Item number: M124

Year: AD 1939

Material: Cupronickel

Size: 29.6 x 29.6 x 1.5 mm

Weight: 14.4 g

Provenance: eMedals 2022

This circular medal made of cupronickel is a commemorative medal established in September 1^st, AD 1939 by the Mongol United Autonomous Government, South Chahar Autonomous Government, and North Shanxi Autonomous Government under Japanese patronage. This was established following the “Fourth Mongolian Assembly” and commemorates the founding of the “Mengjiang United Autonomous Government.”

The obverse side depicts a shepherd with a whip and a flock of sheep, symbolizing the nomadic lifestyle of the Mongolian people. Above the sheep, the Mongolian and Chinese scripts in gold plating reads “Meritorious Service,” while the outer circle features faint depictions of flying dragons and auspicious cloud motifs. On the reverse side, both Mongolian and Chinese scripts are inscribed with the same content, corresponding to “The 734th Year of the Era of Genghis Khan, September 1st, AD 1939,” along with the medal’s title “Foundation Merit Medal.”

The clasp above the medal is connected to the vanished ring suspension and ribbon. The ribbon is designed to mimic the colors of the Autonomous Government’s flag, using red in the center to represent the Japanese Yamato people. On either side, there is symmetry representing the white of the Hui ethnic group, the blue of the Mongolian ethnic group, and the yellow of the Han ethnic group.

The Xinhai Revolution in AD 1911 led to the collapse of the Qing Dynasty, causing upheaval in the Mongolian regions at that time. Divided by the Gobi Desert, the northern part known as Khalkha Mongolia (Outer Mongolia) gained independence with Russian protection, while the southern regions inhabited by the Khorchin and Chahar peoples (Inner Mongolia) became part of different provinces within the territory of the Republic of China under the sinicization policies since the late Qing period. In the 1930s, Japan, using Manchukuo as a base to enter China, became an external force relied upon by Mongolian nationalists aspiring to establish a unified Mongolian state. Among them, Prince De, a noble claiming descent from Genghis Khan and known as the 30th-generation descendant, was one of the most active proponents.

After the establishment of the Mengjiang United Autonomous Government in AD 1939, it was reorganized two years later into the “Mongolian Autonomous Federation,” nominally under the jurisdiction of the Nanjing Reorganized National Government led by Wang Jingwei. In AD 1945, with Japan’s defeat in World War II, the Autonomous Federation declared dissolution. Subsequently, Prince De continued advocating for the rights of the Mongolian people. In December AD 1949, facing the unstoppable advance of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), Prince De crossed the border into Outer Mongolia seeking political asylum. However, the communist-led Outer Mongolia, now under a Soviet-style socialist regime, handed Prince De over to the CCP as a war criminal. He was detained without a formal trial for 13 years until he was granted amnesty in AD 1963. In his later years, Prince De worked as a cultural and historical researcher in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, completing several works and personal memoirs. He passed away in AD 1966 at the age of 64 in Hohhot, the capital of Inner Mongolia.

物件編號: M124

年代: 公元 1939 年

材質: 白銅

尺寸: 29.6 x 29.6 x 1.5 mm

重量: 14.4 g

來源: e徽章 2022

這枚白銅製的圓型獎章是公元1939年9月1日，日本扶植下的蒙古聯合自治政府、察南自治政府和晉北自治政府在「第四次蒙古大會」召開後，共同創立「蒙疆聯合自治政府」的紀念章。

正面是一個手持羊鞭的牧羊人和羊群，充分表現出蒙古人的游牧風俗。羊群上方以鍍金的蒙漢文字刻上「功勞」兩字，外圈則是若隱若現的飛龍和瑞雲圖騰。獎章背面的左右兩側，以蒙古文和漢文寫上相同的內容，即對應到公元1939年的「成吉思汗紀元七百三十四年九月一日」，和獎章的名稱「肇建功勞章」。

獎章上方的環扣是銜接已消失的環形懸掛和綬帶。綬帶仿造自治政府的國旗配色，以中央代表日本大和民族的紅色為準，兩側對稱分別是象徵：回族的白色、蒙古族的藍色和漢族的黃色。

公元1911年的辛亥革命促成清帝國的瓦解，彼時蒙古人居住的大蒙古地區也面臨震盪。以戈壁沙漠為界，北邊的喀爾喀蒙古(外蒙)在俄國保護下成為獨立的蒙古國家，科爾沁和察哈爾等部居住的南蒙古(內蒙)則在清末以來的漢化政策下，成為中華民國疆域內的不同省份。上世紀30年代，以滿洲國為跳板進入中國的日本，成為有志建立統一蒙古國家的蒙古民族主義者倚重的外力，其中以貴為成吉思汗第三十代孫，身為貴族的德王為最積極者。

公元1939年蒙疆聯合自治政府成立後，兩年後改組成名義上聽從南京汪精衛國民政府管轄的「蒙古自治邦」。公元1945年日本戰敗之際，蒙古自治邦宣告解散。後續德王仍為蒙古族的權益奔走，公元1949年12月面對勢不可擋的中共，德王越境至外蒙古尋求政治庇護。只是赤化的外蒙古旋即以戰犯身分把德王交付給中共處置，未經正式審判即被關押在監獄長達13年，直到公元1963年獲得特赦為止。晚年的德王成為內蒙古自治區的文史人員，並且完成多部著作和個人回憶錄。公元1966年於內蒙古首府呼和浩特病逝，享年64歲。