Chang Ya-juo | |
|---|---|
章亞若 | |
 | |
| Born | Chang Mao-li (章懋李) |
| Died | 1942[2] |
| Known for | Being the mother of Chiang Ching-kuo's illegitimate twin sons |
| Partner | Chiang Ching-kuo |
| Children |
|
Chang Ya-juo[a] (died 1942[2]) was the mistress of Chiang Ching-kuo and bore twin sons for him, John Chiang and Winston Chang.[1] She was born in Jiujiang and met Chiang when she was working at a training camp for enlistees in the fight against Japan while he was serving as the head of Gannan Prefecture.[3][4]
The twins took their mother's surname. Chang Ya-juo died under mysterious circumstances; after dining at a friend's house, she came home complaining of stomach cramps. She was admitted to the hospital in Guilin and died the next day.[2][3]
After their mother's death, the twins were raised by Chang's brother and sister-in-law, Chang Hau-juo (章浩若; Zhāng Hàoruò) and Chi Chen (季琛; Jì Chēn), respectively, who were officially listed as their parents.[5] They escaped to Taiwan with their uncle and aunt in 1949 and settled near Hsinchu.
After a legal process[6] that included obtaining written declarations from Chi's sons, documents attesting to the father-sons relationship between Chiang Ching-kuo and the twins from retired general Wang Sheng (王昇; Wáng Shēng), the birth certificate listing Chang Ya-juo as his mother and DNA testing to prove that Chi was not his birth mother, John Chiang was able to obtain a new ID card listing Chiang Ching-kuo and Chang Ya-juo as his biological parents in December 2002.[5] John Chiang officially changed his surname to Chiang in March 2005.[7]
In 2006, Chiang stated he knew the identity of his mother's murderer, to be revealed as one of Chiang Ching-kuo's aides in his forthcoming memoirs, but that Chiang Ching-kuo had not ordered the murder and was not aware it was to take place.[2][8]
