Chinese republic of the Lords of the War

The Chinese République of the Seigneurs of the war is one period extending from 1916 (death of Yuan Shikai) at the end of the Années 1930. It owes its name with local potentates which establish each one their capacity by the weapons and constitute click rival. Those of North, heirs to the powerful Manchu army known as “of the coasts of north” ( beiyang 北洋) constitute until in 1928 a government of frontage (Gouvernement of Beiyang) regarded until the victory of the Expédition of North as the representative of the Chinese nation over the international plan. In spite of the value of its diplomats of which most known is Wellington Koo, the capacity of Beiyang is corrupted, inefficient and very unstable; between the death of Yuan Shikaï and 1919, the presidency changes three times. After 1928, the Kuomintang returns to the capacity with a government based to Nankin whose leader is Tchang Kaï-chek. The flag with five bands is replaced by the flag white-blue of Kuomintang. Nevertheless, the lords of the war did not completely disappear and constitute, with internal dissidences, one of the important problems that the government of Nankin must face. Thus, the War of the central Plains (中原大战 zhongyuan dazhan ) against the dissenting lords Yan Xishan, Feng Yuxiang and Li Zongren brings into play a million soldiers. Even in the years 1940, there remains military potentas with the borders of the territory (Xinjiang, Sichuan, Shanxi, Qinghai, Ningxia, Gansu, Guangdong, Guangxi, Yunnan). They will disappear only with the establishment from the Popular republic from China.

The reign of the lords of the war

To the disappearance of Yuan Shikaï, the military governments will tear.

Military governors with the lords of the war

One thus calls them as from the moment when they will seek to extend their capacity to the other provinces without obeying the capacity of Beijing. In 1914 there were 457.000 soldiers in all China. In 1918 there are 850.000 of them.

Parcelling out of the authority and parcelling out of the country

Click militarist are made up small landed proprietors and are pressed on made up armies mercenaries. One clicks reign as long as it has the means of paying. It is thus a very unstable situation: in the Hunan, there will be 13 click successive in 16 years. Nevertheless, to consolidate their capacity, with respect to the foreigner inter alia, the lords of the war endeavor to maintain a certain collegial structure. In 1917, they is joint which they decide of the entry of China in the world war. The peasants pay the wars in the form of tax. In their strongholds the lords of the war impose the culture of the Opium on the detriment of the cultures essential to the survival of the peasants. The proportion of cultivated grounds devoted to opium passes from 3% in 1919 to 20% in 1929.

Click

Towards the end of 1916, there is in the South two military main forces, that directed by Tang Jiyao which occupies the Yunnan and the Guizhou, and that directed by Lu Rongting which occupies the Guangxi and the Guangdong. These click are supported by the British and the Americans. In North, the government of Beiyang counts three principal click. Also clicks of the Anhui directed by Duan Qirui control the Shaanxi, the Shandong, the Zhejiang and the Fujian; it has the support of Japan. That of Zhili directed by Feng Guozhang, soon died and replaced by CAD Kun and Wu Peifu, control the Jiangsu, the Jiangxi and the Hubei; it is supported by the United Kingdom and of the United States. Clicks of Fengtian directed by Zhang Zuolin has the support of the Japanese. The political projects of the various participants differ. Thus, whereas Li Yuanhong wants to restore the republican mode, Duan Qirui wants to go in the traces of Yuan Shikaï.

The fight for the central capacity

When Yuan Shikaï dies, it is replaced by Li Yuanhong which occupies the position of president of the Republic. One restores the constitution and the Parliament. The vice-president (Feng Guozhang) and the Prime Minister (Duan Qirui) are lords of the war. The cohabitation between Li Yuanhong and Duan Qirui is difficult. The first wishes to maintain the course republican while Duan Qirui wants to go in the traces of Yuan Shikaï. He seeks to eliminate Li Yuan hong, but the conflict initially will remain underground and will be revealed during the discussions concerning the participation of China in the world war.

The question of the participation in the world war

Duan Qirui wants to engage in the conflict because it with the hope to seize the capacity on this occasion, but the members of Parliament, whose Sun Yatsen, wants to remain neutral. The clan of the intervention is supported by Japan and that of the partisans of non-intervention by the United States. In May 1917, Duan Qirui is dislocated of these functions and counter-attacks by taking the weapons against the central capacity, involving other lords of the war in the convincing one to take their independence. He threatens to make go his troops on Beijing. Li Yuanhong does not feel size to fight against him and called upon a mediator, Zhang Xun, which is a militarist, and moreover one ultra-conservative in favor of the Qing.

Political crisis

Zhang Xun works under hand with Duan Qirui. It pushes Li Yuanhong to dissolve the Parliament and to resign. July 1st, 1917, it gives Pu Yi on the throne, but Duan Qirui does not want a Qing emperor. Sun Yatsen convenes an assembly of revolutionists. Duan Qirui decides to get rid of Zhang Xun and sends its troops to Beijing to drive out it as “a traitor with the Republic”. Pu Yi is constrained to abdicate on July 13rd, 1917 and to leave the place to the new president, Feng Guozhang, while Duan Qirui takes again its post of Prime Minister. This last does not restore the constitution nor the Parliament because he regards himself the founder of one Second Chinese Republic and not as the continuator of the First Republic of 1912. He declares the war in Germany on August 14th, 1917. The following year, it is replaced by Xu Shichang.

China in war

The effort of war of China is limited to Chinese worker sending abroad, in particular in France. 190.000 coolies are engaged and transported to France and in the colonies like in the United Kingdom. In exchange of this participation, the foreign powers make concessions: they agree to differ 5 years the payment the allowance of the Boxers, and to increase by 5% the customs duties of the foreign products which enter on the Chinese ground. They nevertheless try to tighten their influence on China; the Chinese participation in the first war involves in fact an increased control of the foreign powers. In November 1917, Japan and the United States sign the secret agreements of Lansing-Ishii, at the end which the Americans recognize the private interests of Japan have in China, in particular in the zones bordering, and the Japanese agree to support the principle of the open door.

Towards the secession

Sun Yatsen condemns the autocratic control of Duan Qirui. He asks the resignation of his government and the re-establishment of the constitution and the Parliament.

Establishment of the government of Canton

Sun Yat-SEN seeks to be combined with the adversaries of Duan Qirui. It turns to lords of the war of Guangxi and Yunnan and form thus in September 1917 a military government for the defense of the constitution of which it is made elect Généralissime. The militarists of Guangxi and Yunnan are elected generals. A conflict will be born between the two governments, which leads to a civil war called “War between the south and north”. The hostilities begin in October 1917 and continue until the end of 1918. The fight of ideas grows blurred in front of that for the capacity and of the cracks appear in the two camps.

Ousting of Sun Yat-SEN in the South, victory of Zhili in North

Inside the camp Southerner, at the allies of Sun Yat-SEN the support for the constitution is only one attitude of frontage. They évincent the revolutionist in May 1918 and reorganize the government of Canton, which becomes a militarist faction like the others. Inside the northerner clan, cleavage relates to the policy to adopt with respect to the Southerners. Clicks of Anhui is partisane to reduce them by the force, whereas that of Zhili is favorable to the negotiation. The dissensions are such as solving them one must employ the force. A first conflict takes place in July 1920 between Anhui and Zhili, a second in 1922 between clicks of Fengtian and that of Zhili. Zhili leaves victorious in both cases and takes the control of the central capacity. In June 1922, Li Yuanhong is reinvested in its president's function in republican legality, but in June 1923 a coup d'etat of Wu Peifu obliges it to resign. It is replaced by CAD Kun. Clicks of Zhili is then with the apogee of its capacity, but in October 1924 it is made beat by Zhang Zuolin of clicks of Fengtian. A new government is set up.

See too

Random links: