Shen Junru (; January 2, 1875 – June 11, 1963) was a Chinese lawyer, political figure, and the first

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

of the Supreme People's Court of China of the

Central People's Government of the People's Republic of China The State Council, constitutionally synonymous with the Central People's Government since 1954 (particularly in relation to local governments), is the chief administrative authority of the People's Republic of China. It is chaired by the pre ...

Biography

Shen was born in Suzhou,

Jiangsu Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with its ca ...

, with family ancestry in

Jiaxing Jiaxing (), alternately romanized as Kashing, is a prefecture-level city in northern Zhejiang province, China. Lying on the Grand Canal of China, Jiaxing borders Hangzhou to the southwest, Huzhou to the west, Shanghai to the northeast, and the p ...

Zhejiang Zhejiang ( or , ; , Chinese postal romanization, also romanized as Chekiang) is an East China, eastern, coastal Provinces of China, province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable citie ...

during late

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-spea ...

. He received the

Jinshi ''Jinshi'' () was the highest and final degree in the imperial examination in Imperial China. The examination was usually taken in the imperial capital in the palace, and was also called the Metropolitan Exam. Recipients are sometimes referr ...

or "presented scholar" degree, the highest under the

imperial examination The imperial examination (; lit. "subject recommendation") refers to a civil-service examination system in Imperial China, administered for the purpose of selecting candidates for the state bureaucracy. The concept of choosing bureaucrats by ...

system. Shen completed a preparation course () at

Hosei University is a private university based in Tokyo, Japan. The university originated in a school of law, Tōkyō Hōgakusha (, i.e. Tokyo association of law), established in 1880, and the following year renamed Tōkyō Hōgakkō (, i.e. Tokyo school of law ...

, in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...

, Japan in 1905. Shen Junru and other six intellectuals in Shanghai were arrested in 1936 by Chiang Kai-shek's government, which is known as the Seven Gentlemen Incident. This incident caused a national crisis and the seven individuals were released only after Japan launched an invasion in the summer of 1937.Patrick Fuliang Shan, “Demythologizing Politicized Myths: A New Interpretation of the Seven Gentlemen Incident,” ''Frontiers of History in China'', (Vol. 8, No. 1, 2013), 51-77. Shen attended the first Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) in 1949 and was appointed to be the first President of the Supreme People's Court from 1949 to 1954. Shen had also served as a member of the committee of the Central People's Government, and was vice-chairman of the CPPCC National Committee from 1949 to 1963. Additionally, Shen was vice-chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress from 1954 to 1963, and chairman of the China Democratic League from 1956 to 1963. He was also vice-chairman of the Chinese Political and Law Studies Association ().

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shen, Junru 1875 births 1963 deaths 20th-century Chinese lawyers 19th-century Chinese lawyers 20th-century Chinese judges 19th-century Chinese judges Politicians from Suzhou Members of the China Democratic League Vice Chairpersons of the National People's Congress Vice Chairpersons of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference People's Republic of China politicians from Jiangsu Presidents of the Supreme People's Court