Former Residence of Chiang Ching-kuo

Former Residence of Chiang Ching-kuo

The former residence of Chiang Ching-kuo is a protected cultural heritage site of Zhejiang Province.

The villa that served as the former residence of Chiang Ching-kuo in Hangzhou was built in 1931, with the address being No. 1 and No. 2 Li West Lake. The property covers an area of 1,333.3 square meters and has two floors. The main building spans 344 square meters with four rooms, all designed in a fully Western style. After the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, Chiang Ching-kuo once lived here with his wife and children.

Near Li West Lake and close to Broken Bridge stands a two-story small building enclosed by walls. There used to be a bronze plaque inscribed with “Former Residence of Chiang Ching-kuo.” After the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, around October to November 194

The villa of Chiang Ching-kuo’s Former Residence was built in 1931, located at No. 1 and No. 2 Li Xihu, covering an area of 1,333.3 square meters with two floors. The main building has an area of 344 square meters, comprising four rooms, and is entirely in Western style.

In 2003, the Hangzhou Municipal Bureau of Gardens and Cultural Relics officially designated Chiang Ching-kuo’s Former Residence as a Hangzhou Municipal Cultural Relics Protection Site.

On January 28, 2015, it gained attention due to a “Government Announcement” posted on the official website of the Hangzhou Bureau of Gardens and Cultural Relics.

The main content of the “Government Announcement” was that the villa would become part of a new project by Zhejiang McDonald’s Restaurant Food Co., Ltd., intended to operate a public café (including the production and sale of bread, fries, and other Western pastries), with a total of 100 seating places. This was a project application announcement.

Note, it is a café, not a McDonald’s. At the time, relevant staff from the Hangzhou Municipal Bureau of Gardens and Cultural Relics explained to reporters that the business operation proposed for Chiang Ching-kuo’s Former Residence was not a McDonald’s but a public café, which would not sell fried chicken or hamburgers—the applicant was merely Zhejiang McDonald’s Restaurant Food Co., Ltd.

Surprisingly, the café will be designed by the Taiwan-based “Orange Star” team, whose founder is none other than Chiang Ching-kuo’s grandson—Chiang Yu-hsiu.

Chiang Yu-hsiu, the eldest son of Chiang Ching-kuo’s son Chiang Hsiao-yung and his wife Cynthia Yen, was born the year after Chiang Kai-shek’s death. In 2003, Chiang Yu-hsiu and his brother Chiang Yu-chang founded the design company DEM Inc. (Orange Star Design), with Chiang Yu-hsiu serving as CEO. The company positions itself as a “solution provider.”

Further reading:

· Seventh Batch of Zhejiang Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units