36 Facts About Soong Mei-ling

Soong Mei-ling, known as Madame Chiang, was a Chinese political figure.

Soong Mei-ling was born in the Song family home, a traditional house called Neishidi, in Pudong, Shanghai, China.

Soong Mei-ling's passport issued by the Qing government showed that she was born on 4 March 1898.

Soong Mei-ling was the fourth of six children of Charlie Soong, a wealthy businessman and former Methodist missionary from Hainan, and his wife Ni Kwei-tseng.

In Shanghai, Soong Mei-ling attended the McTyeire School for Girls with her sister, Ching-ling.

Soong Mei-ling insisted she have her way and be allowed to accompany her older sister though she was only ten, which she did.

Soong Mei-ling spent the year in Demorest, Georgia, with Ai-ling's Wesleyan friend, Blanche Moss, who enrolled Soong Mei-ling as an 8th grader at Piedmont College.

Soong Mei-ling briefly attended Fairmount College in Monteagle, Tennessee in 1910.

Soong Mei-ling was officially registered as a freshman at Wesleyan in 1912 at the age of 15.

Soong Mei-ling graduated from Wellesley as one of the 33 "Durant Scholars" on June 19,1917, with a major in English literature and minor in philosophy.

Soong Mei-ling was a member of Tau Zeta Epsilon, Wellesley's Arts and Music Society.

Soong Mei-ling was a member of the Legislative Yuan from 1930 to 1932 and Secretary-General of the Chinese Aeronautical Affairs Commission from 1936 to 1938.

In 1934, Soong Mei-ling was given a villa in Kuling town, Mount Lu.

Soong Mei-ling was deeply involved in the project and even picked all of the teachers herself.

Soong Mei-ling referred to these children as her "warphans" and made them a personal cause.

Soong Mei-ling made several tours to the United States to lobby support for the Nationalists' war effort.

Soong Mei-ling drew crowds as large as 30,000 people and in 1943 made the cover of Time magazine for a third time.

Soong Mei-ling had earlier appeared on the October 26,1931 cover alongside her husband and on the January 3,1937 cover, with her husband as "Man and Wife of the Year".

Soong Mei-ling dressed ostentatiously during her tours to seek foreign aid, bringing dozens of suitcases filled with Chanel handbags, pearl-decorated shoes, and other luxury garments on a visit to the White House.

Soong Mei-ling's approach shocked United States First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt and prompted resentment from many officials in the Republic of China government.

Soong Mei-ling was a Patron of the International Red Cross Committee, honorary chair of the British United Aid to China Fund, and First Honorary Member of the Bill of Rights Commemorative Society.

One of the key reasons was that Soong Mei-ling ignored her family's involvement in corruption.

Soong Mei-ling, was the Chinese premier finance minister, and the eldest daughter, Soong Mei-ling Ai-ling, was the wife of Kung Hsiang-hsi, the wealthiest man in China.

The second daughter, Soong Mei-ling Ching-ling, was the wife of Sun Yat-sen, China's founding father.

The youngest daughter, Soong Mei-ling, married Chiang in 1927, and following the marriage, the two families became intimately connected, creating the "Soong dynasty" and the "Four Families".

However, Soong Mei-ling was credited for her campaign for women's rights in China, including her attempts to improve the education, culture, and social benefits of Chinese women.

Soong Ai-ling and Soong Mei-ling were the two richest women in China.

Soong Mei-ling called Chiang Kai-shek to complain and called Chiang Ching-Kuo directly.

Soong Mei-ling is said to have passionately kissed Willkie at the airport the next day and offered to come with him to the United States.

Soong Mei-ling found no mention of it in Chiang's detailed private diaries.

Soong Mei-ling was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 1975 and would undergo two mastectomies in Taiwan.

Soong Mei-ling kept a residence in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire, where she vacationed in the summer.

Soong Mei-ling again returned to the US and made a rare public appearance in 1995 when she attended a reception held on Capitol Hill in her honor in connection with celebrations of the 50th anniversary of the end of World War II.

Soong Mei-ling sold her Long Island estate in 2000 and spent the rest of her life in the 10 Gracie Square apartment on the Upper East Side of Manhattan owned by her niece.

Soong Mei-ling's remains were interred at Ferncliff Cemetery in Hartsdale, New York, pending an eventual burial with her late husband who was entombed in Cihu, Taiwan.

Soong Mei-ling appears in "Cooking for Madame Chiang" in Dear Chrysanthemums, a novel in stories by Fiona Sze-Lorrain.