General Sun Li-jen's Former Residence Introduction
On July 1, 2002, the residence of General Sun Li-jen was registered as a historical building. The Cultural Affairs Bureau of Taichung City began restoration work in 2009. His family and former subordinates actively planned the establishment of the "Sun Li-jen Memorial Hall," collecting and organizing manuscripts, photographs, and artifacts to showcase General Sun's life achievements and some materials on modern Chinese history, providing resources for academic research and public memorialization. The "Sun Li-jen Memorial Hall" officially opened on November 21, 2010. Visitors to the residence need to make an appointment in advance, as it is only open at designated times on alternate weekends. Entering the residence, one can see the standard Japanese-style garden home, which feels like stepping back in time. It is recommended to slow down and listen to the stories of General Sun and the residence, experiencing each story within the Japanese family architecture. Sitting on the floor and looking out at the garden through the floor-to-ceiling windows provides a unique perspective of time away from the city. General Sun Li-jen (December 8, 1900 – November 19, 1990), courtesy name Fu-min and art name Zhong-neng, was born in Jinniu Town, Lujiang County, Anhui Province, during the late Qing Dynasty. His father, Sun Xi-ze, was a juren from Jiangnan during the 20th year of the Guangxu reign, serving as a bureaucrat in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and as the governor of Dengzhou in Shandong Province. After the establishment of the Republic of China, he served as the president of National Central University in Beiping and later as an advisor to the Presidential Office. His uncle, Sun Hong-ze, was a jinshi from the third year of Guangxu, serving as the county magistrate of He County, Guangxi, and an inspector at the Huwei Customs in Taiwan. Sun Li-jen started attending private school at the age of seven, learning from Song Zhi-zhong, which laid the foundation for his Chinese and English education, and later learned German while in Shandong. It is said that General Sun was inspired to pursue a military career at the age of nine after witnessing the bullying of Chinese people by Germans in the Shandong concession. The residence of General Sun Li-jen is a single-story Japanese-style house surrounded by a garden, where he was held under political confinement for 33 years. After his passing in November 1990, his family and former subordinates actively worked to establish the "Sun Li-jen Memorial Hall," planning to collect and organize General Sun's manuscripts, photographs, artifacts, and other materials to showcase his life achievements and provide resources for academic research and public memorialization. The "Sun Li-jen Memorial Hall" was inaugurated on November 21, 2010.
