Lesson 11: The Dark Reign of the Beiyang Government

The Second Revolution

After Yuan Shikai assumed the office of provisional president, he blatantly reneged on his oath and repeatedly broke the responsible cabinet system in order to establish a dictatorial rule. In the spring of 1913, Song Jiaoren, who was preparing to go north to form a cabinet, was assassinated at the Shanghai railway station. It was found that the person behind the assassination of Song was a close associate of Yuan Shikai, and directly involved Yuan Shikai himself.

After the "Song case", Yuan Shikai was condemned by domestic public opinion. He decided to suppress the Kuomintang by force and ordered the dismissal of the Kuomintang governors of Jiangxi, Guangdong and Anhui provinces and sent troops southward. Sun Yat-sen and Huang Xing called on the southern provinces to rise up against Yuan and launch the "Second Revolution". But the Kuomintang was not strong enough and the Second Revolution was soon suppressed by Yuan Shikai. Sun Yat-sen and Huang Xing were forced to go into exile in Japan.

Yuan Shikai restored the imperial system

After suppressing the Second Revolution, Yuan Shih-k'ai forced the National Assembly to elect him as the official president and then ordered the dissolution of the Kuomintang. Soon after, he abolished the Provisional Treaty of the Republic of China and promulgated the Treaty of the Republic of China, which changed the system of responsible cabinet to the presidential system. Then, he amended the presidential election law to provide that the president could be re-elected indefinitely and could designate a successor. At this point, Yuan Shikai's ambition to become the emperor was clearly revealed.

In order to realize his dream of becoming the emperor, Yuan Shikai even sacrificed his national sovereignty and national interests by accepting most of the contents of Japan's "Twenty-one Articles", which aimed at the destruction of China, in exchange for Japan's support. The main contents of the "Twenty-one Articles" included the recognition of Japan's inheritance of all German privileges in Shandong, the further expansion of Japan's rights and interests in "Southern Manchuria" and Mongolia, the stipulation that China's coastal harbors and islands could not be leased or ceded to other countries, and the employment of Japanese as advisors. At the end of 1915, Yuan Shikai decreed 1916 as "the first year of the Chinese Empire's Hongxian" and prepared to hold the enthronement ceremony on New Year's Day.

War of Protection

Yuan Shikai's restoration activities caused an uproar in the country. Sun Yat-sen issued the "Declaration on the Revival of Yuan", calling on the patriotic heroes to rise up and defend the republican system. At the end of 1915, Cai Yi, Li Lijun and Tang Jiyao declared independence in Yunnan and organized the Protectorate Army to fight Yuan in the north, and the Protectorate War broke out.

Yuan Shikai gathered heavy troops to besiege the Protectorate Army. However, his restoration was unpopular, and even his direct subordinates in the North were also obedient. Many provinces declared independence from Yuan Shikai's government. In March 1916, Yuan Shikai was forced to announce the abolition of the imperial system and died in despair in June. The War of Protection ended.

Warlordism

After Yuan Shikai's death, the Beiyang warlords split. The Zhizhang warlords led by Feng Guozhang and Cao Huan controlled Jiangsu, Jiangxi and Hubei provinces; the Anhui warlords led by Duan Qirui held the Beijing government and controlled Anhui, Zhejiang, Shandong and Fujian provinces; the Feng warlord Zhang Zuolin cooped up in the northeast. Other provinces were also controlled by warlords of various sizes, such as Yunnan and Guizhou by the Yunnan warlord Tang Jiyao, and Guangdong and Guangxi by the Gui warlord Lu Rongting. In order to fight for territory and consolidate their power, these warlords were willing to sell out the national interest and attach themselves to imperialism. China was plunged into the turmoil of warlord disputes as warlords of all sizes fought for years.(658words)