The Fall Of The Quing, Warlordism And Chaos 1900-34

Question 1

Causes of the Boxer Uprising

Answer 1

• In 1898, Emperor Guangxu tried to end foreign involvement with the ‘Hundred Days Reform’ which was strongly opposed by Empress Dowager Cixi
• Chinese hatred of the foreign devils, their religion and the technology such as the railways and telegraph wise
• Cixi encouraged attacks on foreigners to avoid criticism of imperial rule

Question 2

The Boxer Uprising

Answer 2

• Chinese secret group called the society of righteous and harmonious fists, the boxes, begun carrying out attacks and foreigners in Chinese Christians, beginning in Shandong and spread to Hebei, Shanxi and Henan in north-east China
• Spread to Beijing where the German ambassador was shot, the western population retreated into the British delegation which was surrounded by boxes for 50 days in siege. The Westerners raise an international force which break the siege, boxers were executed in the streets by the forces and Cixi and the Emperor disguised themselves as peasants and field south to Xian

Question 3

Impacts of Boxer Uprising

Answer 3

• £67 million in operation to be paid over 39 years, and the destruction of China’s military fortifications and arsenal of weapons, televisions to be executed and foreign soldiers placed in and around Beijing.

In 1902, Cixi and the Emperor were allowed to Beijing and introduced reforms (inspired by self-strengthening reforms from 1860s, to re-establish China’s power and save the Qing dynasty) but they were too late and too little and their authority had been destroyed :

 - Nationalisation of railways and Educational reforms 
 - Provincial assemblies with a limited vote to right & abolition of foot binding, 1902
 - Reform of the civil service, 1905
 - ‘New Army’ under Manchu control, 1908
 - National Consultative Council, 1910-11

Question 4

1911 Revolution Causes

Answer 4

• Weak Government: In November 1908, the emperor and empress died and the new emperor (just two years old) and Prince Chun as Regent, were inexperienced
• Failure of Political Reforms: Domination of the Manchus in the new National consultative Council increased Han resentment,Provincial assemblies (only 0.4% could vote) led to calls for faster reforms
• Army Reforms: expensive - increased tax on tea, wine, salt and land, * General Shikai dismiss**
• Revolutionary Ideas: Sun Yat-Sen’s ideas spread (exiled 1895-1911)
• China’s Railways: nationalisation increase Manchu Control, no compensation for previous owners, expansions were paid for with western money and further concessions made

Question 5

1911 Revolution Events

Answer 5

• 9 October 1911, revolutionaries accidentally exploded bomb in Hankou
• ‘Double Tenth’ Wuhan soldiers began a mutiny (spread to all but three provinces south of Beijing) and declared themselves independent of government control, led by Yuan Shikai

Question 6

1911 Revolution Results

Answer 6

• In November, young Chicago was offered position of president so came back to China to take up office on the 1st of January 1912.
• General persuaded him to step down with the promise to persuade the Manchus to abdicate and replace the Imperial system with a republic.
• Sun didn’t have the military support to resist.
• Emperor Puyi’s abdication degree was issued on 12 February 1912.

Question 7

Yuan Shikai

Answer 7

• From 1912 to 1916, he ruled as dictator with military support.
• In 1915 he tried to make himself emperor, and he accepted most of ‘Japan’s 21 demands’ which were proposed to strengthen Japan’s position in WW1 and would have led to the loss of China’s independence.
• In December 1950, the army revolted and he died of stroke June 1916.

Question 8

Era of the Warlords

Answer 8

Central government collapsed, warlords run their own legal and financial systems, collected taxes and terrorise the populations in their own provinces. None of them was prepared to give up their private armies or submit to an outside authority, they were all cruel and they all made agreements with the foreign powers he wanted to protect the economic interests in China.

Drought in 1918 and flooding in 1923 to 25 meant there was no relief and greater suffering for the population.

Hundreds of warlords, initially Yuan’s chosen military governors but later just many ambitious man who seized power:

• Feng Yuxiang was known as the Christian General, baptising his troops and ruling with moral values
• Zang Zongzhang was is a violent ruler who enjoyed ‘splitting melons’
• Zhang Zuolin believed in cruel punishments for his soldiers to warn them against a mutiny

Question 9

May the 4th Movement, 1919

Answer 9

• Driven by treaty of Versailles: Japan got German positions in the Shandong province.
• On fourth of May 1919, students from Beijing University led a protest in Tiananmen Square calling on government to resist humiliating treatment and China refused to sign the treaty.
• Started the ‘New Tide’, the rejection of old fashion ideas ans the adoption of modern believes including freedom ,democracy and equal rights and inspired revolutionary groups to fight to achieve unity and independence.

Question 10

Guomindang Establishment

Answer 10

• Born in Guandong province1866, moved to Hawaii when he was 12, moved to Hong Kong (which was British) and where he studied medicine and converted to Christianity and learnt nationalist beliefs. He led a rebellion in 1995 and was then forced into exile.
• Sun returned to China in 1917, set up Guomindang (GMD) in Guangzhou in 1919. Speech in 1923 ‘Three Principles of the People’ - Remove fallen mode control, raise at the Chinese people out of poverty and the old fashion world they lived in .
• In 1924, Whampoa Military Academy established to train New Republican Army (NRA), assisted by Bolshevik government (Alfred Joffre and Mikhaïl Borodin, who helped acquire arms and appointed Chaing Kai-Shek as commander of GMD army)
• Sun died of cancer 1925, Chiang led Northern Expedition to overthrow warlords.

Question 11

Communist Party Establishment

Answer 11

• After the May 4 movement, communism spread, especially after 1917 Russian revolution. CCP was founded in secret in a girls school in Shanghai in June 1921 with 12 leadership members, including Mao Zedong and Chen Duxui, and 50 in total.
• The Bolshevik government provided $5000 a year funding.

Question 12

Why was the 1st United Front Established?

Answer 12

• Bolshevik Government, funding the CCP, believed the CCP was too small to achieve a revolution, and conditions in China were not ready for a Marxist revolution. See CP could not deny their request.
• The GMD and CCP had common aims: to destroy the warlords, expel foreigners from China and improve the lives of ordinary Chinese people. The ‘three principles of the people’ were rooted in our ideas for equality and therefore similar to communism.
• 30th of May incident 1925, protest by Chinese workers in Shanghai was stopped when the British commander from the international settlement shot into the crowd and killed 12 people, confirming for them that their enemies could only be removed by force.

Question 13

Northern Expedition

Answer 13

• Chiang had a speech in 1926 to launch the Northern Expedition.Directed against the wall or the central, eastern and northern China, surrounding each individual warlords army to cut a bit supplies and sadly destroy it. The NRA were very successful. Galen, the Soviet military adviser, Taught the troops to treat the local peasant population with respect and were ordered to pay for food.
• By the summer of 1927, the United front are taking control of central China and by 1928, with an army 250,000 strong, Chiang took control of eastern China. In April 1928, Zhang Zuolin was driven out of Beijing in the North, GMD became legal government and capital moved to Beijing.

Question 14

Shanghai Massacres

Answer 14

• Chiang was suspicious of the CCP, the GMD would relied on businessmen for financial support who couldn’t accept communism. Despite being able to take over Shanghai because of the communists, who led a strong trade union uprising, Chiang launched the white terror and more than 5000 Communist were dragged out and killed, and in Hunan more than a quarter of 1 million people were killed.
• Chiang was backed up by Shanghai’s industrialist and traders, the foreigners in the international settlement, the violence secret societies in Shanghai and the crime organisation known as the Green Gang.
• The communist stopped listening to Comintern to continue the united front and in retaliation: autumn harvest uprising in August to September 1927 BUT army was too small to take on the NRA and they were forced to flee to the Jiangxi province where they set up a ‘Chinese Soviet Republic’, struggling for the next 7 years.

Question 15

Extermination Campaigns

Answer 15

• 1930-34, five extermination campaigns were launched. The first in October 1930 with 44,000 NRA troops however this failed because the Communists refuse to fight face-to-face. The Communists captured the commander of the first army unit and tortured him.
• 100,000 troops against the CCP in July 1931. The peasants revolt it, troops back down villages and volunteers from villages wouldn’t sign up. More than 1 million peasants were killed between 1930 to 34 by the GMD.
• In autumn 1933, 5th and final extermination campaign: a blockade, 11,000 km of road was built into the Jiangxi Soviet, scorched earth policy, forced into static war. October 1934, abandoned after losing 60,000 soldiers and > 1/2 territory.