Republic of China (1912–1949)
On the 1st of January 1912, revolutionaries under Sun Yat-sen proclaimed the Republic of China in Nanjing. This event marked the end of over two thousand years of imperial rule following the Xinhai Revolution. The Qing dynasty had collapsed after decades of instability and foreign pressure. Puyi, the final emperor, abdicated on the 12th of February 1912. Sun Yat-sen served as provisional president before handing power to Yuan Shikai. Yuan's Beiyang government became authoritarian and attempted to establish his own imperial dynasty in 1915. Popular unrest forced him to abandon this plan. When Yuan died in 1916, the country fragmented into warlord states. The Kuomintang later reunified the nation by 1928 through the Northern Expedition. In 1949, the Nationalist government lost control of mainland China to the Chinese Communist Party. The ROC retreated to Taiwan while the CCP established the People's Republic of China.
Yuan Shikai's death in 1916 triggered a period of decentralized conflicts between rival military cliques. Provinces declared independence and became warlord states. The Beiyang Army split among different factions led by generals who rivaled each other. These warlords controlled central government positions but could not take over the south. Southern warlords also maintained their own armies divided by internal conflicts. Despite the breakdown of centralized leadership, some military schools continued functioning during this era. The Baoding Military Academy graduated the majority of officers that served in warlord armies. Many later became Nationalist officers. Sun Yat-sen returned to Guangdong in 1917 and 1922 with help from warlords. He set up successive rival governments to the Beiyang government in Beijing. His dream was to unify China by launching an expedition against the north. However, he lacked the military support and funding to turn it into reality.
Chiang Kai-shek pushed the Communists into the interior and established a government with Nanjing as its capital in 1927. By 1928, his army unified the entire nation nominally, beginning the Nanjing decade. Chinese industries grew considerably from 1928 to 1931 despite Japanese aggression in Manchuria. Industrial output recovered to earlier peaks by 1936 after being hit by the Great Depression. In 1932, China's GDP peaked at 28.8 billion before falling to 21.3 billion by 1934. Several major government institutions were founded including Academia Sinica and the Central Bank of China. Campaigns promoted women's rights through the 1931 Civil Code which gave equal inheritance rights. The Rural Reconstruction Movement raised social consciousness in remote villages. The Nationalist government published a draft constitution on the 5th of May 1936. Yet continual wars plagued the government with uprisings like the Central Plains War in 1930. Large areas remained under semi-autonomous rule of local warlords such as Feng Yuxiang and Yan Xishan.
Japan initiated the seizure of Manchuria in September 1931 and established Manchukuo in 1932. The loss of Manchuria was a blow to the Kuomintang economy. Chinese fury against Japan was predictable but anger also targeted Chiang and the Nanjing government. Open warfare began after the 7th of July 1937 when clashes occurred near the Marco Polo Bridge outside Beijing. Shanghai fell after a three-month battle during which Japan suffered extensive casualties. Nanjing fell in December 1937 followed by mass murders known as the Nanjing Massacre. The national capital moved from Wuhan to Chongqing where it remained until 1945. In 1940, Japan set up the collaborationist Wang Jingwei regime in Nanjing. After its entry into the Pacific War, the United States provided massive military and financial aid starting in late 1941. China became one of the Big Four Allies and later one of the Four Policemen. This status was a precursor to having a permanent seat on the UN Security Council. By August 1945, Nationalist troops took Japanese surrender in North China with American help.
In January 1946, a military truce between the Kuomintang and Communists was arranged through US mediation. Battles soon resumed despite this agreement. Public opinion turned against the administrative incompetence of the Nationalist government following student protests in early 1947. The United States withdrew Gen. George Marshall's mission realizing no armed intervention could stop the coming war. By late 1948 the Kuomintang position was bleak. The demoralized National Revolutionary Army proved no match for the Communists' motivated People's Liberation Army. Although the KMT had advantages in numbers and territory, they were exhausted by long wars and internal fighting. On the 23rd of April 1949, major cities passed from Kuomintang to Communist control with minimal resistance. Finally, on the 1st of October 1949, Mao Zedong founded the People's Republic of China. Chiang Kai-shek declared martial law in May 1949 while two million refugees fled to Taiwan. There remained only isolated pockets of resistance within mainland China itself.
The Republic of China maintained diplomatic relations with 59 countries before being ousted from the mainland. These included Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, the Soviet Union, and the United Kingdom. The ROC participated in the League of Nations until it dissolved. It served as a non-permanent member of the League Council during multiple periods including 1921, 1923 and 1926, 1928. Under the UN Charter, the ROC held a permanent seat on the Security Council until 1971 when replaced by the PRC. The government hoped participating in Olympic Games would give legitimacy to the country. Athletes competed in the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris and the 1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles but won no medals. By the early 1930s China regained sovereignty over around two-thirds of foreign concessions that existed prior to the republic. The foreign policy cornerstone became Chiang Kai-shek's vow to quickly return and liberate the mainland after retreating to Taiwan.
Common questions
When did revolutionaries under Sun Yat-sen proclaim the Republic of China?
Revolutionaries under Sun Yat-sen proclaimed the Republic of China on the 1st of January 1912 in Nanjing. This event marked the end of over two thousand years of imperial rule following the Xinhai Revolution.
Who was the final emperor of the Qing dynasty and when did he abdicate?
Puyi was the final emperor of the Qing dynasty who abdicated on the 12th of February 1912. His abdication followed decades of instability and foreign pressure that caused the collapse of the Qing dynasty.
What happened to Yuan Shikai after he attempted to establish his own imperial dynasty in 1915?
Popular unrest forced Yuan Shikai to abandon his plan to establish an imperial dynasty before he died in 1916. His death triggered a period of decentralized conflicts between rival military cliques known as warlord states.
How did Chiang Kai-shek unify the nation by 1928?
Chiang Kai-shek unified the entire nation nominally by 1928 through the Northern Expedition which began the Nanjing decade. He established a government with Nanjing as its capital in 1927 after pushing the Communists into the interior.
When did open warfare begin between China and Japan during the Republic of China period?
Open warfare began after the 7th of July 1937 when clashes occurred near the Marco Polo Bridge outside Beijing. This conflict led to the fall of Shanghai and later the mass murders known as the Nanjing Massacre in December 1937.
Why did the Kuomintang lose control of mainland China in 1949?
The demoralized National Revolutionary Army proved no match for the Communists' motivated People's Liberation Army despite advantages in numbers and territory. On the 23rd of April 1949 major cities passed from Kuomintang to Communist control with minimal resistance leading to the retreat to Taiwan.