1. President’s Day ESL 5 Culture Study Presenter: Hsiao,Hsin-Chieh
Instructor: Lyra Riabov

2. Contents Origin of the President’s Day
George Washington’s Biographical information
Historic background:
Revolutionary war and Independence
First President of the USA
Abraham Lincoln’s Biographical information
Historic background:
Civil war and Abolition of Slavery
Assassination of Abraham Lincoln

3. Origin of the President’s Day
George Washington, the first president of the USA was born on February 11, 1789
Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the USA, was born on February 12th, 1809
These birthdays were merged into President's Day on the third Monday of February
A day which originally was set to honor George Washington on his birthday in his last year of office on February 11th (but marked as February 22 later.) To pay honor to this first and revered President, this became an observance each year.
Later, Abraham Lincoln, also equally revered and born on February 12th, was also included in the celebration which merged into President's Day and was observed on the third Monday of February. On the books, the day is still officially called Washington's Day, but popularly this day is set aside to honor all who have served as President.

4. George Washington’s Biographical information
First President
Born: February 22, 1732 in Westmoreland County, Virginia
Died: December 14, 1799 in Mount Vernon, Virginia
Married to Martha Dandridge Washington

5. Historic background: Revolutionary war and Independence First President of the USA
At the age of 20 he was appointed adjutant in the Va. Militia militiaman, for the next three years, he fought in the wars against the French and Indians
Washington was selected as commander in chief of the Continental Army on July 3, 1775
He was the leader of the Revolutionary war against the British
until the surrender of British at Yorktown, Va., on Oct. 19, 1781 to get the Independence of USA
On April 30, 1789, George Washington was elected as the first President of the United States in Federal Hall on Wall Street in New York
He was reelected in 1792,and retirement on Sept. 17, 1796

6. Washington Monument
Federal Hall

7. Abraham Lincoln’s Biographical information
Sixteenth President
Born: February 12, 1809, in Hodgenville, Hardin County, Kentucky
Died: April 15, Lincoln died the morning after being shot at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C. by John Wilkes Booth, an actor.
Married to Mary Todd Lincoln

8. Historic background: Civil war and Abolition of Slavery Assassination of Abraham Lincoln
He won the election of President in 1860
The Civil war began in 1861 because the south states
against the abolition of slavery
On January 1, 1863, he issued the Emancipation Proclamation that declared forever free those slaves
Lincoln won re-election in 1864
The Civil war end in 1865 and the northern won
On Friday, April 14, 1865, Lincoln was assassinated at Ford's Theatre in Washington by John Wilkes Booth

9. Lincoln Memorial

10. Ford’s Theatre

11. Petersen House

12. Dr. Sun Yat-sen ‘s Birthday
Born on November 12, 1866
Leader of the revolutionary crusade to overthrow the Manchu dynasty
Established the first republic country in Asia
December 25, 1911, Sun was elected provisional president of the new republic country
Sun died of liver cancer on March 12, 1925, at the age of 60 in Peking
Dr. Sun Yat-sen, also known as Sun Chung-shan and Sun Wen, was born on November 12, 1866, in a coastal village of Hsiangshan County, Kwangtung Province. In his early years of adulthood, Sun practiced medicine. Later on, indignant at the weakness and corruption of the Imperial Manchu government and at foreign encroachment, which had put China in grave danger, Sun gave up his medical career and devoted himself to the cause of overthrowing the Manchu dynasty and establishing a republic by starting a revolutionary crusade. In October 1894, together with a group of overseas Chinese youths, Sun set up his first volutionary organization, the Hsing-chung Hui (Society for Regenerating China), in Honolulu, Hawaii, to embark on his revolutionary career. In August 1905, he formulated the Three Principles of the People--nationalism, democracy, and social well-being--which, he believed, were the guidelines for building a modern China. Over the next 16 years, Sun and his followers launched ten armed attempts to topple the corrupted Manchu government. The last stroke came on October 10, 1911, when Sun's supporters took over Wuchang, the capital of Hupei Province, and accordingly encouraged people all over the country to rise against the imperial government, thus putting an end to the Chinese monarchy which had lasted for about five millennia.
On December 25, 1911, Sun was elected provisional president of the new republic in Nanking by a revolutionary alliance, which controlled 16 of the country's 22 provinces. He was inaugurated on January 1, 1912, the birthday of the Republic of China--Asia's first democracy. Upon assuming office Sun requested all provinces to send delegates to Nanking, capital of the nation, to establish a provisional senate. Accordingly, they enacted an Outline for the Organization of a Provisional Government and a Provisional Constitution of the Republic of China as the fundamental nation-building laws. In 1919 Sun completed his able work titled Plans for National Reconstruction which was designed to build a peaceful, free and prosperous China in accordance with the Three Principles of the People. In 1921 Sun was elected president of the Republic of China. In 1923 he declared that the Three Principles of the People was the foundation of the nation and the Five-Power Constitution was the basis of the governmental s ystem.
During the first two decades of the republic, China had been fractured by rival warlords to the extent that no one authority was able to subordinate all warlords and create a unified and centralized political structure. Having witnessed the collapse of the fledging central government he had worked so hard to create, Sun went south to his home province of Kwangtung where he established a military government in On November 10, 1924, he issued a manifesto calling for the convocation of a National Convention and the abolition of unequal treaties. Although he was ill at that time, two days later Sun, as head of the southern government, left Canton for Peking to hold talks with the northern regional leaders on the unification of China by peaceful means. Unfortunately, Sun died of liver cancer on March 12, 1925, at the age of 60 in Peking.

13. National Dr. Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall

14. President Chiang Kai-shek‘s Birthday
Born on October 31, 1887
Chiang became commander-in-chief of the National Revolutionary Forces
Leader the Northern Expedition to subjugate the feuding warlords and reunion China in June 1928
Chiang assumed the leadership of this eight-year War of Resistance against Japan, until on August 14, 1945, Japan announced its formal surrender
Chiang served as the president of the Republic of China from March 1948 until he died
Died of heart attack on April 5, 1975, at the age of 89 in Taipei
Chiang Kai-shek, also known as Chiang Chung-cheng, was born on October 31, 1887, at Hsikow Township, Fenghua County, Chekiang Province. After Dr. Sun Yat-sen's death in 1925, Chiang became commander-in-chief of the National Revolutionary Forces. In this capacity, Chiang launched a military expedition northward to eradicate the various feuding warlords in central and northern China. This military campaign lasted for three years and came to be known as the Northern Expedition, which succeeded in subjugating the feuding warlords and reunifying China in June In recognition of this accomplishment, Chiang was elected chairman of the National Government. At that time, the Japanese had been trying to conquer China and even the whole East Asia. In 1937, a minor clash between Japanese and Chinese troops near Peking finally led China into war against Japan. Chiang assumed the leadership of this eight-year War of Resistance Against Japan. The Chinese had fought a bitter war during that period. Eventually, on August 14, 1945, Japan announced its formal surrender.
The ROC Constitution was promulgated on January 1, 1947, and became effective on December 25 of the same year. Under the Constitution, Chiang was elected president of the Republic of China by the National Assembly in March 1948, and was inaugurated on May 20. However, soon after victory over Japan was achieved, the Chinese Communists launched an all-out rebellion and brought the nation into chaos. On January 21, 1949, to seek internal solidarity, Chiang announced his retirement from the presidency and Vice President Li Tsung-jen was empowered to exercise presidential powers temporarily.
The Chinese communists took over the Chinese mainland and set up a communist regime in Peking in 1949, and the ROC government was forced to relocate to Taiwan. On March 1, 1950, Chiang resumed the presidency in Taipei. Politically, he began to implement local self-government by holding local elections for county magistrates, city mayors, and both county and city councilmen. In the economic field, he successfully implemented land reform by adopting the 37.5 percent farm rental reduction policy (under which the ceiling of farm rental was fixed at 37.5% of the crop yield), the sale of public farm land to tenant farmers on easy payment terms, and the Land-to-the-Tiller Act. Meanwhile, from 1953 on, Chiang launched five successive four-year economic development plans, thereby laying a solid foundation for the rapid economic growth of Taiwan.
In 1954 the second session of the First National Assembly elected Chiang to a second term as president. In 1960 the third session of the First National Assembly reelected him to a third term. In 1966 the fourth session of the First National Assembly reelected Chiang to a fourth term. In 1968 Chiang initiated nine-year compulsory education, thus significantly raising the general educational level of the people. In 1969, he decided to hold supplementary elections for additional members of the three parliamentary bodies--the National Assembly, the Legislative Yuan and the Control Yuan-- representing the population in Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu. Hereafter, such elections were held regularly and the seats gradually increased to represent the increasing population in the free area of the ROC. In 1972, Chiang was reelected to a fifth term as president at the fifth session of the First National Assembly. He died of heart attack on April 5, 1975, at the age of 89 in Taipei.

15. Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall

16. References Origin of the President’s Day
George Washington’s
Abraham Lincoln’s
Sun Yat-sen
Chiang Kai-shek‘s