Wang Lingyun (1935–2021) was a historian and a researcher at the National Museum of China, as well as the mother of Wang Dan, a student leader of the Tiananmen Square protests.
Wang Lingyun was born in Zhao Wang Li Village, Heze County, Shandong Province. Her father, Wang Yongrui, was a university-educated history teacher who taught in several schools. In 1955, Wang Lingyun entered the History Department of Peking University, graduating in 1961. Afterward, she was assigned to the China Revolutionary Museum (now the National Museum of China), where she worked on the study of modern Chinese history and the history of the Chinese Communist Party.
During the Cultural Revolution, she and her husband, Wang Xianchen, were sent to the "May Seventh Cadre School" in Jiangxi Province, where they, along with their children, performed manual labor and underwent ideological criticism.
Wang Lingyun participated in numerous academic and editorial projects at the National Museum of China. She authored works such as The Biography of Guan Xiangying and Walking Through That Era and wrote several academic papers, including "Qu Qiubai and the Factional Dispute at Moscow's Sun Yat-sen University, " "Qu Qiubai and Shanghai University: On Qu Qiubai's Educational Thought," and "Education Reforms in the Nanjing Provisional Government." She also co-edited The Collected Works of Qu Qiubai with Ding Shouhe and contributed to the editing of the 32-volume Chinese Cultural Relics Atlas compiled by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage.
In 1989, Wang Lingyun's son, Wang Dan, became involved in the student protests at Tiananmen Square and was the first student leader to be wanted after the June Fourth Incident. After the events, Wang Lingyun’s family faced immense pressure. Wang Dan was arrested and detained, and Wang Lingyun was also held at the Beijing Public Security Bureau detention center for more than fifty days. During this time, her health was severely affected, resulting in atrophy of her left calf muscles. Authorities never provided an explanation for her detention.
Wang Lingyun continued to advocate for her son's freedom and health. After Wang Dan's arrest, she participated in the drafting of a petition titled "Welcoming the United Nations Year of Tolerance, Calling for Domestic Tolerance," which called on the Chinese government to reassess the June Fourth Incident and release individuals detained for their ideological beliefs. Wang Lingyun and her husband consistently visited Wang Dan in prison every month, even amid rumors that he might be sent for labor reform in Xinjiang. Wang Lingyun firmly stated, "No matter how far you send my son, I will crawl there every month to see him." Wang Dan later recalled, "Without my mother's and family's support, I could never have endured the long years of imprisonment."
In 1998, Wang Lingyun and her husband wrote to President Jiang Zemin, requesting that Wang Dan be allowed to receive medical treatment outside of prison. After efforts spanning some time, Wang Dan was allowed to go to the United States for treatment and regained his legal freedom in 2007. However, Wang Dan was never able to return to China and reunite with his family. Wang Dan later shared, "My mother's greatest wish was for me to return to our Beijing home and stay by her side, but in the end, she was not able to wait for that day." After her passing, Wang Dan expressed with deep sorrow, "Without me, her life would have been much smoother and peaceful."
Wang Lingyun passed away on December 28, 2021, due to a sudden brain hemorrhage, at the age of 86. Upon hearing of her death, Wang Dan wrote, "My mother is gone, and the pillar of my spiritual world has collapsed. This world will forever be missing a corner." During her funeral, since Wang Dan could not return to China, he stated that he would "never drink alcohol again, in memory of her." He also announced the establishment of the "Wang Lingyun Humanitarian Relief Fund" to help families of political prisoners who had endured similar suffering, fulfilling his mother's unfinished wish.
Wang Lingyun was born in Zhao Wang Li Village, Heze County, Shandong Province. Her father, Wang Yongrui, was a university-educated history teacher who taught in several schools. In 1955, Wang Lingyun entered the History Department of Peking University, graduating in 1961. Afterward, she was assigned to the China Revolutionary Museum (now the National Museum of China), where she worked on the study of modern Chinese history and the history of the Chinese Communist Party.
During the Cultural Revolution, she and her husband, Wang Xianchen, were sent to the "May Seventh Cadre School" in Jiangxi Province, where they, along with their children, performed manual labor and underwent ideological criticism.
Wang Lingyun participated in numerous academic and editorial projects at the National Museum of China. She authored works such as The Biography of Guan Xiangying and Walking Through That Era and wrote several academic papers, including "Qu Qiubai and the Factional Dispute at Moscow's Sun Yat-sen University, " "Qu Qiubai and Shanghai University: On Qu Qiubai's Educational Thought," and "Education Reforms in the Nanjing Provisional Government." She also co-edited The Collected Works of Qu Qiubai with Ding Shouhe and contributed to the editing of the 32-volume Chinese Cultural Relics Atlas compiled by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage.
In 1989, Wang Lingyun's son, Wang Dan, became involved in the student protests at Tiananmen Square and was the first student leader to be wanted after the June Fourth Incident. After the events, Wang Lingyun’s family faced immense pressure. Wang Dan was arrested and detained, and Wang Lingyun was also held at the Beijing Public Security Bureau detention center for more than fifty days. During this time, her health was severely affected, resulting in atrophy of her left calf muscles. Authorities never provided an explanation for her detention.
Wang Lingyun continued to advocate for her son's freedom and health. After Wang Dan's arrest, she participated in the drafting of a petition titled "Welcoming the United Nations Year of Tolerance, Calling for Domestic Tolerance," which called on the Chinese government to reassess the June Fourth Incident and release individuals detained for their ideological beliefs. Wang Lingyun and her husband consistently visited Wang Dan in prison every month, even amid rumors that he might be sent for labor reform in Xinjiang. Wang Lingyun firmly stated, "No matter how far you send my son, I will crawl there every month to see him." Wang Dan later recalled, "Without my mother's and family's support, I could never have endured the long years of imprisonment."
In 1998, Wang Lingyun and her husband wrote to President Jiang Zemin, requesting that Wang Dan be allowed to receive medical treatment outside of prison. After efforts spanning some time, Wang Dan was allowed to go to the United States for treatment and regained his legal freedom in 2007. However, Wang Dan was never able to return to China and reunite with his family. Wang Dan later shared, "My mother's greatest wish was for me to return to our Beijing home and stay by her side, but in the end, she was not able to wait for that day." After her passing, Wang Dan expressed with deep sorrow, "Without me, her life would have been much smoother and peaceful."
Wang Lingyun passed away on December 28, 2021, due to a sudden brain hemorrhage, at the age of 86. Upon hearing of her death, Wang Dan wrote, "My mother is gone, and the pillar of my spiritual world has collapsed. This world will forever be missing a corner." During her funeral, since Wang Dan could not return to China, he stated that he would "never drink alcohol again, in memory of her." He also announced the establishment of the "Wang Lingyun Humanitarian Relief Fund" to help families of political prisoners who had endured similar suffering, fulfilling his mother's unfinished wish.
