Biography
Gao Lingwei was born in Tianjin in 1868. He successfully passed the literary examinations and was afterwards assigned to the province of Hubei for official appointment. He was the sub-director of the High School of the Chin Hsin College, and superintendent of the Military Academy in Hubei. Later he became the director of the Hubei Government Mint. While holding the position of Viceroy of Hunan and Hubei, Zhang Zhidong ordered the establishment of an arsenal, industrial plants and copper and silver mints, and also encouraged the establishment of learning in his territory. Gao Lingwei participated in all these activities to the satisfaction of the great Viceroy. In 1906 he was promoted to be the Commissioner of Education in Hubei. It was at a time when the Central Government tried to concentrate power in Beijing and local finances were consequently stringent and the fund for education became very scant. In such circumstances Gao Lingwei accepted the new appointment, but in a few months he was able to increase the number of schools in that province by ten and find the necessary funds for the purpose. In 1909 Gao Lingwei was promoted to be the Provincial Treasurer, a very high provincial appointment at that time. After serving in that important capacity for some time, one of his parents died, and according to the ancient custom, he had to retire from official duties for three years. Then, the first revolution came in 1911, and Gao Lingwei went to Tianjin to continue living in retirement. During his retirement in Tianjin, at the request of his friends, he did all he could to direct the organization of banks along modern lines in the different parts of the country. In August 1913 Gao Lingwei was appointed as the Acting Chief of the Financial Bureau of Chihli. In September 1913 he was ordered to act concurrently as Chief of the Preparation Bureau for the Collection of National Taxes in Chihli. He was relieved of these two posts in April 1914. In 1915 Gao Lingwei was the High Advisor to the Office of the Tuchun of the Three Eastern Provinces. In August 1917, a new Parliament was convened and Gao Lingwei became a member of it from Chihli. In August 1920 Gao Lingwei was appointed as the Vice-Minister of Agriculture and Commerce. In January 1921 he received the Second Class Tashou Chiaho. In July 1921 he was appointed as the Vice-President of the Bank of Agriculture and Commerce. In October 1921 he was appointed as the Minister of Finance and awarded the First Class Tashou Chiaho. In November 1921 he was ordered to become the concurrent Director General of the Currency Bureau and also the Director General of the Salt Administration. In December 1921, he was transferred to become the Minister of the Interior. In this capacity he served in January 1922 the following concurrent positions: Director-General of Famine Relief; Director General of the Metropolitan Municipal Administration; and President of the Yangtze Rier Commission. In March 1922 Gao Lingwei was awarded the First Class Wenfu. In May 1922 he was ordered to act concurrently as Minister of Communications. This acting post was only held by him for half a month. In June 1922 Gao Lingwei was relieved of the portfolio of the Interior. On the 18th of the same month he was appointed to be the Civil Governor of Chihli, but he did not assume office and on the 24th he was relieved of the post of governor. In August 1922 he was appointed as the Acting Minister of Finance, in September he was transferred to become the Acting Minister of Agriculture and Commerce. In October 1922 Gao Lingwei was awarded the First Class Tashou Paokuang Chiaho. In November 1922 he was transferred to be the Acting Minister of the Interior. In January 1923 he was appointed as the Minister of the Interior. In February he was ordered to hold concurrently the Presidency of the Yangtze River Commission. In October 1923 Gao Lingwei was appointed to act as the Premier of China. This position was held by him until January 1924, when he was appointed to be the Director General of the Dustoms Administration to succeed Sun Paochi, who had been appointed as the Premier.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Li Yuanhong |
President of the Republic of China 1923 |
Succeeded by Cao Kun |
| Preceded by Zhang Shaozeng |
Premier of the Republic of China 1923-1924 |
Succeeded by Sun Baoqi |
| Preceded by office established |
Mayor of Tianjin 1937-1938 |
Succeeded by Pan Yugui |
| Preceded by office established |
Governor of Hebei 1938-1939 |
Succeeded by Wu Zanzhou |
|
|
|||||||||||||
|
| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| Name | Gao, Lingwei |
| Alternative names | |
| Short description | |
| Date of birth | 1868 |
| Place of birth | |
| Date of death | 1939 |
| Place of death | |
Read more about this topic: Gao Lingwei
Famous quotes containing the word biography:
“Had Dr. Johnson written his own life, in conformity with the opinion which he has given, that every man’s life may be best written by himself; had he employed in the preservation of his own history, that clearness of narration and elegance of language in which he has embalmed so many eminent persons, the world would probably have had the most perfect example of biography that was ever exhibited.”
—James Boswell (1740–95)
“Just how difficult it is to write biography can be reckoned by anybody who sits down and considers just how many people know the real truth about his or her love affairs.”
—Rebecca West (1892–1983)
“As we approached the log house,... the projecting ends of the logs lapping over each other irregularly several feet at the corners gave it a very rich and picturesque look, far removed from the meanness of weather-boards. It was a very spacious, low building, about eighty feet long, with many large apartments ... a style of architecture not described by Vitruvius, I suspect, though possibly hinted at in the biography of Orpheus.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)