ma Chengxiang used his Chinese Muslim cavalry to put down a revolt of Uyghurs during an uprising in 1948 in Turfan.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ka6GAAAAIAAJ&q=ma+chin-shan|title=The Sinkiang story|author=Jack Chen|year=1977|publisher=Macmillan|page=263|isbn=0-02-524640-2|access-date=2010-06-28}}

Elite Qinghai Chinese Muslim cavalry were sent by the Chinese Kuomintang to destroy the Mongols and the Russians in 1947 during the Pei-ta-shan Incident.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IAs9AAAAIAAJ&q=warlords+and+muslims|title=Warlords and Muslims in Chinese Central Asia: a political history of Republican Sinkiang 1911-1949|author=Andrew D. W. Forbes|year=1986|publisher=CUP Archive|location=Cambridge, England|isbn=0-521-25514-7|page=214|access-date=2010-06-28}}{{cite web|url=http://oxuscom.com/sovinxj.htm |title=The Soviets in Xinjiang 1911-1949 |last=Dickens |first=Mark |publisher=Oxus Communications |access-date=2008-11-18 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081023203643/http://www.oxuscom.com/sovinxj.htm |archive-date=2008-10-23 }}

Ma was appointed as the commander of all the cavalry forces of the Kuomintang in Xinjiang. When the Communists invaded Xinjiang, Ma fled via the Pamirs in 1950 through India, then reached Egypt. Later, Ma Chengxiang returned to Taiwan, the Republic of China in 1950, where his father Ma Qing had fled. Ma Bufang stayed in Egypt. He resumed his job as a General and was elected to the Seventh Central Committee of the Kuomintang. He also became the Deputy General Officer Commanding Penghu Defense Command in 1956 and was appointed to the Planning Commission for the Recovery of the Mainland.

While Ma had fled to Taiwan, Han Youwen defected to the Communists.{{Cite web|url=http://www.saohua.com/shuku/junshi/xilujunshengsidangan/11.html|title=欢迎您}}{{Cite web |url=http://www.360doc.com/content/14/0814/22/2812407_402002223.shtml |title=马呈祥在老满城-----------然也的博客屋 |access-date=2016-04-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160420192249/http://www.360doc.com/content/14/0814/22/2812407_402002223.shtml |archive-date=2016-04-20 |url-status=dead }}{{Cite web|url=http://www.shubao2s.com/read/45827p1.html|title = 野人部落第1部分在线阅读 - 第二书包网}} One of Ma Chengxiang's Hui officers, Ma Fuchen 馬輔臣, defected to the Communists.{{cite web|url=http://www.qh.xinhuanet.com/2009-11/10/content_18191427.htm|title=怀念马辅臣先生|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160508182927/http://www.qh.xinhuanet.com/2009-11/10/content_18191427.htm|archive-date=2016-05-08|access-date=2012-09-08}}{{cite web|url=http://www.gs.xinhuanet.com/dfpd/2011-01/04/content_21782709.htm|title=马辅臣--民族工商业家|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120618052044/http://www.gs.xinhuanet.com/dfpd/2011-01/04/content_21782709.htm|archive-date=2012-06-18|access-date=2012-09-08}}

Han Youwen wrote a letter to Ma Chengxiang after nearly 40 years of no contact. Ma Chengxiang met Han Youwen in Hong Kong.{{cite web|url=http://www.xjmg.org/show.aspx?id%3D1081%26cid%3D10|title=怀念我的父亲──韩有文|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120322070922/http://www.xjmg.org/show.aspx?id=1081&cid=10|archive-date=2012-03-22|access-date=2011-04-03}}{{cite web |url=http://www.minge.gov.cn/minge/txt/2008-10/16/content_2523157.htm |title=韩有文传奇 然 也 |last= |first= |date= 2008-10-16 |editor=秉默|website=中国国民党革命委员会中央委员会 |publisher=民革中央 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305102619/http://www.minge.gov.cn/minge/txt/2008-10/16/content_2523157.htm |access-date= |archive-date=2016-03-05 |quote=}}{{cite news |last=朱 |first=国琳 |date=2011-03-03 |title=马呈祥在新疆|url=http://szb.chinalxnet.com/html/2011-03/03/content_69671.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304232306/http://szb.chinalxnet.com/html/2011-03/03/content_69671.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=2016-03-04|newspaper=民族日报-民族日报一版 (民族日报数字报刊平台) |location= |access-date=}}{{cite web |url=http://www.xjmg.org/show.aspx?id=1081&cid=10 |title=怀念我的父亲──韩有文 |last=韩 |first=芝华 |date=2009-10-16 |website=中国国民党革命委员会新疆维吾尔自治区委员会 |publisher= |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170906035505/http://www.xjmg.org/show.aspx?id=1081&cid=10 |access-date= |archive-date=2017-09-06 |quote=}}