This site specializes in information on Chinese civilian & military orders, decorations, & medals from the Qing Dynasty, the Republic and the People's Republic periods.

Manchukuo's Award System & some of its Lesser Known Awards

Paul L. T. Kua

(Under construction, photos to be supplied)

The late Mr. James W. Peterson, in Orders & Medals of Japan and Associated States (OMSA Monograph No. 1, 1967), gave an excellent description of the relatively obscure Manchukuo award system which more or less defined the boundary of our knowledge of this subject in English sources for many years.  A number of articles in The Medal Collector over the years have added to our understanding, evidence of the value of our broad network of members(1).  Recent appearance of the Peterson collection in the Floyd, Johnson & Paine auction, and another very important collection in the Manion auction provided some valuable pictures and price information on many key and well-known Manchukuo pieces(2).  This article focuses on Manchukuo historical materials and awards not included in Peterson’s book and the recent auctions.  

The three Northeastern Chinese provinces of Fengtian, Jilin and Heilongjiang, commonly known as Manchuria, had been an integral part of the Chinese empire under Manchu rule(3).  They were  under the control of a Governor appointed by the Manchu court.   After the Republic of China was founded in 1911, they became part of the Republic.   A local warlord, Chang Tso-lin, rose to power at the end of the Manchu empire and the early Republic period and became the effective ruler of the provinces, although he usually took order from the central government in Peking(4).

Japan, which had just annexed Korea in 1910, had already controlled the Southern Manchurian Railway and the Liaotung peninsula (the southern tip of Manchuria), where the Japanese Kwantung Army was based.   In order to further their interests, the Kwantung Army bombed Chang Tso-lin’s train as it returned to Manchuria from Peking in 1928, and killed him.  Chang’s son, Chang Hsueh-liang succeeded his father and, despite Japanese warnings, declared the loyalty of the provinces to the Chinese Republic in December, 1928.  On September 18, 1931, a mysterious explosion occurred on the Southern Manchurian Railway near Mukden.  Kwantung Army claimed that this was instigated by the Chinese, and “retaliated” by immediately attacking Manchuria.  This was the famous “September 18^th Incidence.” By January, 1932, they occupied the three provinces. 

On March 1, 1932, in order to deflate world-wide criticisms, the Kwantung Army created the “independent” Manchukuo, covering the three provinces.  Henry Pu Yi, the last emperor of China, then in exile in Tianjin, was installed as the head of the government.  Two years later, on March 1, 1934, Pu Yi was allowed to become the “emperor”.  

Despite all appearances, Manchukuo was clearly a puppet state of Japan.  In January 1932, Stimson, U.S. Secretary of State, declared that the U.S. would not recognize the unlawful occupation of the provinces by the Japanese.  The Lytton Commission, sent to Manchuria by the League of Nations in 1932, condemned the Japanese as the aggressor.  Japan responded by withdrawing from the League. 

Japanese Kwantung Army sent Japanese to run all key government ministries, albeit often as “deputies” to the Chinese “chiefs”(5).  The Japanese Deputies’ Council actually formulated all laws and regulations, and controlled appointments to all key posts.  Kwantung Army also regularly “visited” Pu Yi, and posted people to work in his “palace”, constantly watching him.  An early imperial edict, issued in July, 1933, appointed a Japanese General as his aide-de-camp.  The Manchukuo military and police were filled with Japanese officers. Japanese was taught in all schools, the National Shrine featured a Japanese deity, people had to bow regularly in the direction of the Japanese Palace, and couples were married under the auspices of a Japanese flag. 

Manchukuoan and Japanese troops fought border campaigns against Mongolia and Russia. It also fought the Chinese both at their borders and inside Manchukuo.  Uprisings were numerous, many instigated by the Chinese Communists and the Nationalists. Many purges were launched, and incidences of atrocities against both the insurgents and civilians were common.  Even inhumane germ warfare research and weapons production had apparently occurred.

However, Japanese efforts to colonize Manchuria was destined to fail from day one.  Bertrand Russell, writing ten years before the formation of Manchukuo, proved insightful(6):

The Japanese assert that they need colonies for their surplus population, yet the Chinese immigrants into Manchuria exceed the Japanese a hundredfold.  Whatever may be the temporary political status of Manchuria, it will remain a part of Chinese civilization, and can be recovered whenever Japan happens to be in difficulties.  The Chinese derive such strength from their four hundred millions, the toughness of their national customs, their power of passive resistance…that they can afford to despise military methods, and to wait till the feverish energy of their oppressors shall have exhausted itself in internecine combats. 

After the surrender of Italy and then Germany, Japan became isolated. Chinese offensive grew  stronger in the 1940’s.   The Potsdam Conference in July, 1945 held between the United States, Great Britain, and the Soviet Union forced Japan to choose between unconditional surrender or “utter destruction.”  In August, the Soviet Union declared war on Japan, and invaded Manchuria.  By August 14, after the two atomic bombs were dropped, Japan surrendered unconditionally. Pu Yi was arrested on August 19, 1945, and Manchukuo officially fell. The Soviet Army evacuated Manchuria slowly to assist the Chinese Communists in gaining control. The Chinese Nationalists attempted to retake Manchuria, even though both General Wedemeyer and General Eisenhower considered that a dangerous over-extension, difficult to support logistically. This campaign resulted in the loss of some 300,000 of its best soldiers by 1949, and “spelled the beginning of the end for the Nationalists(7).”

Recent efforts by some in Japan to remove references to Japanese aggression in Asia during World War II from their textbooks, and to recast their invasions of Manchuria and other parts of Asia as efforts to bring “freedom and prosperity” to its Asian neighbors are perhaps both dangerous and unnecessary.  In all fairness, while Japanese ultra-nationalists and military expansionists carried the day during WWII, some Japanese civilian leaders were concerned about overseas aggressions pursued by the military and the related excesses.  The tremendous human and material costs, and the ultimate ruin of Japan and other Asian countries proved that these leaders were indeed correct, if timid in their efforts to stop the military. 

Many people may judge the success of a nation by its standard of living, various freedoms,  cultural achievements, etc., rather than the size of its territory, or its military might.  By such criteria, Japan has been much more successful after WWII, demonstrating that peaceful coexistence and friendly exchanges with her neighbors may be more conducive to prosperity of Japan then territorial expansion beyond the Japanese Isles and forceful occupation of countries whose peoples do not want to be “liberated” by or “united” with Japan.

Because of the puppet nature and colonial status of Manchukuo,  its award system followed closely that of Japan. All Japanese orders, except for the Order of Golden Kite and the Order of Sacred Crown, had their Manchukuoan counterparts.  The orders were designed in Japan.  Many of them were made by the Osaka Mint, and bear its “M” mark at the top of the suspension ring. The equivalent Manchukuo and Japanese orders are summarized below:

Likewise, commemorative and campaign medals are also heavily influenced by Japan, in terms of both events included (e.g., Visit to Japan, National Shrine, Census, etc.) and design(e.g., Border Incident, Red Cross, etc.). 

Since Manchukuoan dates appear on all medals and official documents, it should be briefly explained.  All days and months remain the same as in the Western (Gregorian) calendar, only the years changes. Upon the formation of Manchukuo on March 1^st, 1932, the era name, Ta Tung, was adpoted.  Ta Tung Year 1 was March 1^st to December 31^st , 1932.  Upon the formation of the Empire on March 1^st, 1934, a new era name, Kang Teh, was adopted.  Hence, 1934 was Ta Tung Year 3 up to March 1^st,  then Kang Teh Year 1 from March 1^st  to December 31^st.  And so on, until Kang Teh Year 12, which was 1945, when Manchukuo ended. 

To assist in following the key events of Manchukuo, especially as they relate to orders, decorations and medals, the following chronology has been compiled(8).   Western dates are adopted, although these could easily be converted to Manchukuoan dates, using the above table.

Few Manchukuoan award certificates survived WWII, and those which survived were mostly awarded to Japanese.  After the fall of Manchukuo, Chinese collaborators were naturally eager to destroy certificates which contain their names.  All the ones which I have the good fortune of coming across over the years have the imperial orchid blossom crest in the top center, surrounded by elaborately designed borders.  The crest is usually printed in gold or in white with brownish/ yellowish background.  Different certificates are adopted for different commemorative and campaign medals, while the same certificate is apparently used for all orders regardless of class.  They are numbered, dated, signed and sealed by both the prime minister and the chief of the awards bureau/section.  In the center of the certificate of an order,  the official state seal of Manchu empire would appear.  For the certificate of a commemorative or campaign medal, the seal of the state ministry would appear instead. 

Again, the design of  the certificates are very similar to those in Japan, with the exception that the Manchukuo certificates do not have a drawing of the actual medal at the bottom center of the certificates, as the Japanese ones customarily do.

One certificate awarding the 8^th Class Order of the Auspicious Cloud to a Chinese collaborator dated May 9^th, Kang Teh Year 1(1934) is illustrated in figure A(10).  This certificate measures     60cm x 45cm.  Another certificate awarding a Border Incident War Medal to a Japanese Officer dated November 25^th, Kang Teh Year 7(1940) is illustrated in figure B.  This certificate measures 40cm x 30cm.

The first certificate was signed by Zheng Xiaoshou, the first prime minister.  The second certificate was signed by Zhang Jinghui, the second prime minister.  It is interesting to note that while a Japanese occupied the position of the section chief of the awards section in the earlier certificate,  a Chinese named Zhang Lianwen, signed as the bureau chief of the awards bureau in the later certificate.

Donnelly in 1953, and Peterson in 1967 both described 5 commemorative awards (National Foundation Merit, Enthronement, Visit to Japan, National Shrine Foundation, and National Census), and 1 campaign medal (Border Incident War).  Peterson also discussed 4 Red Cross awards (Honorary Member, Merit Decoration, Special Member, Regular Member)(11).  Over the years, a number of other awards, some rather rare, have been discovered and are described below, in chronological order where dates are known(12):

(1)   National Foundation Commemorative Medal (figure C)--Unlike the National Foundation Merit Medal, this one is gold-plated bronze(instead of black lacquered bronze of the Merit Medal), 34mm in diameter(instead of 30mm).  The ribbon is watered silk, 36mm, in the national colors, from wearer’s right to left 4mm each of red, blue, white, black, and 20mm of yellow.  The obverse shows a portrait of the bespectacled Henry Pu Yi with Chinese characters “Jian Guo Ji Nian”, meaning National Foundation Commemoration on the sides of the portrait, and March, Ta Tung Year 1 (1932) in the bottom.  Reverse shows two pheonixes, the mythical and auspicious Chinese birds, surrounding the Manchukuo flag(13).  It is likely that this medal, bearing Pu Yi’s portrait, was used more as a personal award from him, and is, therefore, somewhat more rare than the National Foundation Merit Medal.

(2)   Medal to Commemorate the 1^st Anniversary of Manchukuo (figures D, E)—One version of this medal is in silver(left), another in bronze(right), both 26mm in diameter.  As the original, titled, light wood case indicates, this medal was issued without a ribbon.  The obverse shows a flag of Manchukuo with national colors in enamel(mostly faded here) surrounded by two stalks of the Chinese “gaoliang” grain.  The reverse has characters meaning  Manchukuo, March 1, Ta Tung Year 2(1933), and Commemoration of the 1^st  Anniversary of the Founding of the Nation.  As a commemorative issue, this medal was apparently distributed rather freely by the emperor, often without a formal ceremony or certificate of award(14). 

(3)   Jehol Campaign Merit Medal (figure F)—In February 20, Ta Tung Year 2(1933), the Manchukuoan Army, recently set up and trained by the Japanese, was first used in the so-called Jehol Campaign.  About 30,000 Manchukuoan/Chinese soldiers were deployed with two Japanese divisions to attack the Chinese Jehol province.  By early March, the city of Chengde fell, and the province of Jehol was added to Manchukuo.  The campaign decoration in bronze measures 38mm across, and is in the shape of a horseshoe with a horse head on the top, the Manchukuoan and Japanese flags in full enamel in the bottom, and two lines of Chinese characters reading “Merit Badge for the Jehol Campaign,” and “Kwantung Army headquarters”.  The reverse is plain with a fastening device.  This Merit Medal was awarded only to Chinese/Manchukuoan and Japanese soldiers who excelled in the campaign and is one of the few campaign awards of the regime, all rather rare(15). 

(4)   Empire Foundation Commemorative Medal (figure G)—Unlike the National Foundation Medals, this one is in silver, 35mm in diameter.  It does not have a ribbon, but instead has a beautifully enameled silver flag of the Manchukuo, with the full national colors in enamel.  The obverse shows the characters “Jian Guo” surrounded by two stalks of “gaoliang” grain, similar to the National Foundation Merit Medal.  The key distinction here is the characters on top, which says “Da Mun Zhou Di Guo”, or the Great Manchu Empire (not just Nation). All the characters and the head of the grain stalks are gold-plated  The reverse simply has the date March 1, Ta Tung Year 3(1934), being the last day of the Ta Tung era.  The reverse of the enameled flag has a pin for wearing.  This is a very well-made and large silver medal, indicative of the importance Pu Yi attached to his enthronement and the conversion of Manchukuo to the Empire of Manchu. 

(5)   Enthronement Commemorative Medals (figures H, I)—The illustrations show both the obverse and reverse of  the bronze version (left) and the silver version (right).  The bronze version is of interest here, as the silver one does appear in Peterson’s book.  It measures only 30mm(versus 35mm for the silver version).  Ribbon is unknown.  The obverse shows a phoenix flying over a rising sun, a Manchukuo flag, and a Chinese styled building.  The reverse has characters meaning the Great Manchu Empire, Kang Teh Year 1(1934), March 1, and Enthronement Ceremony Commemoration. There is no information as to why two medals were struck for the same event.  Possibly, the silver one was struck for higher ranking officers, and the bronze version for lower-ranking personnel. (Note the date on both these medals is exactly the same date as that for the medal described in (4) above, only one refers to the last day of the “nation”, and the other the first day of the “empire”.)

(6)   Imperial Guard “Loyalty, Faithfulness, & Bravery” Award (figures J, K)—This well-made silver medal measures 33mm.  The obverse shows a coiling dragon with a ball in what appears to be a rose gold finish.  The reverse shows three lines of ancient Chinese characters for  “Imperial Guard”, “Loyalty, Faithfulness, Bravery”, and “September, Kang Teh Year 3(1936)”, which was the same month when the Order of Pillars of State was created.  Both samples observed by the author came with a silver chain, indicating that this medal may have been worn around the neck by the recipients.  It is most likely that this was a personal award from the emperor.  Being a puppet head who was constantly watched, he must have placed tremendous value on the personal loyalty of his imperial guards and worked at cultivating it. 

(7)   Medal to Commemorate the 10^th Anniversary of  Manchukuo (figure L)—This medal, made of silver-plated bronze, measures 27mm, and was rather poorly made, perhaps an indication of the resource-starved state of Manchukuo as the war dragged on.  The obverse shows a winging eagle perched on an eight-pointed star, surrounded by a laurel wreath in the bottom half, and Chinese characters for “10^th Anniversary of the founding of Manchukuo” over the eagle. The reverse is plain.  While no date is shown, this medal should have been issued in Kang Teh Year 9(1942)

(8)   Red Cross Membership Medal, Type II (figures M, N) —Peterson described a full-range of Red Cross awards all dated October 1, Kang Teh Year 5(1938).  These are made of silver or gold-plated silver, with designs very similar to their Japanese counterparts.  Figures M and N show the obverse and reverse of  the Special Membership Medal in gold-plated silver (right), the Regular Membership Medal in silver (center), and a rather unusual Regular Membership Medal in silver (left.)  The last one, which does not appear in Peterson’s book, is of interest here.  It measures 31mm(instead of 30mm like the other two), and is made of silver perhaps one third the thickness of the more common medals.  The obverse shows a red enameled cross in the center surrounded by a laurel wreath, and the reverse shows an enameled Manchukuo flag in the center, with characters for Manchukuo on top, and “Red Cross Society Regular Member” in the bottom.  No date appears, but because the silver is thinner, and the design and Chinese characters adopted are more Chinese than Japanese, one can safely guess that it was issued after October, 1943, during the last war years(16).

(9)   Military Support Society Special Membership Badge (figure O)—This medal, sometimes referred to as the Manchukuo Time Expired Soldier’s League Badge, was described by Peterson, though a picture was not shown(17).  Figure O shows a rather well-made Special Honorary Member’s Badge of the Society, which is presumably a more elaborate version of a Regular Member’s Badge.  This badge measures 29mm across, and is made of black lacquered bronze.  The obverse has a 5-pointed gold star superimposed on a larger 5-pointed, 5-color, enameled star, surrounded by an oval gaoliang wreath, with gold plated cherry blossom and heads of grain stalks on the top.   The reverse has two lines of characters indicating “Manchu Military Personnel Support Society”, and “Special Sponsoring Membership Badge.”

(10) Miscellaneous Agency & Civilian Awards (figure P)—A wide assortment of awards were also issued by the Police, the various government departments and local/provincial authorities of Manchukuo.  Examples of this type of awards include the Jilin Province Peace Preservation Council Merit Medal and the Mukden Peace Preservation Council Merit Medal illustrated in Peterson’s book(18). To give the readers an idea of its great variety, figure P shows the obverse of eight awards which fall into this broad category.  In the top left corner is a Police Merit Medal issued by the police bureau of the capital in October, Kang Teh Year 4(1937).  The medal to the right is a Police Merit Badge issued by the Teh Hui County in November, Kang Teh Year 3(1936).  To the right is a Merit Badge for Assistance & Contribution, given by the Huai Teh County.  In the top right is a Merit Award  from a Mongolian local government unit.  In the bottom left is a Labor Award from the city of Fushun dated Kang Teh Year 9(1942).  To the right is an Award for the Elimination of Harmful Pests from the provincial governor of Jilin dated Kang Teh Year 6(1939).  To the right is a general award  from the county chief of Suangyang County in December, Kang Teh Year 4(1937). Finally, in the bottom right is a railway award.  All these awards are reasonably well-made.  All except the bottom left one are made of silver, some also have gold-plated characters.  

Copyright 1998 Orders and Medals Society of America.  All rights reserved. Reproduced by Permission 

Footnotes:

(1)   Readers interested in digging further may want to refer to the following articles from the various issues of The Medal Collector, in chronological order: Robert E. Donnelly, “The Medals of Manchukuo,”  May-June, July-August, 1953; James Peterson, “The Order of the Pillars of the State,” October, 1961, pp. 1-6; R.T. McNamara, “Comparative Anatomy of Medals & Order Insignia: Varieties of Manchukoan Order Insignia,” January, 1966, pp.22-24; James Peterson, “The Grand Cordon of the Order of the Illustrious Dragon of the Empire of Manchukuo,” August, 1966, pp. 1-6;  Edward S. Haynes, “Further Contributions to the Study of the Orders and Decorations of Manchoukuo,” September, 1971, pp.12-14; S.G. Yasinitsky, “An Unpublished Manchukuo Medal,” March, 1972, p.25; “The Copybook of C. Flynn-Allen,” August, 1972, p.23; S.G. Yasinitsky, “Manchukuo Badge for Perseverance,” November, 1992, p. 21.

(2)   Please refer to Manion’s catalogue for auction #174, “Japanese and Other Countries Militaria”, February, 1996 and Floyd, Johnson & Paine catalogue for auction on August 2, 1995.

(3)   Chinese characters are usually “romanized” into English in a number of ways.  In this article, established names are romanized in their old/original way.  Otherwise, the modern Pinyin system is used.  Where a city or province has been renamed overtime, the modern version is usually used here. 

(4)   A number of  sources have been consulted for historical backgrounds of this section, including John K. Fairbank, et al.,  East Asia: The Modern Transformation, esp. pp. 583-588, pp. 706-710, Houghton Mifflin: 1965; China Handbook, 1937-1945, pp. 760-762, Macmillan: 1947; F. F. Liu, A Military History of Modern China, 1924-1949, pp.255-260, Princeton University Press: 1956;  Mun Zhou Guo Shi (The History of Manchukuo), Changchun: 1990; Zhong Guo Da Bai Ke Chuen Shu—Zun Shi (The Chinese Encyclopaedia—Military Section), Vols. 1 & 2; Wu Wang Jiu Yi Ba Jilin Art:1992, etc.  The last three books are in Chinese, and Fairbank  may be the best source for additional reading in English.  Unless a quotation is used, specific sources are not noted here.

(5)   The fact that most Japanese “deputies” controlled the various ministries in Manchukuo was well-known even in the 1930’s.  In a Fortune Magazine article dated February, 1935, the Foreign Minister of Manchukuo, Hsieh Chieh-shih, was referred to as the “Button Answerer”, “who comes in to sign papers when his Japanese Vice Minister presses a buzzer.”  See “the Manchurian Muddle”, Fortune Magazine, February, 1935, p. 87.

(6)   See Bertrand Russell, The Problem of China, p. 207, London: George Allen & Unwin, 1922.

(7)   See F. F. Liu, A Military History of Modern China, p. 260. 

(8)   Most materials for this chronology comes from Mun Zhou Guo Shi (The History of Manchukuo) (in Chinese), Vol. 1, Chapter 5, pp. 62-66; dates on commemorative stamps of Manchukuo, award certificates, etc.

(9)   Note this medal was established in Kang Teh Year 7(1940), by Imperial Edict # 310, as indicated by the award certificate which is illustrated here in Figure B.  This information was not available to Peterson at the time his book was published.

(10) This certificate is rather interesting in that while it was only for an 8^th class order, it was actually dated May 9^th, 1934.  According to official records, it was, apparently, one of the first 10 awards made since the founding of the empire!  After giving the matter some thought, the author has also decided to block out the names of the award recipients.  After all, displaying their names would serve no purpose in this discussion.

(11) See note (1) for Donnelly’s article in 1953, and OMSA Monograph No.1, Peterson, Orders & Medals of Japan and Associated States, pp. 100-105.

(12) A large and diverse assortment of police, agency, and civilian awards given by the various ministries, agencies, the railway, schools, local/city/provincial governments are not discussed in detail here. Only a cursory review of a few samples of this type of medals are shown here in item (10) of this section.  Awards of the Kwantung Army or the Kwantung Bureau are not discussed at all, except for the Jehol Campaign Merit Medal which was, strictly speaking, a joint Manchukuo-Kwantung Army award.   This latter type of awards would require dedicated treatment beyond the scope of this article.   

(13) The late Mr. Harry Mohler, a prominent collector of Chinese medals, did come across a sample of this medal in the early seventies. See S. G. Yasinitsky, “An Unpublished Manchukuo Medal,” The Medal Collector, 3/72, p.25.

(14) Mr. H.G.W. Woodhead, in his book Adventures in Far Eastern Journalism, has a picture of this medal, as well as a description of how he was awarded it by Pu Yi spontaneously during an informal visit in September of 1932.  See “The Copybook of C. Flynn-Allen”, the Medal Collector, August, 1972, p.23.  No information on measurement, the case, or the base material were given.  But comparing the picture with actual samples of both the silver and the bronze versions, it appears that Woodhead received a silver medal.

(15) Peterson identified the Eastern Frontier Campaign Medal in p.108 of his book.  The author has also come across two other campaign medals for the Dong-bian-dao, or Eastern Frontier.  One is dated Kang Teh Year 3, in bronze and also in the shape of a horseshoe.  Another, not dated, in the shape of an inverted triangle surrounded by laurel wreath, with crossed rifles in the center.  Unfortunately, it was not possible to obtain a good photo of either of these awards. 

(16) Manchukuo stamps can be used to cross reference the dates here.  It is clear that the Red Cross Society was founded in October, 1938.  A stamp issued for that purpose shows that date.  The difference between the Chinese characters used in the two versions is subtle.  In the 1938 medals, “Che Shi Zi She”, a Japanese term for the Red Cross Society, is used.  In the undated, thinner, medal, “Hung Shi Zi Hui”, a Chinese term for the Society, is used.  Since a stamp commemorating the 5^th Anniversary of the Society, dated October, 1943, still used the Japanese term, one can conclude that the thinner medal was issued after that date. 

(17) See Peterson, Orders & Medals of Japan & Associated States, p.108.

(18) See Peterson, Orders & Medals of Japan & Associated States, p.107. 

[ Home ] [ Up ]

Send mail to pkua@netvigator.com with questions or comments about this web site.
Copyright © Paul Kua
Last modified: March 23, 2005