Sando (official)

Sando was born in 1876 in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, as a member of the Plain White Mongol Banner. He studied under the prominent Chinese scholar Yu Yue, and later became a scholar himself. He is also believed to have studied in Japan for a period.[1] At a young age he entered the Manchu civil service and held several high level civil and military offices in Zhejiang, Beijing, and Hohhot. He served as prefect of the Hangzhou government, then was named Director of the Hangzhou Military Academy. In 1902, he moved to Beijing where he became proctor of the Imperial University. In 1907, he became a Counselor on the Board of Civil Administration. In 1908, he was appointed Fu du-tong (副都統), or Deputy Lieutenant-General in Guihua (present day Hohhot).[2] He would eventually write at least seven volumes of poetry and took a deep interest in the archeology and history of Mongolia.[3]

Sando as an Amban in Urga, 1910

Sando was named Amban of Urga (modern day Ulaanbaatar) responsible for Tsetsen Khan and Tüsheet Khan aimags,[4] on November 26, 1909. Upon his arrival in March 1910, he implemented in rapid succession a spate of "New Administration" Qing reform policies and projects.[5] He promoted increased immigration of Han farmers, which he felt was a more effective way to counter expanding Russian influence in the area than simply garrisoning troops, and built up the Qing military capacity by establishing a Military Training Office under the domineering leadership of Army Chief of Staff Colonel Tang Zaili[1] (唐在礼) who forcibly recruited Mongolians, including lamas,[4] into the cavalry and local Chinese into the machine gun battalion.[6] To enforce law and order, Sando recruited 100 patrolmen and 44 policemen and levied taxes on gold, timber, carriage and camels to subsidize establishment of effective law courts. He introduced improvements to postal operations between Urga and Beijing, the education system, and to heath and sanitation (for example, he introduced street lights to the capital and created the first public toilets). He dispatched agents to investigate Outer Mongolia's natural resource potential, created the Bureau of Cultivation to exploit agricultural possibilities, especially in the central Tusheet Khan area of the country, and planned construction of a railway between the Urga and Beijing.[7]

Local Khalkha Mongols, unsettled by Sando's brutishness and the rapid pace of reforms, viewed these moves as little more than a purposeful colonization of the country. Sando's support suffered further following the Deyiyong Incident in April 1910. When a price dispute between Mongol monks and Chinese carpenters in Urga quickly devolved into a riot, Sando responded harshly, personally leading the armed response at Gandan Monastery, the principal monastery in the city. The protesting lamas pelted him and his troops with stones, forcing them to withdraw. Outraged, Sando demanded that the Mongolian spiritual leader, the Jebstundamba Khutuktu, surrender a particular lama believed to be the ringleader of the incident. The Khutuktu refused and Sando fined him. In response, representatives of the Jebstundamba Khutuktu petitioned the Qing government to remove Sando, but without success.[8]

Other incidents followed, all underscoring Sando's diminishing authority. A minor noble, Togtokh Taij, with a small band, had with the connivance of local Mongolian officials plundered several Chinese merchant shops in eastern Mongolia. Two detachments of soldiers sent by Sandoo to capture Togtokh were killed after being lured into a trap. Mongolian princes resisted providing soldiers for Sando's army. And the prince of the khoshuun which Togtokh had raided refused Sando's demand to pay compensation to the plundered Chinese merchants.[9]

Sando and his entire administration were eventually despised for their oppressive tactics. Opposition to Sando's administration continued to spread, in particular to Tang Zaili's heavy-handed attempts to tighten military control over Outer Mongolia. Tang's tactics eventually led to his recall after Mongolian leaders and the Russian Ambassador put pressure on Beijing. However, with Qing rule collapsing, Sando found support from Beijing dwindling. Believing that his position was untenable, Sando wired the Beijing government asking for permission to resign, but his request was denied.

From there, Sando travelled to Mukden in Manchuria, where he received a telegram expressing the emperor's astonishment over Sando's inability to control the Mongols. The Amban was removed from office, and he was ordered to await an inquiry into his conduct. The fall of the Qing dynasty in February 1912 saved him from further embarrassment, or worse.[15]

Sando continued his public career in the newly established Republic of China. In October 1912 he was appointed Deputy Lieutenant-General in Mukden , and the following month he was concurrently named Deputy Lieutenant-General of Jinzhou. In September 1920, with the support of Zhang Zuolin he became the director of the Beijing Bureau of Emigration and Labor. In December 1921 he became Chief of the Bureau of Civil Appointments in the cabinet office. In June 1922 he was named Associate Director of the Famine Relief Bureau, and in October of the same year he was named head of the College of Marshals. Information about the last years of Sando's life is vague. However, it is believed he died in 1941 during the Second Sino-Japanese war.[2]