Chang Pi-shih (1840-August 1916), entrepreneur, was known for his Chang Yu brewery at Chefoo. He became a multimillionaire in Java and Malaya and was one of the few overseas Chinese whose patriotism and services were utilized by the Manchu government.

A native of Tap'u hsien in eastern Kwangtung, Chang Pi-shih was born into a poor family. The Tap'u district was culturally one of the more advanced areas of Kwangtung province, and Chang did receive some education in his boyhood. Even so, in 1856 at the age of 17, he left home and emigrated to Southeast Asia to seek his fortune. His destination was Batavia. The young Chang Pi-shih was both ambitious and observant. On his arrival in the new land, he soon recognized that his interests could be furthered most effectively by cultivating the friendship and trust of the Dutch colonial masters. He worked assiduously and gradually ingratiated himself with the authorities. In 1 858, only two years after his arrival in Java, he already had established his first business, a company engaged in the development of coconut and rice plantations. The rich island of Java was then leading the other islands of the archipelago in intensive economic development. Chang's growing friendship with the Dutch colonial officials provided him with opportunities to acquire wasted land for reclamation and development and enabled him to bid successfully for trade monopolies, such as those for the sale of tobacco and wine. Within a few years he had accumulated sufficient wealth to become one of the most prominent residents of Java. Business success, in turn, strengthened his personal relations with Dutch administrative circles. In 1875, when Chang Pi-shih was 36 sui and in the prime of his career, his Dutch friends suggested that he extend his operations to Sumatra, which was undeveloped economically. The Dutch correctly estimated that Chang was the ideal man to be entrusted with pioneering work in the development of the economic resources of Sumatra. Chang's success was phenomenal and rapid. In 1877 he organized his first large-scale undertaking, the Yu-hsing Company, which began the development of pepper, rubber, coffee, and tea plantations on Sumatra. His operations contributed greatly to the growth of the port of Deli on the northeast of Sumatra. Chang also established a bank in Deli. The proximity of Medan to Penang, the British island colony which was then the second largest trading center in Malaya, soon attracted Chang Pi-shih into extending his operations to Malaya. Together with a friend, Li Ya-i, who was at the time the leader of the Chinese community in Surabaya, Chang established a trading firm at Penang chiefly for the export of products from Sumatra. Next, he entered the shipping business. In 1886 he founded the Wan-yu-hsing Company, which acquired three vessels operating between Sumatra and Penang. By this time Chang Pi-shih was recognized as the wealthiest Chinese in Sumatra and had become one of the most prosperous in Southeast Asia. The Manchu government in Peking, then gradually awakening to the need for modernization and industrialization, had the very practical idea of offering high official posts to rich Chinese abroad in return for their financial investments in China. Chang Pi-shih was among the first overseas Chinese to be selected by the Manchu government for such honors. In 1890 Peking established a consulate in Penang and appointed Chang consul.

As a government official, Chang Pi-shih made periodic visits to China. During these trips he surveyed economic conditions and invested in a variety of industrial enterprises in many parts of the country. His grasp of the principle of diversification, the more remarkable because of the early date, is apparent from even a few of his interests : a weaving mill with machine-operated looms in Canton; a machine-operated brick factory in Fatshan, Kwangtung; a glass works in Waichow, Kwangtung; a cattle ranch in the Luichow peninsula on the mainland opposite Hainan island; and a salt works at Pinghai, Fukien.

In 1894 Chang Pi-shih established the best known and most successful of his enterprises in China, the Chang Yu winery at Chefoo in Shantung province. The Chang Yu establishment was the first large-scale Chinese enterprise to undertake the production of commodities entirely Western in character. The origins of this winery idea may be traced back to 1871. Then a young man of 32 sui beginning his climb to wealth and prominence, Chang Pi-shih had met a veteran of the 1860 Anglo-French expedition against China who had become a French consular official in Java. The Frenchman said that the troops, while on occupation duty in the Chefoo area, had established by experiment that the climate was well suited to the cultivation of grapes for wine. In 1891, the year after he was appointed consul at Penang, Chang visited China and made a trip to Chefoo at the invitation of Sheng Hsuan-huai (q.v.), who was customs tao-t'ai there. Recalling the Frenchman's observations, Chang made inquiries of Sheng Hsuan-huai, who pointed out that native wines were produced successfully in the district. Determined to proceed with the project, Chang then sought to obtain the services of a European expert. The first man he engaged died on the trip to China. The second man proved to be unqualified. The third man, an Austrian, finally arrived at Chefoo, imported grape seedlings from both Europe and the United States, and gradually established a vineyard. However, it was not until 1906 that the winery began to produce on a commercially profitable basis. In 1 909 the winery built its own glass works. Chang Pi-shih's eldest son, Chang Chih-chao, an able entrepreneur like his father, managed the Chang Yu winery from its beginnings. The establishment produced red and white wines, and also brandy.

In 1896, Chang Pi-shih embarked on a silver mining scheme in Kweihsien, Kwangsi. That venture was a failure, partly because the machinery imported was unsuited for local use, and partly because the political situation in the area was unstable.

In Southeast Asia, however, Chang Pi-shih continued to add to his vast fortune. He took a hand in the fast-growing mining industry in British Malaya. In 1898 he helped to found the mining town of Bentong, on the east coast of Malaya, where a miniature "gold rush" was reported. Tin, however, was the major mineral undertaking in Malaya, and Chang had interests in tin mining in the state of Selangor. Chang Pi-shih also advanced in his official life, being promoted to consul general at Singapore in 1902. In 1903, he was summoned to an audience with the empress dowager in Peking. There he was given the rank of third grade metropolitan official and was appointed to the newly created Board of Trade. On 24 October 1904 Chang submitted, through the board, a memorial to the throne, making important recommendations regarding the economic development of China. Considering the date at which it was written, the document was remarkably advanced in its views. Chang pointed out that the top government leaders of China, while anxious to attract foreign capital for the development of the country, did not offer practical measures to interest prospective foreign investors. Chang suggested the alternative of raising capital from overseas Chinese entrepreneurs. He explained the difficulties that obstructed overseas Chinese interest and suggested methods to overcome them. The Manchu government viewed his proposal with approval, and Chang was appointed special trade commissioner in Southeast Asia and, concurrently, tupan of agricultural, industrial, highway, and mining development for the two provinces of Kwangtung and Fukien. He was also given an honorary title as director of one of the five imperial courts and the personal rank of vice minister with permission to wear the first class button. The court's objective was, of course, to ensure Chang's active support in the attempt to interest his fellow overseas Chinese to invest in China. However, in spite of great effort, Chang made little or no headway. The revolutionary tides were rising, and no overseas Chinese leader wanted to offer support to the Manchu government.

When the republic was founded in 1912, Chang Pi-shih returned to Java and Malaya. In Penang, he launched a new enterprise connected with the coconut industry. He died in Surabaya in August 1916, at the age of 77 sui.