Chiang Kai-shek

Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek (1887-1975). Chiang Kai-shek was a Chinese political and military leader who served as the leader of the Nationalist (anti-Communist) government in China from 1928 to 1949. He had a close relationship with Henry Luce, the influential American publisher and founder of Time, Life, and Fortune magazines.

Luce was a strong supporter of Chiang Kai-shek and the Nationalist government in China. He used his magazines to promote U.S. support for Chiang and the Nationalists, particularly during World War II when Chiang was an important American ally against Japan. Luce helped organize Chiang’s visits to the U.S. during the war.

After the Communists defeated the Nationalists in the Chinese Civil War in 1949, Luce became a leader of the “China Lobby” that urged the U.S. government to continue supporting Chiang and the Nationalist government, which had retreated to Taiwan. Luce consistently portrayed Chiang and the Nationalists as the best means for the U.S. to spread its values and influence in Asia, even as they struggled with corruption and authoritarian rule.

While Luce had a close relationship with Chiang, his wife Claire Booth Luce did not appear to have an independent relationship with the Chinese leader. Her support for Chiang seems to have been primarily through her husband Henry