Huang Bamei

In this Chinese name, the family name is Huang.
Huang Bamei
Huang in 1938
Native name
黃八妹
Nickname(s)Two Guns[a]
Born1906
Jinshan County, Jiangsu, China
Died4 May 1982(1982-05-04) (aged 75–76)
Taipei, Taiwan
AllegianceRepublic of China (variable)

Huang Bamei[3] (Chinese: 黃八妹; pinyin: Huáng Bāmèi; 1906 – 4 May 1982), also known as Huang P’ei-mei[4][5] or Huang P'emei,[2] was a Chinese pirate leader who served as a naval commander in the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) and the second phase of the Chinese Civil War (1945–1949), aligned with the Republic of China but at times of dubious allegiance. At the height of her power she commanded a force of 50,000 people and 70 ships[2][4] and was considered the most famous pirate in China.[4] She earned the nickname "Two Guns"[a] owing to her use of two guns in battle.[4]

Born near Shanghai into a poor peasant family, Huang was a criminal from an early age, assisting her father in transporting and selling smuggled salt. She began her piracy career in 1931, raiding along the coasts of the Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces. Though she was arrested and sentenced to death in 1933, Huang was released from prison through the intervention of her family and their contacts among the authorities. After the outbreak of the Second Sino-Japanese War in 1937, Huang was among the local gang leaders recruited by the National Revolutionary Army for guerrilla warfare purposes. Her loyalties throughout the war were suspect, frequently shifting between China, Japan, and various local groups as the balance of power in the war changed. From 1940 onwards she was more reliably fighting for the Chinese army. Her participation most often amounted to pirate attacks and raids, though she also participated in battles and was in contact with the United States Office of Strategic Services.

After the conclusion of World War II, Huang returned to piracy, raiding around Lake Tai, though she was defeated by government forces. Pardoned, Huang was later recruited by the military again in 1948 to fight against the communists in the Chinese Civil War. She aided in the defense of the Dachen Islands and Taiwan but largely shifted away from military operations after turning down an offer from the Central Intelligence Agency in 1951. She later became an influential member of a women's organization founded by Soong Mei-ling, wife of the nationalist leader Chiang Kai-shek, and worked to take care of refugees in Taiwan.

  1. ^ Potholm, Christian P. (2021). Hiding in Plain Sight: Women Warriors Throughout Time and Space. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 28. ISBN 978-1-5381-6272-9.
  2. ^ a b c Zuidhoek, Arne (2022). The Pirate Encyclopedia: The Pirate's Way. BRILL. p. 407. ISBN 978-90-04-51567-3.
  3. ^ Guo, Weiting (2019). "The Portraits of a Heroine: Huang Bamei and the Politics of Wartime History in China and Taiwan, 1930–1960". Cross-Currents: East Asian History and Culture Review. 33: 6–31. Archived from the original on 2023-01-03. Retrieved 2022-08-21.
  4. ^ a b c d Klausmann, Ulrike; Meinzerin, Marion; Kuhn, Gabriel (1997). Women Pirates and the Politics of the Jolly Roger. Black Rose Books. p. 55. ISBN 978-1-55164-059-4.
  5. ^ Duncombe, Laura Sook (2017). "Evil Incarnate and the Dragon Lady". Pirate Women: The Princesses, Prostitutes, and Privateers Who Ruled the Seven Seas. Chicago Review Press. ISBN 978-1-61373-604-3.


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