Homer Lea

Homer Lea (November 17, 1876 – November 1, 1912) was an American author of works on geopolitics who became a military advisor and general in the army of Sun Yat-sen.

Early life

Born in Denver, Colorado, to Alfred E. (b.1845) and Hersa A. (1846–1879; née Coberly) Lea, his father served with the 3rd Colorado Cavalry during the Civil War. His mother died before his third birthday on May 13, 1879. Alfred is listed in the Jackson County, Missouri 1850 census, Washington Township, with the entire family being born in Tennessee. His mother was the widow of Silas Soule, who was a Captain in the Union army that refused to participate in the Sand Creek Massacre.

Homer was born healthy, but after suffering a drop to a hearthstone as a baby, he became a hunchback, standing only 4 ft 11 in (1.50 m) with a weight under 100 lb (45 kg). He attended East High School (Denver) and Los Angeles High School and accompanied friends on camping trips in the San Bernardino Mountains, in spite of his physical hindrances. Lea aspired to be a great soldier and somehow managed to get an appointment to West Point, though he was soon dismissed for health reasons. He was later admitted to Stanford University, where in addition to military history and politics, he became enamored with China and Chinese culture.

China

At 23, with the Boxer Rebellion underway in China, Lea travelled to the Far East and offered his services to Kang Youwei, a former prime minister of China who was attempting to restore power to the confined Guangxu Emperor. Lea convinced Kang to make him a lieutenant general and give him command of a small volunteer force. Lea's first command was not very successful as Kang's power and support was rapidly destroyed, but he did make it to Beijing in time to ride through the city with the international force that liberated it from the Boxers. Lea offered pursuit of the retreating Imperial Army, but his rag-tag soldiers were no match for the Imperial forces and he was repulsed. Without any support after Kang's fall, Lea fled to Hong Kong and then Japan, where he met Sun Yat-sen.