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The three-day Qingming Festival holiday has seen a tourism boom with domestic attractions receiving 126 million visits, marking a year-on-year growth of 6.3 percent, according to the latest figures released by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism on Monday.为期三天的清明节假期迎来了旅游热潮。文化和旅游部周一发布的最新数据显示，国内旅游景区共接待游客 1.26 亿人次，同比增长 6.3%。These domestic travels generated tourism consumption of about 57.5 billion yuan ($7.87 billion) during the holiday — from Friday to Sunday, which is a 6.7 percent increase year-on-year.在本周五至周日的假期期间，这些国内游产生了约 575 亿元人民币（78.7 亿美元）的旅游消费，同比增长 6.7%。Qingming Festival, also known as Tomb-Sweeping Day, is the time for Chinese people to visit their ancestors' tombs and make ritual offerings. People usually go outside to enjoy spring views over the holiday as well.清明节，又称扫墓节，是中国人祭拜祖先坟墓并进行祭祀仪式的时节。人们通常也会在这个假期外出欣赏春日景色。According to a release by the ministry, a large number of people went to those tourist spots to honor revolutionary martyrs over the holiday. Destinations highlighting flower blossoms were also popular among travelers such as Henan's Luoyang and Jiangsu's Wuxi cities, which are famous for peony flowers and cherry blossoms respectively.根据文化和旅游部发布的消息，在这个假期，大量民众前往那些旅游景点缅怀革命烈士。以赏花为特色的旅游目的地也受到游客的欢迎，比如河南省的洛阳市和江苏省的无锡市，这两个城市分别以牡丹花和樱花而闻名。重点词汇：Qingming Festival：[ˌtʃɪŋˈmɪŋ ˈfestɪvl]，清明节tourism：[ˈtʊərɪzəm]，名词，意为 “旅游业；观光业；旅游活动”martyr：[ˈmɑːtə(r)]，名词，意为 “烈士；殉道者；殉教者；牺牲者；受难者”blossom：[ˈblɒsəm]，名词，意为 “花（尤指果树或灌木的花）”；动词，意为 “开花；变得更加健康（或自信、成功）”
China's latest commitment to advancing cutting-edge technologies — including quantum computing, artificial intelligence and 6G — will solidify its position as a global leader in innovation, and the strategic push will enable the country to navigate global uncertainties while sustaining its competitive advantage, experts and business executives said.专家和企业高管们表示，中国最近致力于推动包括量子计算、人工智能和6G等前沿技术的发展，这将巩固中国作为全球创新领导者的地位，而这一战略推动将使中国能够在保持竞争优势的同时应对全球的不确定性。Underscoring the importance of securing technological breakthroughs and efficiently commercializing them, they said that China's push for new quality productive forces will create vast opportunities for domestic and international businesses.他们强调了确保技术突破并将其有效商业化的重要性，并表示中国对新的优质生产力的推动将为国内外企业创造大量机会。Their comments follow President Xi Jinping's remark that technological innovation and industrial innovation constitute the fundamental pathways for developing new quality productive forces.习近平主席曾指出，技术创新和产业创新是发展高质量新生产力的根本途径。Xi made the remark when participating in a deliberation in Beijing on March 5 with his fellow deputies from Jiangsu province during the third session of the 14th National People's Congress, China's top legislature.3月5日，在中国最高立法机构--第十四届全国人民代表大会第三次会议期间，习近平在北京与江苏省人大代表一起参加审议时说了这番话。China's 2025 Government Work Report also said the nation "will establish a mechanism to increase funding for industries of the future and foster industries such as biomanufacturing, quantum technology, embodied AI and 6G technology".中国《2025年政府工作报告》也表示，中国 “将建立未来产业资金投入增长机制，培育生物制造、量子技术、人工智能、6G技术等产业”。Wang Yiming, vice-chairman of the China Center for International Economic Exchanges, said, "China's economy has entered a critical period of transitioning between old and new growth drivers."中国国际经济交流中心副理事长王一鸣表示，“中国经济已进入新旧增长动力转换的关键时期”。He said future-oriented technologies are not only at the forefront of innovation, but are also strategic pillars for reshaping industrial competition and boosting productivity."他说，面向未来的技术不仅是创新的前沿，也是重塑产业竞争格局、提升生产力的战略支柱。Their significance lies in both upgrading traditional industries and securing a leading position in emerging sectors," Wang said.它们的意义在于既能提升传统产业，又能确保在新兴产业中的领先地位。Guo Guoping, deputy director of the Key Lab of Quantum Information at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said he was deeply impressed by China's support for quantum technology.中国科学院量子信息重点实验室副主任郭国平说，中国对量子技术的支持给他留下了深刻印象。He compared quantum technology to an aircraft, with quantum computing serving as its "engine", providing exponential computational power for fields such as national defense, biomedicine, energy materials and AI.他把量子技术比作一架飞机，量子计算是飞机的“发动机”，为国防、生物医药、能源材料和人工智能等领域提供指数级计算能力。"Quantum computing is transitioning from the lab to industrialization. China has become the third country in the world capable of delivering quantum computers, after Canada and the United States, positioning China in the global first tier of quantum research. But challenges remain in some areas," Guo said."量子计算正在从实验室向产业化过渡。中国已成为继加拿大和美国之后，世界上第三个能够提供量子计算机的国家，跻身全球量子研究第一梯队。但在某些领域仍存在挑战，"郭说。He stressed the need for increased investment in basic research and advocated leveraging China's unique advantages in mobilizing resources to tackle core technological challenges.他强调了增加基础研究投入的必要性，并主张发挥中国在调动资源应对核心技术挑战方面的独特优势。China's research and development spending climbed to 3.6 trillion yuan ($497 billion) in 2024, an 8 percent year-on-year increase, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. Of this total, funding allocated to basic research accounted for 6.91 percent of the R&D budget, underscoring heightened investment in foundational scientific exploration.根据国家统计局的数据，到2024年，中国的研发支出将攀升至3.6万亿元（约合4,970亿美元），同比增长8%。其中，分配给基础研究的资金占研发预算的6.91%，凸显了对基础科学探索的投资力度加大。Meanwhile, more than 570 Chinese industrial companies have made it to the global top 2,500 companies in terms of R&D investment, according to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.与此同时，根据工业和信息化部的数据，已有超过570家中国工业企业进入全球研发投入前2500强。Xu Lijin, a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, the nation's top political advisory body, and chairman of Wuhu Robot Industry Development Group, said that embodied AI, as highlighted in the Government Work Report, refers to AI that is integrated into physical hardware such as robots. It represents a significant leap in intelligent systems capable of interacting with and adapting to their environments.全国政协委员、芜湖机器人产业发展集团董事长徐立金表示，《政府工作报告》中强调的“嵌入式人工智能 ”是指将人工智能集成到机器人等物理硬件中。它代表着能够与环境交互并适应环境的智能系统的重大飞跃。"Robotics and AI are dual engines driving economic and social development in the era of global digital transformation," Xu said"机器人和人工智能是全球数字化转型时代推动经济社会发展的双引擎。"他说Qiao Hong, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said, "Over the past three years, China has accounted for more than half of the global installation of industrial robots, and its lunar exploration robots have successfully returned lunar soil samples."中国科学院院士乔红说："近三年来，中国工业机器人的安装量已占全球一半以上，中国的探月机器人已成功返回月球土壤样本。However, challenges remain. For instance, high-end sensors like precision lidar, short for light detection and ranging, still rely on imports, and domestic alternatives lag in accuracy and stability, experts added.然而，挑战依然存在。专家补充说，例如，像精密激光雷达（光探测和测距的简称）这样的高端传感器仍然依赖进口，而国产替代品在精度和稳定性方面都比较落后。Zhang Li, president of the China Center for Information Industry Development, said: "Leveraging its robust and comprehensive industrial ecosystem, China creates expansive real-world testing grounds and vast market opportunities for technological innovation. This infrastructure not only accelerates the development of emerging industries, but also provides a resilient foundation for nurturing future-oriented sectors poised to redefine global markets."中国信息产业发展研究中心主任张莉说："中国凭借其强大而全面的产业生态系统，为技术创新创造了广阔的现实世界试验场和巨大的市场机遇。这种基础设施不仅加快了新兴产业的发展，也为培育未来导向型行业奠定了坚实的基础，这些行业将重新定义全球市场。As the world's largest manufacturing country, China ranks first globally in terms of output for more than 40 percent of the world's 500 major industrial products, data from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology showed.工业和信息化部的数据显示，作为世界上最大的制造业国家，在世界500种主要工业产品中，中国有40%以上的产品产量位居全球第一。Industrial innovation must remain rooted in the real economy, Zhang said, noting that China's economy "has historically relied on the real economy, and it is through this foundation that it will continue to progress".张说，产业创新必须始终植根于实体经济，她指出，中国经济“历来依靠实体经济，正是通过这一基础，中国经济才会不断进步”。Ding Haiyu, deputy head of the China Mobile Research Institute, said that 6G "has entered its tech standardization phase this year, as we aim to commercialize the technology around 2030. AI-powered 6G will unlock significant opportunities".中国移动研究院副院长丁海玉说，6G "今年已进入技术标准化阶段，我们的目标是在2030年左右实现技术商用。人工智能驱动的6G将带来重大机遇"。Zheng Yongnian, dean of the School of Public Policy at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (Shenzhen), said, "To cultivate new quality productive forces, a country should prioritize three foundational pillars — advancing fundamental scientific research, bridging the gap between theoretical discoveries and applied technological solutions, and fostering a financial ecosystem capable of sustaining innovation-driven growth."香港中文大学（深圳）公共政策学院院长郑永年说：“一个国家要培育新的优质生产力，应优先考虑三大基础支柱--推进基础科学研究、弥合理论发现与应用技术解决方案之间的差距，以及培育能够维持创新驱动增长的金融生态系统。”"Expanding institutional opening-up is the strategic guarantee for nurturing new quality productive forces," Zheng said."扩大制度性开放是培育新的优质生产力的战略保障。”他说David Poon, president of Infineon Technologies Greater China, said China's focus on green, low-carbon and high-quality development aligns with the German chip maker's strengths and opens new growth opportunities.英飞凌科技大中华区总裁表示，中国注重绿色、低碳和高质量发展，这与这家德国芯片制造商的优势不谋而合，并带来了新的发展机遇。"With our 'In China, For China' strategy, we plan to increase local production of general-purpose semiconductors to address customer needs regarding supply resilience," Poon said.他说：”根据我们的'在中国，为中国'战略，我们计划增加通用半导体的本地化生产，以满足客户对供应弹性的需求。navigatevt.航行于；驾驶，操纵；使通过vi.航行，航空aircraftn. 飞机，航空器quantumn. 量子定量;总量semiconductorn.〈物〉半导体
Plus Should AI Be Able To Say No?Like this? Get AIDAILY, delivered to your inbox, every weekday. Subscribe to our newsletter at https://aidaily.usAI 'Bossware' Monitors Your Work: What You Need to KnowEmployers are increasingly using AI-powered "bossware" to monitor employees' activities. These tools can track keystrokes, mouse movements, and even facial expressions to assess productivity. While companies argue this boosts efficiency, critics warn it may invade privacy and harm trust in the workplace. It's essential to balance technology use with respect for employees' rights. Anthropic CEO Suggests AI Should Refuse Unpleasant TasksDario Amodei, CEO of AI company Anthropic, proposes that future artificial intelligence systems might benefit from the ability to decline tasks they find unpleasant. This idea aims to promote ethical AI behavior by allowing systems to opt out of actions conflicting with their programming or ethical guidelines. However, this concept has sparked debate among experts regarding its feasibility and implications. Strong Family Bonds Can Shield Kids from AI 'Relationships'A recent study reveals that children from strong, intact families are less likely to form emotional attachments to AI companions. Conversely, those with weaker family bonds or heavy digital engagement, such as frequent pornography use, show increased openness to AI relationships. This underscores the importance of nurturing healthy family dynamics to guide children's interactions with emerging technologies.Chinese Court Grants Copyright Protection to AI-Generated ImageA court in Jiangsu province, China, has ruled that an AI-generated image created using Midjourney is eligible for copyright protection. The plaintiff, Lin, discovered two companies using his AI-generated design without permission and sued them. The court ordered the defendants to apologize publicly and pay 10,000 yuan (approximately $1,380) in damages. This decision reinforces that AI-generated works with human creativity can receive copyright protection in China.The High Cost of AI HallucinationsAI "hallucinations" occur when models generate incorrect or misleading information, posing significant risks across various sectors. In the legal field, attorneys have faced sanctions for submitting AI-generated content containing fabricated case citations. To mitigate these issues, companies like Amazon Web Services are investing in "automated reasoning" techniques to enhance AI accuracy and reliability. Building a Website with AI: A 30-Minute ExperienceAI-powered website builders like Wix's ADI and Jimdo Dolphin are transforming web design by enabling users to create functional websites in as little as 30 minutes. These platforms utilize artificial intelligence to simplify the process, making website creation more accessible to individuals without technical expertise.
Welcome to China Compass on the Fight Laugh Feast Network! I'm your China travel guide, Missionary Ben. Follow me on X (@chinaadventures) where I post detailed daily reminders to pray for China (www.PrayforChina.us). BTW, X is also the best way to get in touch with me. Either tag me with a question or comment, or follow and send a DM. Finally, PrayGiveGo.us has easy access to almost everything that I am involved in, including books, Substack, this podcast, and our dedicated pray for China website. Today we begin with some North Korea news (1:07), followed by a look at some 214 year old preaching advice from missionary William Milne (34:18). Next, we look at how to pray for China this week (39:20) and hear a number of stories, especially the one about the Chrisitan hotel near North Korea in Lucky Forest. This Week’s (North Korea) News Why China is wary of North Korea’s embrace of Russia https://www.ft.com/content/d4094f65-de08-4fcf-ab11-424ef152e89e Families of Captured North Koreans to be Executed https://www.yahoo.com/news/families-captured-north-korean-troops-090313885.html North Korea Reopens After Five Years https://www.channelnewsasia.com/east-asia/north-korea-reopens-foreign-tourists-special-economic-zone-pyongyang-closed-4966381 Western Tourists Shocked by North Korea https://www.yahoo.com/news/western-tourists-given-rare-glimpse-112527445.html North Korea Tours Quickly Suspended https://www.rfa.org/english/korea/2025/03/06/north-korea-foreign-tour-suspension/ South Korean Travel to China Surges https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/nation/2025/03/113_392898.html On This Day… 200 Year Old Preaching Advice from William Milne https://chinacall.substack.com/p/200-year-old-preaching-advice The Memoirs of William Milne (200th Anniversary Edition!) https://a.co/d/bALLtAf Pray for China (March 9-15, 2025) Systematically and Strategically Interceding for All of China https://chinacall.substack.com/p/pray-for-china-march-9-15-2025 Mar 9 - Pray for Jiaozuo (“Gee’ao-dzwah”) in heavily populated Henan Province, one of the few Chinese prefectures that I've never previously heard of. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jiaozuo Henan is paired up with Kentucky and West Virginia for prayer: www.PrayforChina.us Here's my Henan podcast (and more): https://prayforchina.us/index.php/henan/ Mar 10 - Pray for Jianli in Hubei Province's Jingzhou Prefecture, one of China's many million+ cities almost no one has heard of: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jianli Hubei (“Who-bay”) is matched with Illinois for prayer: www.PrayforChina.us For more about Hubei (incl. my podcast): https://prayforchina.us/index.php/hubei/ Mar 11 - Pray for Zhangjiajie City in the breathtaking mountains of NW Hunan: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zhangjiajie. Hunan literally translates to “south of the lake” and is paired with both Indiana and Ohio for prayer: www.PrayforChina.us For more about Hunan (incl. my podcast): https://prayforchina.us/index.php/hunan/ Mar 12 - Pray for Kunshan City in Suzhou Prefecture in eastern China's Jiangsu Province: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kunshan. Jiangsu Province is paired with Tennessee for prayer: www.PrayforChina.us For more about Jiangsu (incl. my podcast): https://prayforchina.us/index.php/Jiangsu/ Mar 13 - Pray for Fengcheng (“Fungchung”) City in Yichun Prefecture in SE China’s Jiangxi Province: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fengcheng,_Jiangxi Jiangxi is paired with Georgia for prayer: www.PrayforChina.us For more about Jiangxi (incl. my podcast): https://prayforchina.us/index.php/Jiangxi/ Mar 14 - Pray for Meihekou City in Jilin Province’s Tonghua Prefecture, home of the Christian hotel I visited back in 2003: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meihekou Jilin (“Lucky Forest”) is paired with all of New England for prayer: www.PrayforChina.us For more about Jilin (incl. my podcast): https://prayforchina.us/index.php/jilin/ Mar 15 - Pray for Panjin Prefecture in NE China's Liaoning Province, a place I visited one day back in 2003: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panjin. Liaoning is paired for prayer with New York, PA, NJ & Delaware: https://prayforchina.us/states/new-york.html For more about Liaoning (& my podcast): https://prayforchina.us/index.php/Liaoning/ If you enjoy this podcast, follow or subscribe and leave a review on whichever platform you use. And don’t forget to check out everything we are involved in at PrayGiveGo.us. Luke 10, Verse 2!
Welcome to China Compass on the Fight Laugh Feast Network! I'm your China travel guide, Missionary Ben. Follow me on X (@chinaadventures) where I post detailed daily reminders to pray for China (www.PrayforChina.us). BTW, X is also the best way to get in touch with me. Either tag me with a question or comment, or follow and send a DM. Finally, PrayGiveGo.us has easy access to almost everything that I am involved in, including books, Substack, this podcast, and our dedicated pray for China website. Today we begin with some North Korea news (1:07), followed by a look at some 214 year old preaching advice from missionary William Milne (34:18). Next, we look at how to pray for China this week (39:20) and hear a number of stories, especially the one about the Chrisitan hotel near North Korea in Lucky Forest. This Week’s (North Korea) News Why China is wary of North Korea’s embrace of Russia https://www.ft.com/content/d4094f65-de08-4fcf-ab11-424ef152e89e Families of Captured North Koreans to be Executed https://www.yahoo.com/news/families-captured-north-korean-troops-090313885.html North Korea Reopens After Five Years https://www.channelnewsasia.com/east-asia/north-korea-reopens-foreign-tourists-special-economic-zone-pyongyang-closed-4966381 Western Tourists Shocked by North Korea https://www.yahoo.com/news/western-tourists-given-rare-glimpse-112527445.html North Korea Tours Quickly Suspended https://www.rfa.org/english/korea/2025/03/06/north-korea-foreign-tour-suspension/ South Korean Travel to China Surges https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/nation/2025/03/113_392898.html On This Day… 200 Year Old Preaching Advice from William Milne https://chinacall.substack.com/p/200-year-old-preaching-advice The Memoirs of William Milne (200th Anniversary Edition!) https://a.co/d/bALLtAf Pray for China (March 9-15, 2025) Systematically and Strategically Interceding for All of China https://chinacall.substack.com/p/pray-for-china-march-9-15-2025 Mar 9 - Pray for Jiaozuo (“Gee’ao-dzwah”) in heavily populated Henan Province, one of the few Chinese prefectures that I've never previously heard of. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jiaozuo Henan is paired up with Kentucky and West Virginia for prayer: www.PrayforChina.us Here's my Henan podcast (and more): https://prayforchina.us/index.php/henan/ Mar 10 - Pray for Jianli in Hubei Province's Jingzhou Prefecture, one of China's many million+ cities almost no one has heard of: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jianli Hubei (“Who-bay”) is matched with Illinois for prayer: www.PrayforChina.us For more about Hubei (incl. my podcast): https://prayforchina.us/index.php/hubei/ Mar 11 - Pray for Zhangjiajie City in the breathtaking mountains of NW Hunan: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zhangjiajie. Hunan literally translates to “south of the lake” and is paired with both Indiana and Ohio for prayer: www.PrayforChina.us For more about Hunan (incl. my podcast): https://prayforchina.us/index.php/hunan/ Mar 12 - Pray for Kunshan City in Suzhou Prefecture in eastern China's Jiangsu Province: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kunshan. Jiangsu Province is paired with Tennessee for prayer: www.PrayforChina.us For more about Jiangsu (incl. my podcast): https://prayforchina.us/index.php/Jiangsu/ Mar 13 - Pray for Fengcheng (“Fungchung”) City in Yichun Prefecture in SE China’s Jiangxi Province: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fengcheng,_Jiangxi Jiangxi is paired with Georgia for prayer: www.PrayforChina.us For more about Jiangxi (incl. my podcast): https://prayforchina.us/index.php/Jiangxi/ Mar 14 - Pray for Meihekou City in Jilin Province’s Tonghua Prefecture, home of the Christian hotel I visited back in 2003: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meihekou Jilin (“Lucky Forest”) is paired with all of New England for prayer: www.PrayforChina.us For more about Jilin (incl. my podcast): https://prayforchina.us/index.php/jilin/ Mar 15 - Pray for Panjin Prefecture in NE China's Liaoning Province, a place I visited one day back in 2003: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panjin. Liaoning is paired for prayer with New York, PA, NJ & Delaware: https://prayforchina.us/states/new-york.html For more about Liaoning (& my podcast): https://prayforchina.us/index.php/Liaoning/ If you enjoy this podcast, follow or subscribe and leave a review on whichever platform you use. And don’t forget to check out everything we are involved in at PrayGiveGo.us. Luke 10, Verse 2!
President Xi Jinping underlined on Wednesday the need for Jiangsu province, one of China's economic powerhouses, to lead the integration of sci-tech and industrial innovation, the deepening of reform and high-level opening-up, and the nation's common prosperity drive.The president, who represents Jiangsu as a deputy to the 14th National People's Congress, China's top legislature, told his fellow deputies from the province that the nation's economic powerhouses must take the lead as China strives to achieve its targets set out in the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25).Xi, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks in Beijing when he took part in a deliberation with his fellow lawmakers during the third session of the 14th NPC.He spoke after six deputies shared their insights on issues such as accelerating green and low-carbon transformation and advancing industrial and technological innovation.He explained that sci-tech and industrial innovation is the fundamental pathway for the development of new quality productive forces—featuring high technology, high efficiency and high quality, and aligning with the country's new development philosophy.The president highlighted the need to advance education, science and talent development in tandem—both to generate more technological breakthroughs and to transform them into tangible productive forces.In driving industrial innovation, the nation must anchor its efforts in the real economy, balancing the upgrade of traditional industries with the cultivation of strategic emerging sectors and future industries, he said, adding that the role of enterprises as key drivers of innovation must be bolstered to ensure a seamless connection between innovation and industry.Jiangsu's GDP grew 5.8 percent year-on-year to 13.7 trillion yuan ($1.89 trillion) in 2024, registering the greatest increase in GDP volume in the nation last year, according to the provincial government.The province must take the lead in deepening reform and opening-up and keep removing obstacles and boosting momentum, Xi said.He urged the province to promote urban-rural integration and regional coordination, optimize the layout of productive forces, and focus on driving high-quality development.A level playing field must be offered to businesses of various ownership types, and continuous efforts must be made to improve the business environment, Xi said, adding that the province must expand institutional opening-up and keep expanding the room for international cooperation.The president encouraged Jiangsu to play a proactive role in the nation's major strategies, including the integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta and the development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt, adding that it is important for the province to step up its alignment with strategies such as the coordinated development in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.He also highlighted the need for the region to better integrate itself into the high-quality building of the Belt and Road, guarantee that its farmland will not fall below the red line, ensure food security and protect its ecology and environment.Xi then made the case for the nation's major economic powerhouses to lead the way in the common prosperity drive. Jiangsu, with a population of 85.26 million in 2023, should make solid steps in advancing comprehensive rural vitalization, urban-rural integration and consolidating the achievements of poverty alleviation, he said.
A group of 200 Chinese citizens suspected of involvement in telecom fraud arrived on Thursday in Nanjing, Jiangsu province, escorted by Chinese police, after being repatriated from Myanmar.2月20日，一批200名涉嫌参与电信诈骗的中国籍犯罪嫌疑人在中国警方押解下，从缅甸被遣返回国，抵达江苏省南京市。The suspects were first sent to Thailand's Mae Sot, which borders Myanmar's Myawaddy, before being flown back to China on four chartered flights. The first chartered flight arrived at Nanjing Lukou International Airport in the afternoon.该批嫌疑人先被移送至与缅甸妙瓦底接壤的泰国湄索，随后分乘四架包机回国。2月20日下午,首架包机抵达南京禄口国际机场。The repatriation marks a significant achievement in law enforcement cooperation among China, Myanmar and Thailand to tackle telecom fraud, the Ministry of Public Security said.公安部表示，此次遣返行动是中缅泰三国开展执法合作打击电信网络诈骗取得的标志性重大战果。The move came as the three countries stepped up efforts to crack down on a series of transnational crimes, including telecom and cyberspace fraud, engineered in the scam compounds of Myawaddy.此次行动正值三国加大力度打击电信诈骗、网络诈骗等一系列跨国犯罪之际，这些犯罪活动主要在妙瓦底的诈骗园区内策划实施。Calling the repatriation "major progress in close coordination among the three countries", the ministry said its working groups visited Thailand and Myanmar in January to hold multiple rounds of discussions with the two countries' law enforcement departments and they reached a consensus to establish a joint mechanism targeting telecom fraud and human trafficking.公安部称此次遣返行动是“三国紧密合作取得的重大进展”，并表示今年1月公安部派出工作组赴泰国、缅甸，与两国执法部门进行多轮次会谈，就建立联合打击犯罪机制，共同打击电信网络诈骗、人口贩运等跨国犯罪达成共识。Thailand cut off electricity, internet and fuel supplies to Myawaddy and strengthened patrols to prevent illegal border crossings by individuals involved in fraud. Myanmar deployed forces to raid telecom fraud dens in Myawaddy, arrested suspects and rescued Chinese nationals trapped in scam operations. The joint effort led to a large number of suspects being captured in Myawaddy, the ministry said.泰国对妙瓦底地区采取断电、断网、断油等措施，在泰缅边境加强巡查管控，坚决阻断涉诈人员偷渡、转移通道。缅甸部署对妙瓦底地区电诈园区开展集中清查，缉捕涉诈犯罪嫌疑人，解救被困中国公民。公安部表示，经三方密切协作、共同努力，大批涉诈犯罪嫌疑人在缅甸妙瓦底地区落网。The 200 suspects repatriated on Thursday were escorted by Jiangsu police, who are expected to bring more than 800 other suspects back to China.2月20日，被遣返的200名嫌疑人由江苏警方押解回国，预计还将有800余名中国籍涉诈犯罪嫌疑人被陆续押解回国。Ding Jie, a police officer and a member of an anti-fraud team of the Jiangsu Public Security Department, said the police will conduct thorough investigation of the cases that the suspects were involved in.江苏省公安厅反诈骗和新型犯罪总队案件侦查支队支队长丁杰表示，警方将对嫌疑人所涉案件展开深入调查。The ministry said telecom fraud and other transnational crimes have become a global challenge and require strengthened international law enforcement cooperation, adding that China, Myanmar and Thailand would carry out joint operations to combat such crimes on a regular basis.公安部表示，电信网络诈骗等跨国犯罪已成为全球打击治理难题，必须加大国际执法合作力度。中缅泰三方针对此类犯罪将常态化开展联合打击。The Chinese police will deepen cooperation with more countries and do their best to rescue individuals trapped in scam operations, hunt down financial supporters and key members of criminal gangs, and eliminate crime dens, it said.公安部还表示，中国警方将与更多国家深化合作，全力解救被困人员，全力缉捕“金主”、骨干，坚决清剿电诈园区。Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said at a daily news briefing on Thursday that fighting online gambling and scams is a must in order to safeguard the common interests of countries in the region, and is a shared aspiration of people of all countries.2月20日，外交部发言人郭嘉昆在例行新闻发布会上表示，坚决打击网赌电诈犯罪，是维护地区国家共同利益的必然选择，符合各国人民共同期待。China is working closely with countries including Thailand and Myanmar to "address both symptoms and the root cause" of such crimes, Guo added.郭嘉昆补充说，中国正同泰国、缅甸等国家密切合作，标本兼治，合力解决此类犯罪问题。repatriaten.将…遣返回国
Global attention will turn to Beijing next week with the start of the two sessions, China's biggest annual political event, through which the people's voices will be heard by policymakers, while the country's development priorities will be discussed.With the people's well-being in mind, President Xi Jinping, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, has since 2013 leveraged the two sessions to hold discussions with grassroots-level lawmakers and political advisers from across the country, listening to their suggestions on the country's development.Two sessions refer to the annual gatherings in Beijing of the deputies to the National People's Congress, the nation's top legislature, and the members of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, the nation's top political advisory body.As an embodiment of whole-process people's democracy, the two sessions have become a strong bond linking the Chinese leader and people at the grassroots level.At discussions during the two sessions about the country's development priorities, Xi has touched upon a variety of topics, including efforts to promote high-quality growth, foster new quality productive forces, enhance innovation in science and technology, and strengthen ecological conservation.He has always highlighted the need to make every effort to enable China's 1.4 billion people to lead a better life on the path to Chinese modernization.When he took part in deliberations with NPC deputies from the delegation of Jiangsu province last year, Xi emphasized the need to adhere to the people-centered development philosophy. "We must steadily enhance the level of livelihood security through development, and guide and motivate our people to create a happy life with their own hands," he said.People-centered development has been at the core of Xi's governance philosophy. When he has conducted inspections nationwide, he has always visited rural areas and urban communities to see how people are faring in their lives.Last year, he spent a total of more than 30 days on inspection tours, visiting 12 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions as well as the Macao Special Administrative Region. He visited farmers' homes, orchards and farm fields, as well as urban communities, seaports and high-tech industrial parks."As far as Chinese modernization is concerned, the people's well-being is prioritized," Xi told local residents when visiting a rural community during his inspection tour of Chongqing in April. "All the work of the Party and the government is aimed at ensuring a happier life for the ordinary people," he added.On Jan 22, ahead of Chinese New Year, Xi braved the cold to visit people who had been affected by floods in the village of Zhujiagou in Huludao, Liaoning province. He visited villagers who had moved into their new houses and inquired about the quality of the reconstructed homes and whether their daily necessities were adequate.Wang Lili, Party chief of the village, said that what Xi cares about most is whether the villagers affected by the floods live a good life."President Xi's care brings warmth and happiness to our hearts," she said.According to the Ministry of Finance, 70 percent of government expenditures in 2024 went toward ensuring the people's well-being.In his 2025 New Year message, Xi said: "Of all the jobs in front of us, the most important is to ensure a happy life for our people. ... We should work together to steadily improve social undertakings and governance, build a harmonious and inclusive atmosphere, and settle real issues, big or small, for our people. We must bring more smiles to our people and greater warmth to their hearts."Regarding the Chinese president's visit in 2018 to Liangjiahe, a village in Shaanxi province, where Xi had stayed for seven years as an "educated youth" in his teens, Faustin-Archange Touadera, president of the Central African Republic, said that he was impressed by Xi's strong connections with the people."Xi is deeply rooted in the people, always standing with the people and serving the people," Touadera said in an interview with China Global Television Network.Under Xi's leadership, the Party has made it a major task of Chinese modernization to ensure and improve people's livelihood through development.The third plenary session of the 20th CPC Central Committee, which was held in July, adopted a resolution on further deepening reform comprehensively to advance Chinese modernization, with a focus on enhancing people's quality of life, improving the income distribution system, promoting an employment-first policy, strengthening the social security system and deepening reform of the healthcare system.Guo Jianning, a professor at Tsinghua University's School of Marxism, said that putting people first underpins the governance philosophy and core values of the Party.Ensuring that the people lead better lives serves as both the starting point and the ultimate goal of the Party to further deepen reform on all fronts, Guo said in an article published by China Education News.While striving to improve the well-being of its own people, China, led by Xi, has also been committed to promoting the world's common development to ensure a better life for people in all countries."On the path toward modernization, no one and no country should be left behind," Xi said at the 2024 Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in September, calling on China and Africa to join hands to boost the modernization of the Global South to contribute to peace, security, prosperity and progress around the world.
根据周一发布的官方公告，北京将提高中小学体育教育的时长和质量。Beijing will improve both the duration and quality of physical education in primary and secondary schools, according to an official announcement released on Monday.该公告由北京市教育委员会和北京市体育局联合发布，规定所有中小学生每天至少上一节体育课。高中生每周将有三到五节体育课，在没有体育课的日子里，每天至少进行45分钟的体育锻炼。The announcement, issued jointly by the Beijing Municipal Commission of Education and the Beijing Sports Bureau, mandates that all primary and middle school students take at least one physical education class per day. High school students will have three to five classes per week, with no fewer than 45 minutes of daily physical exercise on days without physical education.这些措施包括八项具体举措，旨在优先考虑学生的健康，并强化体育教育在培养全面发展人才中的价值。The measures include eight specific initiatives aimed at prioritizing students' health and reinforcing the value of physical education in developing well-rounded individuals.此前，北京一、二年级学生每周有四节体育课，三至九年级学生有三节，高中生有两节。Previously, first and second graders in Beijing had four PE classes per week, third to ninth graders had three and high school students had two.“增加体育课时将帮助学生发展运动技能，培养锻炼习惯，提高身体素质和心理健康。”本月成立的北京市学校体育教学指导委员会秘书长刘海元表示。"The increased time will help students develop sports skills, cultivate exercise habits, improve physical fitness and enhance mental well-being," said Liu Haiyuan, secretary-general of the Beijing School Physical Education Teaching Steering Committee, which was established this month.这些措施还概述了课程的变化。中小学必须在必修体育课中至少包含三大球类运动之一。高中应提供这些运动的模块化教学。冰雪运动特色学校应将相关活动纳入教学大纲。The measures also outline changes to the curriculum. Primary and middle schools must include at least one of three major ball sports in their mandatory PE classes. High schools should offer modular instruction in these sports. Schools specializing in ice and snow sports should integrate those activities into their syllabuses.为确保体育教育的有效性，公告强调避免理论课或“不出汗”的课程。学校应鼓励为学生分配足够的活动时间。To ensure effective physical education, the announcement emphasizes the importance of avoiding theoretical or "no-sweat" lessons. Schools are encouraged to allocate sufficient time for active participation.在这些举措下，学生预计在九年义务教育结束时掌握至少两项运动技能。学校还应引入班级级别的体育比赛，以促进参与各种体育活动。Under these initiatives, students are expected to master at least two sports skills by the end of their nine-year compulsory education. Schools should also introduce class-level sports competitions to promote engagement in various athletic activities.这些措施与中国更广泛的教育目标一致。These measures align with China's broader educational goals.今年1月，中共中央和国务院联合发布了2024年至2035年国家教育发展路线图，要求中小学生每天至少进行两小时的体育活动。In January, the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the State Council jointly released a road map for the country's educational development from 2024 to 2035, which calls for primary and middle school students to engage in at least two hours of physical activity per day.作为回应，天津等城市和湖南、河北等省在本学期实施了学生每天至少两小时锻炼的规定。In response, cities such as Tianjin and provinces such as Hunan and Hebei have implemented a minimum of two hours of daily exercise for students this spring semester.自去年秋季以来，北京已将课间休息时间从10分钟调整为15分钟，江苏、湖南等省也将在新学期延长课间休息时间。Beijing has already adjusted class intervals from 10 to 15 minutes since last fall, and other regions, including Jiangsu and Hunan provinces, are extending class intervals in the upcoming semester as well.北京的措施还注重提高教学质量。将为体育教师推出培训计划，并提高他们的薪酬。Beijing's measures also focus on improving the quality of instruction. Training programs will be introduced for PE teachers, and their compensation will be enhanced.公告计划加强体育学校与普通学校之间的合作。体育学校的教练和退役运动员将为学生和体育教师提供专业培训，北京各区每年将举办10多场由冠军领衔的校园体育活动。The announcement plans to strengthen collaboration between sports schools and general schools. Coaches at sports schools and retired athletes will offer specialized training for students and PE teachers, and more than 10 champion-led campus sports events will be held annually across Beijing's districts.今年1月，教育部发布了加强体育教育队伍的新指导方针。学校现在需要保持小学每名教师负责少于五个班级，初中少于六个班级，高中少于八个班级的师生比例。In January, the Ministry of Education issued new guidelines to bolster the physical education workforce. Schools are now required to maintain a class-to-teacher ratio lower than five classes per teacher in primary schools, six in middle schools and eight in high schools.“这八项举措代表了对体育教育更精确的方法，扩大了所有学生的参与。”北京市教育委员会发言人王攀表示。"The eight initiatives represent a more precise approach to physical education, expanding participation to all students," said Wang Pan, spokesperson for the Beijing Municipal Commission of Education.physical education (PE) [ˈfɪzɪkəl ˌɛdʒʊˈkeɪʃən] (n.) 体育教育initiative [ɪˈnɪʃɪətɪv] (n.) 举措，倡议curriculum [kəˈrɪkjʊləm] (n.) 课程compulsory education [kəmˈpʌlsəri ˌɛdʒʊˈkeɪʃən] (n.) 义务教育collaboration [kəˌlæbəˈreɪʃən] (n.) 合作guidelines [ˈɡaɪdlaɪnz] (n.) 指导方针
Fans of record-breaking blockbuster Chinese movie Ne Zha 2 are making significant waves in the derivatives market, clearing out retailer inventories and even creating DIY character-shaped dolls and food items. 中国破纪录票房大片《哪吒2》的粉丝们在衍生品市场掀起巨大波澜，清空了零售商的库存，甚至自制角色玩偶和食品。 Since the film's debut on the first day of the Chinese New Year, which was Jan 29 this year, sales of its collectibles, ranging from mystery toy boxes and cards to fridge magnets and badges, have reportedly topped 50 million yuan ($6.97 million) on Taobao, a leading e-commerce platform in China. 自今年1月29日（农历新年第一天）上映以来，据报道，其衍生品在淘宝（中国领先的电商平台）上的销售额已突破5000万元人民币（约合697万美元），包括盲盒玩具、卡片、冰箱贴和徽章等。 This sequel to the 2019 hit Ne Zha, with inspirations derived from Chinese mythological tales, has already drawn over 200 million cinema-goers, the highest number in the country's film history. 作为2019年爆款电影《哪吒》的续集，这部取材于中国神话故事的影片已吸引超过2亿观影人次，创下中国电影史上的最高纪录。 The film became an instant holiday box office hit thanks to its contemporary re-imagination of Ne Zha, a well-known mythical figure with extraordinary powers, and via its intriguing plot twists. 这部电影通过对哪吒这一拥有非凡力量的著名神话人物的现代重塑以及引人入胜的剧情转折，迅速成为春节档票房爆款。 Customers inquiring about toys featuring characters from the film are often left disappointed at stores across China. A salesperson at a trendy toy store in downtown Nanjing in East China's Jiangsu province said even display samples were sold out. "We expect to restock items like laser cards later." 在中国各地的商店，询问电影角色玩具的顾客常常失望而归。江苏省南京市市中心一家潮流玩具店的销售人员表示，甚至连展示样品都已售罄。“我们预计稍后会补货激光卡片等商品。” Notably, Hunan Sunny & Sandy Toys Manufacturer Co Ltd, the film's sole licensed manufacturer of 3D food-grade plastic toys in China, reported sales of over 450,000 mystery toy box sets through live-streaming in just 11 days -- ranking first in terms of the sales of board-game merchandise on the video platform. In addition, more than 10 million of these sets have been sold through offline partnerships. 值得注意的是，湖南阳光与沙地玩具制造有限公司（该片在中国唯一授权的3D食品级塑料玩具制造商）报告称，仅11天通过直播销售了超过45万套盲盒玩具，在视频平台的桌游类商品销售中排名第一。此外，通过线下合作伙伴销售了超过1000万套。 Yang Zhenlin, assistant to the company's chairman, said their factory workshops had to resume operations ahead of schedule after the Spring Festival holiday, with their hundreds of staff members working tirelessly to replenish inventory. "We had great confidence in the film even before its release, so we promptly secured the copyright," Yang told Xinhua. 该公司董事长助理杨振林表示，春节假期后，工厂车间不得不提前复工，数百名员工加班加点补充库存。“我们在电影上映前就对其充满信心，因此迅速获得了版权。”杨振林对新华社表示。 This week, on e-commerce platforms, some stores have gradually restored supplies. Businesses in the second-hand market have remained brisk. 本周，在电商平台上，部分商店已逐步恢复供应。二手市场的交易依然活跃。 Fans have also discovered that the gold bracelets they had purchased after the first Ne Zha film came out in 2019, with designs inspired by the "universe ring" on Ne zha's arm, have tripled in value on the second-hand market, thanks to both the success of Ne Zha 2 and a higher gold price. 粉丝们还发现，他们在2019年第一部《哪吒》电影上映后购买的金手镯，其设计灵感来自哪吒手臂上的“乾坤圈”，由于《哪吒2》的成功和金价上涨，在二手市场上的价值已翻了三倍。 Some fans have gone so far as to make their own versions of it, using wood, plasticine, flour and even thread. Coinciding with the Lantern Festival on Feb 12, netizens shared creative improvisations of Ne Zha-shaped glutinous rice dumplings, a festive food. 一些粉丝甚至用木头、橡皮泥、面粉甚至线自制了哪吒角色。2月12日元宵节当天，网友们分享了以哪吒为灵感的创意汤圆，这是一种节日食品。 Miao Lingyi, a 10-year-old girl living in East China's Shanghai, expressed her admiration for the character Ao Bing, the son of the Dragon King, stating her desire to use her pocket money to buy a collectible featuring him. "I really love the character and I don't mind waiting a while for the collectible," she said. 居住在上海市的10岁女孩缪灵怡（音译）表达了对龙王之子敖丙这一角色的喜爱，并表示希望用零花钱购买相关收藏品。“我真的很喜欢这个角色，我不介意等一段时间再买到收藏品。”她说。 According to experts, the film's huge success stemming from its captivating plot and stunning special effects, has evoked emotional attachment and resonance with characters among its audiences, while some related products feature limited edition designs -- thereby enhancing their value as collectibles and stimulating consumer purchasing enthusiasm. 专家表示，这部电影的巨大成功源于其引人入胜的剧情和震撼的特效，激发了观众对角色的情感共鸣，而一些相关产品采用限量版设计，从而提升了其收藏价值，刺激了消费者的购买热情。 Ye Guofu, founder of MINISO, a Chinese retailer known for its fashionable but affordable household products, said that Chinese consumers' growing focus on emotional value attached to commodities, particularly among the younger generations, is expected to further drive the consumption of IP-featured products, such as those related to domestic animated films and games. 名创优品（以时尚且价格实惠的家居产品闻名的中国零售商）创始人叶国富表示，中国消费者对商品情感价值的日益关注，尤其是在年轻一代中，预计将进一步推动IP衍生品的消费，例如与国产动画电影和游戏相关的产品。 With this lucrative market rapidly expanding, experts have stressed the importance of both IP innovation and product quality, while warning against risks of market irregularities and intellectual property rights violations. 随着这一利润丰厚的市场迅速扩张，专家强调了IP创新和产品质量的重要性，同时警告市场乱象和知识产权侵权的风险。 Law professor Zheng Ning with Communication University of China suggested that market regulators strengthen oversight to combat potential price gouging and the sale of substandard products -- thereby ensuring a more orderly market environment. 中国传媒大学法学教授郑宁建议，市场监管部门应加强监管，打击哄抬价格和销售劣质产品的行为，从而确保更有序的市场环境。 Zhao Liangshan, a lawyer in Northwest China's Shaanxi province, cautioned that handcrafted items made for personal use are not allowed for commercial purposes. 陕西省律师赵良山（音译）提醒，个人手工制作的物品不得用于商业用途。 As Ne Zha 2 enters international markets, Hunan Sunny & Sandy Toys Manufacturer Co Ltd aims to target global markets -- particularly in Asia, North America and Europe. 随着《哪吒2》进入国际市场，湖南阳光与沙地玩具制造有限公司计划瞄准全球市场，特别是亚洲、北美和欧洲。 The film is set to be screened in various countries, including the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Egypt, Singapore, Japan and the Republic of Korea, with premieres in Los Angeles and Sydney having received positive responses from professionals and fans alike. 该片将在多个国家上映，包括美国、加拿大、澳大利亚、新西兰、南非、埃及、新加坡、日本和韩国，洛杉矶和悉尼的首映式已获得专业人士和粉丝的积极反响。
As the Year of the Snake approaches, sales of products with serpentine elements have witnessed explosive growth on major e-commerce platforms, which experts said showcases not only the strong resonance of traditional Chinese culture among shoppers, but also the vitality of the country's consumer market.随着蛇年的临近，各大电商平台上的“蛇元素”产品销售量激增。专家表示，这不仅体现了中国传统文化在消费者当中引起了强烈共鸣，也展现了中国消费市场的蓬勃活力。Snakes are the sixth animal in the 12-year cycle of the Chinese zodiac, and are considered to be symbols of wisdom, longevity and good fortune.蛇是中国十二生肖12年循环中的第六个生肖，被视为智慧、长寿、好运的象征。Data from e-commerce platform JD showed that searches for snake-related merchandise via its online marketplace surged more than 100 percent year-on-year in the past week, with serpent-themed commemorative coins, spring couplets and gold ornaments leading the trend.电商平台京东的数据显示，过去一周，其线上市场“蛇元素”商品的搜索量同比增长超过100%，其中以蛇为主题的纪念币、春联、黄金饰品位居前列。The transaction volume of such reptilian-related home accessories topped the list, followed by cultural and educational supplies, clothing, toys, musical instruments and kitchenware, JD said.京东表示，从“蛇元素”产品销量看，家居饰品位居榜首，其次是文教文化用品、服饰、玩具乐器、厨具。According to JD, consumers from Guangdong province, Beijing and Jiangsu province purchased the most products featuring snake-themed elements, such as red envelopes, couplets, lanterns and zodiac decorations. Underwear and socks with images of the slithery creatures have gained popularity among Chinese consumers aged between 26 and 45, it added.据京东介绍，广东、北京、江苏成为购买“蛇元素”商品最多的省份，如红包、春联、灯笼、生肖挂饰。此外，印有蛇形图案的内衣和袜子在26-45岁的中国消费者中颇受欢迎。Online discount retailer Vipshop said sales of sweatshirts incorporating serpentine themes surged 71 percent between Jan 6 and Jan 12 compared with the previous week, while the turnover of similarly themed children's coats soared 68 percent.线上折扣零售商唯品会表示，1月6日至12日，“蛇元素”运动卫衣销量较前一周增长71%，相同主题的儿童外套销量则增长68%。Such themed nut gift boxes and bracelets are favored by consumers, with their sales jumping 53 percent and 31 percent, respectively, during the period, said Vipshop.唯品会称，“蛇元素”坚果礼盒和手链也深受消费者喜爱，同期销量分别增长53%和31%。Moreover, international luxury brands, including Burberry, Tiffany and Qeelin, have launched more than 1,000 styles of limited edition commodities with snake elements specially tailored for the Chinese market on Tmall, Alibaba Group's business-to-customer platform, ahead of Spring Festival.此外，在阿里巴巴集团B2C平台天猫上，博柏利、蒂芙尼、麒麟珠宝等国际奢侈品牌已推出1000多款为中国市场量身定制的“蛇元素”限量版商品，迎接春节的到来。Jason Yu, managing director and vice-executive president of CTR Media Convergence Institute, said the purchasing frenzy of zodiac-related products ahead of the upcoming Spring Festival holiday demonstrates Chinese consumers' aspiration for a better life in the new year.CTR媒体融合研究院总经理、执行副院长虞坚表示，春节前夕迎来生肖相关产品的购买热潮，体现了中国消费者对新一年美好生活的向往。Yu said China's Generation Z shoppers—those born between the mid-1990s and early 2010s—are displaying a growing sense of national pride and confidence in Chinese culture, and snake-themed products weaving traditional Chinese cultural elements into their modern design are gaining traction among younger consumers.虞坚说，中国的Z世代消费者（即1996-2010年出生的人）展现出越来越强的中国文化自信和民族自豪感，将中国传统文化元素与现代设计融合的“蛇元素”产品正受到年轻消费者的青睐。Yu expects China's consumer market will gain growth momentum this year, fueled by a series of pro-consumption policies, such as the consumer goods trade-in program. He called for enhanced efforts to improve household incomes and boost people's ability and willingness to spend, so as to further perk up consumption.虞坚预计，在一系列促消费政策的推动下，如消费品以旧换新政策，今年中国消费市场将获得增长动力。他建议，加大力度提高家庭收入，增强人们的消费能力和消费意愿，以进一步提振消费。Spring Festival is the holiday that Chinese people attach the most importance to, and major Chinese online retailers have launched promotional events ahead of the weeklong holiday, said Hong Yong, an associate research fellow at the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation.商务部国际贸易经济合作研究院副研究员洪勇表示，春节是中国人最重视的节日，中国各大线上零售商已在为期一周的春节假期到来之前推出了促销活动。The cultural connotations that the Chinese zodiac carries have stimulated people's passion for buying ahead of the long holiday, and this shopping surge is crucial for expanding domestic demand and promoting recovery of the consumer market amid downward economic pressure, Hong said.洪勇说，中国生肖所承载的文化内涵激发了人们长假前的购物热情，这一购物热潮对于扩大内需、促进消费市场在经济下行压力中复苏至关重要。He added that Chinese consumers' pursuit of Year of the Snake-themed products has also injected fresh vitality into the inheritance of traditional culture, adding that brands should capitalize on traditional Chinese culture to launch more innovative products.他补充说，中国消费者对蛇年主题产品的追求也为传统文化的传承注入了新的活力，并指出品牌应利用中国传统文化推出更多创新产品。turnovern.（一定时期内的）营业额，成交量
Report shows new economy sectors particularly competitive报告显示, 新经济行业竞争尤为激烈A new report released by Maimai, a Chinese professional networking platform, revealed that the talent market in China's digitally-fueled and high-tech new economy industries remains highly competitive, with the talent demand-supply ratio climbing steadily over the past few years.中国职场社区和求职平台脉脉发布的最新报告显示，中国数字经济和高科技新经济行业的人才市场竞争依然激烈，人才供需比在过去几年稳步攀升。Despite the rising competition, average monthly salaries in these sectors have shown slight increases, signaling a continuing demand for skilled professionals in emerging industries, the 2024 annual talent migration report said.《2024年度人才迁徙报告》显示，尽管竞争日趋激烈，这些行业的平均月薪仍保持微涨态势，这表明新兴产业对专业技术人才的需求仍在继续。The talent supply-demand ratio in new economy sectors, which encompass industries such as internet, gaming, fintech, e-commerce, artificial intelligence and new energy vehicles, has surged from 1.29 in 2022 and 2 in 2023 to 2.06 in the first 10 months of 2024, the report showed. This means that for every available job, there are over two candidates competing for it.报告显示，新经济行业（包括互联网、游戏、金融科技、电子商务、人工智能和新能源汽车等行业）的人才供需比已从2022年的1.29、2023年的2.00攀升至2024年前10个月的2.06。这意味着，每有1个工作岗位，就会有2个以上的求职者参与竞争。Although the job market in new economy sectors remains competitive for jobseekers, salaries have seen a moderate upward trend. Between January and October 2024, the average monthly salary for new job postings reached 42,874 yuan ($5,902), up from 42,789 yuan in 2023 and 41,394 yuan in 2022, the report said.尽管新经济行业的就业市场对求职者来说竞争依然激烈，但岗位薪资出现了温和上升趋势。报告称，2024年1月至10月，新发岗位的平均月薪达到42874元（5902美元），高于2023年的42789元和2022年的41394元。Lin Fan, founder and CEO of Maimai, said the report points to intensifying competition for positions in the job sector, adding that "there is still a shortage of core technical talent, particularly in AI-related fields".脉脉创始人兼首席执行官林凡表示，该报告表明就业领域的岗位竞争正在加剧，并补充说，“核心技术人才持续紧缺，尤其是人工智能领域”。The report said demand for technical professionals remains particularly strong, with technology roles comprising the majority of new job openings during the January-October period of this year.报告称，对专业技术人才的需求依然强劲，今年1月至10月期间的新发岗位中，技术类岗位占了大多数。Notably, AI-related positions are in the highest demand, including roles like algorithm engineers, AI engineers and natural language processing experts. Java, back-end developers, C++, and Android developers are also among the most sought-after positions.值得注意的是，与人工智能相关的岗位需求量最大，包括算法工程师、人工智能工程师和自然语言处理专家等。java、后端开发、 C++和Android开发等岗位需求也非常旺盛。In terms of salaries, the highest-paying technical roles among new job postings in the first 10 months are led by digital front-end engineers, who command an average monthly salary of 67,728 yuan. Nontechnical roles also see competitive salaries, with product management positions emerging as a major focus. Product supervisors earn an average monthly salary of 59,241 yuan, making it the highest among non-technical roles.在薪酬方面，前10个月的新发岗位中，薪酬最高的技术岗位为数字前端工程师，其平均月薪为67728元。非技术岗位的薪酬也很有竞争力，产品管理岗位成为焦点。产品主管的平均月薪为59241元，处于非技术岗位“天花板”。The report also revealed significant talent shortages in key technical fields, especially AI fields. Cloud computing, for instance, has the most significant talent gap, with a demand-supply ratio of just 0.27, meaning that there are approximately four job openings for each applicant. Other high-demand areas include search algorithms and deep learning, which continue to face talent shortages, despite strong recruitment activity in these fields over the past few years.报告还显示，关键技术领域的人才严重短缺，尤其是人工智能领域。例如，云计算人才紧缺度最高，人才供需比仅为0.27，这意味着约4个岗位争夺1个人才。其他高需求领域包括搜索算法和深度学习。尽管过去几年这些领域的招聘活动十分活跃，但人才短缺问题依然存在。During the first 10 months, Beijing remains the leading city for new job openings, followed by Shanghai, Shenzhen in Guangdong province and Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, the report said.报告称，前10个月，北京仍然是新发岗位最多的城市，其次是上海、广东深圳和浙江杭州。However, the report indicates that both Beijing and Shanghai are facing talent outflows, with their talent inflow-outflow ratios falling below 1, signaling that many professionals are leaving these hubs for other regions. In contrast, cities like Suzhou in Jiangsu province; Shenzhen; Hangzhou are seeing stronger talent inflows, reflecting their growing appeal as innovation and tech centers.然而，报告还显示，北京和上海都面临着人才外流的问题，其人才流入流出比低于1，这表明许多专业人才正在离开这些中心城市，前往其他地区。相比之下，苏州、深圳和杭州等城市的人才流入量更大，反映出这些城市作为创新和科技中心的吸引力正在不断增强。Tang Qiuyong, executive director of Chinese human resources think tank HRflag, emphasized that while Chinese companies are under pressure to cut costs and improve efficiency, this should not come at the expense of employee well-being.中国人力资源智库HRflag执行董事唐秋勇强调，虽然当前中国企业普遍面临降本增效的压力，但这不应以牺牲员工福利为代价。"Efficiency gains should be driven by technological innovation and the use of advanced tools, rather than by overburdening employees," Tang said.唐秋勇说：“效率提升应该依托于科学技术的创新与先进工具的使用，而不是加重员工的负担。”outflowv. 流出new economy sector新经济行业talent demand-supply ratio人才供需比
With Christmas and year-end sales approaching in many Western countries, Chinese manufacturers are ramping up shipments to these markets via both air cargo and maritime container services, while experiencing a surge in sales on cross-border e-commerce platforms.随着许多西方国家圣诞节和年终促销季的临近，中国制造商正通过航空货运和海运集装箱服务，加大对这些市场的发货力度。同时，跨境电商平台的销售额也迎来激增。December and January are peak shopping seasons in Europe and the United States, and China's cross-border e-commerce exports to these markets—especially Christmas-themed products and small electronic products—have shown strong growth in recent weeks.12月和1月是欧美地区的购物高峰期。最近几周，中国对这些市场的跨境电商出口，尤其是圣诞主题产品和小型电子产品的出口，呈现出强劲增长态势。Christmas-themed products encompass a wide range of festive items that are popular during the holiday season. These include Christmas decorations like artificial trees, ornaments and lights, as well as figurines of Santa, reindeer and snowmen. They also cover gifts, Christmas cards, specialty food items and holiday-themed apparel such as sweaters and Santa hats.圣诞主题产品包括一系列节日期间广受欢迎的节庆用品，包括人造圣诞树、装饰品、灯具等圣诞装饰，以及圣诞老人、驯鹿和雪人等雕像。此外，还有礼物、圣诞贺卡、特色食品和节日主题服饰，如毛衣和圣诞帽等。To meet the soaring demand from Chinese exporters shipping Christmas-themed goods and other high-value items ordered through cross-border e-commerce platforms to global markets, Nanjing Lukou International Airport, located in Nanjing, capital of East China's Jiangsu province, boosted its freighter routes by adding 48 extra flights between November and December.为满足中国出口商通过跨境电商平台向全球市场运输圣诞主题商品和其他高价值商品的激增需求，南京禄口国际机场（位于中国东部江苏省省会南京）在11月至12月间增加了48个航班，以扩大其货运航线。Customs authorities at the airport supervised foreign trade cargo volume of 67,200 metric tons during the January-November period, a year-on-year increase of 29.3 percent. Among this, exports of cross-border e-commerce goods amounted to 18,000 tons, jumping 51.8 percent on a yearly basis, statistics from Nanjing Customs show.据南京海关统计，今年1月至11月，京禄口机场海关监管进出口货运量6.72万吨，同比增长29.3%。其中，出口跨境电商商品1.8万吨，同比增长51.80%。Jiangsu Changxin Weaving Co Ltd, a Changzhou, Jiangsu province-based textile manufacturer, has been shipping about 10 containers abroad daily via containerships over the past two weeks.江苏常信纺织有限公司（位于江苏省常州市）在过去两周里每天通过集装箱船向国外运送约10个集装箱的货物。In addition to exporting Christmas-themed products, such as pillows, socks, blankets and carpets, the Chinese company has introduced Christmas tree sets with innovative designs this year to enhance the competitiveness of its products in overseas markets.除了出口圣诞主题的枕头、袜子、毯子和地毯等产品外，这家中国公司今年还推出了充满创意设计的圣诞树套装，以提升其产品在海外市场的竞争力。"In the past, our exported Christmas products were relatively simple and had low added value. However, this year, we established a dedicated design team for Christmas items. From traditional Santa Claus and reindeer designs to modern cartoon styles, we now offer a diverse range of products that are popular in many countries," said Chen Lin, head of the export unit at the company.“过去，我们出口的圣诞产品相对简单且附加值低。但今年，我们为圣诞商品成立了一个专门的设计团队。从传统的圣诞老人和驯鹿设计到现代的卡通风格，我们现在提供多种产品，并在多个国家广受欢迎，”该公司出口部门负责人陈林表示。Liaoning Creative Arts and Crafts Co Ltd, a handicrafts manufacturer in Shenyang, capital of Northeast China's Liaoning province, secured over 4 million yuan ($549,018) worth of export orders to the US this year, mainly for various handicrafts made from bamboo, wood and grass weaving.手工艺品制造商辽宁创意工艺品有限公司（位于中国东北部辽宁省省会沈阳）今年获得了超过400万元人民币（549,018美元）的美国出口订单，主要涉及竹、木和草编的各种手工艺品。Demand for Christmas and other holiday decorations has been strong in the second half of this year, said Xie Pengfei, the company's general manager.公司总经理谢鹏飞表示，今年下半年，圣诞和其他节日装饰的需求一直很强劲。Shenyang Customs has supervised the export of Christmas-themed products, primarily made of bamboo, wood, rattan and grass weaving within its Customs territory in the first 11 months of this year, amounting to 350 million yuan, with exports covering 50 countries, including the US, Mexico, the United Kingdom and Australia.据沈阳海关统计，今年前11个月，该海关监管出口的圣诞主题产品主要以竹、木、藤和草编材料制成，货值达3.5亿元人民币，出口至包括美国、墨西哥、英国和澳大利亚在内的50个国家。"Instead of sea and air transportation, some Christmas goods bound for Europe can be exported via China-Europe freight train services," Xie said.“除了海运和空运，一些运往欧洲的圣诞商品还可以通过中欧班列服务出口，”谢鹏飞表示。containern.集装箱;货箱
China announced on Tuesday a significant relaxation of its visa-free transit policy, extending the period of stay for foreign travelers and expanding the list of accessible ports and provincial-level regions, in order to further promote openness and people-to-people exchanges.12月17日，中国宣布全面放宽优化过境免签政策，延长外国游客的停留时间，并扩大省（区、市）入出境口岸名单，以进一步促进对外开放和人员往来。Eligible travelers are permitted to stay in the country for up to 240 hours, or 10 days, the National Immigration Administration said.国家移民管理局表示，符合条件的旅客最长可在中国停留240小时（10天）。The period of stay was previously restricted to 72 or 144 hours.先前的停留时间仅限于72或144小时。The policy revision, effective immediately, also includes a substantial expansion of designated ports and travel regions, enhancing flexibility for international visitors.立即生效的政策修订还包括大幅扩大的指定口岸和停留活动区域，进一步为国际旅客提高了灵活性。Eligible citizens from 54 countries, including Russia, Brazil, the United Kingdom, the United States and Canada, can enter China visa-free when transiting to a third country or region. These travelers can now enter through any of the 60 ports across 24 provincial-level regions, up from 39 ports in 19 provincial-level regions, the NIA said.国家移民管理局规定，符合条件的俄罗斯、巴西、英国、美国、加拿大等54国人员，从中国过境前往第三国（地区）时，可免签来华。这些旅客现在可从24个省（区、市）60个对外开放口岸中任一口岸入境，而此前只有19个省（区、市）的39个口岸。The 21 newly included ports are located in the provinces of Shanxi, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui, Fujian, Jiangxi, Shandong, Hunan, Hainan, Sichuan and Guizhou, and in the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region. The five newly included provinces for visa-free transit stays are Shanxi, Anhui, Jiangxi, Hainan and Guizhou.新增的21个口岸位于山西、江苏、浙江、安徽、福建、江西、山东、湖南、海南、四川、贵州以及广西壮族自治区等地。新纳入过境免签政策的五个省份是山西、安徽、江西、海南和贵州。China, which first implemented its visa-free transit policy in January 2013, has been improving it over the years. Mao Xu, deputy head of the NIA, said the 72- and 144-hour visa-free transit policy has been warmly welcomed both at home and abroad.中国于2013年1月首次实施过境免签政策，并多年来一直不断完善该政策。国家移民管理局副局长毛旭表示，72/144小时过境免签政策在境内外广受欢迎，引发热烈反响。From January to November, the number of visa-free transit travelers surged by more than 130 percent year-on-year, Mao noted. When the maximum duration of visa-free transit stay was restricted to 144 hours, more than 80 percent of travelers did not leave China until the last few hours, he said.毛旭介绍，从1月到11月，适用过境免签政策来华外国人数量同比上升130%以上。原来过境免签政策停留时间最长为144小时，80%以上人员临近期限届满方离开。"Many foreign friends hope they could spend more time traveling within China," Mao said, adding that the updated policy will allow them to explore more scenic places in the country as well as help them to get better acquainted with Chinese culture.“有不少外国朋友希望有更充足的时间在中国境内旅游”，毛旭表示，新政策将方便过境外国人更好地欣赏中华美景、体验中华文化。Anastasiia Shimko, from Russia, said the extension of visa-free transit stay will make China a more attractive destination for foreign travelers.来自俄罗斯的Anastasiia Shimko说，延长过境免签将使中国成为对外国游客更具吸引力的目的地。The 37-year-old, who is pursuing a doctoral degree at Beijing Language and Culture University, said the policy revision may also encourage her friends and family members in Russia to plan a stopover to China.37岁的Shimko正在北京语言大学攻读博士学位，她认为，政策的调整也可能鼓励她在俄罗斯的朋友和家人计划来中国进行中转。"When they plan a trip to a third country, they will perhaps choose to transfer in large Chinese cities, spend more time in China and understand the country better," she added.她补充说：“当他们计划去第三国旅行时，也许会选择在中国的大城市转机，在中国待更长的时间，更好地了解中国。”In recent years, China has taken a series of steps to streamline its inbound travel. Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said on Tuesday afternoon that China has reached full mutual visa exemption agreements with 26 countries, and adopted a unilateral visa-free policy for travelers from 38 countries.近年来，中国采取了一系列措施简化入境旅游手续。12月17日下午，外交部发言人林剑表示，中国已经同26个国家达成了全面免签，并对38个国家实行单方面免签政策。Liu Jia, deputy head of NIA's Department of Foreigner Management, said a notable feature of the new policy adjustment is the introduction of cross-regional travel, allowing foreign visitors to move freely across the designated areas of 24 specified provincial-level regions.国家移民管理局外国人管理司副司长柳佳介绍，新政策调整的最大特点是允许跨区域通行，即过境免签的外国人可以在24个省(区、市)停留活动区域内跨省域旅行。The updated policy allows foreign travelers to better plan their itineraries and arrange flexible travel routes, enabling multicity tourism and business activities across various regions, he said.柳佳表示，新政策便于外国人合理规划行程，灵活安排旅行路线，跨省多地进行旅游、商务等活动。Liu noted that the visa-free transit policy now covers not only eastern regions of China, which boast stronger economic prowess and a higher level of opening-up, but also destinations in central and western regions that are popular and capable of offering good services.柳佳指出，政策优化后，不仅覆盖经济实力较强、对外开放水平较高的东部省份，还将扩大到入境游需求旺盛、管理服务基础较好的中西部地区。It will better serve China's major strategies to boost development of the central and western regions, "creating a comprehensive opening-up pattern of coordinated development between the inland and coastal regions and between the east and the west", he added.柳佳补充，这将更好服务中部地区崛起、西部大开发等区域重大发展战略，“助力形成陆海内外联动、东西双向互济的全面开放格局”。streamlinev. 简化使效率更高itineraryn. 旅程；行程visa-free policy免签政策
Baby cabbage, broccoli and meatballs are placed in a pot while a shop staff member asks how spicy you'd like the dish. Though in a setting resembling a restaurant, these "ingredients" are actually plush toys designed by the Gansu Provincial Museum.在一家模拟餐厅环境的区域内，店员一边往锅里添加娃娃菜、西兰花及肉丸子，一边询问你想要多辣的口味。实际上，这些“食材”是甘肃省博物馆设计的毛绒玩具。The museum introduced a series of food-inspired plush toys influenced by the growing popularity of local spicy hot pots. These lively representations of spicy hot pot ingredients have become a hit among visitors.随着甘肃麻辣烫的火爆，该博物馆以此为灵感推出了生动形象的“麻辣烫系列”毛绒玩具，受到了游客热捧。China's rich culinary heritage continues to inspire creative cultural products. With various expressions on their fluffy faces, plush toys based on local food traditions have gained nationwide popularity recently. People traveling to different regions not only indulge in local cuisines but also seek out plush toys representing these specialties.中国丰富的饮食文化遗产为文创产品提供了不竭的灵感源泉。最近，以地方美食为原型、表情丰富各异的毛绒玩具火遍全国。游客们来到不同地区，不仅会品尝当地美食，还会寻找融入美食元素的毛绒玩具。A cultural product shop in Shaanxi province has introduced a plush version of the Chinese hamburger, or roujiamo, with meat sandwiched in a steamed bun. When a consumer purchases the toy, the packaging process mimics the real-life assembly of the burger—from selecting the bun and pouring sauce to adding the meat.陕西一家文创店推出了“中国汉堡”肉夹馍毛绒玩具，其造型为一片肉夹在馒头里。顾客在购买时可以像制作真正的肉夹馍一样，体验选馍、浇汁、夹肉等工序，最后打包带走。Videos of the packaging process for these food toys have garnered millions of views online, with comments like "so cute" and "full of emotional value". Some people even described the toy-purchasing experience as an adult version of playing house.这些食物玩具的包装过程视频在网上获得了数百万次观看，评论区满是“太可爱了”和“充满情绪价值”之语。有些人甚至将购买玩具的体验称为成年人的“过家家”。"The short interaction could immerse buyers in the experience. We are not just selling products, we are also selling culture and creating connections," Zhang Bo, co-founder of the Da Xiang Culture and Tech Company, the company behind the burger toy, was quoted by Guangming Daily newspaper as saying.据《光明日报》报道，推出肉夹馍玩具的大相文化科技公司联合创始人张博表示：“小小的互动过程，让购买者沉浸式体验。我们售卖的不仅是产品，更是文化与交流。”In Suzhou, Jiangsu province, consumers have lined up to buy plush toys inspired by the region's famous hairy crabs. Similarly, Changsha in Hunan province offers plush toys shaped like its iconic stinky tofu, while Tianjin has plush toys of Chinese crepes or jianbing.在江苏苏州，为了抢购以当地著名大闸蟹为原型的毛绒玩具，消费者们排起了长龙。同样，湖南长沙也推出了以标志性美食“臭豆腐”为灵感的毛绒玩具，而天津市则推出了煎饼果子毛绒玩具。Just as foodies have their own cuisine guide, toy fans are mapping out food toys across China on social media. Some even asked local gift shops to create plush toys of their favorite local dishes.就像美食爱好者有他们的美食地图一样，玩具爱好者也在社交媒体上绘制了中国的食物玩具地图。有些人甚至要求当地的礼品店创作出以他们最爱的当地菜肴为原型的毛绒玩具。This growing trend aligns with the emerging "cute economy", which is especially popular among younger generations. A trending hashtag online reads, "Chinese have our own Jellycat," referring to the famous British toy brand known for its wide range of food-based plush toys.这一增长趋势与新兴的“可爱经济”不谋而合，尤其受到年轻一代的欢迎。网络上有热门话题写道：“中国人有自己的Jellycat（一个以制作美食毛绒玩具而闻名的英国玩具品牌）”。In addition to food-themed toys, many museums in China have embraced the concept of transforming historical artifacts into plush toys, receiving positive responses from consumers.除了美食毛绒玩具，中国许多博物馆还将历史文物设计为毛绒玩具，引发了消费者的踊跃抢购。The Hubei Provincial Museum offers a plush toy based on the Sword of Goujian, a key artifact from the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 BC). As the centerpiece of the museum's collection, the sword toy was one of the museum's top three best-selling products last year. People nicknamed it the "little chubby sword."湖北省博物馆推出了以春秋时期（公元前770-476年）重要文物越王勾践剑为原型的毛绒玩具。这款“镇馆之宝”的毛绒玩具挤进了该馆2023年最畅销文创产品前三名。人们亲切地称之为“小胖剑”。When centuries-old artifacts are redesigned as soft, cuddly toys, the contrast fascinates consumers. With their fluffy texture and adorable faces, these plush toys have become popular cultural products.历史悠久的文物被重新设计成柔软可爱的毛绒玩具，这种反差让消费者为之着迷。这些毛绒玩具凭借软弹手感和可爱造型，成为了爆款文化产品。Whether representing regional cuisine or historical artifacts, these plush toys serve as tangible expressions of culture. "Traditional culture doesn't have to exist in the past," said Xu Zhe, a staff member from the cultural and creative department of the Suzhou Museum, in an interview with Guangming Daily. "It can connect with different generations and create new meanings through design."无论是以地方美食还是历史文物为原型，这些毛绒玩具都是文化的有形表现。“传统文化并不一定要以过去形态存在，”苏州博物馆文化创意部工作人员许哲在接受《光明日报》采访时说，“也可以通过‘设计'这个通道与每一代人产生新的连接、创造新的意义。”Xu believes that cultural products, combined with contemporary trends and aesthetics, can convey traditional values in a way that resonates with the younger generation.许哲认为，文创可以与当代风潮、新世代审美相结合，以更年轻的表述方式来传递文化价值。plushn.绒布chubbyadj.胖乎乎的
Motivated by China's complete removal of market access restrictions for foreign investors in the manufacturing sector, executives from multinational corporations attending the seventh China International Import Expo said they will deploy more resources in the country, with a particular focus on high-end manufacturing.在中国全面取消制造业领域外资准入限制措施的推动下，参加第七届中国国际进口博览会的跨国公司高管表示，他们将在中国部署更多资源，尤其关注高端制造业。This year's CIIE, scheduled in Shanghai from Tuesday to Nov 10, will debut more than 400 new products, technologies and services across advanced sectors, including high-end equipment, advanced materials and marine engineering products, according to the Ministry of Commerce.据商务部消息，今年的中国国际进口博览会于11月5日至10日在上海举办，届时将有400多项代表性新产品、新技术、新服务将亮相，涉及高端装备、先进材料和海洋工程产品等先进领域。The latest edition of China's national negative list for foreign investment, which took effect on Friday, has removed the last two manufacturing-related restrictions, further opening the sector to global investors, according to the National Development and Reform Commission.国家发展改革委称，11月1日起施行的最新版全国外资准入负面清单删除了制造业领域仅剩的2条限制措施，进一步向全球投资者开放了该行业。Attracted by China's innovation capability, business model transformation and bilateral and multilateral free trade deals, many global manufacturers are increasingly inclined to invest in new innovation centers, expand production capacities and advance digital transformation initiatives within the country, said Sun Xiao, secretary-general of the China Chamber of International Commerce.中国国际商会秘书长孙晓表示，受中国创新能力、商业模式转型以及双边和多边自由贸易协定的吸引，许多全球制造商越来越倾向于在中国投资新的创新中心，扩大产能，并推进数字化转型计划。For China, the manufacturing industry is the earliest sector to open up to foreign investors, and it is also the most competitive, with a high level of integration with the global industrial division of labor, said Sun.孙晓指出，制造业是中国开放最早的领域，也是市场竞争最充分、全球产业分工合作最紧密的领域。Schneider Electric, a French industrial and technology group and a seven-time participant at the CIIE, will present at this year's event new concepts, products, services and applications that combine digital, automation and electrification technologies, underscoring its commitment to China through its "China Hub" strategy.施耐德电气是一家法国工业和技术集团，七次参加了中国国际进口博览会。它将在今年的展会上展示结合数字化、自动化和电气化技术的新概念、新产品、新服务和新应用，通过其“中国中心”战略强调对中国的投入。Yin Zheng, executive vice-president of Schneider Electric's China and East Asia operations, said that China has become Schneider Electric's second-largest market in the world and one of its four global research and development bases.施耐德电气执行副总裁、中国及东亚区总裁尹正表示，中国已经成为施耐德电气全球第二大市场和全球四大研发基地之一。"Through the CIIE, a world-class communication platform, we aim to continuously deepen ecosystem cooperation and work with more Chinese industrial partners to jointly build new quality productive forces," he added.“通过进博会这一世界级交流平台，我们旨在不断深化生态系统合作，与更多中国工业合作伙伴携手，共同打造新质生产力。”尹正补充道。Arthur Xu, president for China at Danfoss Group, a Danish engineering company, said that Danfoss will bring its products and solutions in the data center, water and wastewater treatment, marine, food and beverage, and heat recovery fields, among others, to the CIIE this year. These proven solutions will offer unique value for China's green transition, he said.丹麦工程公司丹佛斯中国区总裁徐阳表示，丹佛斯将携其在数据中心、水和污水处理、船舶、食品饮料、热回收等行业产品和解决方案参加今年的进博会。他表示，这些成熟的解决方案将为中国的绿色转型提供独特价值。In addition to plans to begin construction in April in Jiaxing, Zhejiang province, on its new manufacturing facility, which will be one of the biggest production sites in Danfoss' history, the company also announced in September that it has completed construction of a work campus in Nanjing, Jiangsu province.丹佛斯计划于今年4月在浙江嘉兴开工建设新的生产设施，这将是丹佛斯历史上最大的生产基地之一；此外，丹佛斯还于今年9月宣布已完成江苏南京工作园区的建设。The new campus is dedicated to the innovation and production of specialized transistor modules as well as electric and hybrid power train systems.新园区致力于专业晶体管模块以及电动和混合动力系统的创新和生产。With the structure of foreign investment continuing to be optimized, China saw the high-tech manufacturing sector use 77.12 billion yuan ($10.87 billion) in foreign direct investment in the first three quarters of 2024, accounting for 12 percent of the national total, according to the Ministry of Commerce. That is an increase of 1.5 percentage points from the same period last year.随着外商投资结构的不断优化，商务部数据显示，2024年前三季度，中国高技术制造业使用外商直接投资771.2亿元（约108.7亿美元），占全国总量的12%，比去年同期增加1.5个百分点。Tang Wenhong, assistant minister of commerce, said that China's well-developed industrial system, commitment to continued openness, and efforts to scale up high-tech manufacturing remain key drivers for foreign manufacturers' investment in the country.商务部部长助理唐文弘表示，中国发达的工业体系、持续开放的承诺以及扩大高技术制造业规模的努力，仍然是外国制造商在中国投资的主要驱动力。Nipsea Group, a Singapore-based paint and coating manufacturer, will make its debut as a participant at the CIIE this week with a 300-square-meter booth.总部位于新加坡的油漆和涂料生产商立时集团将首次参加本周举行的进博会，展位面积达300平方米。"This year, we have officially transitioned from being a witness to a participant at the CIIE, presenting our latest products and technology solutions," said Eric Chung, CEO of Nippon Paint China, a subsidiary of Nipsea Group.“今年，我们正式从进博会的见证者转变为参与者，展示我们的最新产品和技术解决方案。”立时集团子公司立邦中国区首席执行官钟中林说。"This move not only underscores our unwavering commitment to the Chinese market, but also reflects our firm determination to contribute to the high-quality development of China's economy," Chung said, adding that the company will showcase its newest automotive coatings and marine paint products at the expo.“此举不仅彰显了我们对中国市场的坚定信心，也体现了我们为中国经济高质量发展做出贡献的决心。”钟中林表示，公司将在进博会上展示其最新的汽车涂料和船舶涂料产品。debutn. 首次亮相electrificationn．电气化coatingn. 涂料，涂层high-end manufacturing高端制造业
The 2024 Alibaba Global Mathematics Competition announced the award winners' name list on Sunday, and Jiang Ping, a female student from Lianshui Secondary Vocational School in Jiangsu province, was not among the 86 winners of golden, silver and bronze medals, and honorable mentions.11月3日，2024阿里巴巴全球数学竞赛获奖名单公布，共有86名选手获得金、银、铜奖和优胜奖，来自江苏涟水中等专业学校的女学生姜萍不在获奖者之列。Earlier this year 17-year-old Jiang and her supervisor, a teacher surnamed Wang from the school drew wide public attention when the student ranked 12th position in the qualifiers of the competition and was shortlisted alongside contestants from esteemed institutions such as Peking University, MIT and Cambridge in the whole world, for the final round of the Alibaba Global Mathematics Competition. While excited netizens in China called her the girl prodigy, questions about her incredibly high score and integrity began to emerge on Chinese social media.此前，17岁的姜萍和她的指导老师王某某引起社会广泛关注。姜萍在2024阿里巴巴全球数学竞赛预选赛中排名第12位，与来自北京大学、麻省理工学院和剑桥大学等全球知名学府的选手一起入围决赛。在中国网友兴奋地称她为“天才少女”的同时，社交媒体上也开始出现对她惊人高分和诚信的质疑。The Lianshui Secondary Vocational School released the findings of the investigation of the incident, and announced on Sunday that teacher Wang provided assistance to the student he supervised in the qualifiers, violating the rules of the qualifiers on "prohibiting discussions with others".11月3日，涟水中等专业学校公布事件调查结果，该校教师王某某在预选赛中对指导的学生提供帮助，违反了预选赛关于“禁止与他人讨论”的规则。The school said in a briefing that it gave Mr. Wang an admonishment and canceled his qualification for the year-end evaluation. The school also called on the public to give protection and tolerance to the juvenile students.学校在通报中称，给予王某某诫勉谈话处理，取消本年度评先评优资格，同时呼吁广大公众对未成年人给予更多包容和爱护。The competition organizers also made a public apology on Sunday and said the incident "exposed the imperfect competition system and the lack of rigorous management."赛事主办方也在3日公开道歉，并表示此次事件“暴露出竞赛赛制不够完善、管理不够严谨等问题”。prodigyn. 天才（尤指神童）shortlistv. 把……列入决选的名单admonishmentn. 训诫；警告
Last time we spoke about the Chiang-Gui War. China was reunified, but not was all well in Camelot. Chiang Kai-Shek initially popular, faced opposition from various factions, including Northern warlords and rival generals. The KMT decided to relocate the capital from Beijing to Nanking, which sparked resistance from those attached to Beijing's rich history. The KMT then struggled with demobilizing the massive National Revolutionary Army, which had over 2 million troops. Chiang Kai-Shek aimed to reduce this number significantly but faced challenges, including discontent among warlords like Feng Yuxiang and Yan Xishan. Tensions escalated into the Chiang-Gui War, where Chiang defeated the Guangxi Clique led by Li Zongren and Bai Chongxi. This victory, however, did not end the turmoil as Feng and Yan formed an anti-Chiang coalition with Wang Jingwei. The struggle led to a dramatic showdown, culminating in the Taiyuan Conference where Yan Xishan was promoted to commander-in-chief, setting the stage for further conflict. #123 The Central Plains War Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. We last left off with basically every other big dog in China getting ready to gang up on Chiang Kai-Shek. Yan Xishan was now the commander in chief of an anti-chiang coalition with his deputy commanders being Feng Yuxiang, Li Zongren and Zhang Xueliang….however Zhang Xueliang was nowhere to be found. During what has been referred to as the “telegram war” period, the Young Marshal had actually spent the entire time in Mukden frantically telegraming all the significant North Chinese warlords and generals to not join the anti-chiang movement. To take a small sidestep. In the last episode I explained why Li Zongren, Bai Chongxi and their Guangxi clique turned against Chiang Kai-Shek, but what motivations did someone like Feng Yuxiang and his Guominjun have to do so? A severe famine hit the Guanzhong region of Shaanxi, where Feng Yuxiang held power. This famine, which occurred in the 18th year of the Republic of China, is also referred to as the "Famine of the 18th Year of the Republic of China." Within Shaanxi, a year without any harvest is called a famine year, two consecutive years of poor harvest are also labeled famine years, and three consecutive years are considered a severe famine. During the 18th year of the Republic of China, the region faced an extreme famine with virtually no harvest for six consecutive seasons over three years. Some considered it a once-in-a-century event, while others claimed it was a disaster seen once in 300 years. According to modern historical records and newspaper reports, Shaanxi experienced drought in 1928, which caused poor summer wheat yields, while autumn and winter crops could not be planted due to a lack of rain. By 1929, the drought worsened. No rain fell from spring through autumn, drying up wells and rivers like the Jing, Wei, Han, and Bao. Most trees withered, and crops failed—summer harvests only amounted to 20%, and autumn yields were nonexistent. The famine was so severe that grass roots and tree bark became scarce, with the roads littered with corpses and countless people fleeing the area. According to a report by the Shaanxi Disaster Relief Committee on September 5 of that year, 91 of the province's 92 counties were affected by the drought. Except for a few counties along the Wei River that had some green crops, the rest were barren. Among the 91 counties, 24 were extremely severely affected, 27 severely affected, 15 moderately affected, and 25 slightly affected. The most severely hit areas included Chang'an, Wugong, Fengxiang, Fufeng, Qianxian, Qishan, Meixian, Xingping, Xianyang, Lintong, Weinan, Zhouzhi, and others. Out of a total population of over 9.4 million, 2.5 million people died of starvation, approximately 400,000 fled, and over 200,000 women were sold to other regions such as Henan, Shanxi, Beiping, Tianjin, and Shandong. Back in 1927, Chiang Kai-shek established the KMT's new government in Nanking. By June, Chiang and Feng Yuxiang succeeded in uniting the two Kuomintang warlord factions during the Xuzhou Conference. In February 1928, Chiang and Feng solidified their alliance by becoming sworn brothers. Before the launch of the "Second Northern Expedition," Chiang Kai-shek had control over the central KMT government and occupied affluent areas like Shanghai, Nanjing, and Hangzhou. Feng Yuxiang, on the other hand, controlled the impoverished and remote northwest, where transportation was difficult. He saw the Northern Expedition as an opportunity to expand his own influence, particularly eyeing Beijing and Tianjin for their wealth and strategic transportation routes. After the expedition, Chiang Kai-shek, concerned about Feng's growing power, exploited tensions between Yan Xishan and Feng Yuxiang. He ceded control of Hebei, Beijing, and Tianjin to Yan Xishan, appointing him commander of the Beijing-Tianjin garrison and allowing his 3rd Army to enter Beijing. Feng's 2nd Army, however, was restricted to Nanyuan and denied entry into the city, which greatly displeased Feng. In response, he ordered his troops to retreat to Shandong and Henan, and feigned illness in Xinxiang, Henan, refusing to travel to Beijing. In the political realm Feng Yuxiang advocated for "civilian politics" and stood against dictatorship. Within the Kuomintang, he opposed Chiang Kai-shek's views, calling for the establishment of a clean government, promoting joint industrial development, providing aid to disaster victims, and fighting corruption. He also opposed salary increases for central government officials, argued for distributing leadership roles based on the strength of different factions, and rejected Chiang Kai-shek's dominance over party matters and the Nanjing government. These positions sharply conflicted with Chiang Kai-shek's ideas. After the success of the "Northern Expedition," Chiang Kai-shek proposed a reorganization of the army. This initiative sparked intense conflict between Chiang and Feng Yuxiang. On July 6, 1928, Chiang invited Feng, Yan Xishan, Li Zongren, and Bai Chongxi to a symposium in Beiping. However, Feng and other faction leaders strongly opposed Chiang's plan to reduce the army, leading to an unsatisfactory end to the meeting. On August 8, 1928, Chiang presided over the Fifth Plenary Session of the Kuomintang's Second Central Committee in Nanjing, where he sought to force the various factions to comply with his military reduction plan. Supported by the Guangdong-born members of the Central Committee, the proposal was passed, and the army reduction plan became part of the Kuomintang's official resolution. Feeling threatened by this plan, Feng traveled along the Longhai Railway, inspecting the Northwest Army, and held a commemorative military parade marking the second anniversary of the Northwest Army's Wuyuan Oath-taking Ceremony. In October 1928, after the reorganization of the Nanjing National Government, Chiang appointed Feng as Vice President of the Executive Yuan and Minister of Military Affairs, asking him to report to Nanjing immediately. Feng, however, refused, citing various excuses. Under increasing public pressure, Feng and other faction leaders were eventually forced to attend the demobilization meeting in Nanjing. On December 26, 1928, Chiang chaired a preparatory meeting for the demobilization conference, using factional politics to manipulate and divide his rivals. Feng proposed a "three haves and three demobilizations" plan, which was initially opposed by Yan Xishan and Li Zongren. Secretly, Chiang won over Yan, encouraging him to submit a proposal that would counter Feng's influence. When the National Demobilization Meeting convened on January 1, 1929, most attendees supported Yan's proposal over Feng's. The "Outline of the Procedure for the Demobilization Committee of the National Army" was passed, favoring Chiang's position. Eventually, Feng, Yan, and Li shifted from opposing each other to uniting against the demobilization process. In March 1929, as we saw in last episode, the Chiang-Gui War broke out. In order to concentrate military forces and eliminate the Guangxi clique, Chiang Kai-shek sent Shao Lizi and others to Huashan to win over Feng Yuxiang. They offered Feng the chance to continue cooperating with Chiang and send troops to help Chiang defeat Guangxi in exchange for the premiership of the Executive Yuan and the territory of Hubei and Hunan provinces. Feng agreed to Chiang's request on the surface. He then frequently deployed troops on the border between Henan and Hubei, hoping to seize the opportunity to send troops to occupy Wuhan when Chiang and Guangxi were both defeated. However, Chiang soon defeated the Guangxi clique, which increased Chiang Kai-shek's resentment and made the contradiction between Chiang and Feng irreconcilable. Now that pretty much covers Feng Yuxiang's motivations, but what about Yan Xishan? In January 1930, after Yan Xishan returned to Taiyuan from Zhengzhou, central Henan began to experience increasing turmoil. On February 10, Yan sent a telegram to Chiang Kai-shek, urging a spirit of courtesy for the country's sake that they "share the burden" to resolve party conflicts. Chiang responded on February 12 with a telegram stating, "Revolution to save the country is an obligation, not a right. The country is in dire straits, and it is not the time for us to be arrogant." By February 21, Li Zongren, Huang Shaohong, Bai Chongxi, Zhang Fakui, and Hu Zongduo all stated supported Yan Xishan to be the commander-in-chief of the anti-chiang national army, navy, and air force. In many ways the issue was simply thrust onto him. Meanwhile Yan Xishan's army went to Peiping, current day Beijing, disarming the KMT forces there and setting up a HQ. With perhaps a stronger backing, Chiang Kai-Shek would have gone to war against the anti-chiang cabal much earlier, but was reluctant to do so now. The terrain was the difficulty, he would have to fight his way into Shandong, where the local sympathy rested on Feng Yuxiang. So for now he battled them through the use of diplomacy. Within the chaos, the CCP also managed to cut their own piece of the pie by capturing Changsha in late July. They would only hold the city for a few days however, before burning it down and fleeing. Early into the conflict Chiang Kai-Shek's attention was drawn to Manchuria. The Young Marshal had not made a move in either direction and he was sitting upon an army 200,000 plus strong. Where did his sympathies truly lie, everyone was waiting to see. Chiang Kai-Shek believed chances were slim the Young Marshal would rebel against him, he was not very much like his tiger of a father. Zhang Xueliang was a thinker, an idealistic and most importantly he had been an opium addict for a long time. Such a life conditioned the young man to be a lot more passive. Zhang Xueliang seemed to be looking to pledge himself to a real leader who could deliver salvation to China. But who was the better choice for him? Chiang Kai-Shek or Wang Jingwei? Chiang Kai-Shek did not wait for an official answer to this question he hastily announced that Zhang Xueliang was his new deputy commander in chief. Feng Yuxiang and Yan Xishan followed this up by offering Zhang Xueliang a place in the Peiping state council, yet Zhang Xueliang remained quiet until the middle of September. It was a real nail bitter for both sides, Zhang Xueliang had a large, decently trained and pretty well armed army, he would tip the tides for either side. The waiting game had Yan Xishan thinking strongly about pulling out of the coalition. In the meantime the war truly began to heat up in May when Chiang Kai-Shek swore a public oath to attack Yan Xishan and Feng Yuxiang. On May 11th, both sides began engaged another along a north and south front. The main battlefield in the north was centered around Henan with a secondary front in Shandong fought mainly along the Pinghan, Longhai and Jinpu railways. In the southern theater the fighting was fought mainly in the Yuezhou, Changsha and Xiangjiang river areas. To be more specific the anti-Chiang Kai-shek army organized a total of 8 war front areas: the Guangxi clique army was the 1st front, led by Li Zongren, going north from Hunan and heading towards Wuhan; the Northwest Army was the 2nd front, led by Feng Yuxiang, with Lu Zhonglin being responsible for the Longhai and Pinghan lines in Henan; the Shanxi Army was the 3rd front, led by Yan Xishan, with Xu Yongchang responsible for the Jinpu and Jiaoji lines and the eastern section of the Longhai line in Shandong; Shi Yousan's troops were the 4th front; the Northeast Army, which was designated by Zhang Xueliang, was the 5th front though whether he took up the post or not was yet to be seen; Liu Wenhui's troops were the 6th front; He Jian's troops were the 7th front, and Fan Zhongxiu's troops were the 8th front. The Northwest Army and the Shanxi Army, as the main forces, had been fully mobilized and marched to the Longhai, Pinghan, and Jinpu lines. Yan also appointed Shi Yousan as the chairman of Shandong Province, leading his troops to attack Shandong from Henan, and appointed Sun Dianying as the chairman of Anhui Province, attacking the Bozhou area of Anhui. Altogether the Anti-Chiang forces were about 260,000 men strong The fighting kicked off in mid May. The strategy of the anti-Chiang army was for the first front army, the Guangxi army led by Li Zongren to march into Hunan and advance towards Wuhan; the second front army, the Northwestern Army of Feng Yuxiang, was responsible for the Longhai and Pinghan routes in Henan Province, and would attack Xuzhou and Wuhan respectively; the third front army, the Shanxi Army of Yan Xishan was responsible for the operations along the Jinpu and Jiaoji routes in Shandong Province. It would join Feng Yuxiang to attack Xuzhou, then advance southward along the Jinpu Line and attack Nanking; Shi Yousan was in charge of the Fourth Front Army, which would use its main forces to attack Jining and Yanzhou, and would use part of its forces to join the Third Front Army in the attack on Jinan; Zhang Xueliang's Northeast Army was designated as the Fifth Front Army, and efforts were made to jointly fight against Chiang Kai-shek, but again his status was still unknown; Liu Wenhui of Sichuan was appointed as the Sixth Front Army, and He Jian of Hunan was appointed as the Seventh Front Army. In order to encourage generals of non-directly affiliated units, Shi Yousan was appointed as the chairman of Shandong Province, Wan Xuancai as the chairman of Henan Province, and Sun Dianying as the chairman of Anhui Province. After this, Fan Zhongxiu was appointed as the commander-in-chief of the Eighth Front Army. Chiang Kai-Shek deployed the NRA 2nd Corps led by Liu Zhi along the Longhai railway line; the 3rd Crops of H Chengjun was deployed on the Pinhan line; the 1st Corps of Han Fuju was deployed along the Jinpu line and Chiang Kai-Shek set up his HQ in Xuzhou to personally command forces. On May 11th, Chiang Kai-Shek issued his general attack orders, with the 2nd corps attacking Guide from Xuzhou. The two sides began clashing, with the KMT gaining the upper hand rather quickly as they held an advantage in air power. A NRA division led by Chen Jicheng occupied Mamuji due east of Guide. Then Liu Maoen defected to Chiang Kai-Shek handing his forces over at Ningling while also luring Colonel Wan Xuancai into a trap. This left Guide to be easily captured by Chiang's forces as the only other enemy division was that of Sun Dianying who withdrew to Bozhou. Although Chiang Kai-Shek had won technically the first major battle, his situation was not at all enviable. After losing Guide, Yan Xishan urgently reinforced the Longhai Railway line area with divisions led by Yang Yaofang, Sun Laingcheng and Ji Hongchang. This saw Chiang Kai-Sheks forces suffer extremely heavy losses over the course of 10 days of fighting. Chiang Kai-Sheks forces were reeling from the fierce fighting and forced to retreat into the southwestern portion of Shandong. Along the Pinghan railway, Chiang Kai-Shek ordered He Chengjun's 3rd Corps to depart the Yancheng area and attack northwards. The 3rd Corps quickly found themselves fighting the northwest Army in the Linying and Xuchang areas. The 3rd Corps were trying to contain and isolate the northwest army who were currently receiving reinforcements along the Longhai line. On May 25th, He Jians forces began occupying Linying and by Juny 7th Xuchang. At this time the Guangxi army invaded Hunan and by the 28th of May had taken Yongzhou, Qiyang, Hangzhou and Baoqing. On June 8th they took Changsha and Yueyang, with their vanguard entering Hubei. Feng Yuxiang took advantage of the situation to launch a full scale attack along the Pingham line. After two days of fighting, Chiang Kai-Sheks men were retreating south to Luohe. However, Feng Yuxiang made an error. His subordinates urged him to link up with the Guangxi army and attack Wuhan. Instead he ordered his forces to advance into eastern Henan where he might annihilate a large portion of Chiang Kai-Sheks army. Meanwhile Chiang Kai-Shek had suffered major defeats across the Longhai and Pingham lines and lost the key city of Changsha, his men were demoralized. By mid June Feng Yuxiang adjusted his battle plan and launched another offensive along the Longhai line as Chiang Kai-Shek came to Liuhe to supervise the battle. Chiang Kai-Shek tossed some of his elite divisions equipped with heavy artillery to attack Feng Yuxiang from Qixian to Taikang, hoping to seize Kaifeng and Chenliu. Yet he fell directly into a pocket-sized encirclement and his forces were battered. Over on the Jinpu line front, Yan Xishan had organized 6 divisions and 3 artillery regiments to perform an offensive against Jinan. They advanced south along the Jinpu line and formed two pincers against the city. Han Fuju knew he would lose considerable forces in a defense of the city and ended up simply pulling out to conserve his strength, handing Jinan over. July brought significant change to the war. Over in Hunan, Chiang Kai-Shek organized 3 armies to counterattack Changsha; a naval fleet under Chen Skaokuan would assist them and he ordered the 8th route army under Jiang Hauangnai and Cai Tingkai to retake Hengyang. The Guangxi army could not focus on two fronts, so they abandoned Yueyang and Changsha to meet the enemy at Hengyang. The two sides fought bitterly in southern Hunan, but by July 4th the Guangxi army was forced to retreat to the province of Guangxi. Afterwards Chiang Kai-Shek's forces took Bozhou within the Longhai/Jinpu triangle area, effectively trapping forces led by Sun Dianying. On July 8th Chiang Kai-Shek diverted a bunch of divisions from the Longhai line to the Jinpu Line. By the end of the month Chiang Kai-Shek unleashed a general offensive along the Jinpu line. Feng Yuxiang retaliated by launching an offensive over the Longhai line trying to seize Xuzhou. Feng Yuxiang hoped by doing so he could unite the Jinpu and Longhai lines for a combined assault of Xuzhou. Chiang Kai-Sheks Longhai forces were quickly pushed back to an area south of Guide, but mother nature tossed a curveball. Colossal amounts of rain caused river floodings, forcing Feng Yuxiangs men to advance through mud greatly diminishing his supply lines. It was enough to give Chiang Kai-Shek time to stabilize the front as his offensive on the Jinpu line successfully recaptured Jinan by August 15th. On August 21st Chiang Kai-Shek convened a meeting in Jinan where it was decided they would divert forces from the Jinpu line to the Longhai and Pinghan lines. They would focus the most on the Pinghan line while forces on the Longhai line would try to cut off the retreat of Feng Yuxiang's army. Chiang Kai-Shek even offered 200,00 yuan for the first unit to take Gongxian and 1 million yuan for the occupation of Luoyang and Zhengzhou. On September 6th, Chiang Kai-Shek unleashed another general offensive. Feng Yuxiang believed he had the numbers to win, so he deployed his forces pretty evenly over the Pinghan, Longhai and Zhengzhou fronts. He did urge Yan Xishan to try and help him out if his fronts could afford to spare units. Yet Yan Xishan sought to preserve his strength, and moved his Longhai forces to pull back north of the Yellow River. This action made linking up with Feng Yuxiang pretty much impossible. By the 17th Chiang Kai-Shek captured Longmen very close to Luoyang, effectively cutting off Feng Yuxiang's line of retreat heading west. Thus Feng Yuxiang had no choice but to retreat into northern Henan. Taking another sidestep, you may have noticed one of the largest players remains unmentioned, what about the Young Marshal? Back in March, Zhang Xueliang issued a telegram expressing his neutrality. This of course prompted Chiang Kai-Shek to personally call him, whence negotiations began. On June 10th, Li Shi and Zhang Xueliang discussed the conditions for him to send troops to help the NRA out. The first condition was 2 million yuan to cover the cost of deployment. On June 21st the KMT officially appointed Zhang Xueliang as deputy commander. The next day Zhang Xueliang telegramed everyone suggesting that both sides agree to a cease-fire and establish a buffer zone. In August Li Shi came to meet with Zhang Xueliang again, where the Young Marshal then demanded 5 million yuan for military use and a loan of 10 million yuan to stabilize the northeast economy. Chiang Kai-Shek agreed to the terms on the spot. Then Zhang Xueliang said if Chiang Kai-Shek could capture Jinan, he would send troops. As mentioned this occurred on August 15th. Thus Zhang Xueliang began speaking with his generals. Meanwhile on the other side, the Anti-Chiang leadership began establishing a competing government in Peiping in July whereupon they appointed many Fengtian clique members to be the heads of certain departments. Yet on September 2nd, Zhang Xueliang told Fu Zuoyi, a anti-Chiang representative that he did not support their Peiping government. Then Zhang Xueliang recalled all the Fengtian members they had appointed as officials. Then on September 18th, Zhang Xueliang issued a telegram urging "all parties to stop fighting immediately to relieve the people's suffering and wait for Nanking to take action." At the same time, he dispatched Yu Xuzhong and Wang Shuchang with the 1st and 2nd armies of the Northeast Frontier Defense army to enter the pass. On October 9th, he officially took up office as the deputy commander for the NRA. Yan Xishan soon received word from forces in Tangshan that Zhang Xuliang was advancing, so he called for a meeting to figure out countermeasures. Zhang Xueliang then sent word to Yan Xishan that he should withdraw from occupied areas. Yan Xishan did indeed comply as Zhang Xueliang quickly occupied Ping and Tianjin without firing a shot. To maintain cordial relations with Yan Xishan, Zhang Xueliang had his army only advance into Hubei and Chahar, but left Shanxi alone. This prompted Yan Xishans forces to cross the Yellow River and retreat back into Shanxi using two routes. Meanwhile a wave of defections to Chiang Kai-Shek began in late September, severely crippling the Pinghan line for Feng Yuxiang. Along the Longhai line, Chiang Kai-Shek's forces took Kaifeng on October 3rd and were advancing towards Zhangzhou. The KMT government then began announcing amnesty for all Generals if they would stand down. The next days many of Feng Yuxiang's subordinates called upon him to issue a ceasefire. Feng Yuxiang was basically screwed, Chiang and Zhang were surrounding him slowly as his own Generals defected or abandoned the cause. On the 5th Feng Yuxiangs deputy commander withdrew to Xinxiang, due north of the Yellow River. The next day Zhengzhou fell to the NRA 11th division of Chen Cheng. On the 5th Yan Xishan, Feng Yuxiang and Wang Jingwei jointly telegrammed Zhang Xueliang expressing their desire for a ceasefire and to open up negotiations. By the 15th Yan Xishan and Feng Yuxiang stepped down together as commanders in chief. Yan Xishan handed command to Xu Yongchang and Feng Yuxiang to Lu Zhonglin. Both men then stated they would go temporarily abroad, though neither truly did. In truth Yan Xishan fled to Dalian under the protection of the Japanese and Feng Yuxiang hid in Yudaohe in Shanxi. That same day Lu Zhonglin telegramed to the Northwest army "withdraw defense immediately upon order inform all injured units to stop fighting and rest the people." On November 4th, Yan Xishan and Feng Yuxiang telegramed the dissolution of the anti-chiang movement, ending the war. The Central Plains War lasted roughly seven months, with both sides mobilizing more than 1.1 million troops, spending 500 million yuan, and suffering 300,000 casualties. At least half of them were young and middle-aged men from Hebei, Shandong, Henan and other provinces. It was the largest civil war in China after the Northern Expedition to unify China. The war spread to Hebei, Shandong, Henan, Shaanxi, Hubei, Hunan, Guangxi and other provinces. Most of the national troops originally prepared to suppress the Communists were mobilized, allowing the Chinese Communist Party to breathe and develop. Warlords imposed additional donations and taxes on the common people and issued paper money indiscriminately. As usual the ones to suffer the most were of course the common people. Within the Central Plains, 27 counties including Luoyang in Henan Province were severely affected, with agricultural losses amounting to 160.2% of the annual output value; farmers in more than a dozen counties including lost an average of 0.22 heads of livestock and 0.07 carts per household. Within Henan Province, it was said “over 120,000 people died in the war, over 19,500 were injured, over 1,185,000 fled, and over 1,297,700 were forced into exile by the army, of which over 30,000 died in combat, not including soldiers. The total property losses, including the destruction and burning of houses, amounted to over 651,469,000 yuan. It is estimated that it will take 10 years to recover all the losses.” Source in Zhengzhou stated “Since the beginning of the war, planes have been arriving every day, dropping bombs. … Every time a bomb is dropped, five or six people are killed and several buildings are destroyed. This situation is not limited to Zhengzhou. It is the same everywhere in the battlefield cities, the counties and villages near the Longhai and Pinghan railways, even in broad daylight.” Industry declined and agriculture went bankrupt. The war caused great damage to industrial and agricultural production, seriously hindering the development of the social economy. “The national finances and social economy were both exhausted.” For railway transportation alone saw “capital losses amounted to 22,165,504 yuan; withdrawals from garrison troops amounted to 4,206,155 yuan; military transport losses amounted to 29,958,042 yuan; and operating losses amounted to 17,018,271 yuan. The total was more than 73 million yuan.Among agricultural products, tobacco leaves were harvested in the three provinces of Henan, Shandong and Anhui, and the war was at its most intense. The losses were between 20 and 30 million yuan. The losses were twice as much as the war expenses.” Chiang Kai-Shek had won the war, utterly breaking his opponents. Feng Yuxiangs northwest disintegrated into four factions. Yan Xishans Shanxi army took heavy losses that they would not recover from. Zhang Xueliang profited the most, his northeast army gained further territory in North China. He would gradually incorporate a large part of the forces in Shanxi and Suiyuan and would emerge the second largest military faction in China. However, when Zhang Xueliang depleted the northeast of her military forces, this left the borders weak. Zhang Xueliang soon became focused on governing North China, taking his eyes off his powerbase of Manchuria, which Japanese eyes looked upon enviously. Overall the Central plains war weakened the NRA, the KMT, depleted China of her overall strength and lessened efforts against the CCP. Within the background of the warlord-NRA conflict, the CCP would benefit greatly. The CCP had spread to 11 provinces, including Jiangxi, Hubei, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Hunan, Henan, Sichuan, Anhui, Jiangsu, and Zhejiang. Their Red Army formed a total of 14 armies with a total of about 100,000 people. But with the Central Plains War ended, now Chiang Kai-Shek could redirect his efforts against the Red Menace. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. Chiang Kai-Shek had certainly faced a formidable enemy in the former of his past comrades in arms, Feng Yuxiang, Yan Xishan, Li Zongren and many others. At the last minute the Young Marshal saved the day, allowing the Generalissimo to retain control over the new Republic, yet in the background lurked enemies everywhere still.
"AI police" have significantly enhanced the efficiency and effectiveness of public security operations in detecting, preventing and solving crimes in Kunshan in Suzhou city, Jiangsu province.“AI警察”大大提高了江苏省苏州市昆山公安侦查、防控和破案的效率和效果。In many cases, the Kunshan Public Security Bureau's "Kunpeng Team" or "AI Team" has played a pivotal role.在许多案件中，昆山市公安局的“鲲鹏战队”（AI战队）发挥了关键作用。"In the past, some activities were challenging to detect and gather evidence about," said Xu Chenbo, an officer from the team. "However, the AI police were able to promptly identify and recognize suspicious activities, effectively issued warnings and swiftly assisted in many aspects."“过去，一些活动的侦查和取证都很有难度。”昆山市公安局“AI战队”民警徐辰波说，“但是，AI警察能够及时发现和识别可疑活动，有效发出警告，并迅速提供多方面协助。”To tackle the challenges posed by managing a region with a population exceeding 3 million, including over 1.8 million migrants, local police selected 35 versatile officers to establish a high-quality innovation center in May, putting the dynamic and innovative Kunpeng Team into operation.为了应对包括180多万流动人口在内的300多万人口地区管理所带来的挑战，今年5月，昆山市公安局优选35名复合型警务人才组建新质公安战斗力科创中心，一支充满活力和创新的“鲲鹏战队”亮相。Relying on a decade's worth of accumulated data, the AI Team introduced artificial intelligence and algorithms to develop over 220 intelligent models focused on combating crime, maintaining public security and enhancing community services, effectively functioning as a group of AI police.依靠近十年积累的海量数据，通过引入大数据人工智能和各类模型算法，该团队围绕打击犯罪、治安防控、民生服务等方面搭建了220多个智慧模型，犹如一个个“AI警察”，提供强大战力。He Yongliang, deputy captain of the criminal investigation brigade at the Kunshan Public Security Bureau, highlighted the remarkable role of the AI police in combating telecommunications fraud.昆山市公安局刑警大队副大队长何永亮强调了“AI警察”在打击电信网络诈骗案件中的突出作用。According to He, AI police have assisted in resolving 609 cases of telecommunications fraud, recovering losses amounting to 32.4 million yuan ($4.54 million) and increasing the recovery rate by 62 percent in recent months.据何永亮介绍，近几个月来，“AI警察”协助破获电信网络诈骗案件609起，挽回损失3247万元（约454万美元），追赃挽损率提升62%。With robust support from the Suzhou Public Security Bureau's criminal investigation detachment, the AI police now conduct comprehensive analysis of telecommunications fraud, operating around the clock, resulting in a more than fivefold increase in efficiency, he said.何永亮表示，在苏州市局刑警支队的大力支持下，依靠“AI警察”能够实现对电诈警情的全量研判，24小时不间断作业，效率提升5倍以上。Earlier this year, a local police station received a report of telecommunications fraud involving a victim swindled out of 980,000 yuan. The victim's statement was transmitted to the AI Team analysis center.今年早些时候，当地派出所接报一起电诈案，受害人被骗98万元。民警迅速为受害人制作笔录并传至“AI战队”解析中心。Within 10 minutes, the AI police traced the flow of funds, successfully halting the transfer of 500,000 yuan. Eight hours later, they traced 87 related accounts and identified 57 suspects, leading to the capture of nine suspects within three days and the recovery of 200,000 yuan for the victim.仅用10分钟，“AI警察”就追踪到资金流向，并成功止付50万元；8小时后自动追踪到87个涉案资金账户，锁定57名犯罪嫌疑人；3天后，抓获其中9人，又为被害人追回20万元。"Previously, such a workload would require a specialized team of five to six police officers working continuously for two weeks to achieve similar results," He said.何永亮介绍：“如果在以前，完成上述工作量，至少需要五六个民警组成的精干班组，连续工作两周，才能取得类似的成果。”"The integration of various investigative experiences into the AI police has significantly enhanced the efficiency of police operations, allowing even inexperienced officers to function as super investigators," he added.“‘AI警察'最大好处在于集成了刑侦民警各种办案经验，大幅提升警队办案效能，让警队新手也能当超级侦查员。”何永亮补充说。The use of AI has also improved the effectiveness of combating counterfeiting and protecting intellectual property rights.AI的应用还提高了打击假冒伪劣、保护知识产权的效能。Zeng Cheng, the head of Kunshan police's high-quality innovation center, said that the integrated approach of investigation and analysis by the AI police, rather than handling cases individually, has not only saved time and effort but also yielded better results by delving deeper into the origins of crimes and conserving police resources.昆山市公安局新质公安战斗力科创中心负责人曾诚介绍，“AI警察”的综合侦查分析方法，比起单独办案，不仅省时省力，还能深入挖掘犯罪源头，节省警力，效果更好。Shi Weihua, vice-mayor of Kunshan and director of the Kunshan Public Security Bureau, said that the application of the AI police has paved the way for governance improvements, empowering various public security operations with big data and leading to a significant enhancement of capabilities without an increase in the police force.昆山市副市长、公安局局长施伟华表示，“AI警察”的应用为改进社会治理提供了一条新的路径，以大数据赋能各项公安业务，在警力不增加的情况下实现了战斗力裂变式提升。pivotaladj. 中枢的，关键的swindlev. 诈骗；骗取counterfeitn. 仿制品，伪造物delvev. 钻研，探究
Reports that a college student pursuing a master's degree in physics enrolled to work as a janitor at a secondary school in Suzhou, Jiangsu province, have ignited heated debate online about whether he has made the best career choice.有报道称，一名物理学硕士研究生选择应聘江苏省苏州市一所中学的勤杂工，网民就他是否做出最佳职业选择开展了激烈讨论。According to a notice issued by the Suzhou High School Affiliated to Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, the 24-year-old is expected to work as a janitor at the school.根据南京航空航天大学苏州附属中学发布的公告，这名24岁的学生将在学校担任勤杂工。A previous notice issued by the school did not list any requirements for a candidate's academic background, and only said it was looking for a male under age 50.学校之前发布的招聘启事没有列出对候选人学术背景的任何要求，只说需要一名50岁以下的男性。The master's student, Li Yongkang, told the Gusu Evening News that he had previously obtained a job offer from the school to work as a teacher.当事人李永康告诉《姑苏晚报》，他之前已经获得了学校的教师岗位录用通知。However, he was unable to get his master's degree as he had not published enough academic papers during postgraduate study, so he could not work at the school as a teacher.然而，由于在研究生学习期间没有发表足够的学术论文，他未能获得硕士学位，因此无法在学校担任教师。Meanwhile, he was satisfied with the school's work environment while doing an internship there, so he applied to become a janitor at the school and got the job.同时，他在学校实习时对学校的工作环境很满意，于是他申请应聘学校的勤杂工，并被成功录用。"Becoming a teacher is my dream, and I will start my new job while also waiting for the next opportunity to realize my teaching dream," he said.李永康表示：“能走上讲台是我的人生理想，我将一边开始新工作一边等待下一次实现教师梦想的机会。”Wang Jian, Party secretary of the school, said it had consulted with Li and will arrange for him to become a teaching assistant on the school's physics teaching team.学校党委书记王剑表示，已与李永康协商，将安排其担任学校物理教研组的助教。The news sparked heated discussions online and became a trending topic on social media platforms, with many saying that his choice was a waste of education resources. Others said Li's choice should be respected and some said that given the current tough job market, he was lucky to find a job.这一消息在网上引发热议，成为社交媒体平台上的热门话题。许多人认为他的选择是浪费教育资源，另一些人则认为，李永康的选择应该得到尊重。还有人说，考虑到当前严峻的就业环境，他能找到工作已经很幸运了。Due to the long-held belief among Chinese people favoring white-collar work over labor-intensive work and the apparent salary gap between the two, most people in the country still prefer office work to blue-collar work.由于中国人长期以来认为白领工作优于体力劳动工作，以及两者之间明显的工资差距，大多数人仍然青睐办公室工作而非蓝领工作。According to the National Bureau of Statistics, the unemployment rate of young people age 16 to 24 excluding students stood at 18.8 percent in August, up 1.7 percentage points from a month earlier.国家统计局数据显示，8月，16至24岁青年（不包括学生）的失业率为18.8%，比7月上升了1.7个百分点。The country is expected to have 11.79 million new college graduates this year, 210,000 more than a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Education.根据教育部的数据，今年全国预计将有1179万名应届大学生毕业，比去年同期增加21万人。Hu Xunhan, a senior undergraduate student in journalism at Changsha University of Science &Technology, said she has chosen to pursue a master's degree because she wants to study at a better university and defer entering the job market for a few years because it is too competitive.长沙理工大学新闻学专业大四本科生胡荀涵说，她之所以选择攻读硕士学位，是因为她想在更好的大学学习，并推迟几年进入就业市场，因为就业市场竞争太激烈了。Tao Yongfeng, director of the student enrollment and employment guidance office at Xiangtan University, said it is normal for college graduates to choose jobs that are "not-so-decent" from a traditional viewpoint nowadays and, in fact, it has become a new trend.湘潭大学招生与就业指导处处长陶永锋表示，现在的大学毕业生选择从传统观念来看“不那么体面”的工作很正常，事实上，这已经成为一种新趋势。"It has become more evident that 'looking fancy' is not the top concern for college graduates looking for jobs," he said. "They are more focused on finding something they are interested in and suitable for, which I believe is the best choice for them."“越来越明显的是，‘看上去很光鲜'并不是大学毕业生找工作时最关心的问题。”陶永锋说，“他们更注重找到自己感兴趣和适合的工作，我相信这对他们来说是最好的选择。”As college graduates born after 2000 are less concerned with financial burdens, salary also becomes less important, and they place more value on interest, room for growth, the work environment and workplace culture, Tao said.陶永锋认为，由于2000年以后出生的大学毕业生不太关心经济负担，工资也变得不那么重要，他们更看重兴趣、发展空间、工作环境和职场文化。They are taking more time to carefully make the best choice for themselves. While many students have chosen stable jobs in government institutions, an increasing number of students are also starting their own businesses or working in new industries, he said.他们正在花更多的时间来认真做出最适合自己的选择。陶永锋表示，虽然许多学生选择了政府机构的稳定工作，但也有越来越多的学生开始自己创业或在新兴行业工作。Janitorialadj. 看门的；清洁部门的labor-intensive work劳动密集型工作，体力劳动工作
Welcome to China Compass! I'm your China travel guide, Missionary Ben. You can follow me on X (@chinaadventures) where I post daily reminders to pray for China (PrayforChina.us). You can also email me any questions or comments @ bfwesten at gmail dot com. And if you want to learn more about everything we are doing, visit PrayGiveGo.us I've been in Malaysia for more than a week now, and finally finished editing, just a few days ago, The Memoirs of William Milne. The Kindle book is now live on Amazon for just $2: https://www.amazon.com/Memoirs-William-Milne-Missionary-1785-1822-ebook/dp/B0DJ1Q4HNR/ China News: Chinese Nuclear Sub SInks in Wuhan: https://notthebee.com/article/chinas-new-nuclear-sub-just-sank-while-at-dock-according-to-us-officials Blaze News guest overstates China case: https://centerforsecuritypolicy.org/j-michael-waller-discusses-if-tim-walz-is-compromised-by-the-ccp/ 9 Things to Know about Christianity and Communist China https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/9-things-you-should-know-about-christianity-and-communist-china/ Crazy Taiping Rebellion Connections... William Milne and Robert Morrison, Afo and Hong Xiu Quan (aka Jesus younger brother), Univ. of Idaho Prof and George Grant https://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/ngier/ https://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/ngier/taiping.htm#_edn14 https://www.history.com/topics/asian-history/taiping-rebellion https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiping_Rebellion Jiangsu is our Pray for China province of the week, and is matched up with Tennessee… Jiangsu's Name & Geography Asia Harvest on Jiangsu: https://www.asiaharvest.org/china-resources/jiangsu Jiangsu: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jiangsu Jiangsu Missionaries & Martyrs Jack Vinson: https://www.asiaharvest.org/china-resources/jiangsu/1931-jack-vinson John Birch: https://www.asiaharvest.org/china-resources/jiangsu/1945-john-birch
Welcome to China Compass! I'm your China travel guide, Missionary Ben. You can follow me on X (@chinaadventures) where I post daily reminders to pray for China (PrayforChina.us). You can also email me any questions or comments @ bfwesten at gmail dot com. And if you want to learn more about everything we are doing, visit PrayGiveGo.us I've been in Malaysia for more than a week now, and finally finished editing, just a few days ago, The Memoirs of William Milne. The Kindle book is now live on Amazon for just $2: https://www.amazon.com/Memoirs-William-Milne-Missionary-1785-1822-ebook/dp/B0DJ1Q4HNR/ China News: Chinese Nuclear Sub SInks in Wuhan: https://notthebee.com/article/chinas-new-nuclear-sub-just-sank-while-at-dock-according-to-us-officials Blaze News guest overstates China case: https://centerforsecuritypolicy.org/j-michael-waller-discusses-if-tim-walz-is-compromised-by-the-ccp/ 9 Things to Know about Christianity and Communist China https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/9-things-you-should-know-about-christianity-and-communist-china/ Crazy Taiping Rebellion Connections... William Milne and Robert Morrison, Afo and Hong Xiu Quan (aka Jesus younger brother), Univ. of Idaho Profesor accuses George Grant and a certain Calvinist minister in Moscow of preaching the same kind of eschatology that helped spark the Taiping Rebellion... https://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/ngier/ https://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/ngier/taiping.htm#_edn14 https://www.history.com/topics/asian-history/taiping-rebellion https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiping_Rebellion Jiangsu is our Pray for China province of the week, and is matched up with Tennessee… Jiangsu's Name & Geography Asia Harvest on Jiangsu: https://www.asiaharvest.org/china-resources/jiangsu Jiangsu: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jiangsu Jiangsu Missionaries & Martyrs Jack Vinson: https://www.asiaharvest.org/china-resources/jiangsu/1931-jack-vinson John Birch: https://www.asiaharvest.org/china-resources/jiangsu/1945-john-birch
Last time we spoke about the finale of the Northern Expedition, the reunification of China. In May the NRA advanced from the Yellow River bridgehead despite losing access to the Tianjin-Pukou railway, forcing a 60-mile march. General Chen Tiaoyuan captured Tehzhou on the 13th, as the NRA cleared northern Shandong. They then converged on Beijing, with Feng Yuxiang's 2nd Collective Army and Yan Xishan's 3rd Collective Army advancing from different directions. Yan Xishan fought the NPA, recapturing territories and capturing Nankou, which led to speculation he would enter Beijing first. Despite NPA counterattacks, the NRA forces continued their advance. By late May, the NRA's combined efforts and internal NPA issues led to a general retreat of the NPA forces. On June 6, Yan Xishan's troops entered Beijing. The NPA's Zhang Zuolin was assassinated by Japanese officers, leading to a power shift to his son Zhang Xueliang, who later aligned with Chiang Kai-Shek. By December 1928, China was unified under the KMT. #118 The Chinese Civil War Draws First Blood Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. So I said a few times during the northern expedition that I wanted to push aside the emerging Chinese civil war. Although we loosely covered a lot of the major events, this episode is going to try and narrow and focus it down. Now please note, up until this point I have to admit I had been using sources that were either skewed towards the Chinese nationalist views or were trying to be non biased. For some of these episodes I intentionally am using some CCP aligned sources, I will try my best to balance things out. Also a large part of this is going to be a retelling of the Shanghai Massacre, but more from the point of view of the CCP. All the way back in 1926, Chiang Kai-Shek had managed to seize power over the Kuomintang. He exerted control over the party and army as he unleashed the Northern Expedition. By November 9th Chiang Kai-Shek set up a new headquarters in Nanchang. Chiang Kai-Shek was determined to purge the party of communists and began to do so here. He began by recruiting a large number of right-wing Kuomintang members such as Dai Jitao and Wu Tiecheng. Dai Jitao was a member of the Kuomintang Central Executive Committee and had served as the Minister of the KMT's propaganda department. After the death of Sun Yat-Sen, Dai Jitao had actively promoted an anti-communist movement, drawing support from warlords, right wingers and those the CCP would describe as “imperialists”. In May of 1925 with the support of Chiang Kai-Shek, Dai Jitao began an anti-communist campaign in Shanghai. He ran two successful pamphlets loosely translated in English as "The Philosophical Foundation of Sun Yat-senism" and "National Revolution and the Chinese Kuomintang”. Both worked to promote the teachings of Confucius and Mencius while distorting Sun Yat-sen's thoughts. Dai Jitao was arguing that Sun Yat-Sen's ideology chiefly came from Confucianism instead of western philosophy and that in fact the man was a traditionalist. He twisted Sun Yat-Sen's three principles, castrating them of revolutionary content. All of this quickly became a "banner" for the Kuomintang right-winger to carry out anti-communist activities. After Chiang Kai-Shek arrived in Nanchang, he immediately invited him to go north to jointly plan the purge of the party and anti-communism. Wu Tiecheng joined Dai Jitao, he was the director of the Guangzhou Public security Bureau and a well known KMT right-winger. Prior to the Zhongshan ship incident, Wu Tiecheng stated he had suggested to Chiang Kai-Shek that they impose sanctions on the CCP. In his words “with the registration materials of the special household registration of our Public Security Bureau, we can immediately arrest a dozen of the main Communist Party members, and then use a ship to transport them to a small island near Zhongshan County , or send them to Shanghai. As for the minor members, they will be temporarily detained." Chiang Kai-Shek said "I will think about it first." After the Zhongshan incident, Chiang Kai-Shek pretended to dismiss him from his post, but specially invited him later to Nanchang and dispatched him to Japan as a liaison. Another large figure who was invited over was Huang Fu, who had served as the Minister of Foreign affairs and Education for the Beiyang Government and as its Prime Minister. When Chiang Kai-Shek came to Nanchang he wrote to Huang Fu twice inviting him to come south. On December 31st, Zhang Jingjiang and Chen Guofu were also invited to Nanchang. Zhang Jingjiang was a member of the KMT's Central Supervisory Committee. After the secondary Plenary session of the second central committee, he became chairman of it. He used his authority and colluded with Chen Guofu, the Minister of Organization to dissolve the Guangzhou Municipal Party committee, which at the time was being led by left winger KMT. They did this by placing confidants in various positions to steal power. Simultaneously, they suppressed worker and peasant movements in Guangdong, even dispatching gangsters to kill their leaders and burn down the provincial and Hong Kong strike committee HQ. All of these people gathered at Nanchang formed a anti-communist cabal backing Chiang Kai-Shek. In January of 1927 these men went up Mount Lushan to a famous hotel called Xianyan where they plotted. After several days of meetings, as my source argues, mostly based on the advice of Huang Fu, these following decisions were obtained. Number 1, they would enact a policy of separating from the USSR and purging the party of CCP. Number 2, the NRA must settle the southeast by forming an alliance with the gentry and merchant class there. Number 3 in their diplomatic efforts they had to abandon the USSR and ally themselves to Japan. Number 4, to increase their military power they had to unite with Feng Yuxiangs Guominjun and Yan Xishan. Upon returning to Nanchang, Chiang Kai-Shek took action, first by attacking Borodin. He sent a telegram to Xu Qian, the chairman of the Wuhan joint conference, stating Borodin had insulted him in public at Wuhan and demanded he be removed from his advisory position. He also recomended expell Borodin back to the USSR. The source I am reading states Chiang Kai-Shek had two rationales for going after Borodin. "Chiang Kai-Shek felt that except for Borodin, the Kuomintang leaders in Wuhan were all politically incompetent. ... As long as Borodin was there, he could not gain a dominant position. Secondly, he was using Borodin like a scape goat to hide his real anti-Soviet purpose'. At this time Chiang Kai-Shek was being labeled a USSR stooge by the NPA and a Japanese stooge by the CCP. In response, Chiang Kai-Shek stated publicly "Our alliance with Russia was left by the Prime Minister. Although its representatives have been arrogant for a long time and oppressed our party leaders in many ways, I believe that this has nothing to do with the Soviet Union's spirit of treating us equally. No matter what their personal attitudes are, we will never change our relationship with the Soviet Union towards Japan. Why should we unite with the Soviet Union? It is because the Soviet Union can treat China equally. Since the Soviet Union has not given up treating us equally, how can we give up the policy of alliance with Russia. ... Not only Japan, but any country, if it can treat China equally, then we will treat them the same way as we treat the Soviet Union. It is not impossible to unite with them. We unite with the Soviet Union to seek freedom and equality for China. It is completely based on the meaning of treating our nation equally, so we must unite with the Soviet Union. If the Soviet Union does not treat us equally and oppresses us in the same way, we will also oppose them in the same way. I have said for a long time." In regards to the CCP Chiang Kai-Shek stated to his close confidants “When I was in Guangzhou, I was always paying attention to the actions of the CCP. I wanted to implement my proposal to overthrow the CCP in Guangzhou, however I did not do so. I was unable to do so because it could mean the end of the Kuomintang”. After the success of the Northern Expedition, Chiang Kai-Shek lamented to his confidants “although our army has won a great victory, I still worry the enemy is not at our front but at our rear. The CCP is causing much trouble within, we must make sure it does not split out party or even collapse our army. There are thorns everywhere”. Publically Chiang Kai-Shek stated "Now there is a rumor that I distrust and alienate my Communist comrades and have a tendency to oppose them. In fact, it cannot be said that I will not oppose the Communist Party. I has always supported the Communist Party... But that is to say, if the Communist Party becomes strong in the future and its members are arrogant and tyrannical, I will definitely correct them and punish them. ... Now many Communist Party members are actually oppressing the Kuomintang members, showing an overbearing attitude, and tend to exclude Kuomintang members, making Kuomintang members embarrassed. In this way, I can no longer treat Communist Party members with the same preferential treatment as before. If I still have the same attitude as before, then I am not in the position of a Kuomintang member, and I cannot be a Kuomintang member. Although I am not a Communist Party member, from a revolutionary perspective, I have to take some responsibility for the success or failure of the Communist Party! I am the leader of the Chinese revolution, not just the leader of the Kuomintang. The Communist Party is a part of the Chinese revolutionary forces. Therefore, if Communist Party members do something wrong or act tyrannically, I have the responsibility and power to intervene and punish them." As you can see, publicly Chiang Kai-Shek was always walking on eggshells when attacking the CCP. If you know the old boiling frog analogy, it's more or less like Chiang Kai-Shek gradually getting the public to attack the CCP. At the ceremony where Li Liejun was appointed chairman of Jiangxi, Chiang Kai-shek once again gave a speech, saying that communism was only a method of economic development, which might be applicable in some countries, but if China adopted communism, it would be a great harm and would only lead to the overthrow and revolution of China. In late January, Chiang Kai-Shek met with Momuro Keijiro, a representative sent by Japan's minister of Finance and Navy at Lushan. Chiang Kai-Shek explained to Keijiro that he understood the importance of the political and economic relationship between Manchuria and Japan. He understood the Japanese had spilt a lot of blood there during the Russo-Japanese War. He believed Manchuria required special consideration and hoped the Japanese would correctly evaluate the KMT's struggle to reunify China. Chiang Kai-Shek then met with the Japanese consul General in Jiujiang, Edo Sentaro, explaining he did not only intend to abolish the unequal treaties but would try to respect the existing conditions as much as possible, such as guaranteeing the recognition of foreign loans and repayments and respecting foreign owned enterprises. After these meetings Chiang Kai-Shek met with representatives of the Imperial Japanese Military such as Nagami Masuki and Matsumuro Takayoshi. It was Dai Jitao who set up these meetings. Chiang Kai-Shek began the talks by making it clear the KMT would not work with the CCP and was willing to work with Japan to prevent the spread of Communism in China. Chiang Kai-Shek also met with the Japanese politician Yamamoto Jotario who would go on to say in Beijing that he believed the Generalissimo was an outstanding military leader. Needless to say, as my source would put it “Chiang Kai-Shek was closely colluding with Japanese imperialism”. He was also establishing contacts with the US. He dispatched Wang Zhengting to Shanghai to meet the American consul general there. Wang Zhengting told him the KMT had washed their hands of the communists and that there would be nor more incidents such as the one that befell Hankou. The American consul general in Guangzhou was likewise contacted through the finance minister of Guangdong, Kong Xiangxi. What the American consuls told their government was “if the powers want to drive the Soviets out of China, they should establish direct contact with Chiang Kai-Shek”. Chiang Kai-Shek also publicly expressed regret to numerous nations for incidents such as the one in Nanjing. He was gaining a reputation as being the only leader in China capable of restoring order amongst the chaos. Many of these foreign diplomats privately told Chiang Kai-Shek that if he wanted to really brush shoulders with them he had to purge the communists and soon. To truly purge the communists Chiang Kai-Shek reaches a deal with the bourgeoisie of Jiangsu and Zhejiang. They will support him economically if he helps suppress the worker movements in Shanghai. They fund Chiang Kai-Shek some 500,000 Yuan in early March, then on the 29th the Shanghai Commercial Federation pledges 5 million Yuan, with another 3 million on April 1st. Around this time Chiang Kai-Shek secretly send Wang Boling, the deputy commander of the 1st army; Yang Hu, chief of the special affairs department of the general HQ and Chen Qun the director of the political department of the eastern route army to Shanghai in disguise to meet Huang Jinrong. Huang Jinrong was a chief detective working in the French concession of Shanghai. He also happened to be one of the top three gangsters working under Du Yuesheng of the Green Gang. Huang Jinrong summoned Du Yuesheng and the other Green Gang leader Zhang Xiaolin, as they all discussed how to purge the communists. The Green Gang leaders seized the opportunity to help the KMT. They began monitoring the CCP, armed their gang members and began to attack anyone who was picketing. They formed the “China Progress Association”, which in reality was just Green Gang members. This association proceeded to attack the Shanghai General Labor Union, providing the perfect pretext for Chiang Kai-Shek to act. On April 1st Wang Jingwei returns to Shanghai from aboard. By the 3rd Chiang Kai-Shek telegrams that Wang Jingwei is reinstated and holds secret talks with him. On the 8th Chiang Kai-Shek organizes a Shanghai Provisional Political Committee, stipulating it will decide all military, political and financial decisions and will replace the Shanghai special municipality provincial government that was established after the third Shanghai worker uprising. On the 9th he unleashes martial law prohibiting assemblies, strikes and marches, and established the Songhu Martial Law Command, with Bai Chongxi and Zhou Fengqi as the commander and deputy commander. Chiang Kai-Shek then takes his leave for Nanjing, leaving the job to Bai Chongxi who will supervise a coup in Shanghai. In a vain attempt Chen Duxiu tells the CCP to ease up on the Anti-Chiang Kai-Shek stuff. Then its announced to them that Chen Duxiu had managed to form a deal with Wang Jingwei. Chiang Kai-Shek send word from Nanjing to carry out the purge, in a very “execute order 66 fashion”. April the 12th takes a wild turn in Shanghai. In the early morning a signal is raised over a warship anchored near the Gaochang temple. Hundreds of well armed Green Gang, Triads and some secret agents wearing blue shorts and white cloth armbands with a black gongs on them, dispersed from the French concession in several cars. From 1 to 5am they attacked the picketing workers in Zhabei, Nanshi, Huxi, Wusong, Hongkou and other districts. The workers resisted immediately causing fierce street battles to break out. The 26th Army of the NRA, an old Sun Chuanfang unit that recently defected, came to forcibly confiscate guns while stating they were “mediating an internal strife amongst the workers”. Over 2700 armed workers in Shanghai were disarmed. More than 120 were killed with another 180 injured. The Shanghai General Labor Union club and all their associated pickets in the districts were occupied. Within the foreign concessions, foreign military and police forces arrested more than 1000 CCP members and workers who were immediately handed over to Chiang Kai-Shek's men. On the morning of the 13th, the workers from Shanghai's tobacco, silk factories, trams, municipal administration, postal services, sailors and various other industries went on strike. Over 200,000 workers took to the streets and the Shanghai General Labor Union held a mass rally in Qingyun Road Square in Zhabei with over 100,000 participants. They held a quick conference calling for resolutions. The first resolution was to hand over their weapons. Secondly those who destroyed their unions should be severely punished. Third the families of those killed needed to be compensated. Fourth protests should be made against the imperialists within the concessions. Fifth a telegram needed to be sent to the central government, then whole nation and world to demand assistance. Lastly the military authorities should be responsible for protecting the Shanghai trade unions. After the conference, the masses marched upon the headquarters of the 2nd division of the 26th army along Baoshan road to petition for the release of their comrades and for their weapons to be returned to them. They marched for a kilometer and upon reaching the Sandeli area of Baoshan road, soldiers of the 2nd division rushed out and opened fire upon them killing more than 100 on the spot. It was said Baoshan road was flooded with blood. That afternoon Chiang Kai-Sheks forces occupied the Shanghai General Labor Union and General Command of the Shanghai workers. They closed down and disbanded numerous revolutionary organizations and carried out searches and murders. Within 3 days after the Shanghai incident, more than 300 Shanghai CCP members were killed, another 500 were arrested and 5000 went “missing”. Like I said in the previous podcast on this very subject, I will leave it to you as to what missing meant. On the 15th of april the Kuomintang in Guangzhou launched their own coup. On that day more than 2000 CCP members and their supporters were arrested, 200 trade unions were closed. This all would b followed by similar activities in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui, Fujian and Guangxi where CCP members were purged. The NPA in the north would likewise crack down on communists. Li Dazhao had been placed on the Beiyang governments list of most wanted back in 1926 following the March 18th massacre. Since then he was hiding in the Soviet Embassy in Beijing, continuing to lead political maneuvers against the warlords. When the first united front collapsed as a result of Chiang Kai-Sheks purges, Zhang Zuolin ordered troops to raid the Soviet embassy. Li Dazhao, his wife and daughter were all arrested. Among 19 other communists, Li Dazhao was executed on April 28th of 1927 by strangulation. One of the behemoths who ushered in the New Culture Movement and was a founder of the CCP had become one of its greatest martyrs. The first united front was no more and in response to this the CCP declared "Chiang Kai-shek has become an open enemy of the national revolution, a tool of imperialism, and the culprit of the white terror of massacring workers, peasants and revolutionary masses”. This was followed by a call to mobilize, unite and form a solid front to fight the warlords and KMT. In May of 1927 the Communist International issued “the May Emergency Directive” to the CCP. (1) Without land revolution, victory is impossible; without land revolution, the Kuomintang Central Committee will become a pitiful plaything in the hands of unreliable generals. Excessive behavior must be opposed, but not by the army, but through the peasant associations. (2) It is necessary to make concessions to artisans, merchants and small landowners, and to unite with these strata. Only the land of large and medium-sized landowners should be confiscated; the land of officers and soldiers should not be touched. (3) Some old leaders of the KMT Central Committee will waver and compromise. We should recruit more new leaders of workers and peasants from below to join the KMT Central Committee and renew the KMT's upper echelons. (4) Mobilize 20,000 Communist Party members and 50,000 revolutionary workers and peasants in Hunan and Hubei to form several new armies and build our own reliable army. (5) A revolutionary military tribunal headed by prominent Kuomintang and non-Communists should be established to punish those officers who persecute workers and peasants. Wang Jingwei obtained this document from Luo Yi, the representative of the Communist International. The high-ranking officials of the Kuomintang believed that this was the Communist International's armed seizure of power and they were determined to purge the party. Thus began the Wuhan-Nanjing war. However as we saw, Wang Jingwei would perform his own purge of the communists on May 21st as he found out the Soviets were pushing the CCP to seize control over his regime. In order to resist the KMT's massacres, or as the CCP put it “the white terror”, the CCP Central Committee reorganized itself on July 12th of 1927. Chen Duxiu and other early CCP leaders who had insisted on compromising with the KMT were dismissed from their posts and labeled right-wing capitulationists. The CCP formed an alliance with left wing KMT members forming a quasi second front where they planned an armed uprising in Nanchang hoping it would spark a large peasant uprising. They were led by He Long and Zhou Enlai. He Long a ethnic Tujia and Hunanese native was born to a poor peasant family. He received no formal education and worked as a cowherder during his youth. When he was 20 he killed a local Qing tax assessor who had killed his uncle for defaulting on his taxes. From this point he fled and became an outlaw, apparently his signature weapon was a butcher knife. In 1918 he raised a volunteer revolutionary army aligned with an emerging Hunanese warlord. By 1920 he joined the NRA and began brushing shoulders with CCP members. During the northern expedition he commanded the 1st division, 9th corps and served under Zhang Fakui. By late 1926 he joined the CCP. When the first united front collapsed he joined up with the CCP and took command of the 20th corps, 1st column of the Red Army. Zhou Enlai was born in Huai'an of Jiangsu in 1898. He was born to a scholarly family, many of them officials, but like many during the late 19th century in China suffered tremendously. Zhou Enlai was adopted by his fathers youngest brother Zhou Yigan who was also ill with tuberculosis. The adoption was more of a way to cover Zhou Yigans lack of an heir. Zhou Yigan died soon after and Zhou Enlai was raised by his widow Chen. He received a traditional literacy education. Zhou Enlai's biological mother died when he was 9 and Chen when he was 10. He then fell into the care of his uncle Zho Yigeng in Fengtian. Zhou Enlai continued his education at Nankai Middle School who were adopting an educational model used at the Philipps academy in the US. Zhou Enlai excelled at debate, acting, drama the sort of skill sets needed for public service. Like many students of his day he went to Japan in 1917 for further studies. He tried to learn Japanese to enter Japanese schools but failed to do so. He also faced a lot of racism in Japan, prompting him to become quite anti japanese. While in Japan he became very interested in news about the Russian Revolution. This led him to read works from Chen Duxiu. In 1919 he returned to Tianjin where it is said he led student protests during the May Fourth movement, though a lot of modern scholars don't believe he did. Zhou Enlai then became a university student at Nankai and an activist. He led the Awakening Society and would find himself arrested. During this time he became familiar with Li Dazhao and Chen Duxiu. Then in 1920 he went to study in Marseille. In 1921 he joined a Chinese Communist Cell while in Paris. By 1922 he helped found a European branch of the CCP. When the first United Front began he joined the KMT and in 1924 was summoned back to China. He joined the Political department of the Whampoa military academy. He was made Whampoa's chief political officer, but he also took the post as secretary of the CCP of Guangdong, Guangxi and served as a Major-General. Soon he became the secretary of the CCP's Guangdong Provincial committee. In 1925 he got his first taste of military command against Chen Jiongming, accompanying the Whampoa cadets as a political officer. When Chen Jiongming regrouped and attacked Guangzhou again that year, Chiang Kai-Shek personally appointed Zhou Enlai as director of the 1st corps political department. Soon after he was appointed a KMT party representative as chief commissar of the 1st corps. With the newfound position he began appointing communists as commissars in 4 out of the 5 corps divisions. However his work at Whampoa came to an end during the Zhongshan Warship incident as Chiang Kai-Shek began purging communists from high ranking positions. Whampoa was a significant part of his career providing him with skills and a network. Until the first united fronts collapse he worked to form numerous armed CPP groups. He was sent to Shanghai where he was part of the effort to stage an uprising there. During the massacre he was arrested and nearly killed if not for the work of Zhao Shu, a representative of the 26th army who released him. From there he fled to Hankou where he participated in the CCP's 5th national congress. When Wang Jingwei unleashed his purge, Zhou Enlai went into hiding. When the CCP called for an uprising in Nanchang, Zhou Enlai as a CCP secretary was in a unique position to lead it. The CCP designated Zhou Enlai, Li Lisan, Yun Daiying and Peng Pai to form a Front Committee. The troops available to them were the 24th and 10th divisions of the 11th army of the 2nd front army, the entire 20th army, 73rd and 75th regiment of the 25th division of the 4th army and part of the officer training corps of the 3rd army of the 5th front army led by Zhu De. He Long was the commander in chief of the 2nd front army, Ye Ting was his deputy and acting front line commander. Zhou Enlai was the chief of staff with Liu Bocheng as director of the political directorate. At this time, the main force of the 3rd Army of the 5th Front Army of the Kuomintang Wuhan Government was located in Zhangshu, Ji'an; the main force of the 9th Army was located in Jinxian and Linchuan; and the main force of the 6th Army was advancing to Nanchang via Pingxiang; the rest of the 2md Front Army was located in Jiujiang; only the 5th Front Army Guard Regiment and parts of the 3rd, 6th, and 9th Armies, totaling more than 3,000 people, were stationed in Nanchang and its suburbs. The CCP Front Committee decided to launch an uprising on August 1 before the arrival of reinforcements. At 2:00am on August 1st the Nanchang uprising began. The 1st and 2nd division of the 20th army launched attacks against the defenders of the Old Fantai Yamen, Dashiyuan street and the Niuxing railway station. Meanwhile the 24th division of the 11th army attacked the Songbaixiang catholic church, Xinyingfang and Baihuazhou. The bloody battle lasted until dawn inflicting 3000 casualties and capturing more than 5000 small arms of various types, 700,000 rounds of ammunition and a few cannons. During the afternoon the 73rd regiment of the 25th division station at Mahuiling, 3 battalions of the 75th regiment and a machine gun company of the 74th regiment led by Nie Rongzhen and Zhou Shidi revolted and came to Nanchang by the 2nd of august. For the moment it seemed the CCP had achieved a grand success at Nanchang. The CCP then began proclaiming Chiang Kai-Shek and Wang Jingwei had betrayed the revolution and that of Sun Yat-Sens three principles by choosing to side with the imperialists and warlords. Meanwhile the CCP aligned military units began to gather in Nanchang requiring a reorganization. It was decided the uprising army would continue to use the designation of 2nd front army of the NRA with He Long serving as its commander in chief and Ye Ting as his deputy. Ye Ting would also command the 11th army consisting of the 24th, 25th and 10th divisions, Nie Rongzhen would be his CCP party representative; He Long would command the 20th Army consisting of the 1st and 2nd divisions with Liao Qianwu as his CCP party representative. Zhou Enlai with Zhu De as his deputy would lead the 9th army with Zhu Kejing as his CCP party representative. Altogether they were 20,000 strong and now very well armed. There was to be a great celebration, it seemed this was the grand moment the CCP would take the center stage. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. The Chinese Civil War had officially just begun. Chiang Kai-Shek and Wang Jingwei purged their respective regimes of communists unleashing a white terror. In a scramble to survive the CCP reorganized itself and sought revenge with their first target being Nanchang. From here until 1949, the CCP and KMT would fight for the future of China.
Shanghai and the provinces of Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Anhui are on alert for floods as Typhoon Bebinca is approaching east China.
Last time we spoke about the creation of the September Government. On August 12, 1927, Chiang Kai-Shek shocked everyone by agreeing to step down as the NRA faced decisive defeats and fled south of the Yangtze River. Despite attempts at reconciliation, the KMT remained fragmented, and many of Chiang Kai-Shek's supporters followed him into exile. Meanwhile, the NRA tried to regroup as they lost territory, and the NPA, led by Sun Chuanfang, launched attacks. The KMT factions eventually formed a temporary coalition, the "September Government," but struggled with internal divisions and external threats from the NPA and CCP insurgents. This time it was Wang Jingwei who walked away. After Sun Chuanfang's defeat, Tang Shengchih resisted the coalition, leading to more conflict. By late 1927, the NRA began to make advances but faced fierce resistance from NPA forces fortified by Zhang Zongchang. The KMT's instability persisted, with Wang Jingwei attempting to rebuild his power base in Guangdong amidst a CCP coup that was quickly suppressed. #116 The Northern Expedition Part 7: The Return of the Generalissimo Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. Wang Jingwei yet again boarded a ship bound for France. With him gone, the KMT now shifted their attention back to Chiang Kai-Shek. Everyone agreed, no other figurehead could wield the unruly NRA confederacy into a coordinated fighting force. For all of his banter about the dangers of the CCP, well he had been right. While in exile, Chiang Kai-Shek had married the sister of T.V Soong, Soong Meiling in early December. Since T.V Soon was the finance Minister of the KMT, it was a given that if Chiang Kai-Shek came back he was guaranteed support from the bankers and industrialists. On December 20th, General Ho Yingqing telegraphed Nanking from the northern front line calling for an all-KMT assembly and for the Generalissimo to return as Commander in Chief, the NRA simply needed him. The Shanghai branch of the KMT began petitioning for Chiang Kai-Shek to return, then most of Nanking began petitioning. Finally on January 1st of 1928, the KTM government invited Chiang Kai-Shek by telegraph to take back the chain of command. As early as December of 1927, Chiang Kai-Shek knew the KMT would be inviting him back over. He had been working behind the scenes to make sure of that. In late December he had dispatched Lu Hosheng into northern China as a secret agent, trying to persuade some warlord leaders and their lesser subordinates to defect to the NRA from the NPA. Lu Hosheng used foreign concessions as bases of operations in numerous ports, the most significant one being Tianjin. Meanwhile Chiang Kai-Shek had also been promoting a new Central Military Academy at Nanking, whose graduates might replenish the absolutely battered ranks of the NRA corps. The academy, similar to Whampoa would be indoctrinated in KMT ideology. It was Chiang Kai-Sheks hope in the future when China was reunified to create academies in all the provinces, so the nation could have a real modern military. Once back Chiang Kai-Shek worked to reconstruct the party. It was the repeated process of smoothing things over with specific groups within the KMT. On January 4th the former Wuhan clique Sun Fo was named Minister of Construction; T.V Soon resumed his role as finance minister and the old Guangdong base reverted to the control of Li Jishen and Huang Shaoxiung. On January 7th a lot of reshuffling occurred. The Central Political council was restored and its members included Hu Hanmin, Tan Yenkai, Qu Peiteh, CC Wu, Sun Fo, T.V Soong, Chiang Kai-Shek, Yi Peichi and Yu Yujen. A new Standing Committee was created consisting of Chiang Kai-Shek, Tan Yenkai. Yu Yujen, Tai Chitao and Ting Weifen. Tan Yenkai became the chairman of the National Government Committee. Chiang Kai-Shek regained his chairmanship over the now 73 man military council with their highest ranking member being Generals Li Zongren, Li Jishen, Bai Congxi, Qu Peiteh, Cheng Chen, Ho Yingqin, Tan Yenkai, Feng Yuxiang, Yan Xishan and Admiral Yang Shuchuang. Along with the reconstruction came a process of centralizing power. Chiang Kai-Shek began providing financial support to the conglomeration of armies vowing loyalty to Nanking. Early on at Guangzhou, the Central Bank under T.V Soong had managed to attract generals and their troops, the same was being done at Nanking, just on a larger scale. Revenue control was something looked over with a fine-toothed comb. The first provinces to be investigated were Zhejiang and Jiangsu. On the 7th T.V Soong announced both provinces would see a monthly revenue of 10 million. After January's intense governmental restructure, Chiang finally felt secure enough to concentrate on the Northern Expedition. On February 9th, Chiang Kai-Shek got aboard a train with his general staff to inspect the frontlines near Xuzhou. Together they inspected the lines and prepared for a major spring campaign. The lines had been fairly stationary since mid December as the snow and cold took over the terrain of northern china. On February 11th, they received a message from the national government ordering them to complete plans for a final campaign to take all of northern china. The plans for such a campaign would see a rapid seizure of the north from Jiangsu to Beijing in 3 months. From Xuzhou Chiang Kai-Shek and his team traveled over the Lunghai railay to meet Feng Yuxiang at his HQ in Kaifeng. On the 16th Chiang Kai-Shek and Feng Yuxiang discussed how they would cooperate during the final campaign. Chiang Kai-Shek would also have to discuss matters with Yan Xishan, both he and Feng Yuxiang were regional commanders outside the KMT whom held considerable autonomy and status. Both also controlled highly defensible bases; the Guominjun territory ran from Shaanxi and Yan Xishan held the Shanxi…yeah that gets confusing a bit. Chiang Kai-Shek always needed to make sure their forces were content, for if they broke off from the NRA to join the NPA it would really put a damper on the northern expedition. Even if they simply became neutral it would have a profound effect. To compromise, Nanking offered nominal subordination and cooperation. Feng Yuxiang and Yan Xishan would gain material aid and status almost equal to Chiang Kai-Shek. There was also a new military restructure as the NRA had grown by a lot. The NRA had grown to nearly a million men and would now be divided into 4 collective armies. Chiang Kai-Shek was commander in chief with He Yingqin as his chief of staff. The first collective army consisted mostly of the 40 original NRA army corps that began the northern expedition. The second collective army would be led by Feng Yuxiang controlling Shaanxi and Honan. The 3rd collective army was led by Yan Xishan, controlling the north china plain. The 4th collective army was led by Li Zongren and would control Guangxi, Hunan and Hubei. Although the 4 commands were relatively equal, Chiang Kai-Shek and the Nanking government held the purse strings, which essentially made them suzerain. Chiang Kai-Shek believed if properly coordinated the 4 collective armies would be able to perform a lightning fast campaign to take the north china plain. By 1928 the KMT was the largest political force in China. With his status and influence amongst the leadership in the KMT, Chiang Kai-Shek sought a position where he would not become dependent on some clique within the KMT, as was the case with the Wuhan situation. Thus on March 7th, he managed to get the party to appoint him as chairman. After that was settled the political council then divided up political authority amongst the other 4 commanders based on the regions they controlled. Li Jishen became the chairman of Guangzhou; Li Zongren over Wuhan; Feng Yuxiang over Kaifeng and Yan Xishan over Taiyuan. Since Chiang Kai-Shek had to focus on the northern expedition he had Tan Yenkai appointed as chairman of the Political council to manage stuff. By late March, the 1st collective Army was assembling to resume their advance after the mid-winter halt. On the other side of the east-west Lunhai railway stood a well rested and reinforced NPA. Zhang Zuolin, Zhang Zongchang and Sun Chuanfang coordinated their efforts into northern Shandong. Yet alongside them was another enemy even more dangerous, the Japanese. Going back in time somewhat, in March of 1927 when the NRA was taking over Nanking and Hankou later in April, many foreign concessions and consulates were attacked by NRA soldiers and Chinese civilians. These became known as the Nanking and Hankou incidents. Following the incidents Chiang Kai-Shek made repeated statements trying to juggle between appeasing the foreign powers and looking anti-imperialistic to the people of China. Despite all of the assurances, the foreign powers, one being the Empire of Japan, remained very concerned about the safety of their people, economic and political interests within China. Many of these foreign powers resolved not to let another Nanking incident occur again. Now back in 1927 as the NRA were approaching Shandong the first time, the Japanese had sprung into action. Japan saw Shandong province, ever since the 21 demands debacle, as their sphere of influence. They deployed 4000 troops from the Kwangtung army over to the cities of Qingdao and Jinan, calling them the First Shandong Expeditionary forces. Their justification for this was to protect Japanese civilians against potential NRA attacks. Chiang Kai-Shek was well aware of the severe danger provoking the Japanese would provide, so he wanted to keep his forces as far away from Jinan as possible. Japanese prime minister Tanaka Giichi knew the deployment of such forces could result in another conflict with China, ironically endangering the very citizens they were trying to protect. Then all of a sudden Japan found out the split between Wuhan and Nanjing was resolved and Chiang Kai-Shek had stepped down. It was quite a surprise to the Japanese who withdrew their forces from Jinan. In his exile, Chiang Kai-Shek went to Japan and would meet on multiple occasions with prime minister Tanaka Giichi. During some of these meetings, Tanaka suggested Japan was fully willing to support Chiang Kai-Shek and not interfere in Chinese domestic affairs. Chiang Kai-Shek responded that he understood Japan's interests in China. Tanak then suggested the KMT focus on consolidating their power within the territories they already controlled, rather than advancing further north, especially not towards the Fengtian clique territory, which of course the Japanese saw as their sphere of influence. Chiang Kai-Shek had to reply that that was simply impossible. Thus their little meetings ended rather inconclusively. It put the KMT and Japanese into a sort of limbo. On one hand Chiang Kai-Shek was literally running on a platform promising to end foreign encroachment into China. On the other hand, he was not an idiot and knew he had to avoid conflict with foreign powers like Japan. By April of 1928 Feng Yuxiangs 2nd collective army and Yan Xishan's 3rd had began to battle the NPA along the Honan-Shandong border and along the Beijing-Suiyuan railway line. For Chiang Kai-Shek's 1st collective army, the northern expedition officially kicked back off on April 7th. With Feng Yuxiang and Yan Xishan softened up the NPA, Chiang Kai-Shek easily drove into Shandong along the Tianjin- Pukou railway, capturing Tengzhou by the 16th. Meanwhile Feng Yuxiangs forces pushed east, capturing Jiaxiang on the 15th. Sun Chuanfang attempted a two-pronged counter offensive against the 1st and 2nd collective NRA armies, managing to push the first back to the Longhai railway, but his attack against the 2nd failed utterly. By the 21st the combined NRA forces pushed his NPA forces from Jining towards Jinan.According to an American eye witness of Sun Chuanfangs retreat, “the great majority of the troops in this retreat literally walked the soles off their shoes, and this, combined with the scarcity of food and total lack of shelter left the vast horde without any idea of further resistance" When the Japanese learned of Sun Chuanfangs utter defeat and failure to defend the Shandong border, they yet again deployed troops. This time Japan sent the 6th IJA division on the 19th, calling them the second Shandong expeditionary force. Tanaka was actually very hesitant about sending the force but his platform had been running on protecting nationals, thus he was hamstrung. Even before he gave the order to dispatch forces, General Fukuda Hikosuke had been arriving in Jinan via the Qingdao-Jinan railway as early as April 10th. This of course was a classic example of insubordination by IJA officers in China during the late 1920's to late 1930s period. If you are interested I recommend my podcast series on General Ishiwara Kanji found over at the Pacific War Channel on Youtube or all podcast platforms. Basically Ishiwara was the number one example of insubordination leading to insane outcomes. Regardless the first group of 475 troops began to arrive by the 20th and would be followed up by 4000 more over the next few days. Now it just so happened the Japanese began arriving exactly at the same time the NPA forces were withdrawing to Jinan. To the public it looked like the NPA called upon the Japanese to come. The KMT immediately used this as propaganda against the NPA. Both the Nanking and Beiyang governments began protesting against the Japanese intervention, which never stopped the Japanese ever. Sun Chuanfang had established a second line of defense strung along the mountainous backbone of the Shandong peninsula. To the north was the railway from Jinan heading for Qingdao. As the first collective army advancing towards the line on the 27th they performed a pincer maneuver against the Lunshan railway station. After a 2 day battle around Lunshan, Chen Tiaoyuan and the 26th NRA army managed to cut the NPA off from the railway line. Again using their better mobility and speed, the NRA evaded the enemy's railway artillery by simply sweeping around behind and cutting the railway communications. After this the NRA advanced west along the railway towards the Yellow River bridge just before arriving at Jinan. This would effectively see the NPA forces around the capital region becoming isolated on the south bank of the river. To prevent the NPA's retreat out onto the peninsula along the railway, a battalion of engineers sabotaged the railway line with explosives. Within a frantic rush to escape Lungshan, Sun Chuanfang had left behind 30 boxcars full of food, ammunition and 300 soldiers. Now the first NRA units to advance into Shandong had done so along the Tianjin-Pukou railway, avoiding the main pass between Taian and Jinan. Instead they advanced up the adjoining mountains capturing some elevated points where they could deploy artillery to hit the NPA from. Although the NRA was weaker in heavy artillery, taking such heights to deploy what they had compensated that, with added flanking maneuvers. Once the NRA had blocked the NPA from retreating via rail onto the Shandong peninsula, the yellow rail bridge remained their last avenue of escape. The NPA elected to evacuate to the north bank, crossing the bridge on the 19th, yet all order soon collapsed in a mayhem of men running for it under fire. Back over in Jinan, violence and looting erupted as NPA troops grabbed what they could and fled north. Defending the barricaded perimeter of the Japanese concession area, the Kwantung army prepared to fight anyone who dared come near them. On the 30th, the Chinese media began reporting scuffles breaking out at Jinan between Japanese and Chinese, specifically mentioning some Chinese were stabbed. Since the NRA engineers had sabotaged the railway to Qingdao on the 28th, they most likely had come into contact with Japanese patrols. As more and more Japanese landed at Qingdao enroute to Jinan, the Chinese public assumed this was a pretext for an invasion of Shandong, similar to what had occurred during WW1. There was wide scale public outcry over the supposed invasion. By this time 3000 crack Kwangtung troops with heavy artillery pieces were guarding 2000 Japanese civilians as another 2000 Japanese troops patrolling the railway to Qingdao. The first NRA units to enter Jinan were wearing civilian clothing, encouraging civilian cooperation and gathering intelligence. On May 1st the NRA vanguard began securing a bridgehead over the north bank of the yellow river after fighting some NPA at Sangtzutien. As the main bulk of the collective first army approached Jinan they did so with extreme precaution. On the 2nd day as the NRA secured the area, Chiang Kai-Shek proclaimed order would be maintained in Jinan. That day Chiang Kai-Shek began negotiating with the Japanese to withdraw their troops, giving assurance to Major General Ryu Saito, everything would be secured in Jinan as he would have his NRA forces simply advance past Jinan further north in haste. After their talks Saito elected to begin preparing for a withdrawal and said he would entrust Jinan to Chiang Kai-Shek. General Fukuda authorized the decision and Japanese forces began withdrawing that night. However the morning of May 3rd erupted in conflict. The exact story as to what happened is a he said she said situation. The Japanese began destroying a Chinese wireless station after a clash had broken out. This left the Japanese with the only working line of communication out of Jinan, forcing all foreign media to depend on the Japanese accounts. Yes a large hmmmmm moment. According to a report given by General Fukuda, a group of Chinese soldiers, allegedly Guominjun under the command of General He Yaozu who were also responsible for the Nanking incident, broke into the Manshu Nippo newspaper office and assaulted its owner at 9:30am. A group of Japanese soldiers led by Captain Yoshiharu Kumekawa rushed to the scene and were fired upon by the Chinese soldiers. The Chinese version of what happened, had it that a sick Chinese soldier had attempted to seek treatment at a local Christian hospital with the help of a local worker, but was blocked from going down a street to the hospital by Japanese soldiers. They began shouting at another until the Japanese shot and killed both Chinese. I would like to note, after all the Pacific War is kind of my thing. There would be other famous incidents quite similar to the one in Jinan, for example the Huanggutun incident and Mukden incident, both instigated by the Kwantung army trying to perform false flag operations. It would seem very likely what occurred at Jinan was an early attempt by the Kwantung army to force an invasion of China. Regardless from this small clash a full scale conflict broke out between the NRA and Japanese. The Japanese media reported the NRA then began destroying property and massacring Japanese civilians. A British consul general reported seeing dead Japanese corpses allegedly with their penises cut off. The Japanese eventually stormed a office that was to be a point of negotiation between the two sides. Chinese diplomat Cai Gongshi, 8 staff members, 7 NRA soldiers and a cook were killed. What went down there is contested. The Japanese would claim they were attacked from the upper floors and had no idea the office was being used for negotiations. The chinese state the building had been marked, and that Cai Gongshi's nose, ears and tongue were cut out, his eyes were gouged out, all occurring before he was executed. The other staff members were stripped naked, whipped, dragged out back over the lawn and executed with machine guns. In response to those graphic reports, Major General Ryu Saito wrote it off as Chinese propaganda, stating Cai Gongshi was simply shot in a firefight and that one cannot cut off ears, noses and such with a bayonet. I admit the Chinese account does reek of propaganda, hell they wrote such account ever since the first sino-japanese war. Negotiations to halt the violence began quickly thereafter. Chiang Kai-Shek and General Fukuda agreed to a truce and came to an agreement very fast. The Japanese would withdraw, leaving just a small detachment to keep order and the NRA would advance north to continue their expedition. Then on the 4th the Japanese reported their chief negotiator, Colonel Sasaki Toichi was robbed and beaten nearly to death, only saved by one of Chiang Kai-Shek's officers. Chiang Kai-Shek had promised his troops would be removed by this time, thus the Japanese accused him of lying. The Japanese were outraged at what happened to Sasaki, Major General Tatekawa Yoshitsugu stated “that it was necessary for Japan to chastise the lawless Chinese soldiers in order to maintain Japan's national and military prestige". Because of this incident, General Fukuda asked prime minister tanaka to despatch reinforcements from Korea and Manchuria, which would be known as the third shandong expedition. They began arriving to Jinan on the 7th of May. With more force in Jinan, General Fukuda began issuing demands of the Chinese to be met within 12 hours. His demands were as follows: Punishment of responsible Chinese officers; the disarming of responsible Chinese troops before the Japanese army; evacuation of two military barracks near Jinan; prohibition of all anti-Japanese propaganda, and withdrawal of all Chinese troops beyond 20 li on both sides of the Qingdao–Jinan railway The Japanese knew these demands were impossible to fulfill within 12 hours. It was basically a show of force, orchestrated to humiliate the Chinese. In response Chiang Kai-Shek who had already departed the area, sent a courier to the Japanese garrison stating they would meet some of their demands, but not all. General Fukuda proclaimed their demands had not been met and launched a full scale attack upon the Chinese in Jinan beginning in the afternoon of May 8th. The fighting became quite fierce over the next two days. The Japanese used heavy artillery against the old walled city where NRA troops were desperately using as defense. The civilian population of the old parts of Jinan had not been warned about the bombardment and thus heavy casualties were incurred. By May 11th the last Chinese troops evacuated the city as the Japanese took full control over Jinan. The city would be occupied by Japan until March of 1929, whence an agreement was reached. The Chinese and Japanese would share responsibility for the Jinan Incident and all Japanese troops would be withdrawn from Shandong. The Chinese would report the Japanese occupation of Jinan to be full of murder, rape, looting and other debauchery. Chiang Kai-Shek was forced to issue an apology on May 10th and he removed a local commander, He Yaozu from his post. Its alleged after the Jinan incident Chiang Kai-Shek would begin writing in his diary each day “one way to kill the Japanese”. Henceforth Chiang Kai-Shek would note the Japanese were China's greatest enemy and that China only backed down at Jinan because "before one can settle scores, one must be strong". The Jinan incident did not only hurt the NRA, but also the NPA. Zhang Zuolin, who had always been labeled a Japanese puppet was forced to take dramatic steps to distance himself from the Japanese henceforth. In fact its alleged he even began urging the KMT to drop the war against him and unite the north and south against Japan. On May 9th he issued a public telegram stating “… in view of the situation I have ordered my troops to cease hostilities to save the country.” Now because I am the Pacific War guy I do want to mention, the Jinan Incident was one of the first events that showcased the weak nature of the Japanese chain of command. In particular that of the Kwantung army, which happened to be made up of many junior officers who would go on to join the Kodoha faction. As pointed out by historian Akira Iriye, the weak chain of command combined with the powerlessness of the Japanese civilian government would basically allow these types of junior officers to run amok on the mainland. For much of the 1930's this podcast will have to explain many developments in the Japanese military, for example I mentioned the Kodoha faction. I won't get into it here, but this radical faction would have a profound effect in the early 1930's and would push junior officers of the Kwantung army to perform numerous false flag operations trying to entice a war with China. A lot of this was the brainchild of General Kanji Ishiwara, who I really have to say is not spoken about a lot despite him arguably being a single individual who changed the world dramatically. Literally one could argue Kanji Ishiwara began WW2. Its quite a rabbit hole to explain that statement, but if you are interested I did a long 4 part series on his insane story. The man had an incredible foresight into military history and actually predicted a lot that would happen during WW2. For example he believed just after WW1 that warfare would change to heavy bombing campaigns that would wipe out entire cities, little errie. Again if its of interest to you check it out at the Pacific War Channe on Youtube or on all major podcast platforms. Now back to the war, on May 1st, the NRA vanguard had secured the north bank of the Yellow River around Santzutien. There they halted to allow the main body to catch up. To avoid Jinan and the much feared Japanese heavy artillery. Chiang Kai-Shek had first ordered the men to detour south of the city and then advance upstream to some fording points. The largest of these points was Tunga. As the NRA regrouped on the north bank, the NPA set up a new defensive line south of Tehchou and Xunteh. The first week of May say the Beiyang government toss some peace feelers. Wu Zhihui declared that rather than join the Fengtian Clique “the Northern Expedition will be continued and completed in the shortest possible time.” I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. The Generalissimo was back, the Northern Expedition was back on track and the NPA was running for their lives heading north. However the Jinan incident with the Japanese struck a major nerve in China, one that would come back to haunt them in the form of a 15 year long war. Yet until then, there was a grand march to be made in the direction of Beijing.
China, Zimbabwe sign agreements to deepen cooperation, cement tiesChina and Zimbabwe released a joint statement on Tuesday to intensify and upgrade their comprehensive strategic partnership of cooperation and build a high-level community with a shared future as part of their efforts to strengthen ties.The statement came as President Xi Jinping rolled out the red carpet for visiting Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Tuesday. Mnangagwa is on a nine-day state visit to China, which started on Aug 29, and he will also attend the 2024 Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation this week.The two presidents witnessed the signing of multiple documents on bilateral cooperation in areas such as Belt and Road cooperation, the Global Development Initiative and avocado exports to China.During their talks, Xi emphasized the deep-rooted traditional friendship between China and Zimbabwe, noting the significant progress in political mutual trust and fruitful cooperation between the two nations.He called on the two countries to build a "five-star ironclad" cooperation framework with pillars in politics, the economy and trade, security, culture and international coordination to foster a high-level China-Zimbabwe community with a shared future.China supports Zimbabwe in safeguarding its sovereignty, security and development interests, and opposes external interference and illegal sanctions, Xi said.The nation is willing to further align its development strategy with that of Zimbabwe, and expand mutually beneficial cooperation in areas such as investment, trade, infrastructure, energy and minerals, clean energy and the digital economy, to help Zimbabwe and Africa enhance their capacity for independent development, he added.Xi congratulated Zimbabwe on assuming the chairmanship of the Southern African Development Community, and said that China is willing to strengthen international coordination with Zimbabwe, uphold the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence and work together to defend international fairness and justice.He reiterated China's commitment to viewing relations with African countries as a cornerstone of its foreign policy, saying that China supports African countries in pursuing an independent development path and Africa becoming a significant player in the development of global politics, the economy and civilization.Noting that FOCAC is the most important platform and mechanism for enhancing solidarity and cooperation between China and Africa, Xi expressed China's willingness to work with African countries to make the 2024 FOCAC Summit a milestone event in China-Africa relations in clarifying the direction and path for both sides to advance toward modernization.Mnangagwa spoke of his visit to the cities of Shaoshan, Xiangtan and Changsha in Hunan province, Shenzhen in Guangdong province and Nanjing in Jiangsu province before he headed to Beijing, and commended China's remarkable development achievements.He praised China's ongoing reforms unveiled at the third plenary session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China in July, saying that the reform measures will not only further improve the well-being of the Chinese people, but also have a significant bearing on the future of the Global South and even humanity as a whole.China's assistance and cooperation have benefited the Zimbabwean people, creating new highlights in the friendship between Zimbabwe and China in the new era, he said.He said that Zimbabwe appreciates China's just stance on international affairs, and its constructive role in regional conflicts such as the Ukraine crisis and the Palestine-Israel conflict.He also reiterated his country's commitment to the one-China policy, and said that Zimbabwe is ready to continue working as a close friend of China in southern Africa.Sino-Nigerian relations elevated to comprehensive strategic partnershipPresident Xi Jinping called on China and Nigeria to enhance strategic mutual trust, better align development strategies and promote people-to-people exchanges as the two countries announced on Tuesday the elevation of their ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership.The announcement was jointly made by Xi and Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, who is in Beijing for the 2024 Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation and a state visit.During their meeting at the Great Hall of the People, Xi said the two countries have always respected each other as equals and have pursued strength through unity and engaged in win-win cooperation since the establishment of diplomatic ties more than half a century ago.In recent years, a large number of exemplary cooperation projects with strategic importance have been implemented between China and Nigeria under the FOCAC framework, he said."I am willing to work together with Mr President to fully leverage the exemplary role of the China-Nigeria relationship and jointly promote new and greater development in relations between the two countries as well as between China and Africa," Xi told Tinubu.Nigeria is China's second-largest export market in Africa and is also a major investment destination and a major trading partner of China on the continent.Over the years, Chinese companies have constructed many signature projects in Nigeria, including the Lekki Deep Sea Port, the largest seaport in the country and one of the biggest in West Africa.As the two countries join hands to realize their respective modernization through high-quality cooperation, Xi stressed the necessity to promote integrated development between infrastructure, energy, mining and industries, and called for efforts to foster new growth points for cooperation in the digital economy, new energy and other areas.It is also hoped that Nigeria will ensure the safety of Chinese personnel and projects in the African country, he said.Xi said China supports Nigeria in combating terrorism, maintaining regional stability and playing a greater role in international and regional affairs. Furthermore, China will enhance multilateral coordination with Nigeria to jointly safeguard the interests of developing countries, he added.Noting that FOCAC is not only an effective mechanism for promoting China-Africa practical cooperation but also a banner of South-South cooperation, Xi said China is willing to take the summit as an opportunity to inject new momentum into the development of China-Africa relations in the new era.Tinubu said that deepening economic cooperation and developing the comprehensive strategic partnership between Nigeria and China are crucial for the future development of his country.Nigeria, which has the largest population in Africa, hopes to become China's largest trade and investment partner on the continent and welcomes more investment from Chinese companies, and also hopes to expand mutually beneficial cooperation in such areas as agriculture and manufacturing, he said.This will assist Nigeria and West Africa in their modernization efforts and effectively alleviate poverty, the Nigerian president said, adding that his country will provide a secure environment for achieving this objective.Tinubu also thanked China for providing important training opportunities for young people in Nigeria and expressed readiness to deepen people-to-people exchanges.After their talks, the two heads of state witnessed the signing of multiple cooperation documents related to the Belt and Road, applications of the Beidou Navigation Satellite System, peanut exports to China and other matters.
Last time we spoke about the collapse of the First United Front. A quasi civil war had emerged between the Wuhan KMT government backed by the CCP and the Nanking government backed by Chiang Kai-Shek. Chiang Kai-Shek unleashed a violent anti-communist purge at Shanghai, breaking ties with the Soviets, prompting them to toss their lot in with Wuhan. Wang Jingwei eventually took over the rival government, as he tried to alienate Chiang Kai-Shek and squeeze him out of the KMT entirely. Because of the lack of coordination between the two KMT factions the NPA gradually gained the upper hand and began pushing the NRA forces further south. Then Feng Yuxiang and his Guominjun entered the fray invading Honan. Both Chiang Kai-Shek and Wang Jingwei tried to win Feng Yuxiang over, but Chiang Kai-Shek simply had the better deal. Then the Soviets unleashed their own sneaky attempt to get the CCP on top, only to see their advisors and the CCP purged as the Wuhan and Nanking government reunified, as Chiang Kai-Shek stepped down. #115 The Northern Expedition Part 6: The September Government Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. On August 12th of 1927, Chiang Kai-Shek shocked everyone by agreeing to step down. This came just as the NRA were fleeing towards the south banks of the Yangtze after multiple positions they held in the north were overrun by the NPA. The last rear guard escaped the south bank on August 19th. The NRA had been served decisive defeats. The two KMT factions attempted reconciliation, but they were still very much fragmented. Within the Nanking regime many still supported Chiang Kai-Shek. When Chiang Kai-Shek went into exile, many followed him such as Hu Hanmin, Cai Yuanpei, Zhang Jingjiang, Wu Zhihui and Li Shizeng. For them, any alternative to the generalissimo at the helm of the northern expedition was simply a no go. This exodus did not see the other recall Chiang Kai-Shek. Chiang Kai-Shek traveled with his family to Fenghua near Ningpo in Zhejiang before he took a ship to Japan. Over in Japan Chiang Kai-Shek met with Prime Minister Tanaka Giichi, discussing the futility of trying to reorganize the KMT. During his time in exile he would win the hand of Soong Meiling, his second wife. They would marry on December the 1st of 1927 in Shanghai. Back over in Nanking the situation kept deteriorating. In fact despite the fact Wuhan and Nanking agreed to reunify, they had not officially done so. Tang Shungchih's forces were still harassing near Nanking as the NPA continued to use their heavy artillery upon the second capital of China. The NRA has lost the rich lands of Anhui and Jiangsu north of the Yangtze. Within a do or die type situation the NRA commanders tried to pull it back together. The Guangxi generals, alongside General Ho Yingqin, the commander of the 1st NRA army, were defending the south banks. The Nanking KMT officials praised Wuhan for purging their communists and called for a plenary session. The KMT all met on August 24th, and both sides began negotiations. However the military situation kept getting worse. Feng Yuxiangs Guominjun suffered defeats in Honan to Zhang Xueliang as Sun Chuanfang's artillery pounded upon Nanking and the NRA positions along the southern bank of the Yangtze. Sun Chuanfang unleashed a particularly heavy bombardment on August 25th, seeking to soften up the NRA so he could launch an offensive. Sun Chuanfang was actually butting heads a bit with Zhang Zuolin. Zhang Zuolin favored a strategy of gradual containment of the NRA. Basically allow the heavy artillery to beat them down until they were weak enough for the combined NPA front to advance. But Sun Chuanfang wanted to reclaim his lost territory, especially Shanghai, and he could see the KMT were stuck in limbo. He did not want to wait for them to possibly reconcile and thus lose him the chance to strike back. As his August 25th bombardment raged on, he launched several landing parties towards the southern banks of the Yangtze. Some of these landings parties were diversionary attacks, but two regiments were performing the main real strike. They landed at 3am on the 26th near the town of Lungtan sitting beside the station along the Shanghai-Nanking railway. They secured a beachhead and their vanguard surged inland while Sun Chuanfang tossed thousands across the Yangtze over an armada over stolen river boats. The NRA had spread their numbers quite thin to be able to man the entire lower Yangtze, thus Sun Chuanfangs vanguard were easily able to breach part of the line defended by Li Zongren's 7th NRA army. The NPA forces donned civilian clothing and spread out as they cut telegraph and rail lines. The town of Lungtan was swarmed with river boats as Sun Chuanfang forged 3 beachheads. As the first day of combat came to a close, Li Zongren was able to concentrate his efforts and drove off Sun Chuanfangs forces who were trying to fortify hills and away from the Shanghai-Nanking railway. The fighting saw the NRA suffer 800 casualties, but they managed to capture 3000 NPA who were cut off from their comrades. Better yet, these prisoners came with some much needed field guns. On August 27th, Sun Chuanfang continued to ship men across the Yangtze, via his beachhead at Lungtan. With new reinforcements, his men managed to capture the railway station. Amongst his troops were some of Zhang Zongchangs elite White Russian forces who could prove to be a devastating problem if they acquired armored trains. The NRA reinforced their lines to meet the NPA challenge, now some 30,000 northern Chinese were defending a perimeter of several square miles between the train station and Lungtan. Countless NRA commanders at the frontlines telegrammed frantic messages back to the KMT politicians, demanding they get their shit together so a real counter offensive could be mounted. As the battle for Lungtan raged on August 28th, Feng Yuxiang over in eastern Honan responded by driving an offensive into Shandong threatening Tsaozhou. Sun Chuanfang had basically gambled a significant part of his forces. He knew very well that if the NRA reconciled and coordinated properly, his beachhead would easily be dislodged, but he was gambling they would take a lot of time to reorganize. On August 30th, Tan Yenkai send a message to Wang Jingwei and Tang Shengchih from Nanking asking for their help. Specifically he wanted them to launch an offensive into Anhui from Wuhan to divert NPA forces. With Chiang Kai-Shek gone, it seemed the Wuhan leaders were more willing now, so they unleashed an offensive towards Hofei in Anhui. The Wuhan NRA sought to out flank the NPA along the Tianjing-Pukou railway line. Further to the north, Feng Yuxiang's Guominjun's forces captured Tsaozhou, 70 miles from said railway. From the direction of Shanghai, Ho Yingqin's 1st NRA army began and advance, converging on the eastern sector of Sun Chuanfangs beachhead. Feng Yuxiang had not been the only other faction to come out of the woodwork to aid the NRA. When Feng Yuxiang entered the fray he also purged his Guominjun of communists, crippling the Wuhan government's plans to advance north. Tang Shungchih's drive north had seen many of Wu Peifu's forces defect over to him. Thus Wu Peifu took the opportunity when Tang Shungchih went back to Wuhan to escape with his remaining forces into Sichuan. From there he announced his retirement. It was a bitter end for the Jade Marshall The turtle warlord of Shanxi, Yan Xishan agreed to align himself with the NRA. This saw his 100,000 strong army join the war and apply pressure to the NPA. The coordinated efforts against Sun Chuanfang began to show results immediately. The NRA were drawing upon reinforcements as far as Hangzhou, tightening a noose around Sun Chuanfangs beachhead. The NRA navy also disaptched the gunboats Zhuzhen and the Zhudung, preventing Sun Chuanfang from shipping men or materials over the Yangtze. Fighting their way through the enemy perimeter, the 7th NRA army recaptured Lungtan and her railway station for a second time during the night of the 30th. During said night, Sun Chuanfangs had gathered nearly 40,000 troops for a predawn counterattack. The counterattack saw his men fighting with their back up against the river with little to no chance of evacuation because of the NRA gunboats. Their only hope was to recapture a defensible position, perhaps upon some of the nearby hills, to hunker down and hope for reinforcement or rescue. The counterattack was vicious, the NPA forces were basically a trapped but savage animal. Their counterattacks were so fierce, the NRA realized that by defending the lower Yangtze and attacking Lungtan, they might lose control over the delta. They could very well be pushed up the mountainous regions further south. On the 31st the 1st NRA army defending the railway station was dislodged under heavy fire. General Ho Yingqin personally ran along the line wielding his pistol, shouting if the NPA overran them now, he would shoot himself. Sun Chuanfang then looked on in horror as his forces momentum began to break and his entire army south of the Yangtze was being battered. His entire army and dream of retaking his 5 provinces, let alone Shanghai was falling apart. His 40,000 troops were cut off, they had no escape route, their flanks were surrounded, his river craft were all sinking to the bottom of the Yangtze. He alongside his personal guards managed to escape, but nearly his entire army was left behind. The NRA ended up accepting the surrender of a colossal 30,000 troops, including 10 commanders of brigades, regiments and divisions; 30 heavy artillery pieces and 35,000 rifles. Perhaps 10,000 of Sun Chuanfangs men had been killed in the 6 day bloodbath, only a mere thousand managed to escape to rejoin his 10,000 man strong rearguard along the north bank. Where Sun Chuanfang had once fielded 11 divisions and 6 mixed brigades, now remained 3 divisions with a few mixed brigades. It was a hard won victory for the NRA, they recorded suffering nearly 10,000 casualties, of which 500 were from the 5th Whampoa Academy class who graduated in July of 1926. Despite the severe defeat, the NPA had still re-surged and the KMT were still quite divided. Following Sun Chuanfangs defeat, his decimated troops limped back north onto trains bound for Shandong. Had the NRA been better coordinated they could have pursued the enemy and managed to take some territory within the north china plain up the yellow river. A NRA vanguard did advance to Pukou, but was forced to pause as more infighting broke out between the Wuhan and Nanking governments. On September 2nd, Li Zongren and Ho Yingqin had their troops ready to cross over the Yangtze but awaited instructions from their leaders. Wang Jingwei led a group of Wuhans leadership over to Shanghai to discuss reunifying the KMT. Meanwhile Zhang Zuolins had dispatched a naval force led by Admiral Po Hai who bombarded Shanghai's Woosung docks providing ample incentives for the KMT to get their shit together quicker. On September 7th the KMT held meetings as the NRA began recrossing the Yangtze anxious about the political decisions being made down south. The NRA forces landed at 4 point along the northern banks and would divide into 3 columns for an offensive. The right column advanced between the Grand Canal and Yellow Sea; the middle column north along the railway and the left remained more stationary in Anhui just incase the Wuhan 25,000 man strong NRA force of Tang Shengchih should attack them. Meanwhile down south the KMT came to a temporary coalition, known as the “September Government”. On the 14th the meetings in Shanghai had progressed far enough that the delegates elected to expand them officially into a plenary session for the KMT's 4th national assembly at Nanking. The guys strongly backing the new coalition were the Guangxi Clique generals Li Zongren and Bai Chongxi and the Wuhan officials Sun Fo and Tan Yenkai. Now Li Zongren and Bai Chongxi held leverage over the Wuhan officials as their troops were literally in the vicinity ofNanking. Wang Jingwei was hundreds of miles away from his commander in chief Tang Shengchih, thus he refused to recognize Nanking as the seat of the KMT government. Wang Jingwei also accused Sun Fo and Tan Yenkai of betraying Wuhan's government and refused to travel with the others to Nanking. Wang Jingwei departed Shanghai on September 13th heading for Jiangxi. Over at Nanking on the 15th, 13 KMT officials representing the control committee and military council met as a collective body to officially create the coalition government. On the 19th the gathering had agreed on specific compromises; the first was an agreement that Dr Sun Yat-Sen's three principles was still their doctrine; the second was to adhere to the KMT authority; third to oppose any CCP interference; and fourth to complete the northern expedition to reunify China. Looking at these terms it would seem they were broad enough to please all within the KMT. However the new coalition government did not have two of the largest KMT leaders, Wang Jingwei and Chiang Kai-Shek. Despite this the KMT had grown to several million members by this point. Estimates are rough but perhaps in 1926 they were 500,000 and by the end of the northern expedition would be 5 million. Now the new september government faced a plethora of enemies, the first being Tang Shengchich up in the Yangtze valley; the second being the NPA in north china and the third being the CCP insurgents all around them. Although purged the CCP had managed to goad some of Wuhan's NRA over to their new stronghold in Nanchang. Again we will come back to the Chinese civil war a little after the warlord era stuff and I will talk about all the long march, etc. They would go on to stage a coup in early august aimed at taking control over Jiangxi. This was known as the Nanchang uprising and it lasted from august 1st to the 4th. It was followed up by armed uprising in Jiangxi, Fujian and Guangdong. Yet these all failed and the CCP resolved to maintain their existence through underground operations. The CCP gradually centralized itself, tightened discipline amongst the ranks and performed their own little purges. To suppress the CCP menace, on August 10th before his forced retirement, Chiang Kai-Shek had ordered Li Zongren to carry out operations out of Guangdong into the CCP held areas in Hunan and Jiangxi. By the 12th Li Zongren's subordinate Zhang Fakuei also aided the anti-CCP campaign there. As for Tang Shengchih, like Wang Jingwei he too resisted joining the September government. In fact he grabbed a large portion of the Wuhan KMT and NRA and went back to being a warlord. Basically Tang Shengchih saw an opportunity and grabbed it. On August 21st he pushed the Nanking NRA forces of Wang Pu and Xia Touyin out of Anking over in Anhui and from there he advanced downriver along the south bank taking Wuhu on September 6th. After taking Wuhu, Tang Shungchih loosely held control over Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi and the heartland of Anhui, since the Wuhan government had dissolved. He had a few big Generals under his command such as Ho Chen now leading the 35th army along the Yangtze's north bank and Li Xing leading the 36th army on the south bank near Wuhu. Tang Shungchih had profited heavily from Feng Yuxiang's entry into the war. When Feng Yuxiang did so, Tang Shungchih dispatched forces into southern Honan to capture the Wusheng pass. Along the NRA's western flank, Tang Shungchih's hostile presence greatly hampered their ability to focus north. Thus September saw the northern expedition moving at a crawling pace. Many units shifted over to quell what was seen as Tang Shungchih's rebellion, while the central NRA forces maintained a bridgehead at Pukou against the NPA. The NRA vanguard advanced 25 miles north to Chuxian. On October 15th the NRA began to move their forces up the banks of the Yangtze against Tang Shungchih. The armies were led by Li Zongren and Chen Tiaoyuan on the north bank and Cheng Chen with Yue Kaixin on the south bank. Chu Peiteh's 3rd army threatened Tang Shungchih around the Hunan-Jiangxi border. From the south Li Jishen advanced his troops along the Guangdong border and would attack southern Hunan in early November. Basically it was a large encirclement maneuver. The main fighting against Tang Shungchih would occur along the Yangtze as Nanking tossed forces upstream. The forces of Tang Shunchih lost a war of attrition as the NRA surrounded them, cutting off their lines of communication and supply. Tang Shungchih knew he would eventually be decisively defeated and most likely captured. Thus Tang Shungchih secretly got aboard a Japanese steamship on November 12th and went into exile in Japan. The NRA spent some more time clearing up their western flank until they finally could refocus their efforts against the NPA in the north. Ever since September, the bridgehead situation across the Yangtze remained fairly static. Now again the NRA marched north and quickly, advancing 30 miles while they captured Mingkuang in Anhui on November 9th, followed by Fengyang on the 14th and assaulted the capital of Bengbu on the 16th. Their offensive was concentrated along the Tianjing-Pukou railway, but the NRA were avoided frontal attacks against said line as it was heavily fortified by railroad artillery. Zhang Zongchang's armored train specialization was heavily paying off for the NPA. To combat this the NRA adopted sweeping tactics to try and out flank the NPA, striking into the rail communications in their rear. Meanwhile the warlord armies who had acquired skills in scouring the countryside to steal livestock, foodstuff and coolies. But the peasants by this point had acquired their own skills, particularly the age old practice of hiding their produce and vanishing before warlord gangs showed up. The NPA forces along their most southern fronts were beginning to really suffer because of this. Of course word had spread far and wide about the NRA's remarkable practice of paying for what they needed, thus the peasants were heavily aiding them. Sun Chuanfang launched a counterattack at Bengbu, trying to isolate the city from the NRA's southern lines of communication. However his counterattack failed horribly and he was yet again forced to withdraw his exhausted and demoralized men north, now above the strategic Huai river valley. The NRA were quick on their heels, continuously outflanking and circled them. In November as Kuchen fell, Sun Chuanfangs forces found themselves shoved into the northernmost portion of Jiangsu with their backs against some rugged hills. Further north, the Dogmeat General stood ready with 150,000 Shandong soldiers. Although allied with Sun Chuanfang, they were still bitter rivals. Zhang Zongchang chose to only collaborate with Sun Chuanfang when under attack by the NRA. Sun Chuanfang certainly had a difficult time coexisted with Zhang Zongchang in Shandong. To the northwest, over the summer as the NRA had pulled back south during the battle of Lungtan, Feng Yuxiang proved a great diversion for the NPA forces when he attacked Honan. Feng Yuxiang had been promised by Chiang Kai-Shek a ton of money and vital war materials, thus he remained loyal to Nanking after the generalissimo's departure. General Ho Yingqin's 1st Army, the 9th army, Xia Touyins new 10th army and Ho Yaozu's 14th army were advancing towards Xuzhou in Jiangsu. 40 miles west, Po Wenwei's 33rd army was advancing north to join up with Feng Yuxiang to assault the western approaches to Xuzhou. On December 12th the NPA tossed a counter attack down the rail way from Xuzhou. The force consisted of 60,000 men under Zhang Zongchang and 10,000 from Sun Chuanfang. These two guys working together was a recipe for disaster. Zhang Zongchangs white russian armored trains were the spearhead, supported by an air squadron also flown by white russians, some Japanese, French and Chinese pilots. The aircraft strafed NRA positions, proving themselves deadly and something for which the NRA had no answer to. Zhang Zuolin had greatly expanded the Fengtian army's capabilities during the Anti-Fengtian war. Though not enormous in number, the Fengtian held a decent airforce, had quite a few Renault tanks, but most importantly had the vast numerical superiority in heavy artillery and men. By December the 14 however the NPA counterattack began to ground to a halt, literally after 2 days of combat. The NRA then turned up the pressure from the west and south, erecting a siege against Xuzhou. The city would fall on the 16th as Sun Chuanfangs entire front along the east-west Lunghai railway collapsed. This inturn forced the NPA to perform a hasty retreat over the border hills into Shandong, where they would dig in for the winter months. Do not forget the NRA consisted almost entirely of southern chinese, who historically have never done well in winter, especially against northern Chinese. The NPA understood this advantage and would make the best possible of it. The Zhang Zongchang Sun Chuanfang joint operation was an abysmal failure, however the unity in the new KMT government had its own problems. Just as soon as the NRA had dealt with Tang Shengchih, a disgruntled element of the NRA decided to break off. The September government was lacking stability, honestly they lacked a generalissimo. Neither Wang Jingwei or Chiang Kai-Shek were present, the only two men who had real popularity amongst the masses. The only form of leadership now was loosely held by the Guangxi generals at Nanking. Meanwhile Wang Jingwei had angrily moved back over to Guangdong where he began winning over some of the generals in Guangzhou. He was rebuilding a powerbase, seeking to recapture the KMT revolution. In dire need of support, Wang Jingwei became a lot more flexible with his politics. His image had already been stained by communism because of his former ties to the CCP and Soviet Union. He began publicly telling people in March that he had been naive and that Chen Duxiu had seduced him with talk of CCP cooperation without conditions, but in fact it was Chiang Kai-Shek that was correct about the communists. Wang Jingwei was now colluding with Zhang Fakuei who retained some troops that had fought the communists in Jiangxi and Guangdong. There was also Xue Yue's division and Li Fulin's 5th army, Guangxi natives. However Wang Jingwei had not been the only one trying to build a powerbase in Guangdong, so did the CCP. Zhang Fakuei's primary job was to eliminate the pervading influence of the CCP in Guangzhou, they had never stopped creating mass organizations. Zhang Fakuei's troops continuously rounded them up and kept an eye on the Soviet consulate at all times. The KMT were very well aware, most of the time it was the Soviets pulling the strings, ordering CCP members around. During November, the CCP planned to seize Guangdong as their new revolutionary base. Through the Soviet consulate, Joseph Stalin sent orders in mid November, to step up armed activism throughout China. This would start with creating and controlling labor and peasant associations. The CCP played upon the low standard of living and economic instability of warlord era China, hoping to appeal to the masses for a Soviet communist style system rather than what the KMT proposed. Here is a taste of some of the slogans they wrote on placards and proclaimed in major city centers: Raise the Soldiers' Pay to 20 Silver Dollars! Food for the Workers! Land to the Tillers! Knock Down the KMT and the Warlords! Kill All the Country Bullies and the Evil Landlords! Confiscate the Capitalists' Homes and Give Them to the Rebel Masses! All Authority to the Workers, Peasants, and Soldiers! At one point Zhang Fakuei moved his anti-communist operations over to Hong Kong as they were seeing major strikes. By late november some Red Militia, including “dare-to-die” units were being gathered by the CCP. In December, just as Wang Jingwei thought he was grasping at becoming politically relevant again, Guangdong fell into chaos. During early December a large number of strikes sprang up, especially within Guangzhou. Then the CCP attempted a coup. The ringleaders were Zhang Tailei, the ex leader of the Hong Kong Strikers and Su Zhaocheng, the ex minister of labor at Wuhan. They led a Red Militia into the streets of Guangzhou, during the early hours of December 11th. The communists began by first seducing members of Zhang Fakuei's army. When the morning light came up, their dare-to-die units and armed workers stormed police stations, grabbing their rifles, machine guns and armored cars. They also took city buses and trucks to spread red militia throughout the city who quickly stormed KMT governmental buildings, the central bank with its large silver reserves and barracks for more arms. To suppress resistance the CCP began executing officers during the street fighting, marked and burnt down homes of KMT officials. Most of the communists were rural peasants, hoping their actions would jolt the urban workers to join them. Charging down hills of Guangdong, remnants of the Red Army that had been fighting and retreating after the Nanchang uprising entered Guangzhou under Yue Tings leaderships. However bloody and successful the capture of Guangzhou made have been, it was certainly short lived. Outside Guangzhou, Zhang Fakuei, supported by Li Fulin's 5th NRA army, some river gunboats and those loyal to the KMT within the city outmanned and outgunned the communists. Hammer and sickle flags were torn down by December 14th after only 4 days of communist takeover. The anti communist bloodbath that followed, rinsed clean even the Soviet collaborators from the consulate. Wang Jingwei professed to all he alongside his KMT leftist colleagues were guiltless of the CCP coup. A few days prior to the uprising at the plenary session preparing for the KMT 4ths congress set for January, Wang Jingwei surprised all by calling for Chiang Kai-SHek to be invited back to his post as Commander in Chief. The Chiang Kai-Shek loyalists sprang on the issue. Chiang Kai-Shek added his voice into the scene by calling for a cessation of any relations with Moscow, Nanking implemented that straight away, closing all the Soviet consulates within KMT territories and kicking the Soviet diplomats out. Now it seems Wang Jingwei was desperate to get back into the fold, so he was trying to play for a position as the head of the civilian KMT government while Chiang Kai-SHek controlled the military. However the Guangzhou uprising stained him with further communist suspicion. Yet again it seemed the curtains were falling down upon Wang Jingwei. On December the 17th he boarded a steamer bound for France. His ship would stop at Hong Kong, but he did not bother to step ashore. Like the Soviets, he was being kicked out of China, again. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. The rivalry between the Wuhan and Nanking KMT governments had come to an end. A new September government unified the KMT, however they lacked any real leadership in the forms of Wang Jingwei or Chiang Kai-Shek. The Guangxi clique generals were trying to keep things together, but it simply was not the same. At some point someone would have to become generalissimo again.
Last time we spoke about the capture of Shanghai and Nanking. By early 1927, the NRA concentrated around Sungchiang, feigning a major assault on Shanghai while secretly preparing to attack Nanking. Capturing Nanking would isolate Sun Chuanfang's forces. By February, Sun's battered armies awaited reinforcements, while the KMT incited disorder in Shanghai. The city's large workforce, influenced by the CCP, opposed Sun's alliance with northerners and foreign powers. On February 19th, the CCP launched a general strike, which was violently suppressed by Sun's forces, leading to hundreds of deaths. Despite the failed uprising, the NRA advanced, exploiting defections within Sun's ranks. By March, NRA forces captured key positions, closing in on Nanking and Shanghai. Amidst this, Chiang Kai-Shek faced internal strife with the CCP and KMT leftists, leading to disunity in the First United Front. The Wuhan faction undermined Chiang's authority, further complicating the Northern Expedition. By late March, the NRA seized Shanghai, while ongoing conflicts hinted at a potential collapse of the First United Front. #114 The Northern Expedition Part 5: Collapse of the First United Front Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. Last we left off, Chiang Kai-Shek was basically at war with this new CCP run cabal in Wuhan. They were taking away his authority one notch at a time. To counter the communist Wuhan cabal, Chiang Kai-SHek appealed to the center and right wingers in the KMT. Before the capture of Shanghai a anti-communist group with members such as Wu Chihui, Niu Yungchen and Yang Quan who had headquarters within the city had been investigating how the CCP was subverting the KMT authority. On March 6th, they began questioning the CCP leader Chen Duxiu and his Shanghai based subordinate Lo Yinung what exactly the intentions of the CCP were. Chen Duxiu said they would turn China communist, but it would take more than 20 years and thus cooperation with the KMT was a necessity. After it was found out the CCP had fomented some worker attacks upon areas in Shanghai, this produced anti KMT demonstrations along the Nanking road. Chiang Kai-Shek was gaining more loyal followers to his side as the anti-communism grew amongst the KMT members. When Shanghai was taken, Chiang Kai-Shek sent letters to members of the Wuhan cabal that he considered not under the influence of the CCP that they should come to Shanghai. On March 24th, Chiang Kai-Shek addressed a letter sent to Tan Yenkai at Wuhan “Please forward this letter to the National Government. Shanghai and Nanking have been occupied and there is much work to be done here. I hope committee member T'an and Ministers Sun [Fo] and Soong and Ch'en [Eugene] will come to Shanghai to handle affairs here so I can devote my attention to military matters” Yet he neglected to mention the insubordination running through the NRA ranks and the ongoing Nanking incident that was occurring that very day. Most of the men who received letters at Wuhan had a lot of grievances against the CCP, particularly because they felt betrayed. This of course was because initially the CCP had colluded with the left wing KMT faction, led by Wang Jingwei. But he and the rest of the left wing had been left in the dust as the CCP simply took charge. By the end of March the civil war between Wuhan and Chiang Kai-Shek was becoming more and more visible. Both Wuhan and Shanghai began using the press to attack another. From Wuhan Borodin was accusing Shanghai of being reactionaries and Shanghai was calling into question how the communist influence emanating from Wuhan could be put to an end. The Wuhan cabal then began dismissing officers loyal to Chiang Kai-Shek and turning military authority to the new Wuhan military council. Shanghai had their own cabal in the form of committees who retaliated against Wuhan. This saw a sort of battle over Jiangxi as both cabals tried to dismiss each other's favored officers. Yet the CCP within Shanghai began organizing a provisional municipal government and appointing CCP members to key positions. Upon discovering this new attack, Chiang Kai-Shek labeled the CCP committees as the enemy of the KMT and not to be recognized by the political party nor the NRA. April brought violence to the situation. In Shanghai the CCP used its new found cabal there to undermine Chiang Kai-Shek's regime. Chiang Kai-Shek responded by placing a curfew over the city and declaring publicly he would suppress all irregular movements. Word spread Chiang Kai-Shek had invited a large group of KMT civil and military leaders from Guangzhou to Shanghai where they were forming plans to counter the CCP threat in the two cities. Then word came that the CCP were seizing merchants in Wuhan and ransoming them and taking their businesses. In Shanghai non-communist workers began complaining that they were being persecuted and even physically beaten by CCP unions. So the KMT unions began gathering non-communist workers and created a labor organization with the intent of completely replacing the communist labor union at Shanghai. Thus if we see this all as a war, one front of it because the labor front. From there general strikes broke out at Shanghai and Hangzhou, on the part of the CCP to try and oust Chiang Kai-Shek. The KMT unions retaliated by burning down the CCP union HQ's in Hangzhou and Ningpo. After this the Wuhan joint council declared recent elections in Guangzhou to be illegal on the basis they had already been ordered to disband and reorganize. In response Guangzhou's government arrested agents that had been sent by Wuhan and refused to comply with Wuhans orders. Chiang Kai-Shek now was deeply concerned about the stagnating northern expedition. Each day the NRA delayed, the NPA grew larger and more coordinated. Chiang Kai-Shek still hoped to convince key KMT leaders to turn away from the CCP. To this purpose, in March, Chiang Kai-Shek sent his close colleague Zhang Jingjiang to find Wang Jingwei and ask him to come back to China. Zhang Jingjiang wrote to Wang Jingwei, notifying him the CCP were trying to take over the entire movement and that they needed him to return from Europe. Wang Jingwei returned to Shanghai by April 1st as Chiang Kai-Shek notified his agents “Comrade Wang has returned and I have had a serious conference with him about the Party and the country. From now on he will be responsible for the Party as well as political affairs. I will devote my attention to military operations. The military and civil administration, finance and diplomacy will all be under Wang and be consolidated in the central government. My armies and I will obey unanimously. Military authority and operation orders, however, I will direct as before. Wang has indicated that he thinks there should be no intra-Party conflict until the military operation has been completed and that everyone should support the C-in-C until a discussion of the matters involved can be held”. Can you say what a 180? Wang Jingwei did not trust Chiang Kai-Shek at all, and I am sure the feeling was mutual. These two guys after all had been rivals fighting for leadership over the movement. One crucial problem for Wang Jingwei, was the fact he was the leader of the leftists in the movement and only really had power when combined with the CCP. Now when Wang Jingwei came back home, he took a route going through Moscow and Vladivostok. Borodin had telegraphed him from Wuhan, telling him the CCP did not want to displace the KMT nor sought to create a communist China. Wang Jingwei stated later on that he came back to China hoping to bring the Wuhan faction back into the fold. On April the 15th Wang Jingwei took up his new position. Chiang Kai-Shek pushed Wang Jingwei to call for an all KMT gathering at Nanking to purge the CCP from the ranks. However at that time, the northern expedition had units advancing against Honan and quite a few of them had CCP officers. Wang Jingwei stated if they purged now it would threaten said units. Thus the second week of April saw an increase in violence between the two groups. Riots broke out in Guangzhou, Zhejiang and Jiangsu between unions leaving hundreds dead and wounded. The military forces at Shanghai began quelling armed workers as Chiang Kai-Shek called upon the communist unions to disband the near 5000 armed worker militias or else “they would be regarded as a conspiratorial organization … not to be permitted to exist.” On April 6th, Chiang Kai-Shek ordered some troops to raid and close down the CCP's political department in Shanghai led by Kuo Mojo. On the same day, Zhang Zuolin raided the Soviet embassy at Beijing and the Shanghai and Tianjin international concession police raided their Soviet consulates. All of the evidence found was handed over to the KMT at Shanghai. Chiang Kai-Shek hoped to use the information to prove the CCP were subverting the KMT and bring about a purge. In early April the Shanghai Control Committee urged Chiang Kai-Shek to nip the bud of what looked like a CCP uprising. Many large meetings amongst the top KMT leaders followed and all came to the conclusion the CCP was trying to seize leadership over the movement and suppress the KMT. Now I should mention by this point, this is all heavily contested. Current day CCP historians would paint a picture that Chiang Kai-Shek was the aggressor, whereas Taiwanese historians would say the opposite. What is known and I think I have fairly portrayed it, is that a sort of civil war emerged in the First United Front. Both sides from the beginning had goals they wanted to achieve at the cost to the other side. Its really one of those “who pulled the trigger first moments”. For quite some time the Chinese and foreign press had covered the battle between the CCP and Chiang Kai-Shek. During the first two weeks of april multiple warnings had been sent by both sides openly that action would be taken. On April 11th 5000 armed workers led by the CCP were warned military response was imminent. The armed workers currently picketing were warned and their CCP leadership put out alerts in the major suburbs of Zhapei, Putung, Woosung and south shanghai. While the KMT prepared a purge against the CCP in Shanghai, the NPA launched a counteroffensive in northern Jiangsu. This would see the NRA face a succession of defeats through april. From April 3rd to the 11th the NRA fell back 100 miles through Jiangsu and Anhui, closing in towards the Yangtze. On April 5th Wang Jingwei had landed in Shanghai, invited by Chiang Kai-Shek, however he quickly met in secrecy with Chen Duxiu. After their meeting they both agreed to issue a joint declaration re-affirming the cooperation between the left KMT and CCP. Wang Jingwei departed for Wuhan on the 6th and it was at this point Chiang Kai-Shek met up with his old buddy Du Yuesheng, the leader of the Green Gang. They formed a rival union to face the CCP unions in Shanghai. On the 9th, Chiang Kai-Shek declared martial law in Shanghai as the Central Control Commission proclaimed “party protection and national salvation”, denouncing the Wuhan CCP backed government. On the 11th Chiang Kai-Shek secretly issued orders to all the provinces under NRA control to purge communists from the KMT. At dawn on the 12th Green Gang Members began to assault district offices controlled by the CCP unions in places like Zhabei, Pudong and Nanshi. Using the martial law decree, Chiang Kai-Shek unleashed the 26th army upon the city who quickly rounded up, disarmed and fought armed worker militias. 300 people were killed and wounded as the CCP unions tried to organize a resistance. On the 13th they denounced Chiang Kai-Shek's actions as thousands of workers demonstrated in front of the 26th army HQ. The soldiers there opened fire upon the demonstrators killing perhaps 100 or so people and wounding many more. Chiang Kai-Shek then dissolved the provincial government of Shanghai, the CCP backed labor unions and any organization with ties to the CCP. He then reorganized a network of new unions, allied to his faction of the KMT and had Du Yuesheng manage said operation. Some sources claim over 1000 CCP members and left wing supporters were arrested, 300 were executed and more than 5000 went missing. As you can imagine that figure out 5000 is also claimed by many to be 5000 dead communists. Others claim the number could have been as high as 10,000. The entire incident became known as the Shanghai Massacre. Now this event effectively ended the First United Front and ushered in the Chinese Civil War. However because of how I have been tackling the warlord Era, I'd prefer to put the civil war on the backburner. We most certainly will come back to it. After the break our their alliance, the Wuhan government still stood, but now Chiang Kai-Shek formed a separate government at Nanking. It came to no surprise when Wang Jingwei condemned Chiang Kai-Shek for the purges and became the leader of the rival Wuhan government. This formally split the KMT right-left wings and their associated NRA forces. To celebrate the dire situation of the revolutionaries, Zhang Zuolin began artillery bombarding Nanjing from across the Yangtze. Now saw a rather chaotic situation where two groups of NRA would both continue separate northern expeditions, completely uncoordinated against a far larger NPA foe. Now another aspect of all of this, perhaps less sexy to say, was the financial disparity between the CCP and KMT. Shanghai was a reliable fiscal base, a repository of Chinese capital whose tax revenues far surpassed that of Wuhan. Especially since Wuhan was seeing unbelievable worker strikes, pushed by the CCP, her economy was free falling. Wuhans total annual revenues from affiliated provinces had shrunk to a fourth of that of Shanghai. Over at Guangzhou the Central Bank continued to hold the majority of the KMT hard currency and her silver reserves. Wuhan had been printing money like crazy, devaluing it, something a Canadian like I, knows a lot about cough cough. The KMT finance minister T.V Soong had moved to Wuhan in the beginning, but was quickly frustrated with the situation and fled for Shanghai as soon as the city was captured. Chiang Kai-Shek managed to win over the bankers and leading businessmen, which was not hard given his opponent was communism. When violence broke out at Nanking against the foreign community, Chiang Kai-Shek was between a rock and a hard place. He needed to avoid any confrontation with the foreign powers, but his KMT base and the people of China wanted to break the chains of foreign imperialism. Thus he made some speeches stating “the objective of the national revolution is to seek international equality…. If a nation treats China fairly, China will return friendship.…as long as foreign troops and warships undertake to protest … we will not be responsible…. Incidents are unavoidable in a revolution.” Chiang Kai-Shek walked a tightrope with the foreign powers. On one hand he constantly was negotiating with them to return concessions, but he always made sure to thwart any rationales for them to militarily intervene. Whereas at Wuhan they found themselves suffering from large scale unemployment, a crumbling economy, political tensions, revenues disappearing and quite a lot of hostility from the foreign powers, Shanghai looked a hell of a lot more stable in all said categories. Borodin watched as the Wuhan regime was collapsing and began advising the CCP to ease up with labor and peasant movements to allow the economy to recover. The Wuhan government had been dealt many terrible blows, but was still standing. Come May of 1927, Wuhan began massing their troops in an attempt to showcase to the movement they could continue the northern expedition. They wanted their troops to be the first ones in North China, hopefully that would win over more support. The timing of Wuhans offensive into Honan just so happened to coincide with some of Wu Peifu's forces in Honan defecting. The commander in chief of the Wuhan forces, Tang Shengchih then performed their first offensive serving Wu Peifu a defeat near Chumatien. Tang Shengchih then advanced north, meeting defensive lines defended by Zhang Xueliang, the son of Zhang Zuolin. Within the center of this line was the town of Xiping, where the Beijing-Hankou railway crossed a formidable river. The Wuhan forces pushed Zhang Xueliang further back after 3 days of battle, until he withdrew north of Yencheng on May 15th. Zhang Xueliang again took up a defensive line along a river. He placed heavy artillery behind fortified positions and tried to hold out against the incoming NRA forces. The NRA advanced towards the river and went downstream from Yencheng, threatening to out flank Zhang Xueliang and his rearway station to his rear. Yet the Wuhan forces were not the only ones in the fight, for the Old Christian warlord, Feng Yuxiang unleashed his army from Shaanxi. Feng Yuxiang came out of the Wei River valley with his Guominjun and passed through the Tungkuan pass on May 6th. He first captured Kuanyintang, a mountain gateway leading to Luoyang. After taking Luoyang on May 28th, Feng Yuxiang was 70 miles from Chengzhou, which held the Beijing-Hankou railroad bridgehead along the Yellow River. Zhang Xueliang responded to the new threat to his rear by withdrawing further north. When Zheng Xueliang took up a position north of the Yellow River he now had a secure and shortened railway supply line, thus he could face a two front war against Wuhan and the Guominjun. Advancing quickly across northern Honan, Feng Yuxiang's cavalry vanguard beat Wuhan's NRA forces to Chengzhou and Kaifeng by late May. From there Feng Yuxiang's forces straddled the Lunghai Railway. Meanwhile on May 10th, Chiang Kai-Shek's 1st and 6th NRA armies crossed the Yangtze into Anhui. On the 16th, Li Zongren advanced into western Anhui to attack Hefei. By the 20th Li Zngren captured Bengbu, while Chiang Kai-Shek unleashed a 4-pronged offensive through Jiangsu to reach Shandong. He Yingqin led the 1st NRA army to capture Haizhou by late may. On the 28th Li Zongren took Xuzhou. With the Beijing-Hankou railway under NRA and Guminjun control, the line of communication extended to all 3 forces. Feng Yuxiang began receiving offers from both Wuhan and Nanking at this point. Feng Yuxiang first met with Wang Jingwei and Tang Shengzhi at Zhengzhou on June 10th, before traveling to Xuzhou on the 19th to meet Chiang Kai-Shek. Both needed his help if they hoped to take North China. Feng Yuxiang of course was entirely dependent on the Soviet Union, so it seemed clear Wuhan was more in line for him. However he really needed to pick a faction that could satisfy his interests. For example, which revolutionary movement would survive its little civil war? What if Chiang Kai-Shek won over more of the Wuhan leadership and defeated the CCP cabal there? Could the Wuhan government actually challenge Chiang Kai-Shek when he held all the resource rich territories? Feng Yuxiang looked upon Wuhan's numerous economic and political issues. He also saw how aggressive their CCP peasant unions were in Hunan, constantly confiscating land. He looked at Nanking, it had enormous resources, hell Nanking promised him 2.5 million dollars a month to maintain his Guominjun, plus military aid and a nice position as chairman over the new provisional government over Honan. Despite Feng Yuxiangs takeover of Honan's lucrative Kungxien Arsenal within the Lo Valley, he had a very poor industrial foundation. He did not really have much Shaanxi personnel equipped to make the arsenal shine so to say, so he would be dependent on external aid for sometime. His aid from the Soviets in the north was quite vulnerable. The aid had to be transported over an incredibly long distance overland from the north, any intelligent warlord could cut this. Feng Yuxiang started to calculate which one would be more profitable: stick with the Soviet aid, thus join Wuhan or break with the Soviets for Nanking. Now something else occurred that would have dire consequences for the Wuhan regime. On June 1st, Joseph Stalin sent a secret telegram to Borodin and his associate M.N Roy with orders for the Wuhan government. Without consulting Borodin, M.N Roy revealed the telegram to Wang Jingwei and it held the following instructions. Insistence that every effort be made for land to be occupied by the Communist Party. However, actions that are too aggressive should be avoided, and officials and soldiers' lands should be exempted. Make concessions to artisans, merchants and small landlords. Mobilize 20,000 communists and 50,000 revolutionary workers and farmers to raise an army. Recruit new leaders from the workers and farmers of the lower stratum to join KMT so as to alter the composition of the party. Expel all those of "old mindsets". Establish a revolutionary military court headed by well-known party officials and non-communists, to punish reactionary officials Wang Jingwei believed following these instructions would be the death of the Wuhan government, but continued to negotiate with the soviets, because hell he had little choice when they were providing so much needed assistance. Wang Jingwei demanded the Soviets provide 15 million roubles in aid, but the Soviets only agreed to 2 million. This prompted a angry Wang Jingwei to threaten to send Borodin back to Moscow. The event became known as the “may instructions” and it compelle Wang Jingwei to break off from the USSR. However even doing so, he certainly was not joining Chiang Kai-Shek. In a vain effort to counter the CCP and Chiang Kai-Shek, Wang Jingwei sought Feng Yuxiangs help. Without informing his CCP colleagues, Wang Jingwei dispatched Deng Yanda to meet with Feng Yuxiang at Zhengzhou, offering every possible concession he could think of. Wang Jingwei had no idea Feng Yuxiang was in talks with Chiang Kai-Shek. Now Wang Jingwei was not the only one unhappy with the Soviet instructions, even Chen Duxiu would go on the record to say he did not think they fit the reality in China and telegram moscow it would be nearly impossible to implement them. The Soviets were very displeased with the situation in China, particularly that the CCP-KMT union had more or less collapsed. By late June the Soviets were considering breaking ties with the Wuhan government. This prompted a panicked Chen Duxiu and Borodin to try and quell radicals within the Wuhan clique to try and retain the small united front between the Leftist KMT and CCP. They frantically told workers and peasant unions to stop activity for a while just so things could stabilize. However ironically the Soviets saw all of this as opportunism and recalled Borodin and by early July were pulling out of the KMT deal. Needless to say, Feng Yuxiang chose to ally himself to Chiang Kai-Shek. He did so by sending a joint telegram in late June to Wang Jingwei telling him and demanding the Wuhan government expel all its soviet advisors and purge itself of communists so they could all together continue the northern expedition. While this was going on, Tang Shengchih's forces were being mauled by heavy artillery in north china. Tang Shengchih was wounded badly, and believing Feng Yuxiang would not help them out, Wang Jingwei withdrew the forces back over to Hubei, Hunan and Jiangxi. After taking some time to recover, Tang Shengchih advanced his forces out of Wuhan through Jiangxi to face Nankings forces near Anking in Anhui. Chiang Kai-Shek had his forces respond to the threat defensively. On July 13th Chiang Kai-Shek pulled his front line forces trying to enter Shandong back. Meanwhile the civilian population of Wuhan were no longer supporting the government. Tang Shengchih began to dig in around Anking threatening Nanking. When Chiang Kai-Shek moved his frontline units near Shandong south to defend against Tang Shengchih the NPA began to claim lost territory. In early July the NPA recaptured Tengxien, Lincheng, Tsaochuang and the Tianjin-Pukou railway. Despite losing Honan in June, the NPA now enjoyed a shorted logistical line and front, allowing them to deploy their heavy artillery in concentration while Nanking was fighting a two front war. The NRA forces were being battered by the NPA. In the face of mounting losses, both the Wuhan and Nanking governments began negotiations. Wang Jingwei had procrastinated as long as he possibly could, but Feng Yuxiang was not going to help him, Chiang Kai-Shek was certainly not and the CCP and their Soviet overlords were trying to take over. Thus on July 15th, Wang Jingwei held a KMT meeting and formally published the May Instructions letter while condemning the CCP. He unleashed a purge, though he did so less bloodily compared to what had happened at Shanghai. The Wuhan and Nanking governments met and passed the “policy of uniting the party”, while all communists were kicked out of the KMT and NRA. The Wuhan government sent all their Soviet advisors back to Moscow as Wang Jingwei proclaimed the CCP had ruined the revolution publically. KMT forces loyal to Chiang Kai-Shek took over Wuhan and by July 18th the Wuhan area was cleansed of communists. However Wang Jingwei had made one demand to reunite the KMT, he demanded Chiang Kai-SHek resign from his post as commander in chief and relinquish all other political titles. Chiang Kai-Shek did just that on August 12th, the Generalissimo was no more. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. The First United Front had come to an end, a new Civil War was born. Because of the war between Wuhan and Nanking, the NPA got the upper hand again, reclaiming vast amounts of territory. To reunify the KMT Wang Jingwei demanded Chiang Kai-Shek walk away, and walk he did, what would happen now to the northern expedition?
Last time we spoke about the invasion of Zhejiang. Chiang Kai-Shek kept the momentum going by invading Zhejiang after taking Jiangxi and Fujian. However Sun Chuanfang in desperation ran to an unlikely ally, Zhang Zuolin to form the National Pacification Army. Now the NPA would go to war with the NRA. The NRA also faced internal strife as strikes broke out in Guangzhou and Wuhan. After quelling the worker strikes, the NRA began to concentrate on the Zhejiang campaign performing strategic counter attacks against Sun Chuanfangs offensives. By early 1927 Sun Chuanfang's control over Zhejiang was being undermined by Zhejiang independence movement leaders who joined the KMT to overthrow him. Sun Chuanfang was served disastrous defeats, his armies began to rout with many plundering before they fled north. Those that still continued the fight fled for Shanghai, where Sun Chuanfang prepared to make a last stand to hold the NRA back before Zhejiang fell. #113 The Northern Expedition Part 4: The taking of Shanghai & Nanking Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. The NRA east route army had concentrated around Sungchiang just in front of Shanghai. They made it seem they were preparing for a major assault on the super city, yet up the Yangtze, half of the NRA were secretly preparing an offensive directed against Nanking. If the NRA captured Nanking and its strategic Tianjin-Pukou railway line, Sun Chuanfang's forces south of the Yangtze would be isolated and cut off from reinforcements and supplies. On February 19th of 1927, Sun Chuanfang pulled his battered armies out of Zhejiang as he awaited reinforcements from Zhang Zongchang's Shandong army. Meanwhile the KMT called upon their agents and allies within Shanghai to foment disorder. Going back to November of 1926, KMT and CCP members within Shanghai had been assembling recruits together to strengthen their first united front. Shanghai held a large part of China's modern factory workers, numbering in the several hundred of thousands. They represented a considerable percent of the Shanghai population. Following the formation of the NPA, Shanghai unions began attacking Sun Chuanfang for bringing Shandong mercenaries into Zhejiang and strongly disagreed with his alliance with the northerners. They had real grievances with the northerners, because they had ties to foreign powers like the Empire of Japan. Those in Shanghai sought to break the chains of foreign imperialism and wanted more autonomy. From 1926 onwards many unions, particularly those directed by the CCP organized demonstrations against Sun Chuanfang and the NPA. By February of 1927 the anti-Sun Chuanfang movement really heated up. The National General Labor Union of the CCP had ordered some assassinations to terrorize the Chinese and foreign industrialists. To bring even more Shanghai workers under their influence and hurt Sun Chuanfangs hold over the city the CCP organized a political strike, similar to what had occurred in Hong Kong the year prior. A general strike in Shanghai was planned for February 19th and it would include the foreign concession factories. The strikers had 5 political and 12 economic demands. A major aim of the strike was to seize power through the use of the masses, even against a well armed regime like Sun Chuanfangs. The CCP hoped to direct large crowds of workers against Sun Chuanfang's police stations and garrison posts where they could seize their weapons to arm some workers corps. They had acquired quite a bit of experience during the Hong Kong and Guangzhou strikers when it came to arming workers. However the response of Sun Chuanfangs regime would be vastly different than the KMT in Guangzhou. Sun Chuanfangs garrison commander at Shanghai responded violently and quickly. He dispatched broadsword carrying executioners and soldiers through the city grabbing and beheading any strikers on sight. Heads were placed on lamp posts at street corners and on spikes all around. Its estimated out of perhaps 100,000 to 350,000 workers who striked, the headcount ranged between 100-500. The CCP continued its efforts to attack police stations, but the general strike died out on the third day. In a form of retaliation the Shanghai workers held a mass trial and execution of at least one police officer. A new garrison commander was sent to Sahnghai, Pi Shucheng in an effort to reinforce the city. By the point he showed up the CCP gave up and told the strikers to get back to work to end the bloodshed. What became known as the second shanghai uprising failed to achieve much. Despite its failure, the second uprising in Shanghai displayed disunity under Sun Chuanfangs rule. By mid February Sun Chuanfangs Shanghai navy had begun to act suspiciously. On the 22nd as the CCP led sorties against the Shanghai Police, shells from the warships Chienkang and Chienwei fll over the Jiangnan arsenal. Thinking not much of it, Sun Chuanfang blamed a few young officers for the bombardment and gave his Admiral Yang Shuchuang a demerit. Sun Chuanfang was of course reluctant at this point to penalize his subordinates for fear they mutiny. The bombardment did not knock out the aresnal but a fire began mysteriously on the 28th blowing up 40 crates of artillery shells. The uprising did little to weaken Sun Chuanfangs hold over Shanghai, so the NRA shifted strategy. Over in Hangzhou, NRA units advance to the Sungchiang front while NRA units in Jiangxi advance downriver towards Nanking. The 6th and 7th NRA armies advance along the Jiangxi-Anhui border as the eastern route command dug in near Shanghai. Back in December, at the Nanchang conference Chiang Kai-Shek and Borodin had managed to smooth the tension between the CCP and KMT. Borodin agreed to curtain some union disorder that were interfering with the war effort so the First United Front would not collapse. However within the new conquered territories, many that contained enormous industrial potential, strikes and labor violence kept breaking out. This was quite dangerous for the stability of the NRA as they performed the northern expedition. But from the CCP point of view they were simply organizing the enormous untapped power of Chinese workers. The CCP began to really grow in power at Wuhan and were becoming less cooperative with Chiang Kai-Shek. They believed Chiang Kai-Shek was dependent and at the mercy of Soviet aid. They also believed, since he had left Guangdong, a more malleable KMT military figure would better suit their interests. Thus a concerted effort was made to replace Chiang Kai-Shek. You could call it a anti-Chiang movement sprang up and it was taking an effect on the Northern Expedition. Chiang Kai-Shek had just wired the Wuhan administration three times for funds to pay some disgruntled 7th army troops. The administration at Wuhan created by a joint council of the party and government, by insistence of Borodin, were generally compliant to Chiang Kai-Sheks demands. One of their leaders was Xu Chen, the current minister of justice. According to a group close to Wang Jingwei, it seemed the CCP, Chiang Kai-Sheks inner circle and the new Joint Council at Wuhan between January and February of 1927 were becoming quite dependent on Soviet advice. Early in January the CCP were attacking Chiang Kai-Shek with propaganda aimed to make it seem he was in bed with other warlords and the Japanese, thus a betrayer to Dr Sun Yat-Sens movement. Xu Chen the current commander of the 8th NRA army became a potential replacement for Chiang Kai-Shek, but the CCP were still afraid to risk open strife with the KMT. Borodin and CCP leaders like Mao Zedong were encouraged by the CCP membership growth in the countryside and within military units around Wuhan. As the NRA advance through Hunan, CCP membership increased as they spread through peasant associations. It was a similar case in Hubei. The Hunanese commander of the 2nd NRA army brought up the issue at a KMT meeting warning his colleagues “not to neglect the dangers of internal strife. Many of our members have become sidetracked by… ideas … not indicated in Sun Yat-sen's instructions,… not belittle the enemy. Our enemies are now uniting together and gathering to attack us. We should concentrate the power of the Party and obey its orders strictly regardless of our own opinions.” Chiang Kai-Shek of course was not oblivious to the danger all around him. He launched his own sort of counterattack. He began claiming the CCP strategy and those who were following them, threatened the all-class union of the KMT. On February 19th he urged a KMT audience during a speech to “look to … the doctrines of Sun Yat-sen and nothing else.” The anti Chiang Kai-Shek sentiment was felt in crowds at Wuhan. On February 24th, a crowd of 50,000 assembled at the party HQ parade ground where they made fiery speeches against Chiang Kai-Shek and against the Northern Expedition. “All we have seen is military power, but no Party power; individual will but not Party will…. Old degenerate counterrevolutionaries have caused these pathetic facts of the Party. That is why we must… knock down the feudal influences.” After this several people began chanting “Down with the Old and Degenerate!” Then another man made a speech stating “a few individuals could not do the work…. Now the old, rotten feudal thinking members manipulate the KMT, we must therefore knock them down.” Then the chant turned to “Down with Chang Ching-chiang,Oppose the Military Dictatorship.” Then the head of the NRA's Political Departments, Teng Yenta stated “democratic centralization was the way to achieve the ideals of the Three People's Principles, but now our leadership has been occupied by the old, ignorant, and the incompetent …, and we must overthrow personal dictatorship … and bring the military under control….” Chiang Kai-Shek was enraged by all of this of course and he refuted the charges made against him. He singled out Xu Chen who had just made himself chairman of the new Joint Council without KMT party authorization. Chiang Kai-Shek began a little investigation and concluded it was Borodin's doing so he telegrammed Moscow on February 26th requesting Borodin be sent back to the USSR. The next day at a KMT meeting, Chiang Kai-Shek told his colleagues he felt despite the fact the NRA advanced into new territories, while the people saw them as KMT members, they only heard propaganda from the CCP. By March the anti-Chiang cabal now sought to replace him with General Tang Shengchih, the Hunanese defector made commander of the 8th NRA army. According to one soviet report written on the 5th of March, Tang Shengchih was seen to be much more dependent on Soviet aid and a lot more cooperative in helping the anti-chiang effort amongst the other generals. A new anti-chiang alliance would require the support of other high ranking generals such as Chang Fakuai new corps, Chen Mingshu's 11th army, Chu Peitehs 3rd army and the 9th and 10th armies. According to the same Soviet report, Tang Shenchih managed to turn Li Tsungjen against Chiang Kai-Shek and this hampered Chiang Kai-Sheks ability to obtain funds from Wuhan to pay Li Tsunjens 7th army. Spring of 1927 brought more disunity to the First United Front and thus hurt the Northern Expedition. Although the NRA were clearly on a roll in Zhejiang and Fujian, their progress north of Wuhan and downriver from Jiangxi lost steam. Chiang Kai-Shek still held confidence of the men in the eastern route army concentrating along the Jiangsu-Anhui border, but their offensive was also halted. In southern Honan where the NRA were facing the remnants of Wu Peifu's army, winter's chill was beginning to slow down the expedition. The offensive kicked back up with a bunch of defections amongst Sun Chuanfang's forces in Anhui. Chen Tiaoyuan, Sun Chuanfangs commander in Chief for his Anhui forces, had became dissatisfied with him and how he was ruling the 5 province empire…which I guess is now more like 2. Chen Tiaoyuan was demoralized, who could blame him. Back on December 5th of 1926, Chen Tiaoyuan began secret negotiations by dispatching some of his subordinates such as Fan Shao-kai over to the KMT hoping to defect and gain a decent position. Simultaneously, Sun Chuanfang maintained hope of holding his frontline in Anhui by promoting subordinates. Sun Chuanfang appointed Chen Tiaoyuan to be the director of defenses over the province on December 21st. On February 20th of 1927, one of Chen Tiaoyuans divisions, led by Liu Paoti defected to the NRA when he was guarding a strategic pass known as the Chimen gateway. This was a 5000 foot high range leading into Anhui. Now the NRA held a mountain side door leading directly into Anhui. The mountain range in question also happened to be the last natural barrier that Sun Chuanfang's troops were utilizing to defend the lower Yangtze area, including of course Shanghai. After that Chen Tiaoyuang tossed the towel to the inevitable and defected to the NRA. Chen Tiaoyuan proved his defection by turning his defensive sector along the Yangtze over on March 2nd. He brought with him the mixed brigade of Wang Pu and elements of the Hunan Army led by Yue Kaixin. The NRA proceeded to advance over the Yellow Mountain and down it to seize Taiping in Anhui on march 3rd. Pretty much unopposed the NRA marched upon Nanking through Anhui taking several routes. By March 17th, the 17th Division of Cheng Chens 6th NRA Army had advanced 200 miles downstream using river steamboats and was only 70 miles away from Nanking. Over the north banks of the Yangtze the NRA formed a spearhead and thrusted it into the soft midsection of the north-south railway. By mid march the NRA captured Hofei in northern Anhui. At this point Sun Chuanfangs relationship with his navy was greatly waning and he was becoming more and more dependent on the Tsinpu railway as an escape option to head north rather than via the sea. Thus March of 1927 saw the NRA effectively begin trapping Sun Chuanfang into the Yangtze delta around Shanghai. The NRA southern forces were now advancing out of Zhejiang into the delta region. One pincer was heading north along the shores of Lake Tai aiming for the Shanghai-Nanking railway at Changzhou. Meanwhile in Anhui the 6th army was attacking Wuhu on the 6th of March. Anti-foreign disorder broke out at Wuhu as NRA political agents raillied crowds of civilians and soldiers to mob the foreigners maritime customs office and clubhouse. This sent the foreigners to flee downriver to Shanghai by ship carrying more tales of anti-foreign abuse with them. The eastern route force facing Shanghai was met with heavy artillery bombardment as more and more NPA troops from Shandong arrived. Several NRA attacks north of Shanghai against railway links were made, threatening the city's defensive capabilities. By mid march many forces defending Shanghai began evacuating for Nanking. On March 15th the eastern route army had its first major breakthrough over the hills that overlooked Lake Tai. NRA forces managed to outflank the enemy artillery placements and erected a real blockade by march 16th. Now a new NRA pincer moved west against Lishui, 40 miles from Nanking. Along the east shore of said lake, the NRA was effectively blocked by Shandong troops who held an advantage in heavy artillery. By mid march many Shandong reinforcements arrived at Changzhou along the Nanking-Shanghai railway, but were simply turned back to Nanking. Not a good look. From Wuhu the NRA kept the advance towards Tangtu which was outflanked and captured on the 17th, while the east route force took up a position 50 miles from Nanking on some ridges where Sun Chuanfang had once headquartered. On the 18th, north of the Yangtze the 7th NRA army just captured Hofei and its railway link. The delta area's defenses were falling apart everywhere one looked. The Dogmeat General took one look and ordered a general withdrawal of all the Shandong forces from the Shanghai area to some positions north of the Yangtze. With that Shanghai defenses fell apart. Over at the Sungchiang front the forces of Pi Shucheng retreated into the city towards the railway station, but did not high tail it to Nanking despite being ordered to do so. According to foreign and Chinese journalists, Pi Shucheng had been waiting for the opportune moment to defect to the NRA and had been secretly negotiating to turn Shanghai over. Thus it seemed the NRA had managed to capture the city without provoking the foreigners. On the 20th the NRA managed to flank the railroad artillery position still manned by some White Russian forces. They managed this through more defections, this time from Shanghai police. The Shanghai police controlled the waterways and aided the NRA in navigating them so they could advance more rapidly. Simultaneously Suzhou, Changzhou and Henglin were captured. Sun Chuanfang was receiving zero aid from the sea for over a week by this point as AdmiralYang Shuchuang had taken the fleet upriver to join the NRA's river fleet. Of course Admiral Yang Shuchuangs defection had been in the works for well over a year, but his timing could not have been worse for Sun Chuanfang. On March 21st a bloodless seizure of Shanghai proceeded. Now going back to our conversation about the anti-Chiang Kai-Shek movement, there had been a lot of development during this time period. In January of 1927, Wang Jingwei with his left wing allies, members of the CCP and Borodin had transferred the seat of the KMT government from Guangzhou to Wuhan. On March 1st the KMT government then reorganized the military commission and placed Chiang Kai-Shek under its jurisdiction with the secret intent to arrest him. As the NRA was about to storm Shanghai, a major opportunity presented itself to the CCP. Most of the Northern Chinese defenders still stuck in Shanghai were simply looking to surrender. Thus on March 21st, CCP leaders Zhou Enlai and Chen Duxiu launched an armed uprising. The CCP seized weapons, created a general strike and seized most of the city. This caused many of Sun Chuanfangs soldiers to flee to the railway station or coasts, looting as they did. Major battle took place between armed workers and soldiers, causing fires and damaged to heavily populated areas of the city. For example in the northern suburb of Zhapei, armed workers burnt down 3000 homes. By the night of the 22nd Bai Chongxi's NRA troops were gradually occupying the city, however the general strike was disrupting their efforts. General Bai Chongxi' ordered the CCP to call off the general strike on the 24th, but for over 4 days 322 Chinese were killed and over 2000 were wounded. As the NRA consolidated their authority over the city, their top spokesmen, Chiang Kai-SHek, Ho Yingqin and Bai Chongxi tried to alleviate the foreign community who were ridden with frightened refugees in the international settlement. The settlement was a literal warzone, fitted with barbed wire, gates, marines and soldiers behind sandbag trenches and such. Very real and many false stories were spread of anti-foreign atrocities. The NRA put out notices stating “The purpose of the military operations of the Northern Expedition is to establish a nation governed by the people and to get rid of the warlords. Our army occupied Hunan, Kiangsi, Hupeh, Fukien, Chekiang, Anhui, and other provinces and the unification of the entire nation will be accomplished soon. The Party Army's success is the victory of the people…. In accordance with international morality we shall guard the lives and property of foreigners. We have occupied Shanghai by more than force. We request that consuls inform your nationals to carry on your activities as usual and order the marines not to misunderstand our motives and not to carry out means to obstruct our revolutionary cause'. And now we come to a large and confusing part of the story. At Nanking and Shanghai major events would unfold, seeing the end of the first United Front. After a few days, anti-foreign actions would follow the capture of Nanking requiring more and more public assurances from the KMT. The last demoralized rear guard crossed the Yangtze to get to the safer northern bank. By doing this, now the NPA's most southern position was the rail terminal at Pukou. The NRA vanguard entered Nanking on March 24th, with units of the 6th army and countless NPA Anhui defectors alongside them. Chiang Kai-Shek loyalists in the KMT then charged the head of the 6th NRA army's political department, a CCP member named Lin Xuhan with masterminding attacks upon foreigners. These attacks provoked the foreign powers to then attack Chiang Kai-Shek, diverting his attention from the northern expedition and weakening his authority over the new Wuhan government. Elements of the 6th army had stirred up anti-foreign attitudes amongst their troops and civilians within Nanking. Yet the foreign community in the city would go on to say the attacks they witnessed were not made by civilian mobs. Whatever motivations, the situation that unfolded at Nanking signified a giant breach of soldier discipline. For Chiang Kai-Shek to have permitted such actions to take place was inconsistent with his strategy of avoiding any provocation upon the foreign powers. Yet over 25,000 Nanking refugees flooded over to Shanghai as 25,000 foreign marines and soldiers began defending the concessions, assuring the NRA they were ready for a fight. Going back in time somewhat, the March 20th coup was something akin to a patient zero. Back on January 3rd of 1927 elements of the KMT at Wuhan had triggered mobs to attack the British concessions until they gave back authority at Hankou and Kiukiang to the Chinese. Yet the KMT had never given such orders to do so. It seemed the CCP were pushing these actions. Between March 7th to the 17th, the new Joint Council at Wuhan was openly being defiant towards Chiang Kai-Shek and they held their first plenary session to work against him. They met with KMT leftists and CCP members and agreed to appoint CCP members, Su Chaocheng and Tan Pingshan as ministers; promoted CCP peasant and labour groups and dispatched three representatives to the Third Communist International to discuss China's role in the would be world revolution. It did not seem the CCP intended to keep their promise to the KMT about China not going communist. All of this authority at Wuhan undermined Chiang Kai-Sheks authority and those loyal to him. They immediately voted to take direct control of military funds which had been previously handled by the minister of Finance, T.V Soong, obviously considered a loyal supporter to Chiang Kai-Shek. In order to gain more influence in the NRA, the Wuhan guys began creating a parallel military chain of command and recruited CCP members into major officer positions. They hoped such actions would see more military types defect over to their cause. Now by this point the NRA really had become a giant beast. When the northern expedition launched in July of 1926 the were 8 armies, by March of 1927 they were now 40. Wuhans fiscal and political control over said armies would clearly undermine and probably be capable of getting rid of Chiang Kai-Shek, so it was a no brainer to attempt seizing them for the CCP. The Wuhan cabal hoped to incorporate some of the new armies, made mostly of defectors, whose alliances were probably flimsy to be under their control. Chiang Kai-Shek tried to counter these attacks, but anything he did would be seen as censorship or anti-communist, thus shattering the first united front, from which he still depended….or did he? Now technically the Wuhan Cabal was only able to do what they were doing because leading KMT figures were not present such as Chiang Kai-Shek and Wang Jingwei. Thus lesser members like Xu Chen and Teng Yenta were able to make some big decisions. Both men were CCP aligned and worked to abolish Chiang Kai-Sheks posts that he held such as ministry of the military which was replaced by the Wuhan Military council. The Wuhan cabal was able to reduce Chiang Kai-Sheks role as commander in chief and give various tasks to other military commanders. Likewise the military education programs at the KMT academics removed Chiang Kai-Sheks supervisory role, depriving him of obtaining the loyalty of the new junior officer corps. Appointment, promotions and dismissals of commanders would be done by the Military council, ie: Xu CHen and Teng Yenta. They first relieved Chen Mingshu, a known Chiang Kai-Shek loyalist and replaced him with a Moscow certified star Tang Shengchih. It became very obvious what they were trying to do. Thus as the Wuhan cabal tore apart Chiang Kai-Sheks authority piece by piece, the NRA's war against Wu Peifu and Sun Chuanfang began to collapse. Without a high degree of coordination and leadership, the NRA was finding it difficult to fight the numerically superior NPA forces. In March of 1927, Wuhan proclaimed all regulations ordered by Chiang Kai-Sheks HQ to be nullified. This meant although he retained authority over troops at the frontlines, Wuhan now claimed authority over all the other troops. All of these attacks upon Chiang Kai-Shek caused massive confusion in the ranks. Many within the KMT believed and rightfully so that the CCP was trying to take leadership over the movement. As the northern expedition took the NRA into Jiangsu, the momentum of their previous victories had pushed them across the Yangtze. This was heavily aided by the recent Shanghai Navy defectors who eased the crossing using their vessels. Those already operating north of the Yangtze such as the 3rd, 7th and 10th armies were pressing past Hofei towards Pengpu by early April. Pengpu was the capital of Anhui, forming a sort of bridgehead over the Huai river with a railway depot for Zhang Zongchang's armies. Thus its capture would open a door to the invasion of North China. Yet the NRA's momentum died in confusion over which direction they were to take, because of the Wuhan cabal-Chiang Kai-Shek fighting, and their logistical support was falling apart. It seemed to all like the northern expedition might never make it to the north. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. The NRA managed to seize the super cities of Shanghai and Nanking. The NRA now dominated most of south China and were about to begin invading the north, when internal problems arose. The CCP and Chiang Kai-Shek were not seeing eye to eye and now a civil war seemed to be breaking out in the first united front.
Last time we spoke about the beginning of Chiang Kai-Sheks war against Sun Chuanfang. Chiang Kai-Shek had just conquered Hunan and Hubei, but this caused Sun Chuanfang to finally act. Chiang Kai-Shek's forces preemptively invaded Jiangxi to thwart Sun Chuanfangs two pronged offensive and any chance of him linking up with Wu Peifu. Sun Chuanfang was caught off guard, but managed to toss brutal counterattacks. However internal disunity amongst the 5 provinces led to a great weakening of Sun Chuanfangs campaign. In October, the NRA counterattacked, retaking territory and pushing Sun's forces back. Sun's position crumbled further due to rebellions in Zhejiang, where local leaders allied with the KMT. Despite setbacks, by November, the NRA's relentless pressure led to the capture of Jiangxi, significantly weakening Sun Chuanfang's hold and advancing the Northern Expedition. Meanwhile other NRA forces devastated Fujian's defenders and shockingly seized the province. #112 The Northern Expedition Part 3: The Zhejiang Campaign Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. Beginning in November, until the end of 1926, both the NRA and their enemies took a sort of pause to regroup and figure out what was going on. Chiang Kai-Shek had carried out an offensive down the Yangtze and sought the blitzkrieg to carry on, but many within his ranks wanted to slow down and regroup. Meanwhile Sun Chuanfang received more peace offers and chances to join the KMT, but such a thing seemed too far beneath him. With Jiangxi and Fujian lost, Sun Chuanfang instead turned to an unlikely ally. In a very, the enemy of my enemy is my friend-like fashion he turned north to the Fengtian clique warlords. Now obviously, during the later half of the Anti-Fengtian War, Sun Chuanfang kind of held back. He had served the Fengtian a bloody nose and consolidated his 5 provinces, letting the northerners battle it out amongst themselves. Yet they just like he viewed the new southern menace as nothing more than a communist parasite swarming out of Guangdong. In a fit of desperation Sun Chuanfang took a train on November 8th in Nanking bound for Tianjin. Once in Tianjin Sun Chuanfang met with some subordinates of Zhang Zuolin and Zhang Zongchang. They all reviewed the dire situation that befell Wu Peifu against the NRA in Hunan and Hubei. Sun Chuanfang fully disclosed what had happened to his forces in Jiangxi and Fujian. The northern warlords acknowledged the NRA was not like any other warlord force they had faced before. They were defeating armies much larger and much better armed, it confused them. Even those who had control over strategic railways seemed to be losing to the NRA. The Fengtian warlords had learnt some bitter lessons during their war with Sun Chuanfang and were not going to underestimate a potential enemy again. The Fengtian decided to form a new alliance to destroy the new red menace in the south. Despite the significant grievances between Sun Chuanfang and the Fengtian, particularly with Zhang Zongchang, he agreed to the alliance. Sun Chuanfang really had no choice after losing Jiangxi and Fujian with ill control over Zhejiang. As for Wu Peifu, he really was the unlucky warlord to be first in the crosshairs of the NRA. The commanders at the Tianjin meeting agreed to do what they could to reinforce him over in Honan so that he might be able to mount a counter offensive against Wuhan. They all also agreed, if Wu Peifu refused their alliance and aid, they would be forced to invade Honan to defend the north from the NRA. To reinforce Sun Chuanfang in the southeast, the Fengtian would fit the bill, but bill Sun Chuanfang they also would. In particular Zhang Zongchang was looking enviously at some of Sun Chuanfangs holdings as his province of Shandong was certainly impoverished, all because of his miss rule might I add. Zhang Zongchang had his eye on the gem of Shanghai and its robust black market, where many of his friends resided. Sun Chuanfang offered Zhang Zongchang a guarantee of 500,000$ in silver collected from the good taxpayers of Zhejiang and Anhui in return for reinforcements. On November 24th, while Sun Chuanfangs forces in Fujian were being obliterated by the NRA, major agreements made at Tianjin were bearing results. Zhang Zongchang's Shandong troops were advancing south into Anhui aboard the Tianjing-Pukou railway bound for the Yangtze delta. They were 60,000 men strong, including some of Zhang Zongchang's elite White Russian units manning armorer trains with their specialized artillery. Within just a weeks time they were arriving to the battlefield under a brand new banner “the Ankuochün / National Pacification Army”. Zhang Zuolin came up with the name, the idea behind it was to make it seem like they were fighting a war to achieve peace against the evil red horde. Zhang Zuolin took the authority as commander in chief and appointed Sun Chuanfang and Zhang Zongchang as his deputy commanders with their HQ being in the Pukou-Nanking area. Zhang Zuolin proclaimed to the people of China he promised to save China from the red menace. The new National Pacification Army was a whopping 500,000 men strong. Sun Chuanfangs portion of this grand army was of course the weakest link as he had just been battered by the NRA , but the Fengtian had not even had a chance to lift a thumb. Sun Chuanfang was still obsessed with retaining his 5 province empire and that desire would hinder his management of the war. As Shandong troops arrived, they found not a grand welcoming from the local populations. They of course had terrible reputations and were the very people who had molested southeast China during the Zhejiang-Fengtian war. The CCP and NRA would exploit the southeast Chinese peoples hatred towards the northerners. Within Jiangsu and Shanghai, the Shandongers forced the locals to accept the Zhang Zongchang bank notes, literally worthless pieces of paper. The CCP and KMT began propaganda campaigns playing off this situation to tell the people the northerners were going to basically rip them all off. Sun Chuanfang could see exactly the sort of game the CCP and KMT were playing at and increased his persecution of them within his territories. Now although Sun Chuanfang had certainly been weakened, Chiang Kai-Shek was not in good enough of a situation to follow up on his Jiangxi and Fujian victories. Chiang Kai-Shek had moved his HQ to Nanchang and was quite nervous about some looming issues within his ranks. He had already postponed the northern expedition back in July of 1926 when strikes broke out against Hong Kong. In November word spread that strikes were yet again occurring in Guangzhou, particularly at the Guangzhou-Hankou railway. The strikes at the railway were spreading up into Hunan. Over in Guangzhou the Cantonese workers at the Shihching and Mortar arsenals were striking as CCP members were agitating sailors and navy unions to join. The workers were demanding higher wages, clearly trying to take advantage of the fact the NRA were at the frontlines. Chiang Kai-Shek ordered the head of the NRA political department, Teng Yenta to travel from the front lines back over to Guangzhou to see if he could quell the madness. Throughout November a lull occurred, but it broke suddenly in December as strikers armed with pickets began closing up rice shops and banks. Reports came to Chiang Kai-Shek at the front, greatly worrying him about their war material situation. A lot of what they produced came out of Guangzhou and it seemed under threat. On December 8th, Chiang Kai-Shek made a speech, talking about how issues were coming about because of conflict within their First United Front. Following said speech, he appointed the garrison commander, Chien Tachuan to act as Guangzhou's police chief and pacify the city. Chiang met some KMT officials of the Central Political Council at Kuling, ordering them to help restrain labor violence and prohibit strikes in Guangzhou against strategic activities, such as communications, banks, and the supply of food and other “vital necessities. The Guangzhou strike situation then spread to Wuhan as workers began marching for higher wages and better working conditions. Because of this, by late 1926 Wuhan's lucrative arsenal industries outputs were declining. KMT leaders were freaking out over the situation as it looked to them all that another Guangzhou style workers uprising would occur. Word spread that a general strike in Wuhan was being planned on December 3rd, prompting Chiang Kai-Shek to intervene. The workers in general were protesting imperialist employers in the three cities; Hankou, Hanyang and Wuchang. They wanted higher pay and better working conditions, pretty standard stuff. Chiang Kai-Shek called together a meeting at Nanchang of various KMT leaders and Borodin. Chiang Kai-Shek proposed regulating the labor movement. Borodin recommended that the CCP corporate in restraining the union problems. Political department members of the KMT proposed disbanding 1000 armed pickets operating in Wuhan, the same way they did at Guangzhou. Hankou had seen some union violence and this deeply worried Chiang Kai-Shek who envisioned foreign marines storming shore from fleets of gunboats along the Yangtze to defend their nationals and property rights. It was eventually agreed some of the protestor leaders would be allowed to join the KMT to help its new government in Wuhan. It seems Chiang Kai-Shek had his hands quite full with internal problems. Now back over the situation of Zhejiang. Despite the rather hilarious failure of Xia Chao's rebellion, if it could even be called such a thing. Sun Chuanfang's troops had taken a firm station in Zhejiang to maintain the peace. While the violence had cooled down, the sentiment of the people of Zhejiang had not. During late October, Sun Chuanfangs troops had swarmed Zhejiang trying to create a regime that would pacify and try to conciliate the provincial feelings. Zhou Fengqi had been transferred back to Zhejiang, mostly because Sun Chuanfang wanted to get him and his division out of the Jiangxi battlefield because he was doing a terrible job. Sun Chuanfang hoped his provincial Lt's would prove better defenders if defending their homeland. He also began a propaganda campaign, spreading word that the Cantonese forces were brutalizing the civilians everywhere they invaded. He said things like the Cantonese sought to break the traditional family system, that they were merely communists in disguise and such. Sun Chuanfang had also brought Chen Yi and his division back to Hangzhou and by October 31st, appointed Zhejiangs new civil governor after Xia Chao's head was cut off. Simultaneously, Sun Chuanfang kept his own personal retainer, Lu Xiangting, the military governor of Zhejiang. Now as Zhou Fengqi was heading back to Zhejiang, he came to Shanghai where he proclaimed to the pople that Sun Chuanfang had placed him in charge of defending the province against the Cantonese invaders. When he arrived to Hangzhou, Zhou Fengqi stated publically he had no sympathies for the KMT revolutionaries. Why he did this was because many rumors had spread that he had deserted in the Jiangxi fight to the KMT, which of course was 100% correct. On November 25th, Zhou Fengqi spoke publically about his dead mentor Xia Chao and stated “I would sacrafice anything for Zhejiang… neither the Northern Army nor the Southern Army were his friends and that any who invaded Chekiang automatically became his enemy ….” Now Sun Chuanfangs surprising move to ally himself to Zhang Zuolin had greatly shocked and scared the southeastern populations, the Fengtian northerners were of course the brutes who had hurt them. Thus Sun Chuanfang had become a double edged sword. He was saved by the Fengtian reinforcements, but his 5 provinces populations also deeply resented this. For those in Zhejiang who sought autonomy, it looked a lot like the KMT was a better option going forward. Chiang Kai-Shek was well aware of the situation and exploited it. The KMT began offering peace agreements not just to Sun Chuanfang, but to independent bodies in Zhejiang, such as the All-Zhejiand Association and even the All-Jiangsu association. KMT members in Zhejiang such as Tsai Yuanpei and C.T Wang. These two guys were responsible for writing the Zhejiang autonomous consitution of 1921. Within the safetey of the Shanghai international settlement they proposed a new federal system within which provinces would be able to handle their own affairs and be represented by a national assembly. In December of 1926 they began negotiating both with Sun Chuanfang over in Nanking and the KMT. Sun Chuanfang could see he was losing Zhejiang because of his alliance with Zhang Zuolin. Thus he made a tremendous gamble, he simply gave Zhejiang its independence. He did so hoping the province would continue to support him against the perceived red menace. He ordered Chen Yi to declare the province independent just before the KMT had planned to release some propaganda procliaming Zhejiang was under tryannical rule by northerners. Chiang Kai-Shek then tried to counter the situation by declaring the NRA would not enter Zhejiang if they roke ties with Sun Chuanfang and no northern troops were within their borders. Sun Chuanfang had already declared the northern reinforcements would defend Zhejiang, Jiangsu and Anhui and of course this would mean tax hikes to pay for their protection. Yet again the Zhejiang revolutionaries assembled in the Shanghai international settlement, planning to create an independent provincial regime. On December 8th, they elected a provincial government committee, notably in a form favored by the KMT. Amongst the nominees were some of those responsible for formented the Ningpo rebellion of 1924. That smaller rebellion had seen some local gentry attempt self rule against the nothern warlords ruling them at Hangzhou. There were a few KMT members such as the ex-Zhejiang governor, Chiang Tsung-Kuei. Chen Yi and Zhou Fengqi were elected to the 9 man committee and the Guangzhou agent Ha Xulun who was working behind the scenes to direct matters against Sun Chuanfang. On the 11th december at Shanghai, Zho Fengqi decalred his defection to the NRA in a true modern day politician like fashion. His declaration of course added fuel to those wishing to break with Sun Chuanfang. He soon set up a new HQ at Quzhou and was promoted to commandr of the 26th NRA army. The KMT then descended upon Chen Yi, trying to bring him into the fold. The provincial assembly chairman and head of the Hangzhou chamber of commerce both proposed forming their autonomous state as part of the KMT and pushed Chen Yi to jump aboard the wagon. Chen Yi traveled to Hangzhou and Nanking trying to see what kind of deal he could land, ever an opportunist. Sun Chuanfang refused to move his troops within Zhejiang at Chiahsing as Zhou Fengqi had just joined the enemy, and now he heard word the NRA vanguard had penetrated the province. On the 17th Chen Yi defected to the NRA making his division the 19th NRA army and received promises from Chiang Kai-Shek he would get a nice cushy position in Zhejiang once the war was over. In the 19th the Shanghai group announced the official independence of Zhejiang from Sun Chuanfangs 5 provincial empire. They were now a autonomous province and would: “1) implement self-government for Zhejiang with provincial personnel; 2) oppose militarists who might seek to carve out their own “autonomous” areas; 3) make public the provincial government affairs; 4) subordinate the Zhejiang military to the Provincial Government; 5) provide for the civil freedoms of assembly, press, organization, and speech; and 6) abolish all unconstitutional taxes.” These terms were delivered to both Sun Chuanfang and Chiang Kai-Shek. Now despite doing all of this, the Zhejiang movement was by no means unified. Many of the gentry and military classes were not onboard because the NRA did not have a strong presence in the province. There was also of course Sun Chuanfang collaborators, the type of men who had received good positions from him. Many also rightfully feared Sun Chuanfangs wrath. Zhou Fengqi turned tail immediately from defending Hangzhou and sought the safer refugee of Quzhou. The NRA at this point were still preoccupied with consolidating their gains in Fujian and Jiangxi thus all they really had for Zhejiang at the moment was a vanguard. In response to the situation Sun Chuanfang assembled his four best divisions along the Zhejiang border. He then formed an agreement with his NPA allies and subordinates in Jiangsu and Anhui to guard his flank as he tossed the kitchen sink into Zhejiang. In a fashion very typical of Sun Chuanfangs military style, he performed a lighting advance. His field commander, Meng Chaoyueh brushed aside Zhejiang divisions from the valleys all the way to the Jiangsu border. The lightning offensive was maintained throughout January of 1927. It seemed to all Sun Chuanfang had succeeded in taking back Zhejiang by force in a quick masterstroke. Within mere days of the offensive, Chen Yi was captured and replaced. Meng Chaoyueh's forces advanced upland, but then ran into the 26th NRA army, reinforced with elements of the NRA vanguard force who had popped out of the Fujian border. Over at Quzhou the NRA dug in, providing something akin to a bridgehead from Fujian into Zhejiang. Another force under Sun Chuanfang advanced against Chen Yi's 19th NRA army eastwards along Hangzhou Bay's southern shore. At the Tsao River Sun Chuanfangs men found the rebels short on ammunition and served them a crushing defeat around Chuchi. From there many scattered through the southwestern hill side until they found their way to Quzhou. Over there the NRA were holding out under intense attacks until mid January. Within Sun Chuanfangs sink were elements of the Fujian troops who had defeated Zhou Yingren. These units went past Quzhou and seized Lanchi and Chinhua on the 10th. General Ho Yingqin in Fujian now faced the daunting choice of jumping into Zhejiang before the bridgehead closed. But the NRA enjoyed greater mobility and this allowed the 1st NRA army to rush over the border hills to aid the besieged Quzhou before Sun Chuanfang had brought over his heavy artillery. On January 20th General Pai Qungxi took command over various NRA units and allied forces in Zhejiang to reorganize a battle plan. By the 29th he launched a counterattack out of the highlands. Using local guides who knew the terrain, the NRA marched through tributary valleys leading into the open plain of Qietang where the provincal capital of Hangzhou was. Now with more equal numbers the NRA engaged the enemy at Lanchi and Chinua fighting a brutal 3 day battle. This action turned the campaign around. Sun Chuanfangs forces lost commanding officers of a brigade, regiment and 3 battalions, alongsides 2000 soldiers. The NRA captured large hauls of firearms, but much mor precious, some heavy artillery. The early northern expedition lacked heavy artillery and these pieces would be put to great use. After the 3 day battle Sun Chuanfangs forces would never regain the highlands. Pai Qungxi then divided his force into two prongs aimed at Hangzhou. When Meng Chaoyueh tried to face the NRA through the main valley, but was out flanked. By February 11th around Tunglu, Meng Chaoyueh's forces were routed down the valley, They fled over to Fuyang where they tried to fortify new defensive lines using artillery, alongside some reinforcements, but utterly failed. The defeated greatly demoralized the northerners to the point Zhou Yingren lost complete control over his Fujian units. The soldiers retreated in a panic, breaking ranks as civilians from Fuyang to Hangzhou packed all they had and fled for Shanghai. Their towns were plundered by the soldiers who sought to grab what they could before running home to north china. The battle of Tunglu saw Sun Chuanfang pull his remaining forces towards Hangzhou. There they could mount a defense and feel more secure that the railway line led back to Shanghai and the north. The NRA forces pincer attacked near Hangzhou catching 8000 retreating soldiers who had been waiting on a ferry to get across the Chientang river. Sun Chuanfang tossed more reinforcements into Zhejiang, but they were no longer cooperating with his field commander Meng Chaoyueh who was already having problems controlling the Fujian units. Thus Meng Chaoyueh chose rather than making a stand at Hangzhou, he took his 20,000 men and retreated into Jiangsu. Another province in Sun Chuanfangs infinity gauntlet was being lost. General Meng Chaoyueh and the civil governor of Zhejiang fled for Shanghai on February 17th of 1927. Even the withdrawal out of Zhejiang was an unmitigated disaster as Meng Chaoyueh could not maintain his men's discipline. After advancing 50 miles to Chiahsing many had mutinied, seeking to sack the city. The civilians begged Meng Chaoyueh to force his men to leave them alone and move on, but he dared not try to halt his unruly men. Yet again this proved to be a crucial factor leading to the NRA's success. Where warlords armies went, they looted and molested the common people, while the KMT had strict policies of paying the local populations for what they needed and not to lift a finger upon the common people. The northern chinese tore down civilian barricades, placed by scared shopowners, ransacked them and carried off anything they could. When the NRA made it to Chiahsing after them, they were met with flags and warm greetings. On February 23rd the NRA had effectively cleaned Zhejiang of Sun Chuanfangs forces and allies, most had pulled back to defensive lines west of Shanghai. Their new defensive line was built around the Hangzhou-Shanghai railway line at Sungchiang. Xia Chao was dead, Chen Yi was captured, leaving Zhou Fengqi the last man standing from the triumvirate. Now he was the MVP Zhejiang leader who Chiang Kai-Shek would play upon to consolidate the province. He was quickly appointed to chairman of Zhejiangs military committee and became an official member of her new governmental committee. General Ho Yingqing assembled his forces opposite the Jiangsu border near Chiahsing, preparing for an offensive aimed at Shanghai. Meanwhile KMT members Tsai Yuanpei and Zhou Fengqi began setting up the new Zhejiang government while the NRA organized their offensive. Chiang Kai-Shek was reluctant to attack Shanghai directly. The super city had an enormous population, including countless foreign communities. The great powers had their largest concessions and investments in Shanghai and none of them were taking a liking to the KMT's anti-foreign propaganda. By February of 1927, there had been a plethora of antiforeign incidents that were making foreigners antsy, even those living cushy lives in Shanghai. A month prior at Hankou and Kiukiang, angry chinese mobs spurred by agitators within the KMT, or as Chiang Kai-Shek would tell it, CCP members had attacked British concessions. The British were only able to thwart bloodshed by handing some authority over the concessions back to the Chinese. Foreign residents in the Yangtze valley were evacuating en masse to Shanghai for protection and this helped circulate horror stories in the foreign community there. It seemed clear to all the foreigners were preparing to defend themselves at Shanghai. It is actually quite reminiscent of the Taiping Rebellion or Boxer Rebellion. As angry mobs of local Chinese approached Shanghai, her foreign residents were banding together to mount and effective defense of the city. All foreign powers with investments in the Yangtze region began pouring what troops they had on hand and recruited volunteers to patrol and defend the city. Command of Shanghai's defenses for the foreign quarters fell to the British commander Duncan who took the Richard Hotel as his HQ. He now coordinated an international force nearly 10,000 strong, consisting mainly of marines and sailors. Duncan had formed an agreement with Sun Chuanfang to help defend a perimeter that expanded outside the foreign concessions. Refers spread around the local population that the British were requesting their government, the US and Japan launch a war against the NRA. Sun Chuanfangs situation got even worse as he had stirred up the foreign community, stating he could not guarantee their safety against the red menace approaching Shanghai. Sun Chuanfang worked alongside the international administrative office to round up and execute any revolutionary agents they could find within Shanghai and her concessions. On the night of January 10th of 1927, inspectors consisting of foreign volunteers who patrolled the streets of the concessions. All suspected revolutionaries were round up and brought to police stations in Sun Chuanfangs areas of control in the Chinese parts of Shanghai. The foreigners also made sure to prohibit any demonstrations or political activities. By late february as the NRA was massing across the border, Sun Chuanfang announced that he, the British and Japanese authorities within Shanghai were cooperating to stop chinese labor unions and workers from performing any mischief. This was followed up by a large round up of suspected revolutionaries. As Chiang Kai-Shek approached Shanghai, he was risking major retaliation from the great powers, who seemed to be aligning with Sun Chuanfang and the NPA. Chiang Kai-Shek risked opening a new front with a great power, perhaps more northern warlords as well. There was no way he could face more opponents and Sun Chuanfang simultaneously. So rather than risk a military confrontation with the Shanghai concessions, Chiang Kai-Shek chose another action. Over at Sungchiang, lying directly in front of Shanghai, the NRA east route army looked like they were preparing a siege against the city. Yet further up the Yangtze the NRA were actually preparing an offensive against Nanking. If Nanking and here ferries linked to the Tianjing-Pukou railway to fall to the NRA, Sun Chuanfang would be isolated south of the Yangtze. To be cut off from his vital railway line that supplied him with men and materials from the north was game over. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. Chiang Kai-Shek's NRA just kept surprising the world winning enormous battles against the odds. With basically the rest of China's warlords banded together under the NPA, how could the NRA possibly continue the northern expedition? Would they not be crushed by overwhelming numbers, only time would tell.
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Last time we spoke about the beginning of the Northern Expedition. It was a decisive shift in Warlord Era China as Chiang Kai-Shek spearheaded his campaign to reunify China by invading Hunan. Despite staggering odds and limited resources, predominantly supplied by the Soviets, Chiang Kai-Shek relied on the weakness of his adversaries. Initial successes were achieved by exploiting political instability in Hunan, where local warlords were alienated from the populace. Chiang Kai-Shek strategically gained support from local commanders like Tang Shengchih, bolstering the KMT's forces. The campaign faced logistical challenges, such as difficult terrain and cholera outbreaks, but the KMT's superior strategy and local support led to victories along key river lines. By August 1926, the KMT had effectively weakened Wu Peifu's forces and secured Hunan, establishing a crucial base for further offQensives. However the KMT's actions had now drawn the attention of Sun Chuanfang who was preparing his own offensive. #111 The Northern Expedition Part 2: The Jiangxi and Fujian Campaigns Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. Chiang Kai-Shek's gamble into Hunan and then Hubei had paid dividends. Wu Peifu had retreated to his stronghold of Wuhan by the end of August. By September the NRA began a siege of Wuchang while capturing Hankou and Hanyang. Once Wuchang fell, Wuhan would be secured. Again for those a bit confused, Wuhan more or less refers to the conglomeration of Wuchang, Hankou and Hanyang, sometimes called the “three towns of Wuhan”. Wuhan was the first major objection of the Northern Expedition as it held an incredible arsenal, administrative structures for a government and other lucrative goodies. Now from the offset of the Northern Expedition, Chiang Kai-Shek and his subordinates chose a divide and conquer strategy. The first major warlord on their kill list was Wu Peifu. They chose him because of his powerbases proximity to Guangdong and to be frank, he was one of the weaker big warlords. To the east of course was Sun Chuanfang, who now reigned over 5 provinces and had a 200,000 strong army that had proven itself quite effective against the Fengtian forces. The NRA tried to both avoid Sun Chuanfang and offer some carrots to him. However Sun Chuanfang had no desire to join the KMT because he figured it would see him receive a lesser role than his current position. Yet the strategy of simply leaving Sun Chuanfang alone had worked thus far like a charm. Sun Chuanfang did not come rushing to Wu Peifu's aid, instead he dragged his feet. It was long enough for the NRA to take ⅔'s of Wuhan, now Wuchang was under siege and they were quite vulnerable. As reports came in, indicating Sun Chuanfang was preparing an offensive, Chiang Kai-Shek did I guess you can say the unthinkable. Sun Chuanfang had kept his troops at bay, hoping to reap the benefits of the NRA-Wu Peifu war. As Wuchang became under siege, Sun Chuanfang finally decided to act, preparing a two pronged offensive against the NRA. Sun Chuanfang transferred 100,000 troops from Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Anhui to aid the 20,000 troops stationed in Jiangxi, concentrated along the Nanxun railway and border with Hubei. He was going to use these forces to cut off the Wuchang-Changsha railway, easing the way for him to seize Hunan and Hubei, adding more gems to his thanos gauntlet. Meanwhile the rest of his army, mostly Fujian based, would invade Guangdong. Unfortunately for him, he did not expect the unexpected, Chiang Kai-Shek preemptively ordered 50,000 men to invade Jiangxi. As Sun Chuanfang's forces were advancing towards Jiangxi, the NRA bolted into northern Jiangxi, descending into the lowland plain near Poyang Lake. Chiang Kai-Shek's men were now threatening the capital of Jiangxi, Nanchang and further south the major city of Ganzhou. It took the 1st Division of the 5th NRA army 3 days to take Ganzhou, while most of southern Jiangxi fell to other NRA forces. Their victories were sped up by the defection of Lai Shihuang, whose Jiangxi 4th Division was one of those Sun Chuanfang had deployed to defend the province from the NRA. Despite having a larger army, Sun Chuanfang's forces were by no means unified and were failing to work together. The NRA 6th army swept through central Jiangxi, smashing the dazed defenders of Nanchang and taking the city by September 19th. This central sweep was done to attract Sun Chuanfangs fresh troops pouring into northern Jiangxi, who were just getting off steamboats along the Yangtze. In the north along the Yangtze, the NRA offensive ground to a halt when Sun Chuanfangs vanguard engaged them. Sun Chuanfangs fresh troops hurled the NRA back towards the Hubei border with a fierce 3 day long counter attack. This prompted Chiang Kai-Shek to frantically reinforce them, seeing the Wuchang besiegers became a skeletal crew from the 10th to 16th. It was not a decisive victory for Sun Chuanfang, but it certainly was a setback for the NRA whose position in the Yangtze valley was vulnerable. Sun Chuanfangs men steamrolled from Nanking, upriver to Kiukiang in Jiangxi, and he came with them to personally direct the reinforcements. He landed on September 21st and he set to work ordering his forces to sweep the lowlands. His men recaptured Nanchang after a few days and most of Jiangxi fell back under his hand. Sun Chuanfang rounded up hundreds of soldiers, officials and teachers, suspected to be colluding with the KMT and had them executed. Many students, both male and female were being targeted based on their short haircuts, this was in a Russian fashion, a fad at the time. He had their heads impaled on stakes in public places around Nanchang and Kiukiang to warn any who would collude with his enemies. Sun Chuanfang presumed the students teachers were the culprits supporting the KMT movement and made sure to purge any found doing so. The second half of September saw the NRA losing control of the situation, the Northern Expedition was in danger of falling apart.Sun Chuanfang's two pronged offensive was pushing the NRA deep into Hunan and Hubei, while cutting them off from Guangdong. Isolated into those pockets they would become easy pickings. Sun Chuanfang could also expect support from the battered Wu Peifu who was stuck in Hubei, things were not looking good for Chiang Kai-Shek. Chiang Kai-Shek was also facing issues with his base of Guangzhou as communists and peasantry groups were disrupting his logistical support. Chiang Kai-Shek telegraphed the KMT government in Guangzhou to settle the then ongoing Canton-Hong Kong Strike, that had erupted as a result of the May 13th incident. Chiang Kai-Shek's foreign minister Eugene Chen frantically began releasing multiple announcements to the media that thousands of ex-strikers were going to be sent to the front lines to support the NRA. With this implicant threat, 16 chaotic months of blockades and strikes against Hong Kong and the British suddenly came to a stop. Back over at the Jiangxi front, the fighting was growing more intense through late September. Several areas the NRA was defending were looking dire. By the end of the month, NRA intelligence was indicating General Chu Peiteh's 3rd Army were being driven out of central Jiangxi into Hunan and Wang Polings prestigious 1st Division of the 1st army had been badly mauled and were fleeing across mountains. Sun Chuanfang began trying to coordinate his offensive with Wu Peifu's trapped forces at Wuchang with an ingenious idea of sailing along Lake Tayeh from the Yangtze dikes to land due east of Wuchang. The landing happened on September 25th and initially it sent the NRA 4th army packing. The entire front began to crumble. Yet Sun Chuanfangs position was not entirely secure either. His 5 provincial armies were not as unified as the NRA and his subordinates' loyalties were not trustworthy. In fact his generals representing separate governments of Jiangsu, Anhui, Jiangxi, Zhejiang and Fujian were all clamoring for provincial autonomy. Many of Sun Chuanfangs administrators urged him to form a real federation providing provincial autonomy. Both Chiang Kai-Shek and Sun Chuanfang were facing different issues, but both could see their authority crumble. Sun Chuanfang began negotiating with Chiang Kai-Shek, offering to halt his offensive into Hunan in exchange for a nonaggression pact between the KMT and his 5 provinces. Chiang Kai-Shek replied in a telegram that the KMT did not desire to enlarge the war and that if Sun Chunfang withdrew his forces from Jiangxi, the KMT would withdraw from the Jiangxi territories currently occupied. Sun Chuanfang then counter proposed he would halt his offensive at the Hunan border if the NRA withdrew all their forces from Jiangxi. Sun Chuanfang was somewhat bluffing Chiang Kai-Shek. While his counteroffensive was certainly impressive, he had actually reached his limit in late September. In early October the NRA began pushing the enemy back. By the 5th Sun Chuanfang's thrust towards Wuchang had broken and his men were rushing back to the steamers to pull back to Jiangxi. On October 3rd the NRA severed communications via that railway at Tehan. After that the NRA reorganized and gradually pressed back down into the lowlands towards the port of Kiukiang and the railway station south of Nanchang. Sun Chuanfang tossed fierce counter attacks, recapturing parts of the railway, threatening the NRA 7th army's flank. On the 7th, a combined NRA attack tried to overwhelm a fortified hill position that dominated the railway line near Yanghsiu. However Sun CHuanfangs inner defensive lines held and by the days end the NRA had taken a severe beating for their efforts as they pulled back. In the south around Nanchang the battle raged back and forth. By mid-October the capital changed hands multiple times as both sides continued to pour reinforcements in the meat grinder. The annual holiday known as republic day, commemorating the Wuchang uprising on October the 10th was a morale booster for the NRA forces. Fate would have it, that same day, Sun Chuanfangs relief columns failed to reach Wuchang to aid its desperate defenders. Some of the garrison units secretly negotiated with the KMT and opened the gates of the city to them. As the NRA stormed Wuchang, nearly 100 civilians were trampled to death as people fled the city. Wu Peifu unable to rally any support, simply bid his time over in Honan. For the later half of October the combat began to dissipate somewhat allowing the NRA to reorganize itself. Another major development emerged, Sun Chuanfang had major problems erupting in Shanghai. In fact Shanghai was only the most apparent symptom of the problem, in reality Zhejiang was falling into a full rebellion. During September and early October, certain units of Sun Chuanfangs Zhejiang army began telegraming him demands to block entry into their province or the other 4 provinces under his rule any assistance from the Fengtian forces. A leader emerged, the head of the All-Zhejiang Association “Chuan che kunghui”, named Chu Fucheng. Now Chu Fucheng had numerous connections amongst prominent Zhejiagnese, like Chiang Kai-Shek. Chu Fucheng began orchestrating a counter movement, just before the NRA began attacking Nanchang. On October 15th, his association sent a telegram to Sun Chuanfang, demanding Zhejiang forces fighting for him be returned to duties within their home province and that Zhejiang be given autonomy. Then the civil governor of Zhejiang, Xia Chao began a rebellion, supported by the KMT at Guangzhou. Now historically, Zhejiang had been quite a loyal province during the late Qing dynasty, a time when many were calling for the end of the Manchu domination. During the warlord era, three leading commanders of the Zhejiang forces had conceded suzerainty over Zhejiang territory to powerful warlords outside the province. This caused a situation that saw northern chinese superiors constantly forced to make conciliations with Zhejiang independence movements that sprang up nearly every year since 1916. Zhejiang had never been successfully shaking over their northern overlords. Zhejiang military leaders such as Xia Chao, Zhou Fengqi and Chen Yi, had defected the the NRA and would become crucial to the KMT conquest of the province. All three of these men had gained political influence within the province through their military power, derived from the final decade of the Qing dynasty. Shortly after Yuan Shikai's death, Xia Chao had led the small Wubei clique against its rival the Baoding clique led by Governor Lu Gongwang. As governor Lu Gongwang had the upper hand and did all he could to undermine Xia Chao who was leading the provincial police at the time. Xia Chao gradually brushed shoulders with Zhou Fengqi who worked together to try and overthrow Lu Gongwang. However the Anhui clique gradually took over the province, and appointed Lu Yongxiang as its military governor. Xia Chao had read the tea leaves and backed Lu Yongxiangs rise, thus maintaining his own power. After Sun Chuanfang took over the province in 1924, Xia Chao became his vice commander during some of the intense fighting against the Fengtian clique. However Sun Chuanfang became weary of the local officials power and began a isolated the most powerful, moving them around so they could not network together to overthrow him. Xia Chao was unhappy with how Sun Chuanfang treated him and he began rallying the local gentry to demand provincial autonomy and the adoption of a new constitution. Sun Chuanfang responded by dispatching his subordinate Lu Xiangting to Hangzhou on January 25th of 1926 to be Zhejiangs new military governor. Lu Xiangting showed up with his forces and positioned them along every important route in the province. Thus the attempt to succeed was snapped in the bud. Xia Chao thus put on a smile and welcomed Lu Xiangting, tossing a party for him when he arrived to show his submission so he could maintain his position. In secrecy Xia Chao began building up police and security forces to start a rebellion and he had grown quite the private army, nearly 5000 men strong. Thus at this point Xia Chao held the position of chief of Zhejiangs police and civil governor over the province; Zhou Fengqi and Chen Yi were both divisional commander's over the 3rd and 1st divisions, who had received their positions through Xia Chao. After united the 5 provinces, Sun Chuanfang had transferred Zhou Fengqi's 1st division to garrison the capital of Nanking and Chen Yi's 3rd division to defend northern Jiangsu. These moves were specifically done to remove two the Zhejiangs largest provincial military units from their home areas. Sun Chuanfang likewise had moved over to his new HQ in Nanking and this prompted Xia Chao to presume he would rule over Zhejiang, but of course that did not happen. The year of 1926 produced good conditions for an uprising to take place in Zhejiang. Poor harvests in 1925 and 1926 led to an economic crisis which was exacerbated by over taxation by Sun Chuanfang. Then the NRA launched their northern expedition, led by the Zhejiangnese Chiang Kai-Shek. Once the NRA began their offensive, Xia Chao sent word to the KMT and formed a secret agreement with Chiang Kai-Shek. As civil governor, Xia Chao promised to officially defect if Wuchang fell to the NRA. The KMT likewise notified him their contact Niu Yongjian in Shanghai would create an uprising to help him against Sun Chuanfang. Thus Xia Chao conspired with the KMT to weaken Sun Chuanfangs rear area while the bloody battle over Jiangxi was at its height. Xia Chao was going to receive a new title under the KMT, equivalent to military governor, to be chairmanship over the provincial military committee. Back over in Guangzhou in early October the KMT congress approved the motion. Xia Chao sent word to Zho Fengqi, asking him to bring his 3rd brigade back to Zhejiang, but Zhou Fengqi could not risk such a maneuver, basically some of his most important units were literally hostages to Sun Chuanfang's Nanking HQ. Furthermore if he tried to advance to Zhejiang he would be moving directly through areas held by other units loyal to Sun Chuanfang. However on October 14th, some of Zhou Fengqi's reserve forces at Nanking did attempt to escape, but they were apprehended and disarmed, very few made it back to Zhejiang. Over at Xuzhou in northern Jiangsu, Chen Yi and his 1st division refused Xia Chao's appeal to rebel against Sun Chuanfang. Without these two men and their divisions, Xia Chao was facing a huge gamble with his little rebellion. He hoped the element of surprise would allow him to capture Zhejiang and possibly Shanghai as well. On October 16th, Xia Chao declared independence for Zhejiang and boarded 2500 men of his personal army aboard trains set for Shanghai. It was not long before Sun Chuanfang received reports via telegrams about what Xia Chao was doing. It is alleged Chen Yi may have leaked information about Xia Chao's rebellion to Sun Chuanfang hoping to receive a promotion. As Xia Chao's force of unseasoned armed policemen approached Shanghai they found the tracks blocked and were forced to march by foot against prepared defensive positions. The promised communist uprising in Shanghai failed to materialize as local CCP and KMT members were still debating how to go about creating a rebellion in the city. Many CCP members urged action, but they lacked sufficient arms to really do anything. After a very brief fight on the 17th within Shanghai's western suburbs the Zhejiang, Xia Chao was forced to pull out after forces loyal to Sun Chuanfang led a decisive counter attack. Xia Chao then frantically sent telegrams to Sun Chuanfangs subordinates claiming he had been deceived into defecting over to the KMT. Xia Chao then pulled his men back to Chiahsing. Meanwhile at Hangzhou crowds gathered demanding autonomy for the province. On the 18th a mass meeting of political activists gathered at Hangzhou proclaiming independence and support for the KMT government in Guangzhou. Xia Chao publicly joined the KMT and soon many significant Zhejiang provincial officials joined. Xia Chao then accepted his new title as provisional chairman and took command of the new 8th NRA army. They were roughly 10,000 strong, completely untrained and poorly armed. Those loyal to Sun Chuanfang began fleeing northwards en masse as Xia Chao went to work appointeding new officials. Already forewarned of the insurgency, Sun Chuanfang transferred loyal troops from Nanking by rail to the Zhejiang border. By the morning of the 20th, his troops were advancing across the border and wrecking amateurish defenses established by Xia Chao's men near Chiahsing. Both sides had railway cannons, but Xia Chao's men proved inept at their use. Xia Chao fled, leaving behind 6000 untrained and hopeless outmatched troops. By the evening Sun Chuanfang had effectively crushed the Zhejiang independence movement as he rounded up hundreds of captured Zhejiang rebels, machine gunning them down at night. The streets of Hangzhou were looted by Sun Chuanfangs men who carried out terrible massacres upon the civilian population. Xia Chao had tried to flee into the Zhejiang hillside in his car but was captured quickly in a nearby town. He was promptly shot in the streets, decapitated and his head was sent over to Nanking where it was placed on a spike as a warning to others. Chen Yi was then appointed the new governor of Zhejiang, adding to the claims it was perhaps he who sold out Xia Chao. Meanwhile Chiang Kai-Shek had all his uncommitted troops tossed into the Jiangxi warzone. Included in these were the 4th class of officers recently graduated in October from the Whampoa Academy. It was certainly a baptism under fire for these young recruits. The reinforcements allowed the NRA to finally crack Sun Chuanfangs growingly demoralized forces. Sun Chuanfangs southern defensive line was the first to begin to sag under an assault by the 2nd and 14th NRA armies. The 14th NRA army by the way was a unit that recently defected from Sun Chuanfang. By October 27th Sun Chuanfangs forces in southern Jiangxi were in a full retreat heading north through Nanchang. As the battle carried into November, the NRA began to concentrate along the Xiu valley for an assault against the Kiukiang-Nanchang defensive line. Reinforced by the 4th Army's 10th division led by Chen Mingshu, the 7th army swept down the lowland and attacked Tehan. The enemy's defensive line crumpled there allowing the NRA to cut the railway line, isolated Sun Chuanfangs south near Poyang Lake. The NRA then captured the ports of Kiukiang and Hukou along the Yangtze, further strangling Nanchang. By the 9th, Nanchang fell and Sun Chuanfangs men were in a general retreat heading down the Yangtze valley. The momentum of the NRA offensive now saw them sweep through Jiangxi. Chiang Kai-Shek began sending agents to Sun Chuanfang again offering him positions with the KMT. During the Jiangxi campaign, both sides had deployed their best troops into what essentially became a two month meat grinder. The casualties would be the highest incurred during the Northern Expedition. According to some KMT records, the final weeks push to capture the Kiukiang-Nanchang railway cost the NRA 20,000 casualties and for Sun Chuanfang, nearly 40,000. Overall the campaign saw the NRA suffer 100,000 casualties. The NRA victory saw them acquire an incredible amount of war materials, greatly expanding their military capabilities. At Nanchang alone the NRA had suffered 4000 casualties, but took 15,000 prisoners and 20,000 rifles, enough to arm an entire corps. A major reason for the heavy casualties was the NRA lack of heavy artillery. Early in the summer of 1926, when the Northern Expedition had kicked off with the invasion of Hunan, the 1st Army led by Ho Yingqin assembled along the border of Guangdong and Fujian. Being one of Sun Chuanfangs 5 provinces, Fujian posted a threat to the NRA's flank if he entered the war. Ho Yingqin had concentrated his men at Swatow primarily to defend the border, but if the opportunity arose he could very well invade Fujian. In September once the Jiangxi campaign began, the 1st Army and Sun Chuangfangs Fujian allies began engaging in border skirmishes. Sun Chuanfang had actually already given orders to his main commander in Fujian, Zhou Yingren to invade Guangdong, but Zhou Yingren had dragged his feet until late September. Zhou Yinren had 4 armies under his command, over 30,000 troops in all. When he finally launched his attack, directed primarily at Swatow, Ho Yingqin had more numbers, but Ho Yingqin had prepared a formidable defensive line over rugged coastal terrain. Zhou Yingren's late offensive was quite characteristic of the poor coordination amongst Sun Chuanfangs forces, a weakness the NRA figured out early and exploited. In another tactical blunder, Sun Chuanfangs navy, operating off Fujian's coasts and riverways, was ordered to support Zhou Jinren's assaults with naval bombardment. The navy did so, but did not target Swatow where the majority of pressure was being exerted. The main reason for this would turn out that Sun Chuanfangs main admiral had already begun secretly negotiating with the KMT to defect. In late September Ho Yingqin's 1st army received a major breakthrough. A well-timed defection of two brigade commanders under Zhou Yingren, provided Ho Yingqin with vital intelligence on his enemy's troop placements and defenses. Ho Yingqin unleashed his offensive, driving a thrust directly into Sun Chuanfangs southern flank. They were attacking what was known as the coastal road that leads to Shanghai. On October 9th, in order to distract the Fujian forces already penetrating the border of Guangdong near Sungkou, Ho Yingqin had some of his troops cross the Fujian border to capture Yungting. By the 10th Yungting was seized as Sungkou was likewise taken by October 13th. Then Ho Yingqin counterattacked the rear of the Fujian forces threatening their lines of communication. During the rest of October the 1st Army infiltrated the lightly defended back country of Fujian. The populations of these parts were mainly Hakka who had suffered under the rule of Sun Chuanfang. The Hakka people saw the invading NRA as salvation, because by this point they had established a good reputation for not plundering and molesting peoples where they went. Local militias known as “mintuan” began assembling, to a number possibly 10,000 strong aiding the NRA. The NRA welcomed them warmly into the ranks forming 3 Fujianese divisions, one independent brigade and 3 regiments. With the additional manpower, the NRA was quickly isolating and defeating Zhou Yingrens forces. One of the last fortified positions at Tingchou saw the recently arrived 14th army working in tandem with Fujianese allies to take it. As Zhou Yingren pulled back he lost 500 rifles and machine guns, some cannons, ammunition and many men, greatly bolstering the NRA. Zhou Yingren and his men found themselves in unfamiliar mountain heights, with their straw footwear quite unsuited to defend themselves against constant hit and run tactics by the local mintuan. Along the coast, Zhou Yingren's attempts to attack the ports of Chao'an and Swatow had ground to a halt and by October 14th his men had been pushed back to Changzhou. The NRA pressed its offensive simultaneously along the coastal road and down the interior valleys making it impossible for Zhou Yingren to coordinate a proper defense of Chanzhou. By November 8th Changzhou had fallen. Zhou Yingren pulled further back up the coast to Tung'an where he mounted a defense, but the NRA seized Chuanzhou, Xienyu and Yangtai in the meantime. From late September until December Ho Yingqin had conquered the southern part of Fujian, the most populated parts by far and was now pressing upon the walled provincial capital of Fuzhou, lying just across the Min River. The defenders of Fuzhou were quite demoralized. Zhou Yingren pleaded with Sun Chuanfang to dispatch reinforcements from the adjacent Jiangxi, but he was preoccupied with fighting there and quelling the rebellion in Zhejiang. Zhou Yingren had to do best with what he had. Unfortunately for him, many in the Fujianese navy and maritime forces had not just defected to the NRA, but they added their cannons to shelling Fuzhou from the coast and Min river bank. Then the commander of the Fuzhou garrison, Li Shengchun, simply opened the gates to the city to the NRA. Fuzhou was surrendered basically without any real fight on December 9th. Trapped within the city, the Fujian governor screamed as he was arrested “I don't understand what has happened! Our forces and weapons were superior but you have captured me!” With just under 2000 troops left of his original 60,000, Zhou Yingren limped away to Zhejiang, Fujian and effectively fallen to the NRA. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. Chiang Kai-Shek was utilizing every trick in the book to divide and conquer Sun Chuanfang's 5 province empire. As formidable as Sun Chuanfang was, he was losing in a battle of wits and now two of his provinces had fallen victim to the NRA. Could the warlord turn things around, or would he be forced to join to lose to the KMT?
Last time we spoke about the Zhejiang-Fengtian War, part of the Anti-Fengtian War. Sun Chuanfang had rising through the ranks and quickly seized himself a powerbase in southeast China. Zhang Zuolin and his Fengtian commanders meanwhile became quite arrogant and began bullying and seizing as much territory as they could. This led the Fengtian forces to begin encroaching in Sun Chuanfang newfound territory of Zhejiang. Assuming Sun Chuanfang like the rest would not resist them, they were certainly surprised when he did. Sun Chuanfang formed a coalition with the warlords that controlled Jiangasu, Fujian, Jiangxi, Anhui and his own Zhejiang to fight off the Fengtian menace. Sun Chuanfang went straight onto the offensive, surprising the Fengtian who were in a passive phase and ultimately defeating them, pushing them further north to Shandong. Sun Chuandfang's victory in the Zhejiang-Fengtian War marked the peak of his career, but peaks tend to fall. #109 The Anti-Fengtian War Part 2: The Guominjun-Fengtian War Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. In the previous episode we spoke about the Zhejiang-Fengtian War. It was part of a larger war known loosely as the anti-fengtian war or third Zhili-fengtian war. To be blunt, if you look up the anti-fengtian war, they barely take notice of the Zhejiang-Fengtian War. Most of the focus is directed north, particularly with the conflict between the Guominjun and Fengtian. Certainly the Guominjun took the spotlight during this war as Feng Yuxiang and Zhang Zuolin were clearly fighting for dominance over Beijing. However Zhang Zuolin was simply too powerful and began to bully his way across China. Through Duan Qirui and the Beiyang government, Zhang Zuolin secured vital positions for his subordinates. The 5th Fengtian army commander Kan Chaoxi was ordered to take two Fengtian Mixed Brigades and occupy Rehe province as its governor. Li Jinglin the commander of the Fengtian 2nd army and a Hubei native, became the military inspector of Hubei. Zhang Zongchang was given the title of commander in chief of suppressing banditry in Jiangsu, Shandong and Anhui which further led him to become the governor of Shandong. Yang Yuting was made governor over Jiangsu and Jiang Dengxuan over Anhui.. By 1925 the Fengtian military was 370,000 men strong across land, sea and air. By January of 1925, Fengtian forces began occupying Shanghai, threatening Sun Chuanfang who unleashed the Zhejiang-Fengtian War in retaliation As for Feng Yuxiang, he was unable to exert any real control in Beijing. He had received the title of inspector general over the northwest, effectively a military governorship. This saw him gain direct control over Rehe, Chahar and Suiyuan. In early 1925 he moved his headquarters to Kalgan. Through his subordinates and allies he also exerted control in Hunan, Shanxi and Gansu. Because of his recent acquisition of Soviet aid, his armies were growing in size, though declining in quality. He had gradually distanced himself from Zhang Zuolin. In January of 1925 Feng Yuxiang was being excluded by Duan Qirui and Zhang Zuolin. At this point Feng Yuxiang met Li Dazhao as Soviet military advisors were coming to help train his forces. In the late spring and summer Feng Yuxiang dispatch young officers to study in the Soviet Union. After a very strict examination period, presided over by Feng Yuxiang, 24 out of 300 students were enlisted into the Soviet Officer training corps. Another 24 were sent to Japan. When the May 13th incident broke out, Feng Yuxiang alongside some subordinates sent a telegram to Duan Qirui asking the Beiyang government to "take the external situation seriously and not to worry about it, and expressed his willingness to go to the front for the country". Feng Yuxiang then began supporting student demonstrations and on June 13th had his troops all wear black armbands to mourn the Shanghai martyrs. Feng Yuxiang pushed his men to donate to the Shanghai strike workers and personally donated 10,000 yuan. Feng Yuxiang watched costly the events unfold in the southeast. Upon discovering Sun Chuanfang was gaining the upper hand, Feng Yuxiang finally made his move. He began secretly extending his hand to just about anyone who would join with him to fight the Fengtian forces. Obviously Sun Chuanfang was immediately receptive. Feng Yuxiang then reached out within the Fengtian clique to see if any disgruntled commanders would defect. He flirted with Li Jinglin, the current governor over Hubei province. It seemed Li Jinglin was completely on board for the time being as another Fengtian commander welcomed the invitation. Guo Songling, holding the courtesy name Maochen, was born on December 25th of 1883 in Yuqiaozhai village of Dongling district in Liaoning province. In 1903 Guo Songling began studying under Mr. Dong Hanru in Changwangzhai. However he was soon forced to pull out of school because of the outbreak of the Russo-Japanese War. In Autumn of 1905, General Zhao Erxun established the Fengtian Army Primary School at Dabeiguan in Fengtian. Guo Songling immediately joined up. The next year he met Fang Shengtao, a member of the Tongmenghui where he became exposed to revolutionary ideology. In 1907 Guo Songling graduated with honors and soon served as a sentry to the Shengjiang General's office. He was soon taken under the wing of commander Zhu Qinglan. In 1909 Guo Songling was transferred to Chengdu, Sichuan alongside Zhu Qinglan. The next year Guo Songling joined the nationalist army of the Tongmenghui, joining the Tongmenghui as well. In 1911 the Sichuan Railway protection movement broke out and Guo Songling joined the uprising. By this point he was promoted to commander of the 2nd battalion of the 68th regiment, responsible for the defense of northern Chengdu. He persuaded the masses to lift the siege without bloodshed. The governor of Sichuan, Zhao Erfeng dismissed Guo Songlong, suspecting him to be colluding with bandits, but later restored him to his original post at the request of Zhu Qinglan. After the Wuchang uprising, various regions of Sichuan declared independence one after another. In Chengdu a new government formed with Zhu Qinglan as deputy governor. However sichuan generals soon instigated local troops to launch a mutiny, forcing Zhu Qinglan and many Hakka Generals to flee Sichuan. Guo Songling then decided to return to Fengtian province. Back in Fengtian he joined another uprising movement led by Zhang Rong, but he was quickly arrested by the Qing government and beheaded. At this point one Han Shuxiu risked her life trying to stop the carriage carrying Zhang Rong to his execution. She was caught, but before they seized her, she told the police she was the fiance of Guo Songling, and this led them to let her go. She married Guo Songling shortly after. In 1912 Guo Songling entered the Beijing Officers institute and the next year he entered the army university. After graduating he served as a Beijing military academy instructor. In 1917 after Sun Yat-Sen established his military government in Guangzhou, Guo Songling joined up as the chief of staff to the Guangdong-Jiangxi-Hunan Border defense and became the battalion commander of the Guangdong provincial army. After Sun Yat-Sen saw some major defeats, Guo Songling departed Guangzhou, yet again returning to Fengtian where he took up a position as a tactical instructor for the military academy of Manchuria. It was here he met Zhang Xueliang. Zhang Xueliang soon recommended him to his dad who made him chief of staff and head of the 2nd regiment. By 1921 he was the head of the 8th Brigade. During the first Zhili-Fengtian war of 1922, the eastern route force led by Zhang Xueliang and Guo Songling shattered Wu Peifu's plan to break through Shanhaiguan. During the second Zhili-Fengtian war of 1924, Zhang Xueliang and Guo Songling were serving as commander and deputy commander of the 3rd army. Alongside Jiang Dengxuan and Han Linchun commanding the 1st army, they soundly defeated the Zhili forces winning the war. Zhang Zuolin then appointed his son as commander of the BEijing-Yulin garrison with Guo Songling as his deputy commander. As Zhang Zuolin dispatched Fengtian commanders into China proper to occupy southern provinces. Guo Songling believed Zhang Zuolin and many of his commanders were becoming war mongers, and proposed a different strategy, emphasizing pulling back forces into China's interior to try and win over rural populations. Other commanders worked to politically exclude Guo Songling from Zhang Zuolin's ear, such as Yang Yuting, thus Guo Songling's proposal was rejected. In 1925 Guo Songling took his wife to Japan to study military affairs. While in Japan Guo Songling learnt Zhang Zuolin was dispatched his troops south drawing Sun Chuanfang into a war. He also learned the extent of Zhang Zuolin's dealings with the Japanese and became disgusted with how he was seemingly selling out China. Now Guo Songling's wife Han Shuxiu was a graduate of Yenching University and a classmate of Feng Yuxiang's wife, Li Dequan. They had a good relationship and were close contacts. Han Shuxiu learned about Feng Yuxiang's dealings with the Soviets and told Guo Songling who became quite excited. Guo Songling had acquired quite a few grievances under Zhang Zuolin and wanted to overthrow him. Therefore he began to secretly negotiate with Feng Yuxiang. In November Guo Songling was recalled to China for the war effort. Instead of aiding the war effort, On November 22nd, Guo Songling raised an army in Luanzhou and sent a telegram stating he was rebelling against Zhang Zuolin. He called his force the “Northeast National Army”. Jiang Dengxuan rushed over to Luanzhou station to try and reason with Guo Songling, but was arrested upon entering the city. Guo Songling tried to persuade Jiang Dengxuan to join him to oppose Zhang Zuolin, but Jiang simply scolded him. Guo Songling then had him shot on November 26th. Guo Songling raised 70,000 troops who quickly captured Shanhaiguan. In the face of the onslaught, Zhang Zuolin only had 40,000 troops in the vicinity, as he had dispatched the vast majority of his forces into China proper to expand the Fengtian empire. Pretty ironic, the guy who told him to pull back his forces into the interior was now attacking his interior. Guo Songling's forces brushed aside the Fengtian armies, seizing Suizhong, Xingcheng and Jinzhou. The Fengtian forces were taken completely off guard and were quickly pushed towards the east bank of the Liaohe River. Guo Songling's main target was Mukden, which he soon erected a siege against. Guo Songling since November 22nd began repeatedly sending telegrams to Zhang Zuolin demanding he step down and allow his son Zhang Xueliang to take over. If Zhang Zuolin would simply do so, he promised to stop his rebellion. Zhang Zuolin panicked and began frantically placing a bounty over Guo Songling's head, up to 800,000 yuan. With no one to turn to, Zhang Zuolin ran with his tail between his legs to the Japanese asking if their Kwantung Army could stop Guo Songling. Zhang Zuolin knew very well the kind of man Guo Songling was. He knew the mans personality and vigor was a huge threat politically, allegedly Zhang Zuolin began the process of forming his resignation and peace talks. Zhang Zuolin was seen packing 29 cars with furniture and his valuables heading over to Dalian to flee, most likely for Japan. It is also said he had a ton of firewood and gasoline positioned around his mansion, so it could be burned down if Guo Songling got to it. Countless Fengtian civilian and military officials also began fleeing with their families, it was pure chaos. The Japanese were certainly not pleased with the situation. The Kwantung Army certainly did not want Guo Songling to gain power, it most certainly spelt doom over their dominance over Manchuria. Guo Songling was in league with Feng Yuxiang and to the Japanese this meant in one way or another, he was a communist sympathizer. The Japanese view of Guo Songling was “Guo's intention was to expel Zhang himself, clearly implement the Three Principles of the Kuomintang , involve the three northeastern provinces in war, attract Soviet forces into Manchuria, and induce a situation that Japan's national defense and Manchuria-Mongolia policy could not forgive." The president of the Manchuria railway company, Yasuhiro Banichiro believed “if Guo's rebellion was successful, the three northeastern provinces would be ravaged by the communist movement, and there might be a "free zone" without the Manchurian Railway and Kwantung Leased Territory." Consul General Yoshida Shigeru in Tianjin reported that if Guo Songling took over Manchuria, it was sure the Kuomintang would move in and the threat of communism with them. Thus the Japanese believed that Zhang Zuolin needed to stay in power. The Japanese began mediating a peace deal, highlighting how they wished both sides would recognize their empire's rights in Manchuria and Mongolia. They also added, if these demands were not respected they would go to war with either of them. Guo Songling slammed the table to this and shouted "How can this be! This is China's internal affairs! I don't understand what Japan's special rights are!" Then Zhang Zuolin made a secret agreement with the Japanese, caving into all their demands if the Kwantung army would send troops. On december 8th, the Kwantung Army issued a warning to Guo Songling to stay 20 miles away from the south manchurian railway concession or they would get involved. The Kwantung army was taken measures to halt Guo Songling's advance and give Zhang Zuolin time to get his forces over. On the 9th the Japanese 10th divisional HQ moved from Liaoyang to Fengtian. The 63rd regiment, 1st artillery battalion and 1st Cavalry battalion of Gongzhuling alongside garrison units all converged upon Fengtian trying to intercept Guo Songling. On the 12th Guo Songling's vanguard arrived near Baiqibao. His right wing prepared an assault against Yingkou. On the 14th as they tried to enter Yingkou they were suddenly blocked by Japanese forces and issued another warning to back off. Guo Songling's men were thus banned from the urban area, forced to take the fighting along the Liaohe river. This was a huge obstacle between them at Fengtian, they would have to go 30 km's around the south manchuria railway to get to it. On the 15th the Japanese decided to withdraw part of the IJA 24th division from Korea and part of the 12th Division from Kurume to form a Manchuria expeditionary army that would be deployed in Fengtian to stop Guo Songling. On the 17th the main bulk of Guo Songling's army entered Baiqibao. On the 20th Guo Songling captured Xinmin and his vanguard was now arriving to the west bank of the Juliu river, due southwest of Mukden. Guo Songlings men could see the lights of Fengtian cities as they awaited the rest of the army to ford the river. The next day the main force arrived in Xinmen setting up a new HQ. The Fengtian defenses were led by Zhang Xueliang who deployed along the east bank of the Juliu river from Damintun to Gongzhutun. Wu Junsheng's 6th army, consisting mostly of cavalry were rushing south from Heilongjiang to take up a position on the Fengtian left wing while Zhang Zuoiangs 5th army was coming over from Jilin for the right wing. Zhang Xueliang personally led the 3rd army within the middle. Guo Songling set up his men along the west bank of the Juliu river, arranging them from north to south in the order of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th armies. On the 22nd Guo Songling gave the order for a general attack to take place the next day. The net day his army launched their attack against Zhang Xueliang's middle position, finding he was utilizing heavy Japanese weaponry. Zhang Zuoxiang attack with his right wing, quickly occupying Beigaotaizi, before hooking around to cut off Guo Songlings line of retreat. Then Wu Junsheng's left wing seized Liuhegou and assaulted Baiqibao where he burned Guo Songlings ammunition dumps, weaponry and provisions. Now Guo Songling's supply line was compromised and his rear was threatened. At this point Zhang Xueliang went out of his way to dispatch air forces to drop letters trying to get his friend to stop the rebellion. Without any response from Guo Songling, Zhang Xueliang took his force and began surrounding his army. That night Guo Songling held a meeting where his generals Zou Zuohua and Gao Jiyi advocated for a ceasefire and to go to the peace talks. Other generals such as Liu Wei and Fan Pujiang advocated to keep on fighting. In the end Guo Songling elected to keep the war going and decided to engage in a decisive battle on the 24th. On the 24th, Guo Songling personally led the battle, launching three fierce attacks against the Fengtian forces. However Zuo Zuohua, his chief of staff defected, withdrawing an artillery brigade as he did so, greatly hampering the war effort. Guo Songling's army was defeated, he gave permission for his subordinates, even his personal guards to try and escape if they could during the night. Guo Songling and his wife Han Shuxiu were both captured by Wang Yongqing, the brigade commander of Wu Junshengs army. They were to be taken to Mukden for trial. On December 25th Wang Yongqing was escorting them when he received orders issued by Yang Yuting, Guo Songling's political rival. The orders were simply to shoot them on the spot. Now depending who you hear this story from, many claim it was actually Zhang Zuolin who sent the order. Historians believe Yang Yuting was worried Zhang Xueliang would rescue Guo Songling so he advised Zhang Zuolin it was best to simply kill him so the ordeal would not be repeated. At 10am Guo Songling and his wife were shot near Laodafang in Liaozhong county. Their bodies were transported to Mukden, which I should be calling Shenyang, I apologize the names change back and forth. Their bodies were left exposed in the Xiaoheyan stadium for three days. Thus ended the month long rebellion of Guo Songling. Now while all of that was breaking out in Manchuria, Feng Yuxiang had unleashed his war as well. In early december Feng Yuxiang led the Guominjun forces east launching a massive attack into Rehe province. Now if you recall, Feng Yuxiang had brokered a deal with Li Jinglin, and these parts of Rehe were his territory. Thus Li Jinglin saw this as a betrayal. He sent a telegram denouncing Feng Yuiang "He fooled his subordinates and used the heresy of communism to destroy the great defense and morality.I carry the sword for the country, not for party disputes or for profit, but only for this humanitarianism, in order to destroy the public enemy of the world and save our morality from the decline of five thousand years.It doesn't matter whether we are enemies or not, but only whether we are red or not.” Li Jinglin fought tenaciously against the Guominjun, however by December 23rd, Feng Yuxiang had seized Tianjin. Meanwhile alongside Sun Chuanfang, Wu Peifu had also joined the Zhili fight against the Fengtian forces, thus he was loosely allied to Feng Yuxiang. When Guo Songling's rebellion crumbled, it seemed clear to all, Feng Yuxiang was about to face the full brunt of Zhang Zuolin's Fengtian armies, who had withdrawn into the interior to meet his threat. While Feng Yuxiang dominated the Beijing area, it was only a matter of time before the Fengtian swarmed him. Wu Peifu had been quietly building up his powerbase in Hunan. While he appeared to be a good ally to the anti-Fengtian cause, he was anything but. The only person, Wu Peifu hated more than Zhang Zuolin, was of course Feng Yuxiang, the man who stabbed him in the back and ruined his Zhili dominated China dream. If Wu Peifu were to join Zhang Zuolin they would effectively surround and isolate Feng Yuxiangs pocket in the north. Wu Peifu knew if he wanted to rejoin the big boys club, he would have to kowtow to Zhang Zuolin and take up a subordinate position. If lets say Wu Peifu and Zhang Zuolin dominated Beijing again, they would be able to squeeze any funding away from Feng Yuxiang, shoving him back into the northwest, whence they could gradually beat him up. Thus Wu Peifu and Zhang Zuolin settled their differences and formed an alliance against the treacherous Feng Yuxiang. Its kind of funny but Feng Yuxiang had betrayed both men at some point so it was sort of the binding glue to their new found relationship. The Zhili and Fengtian cliques had united once again, this time calling themselves the Anti-Red coalition. Their objective was quite simple, they would surround and strangle Feng Yuxiang's army. On January 20th Feng Yuxiang had launched a battle against their new coalition at Shanhaiguan, Shandong and Henan simultaneously. Zhang Xueliang led his army to occupy Luanzhou before advancing towards Tianjin. Zhang Zongchang, whose army had withdrawn into Shandong after Sun Chuanfang had defeated them now attacked from the south. Zhang Zuolin dispatched a special envoy to officially form a alliance with Wu Peifu, asking him to attack Feng Yuxiang from his position and if possible see if Yan Xishan could be lured into the scuffle as well. Wu Peifu took his rather meager forces and marched north from Hubei into Hunan. His relatively weak army was assisted by the Red Spear Society. These were a rural self-defense movement that sprang up in Hebei, Henan and Shandong in the 1920s. They were local small land owners and tenant farmers trying to defend their lands or villages from roaming bandits, warlords, tax collectors and later on in history communists and Japanese. In many ways they were the spiritual successor to the Big Swords Society. This particular group of them had been abused by the Guominjun commander Yueh Weichun who presided over Hunan. Back in the north, an incident broke out at the Taku forts. Feng Yuxiang having taken control of Tianjin and the Taku forts, seized some minor warships and began mining the seas. This was in violation of the Boxer Protocol and the IJN retaliated by bombarding his ships and even fired upon Feng Yuxiang's forces along the coast. Feng Yuxiang had his artillery fire back upon the IJN warships. In the face of the escalating situation, other foreign powers notified China they must stop what Feng Yuxiang was doing as it threatened to breach the Boxer Protocol. An ultimatum was given, prompting Duan Qirui to persuade Feng Yuxiangs forces to stop mining the waters. Then on March 18th, 1926, KMT and CCP members such as Xu Qian, Li Dazhao, Zhao Shiyan and others initiated a "National Congress against the Eight-Power Ultimatum" in front of Tiananmen, with Xu Qian served as the chairman of the presidium of the Congress. Mass demonstrations broke out in Tiananmen Square. They opposed the foreign ultimatum and called for an end to the unequal treaties, for foreign warships to depart their waters and for Feng Yuxiang to fight their imperial aggression. Li Dazhao took to the stage shouting "Don't be afraid, they dare not do anything to us!" Li Dazhao then led many to rush towards the state council. Duan Qirui panicked and ordered Beijing guards to fire upon them. A reporter at the scene stated stated that the marchers "the demonstrators attacked the State Council, poured oil, threw bombs, and attacked the military and police with pistols and sticks. The military and police were killed and injured in their legitimate defense." 47 demonstrators were killed, 150 more were wounded. Duan Qirui then ordered the arrest of the ring leaders, such as Li Dazho and Xu Qian who all fled. Back in the war for the north the Guominjun commander Lu Zhunglin now faced an offensive from Li Jinglin and Zhang Zongchang from Shandong and the main Fengtian forces coming from Manchuria. Li Jinglin began his advance in February of 1926, fighting Lu Zhunglin for several weeks. Feng Yuxiang realized they would lose the war at this rate and ordered the forces to pull out of Hubei and Henan into the Beijing area. Lu Zhunglin was forced to evacuate 100,000 man army by March 21st. Feng Yuxiang's took positions in the Beijing area where they would fight off the enemy for over a month, the enemy now including Wu Peifu who had advanced north from Hunan. Feng Yuxiang meanwhile arrested Duan Qirui and released Cao Kun on April 9th, trying to sow dissent between Wu Peifu and Zhang Zuolin. His idea was to declare he was once again willing to serve under Cao Kun, and sent word to Wu Peifu that they should join forces to destroy the Fengtian clique. Wu Peifu simply ignored this request. Lu Zhunglin leading the forces from the front knew he could not hope to hold back the onslaught any longer so on April 15th he evacuated the army to the Nankou Pass, roughly 30 miles northwest of Beijing. In the meantime the coalition led by armies under Zhang Zongchang, Zhang Xueliang, Li Jinglin and Wu Peifu occupied Beijing. They installed Yan Huiqing as a temporary figurehead as Duan Qirui was exiled to Tianjin under orders from Zhang Zuolin. The forces also sacked Beijing, so badly it would not recover until 1928. Now at the Nankou Pass, 90,000 Guominjun troops resisted the onslaught of over 450,000 of the enemy until August 16th. The Guominjun looking for another escape route dispatched a force led by Shi Yousan and Han Fuju into Shanxi. They were attacked near Datong by Yan Xishan's army. Despite being sympathetic to the Guominjun, as Yan Xishan was loosely associated with the KMT, his policy of neutrality had to be enforced, it was after all one of the ways he managed to survive this long. Feng Yuxiang's forces were quickly dislodged from Shanxi. Meanwhile Chahar fell to Zhang Xueliang's men as they advanced from Beijing and Suiyuan fell to Yan Xishan as his men advanced from Shanxi. The Guominjun put up a spartan-like resistance, but the Fengtian brought Japanese heavy artillery to the Nankou Pass where they blew away possibly 10,000 Guominjun. The Guominjun were forced to retreat into Gansu by August 15th. Gansu at this time was being held by a bunch of lesser warlords whose domains were affected by religious divisions. Feng Yuxiang now took this time to go on a trip to the Soviet Union, announcing his resignation. Yet it was not actually a resignation, once in the USSR he began regaining control over his Guominjun army, winning back the favor of two of his best generals who had defected, Han Fuchu and Xu Yusan. Both these men had tossed their lot in with Yan Xishan temporarily. Feng Yuxiangs next goal was to recover his position in Shaanxi, where his forces had been under siege since April of 1926 by Liu Chenhua the previous warlord of Shaanxi. Liu Chenhua had been bolstered by Red Spear units from Hunan. Now Feng Yuxiang had basically united all the northern warlords in their hatred for him, so he pretty much had no one else to look to, except for of course, the Kuomintang. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. Feng Yuxiang unleashed his Guominjun after securing many sneaky deals with those like Guo Songling, Sun Chuanfang, Li Jinglin and even Wu Peifu sort of. His plans all came to naught as he gradually lost the anti-fengtian war and now Wu Peifu and Zhang Zuolin were back in Beijing together, talk about Deja Vu.
Last time we spoke about the rise of Chiang Kai-Shek. Chiang Kai-Shek had gradually become a rising star in the KMT. Dr Sun Yat-Sen saw some promise in the young man and took him under his wing soon making him something akin to his number 2. Aligning with Sun Yat-Sen, Chiang Kai-Shek helped consolidate KMT power in Guangzhou and played a crucial role in military campaigns, including the suppression of the Canton Merchants Association militia in 1924. Following Sun Yat-Sen's death in 1925, Chiang Kai-Shek navigated the KMT power vacuum that unfolded. When the Guangzhou Coup occurred, Chiang Kai-Shek managed to keep his head and began systematically eliminating or neutralizing his rivals. In the end he solidified his authority and led to the temporary stabilization of KMT-CCP relations, setting the stage for the Northern Expedition aimed at unifying China under KMT leadership. #108 The Anti-Fengtian War Part 1: The Zhejiang-Fengtian War Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. In this episode we are going to be talking about a new warlord, well new-ish. When I had been introducing the individual warlords and their factions, I had to set a few aside, because they come later on in the warlord Era, one of them being Sun Chuanfang. Sun Chuanfang was born April 17th, 1885 in Fanzhen, of Tai'an county in Shandong province. He lost his father at a early age, and because he grew up in old troublesome Shandong, he was destined to face hardship. One of those hardships was the Boxer Rebellion, which provided much unrest, poverty and famine. His family was forced to flee famine many times before they settled in Jinan. Sun Chuanfang had a little sister who went on to marry Wang Yingkai, a rising officer in the Beiyang Army and a protege under Yuan Shikai. By being the brother in law, Sun Chuanfang received some financial aid and was given a proper education. Sun Chuanfang was quickly deemed talented and strong, so it was recommended he join the Beiyang Army training camp in 1902. Sun Chuanfang graduated in 1904 and was sent to Japan to train at the Tokyo Shimbu Gakko military preparatory school. Reminiscent of Chiang Kai-Shek's experience, Sun Chuanfang joined the Tongmenghui while studying in Japan.He would graduate 6th in his class and served in the IJA before returning to China in 1908. In 1909 he took the Army Civil Service Examination and ha exellent results, obtaining the status of an infantry juren. After this Sun Chuanfang was assigned to the 2nd army regiment of Ma Longbiao. Eventually he was recruited by Wang Zhanyuan who would become something of a mentor to him. During the Wuchang uprising, Sun Chuanfang was assigned to forces who went south to supress the revolutionaries. After the founding of the new republic, Sun Chuanfang took a station in Hubei. Sun Chuanfang rose through the ranks and by 1917 he was appointed commander of the 21st mixed brigade. After this he received a promotion to commander of the 1st Division. During the Anhui-Zhili War Sun Chuanfang was fighting under Wang Zhanyuan as they captured Wu Guangxin. After this Sun Chuanfang was awarded commander in chief over the upper reaches of the Yangtze River. In 1921, the governor of Hunan, Zhao Hengti, attempted to expand his rule to Hubai launching a small war known loosely as the Hunan-Hubei War. Zhao Hengti failed to expand his rule, but forced something of a political struggle upon Wang Zhanyuan who ended up resigning from his post. Wu Peifu then recommended Sun Chuanfang to became the commander of the 2nd division, working under him. During the 1st Zhili-Fengtian War of 1922. Sun Chuanfang officially became a member of the Zhili Clique and began publicly demanding the resignation of Xu Shichang, the current Anhui clique president. In June that year, Xu Shichang resigned and Li Yuanhong took his place. In 1923, Sun Chuanfang was appointed the Military Inspector of Fujian. He led his troops to Fujian and quickly seized control over the province. There he established the Fujian Army. In September of 1924, the Jiangsu-Zhejiang War broke out, a precursor to the 2nd Zhili-Fengtian War. Sun Chuanfang initially held back, but stated he was supporting Qi Xieyuan the governor of Jiangsu against Lu Yongxiang the governor of Zhejiang. When the opportunity opened up Sun Chuanfang invaded Zhejiang to defeat Lu Yongxiang, however during the greater war, the Zhili clique was defeated by the Fengtian forces. Wu Peifu went into exile, many of the remaining Zhili Warlords were tossed into a uneasy situation. For Sun Chuanfang it was a pretty awkward situation as he had just won a smaller war and established a powerbase in southeast China. With Wu Peifu gone, Sun Chuanfang was now one of the biggest Zhili warlords. The new chief executive, Duan Qirui appointed Sun Chuanfang as governor over Zhejiang, casting Qi Xieyuan to the wind. Duan Qirui was struggling to keep the peace across the board, thus he was trying to appease the more troublesome warlords with decent appointments, hoping they would be complacent and not stir up anymore trouble. But this is China's warlord Era, and trouble will be stirred. Now Two episodes back I mentioned how Feng Yuxiang established his Guominjun, but he lacked funds and arms. Thus he got into bed with the KMT, and by proxy was introduced to Mr. Borodin representing the Soviets. The Soviets agreed to arm and fund his Guominjun as long as he provided the same reciprocity as the KMT, ie; allowing communists to join his ranks. Feng Yuxiang held a sphere of influence in the northwest of China. The new triumvirate between him, Duan Qirui and Zhang Zuolin was honestly a charade. Zhang Zuolin controlled the wealthy provinces of northeast China while Feng Yuxiang controlled the much poorer northwest. Zhang Zuolin was backed by the Japanese, he was essentially more of a conservative. Feng Yuxiang was seen as a radical politically, perhaps even a revolutionary and his backer was the Soviet Union. Duan Qirui was not even in the same league as either, having no real army anymore. Thus Zhang Zuolin was essentially the one calling the shots, it was an arrangement destined to fail. After winning the second Zhili-Fengtian War, Zhang Zuolin began moving pieces across the chess board to consolidate his power. He first ordered the commander of his 5th army, Kan Chaoxi to lead two Fengtian Mixed Brigades, with some local troops, over to Rehe province to set up shop as its military-governor. The commander of the 2nd Fengtian army, Li Jinglin who was a Zhili native was ordered to serve as a sort of Zhili military affairs director. The Dogmeat General, Zhang Zongchang was given his first big break, Zhang Zuolin made him the commander in chief of suppressing bandits in Jiangsu, Shandong and Anhui. Duan Qirui then ordered the removal of Qi Xieyuan of the Zhili clique from his post as the inspector general of Jiangsu, Anhui and Jiangxi. He was to be replaced by our old friend Lu Yongxiang who would be an envoy to Jiangsu and Anhui. Thus Zhang Zongchang and Lu Yongxiang together marched south along the Shanghai-Nanjing line. To face the incoming threat Qi Xieyuan banded together with Sun Chuanfang and they likewise marched to Suzhou by January 14th. On the 17th both armies began fighting between Danyang and Wuxi. Yet by the 25th Qi Xieyuan was decisively defeated. Qi Xieyuan fled to Shanghai before getting on a boat to go into exile in Japan. His so-called partner in crime Sun Chuanfang had not ponied up the same amount of troops as he did, choosing to hold back a bit. When Qi Xieyuan fled for Japan, all of his troops were snatched up by Sun Chuanfang. On February 3rd, Sun Chuanfang approached Zhang Zongchang to negotiate, and they signed the second Jiangsu-Zhejiang peace treaty. Under the terms the Zhili army agreed to retreat to Songjiang, the Fengtian army would retreat to Kunshan, while Shanghai would not station troops. After what was known as the second Jiangsu-Zhejiang war, the Fengtian forces began to dramatically expand their control into the Yangtze River Valley. Zhang Zuolin dispatched 11 divisions to occupy Hebei, Shandong, Jiangsu, the Beijing-Fengtian Railway and the Jinpu Railway. Zhang Zuolin strong armed the Beiyang government to make his generals Li Jinglin, Zhang Zongchang, Jiang Dengxuan and Yang Yuting military inspectors over Hubei, Shandong, Anhui and Jiangsu respectively. This basically made the Yangtze River Valley under Fentgian control and connected them via rail to Zhang Zuolin's northeast power base. The agreement made with Sun Chuanfang to not deploy any troops in Shanghai seemed under threat. When prompted, the Fengtian leaders would claim they would never deploy troops in Shanghai, but to all it seemed like classic trickery. In fact the Fengtian commanders had become quite arrogant and careless. Some of the generals were running opium operations in Nanshi and Zhabei. A regular inspection at Shanghai-Nanjing station showcased one of their drug runs and led to Fengtian soldiers performing a shoot out. Because of the incident, Duan Qirui ordered Lu Yongxiang and Zheng Qian to go over and investigate the situation. At the same time, Zhang Zongchang had deployed some troops in Shanghai to make sure the opium drug running went more smoothly. Zhang Zongchang ordered Cheng Guorui to figure out a solution to the issues and he was accompanied by Li Kuiyuan the director of the Fengtian Army's HQ in shanghai and Yuan Zhihe the Fengtian supply department director. Cheng Guorui and Li Kuiyuan quickly got into an argument and began drawing their guns upon each other in a shoot out. As reported by an eye witness "Yuan was seriously injured, Li fell to his death, Cheng jumped out of the window and injured his waist. At that time, the guards of each person were outside, and they opened fire on each other when they heard the sound, and the order was very chaotic." Thus Zhang Zongchang's efforts to smooth over the drug trafficking had done the very opposite, it made it much much more visible to the public. However Zhang Zuolin was really arrogant himself by this point and believed their Fengtian empire could get away with just about anything at this point, so he simply dispatched a division of troops to Songhu to make sure things ran smoother. Unfortunately he sent these forces to occupy garrisons that belongs to Sun Chuanfang. At the same time Fengtian forces led by Ding Xichun entered Nanjing. It really seemed Zhang Zuolin got far too over confident. Apparently he began proclaiming "If I don't beat anyone in the next three to five years, no one will dare to beat me." Likewise his subordinate Yang Yuting mirrored his bosses sentiment, mouthing off to local warlords in Jiangsu. Jiang Dengxuan in Anhui began boasting "that he only brought one battalion with him" and Yang Yuting declared publicly "I went to Jiangsu this time with only more than ten entourages and a company of guards." Meanwhile Li Jinglin and Zhangzong began to crack down on labour movements in Hubei and Shandong. There was a lot of unrest with workers, especially in Qingdao. Zhang Zongchang brutally suppressed any who would try to demonstrate or strike. A strict anti-labor and anti-communist movement was seen across the board in areas Fengtian controlled. Zhang Zongchang also cracked down on the remaining Zhili clique influence in the Yangtze River Valley. When the Fengtian replaced Qi Xieyuan with Lu Yongxiang as governor over Jiangsu, that lasted about a minute until they replaced Lu Yongxiang, who remember was an Anhui clique guy, with one of their own, Yang Yuting. His appointment was specifically to expand into neighbouring Zhejiang and Fujian provinces. These areas of course were being controlled by the last significant Zhili warlord, Sun Chuanfang. Sun Chuanfang had this to say about the situation "Zhang now dominates the Central Plains, controls the government, and covers the northeast and southeast. He is also planning to succeed Yuan Shikai and establish his own empire. He seduces powerful enemies outside and destroys public opinion inside. He is extremely cruel and does everything he can." On October 11th of 1925, the governor of Zhejiang, Sun Chuanfang took matters into his own hands. He sent a telegram to the entire nation, opposing suppression efforts against Shanghai workers. He was taking a page out of Wu Peifu's playbook, to play upon the image of patriotism, making it seem you loved the people and were fighting for them. In reality this was a ploy to gather support and sympathy for what he was about to unleash. In early October, Sun Chuanfang began to hold secret meetings in Hangzhou with representatives of the Zhili clique of nearby provinces. The conversation was how to thwart the Fengtian from seizing all of their respective territories. They all came into an agreement, Sun Chuanfang would become their leader and he would lead his armies to attack Shanghai. This would be followed up by the Governor of Fujian, Zhou Yinren to lead his troops into Zhejiang to support Sun Chuanfang; the governor of Jiangxi Fang Benren would send his subordinate Deng Zhuoru also to help out in Zhejiang. Wang Pu the governor over southern Anhui, Chen Tiaoyuan the commander of the 4th Zhili division of Jiangsu and the retired warlods, Qi Xieyuan and Ma Lianjia would lend their forces as well. All together its said their forces were 200,000 strong. After these meetings, Sun Chuanfang gathered the troops at Songjiang and Changxing calling for a “national day” on October the 10th and they performed a military parade. When Duan Qirui heard about this he sent Lu Zongyu to Hangzhou to try and mediate what was clearly turning into a dire situation. The mediation completely failed. Meanwhile Zhang Zuolin took notice and urgently summoned his 4 new governors, Li Jingling, Zhang Zongchang, Yang Yuting and Jiang Dengxuan. He was pulling them back to discuss how they should deal with this new emerging threat. However Zhang Zuolin was too late, for when the governors were enroute to meet with him, Sun Chuanfang made his move. On October the 15th, Sun Chuanfang suddenly proclaimed himself the commander in chief of a 5 province coalition. The armies of Zhejiang, Fujian, Jiangsu, Jiangxi and Anhui were now in alliance. Sun Chuanfang created 5 routes armies; the 1st route army was led by Chen Yi consisting of the 1st division of the Zhejiang army; the 2nd route was led by Xiu Hongxun, consisting of the 4th division. The 1st and 2nd route armies were responsible for attacking Shanghai from the Shanghai-Hangzhou line. The 4th Route army led by Lu Xiangting, consisting of the 2nd division of the Anhui army and 5th Route army led by Zhou Fengqi, consisting of the 2nd Division of the Zhejiang armywere responsible for attacking Suzhou from Changxing. Sun Chuanfang took command of the 3rd route army, leading down the middle. On the 11th of October Sun Chuanfang sent a telegram calling on all foreign nations with interests in Shanghai to send personnel to investigate what he claimed was Fengtian Army members abusing workers and peasants. This of course was a guise to launch his attack. The Fengtian warlords were taken completely offguard by Sun Chuanfangs rapid offensive, they had all unfortunately been enroute north for a meeting with Zhang Zuolin and thus were on a passive footing. Basically the Fengtian army was in a type of snake like formation extending from Yuguan to Tianjing, Pukou, Nanjing and Shanghai. They were quite dispersed. Thus began what is known as the Zhejiang-Fengtian War. Yet to complicate things, this was actually a theater of a larger war known as the Anti-Fengtian War or Third Zhili-Fengtian War. There were other theaters such as the Guominjun-Fengtian War, involving Feng Yuxiang. The Anti-Fengtian War is pretty incoherent, thus I will try to compartmenalize it. What should be known in regards to the Zhejiang-Fengtian war, is that the Fengtian forces had the threat of Feng Yuxiang to their rear. If the Fengtian diverted forces to thwart the Guominjun, this would disallow them to quell the southern threat of Sun Chuanfang. Because of this, on October 14th, Yang Yuting ordered his subordinate Xing Shillian to withdraw from the Shanghai area quickly explaining to him in a telegram "due to the Shanghai case, in order to maintain order, we had to adjust the army and declare martial law. Now that the Shanghai case has been resolved, the title of martial law commander should be cancelled, the troops should be withdrawn, and the Jiangsu Police Department should be moved to Shanghai to deter the enemy." The next day, Yang Yuting invited Jiang Denxuan to Nanjing to figure out how they would withdraw their troops along the Shanghai-Nanjing and Tianjian-Pukou rail lines. He also told Jiang Dengxuan, that Sun Chuanfang would "Su would not invade Zhejiang, consider the elegance of our classmates and resolutely stop the war." So it seemed Yang Yuting, who was a classmate of Sun Chuanfang was under the belief their friendship would prevent an escalation. However Sun Chuanfang on that very same day sent out a telegram to the 5 provinces to attack the Fengtian clique. On the 16th, the 2nd route Army of Xiu Hongxun began occupying Shanghai as the 4th Route army of Lu Xiangting occupied Yixing. Both then began advancing towards Suzhou and Wuxi. Roughly an hour before Sun Chuanfangs forces seized Shanghai, there was a mass withdrawal of the Fengtian forces there. Because the Fengtian forces had adopted a passive, even non-resistant stance towards Sun Chuanfangs offensive, they all retreated quickly upon seeing any troops. Sun Chuanfang's armies made quick and bloodless progress, however upon reaching Lingkou near Danyang on October the 18th, Xing Shilians men did not retreat. Sun Chuanfang's vanguard found themselves facing what seemed to be determined resistance, but in reality it was a rearguard as the Fengtian forces were trying to evacuate Zhejiang province. On that evening, Yang Yuting convened a meeting in Nanjing with the other commanders, whereupon news came to them of the major defeats their forces had incurred. General Chen Tiaoyuan leading the 4th and 10th Zhili divisions stormed Nanjing and ordered Yang Yuting to be arrested. However Yang Yuting managed to escape from the city under the pretext he was. . . taking a bath. Yes a single source I've been relying upon for this event stated that without any context… so in my head I am imagining the classic hollywood, running a bath of water and jumping out of a window scenario. Regardless Yang Yuting abandoned the Fengtian garrison at Nanjing, fording a river and jumping into a car. On the 19th most of the Fengtians 8th Division, including their commander General Ding Chunxi stationed at Nanjing who had not already fled were surrounded and disarmed by Zhili forces. The next day Sun Chuanfang arrived to Nanjing whereupon he ordered Xie Hongxun's division to ford the river to pursue the Fengtian forces fleeing towards Bengdu. On the 21st Ni Chaorong's leading a Anhui Brigade stationed around Sixian, took a car over to Huaiguan where he telegraphed Jiang Dengxuan to resign. Jiang Dengxuan looked on in misery at the doomed Fengtian forces, knowing full well he had not enough time, men or means to halt the enemies advance, so he fled Bengdu on the 23rd, effectively resigning. Most of the Fengtian forces at Bengdu fled for Xuzhou. Despite the rather embarrasing retreat of the Nanjing to Bengdu lines, the Fengtian forces were not even close to being really defeated. On the 21st, the Dogmeat General led reinforcements to the battlefield who were now ready for an actual battle. Sun Chuanfangs men at this point occupied Bengbu and had stopped their advance. Unbeknownst to the Fengtian commanders, Sun Chuanfang had secret being negotiations with Wu Peifu. Wu Peifu had come out of his forced retirement in Hubei, and to the north Feng Yuxiang was also coordinating with the three. Sun Chuanfang thought he had secured both men in the mission of attacking Xuzhou, but both of them had failed to perform. Thus Sun Chuanfang found himself in a bit of a pickle at Bengbu. Meanwhile on the 26th, Zhang Zongchang ordered troops from Xin'an to attack Haizhou. Zhili forces led by General Bai Baoshan were defeated there soundly. The Fengtian army then contuined south to attack Qingjiangpu. Zhili troops led by Ma Yuren tried to defend the city, but soon became encircled and forced to surrender. Sun Chuanfang ordered Zheng Junyan and Chen Diaoyuan to reinforce the eastern sector to try and halt the Fengtian advance. On the 1st of November, Zhang Zongchang launched a new attack upon the Jingdu road, using armored cars and white russian forces. This force was led by Zhang Zongchangs subordinate Shi Chongbin, who had ordered to recapture Suxian and Guzhen. The frontline Anhui troops became terrified of what looked to them to be a foreign force and fled the battlefield from Rengqiao all the way east of Guzhen. At this point Lu Xiangting, deputy commander in chief under Sun Chuanfang, began demolishing the railway to hinder the Fengtian advance. He dispatched Chen Yi and Xie Hongxun's 2nd division to hook around the rear of the Fengtian army to try and cut their retreat. The White Russian army alongside Chinese of the Fengtian forces were advancing alone in a vangard whence they were attacked from two sides. They had no hope of breaking through, nor fleeing backwards and were forced to surrender. Over 300 White Russian troops were killed in the carnage. Shi Chongbin was captured at Xinqiao station and his 47th brigade of the Shandong Army was completely surrounded. Zhang Zongchang then dispatched Chu Yupu to reinforce and support the 47th Brigade in an counterattack to try and break out, but it failed. On Novemer 3rd, the 47th Brigade were disarmed and surrendered. Seeing no hope of rescue, Chu Yupu took his troops to man a defensive line between Suxian and Jiagou. Sun Chuanfang now took advantage of the crumbling Fengtian situation and ordered the Zhili forces to surround Xuzhou. Zhang Zongchang mobilized everything the Fengtian had for a decisive battle, but disaster was striking elsewhere. It will be discussed more indepth next episode, but Feng Yuxiang entered the fray, attacking the Fengtian rear in Hubei and western Shandong. Zhang Zuolin realized the dreaded two front war had finally come and elected to pull back his strength. Zhang Zuolin ordered Zhang Zongchang to pull the men back into Shandong on the 6th. On the 7th Xing Shilian, Xu Kun, Bi Shucheng and other Fengtian commanders were retreating from Haizhou and Suqian to Tancheng and Taierzhuang. Chu Yupu and other troops retreated from Suxian and Xuzhou to Hanzhuang and Lincheng. On November 8, Sun Chuanfangs army finally occupied Xuzhou. On the 20th, Sun Chuanfang sent a public telegram to return to Hangzhou from Xuzhou. From then on, the five provinces of Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui, Jiangxi and Fujian were divided by Sun Chuanfang. The Zhejiang-Fengtian War was also declared over It was a very embarrassing defeat for the Fengtian Clique. Across the Shanghai-Nanjing defensive line, the Fengtian army suffered heavy losses, their entire the 8th division was captured, most of the 20th division was annhilated. It was said only Liu Yifei, the commander of the 44th Brigade of the 20th Division had led his troops to resist the Zhejiang Army for several hours on the way back from Shanghai. Because he was isolated and helpless, Liu Yifei was apparently forced to disguise himself as a monk to escape. When he fled back to Fengtiann, Zhang Zuolin, said to Liu Yifei "You are back, great! I heard that you disguised yourself as a monk. Damn it! In Jiangnan, you were the only one who fought with Sun Chuanfang for eight hours. Others surrendered without firing a shot because their parents didn't give them the courage! Now I will organize another Type A brigade for you, which is a three-regiment system. Soldiers are being recruited and stationed in the Dongshanzui barracks. Train hard!" Upon winning the Zhejiang-Fengtian War, Sun Chuanfang immediately called for a ceasefire, literally as he was entering Xuzhou. His top priority was to consolidate his gains, for he understood he had only served the Fengtian a bloody nose, as they were preoccupied with war in the north. Then Chen Tiaoyuan of Jiangsu sent a telegram publicly announcing his support nominating Sun Chuanfang to form a government in Nanjing leading the 5 provinces he had led during their war. To try and remedy the situation, the Beiyang government offered Sun Chuandfang the position of military inspector of Jiangsu, combining his military inspector titles over Zhejiang and Fujian. Thus Sun Chuanfang would legitimately rule 3 provinces. The warlords running Jiangxi and Anhui were no match at all for Sun Chuanfang, thus they would have to submit to him regardless. So unofficially Sun Chuanfang established a new sort of government in Nanjing ruling the 5 provinces. This would be the very peak of his career, but nothing is ever built to last. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. The Zhejiang-Fengtian War was honestly the result of Fengtian arrogance. Zhang Zuolin let his guard down, turned to his old banditry ways and unleashed his boys southeast, thinking no one would challenge them. Sun Chuanfang proved himself a very capable warlord and now he was a significant player in China's game of thrones.
Heavy rains continue to batter large parts of China. Sichuan, Hubei, Jiangsu, and Hebei provinces are expected to see intense downpours.
Last time we spoke about the first United Front and formation of the Guominjun. The second Zhili-Fengtian War had just ended, as Feng Yuxiang betrayed Wu Peifu turning the tides. Feng Yuxiang's Beijing coup saw him become a major player and he soon reorganized his forces into the Guominjun, promoting Chinese nationalism, social reforms, military modernization, and ethical governance. Despite his efforts, Feng's treachery left a lasting negative reputation. The new regime, with Duan Qirui as chief executive, struggled with internal and external pressures. Feng's isolation led him to seek Soviet support, receiving significant military supplies. Meanwhile, the First United Front formed between the Kuomintang and the Chinese Communist Party , facilitated by Soviet influence. Despite internal tensions, this alliance aimed to unify China. Sun Yat-Sen's cautious cooperation with the Soviets was driven by pragmatic needs, even as ideological differences persisted, setting the stage for future conflicts. #107 the rise of chiang kai shek Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. Chiang Kai-Shek was born on Halloween, October 31st of 1887 in Xikou, a small town in Fenghua of Zhejiang Province. Chiang was born into a Wuyue family, a subgroup of Han Chinese who speak Wu. His father was Chiang Chaotsung and his mother Wang Tsai-yu. Both were members of a relatively well off family of salt merchants. From an early age, Chiang was interested in the military. Like many youths at the turn of the century in China, Chiang cut off his queue rebelling against the Qing Dynasty. Chiang began his military career at the Baoding Military academy in 1906. After this he traveled to Japan to the Tokyo Shinbu Gakko preparatory school for the IJA. There he gained revolutionary fever, seeking to overthrow the Manchu back home. In 1908 he befriended Chen Qimei who introduced him to the Tongmenghui. He graduated from the Tokyo Shinbu Gakko and served in the IJA for 3 years. Upon hearing about the Wuchang Uprising, Chiang rushed back to China where he served the revolutionary forces in Shanghai under Chen Qimei. Chiang Kai-Shek then became a founding member of the Kuomintang. Chen Qimei was assassinated by agents of Yuan Shikai, leading Chiang to succeed him as leader of the KMT in Shanghai. In 1918 Chiang moved his base of operations to Guangzhou to joined up with Sun Yat-Sen. I have already told most of the story, Chiang Kai-Shek was there for all of the up's and downs. During the conflict between Sun Yat-Sen and Chen Jiongming, Chiang Kai-Shek stook with Sun, even when he went into exile. Chiang Kai-Shek protected Sun Yat-Sen, and because of this Sun Yat-Sen began to trust him greatly. Sun Yat-Sen regained control over Guangzhou in 1923 with help of Yunnanese and CCP forces. Then as we discussed in the last episode, Sun Yat-Sen made the fateful decision to form the First United Front with the CCP to obtain Soviet support. Borodin established the Whampoa Military Academy and Chiang Kai-Shek was given the job of managing it. Soviet advisors swarmed into Guangzhou, alongside military equipment and regular pay for the soldiers. Whampoa was created to produce officers quickly and its military education was a quite diluted form of the Japanese curricula used at the Baoding Military academies. Of course Chiang Kai-Shek himself was a graduate of these and went to Japanese to extend his military education. Thus he brought a sort of Bushido to Whampoa, he taught the boys about obeying orders without question, defending untenable positions to the last man and attacking regardless of losses. The young officers very much became his own. Chiang Kai-Shek also favored the idea of collective punishment for failures. Zhou Enlai, then already a prominent communist became the chief political commissar of Whampoa, backed strongly by Borodin. Now Sun Yat-Sen's authority was confined to Guangzhou and central parts of Guangdong province. He had been strongly contested with this by Chen Jiongming. This resulted in his northern expedition failing a few times. In the summer and autumn of 1924 he contended then with the Canton Merchants Association, who had formed an armed· militia and began staging protests and strikes in August when Sun Yat-Sen tried to cut off their arms supplies. In October the Merchants Association attempted to seize Guangzhou in collusion with Chen Jiongming, and it was Chiang Kai-shek who personally led the Whampoa cadets to defeat and dissolve their militia. This was another moment for the rising star to show his worth. Then Dr Sun Yat-Sen was extended an invitation to Beijing from Feng Yuxiang, Duan Qirui and Zhang Zuolin, the new triumvirate. All sought the reunification of China, they wondered if this could be done peacefully. Sun Yat-Sen had declined numerous times to come to Beijing and rejoin the Beiyang government, in the past he refused mostly because of Wu Peifu and Li Yuanhong. This time he had less objections, and with Soviet backing he finally had a better poker hand. Borodin thought it was a good idea and now Chiang Kai-Shek had a firm hand over the NRA forces. For once Sun Yat-Sen was not looking over his back to see if Chen Jiongming was going to seize Guangzhou. With Chiang Kai-Shek watching over his military and his old friend Hu Hanmin as deputy over civilian affairs, accompanied by those like Wang Jingwei, the Generalissimo went to Beijing in 1925. In 1924 Sun Yat-Sen had traveled to Tianjin where he delivered a speech, suggesting a national conference for the people of China. He called for an end to warlordism and the abolition of the unequal treaties. He also received word from General Ma Fuxiang of the Ma Clique, who notified him he was willing to join forces. Meanwhile Sun Yat-Sen had a real problem, his health. While at Tianjin he underwent an exploratory laparotomy, this is a surgical exploration of the abdominal organs. This was done at the Peking Union Medical College Hospital. He had been suffering for a long time from something relating to his liver. Dr. Adrian Taylor opened him up and stated "the surgery revealed extensive involvement of the liver by carcinoma". Taylor gave Sun Yat-Sen only ten days to live. Sun Yat-Sen was hospitalized and received radium treatment. On February 18th, against the advice of his doctors, he was transferred to the KMT HQ and received traditional chinese medicine. By March 12th, Sun Yat-Sen died at the age of 58. The cause of death was stated to be liver cancer. Sun Yat-Sen left a rather famous will, written by Wang Jingwei. It is generally believed now that Wang Jingwei had written the will on his behalf. “For forty years I have devoted myself to the national revolution, with the goal of seeking freedom and equality for China. With forty years of experience, I know that in order to achieve this goal, I must arouse the people and unite with the nations in the world that treat me equally to fight together. Now that the revolution has not yet succeeded, all my comrades must continue to work hard in accordance with my " National Construction Strategy ", " National Construction Outline ", " Three Democratic Principles " and " Declaration of the First National Congress " to implement them. Recently, I have advocated the convening of a national assembly and the abolition of unequal treaties, and we must promote their realization in the shortest possible time. This is what I have said!” All of China watched eagerly to see who would succeed Sun Yat-Sen. Wang Jingwei was at his deathbed and entrusted to write his will out, thus most believed he was the prime candidate. Yet there were many choice and now the Soviets looked to who would be the man they would be dealing with. A major situation then broke out in May of 1925. The triumvirate was not very popular amongst the Chinese people. Southerners particularly were not keen about it. In the wake of Dr Sun Yat-Sen's death, the CCP thought they had a major opportunity. A new bill was being passed in Shanghai that would see the end of children under the age of 12 working in mills and factories. Now many working class families depended on such work. Alongside this another bill advocating for censorship of publications was about to be introduced and this really pissed off the intellectual types. Strikes emerged, some aimed at Japanese owned businesses, such as cotton mills. A group of Japanese managers were attacked leaving work, one was killed. In response Japanese foremen began carrying pistols on duty. By May 15th a Japanese foremen shot dead by a protestor named Ku Cheng-Hung. The Shanghai population demanded a public funeral for Ku Cheng-Hung and began protesting. Many were arrested and a trial was set for May 30th. In response to this, students planned a demonstration. On the morning of the 30th, just as the trial was beginning, the Shanghai Municipal Police arrested some 15 student ringleaders at the Nanking Road in the international settlement. The student protestors were taken to Laozha police station, but by 2:45pm a huge crowd gathered outside it. Demonstrators were demanding their release and many entered the police station. The police state the demonstrators tried to forcibly release the arrested and the crowd could have been up to 2000 people strong. There were only 12 cops, some Sikh's, Chinese and white officers. Allegedly chants were made for “kill the foreigners” and violence erupted. The police commissioner at the scene K.J. McEuen shouted in Wu Chinese "Stop! If you do not stop I will shoot!" At 3:37pm shots were fired into the crowd, at least 4 demonstrators were killed, another 5 died later of wounds and 14 were hospitalized. The next day saw more students going around placing posters and demanding shops stop selling or buying foreign goods. Then their leaders came to the Chinese chamber of Commerce with a list of demands. They sought punishment of those who shot the demonstrators and an end to the extraterritoriality rights of foreign powers in Shanghai as well as a closure of the international settlement. The president of the chamber of commerce was away at the time, but his deputy agreed to the press for the demands to be carried out. Obviously this was not going to happen and the deputy would send a message to the municipal council stating he said what he said under duress. On June 1st martial law was declared, the Shanghai Volunteer corps, a type of militia was called up alongside foreign military assistance. Over the next month, together they raided demonstrators houses and protected businesses. Countless strikes broke out, alongside demonstrations and violence. Shops were looted, those who refused boycotts were beaten up. Perhaps up to 200 people died during the mayhem. Had what became known as the May thirtieth incident broken out years prior it would have amounted to nothing. Yet because of the other events going on, it became a rallying cry for a sort of crusade. The incident galvanized other strikes, demonstrations and boycotts across China. The main target of the public outrage moved from the Japanese to the British. Hong Kong and Guangzhou were deeply affected. Prominent Chinese citizens in Guangdong called for an anti-British strike. The KMT leaders and Soviet advisors considered the optics of the situation, some arguing they should attack the Anglo-French settlement in Shameen. The demonstrators began handing out anti-British leaflets in Hong Kong, and then a rumor emerged that the colonial government was planning to poison the colony's water supplies. Guangdong began offering free train passage to Hong Kong, greatly escalating the situation. Over 50,000 Chinese fled Hong Kong as a result of the chaos. Food prices skyrocketed and the colony became a ghost town by July. By the end of July nearly 250,000 had left Guangdong. To try and prevent the colonies economic collapse, the British loaned 3 million pounds. The two highest officials, Governor Sir Reginald Stubbs and Colonial secretary Claud Severn were quickly replaced, blamed for much of the crisis. For months anti-british boycotts went on, Hong Kong's economy was paralyzed. Her trade fell by half, her shipping by 40% and land renting by 60%. Similar situations arose in Guangzhou and Mukden. Feng Yuxiang seeking to earn public favor, began anti-west campaigns, calling for a public apology from Britain. Zhang Zuolin hammered the Shanghai situation by funding the police to arrest protestors alongside communists. Meanwhile the situation in Beijing was tense, all were looking to see who would grab Sun Yat-Sen's title. Hu Hanmin had succeeded Sun Yat-Sen nominally in Guangzhou, but he was immediately challenged by the existence of Chen Jiongming over at Huizhou and the Warlord Tang Chiyao in Yunnan, who had just assumed the title of deputy grand marshal. This was a title Tang Chiyao had continuously refused to accept while Sun Yat-Sen was alive. Chen Jiongming had strengthened his position in eastern Guangdong immediately after Sun Yat-Sens departure for Beijing. He colluded with Tang Chiyao, and the Guangxi warlords Xumin and Liu Chenhuan. They were planning yet again to attack Guangzhou. However the Cantonese and Hunanese continents of the NRA remained loyal. Chiang Kai-Shek had the firm loyalty of the Whampoa graduates, whose first two classes had just graduated. Combined the KMT forces proceeded to conquer eastern Guangdong. A siege was erected against Huizhou, forcing Chen Jiongming to flee. The success of all of this, bolstered Chiang Kai-Sheks reputation and solidified his leadership over the Whampoa graduates. Meanwhile the New Guangxi Clique warlords rallied around Li Zongren, Bai Chungxu and Huang Shaoxiang seized control over Guangxi. Together they opposed the attempted comeback of the Old Guangxi clique warlord Lu Jungting. The Guangxi leader dumped Shen and fought Tang Chiyao's attempt to install Liu Chenhuan as governor over Guangxi. By Mid-July Huang Shaoxing became governor over Guangxi as Li Zongren and Bai Chungxu brokered an alliance with the KMT. On July 1st of 1925, the KMT proclaimed a national government in Guangzhou. A 16 memer political committee, chaired by Wang Jingwei. Liao Chungkai became the minister of Finance, who also led the left wing of the party. Xu Chungchih became minister of war, Hu Hanmin minister of Communications who led the right wing of the party. Despite the effort to balance the party, to the westerners and conservative chinese the party seemed far too radical. Borodin was nicknamed the “Emperor of Guangzhou” by the press and Zhou Enlai's position as commissar of Whampoa was obscuring Chiang Kai-Shek's efforts to turn the academy into his own personal instrument. A military reorganization accompanied the proclamation of the new government. The Whampoa graduates dominated the 1st Army, while Tan Yenkai's 15,000 Hunanese became the 2nd army and Chu Beite's Yunnanese became the 3rd. The 4th was a Cantonese force led by Li Chishen, the 5th was a Fujianese force within Guangdong under Li Fulin. A 6th army of Hunanese forces under Cheng Chen was formed in 1926 and later on a 7th army would be formed, 30,000 men strong led by the new Guangxi clique.All of these new units demonstrated loyalty to the KMT ideology, though their training varied greatly and their autonomy from local warlords also varied. Liao Chungkai became the principal spokesman for Sun Yat-Sen's policies, and for cooperation with the Soviets and CCP. On August 20th, 1925 Liao Chungkai was on his way to a Kuomintang Executive Committee meeting in Guangzhou when suddenly 5 gunmen wielding Mauser C96's gunned him down as he exited his limousine. Everyone suspected Hu Hanmin or possibly Xu Chungchih of ordering the hit. In Liao Chungkai, Chiang Kai-Shek lost an old friend. Grief came upon him and it hastened him to make decisions. He felt that the moment for dealing with plots and counterplots had arrived. The Central Executive Committee of the Kuomintang met with the state and military councils and they decided emergency measures were in order. Wang Chingwei, Xu Chungchih, who was Chiang Kai-Sheks Command in Chief, and Chiang Kai-Shek were given unlimited powers. Four days after the assassination, Chiang Kai-Shek unleashed a detachment of his Whampoa cadets in a search party. They broke into the houses and offices of all government officials and seized documents. Roughly 100 men were arrested. Hu Hanmin was taken under guard to Whampoa and then was sent on a diplomatic mission to Russia. There was no diplomatic mission, it was exile. Now Wang Jingwei, Xu Chungchih and Chiang Kai-SHek remained to lead the government. Xu had always been on good terms with Chiang Kai-Shek, but now they quarreled. Both men began arguing over the ongoingscuffle with Chen Jiongming. Xu insisted they should simply leave him alone, but it seemed old Chen was back at it again. Chiang Kai-Shek strongly disagreed and began accusing him of conspiring with Chen, or at minimum some of his officers were. By the end of September Xu simply departed for Shanghai, not wanting to take part it what was clearly becoming a power steal. With his prestige having suppressed the last Chen Jiongming attack in October, Chiang Kai-Shek began associating himself more and more with Sun Yat-Sen's legacy. He did so by repeatedly calling for a northern expedition. Meanwhile his contacts in Shanghai, mediated some negotiations with Sun Chuanfang. Sun Chuanfang by this point was consolidating his rule over 5 provinces: Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, Guangxi and Anhui. In November of 1925 the right wing members of the KMT met in the presence of Sun Yat-Sen's coffin near Beijing, where they passed some resolutions calling for the end of the KMT-CCP alliance. After the assassination of Liao Chungkai, Wang Jingwei was pretty much unchallenged to became leader of the KMT's left wing. He declared the proposed resolutions null and void, calling for a counter meeting in Guangzhou in January of 1926. In the background of this, Chiang Kai-Shek continued to call for a Northern Expedition, the KMT left, CCP and Russian advisors advocated for social revolution and to support efforts by strikers in Guangzhou. Chiang Kai-Shek was now the Guangzhou garrison commander and the inspector General of the National Revolutionary Army, aka the NRA, so he personally began preparations for a northern expedition. Yet his authority was being threatened by the growing CCP presence within the KMT army and navy. In February of 1926 Chiang Kai-Shek approached Wang Jingwei on several occasions demanding he remove Russian advisers whom he accused of inciting mutiny amongst his subordinates. In March a coalition of left wing and Russian advisors led to the communist, Li Zhilong to become the commander of the Guangzhou navy. Li Zhilong began cracking down on the navy's smuggling operations and replaced many ship captains with communists. On the 18th the fleet's flagship, gunboat Zhongshan departed without Chiang Kai-Sheks knowledge nor approval from Guangzhou or Whampoa. It would turn out, Li Zhilong was moving the ship to support uprisings in the area and this of course alarmed the KMT. The Zhongshan relocated from Guangzhou to the anchorage off Changzhou, but sailed back the next day. When prompted to what he was doing, Li Zhilong stated he moved the ship under orders from Chiang Kai-Shek. Chiang Kai-Shek upon hearing this became gravely alarmed, because he never gave such orders. Then Chiang Kai-Shek began receiving some bizarre phone calls. Chen Jieru, the second wife to Chiang Kai-Shek, reported Wang Jingwei's wife, Chen Bijun had called her over 5 times on the 18th, checking Chiang Kai-Shek's schedule. Likewise the Whampoa political director, Deng Yanda began calling, asking when would be the next time Chiang Kai-Shek would sail for Changzhou. Chiang Kai-Shek simply told Deng Yanda, not any time soon. Then Li Zhilong called Chiang Kai-Shek, reporting that Deng Yanda ordered him to depart. Later in his unofficial memoirs, Chiang Kai-Shek would assert, Wang Jingwei was the one calling everyone. Chiang Kai-Shek responded to the situation by purchasing a ticket aboard a Japanese steamer and headed to Shantou. He believed something was afoot, perhaps a putsch or some kind of assassination attempt. Later on Chiang Kai-Shek stated it was all a ploy to kidnap him and exile him to Vladivostok. While his explanations were not very credible, his fear was genuine. It was an extremely volatile time in Guangzhou and plots by the left or the right were expected. Andrei Bubnov, head of the Soviet advisors mission to Guangzhou would later note in reports, the supposed incident was due to an aborted putsch, enacted by CCP members. On March 20th, Chiang Kai-Shek ordered the Zhongshan to come back to Guangzhou, and she did, mooring in front of the officer's club with her crew apparently at general quarters. At 4am on the 21st, Chiang Kai-Shek declared martial law and began arresting all known communists holding positions of authority. Li Zhilong was arrested from his bedroom, his warship was secured as Jiang Dingwen assumed his place at the Navy Bureau. Then Wu Tiecheng and Hui Dongsheng surrounded the residence of Wang Jingwei and the Soviet Advisors, placing them under house arrest. Deng Yanda was arrested, the Hong Kong Strike Committee saw a crackdown and Liu Zhi arrested many communists of the 2nd division and those at Whampoa in the 1st Corps, such as Zhou Enlai. Chiang Kai-Shek's loyal men disarmed the Communists paramilitary workers guard, two entire garrisons were dissolved. Borodin and Vasily Blyukher were also both arrested. All those arrested were removed from their positions and departed Guangzhou. Chiang Kai-Shek carefully explained to the public that his actions were taken specifically against uncooperative individuals and that he was not simply targeting communists. But yeah he was just targeting communists. When Chiang Kai-Shek and Wang Jingwei were left the last two with unlimited power they began to go at each other. Wang Jingwei certainly did not approve of the mass arrest of communists. Apparently Wang Jingwei told Chiang Kai-Shek to leave Guangzhou at some point. Wang Jingwei apparently was trying to scare him off, by suggesting he leave, but Chiang Kai-Shek did not do so. Suddenly Wang Jingwei became quite sick, apparently he had a high fever. He was visited by Chen Gongbo, Tan Yankai, Li Jishen, Zhu Peide and T.V Soong the current minister of finance. Apparently Wang Jingwei was pretty pissed off complaining to them all that Chiang Kai-Shek had gone over the top. A Nationalist executive Committee was convened on the 22nd, and a compromise was established. Wang Jingwei would take a vacation to France. In reality of course, Wang Jingwei had simply lost a quasi game of thrones. Wang Jingwei had more than likely tried some crooked attempts to kill or get rid of Chiang Kai-Shek, he failed and Chiang Kai-Shek responded firmly. Wang Jingwei had felt it prudent he simply retire in the end, he departed 5 days after the chaos had ensued. Once he had reached a safe location, he wrote to Chiang Kai-Shek that henceforth he was eschewing all political activity, basically “please don't kill me”. Thus Chiang Kai-Shek emerged the sole survivors of the original three successors to Dr Sun Yat-Sen. All of this became known as the Guangzhou Coup or Canton Coup, and what exactly happened is sort of still a mystery. It's a lot of he said, she said kind of stuff. The end of the coup effectively stopped the CCP and Soviets from trying to undermine the KMT for the time being. Despite the quasi war between the two sides, an awkward balance emerged. Chiang Kai-Shek needed Moscow's help for the Northern Expedition. The CCP and Soviets needed the KMT to help them grow. Chiang Kai-Shek took a delicate touch henceforth, making conciliatory moves. Chiang Kai-Shek met with Borodin and they had what was described by Chiang Kai-Shek as a calm and friendly conversation. Almost immediately after the incident Chiang Kai-Shek began criticizing the extremely anti-communist members of the party. He became a kind of chief of police between the communists and anti-communists, but it was all a charade. In a political sense, Chiang Kai-Shek emerged extremely right. He believed something had to be done to curb the communist influence in the KMT. Thus in a rather fiery speech he began demanding the communists stop attacking Sun Yat-Sen's three principles. No communist could admit to doing such a thing, it was rather blasphemous, though they were doing it. So it was a safe way to try and keep the communists in check. Chiang Kai-Shek followed it up by stating no communists should hold high office in the Kuomintang and the communists begrudgingly abided by it. Chiang Kai-Shek then during a Central Executive Committee meeting, suggested that all the communists should be expelled from the Kuomintang, but the Committee voted that one down. However there was an agreement that relations between the two groups needed to be revised and more importantly, the communists were to hand over a list of their members to the Kuomintang. To all of these things said, Borodin listened and never said a word in disagreement. It seemed Chiang Kai-Shek and Borodin had made a promise to each other to get alone at least until the Northern Expedition was successfully carried through. Chiang Kai-Shek had reached an agreement with Moscow. The Soviets would maintain their financial and arming of the KMT, if some advisors were kept on. They also agreed to get the CCP to hand over a list of all their memes in the KMT and that no communists would hold top cabinet positions. On April 3rd, Chiang Kai-Shek cabled an official public telegram stating the entire incident “was a limited and individual matter of a small number of members of our Party who had carried out an anti-revolutionary plot". Chiang Kai-Shek removed some right wingers from leadership such as Wu Tiechang, forbade right-wing demonstrations and no one was to ever publicly question the First United Front. It seemed this was done to appease the soviets. While Joseph Stalin backed the alliance, Trotsky opposed it. Chiang Kai-Shek was formally handed leadership of the party and army, ending civilian oversight over the NRA. Soon some emergency decrees would be levied to expand Chiang Kai-Shek's power. Chiang Kai-Shek had become the new generalissimo. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. The First United Front nearly collapsed as a result of a real game of thrones being played out after the death of Dr Sun Yat-Sen, the father of the nation. In the face of many rivals, it was the dark horse, Chiang Kai-Shek who came out on top. He would consolidate the strength of the south and soon march north to take Beijing.
In this episode of the Energy News Beat Daily Standup, the hosts, Michael Tanner and Stuart Turley cover various energy-related headlines. They discuss the tech industry's increasing interest in nuclear power, with companies like Amazon and Google investing heavily in nuclear plants to power their data centers. They also touch on China's energy strategies, including the launch of its largest LNG storage base and the country's stockpiling of coal. Additionally, they report a significant 2% rise in oil prices due to a shift in market sentiment. Lastly, they mention the ongoing issues with Citgo's bankruptcy and the low bids received for its auction.Highlights of the Podcast00:00 - Intro01:26 - Tech Industry Wants to Lock Up Nuclear Power for AI04:12 - Will Evil Google's AI Demands Exact A High Price from New Yorkers Who Foolishly Went for Solar and Wind? Could Be!05:15 - CNOOC launches China's largest LNG storage base06:37 - Chinese coal terminals ‘bursting at the seams'09:25 - Markets Update13:26 - OutroPlease see the links below or articles that we discuss in the podcast.Tech Industry Wants to Lock Up Nuclear Power for AIJuly 1, 2024 Stu TurleyLargest tech companies are looking to buy nuclear power directly from plants, which could sap the grid of critical resources Tech companies scouring the country for electricity supplies have zeroed in on a key target: […]Will Evil Google's AI Demands Exact A High Price from New Yorkers Who Foolishly Went for Solar and Wind? Could Be!July 1, 2024 Mariel AlumitI received a very interesting email yesterday from a reader. It suggested Google, which already has roughly 40 data centers around the world, may be planning another in the vicinity of Spring City, Chester County, Pennsylvania […]CNOOC launches China's largest LNG storage baseJuly 1, 2024 Mariel AlumitChina National Offshore Oil Company (CNOOC) has launched what it says is China's largest LNG storage base at its Binhai LNG import terminal in Jiangsu. According to a statement by CNOOC Gas & Power, six […]Chinese coal terminals ‘bursting at the seams'July 1, 2024 Mariel AlumitHigh rainfall, increased hydropower, and preparation for the hot summer months are all contributing to very full coal terminals up and down the Chinese coastline. “Port storage is bursting at the seams, and it appears […]Oil prices rise 2% on summer demand hopes, supply worriesJuly 1, 2024 Mariel AlumitJuly 1 (Reuters) – Oil prices climbed about 2% on Monday on hopes of rising demand during the Northern Hemisphere's peak summer driving season and worries that OPEC+ production cuts could result in supply deficits […]Court Hearing on Citgo Auction Could Be Delayed Until SeptemberJuly 1, 2024 Mariel AlumitThe court officer who oversees the auction of Venezuela's PDV Holding, the parent company of refiner Citgo Petroleum, has asked a Delaware court to postpone the hearing on the winning bids by two months until […]Follow Stuart On LinkedIn and TwitterFollow Michael On LinkedIn and TwitterENB TopEnergy DashboardENB PodcastENB Substack– Get in Contact With The Show –
China's weather forecasting department has issued the highest level alert for rainstorms. The National Meteorological Center says some areas in Anhui, Jiangsu, Hubei, and other places in central, eastern and southern China will have downpours from Saturday to Sunday.
Last time we spoke about the first Jiangsu-Zhejiang War. Wu Peifu and Zhang Zuolin became swift rivals after the first Zhili-Fengtian War. The Zhili clique remained in control of Beijing and began bullying everyone into submission, trying to unify China under their thumb. Zhang Zuolin went to work reorganizing and retraining his army, for another war was looming over the horizon. Then in the southeast of China, conflict emerged between Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces. The Zhili backed Qi Xieyuan wanted to control Shanghai, which was under the control of Lu Yungxiang of the Anhui clique. The Anhui clique were on the death bed, Zhejiang was the last province under their control, thus he elected to fight for it. Lu Yungxiang sought help from anyone who possibly could help him, such as Zhang Zuolin and Dr Sun Yat-Sen, but little did he know but he was contributing to a much larger war. #105 the Second Zhili-Fengtian War Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. Hello again, so after the first Zhili-Fengtian war of 1922, the Zhili warlords seized control over Beijing. Cao Kun bribed his way into the presidency as Zhang Zuolin licked his wounds and went back to Manchuria where he rebuilt his entire army. Zhang Zuolin appointed Yang Yuting as inspector general of the Mukden arsenal and Wang Yintai as director of the department of materials. He began purchasing more Renault FT tanks, increased his military production, now seeing 150 artillery pieces, 1000 machine guns, 60,000 rifles, 100,000 artillery shells and 600,000 rifle rounds pumping out of factories annually. He increased his navy and airforce, naming his son Zhang Xueliang as director of the aviation office. He purchased German and Italian aircraft, nearing 300 planes within 4 groups. Air bases and fields were built alongside naval headquarters and training schools in places like Harbin. To improve communications, additional water and coal supply stations were built in Suizhong, Xingcheng and Dayaogou so he could rapidly deploy troops via rail. Roads were further developed to increase transportation in areas without rail, each army was given wire communications such as telegraph or telephone lines, linking them to their general HQ's. Radio communication units were also developed, radio stations were built in Shenyang, Harbin and Jin county. The Fengtian military was reformed. Commanders like Bao Deshan and Xu Changyou who were blamed for losing the first zhili-fengtian war were court-martialed and executed in the spring of 1923. The rising star, Dogmeat General Zhang Zongchang aided Zhang Zuolin by massively recruiting White Russians who brought over all sorts of expertise and skills. The White Russians were commanded by Konstantin Petrovich Nechaev, alongside them Zhang also hired Japanese units. The Fengtian army expanded to 27 brigades from its original 25, organized into 3 armies of 3 divisions. Each division had three brigades. The cavalry was expanded from three to four divisions, with three brigades forming a division and the rest attached to infantry divisions as cavalry companies. The artillery regiments expanded from 4 to 10. Each division consisted of three brigades with either an infantry brigade or a combined brigade, and every division had an engineering battalion and a transportation battalion attached. Combined brigades were bolstered with an engineering company and a transportation company. All said an done the strength of the Fengtian army totaled more than 250,000 troops, and its performance was significantly improved. The best troops were found in the 2nd Brigade, commanded by Zhang Xueliang, and the 6th Brigade, commanded by Guo Songling, and they were viewed as the model units of the Fengtian army. The catalyst for what would be known as the second Zhili-Fengtian War, occurred on September 3rd of 1924, the first Jiangsu-Zhejiang War. When Lu Yungxiang of Zhejiang refused to cede administration of Shanghai to Qi Xieyuan, both Zhang Zuolin and Dr. Sun Yat-sen pledged to defend the neutrality of Zhejiang and end pulling everyone into a larger war. On September 4th, Dr Sun Yat-Sen held a meeting at his mansion in Guangzhou. There he announced he would assist Zhejiang to preserve Guangdong, thus he was enacting the Northern Expedition. His plan for the northern expedition was to first attack Jiangxi, after it was conquered next was Anhui. From there his KMT forces would link up with the Zhejiang forces, near the Jinpu road where they could march north to take Beijing. On September the 5th Dr Sun Yat-Sen publicly denounced Cao Kun and Wu Peifu and asked the people of Guangdong to work harder than they ever have so they could eliminate the warlords and China could be ruled by her people again. On September the 4th, in response to the war in the southeast, Zhang Zuolin declared war on the Zhili clique on the grounds of being in an alliance with Zhejiang and Dr Sun Yat-Sen. He also denounced Cao Kun, bringing up his bribery scheme. Zhang Zuolin's statement, and forgive me its poorly translated went something like this. "Curse Cao Kun with Power who bribed congressmen, raising teeth and claws, and stole power. Cao Kun harms the people. Now I Zhang Zuolin in charge of Manchuria and her people, and who is loyal to the people, and is duty-bound will lead the three armies to wipe out the thieves." On September the 9th, Duan Qirui added his voice in a telegram against Cao Kun accusing him "of not knowing who the country and the people are, what ethics, justice and integrity are and unleashing four provinces to attack Zhejiang, excluding dissidents, hurting innocent people, and greedy for his own dignity. You have committed a heinous sin, and you have gone too far. How can you survive? The virtuous and powerful people in the world, who have great responsibilities for a while, will definitely be able to do their duty and act bravely when they see justice." On the 15th of September, Zhang Zuolin issued another telegram to Cao Kun, in the form of an ultimatum "This year natural disasters are prevalent and hungry people are everywhere. I have tried to say that attacking Zhejiang is wrong, and I have the strength to respond in favor of peace. However, the ink has not yet dried. Yet at the same time, the Zhili marched into Fengtian, detained Shanhaiguan trains, and blocked traffic. What was the purpose of this? In recent years, Cao Kun has been a puppet of Wu Peifu, which has caused public resentment. The impossibility of a military expedition is evident from the successive defeats of the Zhili army. We planned to send another envoy, but the train traffic has been cut off and we cannot enter Beijing. Therefore, we wait for the final answer." Indeed on September the 13th suddenly all the trains running along the Beijing-Fengtian railway stopped on Zhili orders. The war in Zhejiang had provided Wu Peifu with the occasion to force a showdown with Zhang Zuolin. Wu Peifu felt confident he would win. Wu Peifu had mobilized over a quarter of a million troops, divided into 3 armies. Wu Peifu trusted his military abilities and felt his subordinates were loyal to him, he was highly mistaken in that last part. It would turn out, the christian general, Feng Yuxiang had major grievances. If you remember from the last episode, when ordered to attack Lu Yungxiang, Feng Yuxiang had refused. Instead Feng Yuxiang weaved a web, he pulled Wang Huaiqing to his side, the Beijing garrison commander Sun Yueh and Hu Qingyi. He complained to them about his army being slighted in the distribution of munition and supplies and he would move his troops very slowly out of Beijing when the war began. As it turned out, secret negotiations had been made. Zhang Zuolin's son Zhang Xueliang in the spring of 1923 had sent a letter to Feng Yuxiang and then his most trusted lt, Fu Xingpei to Beijing to secretly meet with him. Fu Xingpei met with Feng Yuxiang and his chief of staff Liu Ji at a secluded location in Nanyuan. The first meeting was brief, but fruitful as follow up meetings were made, now mediated through Duan Qiriu. Duan Qiriu brought the parties over to his residence in the Japanese quarter of Tientsin. There Feng Yuxiang was given a bribe between 1-2.5 million Japanese Yen. This bribe came from Zhang Zuolin's Japanese supplied war chest. Zhang Zuolin afterwards had every reason to believe Feng Yuxiang was in his pocket so he concentrated most of his forces around Shanhaiguan. The Zhili Cliques forces would come from the provinces of Henan, Shandong, Rehe (knowns as Jehol today), Chahar and Suiyuan. Meanwhile the Fengtian would have troops from Jilin, Heilongjiang and Fengtian. The 2nd war certainly exceed the first by a large margin and it would also involve battles over land, sea and air. The Zhili held an edge in numbers, but alienated generals would ultimately lose them the war. There was also an enormous technological gap between the Zhili and Fengtian armies. As I had mentioned the Fengtian had purchased a lot of western and Japanese weaponry and equipment. The Zhili clique also purchased western materials, but they were far behind the Fengtian army. Furthermore the Zhili clique had just experienced a series of small wars in Sichuan, Hunan, Fujian, Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Guangdong. Their troops were exhausted, lacked pay, and thus morale was not high. Zhang Zuolin's Fengtian army faced 4 major objectives to see the Zhili clique defeated. Ultimately they needed to capture Beijing and Tianjin. Yet to do so they first had to retake Shanhaiguan so their forces could enter Xujialing. Thus Zhang Zuolin would need to gather his forces near Shanhaiguan to capture it. This task fell to his 1st and 2nd army led by Jiang Dengxuan and Zhang Xueliang. If Shanhaiguan could not be taken, at least two brigades would be needed in the Qiansuo region, where a railroad station was roughly 20 kms east of Shanhaiguan. Once that region was secured, the main force could redeploy around Suizhong county for a second attempt against Shanhaiguan. Next the 2nd army would advance into Rehe, Yi County and Dayaogou. They would then take Chaoyang, Jianping, Chengde and Lingyuan. Most of this responsibility fell onto Zhang Zongchang's 3rd Combined Brigade and Li Jinglin's 1st Division. After they completed this they would enter the Lengkou pass and take Luanzhou. A Fengtian cavalry group would attack Rehe with the objective of taking Chifeng. The cavalry group would also cover the flank of other Fengtian forces and mop up the enemy left behind. If the situation arose, the Cavalry group could also attack along the Great Wall via the Xifengkou or Gubeikou pass. The Fengtian reserve forces would be deployed between Xingcheng and Suizhong to guard Jinzhou. The Fengtian air forces headquartered at Shenyang would mobilize 3 groups for the war effort under the direct command of the 1st and 2nd Armies known as the Combined Corps. Other air units would be deployed to Yi county under the command of Zhang Xueliang. Wu Peifu took the title of commander in chief and set up his headquarters in Sizhaotang. Wu Peifu made special arrangements for the battle; his 1st army led by Peng Shouxin would take an eastern route advancing along the Beijing-Fengcheng line to attack Liaoshen from Shanhaiguan; the 2nd army of Wang Huaiqing would advance along the middle route from Xikou to attack Rechao; and the third army of Feng Yuxiang would take the western route from Gubeikou to attack Kailu. Wu Peifu also had set up a commander in chief of maritime defense Zheng Shiqi stationed at Shandong and a naval commander in chief Du Xiui. His air force was organized into 4 groups stationed in Beidaihe, Luanxian, Chaoyang and the Zhili aviation department, over 70 aircraft in total. On September the 14th, Zhang Zuolin as commander in chief of the Fengtian army led them down the border area. Likewise Wu Peifu did the same from Luoyang. On the 15th the 23rd Brigade of Li Shuangkai, part of Li Jinglin's 2nd army engaged the Zhili 4th battalion of Yijun Zhenbiao around Yizhou, Jiuguan and Taimen. This effectively kicked off the war. From there the war front would run from Chaoyang to Jidong, with major battles taking place in Rehe, Shanhaiguan, Chaoyang, Chifeng, Jiumenmen and Shimenzhai. The Fengtian forces planned to unleash their offensive against Shanhaiguan once the initiative was won in Rehe. Therefore Zhang Zuolin personally led the battle in Rehe. The 1st Fengtian army divided into a north and south group. The southern group attacked from Beizhen, passing through Chaoyang and Lingyuang to enter Xifengkou with Wu Junsheng's cavalry as the main force. The north group ran from Tongliao to Kailu, then headed south to Chengde via Chifeng, then would launch an attack at the western part of Xifengkou. The southern attack went pretty smooth as the Zhili army did not put up serious resistance. On the 16th the Fengtian forces seized Yizhou and Fuxin. After this they concentrated their attacks against Chaoyang. Liu Fufu defended Chaoyang with the Zhili 26th brigade of the 12th division, but he only put up a symbolic defense, quickly abandoning the city. On the 23rd Chaoyang was occupied by Fengtian forces who scoured the county. Meanwhile the northern group attacked Jianping, Lingyuan and Chifeng. During the battle for Lingyuan, the Fengtian encountered determined resistance from Zhili forces led by Wang Huaiqing and Dong Zhengguo. Both sides suffered heavy casualties, but the Fengtian managed to take the city. Simultaneously the 2nd Fengtian army forces led by Xu Lanzhou and Wu Guangxin attacked Chifeng. The battle for the city raged for a few days seeing Fengtian air forces bomb the city until October 8th when it was captured. The fall of Chifeng marked a decisive moment in the battle for Rehe, the Fengtian had taken the initiative. Now the leading Fengtian troops began a rapid advance towards Lengkou at the foot of the Great Wall. Both sides knew the entire battle depended on Shanhaiguan. The Zhili had heavily fortified it and following the loss of Rehe they continued to strengthen it. Wu Peifu dispatched Peng Shouxin to setup the defenses of Shanhaiguan. Zhang Zuolin had Jiang Dengxuan and Zhang Xueliang form a new headquarters near Shanhaiguan as Guo Songling led the 2nd and 6th Brigades to frontally attack it. As Guo Songling did so, Jiang Dengxuan and his deputy commander Han Linchun led the 4th and 16th brigades to face the Zhili forces north of Jiumenmen. Small scale battles broke out on the 17th that gradually escalated. On the 29th and 30th, the Fengtian began unleashing artillery and aerial bombardment upon the Zhili positions between Shanhaiguan and Changli. During that process the Fengtian forces seized Wanjiatun, Longwang Temple, Yaojiazhuang and other towns. By October 4th the Fentgian army approached the position of the Zhili 15th division. On the 7th Zhang Zuolin issued a general attack order, sending Fengtian forces across the board. The first line of Zhili troops relied on the solid fortifications and fired back upon the advancing enemy. The Fengtian gradually turned their attention to the Jiumenmen Gate located at the northwest part of the Shanhaiguan pass. On the 8th Jiang Dengxuan personally led the 19th Brigade to attack the Haungtu Ridge on the northside of Jiumenmen. His forces quickly encircled Jiumenmen before the 2nd and 6th brigades stormed and occupied it. The fall of Jiumenmen severed demoralized the Zhili defenders whose lines began to waiver. The Fengtian began breaching lines, capturing Liyu, Waiyu, Xiangmayu and now outflanked Shanhaiguan. At this point a brigade was sent to attack Shimenzhai along the north side of Jiumentou. Shimenzhai is roughly 25 kms away from Shanhaiguan, if captured the Fengtian could use it as a springboard to attack Qinhuangdao, cutting off the Zhili armies line of retreat. In order to protect the line of retreat, Peng Shouxin organized a force to reinforce Shimenzhai. On the 11th, Wu Peifu came over to Shanhaiguan, while also inspecting Shimenzhai, Zhaojiayu, Shahezhai and other significant Zhili positions. Seeing Jiumenmen had fallen, Wu Peifu ordered forces to recapture it on the 14th. The Fengtian defenders there were put into a desperate battle to hold onto it. On the 15th, a Fengtian regiment led by Sun Xuchang broke through the Zhili defensive line. On the 16th the Fengtian forces surged through the breach and stormed Shimenzhai. The Zhili forces routed in the area allowing the Fengtian forces to quickly seize Liujiang. On the 17th Zheng Xizhen led the Zhili 6th brigade to reinforce the battlefield emerging north of Qinhuangdao. Now we need to take a step away from the battle, because a lot of things were happening all over the place, that would have a deep impact on the war. While all of this was going on in the far north, in the south, Dr Sun Yat-Sen personally led the KMT forces north to try and prevent Zhili commander Sun Chuanfang from reinforcing his Zhili comrades in the north. Yet like again, in a fashion that just kept recurring, an issue came about. The Guangzhou merchants corps and forces led loyal to Chen Jiongming began an uprising in Guangzhou. Sun Yat Sen was forced to turn his army back to quell the rebellion. As Sun Yat-Sen pulled back, Sun Chuanfang had brought his forces into Zhejiang and Shanghai. Meanwhile another ploy on the part of Zhang Zuolin paid off big time. The christian general Feng Yuxiang who was commanding the Zhili 3rd army began making some trouble. When the Zhili 2nd army suffered its initial defeat, Wang Huaiqing sent word asking for help from Feng Yuxiang. Instead he ordered his 3rd army to stay put at the Gubeikou pass. Now back in the battle Wu Peifu had come to the front lines and was taking charge of operations. Zhili reinforcements arrived from Henan and Shanxi led by Zhang Fulai and began helping a counter attack against Shimenzhai. The Fengtian defenders also reinforced their lines, with Jiang Dengxuan taking command of the front lines personally. Despite the reinforcements, the Fengtian defenses were beginning to crumble, their casualties mounting. At the same time the main Fengtian forces were fighting at Shanhaiguan, failing to make progress. Then the Fengtian army received unconfirmed intelligence from the Japanese, that the Zhili clique had enlisted the Zhengji shipping company to use 13 transports to move 4 divisions directly into the rear of the Fengtian forces via the Taku Forts. The Japanese intelligence did not indicate where the landings would be made however. The Fengtian commanders believed it was possibly Yingkou or Huludao, perhaps both. Many Fengtian commanders called for deploying the general reserve as a rear guard, but the deputy chief of the general staff, Fu Xingpei opposed the idea, claiming the Jiumenkou sector required them. Yang Yuting the chief of the general staff worried the terrain of Jiumenkou was far too narrow and restrictive to deploy such large number of troops. Finally Zhang Zuolin ended the debate by ordering the General Reserve, under the command of Zhang Zuoxiang to rush to Jiumenkou. Despite committing the General reserve, things did not improve. In fact some interpersonal problems emerged. Zhang Xueliang and Guo Songling had secretly redeployed 8 infantry regiments and two artillery brigades from Shanhaiguan to the Jiumenkou sector. These units were to be led by Guo Songling, but the artillery battalion commander, Yan Zongzhou, a classmate of Guo Songling was removed from command by the artillery regiment commander Chen Chen. Upon hearing the news from Yan Zongzhou, enraged Guo Songling removed Chen Chen of command and gave it back to Yan Zongzhou. However Jiang Dengxuan and Han Linchun had given approval to Chen Chen when he asked to remove Yan Zongzhou, so now they were embarrassed. They then complained to Zhang Zuolin about Guo Songling's actions. Zhang Zuolin ordered both Chen Chen and Yan Zongzhou to go back to their original commands, and this only pissed off Guo Songling more. Like a kindergarten aged child Guo Songling took his 8th infantry regiment out of the battlefield and retreated to the rear. Zhang Xueliang then hunted him down and smooth-talked him to come back and engage the enemy. This entire stupid situation could have very well cost them the battle, fortunately it happened at night and the Zhili army none the wiser did not exploit the situation. Back over in the Rehe front, Zhang Zongchang stormed the Lengkou pass against 4 Zhili divisions; the 9th led by Dong Zhengguo, the 20th led by Yan Zhitang, the 1st Shaanxi division led by Hu Jingyi and the 23rd led by Wang Chengbin. Unfortunately Wang Chengbin and Hu Jingyi had formed a pact with Feng Yuxiang and literally stepped aside during Zhang Zongchangs attack. To add insult to injury, Yan Zhitang and Dong Zhengguo hated each other and each held back to preserve their own strength. Again in the warlord era, petty warlords would pull this kind of shit all the time. As Zheng Zongchangs forces attacked, basically everyone fled Lengkou. Seizing the opportunity Zhang Zongchang pushed even deeper into the enemy lines. It was around this time, word spread that the First Jiangsu-Zhejiang War had concluded in a Zhili victory, thus it seemed if Shanhaiguan was not taken swiftly, the Zhili would win the war. Yet the dark horse that was General Feng Yuxiang struck. On October 22nd, Feng Yuxiang betrayed the Zhili Clique. Feng Yuxiang formed a truce with the Fengtian commander Li Jingling on the night of October 20th. He then suddenly withdrew 8000 troops of Wu Peifu's 3rd and 26th Divisions, leaving only 4000 men at their defensive lines. He took said troops and secretly stormed Beijing where he performed a coup against President Cao Kun. At midnight on October 23rd the commander of the Beijing guards, Sun Yueh admitted Feng Yuxiang and his men into Beijing. Together they seized control over key government buildings and gates. Feng Yuxiang then forced Cao Kun to dismiss Wu Peifu from his military positions. stripped him of the presidency and placed him under house arrest. Afterwards Feng Yuxiang issued a public statement denouncing the civil war and urged the warlords to settle their differences via negotiations. Feng Yuxiangs subordinates then took control of the railway line between Tientsin and Shanhaiguan and the railway line at Changhsintian south of Beijing. Meanwhile Yan Xishan dispatched a force from Shanxi to seize the railway junction at Shihchiachuang, blocking any movement from Hunan along the Peking-Hankou railway. Thus Qi Xieyuan and Sun Chuanfang could no longer advance north to aid Wu Peifu. Back at the battle, Zhang Zongchang saw the thinning of the defensive lines when Feng Yuxiang pulled men out and stormed it alongside Li Jinglin. Their forces broke through and advanced south along the Luan River towards Luanzhou, then in the direction of Tianjin. They seized the train station at Luanzhou as Sun Xuchang's 10th Brigade captured Jiumenkou. The Fengtian cavalry then stormed the Xifengkou pass and pushed forward. By this point the Zhili morale had all but disappeared as news of Feng Yuxiang's coup in Beijing was spreading along the lines. Even cry baby Guo Songling, hearing the news, grabbed his force and performed an all out charge into the Zhili lines breaking through and advanced eastwards. Now cut off between Qinhuangdao and Shanhaiguan, on the 31st of October, many high ranking Zhili officers began fleeing via ships at Qinhuangdao. Countless Zhili forces were surrounded and began mass surrendering. Wu Peifu meanwhile fled first to Tianjin where he began frantically telegraphing Zhili armies in Jiangsu, Henan, Hubei and Zhejiang for help. Things got even worse, more railway lines were cut by Anhui clique members such as Zheng Shiqi in Shandong, Cangzhou and Machang. Likewise Zheng Shishangs cut lines of the Jinpu railway at Hanzhuang and even Yan Xishan came out of his turtle shell to cut the Jinghan railway line at Shijiazhuang. The Fengtian army overran Tangshan and Lutai asFeng Yuxiang's forces stormed Yangcun and Beicang, forcing Wu Peifu to flee to Junliangcheng. Then Duan Qiriu sent a message to Wu Peifu advising he should depart by sea. Completely surrounded with no allies, Wu Peifu fled with 2000 troops on the transport Huajia on November 3rd. He went to Tanggu where Sun Chuanfang defended him. It had been the most impressive war of the warlord period to that point. Nearly 450,000 troops had been involved in a month-long war along the Great Wall area from Shanhaiguan to Beijing. The casualties are tough to estimate, perhaps 20-30,000 perished. After taking Beijing, Feng Yuxiang reorganized his forces in the 1st Guominjun army, hiring his co-conspirators such as Sun Yueh and Hu Chingyi who would eventually lead the 2nd and 3rd armies. On November 5th, Zhang Zuolin removed Emperor Puyi from the Forbidden City. Puyi went into exile in Tianjin where the Japanese would keep a close eye upon. Zhang Zuolin, Feng Yuxiang and Duan Qiriu then met in Tianjin where they agreed to form a provisional government with Duan Qiriu as its figurehead. The choice of Duan Qiriu seemed to be palatable to everyone, including the remaining Zhili warlords in the Yangtze region. On December 9th, Duan Qiriu's government was recognized. Dr Sun Yat-Sen of course refused to recognize the new Beiyang government and would begin to flirt more with the CCP and their larger backer, the Soviet Union. For now the Beiyang government, for whatever it was actually worth, remained in the hands of three players. Duan Qiriu who no longer possessed a strong army, Feng Yuxiang who had just shown himself to be quite a treacherous man and did not wield a very strong army and lastly Zhang Zuolin who now wielded the largest army in China, was backed by Japan and controlled vast sums of territory. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. So the First Jiangsu-Zhejiang and Second Zhili-Fengtian Wars were now over. It seems Zhang Zuolin had just become king of the hill, but what did that mean for China? Would Zhang Zuolin pursue a policy of reunifying China? Would he expand south? Or would the chaos continue, what do you think?
Last time we spoke about the first Zhili-Fengtian War. The Anhui-Zhili War of 1920 saw the defeat of the Anhui clique by the Zhili and Fengtian cliques, reshaping territorial control. Despite their victory, stability remained nowhere to be seen in North China. Factionalism persisted, with alliances shifting and power struggles intensifying. Zhang Zuolin of the Fengtian clique emerged a significant player with Japanese backing while Wu Peifu of the Zhili clique earned fame as a military genius. Soon a rivalry emerged between the two leading figures while they also tried to unify China. Meanwhile, in South China, Dr. Sun Yat-Sen's plans for a Northern Expedition faced challenges amidst internal dissent and external pressures. In the end Zhang Zuolin formed a grand coalition to defeat Wu Peifu and it backfired spectacularly. Wu Peifu won the first Zhili-Fengtian War and now it would be him in the driver's seat in Beijing. #104 the First Jiangsu-Zhejiang War Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. Wu Peifu, who had been born of poor parents in 1874 and had earned the lowest degree in the traditional Qing examination system, decided he would seek out a military career in the Beiyang Army. By 1905 he became a junior officer to Cao Kun's 3rd Division. Wu Peifu had a traditional confucian upbringing, he remained loyal to Cao Kun because of that special confucian bond between mentor and student. He remained loyal despite Cao Kun's numerous failings, even when he threw his lot in with Zhang Zuolin to save his own ass at Wu Peifu's expense. The Zhili victory during the first Zhili-Fengtian war emboldened Cao Kun's ambitions, he soon unleashed his henchmen all over Zhili province snatching up major positions. Cao Kun began a campaign of bribery and intimidation, something very reminiscent of the late Yuan Shikai. After his victory, Wu Peifu returned to Henan province, sending the newly appointed inspector general of the army, Feng Yuxiang to Beijing. Those in Henan strongly petitioned against Feng Yuxiangs transfers as he had gained an excellent reputation as the civil administrator in Henan. Where Wu Peifu went it seemed banditry and extortion flourished. Yet Wu Peifu needed Feng Yuxiang to be in Beijing so he could re-establish his authority in his home base. As we had seen in the last episode, the Zhili Clique was not sturdy. Unlike the Fengtian and Anhui, the Zhili clique was made up of a lot of riff raff, who only joined forces as a means to an end, notably to get rid of their enemies. Feng Yuxiang concentrated his army at Nanyuan, due south of the capital. He went to work, checking fingernails, training his men in the good word of the lord, his men being a single division and 3 mixed brigades now. Feng Yuxiang had come a long way, now probably the most powerful warlord in Zhili province, and he made sure to establish good relations with Cao Kun and his brother Wang Huaiqing the commander of the Beijing police. In June of 1923 Feng Yuxiang and Wang Huaiqing would jointly present their resignations to President Li Yuanhong, stating unless their men were paid, they could no longer be responsible for maintaining order in the capital. Yes the finances of China were in a terrible state. Chinese diplomats were struggling abroad to find foreign banks to loan money, and even they were not getting paid and were resigning en masse. Wu Peifu likewise was not receiving a cent from the central government. After several days of standoff, Li Yuanhong fled Beijing on June 13th, taking the presidential seals with him, issuing orders countersigned by only a single cabinet minister who backed him, the minister of agriculture, and Yunnan general Li Kenyuan. It seems for Li Kenyuan it was a bad call, for Cao Kun forced him out of office within a few months. Cao Kun then bribed his way into office by October 10th. It was an infamous bribery story. Apparently Cao Kun bribed assembly members with 5000 silver dollars each. This act was so egregious, it basically pissed off everyone. The hate tossed Cao Kun's way would help bolster Dr Sun Yat-Sen's continuing efforts in south china, basically saving his career. Cao Kun began his presidency proclaiming a constitution incorporating ideas of a federalist government and then promoted Feng Yuxiang and other notable generals to the rank of Marshal. While Cao Kun began consolidating his control in Zhili, a humiliated Zhang Zuolin would lick his tiger wounds and rebuild in the northeast. After rallying his troops back together once back in Manchuria, Zhang Zuolin quickly declared his 3 provinces in Manchuria were independent of China. The Beijing government under Cao Kun had immediately gone to work trying to coerce defections amongst the Fengtian generals. Cao Kun tossed extravagant positions, such as governorships to them, but only one notable General, Kao Shihpin took the bribe and rebelled against Zhang Zuolin. Zhang Zuolin's loyal subordinate, great friend to the show, the dogmeat general Zhang Zongchang, easily defeated the defector. Now that Manchuria was independent, Zhang Zuolin firmly repressed any efforts of his provincial assemblies to create civil governments independent of his military control. Thus governmental positions in Manchuria remained in the hands of loyal Fengtian Clique members. Because Zhang Zuolin was now very hostile to all in the Zhili clique, relations with Dr Sun Yat-Sen improved. Thus Zhang Zuolin began propagating the language of national unification, anti-imperialism etc etc. Economically Zhang Zuolin began developing railway lines and built a new port at Hulutao, both of which were competing with the Japanese owned South Manchurian Railway company and port at Dairen. Zhang Zuolin knew full well most of China regarding him as a Japanese puppet. The Japanese however completely failed him in the first-zhili fengtian war, thus he was trying to sport some backbone against them. Zhang Zuolin and his top commanders took their loss in 1922 to heart. He began a large-scale reorganization of his military. In 1922 his forces had been organized into 5 Divisions, of which the 16th and 28th disintegrated. The 27th and 29th along with a new reorganized 1st were retained at the divisional level, while the rest of the troops formed into the 1st to 27th Mixed Brigades and 1st to 5th Cavalry Brigades. He standardized the units, 150 men formed a company, 3 companies a battalion, 3 battalions a regiment, 3 regiments a brigade at 4000 men strong. He reshuffled commanders and began promoting officers with professional education and less so the banditry opium smoking types he typically preferred in the past. He really made an effort to purchase new weaponry and expanded the output of the Mukden arsenal. During the warlord Era, modern weaponry was expensive to come by, those like the banditry that made up the Fengtian clique used what they got their hands on. The Hanyang 88 based off the German Gewehr 1888 had been the standard Qing rifle and was widely available. There was also a smaller quantity of Type 1 rifles, a Chinese knockoff of the Mauser Model 1907. Given Manchuria's proximity to Russia and Japan, rifles that found their way into Fengtian hands included the Russian Mosin-Nagant 1891, Japanese Murata's and Arisakas of 1897 and 1905. These were not ideal, pretty outdated, but in general most of the Chinese warlord armies were branding antiquated rifles. In 1922 the Mukden Arsenal was capable of producing just a small amount of ammunition. Zhang Zuolin had always relied on piecemeal packages given to him, at first from Yuan Shikai, then Duan Qirui and the Japanese on and off. Most of the supplies he got were japanese made. He also managed to seize a lot from the Anhui clique during their war in 1920. Something of great value he often seized were cars, by 1926 there were only something like 8000 cars in all of China, it was a very hot commodity. French Renault FT tanks had been deployed to Vladivostok for the allied intervention and siberian campaign, many were sold to him after 1919. Zhang Zuolin would poor 17 million yuan into expanding the Mukden Arsenal after his loss in 1922, he hired numerous foreign advisors to overlook the process. The Mukden Arsenal ballooned to an operating budget of a million yuan, employing nearly 30,00 workers, including foreign specialists. Fengtian would become China's largest arms importer, purchasing from Germany, Italy, France and of course the majority came from Japan. Type 3 Heavy machine guns from Japan flooded in and 14 Renaults from France. The Fengtian began utilizing mines, barbed wire, armored trains, particularly Zhang Zongchang and tanks when possible. Zhang Zongchang purchased 4 new gunboats who became the nucleus of a naval force in the Gulf of Chihli and began developing an air force. By 1923 he purchased 40 French Breguet aircraft that would be operated by 20 foreign pilots. He also looked to the future, at his son Zhang Xueliang. By 1923 his army was nearly 200,000 strong, certainly formidable, but ridden with issues. A year of intense training had greatly improved the Fengtian forces, but Zhang Zuolin was behind those like Dr Sun Yat-Sen, Wu Peifu and even Feng Yuxiang in trying to infuse within the training some sort of ideology. Zhang Zongchang rose to further prominence during this time period. He had of course gained a lot of respect from Zhang Zuolin after quelling Kao Shihpin. He began amassing a great fortune through extortion, violence and opium dealing. Zhang Zuolin was still receiving assistance from the Japanese, despite not exactly aligning with their wishes. For Zhang Zuolin, tossing away some autonomy was merely a tactical move for his drive to conquer China. Thus it was a means to an end. For the Japanese, they sought an absolute hegemony over Manchuria. In August of 1923, Zhang Zuolin turned to Major General Honjo Shigeru, his Japanese advisor for Japanese arms in anticipation of another war against the Zhili clique. Honjo responded by denying him the request and criticized the Fengtian army's level of training and readiness. Then he basically went on to say that Japan would continue to support, as long as he did not invade China proper, “the Empire always demands that you exercise circumspection so that order may be maintained in the Eastern Provinces”. Regardless of the Japanese position on the issue, Zhang Zuolin had taken enormous lengths to reorganize and retrain his army. Simply put, he had grown too strong for the Zhili clique to leave him alone. Yet the tiger of Manchuria was not the only problem facing the Zhili clique, there was also Dr Sun Yat-Sen's coalition in the south. Then a minor incident, a train robbery in Shandong occurred in april of 1923. Several foreigners were kidnapped and ransomed. Alongside this the feeling in the air was that a war was about to break out at any moment. The foreigners wanted a stable China, the people of China wanted an end to the wars. Thus the foreign diplomats and Chinese officials began demanding the Zhili and Fengtian cliques sign a peace treaty before another war broke out. A peace agreement was reached in June of 1923, what that piece of paper actually meant, who knows. In the meantime, the Zhili clique began focusing on the remnants of the Anhui clique over in Fujian and Zhejiang province. In march of 1923, Zhili clique member Sun Chuanfang was appointed military governor of Fujian. Sun Chuanfang was the former protege of the previous military governor of Hubei, Wang Chanyuan and he much like Feng Yuxiang was becoming a rising stay. Sun Chuanfang was being bolstered heavily by Cao Kun. Sun Chuanfang drove the Anhui clique's military governor Wang Yungchuan out of Fuzhou and by early 1924, Fujian province was more or less firmly Zhili dominated. Wu Peifu intended to use Fujian as a springboard to conquer Guangdong. Meanwhile the remaining Anhui warlord, Lu Yungxiang of Zhejiang was obviously panicking. Lu Yungxiang held control over Zhejiang and thus also Shanghai, including her arsenal and extensive revenues from foreign trade, the opium trade and had access to foreign markets. Fearing the Zhili would crush him at any moment, he jumped into bed with Zhang Zuolin and Dr Sun Yat-Sen directly after the Anhui cliques defeat back in 1920. Basically to garner their support and that of foreigners, Lu Yungxiang publicly opposed Cao Kun when he bribed his way into the presidency. On November 10th of 1923, the police chief of Shanghai, Zhili clique member Xu Guoliang was assassinated. It has been alleged Xu Guoliang was killed by henchmen of Lu Yungxiang. A battle emerged between Lu Yungxiang and the military governor of Jiangsu, Qi Xieyuan over appointing a new successor. You might be asking, “why would two people be fighting over this issue, isn't Shanghai under the jurisdiction of Jiangsu?” Yeah funny thing about that, the city was at the time being administered by Lu Yungxiang as part of Zhejiang. While historically Shanghai had typically been part of Jiangsu province, after the first Zhili-Fengtian War, Lu Yungxiang seized control over the city and it basically became his economic lifeline. Both men fought and nearly began a war, but to preserve the peace they began negotiating and signing minor treaties. Both men agreed not to take allies to fight another and not to allow other warlords armies to pass through each other's provinces, nor augment their current armies. Despite everything it was clear to Lu Yungxiang that Zhejiang was next on the chopping block for the Zhili clique, thus in order to protect himself he hired the Anhui clique Generals Zang Zhiping, the commander of the Fujian 2nd Division and Yang Huazhao the commander of the Fujian 3rd Division, together they were roughly 6000 men strong. Obviously their recruitment violated the peace treaty, and alongside this, Lu Yungxiang gave refuge to many Anhui troops fleeing Fujian. This handed the Zhili clique justification to provoke a war. Meanwhile Qi Xieyuan had expanded his military strength in preparation for seizing Shanghai. He began recruiting troops in Yanzhou and Jining. Initially within Jiangsu Qi Xieyuan had 5 Divisions and 6 Brigades, roughly 43,000 men. Qi Xieyuan also had the support of Naval commander Du Xigui who led 20 warships with some marines. Qi Xieyuan also had a minor airforce sporting some Vime bombers purchased from the UK. As for Zhejiang, Lu Yungxiang reorganized the two Fujian divisions he recruited into a supplementary Brigade and the 24th Mixed Brigade. These added to his divisions and Brigades brought his manpower to nearly 70,000. Lu Yungxiang also had the support of a Shanghai based fleet led by Anhui clique commander Lin Jianzhang and a small airforce sporting French BR14 fighter bombers. Now Qi Xieyuan knew he had no chance in hell of capturing Zhejiang and Shanghai with his forces alone, so he cried to Wu Peifu. Wu Peifu was of course looking down the barrel of a much larger war with Zhang Zuolin, and he had plans to garner Anhui clique support to his side in the future war. In the meantime he asked Qi Xieyuan to lay low and not do anything rash. So Qi Xieyuan did the very opposite. Qi Xieyuan held a secret military meeting in Nanjing, announcing to other warlords from Henan, Anhui and Hubei that he was going to invade Zhejiang. They all wanted a piece of the pie so the game was on.Qi Xieyuan appointed himself commander in chief and created 3 route armies to attack Zhejiang and Shanghai. The first route army was commanded by Gong Bangduo who would mainly be attacking Shanghai, the second route army was led by Chen Tiaoyuan who would mainly defend Yixing and the third route army was led by Wang Pu who would mainly attack Guangde of Zhejiang. In addition to all of this, Sun Chuanfang with support from Cai Chengxun the governor of Jiangxi organized a Fujian-Jiangxi alliance at Jianou. He too would attack Zhejiang, but his ambitions were much larger than just helping Qi Xieyuan. The Anhui clique warlords knew that if Zhejiang and Shanghai fell to the Zhili the Anhui clique was all but done for. Thus many of them such as Xu Shuzheng, Wu Guangxin, Ma Liang and Qu Tongfeng began recruiting to fight for Zhejiang. Lu Yungxiang welcomed their help and asked them to send word to the Fengtian clique for additional aid. Dr Sun Yat-Sen also said if war broke out between Jiangsu and Zhejiang he would try to send forces of his Northern Expedition army. By August of 1924, Sun Chuanfang had moved his troops directly over to the Fujian-Zhejiang border. At 10am on September 3rd of 1924 the first shot of the Jiangsu-Zhejiang war rang around Yixing of Jiangsu province. The Jiangsu forces originally sought to capture Changxing in Zhejiang in one lighting attack, but they found extremely strong resistance. Zhejiang artillery in the mountains surrounded Changxing, roughly 30 miles from Yixing kept them at bay, causing an immediate stalemate. By 11am the fighting made its way along the Shanghai-Nanjing railway. By 10am the next day the Jiangsu forces at Huangdu began firing at Zhejiang fortifications, but the Zhejiang defenders did not fire back. Lured in by the idea the fortifications might be unguarded, Jiangsu forces came over only to be gunned down by machine guns and artillery, killing possibly hundreds. The Zhejiang fighters stormed out of the fortifications to pursue the enemy and by 5pm captured Anting in the process. Now on the political side of things, because Qi Xieyuan launched the first punch, Lu Yungxiang proclaimed he was only defending his territory. Qi Xieyuan in the meantime proclaimed he was working under Cao Kun, thus Lu Yungxiang began tossing accusations at Cao Kun about his bribery scandal, calling him a treacherous dog, you know normal stuff. Now all this Cao Kun talk, prompted Cao Kun to issue officials orders on September 4th to attack Zhejiang. I wont be getting into here, but this sparked the second Zhili-Fengtian war essentially. So while we focus on this smaller war in a bigger war, don't forget about the bigger war. Now by September the 5th the Jiangsu-Zhejiang war saw battles going on in 5 directions: Yixing, Shanghai, Nanjing, Jiading, Liuhe and Qingpu. Within the Yixing battles, the Jiangsu forces were initially blocked, facing Zhejiang counterattacks, roughly 10 miles from Yixing. The Jiangsu forces were battered, 3 battalions defected on the 6th. On the 7th, the Zhejiang forces entered Shushan, prompting Qi Xieyuan to mobilize the Anhui 5th Mixed brigade to reinforce the area, finally halting the Zhejiang advance. Another stalemate emerged, now between Shushan and Yixing. Over at the Shanghai-Nanjing railway line area, after two quiet days, on the night of the 6th the two armies clashed around Anting. Both sides were evenly matched forming a quick stalemate. In the Jiading area on the night of the 3rd the Jiangsu stormed the west gate of Jiading, the defenders were barely holding on. Lu Yungxiang deployed Yang Huazhao's army who made it over on the 5th. Both sides fought fiercely for days. Over in the Liuhe direction, during the afternoon of the 4th the Jiangsu forces advanced, but the Zhejiang artillery kept them at bay. By 5pm however the Zhejiang defenders were overwhelmed allowing the Jiangsu forces to seize Liuhe as the defenders fled to Luodian. At 3am on the 5th the Jiangsu forces continued their advance, only to see the Zhejiang forces circle back and recapture Liuhe. The Jiangsu forces tossed numerous counterattacks, but were repelled and forced to pull back to their start lines. Over in the Qingpu area on the 5th the Jiangsu divided themselves in two groups departing Anting. One group attack Si Port, only 6 miles away from Anting, the other group attacked Baihe due southwest. By 3pm on the 6th both sides were fighting around Kongzhai, just 10 miles north of Qingpu. The Zhejiang managed to halt the Jiangsu. Thus after a few days, across all the battle areas, pretty much no one was making significant progress. Just as it looked like the stalemate would not break, on the 8th the Sun Chuanfang's Jiangsu-Fujian attacked. They quickly occupied Xianxia, Jiangshan and Quzhou by the 18th. Lu Yungxiang saw the enemy closing in on Shanghai and panicked. He knew combined these forces could launch two pronged attacks and overwhelm him. Thus Lu Yungxiang sacrifice Zhejiang as a whole and withdrew to Shanghai with his most elite forces. Now leaderless the rest of the Zhejiang army was simply blown away by the Jiangsu-Fujian forces. They quickly seized Jiaxing, Changxing and other cities. The Jiangsu navy began bombarding coastal and riverside towns as the airforce bombed them as well. Facing a three dimensional war, the Zhejiang forces crumbled and by the end of September Zhejiang defense ceased. The Fujian-Jiangsu armies rushed to Shanghai, occupying Jinshanwei, Songjiang, Qingpu and Longhua by October 13th. At that point Lu Yungxiang realized they could not hope to hold Shanghai, so he alongside other warlords fled into the Shanghai international Concession. The rest of the Zhejiang forces fell to Xu Shuzheng who was placed under house arrest. Thus Qi Xieyuan and Sun Chuanfang were victorious. The war between Jiangsu and Zhejiang lasted roughly 40 days. It was a tremendous disaster for the common people who resided in both provinces who were displaced. The Jiangsu provincial peasants association relayed a message after the war to the state council stating "In the war between Jiangsu and Zhejiang, the army passed by, the villages and towns were ruins, the people were migrating, and they were unemployed. The rich were poor, and the poor were dead. No one knows how many people died in the war zones around Jiangnan and Yixing, This is especially true in Kunshan, Jiading, Taicang, Songjiang, Qingpu and other counties.” The Jiading, Qingpu, Songjiang and Taicang associations added this to the state council "The war broke out in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, and the two provinces were severely affected. In Jiangsu, the four counties of Jiading, Qingpu, Songjiang, and Taicang were the most severely affected, entire towns were destroyed, robbed, or displaced, and the situation was inexplicable... In short, the businesses stopped and the farmers fled. In the past sixty years, their vitality has been exhausted." The Liuhe War Disaster Relief association wrote this report to the Ministry of Internal affairs "The Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces used the Liuhe River as the battlefield, and the stalemate lasted for forty days and nights. People's lives and property were destroyed by artillery fire, and they were repeatedly raped and plundered. The navy also fired long-distance artillery fire from time to time. Therefore, many houses were burned and bombed, such as schools, temples, shops, churches, charity halls, hospitals, and long-distance buses, which were all destroyed by the soldiers... A total of 154 houses in the city were destroyed by artillery fire. Of the 1,529 houses, about 3,300 were damaged by shells, and the total damage was estimated to be over 770,000 yuan. The merchants and civilians in the houses were not affected by this war disaster. For this reason, the residents were exiled and their houses were no longer available, and they were unable to resume operations. The situation was so miserable that it was difficult for them to do so." Both sides' casualty figures ranged in the thousands to tens of thousands. Official reports stated 30,000 total casualties for the war, with hundreds dying each day of it. However the greatest harm fell upon civilians. Young recruits, often having not been paid for long periods of time, resorting to looting and robbing. Civilians panicked and fled their homes. Women were pressed into service as cooks and in brothels, known sometimes as public wives. Civilians were forced to work for the soldiers, performing things like transporting ammunition, digging trenches and such. They were beaten with gun handles if they did not comply, those who ran were whipping, many were shot. Gang rape was an epidemic, there was a tragic story of an 8 year old girl and a 78 year old women were were gang raped to death by 13 soldiers near Fangtai while they were out picking cotton. Waves of refugees roamed the region, Japanese survey's indicated the Shanghai international concession ballooned with 500,000 refugees. When Lu Yungxiang fled for Shanghai, his Zhejiang army simply looted the province. Economic losses were insanely high. These losses came from warlords extorting or expropriating to meet military demands. It was estimated that the military expenditure of both sides was 60-70 million yuan. Neither provincial taxes could support such numbers so the warlords forced banks and governments to allocate things like treasury exchange coupons. Sun Chuanfang extorted 800,000 yuan from the Huangzhou banks and would later extort another 1 million yuan from the Shanghai business community. Soldiers burned, killed and looted as was the norm of warlord China. As you can imagine the government bond price plummeted from all of this, banks foreclosed, financial ruin ensued. The entire financial industry of Jiangsu and Zhejiang went on strike because of the war and all of this of course impacted China's overall economy. Now as I alluded to, the Jiangsu-Zhejiang war was not only a war fought over two provinces in southeast China, but rather a contest between the entire Zhili clique against an emerging anti-Zhili coalition. It was also another disastrous blow to the already dramatically weakened Anhui clique, who pretty much would never recover. From this point forward the Anhui clique would not wield much presence politically or militarily. Although the war was clearly limited in scope to the southeast corner of China, it had an enormous impact across the nation. At the time the Zhili clique was in firm control over Beijing and was vigorously trying to unify China by force, threatening all the other cliques' warlords. Lu Yungxiang desperately looked for anyone to help him out, even turning to Cao Kun and Wu Peifu, asking them to restrain Qi Xieyuang. Of course neither Zhili leader headed this as they very much wanted Zhejiang to fall into their pocket, but they had no idea what a powder keg Zhejiang would turn out to be. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. The First Jiangsu-Zhejiang War was but a mere cog in a larger war that was unfolding across China. The Warlord Era was simply one battle to the next, as the warlords fought to unify China in their own special image. The common people are always the ones to pay the price.
Last time we spoke about the tyrannical regime of Ungern-Sternberg in Mongolia. Ungern-Sternberg's secret police led by Colonel Leonid Sipailov targeted Reds and Jews, executing nearly 900 people, including over 50 Jews. Meanwhile, Ungern-Sternberg built his Asiatic Cavalry Division, aiming to form a Mongolian national army. Damdin Sukhbaatar emerged as a Red leader, trained in military tactics and part of Mongolia's independence movement. The Soviet Union supported Mongolia against Ungern-Sternberg's occupation, aiding the Mongolian People's Party. Sukhbaatar led successful campaigns against White Russians, ultimately capturing Urga. Ungern-Sternberg's forces were defeated by the Red Army, leading to his capture and execution. After his downfall, Mongolia faced internal political struggles, including purges and power struggles within the Mongolian People's Party. Meanwhile, Tibet faced its own challenges, negotiating with China and Britain over its status and borders, leading to the establishment of the McMahon Line, though China disputed the agreement. #103 the First Zhili–Fengtian War Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. Well hello there, we are back in the thick of things in north China again. As a bit of a refresher, the Anhui-Zhili War of 1920 had resulted from a combination of Duan Qirui basically pissing off everyone else. The Zhili and Fengtian cliques banded together to defeat the Anhui clique, now Duan Qirui went into a bit of a self exile and most of his territory was seized. The Anhui were not down for the count, but now a fraction of what they once were and confined to Fujian and Zhejiang province. Meanwhile Zhang Zuolin and his Fengtian clique maintained their hold over Manchuria and even added some parts of Inner Mongolia to their booming empire. Cao Kun and Wu Peifu of the Zhili clique had benefited the most from the war, grabbing Beijing, Anhui and northern Zhili province, adding it to their heartland in the Yangtze Valley. Wu Peifu had largely been the mastermind behind the war effort and earned great fame as a result. He became known as a military genius, earning monikers such as “the jade marshal”. The coalition' victory did not bring stability to north China. Jin Yunpeng was the leader of the Anfu Club and was supported and engineered to Premiership by Cao Kun and Zhang Zuolin. They supported him largely because he was the rival of Xu Shichang and a large rift was ongoing in the Anfu club because of them. Despite being a Anhui clique member, he was a relative of Zhang Zuolin by marriage and an early patron to Wu Peifu. While Duan Qirui was in power, his appointment met the needs of all 3 cliques. Thus when Duan Qirui and many of the other Anhui clique officials were cast out, Jin Yunpeng was one of the select few who kept their job. Meanwhile the Ministry of communications, foreign services and other national services all gradually shifted their allegiance to the Zhili clique. Cao Kun was now facing a lot of public hostility from Dr Sun Yat-Sen and his Canton coalition. Immediately after the Anhui-Zhili war, Zhang Zuolin left 30,000 troops within the Beijing area under one of his trusted deputies. Zhang Zuolin's real award however was the captured weapons and equipment of the Anhui forces controlling Chahar, Jehol and Suiyuan province. Random side track, I just so happen to be covering the 1930's wars in Chahr, Jehol and Suiyuan province. If thats of interest to you check out my Japanese invasion of Inner Mongolia series over on the Pacific War Channel at Youtube or listen to the podcast versions at the Pacific War Channel on all podcast platforms. Zhang Zuolin had also inherited Xu Shuzheng's job of reconquering Outer Mongolia. That area as we know had been recently taken over by the White Russian General Baron von Ungern-Sternberg who was trying to recreate some sort of Mongolian empire with him as a reincarnated Chinggis Khan. Fortunately for I would say all parties, Ungern-Sternberg was defeated and killed in late July of 1921. The communists then began to seize Mongolia, but Zhang Zuolin would become too preoccupied to face them, because of a new conflict in the south. Wu Peifu lessened his hold over Hunan during the Anhui-Zhili War and as a result a power vacuum was filled by Hunanese forces under Tan Yankai. Tan Yankai was a KMT hero associated with Dr Sun Yat-Sen. Anhui Clique generals Wy Kuanghsin and Chang Chingyao had been left with no territory after the war and Military governor of Shaanxi, Ch'en Shufan, also a Anhui general, were all threatened. All 3 of them controlled vast sums of money from their years in government, stored in banks in the foreign concession of Hankow. Meanwhile the Hunanese military, being supported by a coalition of civilian leaders inHunan were looking to form a provincial constitution and to elect a civilian governor. The 3 disenfranchised Anhui generals sought them out and arranged to finance a Hunan invasion of Hubei. The Zhili clique general Wang Chanyuan who had been the military governor of Hubei since 1916. In July 1921 the invasion began seeing Wang Chanyuan defeated, he fled to Wuchang in August. In response to this, Cao Kun appointed the military genius Wu Peifu to lead an army to reconquer Hubei, supported by Wu Peifu's protege Xiao Yaonan and Wang Chanyuans former subordinate Sun Chuanfang. Wu Peifu moved with his customary speed and decisiveness, moving by rail from Loyang. The Hunan Army had abandoned the Wuhan when Wu Peifu ordered naval units to move up to Wuhan. They were assailed as they moved southward up the Yangtze River. Meanwhile Wu Peifu marched his army overland and by August 27th captured Yueyang, a river port where the Dongting lake flows into the Yangtze. It also happened to hold a railway station for the Wuhan-Chansha railway. Thus Wu Peifu had effectively cut off the Hunan Army's line of retreat in one fell sweep. Trapped now, the Hunan army agreed to return to Hunan and remain there. Wu Peifu kept Yueyang and her strategic railway junction as he then turned his gaze towards Sichuan province. Sichuan's warlords had also come through the Yangtze valley to attack Yichang just a pit upstream from Yueyang. Wu Peifu's forces fought the Sichuanese for over a month until they also agreed to evacuate Hubei province. These small victories bolstered Wu Peifu's image of a military mastermind and enhanced Cao Kun. The Zhili Clique in 1921 controlled provinces containing the two north-south railway lines, the Beijing-Hankou and Tientsin-Pukow. Alongside this they also controlled two prominent east-west lines of communication, the Lunghai railway and Yangtze River. The only other big dog on the bloc at this point remained the Fengtian Clique who controlled 6 Manchuria and Inner Mongolian provinces. Yan Xishan of Shanxi at this point was content with his province, most leaving him alone, thus he remained independent and honestly that's all he really wanted. Now when Duan Qirui had been defeated, Zhang Zuolin emerged the only significant warlord to be backed by the Japanese. In fact his realm of Manchuria and Inner Mongolia were of grave interest to the Japanese. The Japanese had just lost their poster boy, and now felt very threatened by Chinese nationalism in the south and Anglo-American cooperation, both of these forces creating anti-Japanese sentiment in China. Thus the Japanese heavily supported Zhang Zuolin, making sure his position in the northeast was very stable. However Zhang Zuolin was making things quite difficult. Zhang Zuolin publicly denounced the Zhili clique, particularly Cao Kun and Wu Peifu, labeling them puppets of Anglo-American interest and allies to the radical Dr. Sun Yat-Sen with his KMT and even CCP leanings. Relations between Zhang Zuolin and Wu Peifu were pretty bad, allegedly they began to really sour during the conference in Beijing after the Zhili-Fengtian war. Zhang Zuolin apparently referred to Wu Peifu “as a mere division commander, who only held ceremonial status to himself and Cao Kun”. Zhang Zuolin was ambitious, he was gazing at the territory south of his little empire. He also knew the Zhili clique was not whole heartedly unified, they were vulnerable. At a conference in Tientsin in April of 1921, where Jin Yunpeng was going to reorganize his cabinet, Zhang Zuolin suddenly went out of his way to treat Wang Chanyuan, now the military governor of Hubei and Hunan as an equal to himself and Cao. Now during this time period, our old friend the Christian Warlord, Feng Yuxiang, a Zhili clique member was becoming a rising star. After the Tientsin conference, the Beijing government appointed Yen Hsiangwen, the commander of the 20th division and a close associate of Wu Peifu as military governor over Shaanxi. Wu Peifu added the 7th Division and Feng Yuxiangs 16th Mixed Brigade to Yen Hsiangwens army. Feng Yuxiang's brigade performed very well under Yen Hsiangwen and he was soon rewarded with the 11th Division. Then Yen Hsiangwen committed suicide, or so its alleged on August 23rd, and Feng Yuxiang succeeded him as military governor. Back over in Beijing, the political scene was increasingly becoming concerned with funding. The usual lenders to China had agreed that a unified Chinese government would be necessary to guarantee future loans. Premier Jin Yunpeng was doing an ample job securing the dissolving Anhui parliament at Beijing, but Dr Sun Yat-Sen remained adamantly oppositional over in Guangzhou. Any prospect of obtaining future loans were evaporating. The banking system within China was dominated by a smaller clique revolving around officials working in the ministry of communications. Many of these officials did not get along with Jin Yunpeng. Then suddenly on December 24th President Xu Shichang appointed Liang Shiyi, the head of the communication group as prime minister. Within just two days after this, the central government funding for Wu Peifu's armies in Hubei and Hunan was cut and the Anhui clique officials were all receiving full pardons. Wu Peifu was taken by complete surprise in these actions, it seemed clear to him the Fengtian, Communications officials and Anhui cliques were forming a coalition against him. Hell even some in the Zhili clique seemed to be involved. Hunan and Hubei were the vast sum of Wu Peifu's power, this was directed at him. Wu Peifu lashed out swiftly by publishing telegrams accusing Liang Shiyi of treason for recent actions during the Washington conference. While the conference was primarily about naval buildups, particularly limiting those between Britain, Japan and the US, there was also a clause signed guaranteeing the territorial integrity of China. Yet apparently Liang Shiyi had cabled the Chinese delegation to go easy on the Japanese, hoping they would reciprocate with some loans to China. Wu Peifu had hard evidence of these actions and laid them out publicly trying to force Liang Shiyi from office. However, Zhang Zuolin began publicly supporting Liang Shiyi. It would turn out the appointment of Liang Shiyi was Zhang Zuolin's doing. Regardless of Zhang Zuolin's support, Liang Shiyi would be forced out of office. Yet Wu Peifu was deserted by other Zhili generals and it seemed even Cao Kun was not whole heartedly supporting him anymore. Meanwhile Zhang Zuolin had gained support of the Communication officials, Duan Qirui, Zhang Zun and Dr Sun Yat-Sen. Yes its kind of like the sinister six getting together to fight spiderman. So Liang Shiyi stepped down, stating it was because of poor health on January 19th of 1922. Zhang Zuolin considered his sacking to be a personal attack on the part of Wu Peifu. Thus Zhang Zuolin resolved to alienate Wu Peifu from the rest of the Zhili clique and destroy him. Zhang Zuolin had a lot working for him, he was loosely related through marriage to Cao Kun and both men began meeting between their HQ's in Mukden and Baoting. Cao Kun controlled roughly 10,000 men and would definitely make for a formidable ally. However Cao Kun refused to publicly issue any statements against Wu Peifu. By March of 1922, anti-Wu Peifu figures began to meet at Tientsin where they agreed on a strategy. Dr Sun Yat-Sen would become the new president, Liang Shiyi would return as Premier, Zhang Xun would become the inspector general of Jiangsu, Anhui and Jiangxi and Duan Qirui would become the military governor of Zhili. To accomplish all of this, Dr Sun Yat-Sen and the Anhui generals Lu Yung-hsiang and Lihouchi of Zhejiang and Fujian would attack Wu Peifu from the south while the Fengtian army would attack from the north. Once Wu Peifu was defeated he would be confined to the position of inspector general over Hunan and Hubei as the sinister 6 would govern China leading to a happily ever after. Zhang Zuolin's coalition to defeat spider man collapsed immediately. He had been counting on Japanese support, and it did not materialize. The Japanese backed Chinese 2nd Squadron based out of Shanghai had helped Wu Peifu by lending him river gunboats during some war actions in Hubei the previous year and when the first Zhili-Fengtian war broke out, they announced support for Wu Peifu. Their support made it difficult for the Anhui generals of Zhejiang and Fujian who received naval training from them to move against Wu Peifu. Likewise the Japanese backed Chinese 1st squadron based out of Guangzhou caused issues for Dr Sun Yat-Sen to get his forces into the war. When Zhang Xun tried to mobilize, the public who still hated him for his attempt to restore the Qing dynasty basically stopped him in his tracks. Duan Qirui reading the tea leaves, simply became inactive, leaving Zhang Zuolin hung to dry on his own. As for Cao Kun, since 1920, Wu Peifu held significant power because he controlled the Hankow north-south railway line. As of 1922, he lost control of it and from his point of view Cao Kun did not seem to be a good ally. Wu Peifu would deploy roughly 100,000 troops, he was commander in chief and commander of the western front. The commanders of the central and eastern fronts were Wang Chengbin and Zhang Guorong, with Zhang Fulai as deputy commander over the eastern front. By far his best units was the 3rd division led by Feng Yuxiang. Zhang Zuolin would deploy roughly 120,000 men and was commander in chief of the Fengtian army and commander of the eastern front with Sun Liechen as deputy commander. The commander of the western front would be Zhang Jinghui and under him were deputies Bao Deshan, Zhang Xueliang and Li Jinglin. In a direct repeat of the Zhili-Anhui war, Zhang Zuolin would attack Zhili along two fronts, east and west. Zhang Zuolin took Junliangchang as his eastern front HQ. Zhang Jinghui took his western HQ at Changxindian and divided his forces into 3 echelons. Wu Peifu took Baoding for his HQ and deployed forces across 3 fronts. Wu Peifu's forces headed by Feng Yuxiangs 3rd Division in the west deployed in the region of Liulihe; Wang Chengbin deployed at Gu'an; Zhang Guorong at Dacheng with Zhang Fulai. On April 28th, Zhang Zuolin arrived at Junliangcheng and deployed the troops along the Beijing-Fenghuang and Jindu-Fuzhou railway lines. The next day the war broke out. On the eastern front, both armies had begun to skirmish on april 21st, but on the 29th, Fengtian General Zhang Zuoxiang led the 4th battalion of the Guards brigade and the 1st Regiment of the 4th mixed Brigade to attack the Zhili 26th division. This saw the Zhili forces retreat towards Renqiu. On the 30th 10,000 Fengtian troops began an assault against Renqiu. Wang Chengbin deployed reinforcements over to Renqiu who defeated the Fengtian forces and pushed them back towards the Yaomadu and Baiyang bridges. On the 31st Dacheng was retaken by the Zhili forces. Zhang Xueliang led 10,000 infantry, 1 cavalry brigade and 1 artillery regiment to counter attack. However Feng Yuxiang's 3rd Division came over leading to a fierce battle. The Fengtian forces were defeated again and now we're pulling back towards Yangliuqing. The Zhili forces then launched an attack upon Machang on May 3rd. The Fengtian forces at Jinghai and Yangliuqing launched a counter attack. A major stalemate emerged along the Yaomadu and Baiyang bridge area. Yet by this time the war in the middle had decisively turned to the Zhili's favor, thus morale was beginning to crumble for the Fengtian. The Zhili unleashed a heavy counterattack, forcing the Fengtian forces to withdraw towards Jinghai. Meanwhile the Zhili forces captured Machang and Qinxian before defeating the Fengtian at Jinghai. By May 4th, news spread that the Fengtian in the western front had lost, causing countless to surrender in the east or retreat to Junliangcheng. Within the Western front, the battle was mainly fought along the Beijing-Hankow railway line. On April 28th the 24th Division under Zhang Fulai and the 13th mixed brigade under Dong Zhengguo launched an attack against the Fengtian western HQ at Changxindian. They were met by the Fengtian 1st and 16th divisions. The battle was fierce, seeing heavy casualties on both sides. The Zhili forces were about to breach the Fengtian defensive lines, when Fengtian General Li Jinglin rushed over to dislodge the enemy. The Zhili forces withdrew and the next day the Fengtian forces pursued them. The two armies clashed at the Liuli river, where it seemed the Fengtian would win, but the Zhili gradually defeated them. Then the Zhili forces seized Liangxiang and began advancing upon Changxindian and Nangangwa during the night. The Fengtian forces held firm again at Changxindian, mobilizing the 9th and 2nd Brigades of the 28th Division and a Cavalry Brigade from Chahar. However ultimately the Fengtian were relying on their artillery to keep the Zhili forces at bay. Over the course of 2 days both sides were taking heavy casualties. Then on the 30th Wu Peifu personally went to the western frontlines ordered the men to cease offensive actions and focus on heavy artillery shelling of the Fengtian front lines, while he ordered a outflanking maneuver aimed at the Fengtian rear. Wu Peifu divided his forces into 3 groups and launched a fierce attack on May 4th. While this was occuring, the ex-zhili commander of the Fengtian 16th division defected over to Wu Peifu, a very typical situation of warlord era china battles. The Zhili and Fengtian forces suffered tremendously during the days of battle that followed. Many commanders were killed leading the forces on both sides. However the battle would ultimately come down to that of artillery attrition and the Fengtian were consuming more shells than the Zhili and could not replenish them in time. Wu Peifu discovered the situation for what it was and launched a frontal attack to attract the Fengtian artillery fire while also ordering the 21st mixed brigade, an elite formation to sneak behind the Fengtian rear. The 21st Mixed Brigade made a long detour through the Fenghuang mountains, managing to get behind the Fengtian lines. Now surrounded, with artillery munitions nearly exhausted, the Fengtian 16th division surrendered. Zhang Jinghui then jumped into a car heading for Tianjin as the Fengtian army in the west fell into chaos and routed. The Zhili forces stormed Changxindian on the 5th and began an attack against Fengtai. The Fengtian forces fled towards Shanhaiguan, while 30,000 of them were captured alongside their weapons and equipment. Within the middle front, Wu Peifu directed the Zhili forces to focus upon Gu'an. Fengtian General Zhang Zuoxiangs forces were stationed around Yongqing. Zhang Xueliang and Guo Songling were stationed around Ba county. Both sides launched fierce attacks and counterattacks, but gradually the Zhili overwhelmed the Fengtian and seized Shengfeng and Gu'an quickly. Zhang Zuoxiang personally led the 27th and 28th division to try and recapture them, but was repelled. On May 4th, the Zhili army erected a siege upon Yongqing from three sides. After a day of fighting the Fengtian could hold on no longer. Many surrendered outright, some fled for Tianjin, including Zhang Zuoxiang. After the fall of Yongqing the Zhili forces captured Langfang and accepted the surrender of thousands. Casualty reports suggested the Fengtian suffered 20,000 deaths, 10,00 desertions and 40,000 men were captured. However these numbers are absolutely exaggerated, in fact all battles of China's warlord Era are. Some casualty reports listed a total of 10,000 to a possible 30,000 for both sides included and even that seems high. Foreign military advisors and observers noted Wu Peifu's seemed to be far better trained and disciplined compared to their Fengtian counterparts. The Zhili forces also had superior arms, but many of Zhang Zuolin's better units impressed the foreigners with their armaments. Wu Peifu quickly occupied Beijing. Zhang Zuolin met his fleeing troops and Luanzhou, between Tientsin and Shanhaiguan where he gave every soldier 10$ tip. At this point their monthly wage was around 4.20$ thus this was a big saving grace for them. During the battle and afterwards a ton of rumors emerged. It was alleged President Xu Shichang had threatened to attack the Fengtian army from the rear with 3 neutral divisions stationed at Beijing, whether true or not he remained neutral and did not act. Zhang Zuolin looked over the reports from commanders and found many of his best trained officers had been ignored by subordinate commanders. He also found his generals with banditry backgrounds commanding divisions did extremely poorly. These factors would greatly influence him in reorganizing his army. Meanwhile during the battle a warlord in Hunan, Zhoa Ti had rebelled, spreading rumors that Wu Peifu had been decisively defeated by Zhang Zuolin during the battle and was in fact killed in action. Feng Yuxiang quickly stormed Kaifeng and was rewarded the appointment as military governor over Hunan. He would quickly go to work recruiting troops and instructing them in the doctrines of christianity. Despite the grand victory, Wu Peifu had major issues. The entire ordeal proved the Zhili clique was not unified. He was unable to pursue Zhang Zuolin's fleeing army into Manchuria to finish them off as a result. Instead a game of politics came about. Liang Shiyi walked away. On May 14th, Sun Chuanfang called for the resignation of the Presidents in both Beijing and Guangzhou and for the old constitution to be revived. President Xu Shichang took the message to heart and resigned on June 2nd. The Zhili clique then persuaded the ever reluctant Li Yuanhong to come back as President and he did so, not realizing he was merely a seat warmer for Cao Kun. Unable to fully defeat Zhang Zuolin, Wu Peifu negotiated a peace with the British mediating. They met on a British warship anchored off the coast of Qinhuangdao on June 18th where general guidelines suggested by the British were established. Shanhaiguan would become the border between the two cliques. Beijing now was under the fully domination of the Zhili clique, but the relationship between Wu Peifu and Cao Kun had certainly been strained. The war also had a profound effect on south China. Dr Sun Yat-Sens government had collapsed just as he was planning his Northern Expedition. Dr Sun Yat-Sen had made the Yunnan Clique warlord Li Liejun his chief of staff. Chen Chongming opposed this, so Dr Sun Yat-Sen removed him as governor of Guangdong and as military commander of the Guangdong army. Dr Sun Yat-Sen achieved this by marching from Wuzhou along the Guangdong-Guangxi border to Guangzhou with his most loyal troops. He intended to make good on his commitment to Zhang Zuolin, to march north against Wu Peifu, albeit it was part of his northern expedition plans mind you. However Chen Chongming's forces were mostly at Nanning in Jiangxi because of a previous war there, thus he was forced to flee to Huizhou to preserve his eastern Guangdong base. Dr Sun Yat-Sen was advised by many colleagues, including a young Chiang Kai-Shek to postpone the Northern Expedition and first focus on crushing Chen Chongming. Dr Sun Yat-Sen however believed commencing the northern expedition alongside Zhang Zuolins war was too great an opportunity to pass up. He also believed Chen Chongming would not betray the movement. So on May 6th he began an invasion into southern Jiangxi. While capturing cities in southern Jiangxi on June 13th, it was discovered Chen Chongming and Zhili clique generals were planning a mutiny in Guangzhou. Dr Sun Yat-Sen rushed back to Guangzhou to reason with Chen Chongming who surrounded his office on June 15th threatening his life. Dr Sun Yat-Sen managed to escape the situation, fleeing aboard the cruiser Haichi, then to gunboat Yungfeng. Thus Dr Sun Yat-Sen lost touch with the Guangzhou scene. Meanwhile Wu Peifu orchestrated a propaganda campaign labeling Zhang Zuolin and Liang Shiyi as pro-Japanese stooges. Dr Sun Yat-Sens alliance with Zhang Zuolin got him caught up in the mess. Many influential figures began sending letters to Dr Sun Yat-Sen suggesting he step down as head of the Guangzhou government. Most of the foreign powers in Guangzhou also added to this as the KMT forces were naval bombarding the area threatening the lives and property of many. Meanwhile Chen Chongming's forces seized Whampoa on July 14th. The Chinese 1st squadron in the area changed command to a Wu Peifu loyalist. Thus to all it seemed Dr Sun Yat-Sen was done, but he was still in the game. He still had control over the Northern Expeditionary Army, mostly 10,000 Yunnanese and Guangdong forces. Then Duan Qirui urged action to support Dr Sun Yat-Sen against Chen Chongming. Multiple KMT factions fell into a chaotic war between those loyal to Sun or Chen. Chen Chongming was under attack from all directions and could not hold Guangzhou thus he fled to Huizhou and by January 15th 1923 announced his retirement. Dr Sun Yat-Sen returned to Guangzhou and retook his generalissimo title. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. Thus Zhang Zuolin's plot to defeat Wu Peifu basically backfired. Instead of alienating and defeating his rival, his allies all collapsed on him, he was defeated, humiliated and now it seemed Wu Peifu may have very well taken complete control over Beijing. Would Wu Peifu be able to reunify China? Or would they all just keep fighting, what do you think?
Join us each week as we do a quick review of three compelling stories from the pharma world — one good, one bad and one ugly. Up this week: The good — AstraZeneca's Tagrisso delivers 84% progression-free survival in trial The bad — BMS to let go of 863 employees at NJ site The ugly — FDA inspection uncovers multiple violations at Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals site
Last time we spoke about Manchu Restoration of Zhang Xun. After the death of Yuan Shikai, Duan Qirui maneuvered to maintain control amidst the political chaos. After being outed from Premiership for trying to drag China into WW1, General Zhang Xun suddenly marched upon Beijing seizing the capital. Zhang Xun then proclaimed the Qing Dynasty restored with Emperor Puyi back on the throne, shocking the entire nation. Li Yuanhong freaked out, ran for his life and begged Duan Qirui to come back and save the republic. Ironically Duan was already in the process of marching upon the capital, so with a smile he went along with everything making it look like he was a hero. After taking back power, Duan resumed his premiership, but made sure to get rid of any threat to his authority. However, Duan's authoritarian rule and neglect of certain officers led to opposition from figures like Feng Guozhang, who formed the Zhili Clique. #98 The Invasion of Outer Mongolia & First Anhui/Zhili War Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. During the Xinhai Revolution many provinces and regions declared independence, one of them was Outer Mongolia. In 1910, the Qing Dynasty had appointed the Mongol, Sando to be viceroy over Mongolia, with his base being in the capital city of Urga. Just a month after his arrival conflicts emerged, prompting Sando to ask Jebstundamba Khutuktu, the spiritual leader of the Mongolians to help out but he refused and this led to a campaign to have Sando removed. More conflicts followed and by spring of 1911, prominent Mongolian nobles, such as Prince Tögs-Ochiryn Namnansüren persuaded Jebstundamba Khutukhtu to form a meeting of the nobility to discuss declaring independence. The meeting resulted in a deadlock. 18 nobles wishing to declare independence took matters into their own hands pressuring Jebstundamba Khutukhtu to send a secret delegation to Russia for help. Of course at this time Russia sought Outer Mongolia as a buffer state. The Mongols knew this and offered economic concessions if the Russians helped arm them and brought troops over. Russia did not want to add Outer Mongolia to the empire however, so she offered diplomatic support rather than military support. The Russian minister to Beijing informed the Qing the Mongols had sent a delegation and this prompted the Qing to order Sando to investigate. Yet while all of this was going on, the Wuchang Uprising had sprung up and soon rebellion would hit the entire nation. When the Mongols received news of what was happening to China, they simply joined in and declared independence. By December 1st a provisional government of Khalkha was set up under the theocratic rule of Jebtsundamba Khutuktu who became the Bodg Khaan over the new Bogd Khanate. Fast forward to 1915, the new Republic of China and the Bogd Khanate reached an agreement that Outer Mongolia could be autonomous under Chinese suzerainty, a protectorate basically. Then came the Russian Revolution and with it, the Russian Civil War. This resulted in a rather bizarre movement springing up along the Siberian/Mongolian border. Grigory Semyonov a White movement member in Transbaikal with Japanese backing, took quite an interest in Mongolia. Semyonov spoke Mongolian and Buryat fluently, he was also a soldier who fought in WW1 and then during the civil war. He led an anti-soviet rebellion, but lost after a few months and was forced to flee to Harbin. He moved to Manzhouli in Inner Mongolia and from there setup a base to launch raids into siberia to help the white movement. By the summer of 1918 he managed to captured Chita, setting it up as his own capital as he declared a Great Mongol State. Semyonov fancied unifying the Oirat Mongol lands, parts of Xinjiang, Transbaikal, Inner and Outer Mongolia, Tannu Uriankai, Kobdo Hulunbe'er and even Tibet to form a new Mongolian state. The situation caused a divide amongst the leadership in Outer Mongolia. Some favored their current protectorate relationship with China and wanted to end the Semyonov threat. Others were dissatisfied with the status quo and saw it as a great opportunity. The Chinese high commissioner in Mongolia, Chen Yi was soon delivered word from some of the Mongolian nobles, Soviet forces were preparing to invade Mongolia. The Cossack consular guards at Urga, Khovd and Uliastai had all fled. The Russian communities in Mongolia were beginning to support a Bolshevik regime. It was under said pretext, Semyonov and his white Russian colleagues came to Mongolia. Chen Yi began frantically sending telegrams to Beijing requesting troops while simultaneously persuading the Bogd Khaan government to agree to allow a Chinese battalion to come over. Chen Yi and Mongol noles came up with a document with 64 points titled "On respecting of Outer Mongolia by the government of China and improvement of her position in future after self-abolishing of autonomy", yes they could have summarized it somewhat, though I imagine the english translation is lacking. The stipulations offered to replace the Mongolian government with Chinese officials; introduce Chinese garrisons and the keeping of feudal titles. However by July of 1918, the Soviet threat seemed to have dissipated. Meanwhile Semyonov had assembled a detachment of Buryats and Inner Mongolian nationalists to fight for his pan-Mongolian cause. They made several attempts to try and persuade the Bogd Khaan's government to join, but the Mongol nobles thought it foolish to throw their lot under a new master they knew nothing about. Gradually Semyonov threatened to invade Mongolia to force their compliance. The Bogd Khaanate was in a bad position. They lacked the strength to repel Semyonov, on the other hand they were not interested in Chinese troops entering their lands. Now taking a step back, there was another player in the region. When the Manchu Restoration of Zhang Xun broke out, Zhang Zuolin, the warlord of Manchuria sat on the fence in Mukden. Yet a subordinate of his, Feng Tielin had just unsuccessfully plotted against him and was implicated in the Manchu Restoration. This gave Zhang a good excuse to imprison and dismiss the man from his command and better yet he stole the man's troops. In August of 1917, Zhang Zuolin took control over Heilongjiang province after a small rebellion had broken out there. Then in October, the warlord in Jilin province turned out to also be a Manchu Restorationist, or at least Zhang accused him as such, so he used diplomacy to get rid of the man. After this Zhang seized Jilin and thus controlled all of Manchuria, excluding parts under Japanese occupation. In February of 198, Duan Qirui sent a rather unpopular subordinate named Xu Shucheng to try and persuade Zhang Zuolin to join the Anfu club. The reason was because Duan Qirui distrusted Wu Peifu and the emerging Zhili clique and saw Zhang as a beneficial ally. Xu Shucheng was the founder of the Anfu club, the political arm of the Anhui clique. They recently earned 3/4s of the seats in the national assembly. Xu was also a fixer in many ways, at one point he discovered Lu Jianzhang had tried to persuade his nephew, Feng Yuxiang the Christian warlord, to fight the Anhui CLique. Xu leaked this and had Lu executed. Thus he had a pretty rough reputation. Xu came to Zhang with a bribe from Duan Qirui, it was information that a shipment of Japanese arms worth 30,000 yuan, enough to equip roughly 7 mixed brigades and just come to port in Qinhuangdao. Zhang Zuolin performed a random inspection of the port and confiscated the goods, reminds you of the New York mob. In response to this friendly gesture, Zhang sent 50,000 of his troops southwards to aid Duan Qirui's new campaign that he called “unification of China by force”. For this nice gesture, the Beiyang government gave Zhang Zuolin the title of inspector of the 3 Manchurian provinces. At this point Zhang Zuolin truly became known as the tiger of Manchuria, or the “king of the northeast”. Things were not great, but not bad between Duan and Zhang, then Xu Shucheng received a new command, and things changed dramatically. Because of the situation in Outer Mongolia, Duan Qirui decided to form a new “Northwestern Frontier Army” and he gave command of it to his right hand man, Xu Shuzheng. Now, allegedly this was also coerced by the Japanese who had their own designs on Outer Mongolia. But Duan Qirui certainly had his motives for such an action. The leaked information about the Nishihara loans alongside other bad press had most of the Chinese public against him. His reputation as a republican patriot had been tarnished, even defeating Zhang Xun had not done a ton to reverse it. Duan Qirui had cultivated a large and strong army during WW1, but now the war was over and all of his political enemies questioned why he kept the army. Of course everyone knew the real reason why, he wanted to defeat his rivals in the south to reunify China. When the Russian began to encroach in Mongolia, it was a perfect excuse to use said army, legitimizing it somewhat. Publicly Duan Qiruir stated the Northwestern Frontier army would go to Outer Mongolia to defend them against Bolshevik encroachment. Their expedition was supposed to commence in July 1919, but their train broke down on them. In October, Xu was forced to lead a spearhead of just 4000 men to storm the capital of Urga. There was no actual battle, the Chinese entered peacefully and began occupying the capital. They were soon followed up with 10,000 additional forces who began to occupy Mongolia. Xu Shuzheng met with Chen Yi and the Mongol nobles and stated the 64 point document needed to be renegotiated. He then submitted a much tougher set of conditions calling for the express declaration of Chinese sovereignty over Mongolia; to increase Mongolia's population via Chinese colonization; to promote commerce, industry and agriculture. If the Mongols resisted these conditions, Xu threatened to deport the Bogd Khaan to China. To make a point Xu then placed troops directly in front of Bogd Khaan's palace. It seems Xu may have also been pressured by Japan to install some pro-Japanese chinese officials in Mongolia to thwart any future Russian encroachment. These demands, titled “the eight articles” were given to the Mongolian Parliament on November 15th and the upper house accepted them, but the lower house did not. Many members publicly called for armed resistance. The most tenacious were the buddhist monks to fight off the Chinese, but the upper house ultimately prevailed. Then a petition to end autonomy signed by the ministers and deputy ministers of the Bogd Khaans government was presented to Xu. Body Khaan refused to give his seal still. Then a new Prime Minister was installed by the orders of Xu Shuzheng, his name and do forgive me was Gonchigjalzangiin Badamdorj. Alongside the conservatives within the Mongolian political scene they forced the acceptance of the Chinese demands. Xu Shuzheng was hailed as a hero in China. Dr Sun Yat-sen even sent a letter of congratulations from the rival Guangzhou government, it was clearly satirical, but those like Duan Qirui paraded it as propaganda. Now Xu Shuzheng then humiliated the Mongolian Council of Khans in a speech and would return in February of 1920 to preside over an extremely humiliating ceremony. During the ceremony the Bogd Khan and other Mongol nobles were forced to kowtow before Xu Shuzheng and the new Five races under one union flag. This ceremony was so insulting, it would mark the beginning of active Mongolian resistance against China. The occupation of Mongolia had aroused frustration from Zhang Zuolin because he regarded Mongolia to be within his sphere of influence. Xu Shuzheng after occupying Mongolia began to set up banks in the northwest, raised public loans and all of this was of course done to increase his own personal power. At this time, since he was the 2nd strongest Anhui Clique leader, he had so many forces under his thumb he was seen to be greater than Zhang Zuolin the “inspector of the three provinces of Manchuria”. Xu Shuzheng's Northwestern Army had troops in Inner Mongolia, Gansu, Xinjiang and Shaanxi. Now while Zhang Zuolin's Fengtian Clique could not hope to defeat the Anhui Clique alone, they were not in fact alone. Zhang Zuolin with his ear to the political ongoings in northern China would find a new ally to thwart Duan and Xu's encroachment into his realm. We need to rewind just a little bit to explain the rather chaotic political situation in north China. After Zhang Xun's Manchu Restoration was defeated, Duan Qirui found himself in a bit of an awkward position. He was now the defender of the republic, he took back his premiership, but his puppet Li Yuanghong had fled his position as president, it was now Feng Guozhang who was president. Now Feng Guozhang was not elected or anything, he was merely filling out the term of Li Yuanghong. Before leaving Nanjing to come over to Beijing, Feng compelled Duan to accept his appointees to offices in the Yangtze area, where his power base was located. Now there was a division of military power, a sort of split within the Beiyang army between the Premier and President. This led to the “Anfu Club” being created of Duan followers and in turn the Zhili Clique of Feng followers. The Anfu Club was far better organized, better funded and was dominated by Duan and Xu. Xu by the way was nicknamed Little Xu, because he was seen as simply Duan lackey as they say. The Anfu Club also had high ranking politicians like Wang Yitang, Zeng Yujun and Liu Enge. Yet the Anfu Club was not really an alliance of military guys, it was more a political force that exerted influence over Parliament and other parts of the civil bureaucracy. There was no war at this point despite the conflict between Duan and Feng growing. Thus the fighting was all within the political realm for awhile, they simply fought to control government institutions and such. Duan and Feng's main objective at this time was simply to dominate Parliament, and Duan was winning. Duan mae Wang Yitang the speaker of the house who made sure Feng could not dissolve parliament. If Feng dissolved parliament it would call for an election that could see Duan lose premiership again. Now a little bit about the Zhili Clique, from 1917-1920 the clique was not really united politically or militarily. They were really a riff raff of pissed off Beiyang officers and politicians whom Duan Qirui had overlooked. Their most influential military commanders in the beginning were Wang Zhanyuan the warlord of Hubei, Li Chun and Chen Guangyuan the warlords of Jiangsu. The Zhili clique lacked strong leadership and a real source of funding. They did not have much influence over Parliament, thus they were quite hopeless against the Anhui clique who were only getting stronger each day. In October of 1918, the Anfu Club managed to secure a new president, Xu Shichang. Xu Shichang was the former viceroy of Manchuria, considered a safe pick by the Anfu members. Xu lacked a following, he was quite old, a school type, someone they all assumed could be easily manipulated, basically a new Li Yuanghong. By the end of 1918 the Anfu club appeared to be in a position to unify China for the first time since the death of Yuan Shikai. However they depended heavily on Japanese loans and as a result easily fell victim to those who would label them to be in league with Japan. Members of the Zhili clique capitalized on this, spreading accusations left right and center, making public statements accusing the Anfu members of selling China out to Japan. By 1919 the Anfu group still looked sturdy, but then the Treaty of Versailles situation hit. The public outrage to the peace talks led many Anhui clique members of Duan's cabinet to flee to Japan. Then the May Fourth Movement began, prompting the Zhili clique to latch themselves onto the cause of the student protestors. Duan Qirui realized his stronghold on Beijing was becoming fragile. Any direct attack against another warlord would be dangerous, thus he tried to do things covertly. He began by trying to economically strangle areas of his enemies, he reduced government funds to their provinces. He also tried to set up new appointments in the central provinces to dominate them. He appointed General Zhang Jingyao to be the military governor over Hunan province. Wu Peifu whose powerbase was in Sichuan and western Hunan saw this as a direct threat. Now when this was occuring, Japan was facing economic problems and thus could no longer loan money to the Anhui clique. This led the Anfu club to seek a new source of revenue. Meanwhile, Wu Peifu reacted to the threat to his territory by seeking out support from the Zhili clique, in particular he went to his old mentor Cao Kun. Cao Kun had been an officer in the Beiyang Army, initially he did not side with Feng or Duan. When the Anhui clique began to move into central China, this drove Cao to the Zhili clique. Wu Peifu approached his old mentor with a plan, it was to be a campaign against the Anhui. Cao agreed to the idea, only if Wu could prove they would have enough forces capable of attacking Anhui's powerbase around Beijing. Wu then went to work calling upon the warlords of Sichuan, Shanxi and Hubei who were all not receiving much funding from the central government. Thus they all banded together. In November of 1919 Wu Peifu met with Tang Jiyao and Lu Rongting at Hengyang, where they signed a treaty entitled "Rough Draft of the National Salvation Allied Army" This effectively formed the basis of a true anti-Anhui clique alliance. After this in April of 1920, while visiting a memorial service at Baoding for soldiers who died in Hunan, Cao Kun added more warlords to the new anti-Anhui clique alliance, including the rulers of Hubei, Henan, Liaoning, Jilin, Heilongjiang, Jiangsu, Jiangxi and Zhili. The conflict became public as both sides began deploying for the coming war. By May of 1920, Wu Peifu was prepared to launch a campaign to strike into northern China and he began to mobilize his armies up the Tientsin-Pukow railway. Yet before this he also did something else, Wu extended a hand out to an unlikely figure, Zhang Zuolin. He explained his campaign plan to Zhang Zuolin, and advised him, a campaign from the northeast above the Great Wall might be very beneficial to them both, wink wink. Thus in March of 1920, Zhang Zuolin had arranged a feast in Mukden for the warlords of Zhili, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Hubei, Hunan, Liaoning, Jilin and Heilongjiang. It was a secret conference to set up a solid 8 province alliance against the Anhui clique. This intense period of scheming saw President Xu Shichang invite Zhang Zuolin over for a meeting in Beijing. American writer Nathaniel Peffer was there and had this to say of Zhang. “Until his triumphal entry into Peking in 1920, Zhang Zuolin had not come down out of his Mukden fastness for years. In those years a legend had grown up round him — a legend of a fierce, uncouth, primitive creature of the wilds. It was with some zest, therefore, that I accepted an invitation of his nearly English-speaking secretary to attend an audience for foreign correspondents. It was with even greater amazement that I found myself bowing to a slender, delicate little person in subdued silks, soft-spoken and with hands as lovely and graceful as I have ever seen on a man. The terror of the north country looked like a precious aesthete. There was nothing of the aesthete in his speech or his demeanour, however. The interview was marked by none of the usual subtle evasion, the nice circumlocution. There was blunt talk on both sides; and it was eloquent that, when our questions verged on the brutally frank, the secretary who interpreted did not translate them as they were put, but softened them until the meaning was transformed. The quailing of the servitors when the tea was a second late also was eloquent. When he recommended the execution of a whole regiment as a proper punishment for mutiny; one was glad the regiment was not in his command”. During the meeting, Zhang told Xu he had no idea what a “zhili group was or what an Anfu group was”. Everyone should just cooperate in general for a northern cause. Then Zhang Zuolin traveled from Beijing to Baoding to meet with the Zhili's defacto leader Cao Kun. As Zhang was on his way, the anti-anfu coalition managed to force President Xu Shichang to dismiss Xu Shuzheng from all of his posts. Allegedly, after this President Xu Shichang sent an invitation to Zhang Zuolin to come back to his residence after his trip to Baoding was done and he planned to kill him. Premier Duan heard of the plan and told the president to not go through with it, because Zhang Zuolin had supported him in the past. Nonetheless Zhang Zuolin high tailed it back to Manchuria under a disguise. Once back in Mukden, Zhang Zuolin sent a telegram to Xu and Duan stating “in the future instead of mediating politically, I will do so militarily”. In July various Zhili and Fengtian generals such as Cao Kun, Zhang Zuolin, Wang Zhanyuan, Li Shun, Chen Guangyuan, Zhao Ti and Ma Fuxiang all signed a denunciation of the Anhui clique and its political arm, the Anfu Club. This denunciation was circulated through a telegram called Paoting-fu on July 12th. Duan Qirui was outraged by the situation and demanded President Xu Shichang dismiss Cao Kun and Zhang Zuolin from all of their positions. In response to the very obvious threat, Duan formed the National Stabilization army, using 5 divisions and 4 combined brigades with himself as commander in chief and General Xu Shuzheng as his general chief of staff. Duan deployed his forces in 2 fronts, the west covering the regions of Zhouzhou, Gu'an and Laishui and the east covering Hamlet, Beijimiao, Yang and Liang. Cao Kun gathered their 3rd division and 9 combined brigades to form a Traitor Suppression army, with Wu Peifu as the front line commander-in-chief. The Zhili clique deployed their forces in the region of the Yang hamlet and due west of Gaobei. In the northeast, Zhang Zuolin deployed 3 divisions, roughly 70,00 men at the Machang and Junliangcheng. The battle plan was for the Zhili to strike from the south, converging on Baoding and then Beijing while the Fengtian would advance through the Shanhai pass of the Great Wall to attack the northern territories. Now the Anhui clique basically held dominance over the Beijing area, Anhui and along most of China's coast, however the Zhili clique now was dominating Jiangsu province, thus severing the vital railway that the Anhui depended on to move troops from north to south. While Duan could see the Zhili were mobilizing, the appearance of 3 Fengtian divisions advancing through Shanghaiguan caught his men by complete surprise. Duan in a rather panicked fashion ordered his troops in the capital to converge around Tientsin where he was forced to meet both enemies on a southern and northern front. On July 14th of 1920, the Anhui army made the first move by simultaneously attacking both fronts. Zhili troops were forced to abandon Gaobei and 2 days later with Japanese assistance the Anhui forces were able to capture the Yang Hamlet, forcing the Zhili to form a second line of defense in the Beicang region. It was at Beicang where the Anhui forces finally lost momentum and were halted. On July 17th, Wu Peifu personally took command of the Zhili western front, where he unleashed a daring maneuver. He outflanked the Anhui forces at Zhouzhou and proceeded to storm the western Anhui army HQ. There Wu Peifu captured the Anhui front line commander-in-chief Qu Tongfeng and many of his officers, including the 1st division commander. After the capture of Zhuozhou, Wu Peifu pursued the retreating Anhui forces towards Beijing. With the exception of the Anhui 15th division, their western front was all but annihilated.Also on the same day, the Fengtian army crashed into the Anhui eastern front.General Xu Shuzheng received word of the collapse of the western front and promptly fled to Langfang and then Beijing, leaving his forces to surrender to the combined forces of Wu Peifu and Zhang Zuolin. While the majority of the Anhui forces would be taken prisoners, many also managed to escape to Zhejiang and Shanghai, but they were a fraction of what they once were. By July 19th, Duan realized he had lost the war and publicly announced he was resigning from all of his posts. On the 23rd the combined Zhili and Fengtian forces entered Nanyuan and gradually pacified Beijing accepting the surrender of the Anhui clique. In less than a week of battle, the strongest clique was unexpectedly defeated. Zhang Zuolin's military capabilities received a enormous boom from the short battle. His men had captured vast quantities of arms, armaments, ammunition and military vehicles from the Japanese financed frontier defense army of the Anhui clique. It apparently took 100 railway wagons to send all the looted goods back to Mukden, alongside 12 captured aircraft. Zhang Zuolin also suffered pretty much nothing during the battle. The fengtian had merely put a heavy force on the field, they actually sat back quite idly most of the time allowing Wu Peifu to take the lionshare of the actual action against the enemy. At this junction Zhang Zuolin faced two large decisions. First he could return to his powerbase in the northeast with assurances Beijing would not interfere with the development of his provinces. The Japanese were likewise constantly hassling Zhang to refrain from getting involved in the national political scene, to just develop his own region. Obviously Japan was arguing this while dangling financial aid because they were heavily invested in Manchuria and did not want any threats aimed at it, especially from Beijing. Wang Yongjiang, who would become a brilliant economic administrator to the Fengtian Clique, aiding in a lot of reforms, he believed the northeast provinces could continue to develop while keeping out of anything going on south of the Great Wall. He also added his voice, arguing Zhang should just stay the hell away from Beijing and its chaos. The second choice was of course, diving right into the chaos. After the fall of the Anhui Clique, Zhang Zuolin for the first time had tasted a real victory, especially one over a superior adversary. For the first time he had the opportunity to influence the politics of China, he could stop being just a mere bandit leader. Could someone like Zhang Zuolin be the man to reunify China? This he wondered. Thus his choices were to go back to being the tiger of Manchuria or become the man who would lead all of China. What do you think he would choose? I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. The occupation of Mongolia looked like a good idea at the time to Duan Qirui, perhaps its could save his reputation so he could focus on defeating the pesky southern warlords. What a shock it was to find out all of the north rallied together to knock him off his tower. Now the Zhili and Fengtian cliques controlled Beijing, but would they work together, or simply fall into conflict, furthering China's misery.
Last time we spoke about the Southern Warlords. Yuan Shikai's abuse of power prompted declarations of independence from several southern regions, leading to the Second Revolution of 1913. Despite initial successes, Yuan Shikai's Beiyang Army ultimately crushed the uprisings. Dr. Sun Yat-Sen, after various setbacks and political maneuvers, founded the Chinese Revolutionary Party and later resurrected the Kuomintang. Chiang Kai-Shek emerged as a significant figure within the KMT, navigating through alliances and conflicts. Meanwhile the formation of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) paralleled these events, driven by figures like Chen Duxiu, Li Dazhao, and later, Mao Zedong. Concurrently, various regional warlord cliques, including the Yunnan, Guangxi, Guangdong, Sichuan, and Hunan cliques, vied for power, often aligning with or against larger political entities like the KMT or the CCP. We have met the warlords now its time to tell their story. #97 The Manchu Restoration of the Pigtail General Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. Now where to begin, you sort of have to speak about someone we already have spoken to death about, the father of the warlords, Yuan Shikai. He “helped” with quotation marks usher in the republic of china and had a very heavy hand creating the New Army. He was a man of the 19th century, he had served in the First-Sino Japanese War of 1894-1895, then during the Boxer Rebellion. If you remember, back during the Boxer Rebellion, when Empress Dowager Cixi began frantically calling for an alliance with the Boxers to fight off the foreigners, Yuan Shikai like most governors at the time, put his head down. As the foreigners marched from Tientsin to Beijing, Yuan Shikai spent his time strengthening his position as Viceroy of Shandong. During this time he also received the Viceroy of Zhili and Commissioner for North China Trade. He had very lucrative posts and he used the money to set up military colleges. He hired foreign instructors, procured modern armaments and managed to create a professionally trained military. When the Xinhai revolution broke out, Yuan Shikai was made commander-in-chief and he brought his Beiyang Army to quell the rebels at Wuchang. Yet Yuan Shikai was not a moron and could see where the tides were turning, so he began a plot to take control of the new emerging republic. During his tenure, better said dictatorship, he strengthened his personal rule and suppressed any who could threaten him. Now we have already covered most of his story, during the last year of his life, Yuan Shikai increasingly began relying on the support of his military commanders in the capital and in various provinces. Many of these commanders betrayed him, the first one was General Cai E, the emerging warlord of Yunnan. On January 1st of 1916, Cai E declared independence for Yunnan and indeed Sichuan province thus threatening Yuan Shikai's rule over central China. After this Guangxi and Guangdong declared independence. As Yuan Shikai's subordinates began to betray him one by one, the most significant man amongst them would turn out to be Duan Qirui. Duan Qirui was a very talented young officer in command of the artillery corps of Yuan Shikai's Beiyang army. He distinguished himself during the Boxer Rebellion, helping suppress the Boxers, then in 1911 he was sent against the Wuhan rebels. In 1912 as peace talks were being held between Nanjing and Beijing, Duan was an envoy for Beijing and here he personally declared he was in favor of Emperor Puyi abdicating. This earned him an appointment as Minister for the Army in the northern republican government headed by Yuan Shikai. He soon earned himself governorship over Hubei province. Yuan Shikai increasingly began to isolate himself while in power and he often turned to Duan to help rally support. In April of 1916 Duan was appointed premier over the Beijing government. This was the first real taste of power for Duan, and although he would be quite authoritarian, he was no lover of public office. He had buddhist inclinations, and enjoyed the quiet life. Thus he delegated much of his authority to his subordinates and usually stood by their decisions. One of his primary interests was training soldiers and he made sure to grab the position of Ministry of War alongside his premiership. He managed to convince Yuan Shikai to adopt a cabinet style of government, taking major issues behind closed doors amongst trusted elites. Here was born the fabric of warlord era politics. While Duan was premier had led a cabinet, it was of course at the whim of Yuan Shikai who directed its actions. While Duan could not exact real power in the cabinet, what he did do was perform lesser actions using a smaller cabal of loyal ruling elites, mostly subordinate officers to him. Duan also tried to get Yuan Shikai to give up his title as Grand Marshal and to place all military power in the hands of the War Ministry. That last part is an eye opener to be sure, but Duan never tried to overthrow his master. But while under Yuan Shikai he did transfer a detachment of troops loyal to him to guard against his enemies. Now when Yuan Shikai died he left a sealed box and inside it were three names, Xu Shichang, Li Yuanhong and Duan Qirui. None of the three men were eager to take the Presidency, Duan was the first to suggest Li take the job. Li was not keen about the idea, but it is said Duan coerced him into it. Duan spoke with all his senior military officers, they were not at all pleased with the idea of Li Yuanhong as president, but Duan explained to them, it was better to govern in the shadows. Li would be a very useful puppet, he was a southerner not liked by the other northerners, thus very easy to manipulate. Better yet, blame would be cast upon him, and not those like Duan. Yet Duan was very authoritarian and irritated by having to explain his actions to a state council and to president Li, who himself was not always content to give his rubber stamp of approval. Thus the easy puppet began to not be so easy. Worse, Li began taking an interest in military affairs and in relations with other warlords. Duan once in anger exclaimed 'I ask him to sign things and put his seal on them, not to sit on my head!' Regardless, there was a fail safe system. The president of the republic was not permitted to put his seal on any measures not already passed by the State Council which Duan dominated. Now the entire sealed box thing was certainly not how a President gets elected. Just because Li had automatically become president did not mean he would not have to soon face an election to continue it. Now before his death Yuan Shikai had suspended the constitution. Prominent members of the Southern factions in Guangzhou, such as Liang Qichao demanded the 1912 constitution be held up accordingly, ie: that Li face an election. On June 15th of 1917, the commander of the first fleet, Admiral Li Tingxin, at that time based in Shanghai, alongside other admirals declared support for the old constitution being restored and threatened to ignore orders from Beijing if it was not reinstated. This snowballed into the formation of a National Protection Army in the Southwest. This was seriously bad news for Duan. While there were three fleets, the 1st Fleet was the dominant one. Despite protest from other northern warlords, Duan capitulated, the old constitution was restored. This was not the only crisis Duan faced at the time, there were also calls for army reduction nationwide. After years of uprisings, rebellions and regional wars, some many different military groups were established and it no longer made any sense. As you can imagine, many of these so called armies, were in fact Warlords personal armies and any talk of reduction brought Duan directly in confrontation with other warlords. Of course Duan wanted to take the opportunity to weaken his enemies. Duan sought to create a national army consisting of 40 divisions, roughly 10,000 men each and 20 independent brigade of 5000 men each, thus a force of 500,000 or so. Each province was also to supply their local garrisons with 200 battalions nation-wide, a battalion being roughly 5000 men making a total of 100,000 provisional troops. This of course was based on the old Qing system, have provincial armies that did not stray from their respective provinces and a mobile main force. This would not at all be representative of warlord China. Duans plan to weaken the south did not seem feasible politically, I mean, if you were a southern warlord would you go along with this? Duan quickly realized it would be impossible to disarm his enemies, thus he would have to defeat them on the battlefield. Yet in order to do so he required circumstances, such as provinces refusing to pay taxes to Beijing or claiming independence. Now in 1917, Duan was being pressured by the Entente powers to sever relations with Germany and better yet, declare war. As we saw in the previous episodes, a lot of events unfolded during WW1, Japan invaded Qingdao, then Japan unleashed the 21 demands, and in 1917 Germany resumed unrestricted U-boat warfare. The United States invited China to join her in formal protest over this. On March 10th, Duan addressed parliament urging to sever ties to Germany, but parliament was reluctant. For the Chinese military elite, the idea of declaring war on Germany was very attractive. It could possibly open up foreign subsidies, and perhaps a renegotiation of some unequal treaties with Entente powers. It would turn out this was a very popular stance amongst the civilian population as they overwhelmingly voted for a declaration of war later on. However discussions on the matter were quite chaotic. While Duan Qirui wished to declare war on Germany, Li Yuanhong did not. After the March 10th declaration a large series of quarrels began. Duan Qirui in fury offered his resignation as Premier, while vice president Feng Guozhang tried desperately to mediate between him and Li Yuanhong. Most of the parliament team including Liang Qichiao worked to alienate Duan Qirui during the process. In a true Yuan Shikai fashion, Duan Qirui attempted to intimate the parliament into declaring war. Then suddenly in May, an English language newspaper in Beijing published details of a large loan Duan Qirui had secretly negotiated with the Japanese, the infamous Nishihara loans. To the public this looked like Yuan Shikai's Reorganization Loan all over again. Li Yuanhong thus got all of parliament on his side and chose to use his new power to dismiss Duan Qirui. This was honestly a huge gamble as Li Yuanhong had no military support of his own. He was betting on the Beiyang commanders to respect the constitutional president and parliament. Duan Qiruir's supporters as expected all declared independence of their respective provinces and followed Duan Qirui to Tientsin where he established a new HQ. Thus Duan Qirui and his loyal military governor left Beijing and set up shop in Tientsin, gathering forces to rebel against Li Yuanhong and retake the capital. Realizing he was screwed, Li Yaunhong looked for another strongman to defend the capital against Duan. Li had few he could turn to in the north, most of the Beiyang Generals were loyal to Duan. Then suddenly out of the blue, General Zhang Xun offered to mediate the conflict between Li and Duan. Zhang Xun was an eccentric general who had served as a military escort for Empress Dowager Cixi during the Boxer Rebellion and afterwards a Beiyang General in Yuan Shikai's army. He fought on the Qing side in 1911, after the Qing dynasty fell he remained loyal to Yuan Shikai. Despite being a general in the new Republic, he refused to cut his Manchu queue, thus he earned the nickname the “pigtailed general”. Why might he still carry this hairstyle you might ask, well he was a die hard Qing loyalist. He had served Yuan Shikai, more or less to get back at the revolutionaries that had taken down the Qing. Zhang Xun supported Yuan Shikai's emperor phase and earned himself a 1st Class Duke title for it. Now when Duan Qirui expressed his desire to sever ties to Germany, Zhang Xun opposed this. Zhang Xun had few allies as one would guess. There was the leader of the royalist party, Kang Youmei who attempted to restore a monarchy politically and there was the Japanese. From the Japanese point of view, they wanted someone like Emperor Puyi to be placed back on the Manchu throne, simply because they believed he would be easy to control. Japanese prime minister Masaki Terauchi appointed Japan's deputy chief of military staff, Tanaka Giichi and even got some Black Dragon members to go over to brush shoulders with those like Zhang Xun to prod them into restoring the monarchy. Thus Zhang Xun had some political help, and Japanese funding. One story has it that Zhang Xun went to Duan in Tientsin first, and offered to support him if Duan restored the Manchu monarchy. Duan allegedly pretended to agree to this. Zhang Xun then discussed matters with Li Yuanhong and pressured him to dissolve parliament on June 13th, stating if he did so he would help defend Beijing and Li agreed to this allowing him to bring his army over. Thus at midnight on June 30th of 1917, Zhang Xun's army arrived outside Beijing, whereupon Zhang apparently came into the city alone to listen to a play. Zhang Xun then ordered his subordinate officers to invite the temporary garrison commander in chief of Beijing and Tientsin, Wang Shizhen, deputy commanders Jiang Chaozong, Chen Guangyuan and director of the Beijing police department Wu Bingxiang over. He announced to them in a meeting "I am leading the troops to Beijing this time. We are not here to mediate with someone, but to restore the emperor to the throne and restore the Qing Dynasty." He then told them all he planned to enter the palace to ask the emperor if he would retake the throne. He looked at the men and asked what they thought. Wang, Jiang, Chen and Wu were frightened by this sudden statement. Wang Shizhen asked: "Have the provinces and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs contacted each other?" Zhang Xun replied: "The diplomacy is indeed sure. Feng Guozhang and Lu Rongting both expressed their approval and sent messages to urge them. The provincial governors also unanimously supported it." Wang Shizhen and others sat silent and speechless. Zhang Xun added: "I am determined to do it. If you agree, then open the city gate and let my troops in. Otherwise, please go back to your arrangements and fight to the death!" Wang Shizhen and others looked at each other and did not dare to say anything else, to them all he seemed to be insane. Zhang Xun went to the gates and demanded they be opened as his 5000-man army entered Beijing. Then Zhang Xun donned a blue gauze robe with a yellow mandarin jack, a red crown and marched with Kang Youwei, Wang Shizhen, Jiang Chaozong, Chen Guangyuan and Wu Bingxiang amongst other civil and military officials to the palace in the early morning of July 1st. At 3am, 12 year old Puyi met with Zhang Xun and the others. Upon seeing Puyi, Zhang Xun kowtowed 3 times with everyone else following. Zhang then asked him to go ahead with a restoration stating "Five years ago, Empress Dowager Longyu couldn't bear to let the people suffer for the honor of her surname , so she issued an edict to establish a republic. Unexpectedly, the people would not live in peace... A republic is not in line with our national conditions. Only when the emperor is restored can all the people be saved..." Puyi followed Chen Baochen's instructions and said humbly: "I am too young and have no talent or virtue to take on such a big position." Zhang Xun immediately praised: "The emperor is wise and sage, and everyone in the world knows it. In the past, the Holy Ancestor Emperor (referring to Kangxi) also practiced Zuo in his early years." Puyi quickly followed Chen Baochen's instructions and said: "In this case, I will do whatever it takes!" So Zhang Xun, Kang Youwei and others knelt down on the ground and shouted long live the emperor, Wang Shizhen and others had no choice but to kneel down and cheer casually. At 4am Zhang Xun sent Liang Dingen, an old minister in the Qing Dynasty to go to the presidential palace with an edict conferring the title of 1st class Duke for Li Yuanhong alongside a memorial Kang Youwei wrote reading "Li Yuanhong petitioned to return the state affairs" Li Yuanhong was asked to sign it. Li Yuanhong was shocked by all of this. Li Yuanhong would recall thinking “I drove away the wolf Duan Qirui at the front door, but attracted the tiger Zhang Xun at the back door”. Li Yuanhong sternly refused stating "I hold the position of president. I am entrusted by the people and dare not do such a thing. If the restoration issue is proposed by Zhang Xun alone, I am afraid that China and foreign countries may not recognize it. How can I dare to agree to it privately?" Liang Dingfen threatened: "If you don't agree, you may regret it." Li Yuanhong refused again, prompting Liang Dingfen to leave in anger. The next day, Li Yuanhong called Vice President Feng Guozhang, who was in Nanjing, to take over as acting president as he fled to the Japanese Embassy District in Dongjiaomin Lane for refuge. People within the city scrambled at the news. The old Huanglong shop that had been out of business for 5 years at that point returned to business but could not meet the demands of the citizens scrambling for traditional paper dragon flags. All the old princes, nobles and such came out of the woodwork as they say looking to celebrate the restoration in front of the palace waiting to see the emperor. Apparently a ton of people scrambled to find queue wigs and mandarin jackets. For the vast majority of China, the restoration was met with absolute outrage. Dr Sun Yat-Sen at the very moment of hearing the news over in Shanghai, simply got up and declared a rebellion…because of course he did…its what he did for a living honestly. Dr Sun Yat-Sen grabbed his colleagues and they all agreed to rush over to Guangzhou to form a crusade against Zhang Xun. Everyone across china did similar actions, in all the major capitals in the south angry leaders got together to form plans. After Li Yuanhong fled for his life, he sent a telegram to Duan Qirui begging him to save Beijing. Duan Qirui who was already organizing a full blown invasion to seize the capital for himself probably smiled. Duan Qirui quickly got his Anhui army together and marched upon Beijing. Back in Beijing within 48 hours of the restoration, numerous edicts were proclaimed trying to bolster the Manchu restoration. As you can imagine this was all very shocking to the general public. Feng Guozhang in Nanjing publicly opposed the restoration as Duan Qirui swore a public oath to end the Qing dynasty again. On July 5th, Duan's forces stormed the Beijing-Tientsin railway just 40 km's from the capital. That same day, Zhang Xun ordered all those loyal to him to bolster Beijing defenses, however he was very outnumbered. Just about all the Beiyang troops opposed him, and that was kind of a duh moment. Honestly this entire event is typically told in a comedic narrative. Feng Guozhang officially took the office of presidency on July 6th while still in Nanjing and by July 11th, Duan Qirui's army surrounded Beijing. Within the city those like Wang Shizhen begged Zhang Xun to surrender, but he refused. On July 12th, Duan Qirui ordered an aerial bombardment upon the Forbidden City. A French WW1 era Caudron Type D aircraft piloted by Pan Shizhong and bombardier Du Yuyuan launched from Nanyuan Airbase and dropped three bombs over the Forbidden city, killing a single eunuch, but doing little damage whatsoever. There are sources that claim the pilot was actually the principal of the Nanyuan Aviation school, Qin Guoyong, regardless this was the first recorded instance of aerial bombardment deployed by the Republican era Chinese Air Force. Li Yuanhong publicly stated he refused to retake his position as president. The newly restored Manchu Court immediately prepared an edict of abdication for Emperor Puyi, but did not dare proclaim it lest Zhang Xun or his loyalist forces kill them. Officials of this imperial court managed to secretly negotiate with Duan Qirui's besieging forces, begging them not to assault the capital. The imperial court officials even began beginning foreign legations to help. Boy a lot had changed since 1900 haha. With Zhang Xun not budging, the courts negotiations fell apart, prompting Duan to announce a general assault would begin the next day. The assault saw Qing loyalists manning the wall of the Temple of Heaven firing at the invaders, but nearly as soon as guns began to fire, negotiations were resumed. It turned out Zhang Xun had fled to the Dutch embassy, so his men begged Duan for a ceasefire. Duan granted it immediately and peacefully entered Beijing, establishing control over the government and police forces. Zhang Xun hid himself in the Dutch legation and would never participate in politics ever again. Zhang first fled to the German concession in Tientsin, then in March of 1918 the Beiyang government pardoned him. With his freedom in hand, Zhang Xun lived a life of seclusion in an apartment in Tientsin. He tried to run a business until 1923 when he got sick and died at the age of 68. He was posthumously given the title “Zhongwu” and buried in his hometown of Chitian Village, Fengxin county. Thus ended the 12 day old Manchu restoration and the Manchu Clique. When approached on the subject, Emperor Puyi stated he never wanted the throne in the first place, who knows the truth of said matter. Li Yuanhong had resigned as president, making Feng Guozhang the new president of the Beiyang government, still no election had been held, mind you. Duan Qirui took back his position as Premier, but refused to restore parliament nor the old constitution. Duan Qirui forced the Beiyang government to declare war on the Central Powers and began sending laborers to the Entente powers alongside a token force to Siberia. Now he was free to use the Nishihara loans uninhabited, building up what would become the dominant army in China, the Anhui army. Meanwhile Dr Sun Yat-Sen and countless others began rebellious activity in the south. Duan Qirui flocked many to his banner, creating his power base in Anhui province. His clique would be the first to organize themselves properly and he had a lot of funding behind him. Zhang Xun's failed Manchu restoration was honestly one of the greatest strokes of luck imaginable for Duan Qirui. Yet as he promoted and appointed family and close friends to prestigious positions, he overlooked many. These military officers and civil servants felt slighted by this and many turned to Feng Guozhang. Feng Guozhang had come back to Beijing to assume the presidency, but not before he had made sure to set up his proteges as military commanders in Jiangsu, Hubei and Guangxi. These three provinces formed the basis strength of his new Clique, the Zhili Clique. Thus two players placed their pieces on the board, there were many more to come. Duan Qirui and Feng Guozhang both were inspired to unify China in their own image. Wars would be fought against the Southerners, but wars would also be fought in the north. Duan Qirui felt confident he had achieved supremacy and could now act against his enemies, but what if his enemies all banded together to beat him? I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. The Qing loyalist, Zhang Xun attempted a Manchu Restoration, and well, he did restore it for roughly 12 days. However Zhang Xun could have no idea what he really ushered in, for his actions had much more dire consequences. Duan Qirui was given a golden opportunity to seize more and more power, and he did, now his Anhui Clique was king of the hill, but we all know what happens in that game.
Last time we spoke about Feng Yuxiang and Zhang Zongchang. Both men were born into poverty, rose through the ranks of the military, earning popularity. Feng became known for his integrity and generosity. He played a pivotal role during the Xinhai Revolution and the subsequent warlord era, often switching allegiances opportunistically. Feng embraced Christianity and enforced discipline among his troops, earning the nickname "the Christian General." On the other side of the shoulder, Zhang Zongchang became infamous for his brutality and excesses as the "Dogmeat General." His rule over Shandong was marked by tyranny, corruption, and lavish indulgence. While Feng focused on discipline, education, and infrastructure, Zhang oppressed his subjects, enriching himself and his inner circle. Feng was often portrayed favorably, while Zhang reveled in his notorious reputation. Ultimately, they were emblematic figures of the tumultuous warlord era, shaping the course of Chinese history. #96 Meet the Southern Warlords Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. So two episodes back I introduced you all to the Northern Warlords. The father of warlords, Yuan Shikai basically created them all. When Yuan Shikai built his Beiyang Army, many of his best officers became the Northern Warlords after his death. Thus the Northern Faction as its sometimes referred to, really was an elite club of Beiyang Generals who simply were vying for power. They were all scrambling to fund their private armies and whoever at any given time had the strongest force was able to exert control over the Beiyang government located in Beijing. Within this dynamic there was a quasi balance of power going on. For the most part it was dominated by the three largest cliques in the north, the Anhui Clique, Zhili Clique and Fengtian Clique. Yet this really only applied to Northern China. Going back in time somewhat you will remember, when Yuan Shikai stole the presidency, this led to multiple rebellions, notably sprouting in the southern provinces. Dr Sun Yat-Sen stepped down from the provisional presidency, but he had not given up on his dream of a real republic for China. After the assassination of Song Jiaoren in March 1913, many believed Yuan Shikai had ordered the hit. Yuan Shikai proceeded to abuse his power and this led to southern provinces declaring independence. First was Jiangxi, followed by Jiangsu, Anhui, Shanghai, Guangdong, Fujian and so forth. This all culminated with the Second Revolution of 1913. Unfortunately for the rebels, Yuan Shikai's Beiyang Army yet again proved their might, achieving a complete victory over their revolutionary uprisings. KMT loyalist politicians still refused to submit to Yuan Shikai, so he simply dissolved parliament and began reorganizing China using loyal military governors in the provinces. The KMT may have been dissolved, but they were not down for the count. After Yuan Shikai proclaimed himself emperor, Dr. Sun Yat Sun established the Chinese Revolutionary Party on July 8th of 1914, but this time his old friends and colleagues refused to join him such as Huang Xing, Hu Hanmin, Chen Jiongming and Wang Jingwei. They had seen it all before. Everytime they created a movement against Yuan Shikai, he simply crushed them, they wanted no part of it. As a result, Dr Sun Yat-Sen lost the limelight, he went back into exile, biding his time. After Yuan Shikai's death, Dr Sun Yat-Sen returned to China where he formed a military Junta at Guangzhou to oppose the Beiyang government. The military Junta held a vote, electing Dr Sun Yat-Sen as Generalissimo. Wu Tingfang was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs, Tang Shaoyi as Chief Finance Officer, although he did not accept the position, Cheng Biguang became the Chief Navy Officer and Hu Hanmin became the Chief Transportation officer. One of the first actions the Junta took was to denounce Duan Qirui and his colleagues as rebels and vowed they would reunify China in a grand “Northern Expedition”. With this proclamation, the Constitutional Protection War had officially begun. The war or better called a movement for now was basically the KMT's third revolution. It was put simply to defeat the Beiyang Government. However, not everyone saw eye to eye. In late 1917, many officials such as Tang Jiyao, Mo Rongxin, Lu Rongting and Tang Shaoyi convened a meeting with southwestern warlords. The purpose of the meeting was to see if they could recognize the Beiyang government and form a coalition with them, basically they were seeking a compromise with the Northern Warlords. Dr Sun Yat-Sen was outraged when he found out and placed blame on the southwestern warlords who he believed had sabotaged the Junta. He resigned angrily in May of 1918, going yet again into exile in Shanghai.While in Shanghai he found supporters and on October 10th of 1919 resurrected the KMT. After this point Dr Sun Yat-Sen would be in conflict with Southern Warlords, basically vying to control southern provincial bases of power. Initially this would be around Guangzhou and Guangdong. Now as most of you probably already know, while Dr Sun Yat-Sen founded the KMT, it ultimately was inherited by a man named Chiang Kai-Shek. Chiang Kai-Shek was born October 31st in Xikou, Zhejiang. He descended from a family of salt merchants. Early in life he became interested in the military. Now he lived during a rough time, China suffered military defeats, natural disasters, famine, rebellion en masse, unequal treaties and such. In 1906 after his first visit to Japan he began pursuing a military career. He enlisted in the Baoding Military academy that year and then went to the Tokyo Shinbu Gakko, a preparatory school for the IJA Academy for Chinese students. While there he became a revolutionary seeking to end the Qing Dynasty so a Han led Chinese republic could emerge. In 1908 he befriended Chen Qimei and it was Chen who introduced him into the Tongmenghui. After graduating from the Tokyo Shinbu Gakko, Chiang served in the IJA from 1909-1911. When Chiang heard of the Wuchang uprising he rushed back to China, intending to serve as an artillery officer. He led a regiment in Shanghai under Chen Qimei. Then in 1912 there was a conflict between Chen Qimei and Tao Chengzhang, a revolutionary alliance leader who opposed Dr Sun Yat-Sen. Historians differ on what exactly happened, but its possible Chiang had a hand to play in the assassination of Tao. Regardless Chiang rose up through the ranks and continued to serve under Chen Qimei. Now Chen Qimei had friends in the underworld, such as the Green Gang led by Du Yuesheng. The Green Gang was a criminal syndicate in Shanghai and again historians differ on the extent, but it seems Chiang brushed shoulders with them often. Chiang Kai-Shek became a founding member of the KMT but found himself on the losing end of the Second Revolution in 1913. He fled to Japan in exile, but also secretly traveled to the Shanghai international settlement. Its said there he began working with underworld groups, like the Green Gang. On May 18th, 1916 Yuan Shikai had Chen Qimei assassinated, prompting Chiang to succeed him as leader of the KMT in Shanghai. In 1917 when Dr Sun Yat-Sen came back, Chiang quickly joined up with him, cultivating a spot as his number 2. Now I don't want to give away future episode content just yet, so I will stop it there for the KMT Clique. The next clique as you may have guessed is of course the Chinese Communist Party. Now we talked quite a bit about its foundation, but for a refresher. After the May Fourth Movement of 1919, numerous foreign ideologies flooded into China, one was Marxism. The Russian Revolution had a profound impact on China. Hundreds of thousands of laborers during WW1 went over to Russia and found themselves stuck in the civil war. They came back and brought with them what they learnt. Two men in particular were greatly inspired by Marxism, Chen Duxiu and Li Dazaho, they were also the first two prominent Chinese figures to endorse Leninism and for a worldwide revolution to take place. They ushered in the New Culture Movement, then aided the May Fourth Movement, but by 1920 they both became very skeptical about reforming the current political situation of China. In 1921 the CCP was founded with help from the USSR. The founding national congress of the CCP was helped between July 23-30th 1921 with only 50 members, amongst whom were Li Dazho, Chen Duxiu and Mao Zedong. The CCP grew quickly, originally being held in a house in the Shanghai French Concession until they were caught by police. They moved to Jiaxing, Zhejiang, electing Chen Duxiu as their 1st General Secretary. Chen became “China's Lenin” and certainly the CCP continued to ally themselves to the USSR for both had a common enemy, Japan. Again just like with the KMT, while Chen Duxiu and Li Dazhao were the initial leaders, Mao Zedong would inherit the leadership. Mao Zedong was born December 26th of 1893 near Shaoshan in Hunan. His father was an impoverished peasant who grew to be one of the wealthiest farmers in Shaoshan. Mao grew up in rural Hunan and stated in memoirs he was regularly beaten by his father who was a very strict man. His mother, Wen Qimei was a devout buddhist and Mao would follow in her footests trying to become a Buddhist, but ultimately abandoning the path as a teenager. He received a confucian based education and his family arranged a marriage when he was 17 to Luo Yixiu, ultimately to unit their land-owning families. Mao refused to acknowledge the marriage and quickly moved away. The poor Luo was shamed by this and would die in 1910. Mao was a voracious reader, he loved the Romance of the Three Kingdoms and Water Margins from a young age and continued to read whatever he could get his hands on. Eventually his reading led him to a political awakening. He began reading Adam Smith, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Charles Darwin, Thomas Huxley, Montequieu and other western works. He was also interested in history, he took a particularly interest to Napoleon Bonaparte and George Washington. Mao moved to Changsha for middle school education in 1911 where he came into contact with the revolutionary fervor of the time. He was inspired by Dr Sun Yat-Sen, even wrote about how he thought he should become president in a school essay. Mao like many others cut off their queues during the Xinhai Revolution. Mao found himself joining a real army as a private soldier, but never saw any real combat. In 1912 he resigned from being a soldier and discovered socialism from a newspaper. Mao then enrolled in a police academy but dropped out. He then tried a soap-production school, law school, an economics school and a government run middle school, dropping out of all of them. He spent his time in Changsha's library, reading classical liberal works. Once his father figured out he was basically not doing anything but reading, he cut his allowance, forcing Mao to move into a hostel. Mao then tried to become a teacher and enrolled in the 1st normal school of Changsha. While there he befriend professor Yang Changjia who introduced him to the newspaper “the New Youth” by Chen Duxiu. Mao became inspired, and organized a Association for Student Self-Government that formed protests against school rules. He published articles in the New Youth beginning in 1917 and joined the Society of the Study of Wang Fuzhi, a revolutionary group in Changsha. He began reading about WW1, finding solidarity with the stories of soldiers, but also with workers. After graduating in 1919 he immediately moved to Beijing where his mentor Yang Changji had a job at Peking University. Yang got him a job as an assistant librarian to Li Dazhao. From here Mao became more and more influenced by Marxism, reading about the Russian revolution from the New Youth and books written by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. Mao joined Li Dazhao's study group becoming more and more enthralled with Marxism. He returned to Changsha working at a primary school while also organizing protests and promoting the New Culture movement there. Mao helped organize a general strike in Hunan, before he returned to Beijing to visit the terminally ill Yang Yangji. After this Mao moved to Shanghai where he met with Chen Duxiu and some prominent KMT members. Mao would brush shoulders with these KMT members often and became one of the founding members of the CCP. Again like with the KMT I don't wont to give away too much future events, so I will stop it there for the CCP. The next group was the Yunnan Clique who were born out of the Xinhai Revolution when Cai E declared Yunnan independent. Cai E had been the commander of the 37th Brigade of the New Army. After the Xinhai Revolution, Cai E tossed his lot in with Yuan Shikai, leaving behind Tang Jiyao to govern Yunnan. When Yuan Shikai initiated operation Walrus Emperor, Cai E covertly departed Beijing and returned to Yunnan to get the old gang back together. He was nearly assassinated on November 11th, but managed to flee to Japan and then Yunnan. Once back in Yunnan he established the local National Protection Army to fight Yuan Shikai. Cai E declared Yunnan independent again and quickly invaded southern Sichuan. Yuan Shikai sent his Beiyang Army south, but found this time his army was less than willing to fight. After Yuan Shikai's death, Cai E retained the position of governor-general over Yunnan and governor over Sichuan. The National Protection War bolstered Cai E as a national hero, however disaster struck in 1916 when he died suddenly of tuberculosis. His chief Lt Tang Jiyao inherited the mantle. Tang Jiyao brushed shoulders with Dr Sun Yat-Sen helping him set up his new KMT in Shanghai and would remain a KMT loyalist. Tang Jiyao also brushed shoulders with the Green Gang who helped him set up an opium trade in Yunnan. Opium grew exceptionally well in Yunnan, its climate was perfect for the plant. Like most of the cliques I will soon be talking about, events unfolded in Northern China that led southern provinces to feel another government was required. A few rival governments would come and go, but the first significant one would be established in Guangzhou and Tang Jiyao joined its committee. Within this government a political war was fought amongst numerous cliques, including Dr Sun Yat-Sen's KMT. As for those other Cliques that would do political battle, one would be the Guizhou Clique. The Guizhou Clique was founded by Liu Xianshi who was born in Xingyi Guizhou. Liu was born into a landlord family who were heavily involved in leading local militias during the late 19th century. He alongside his cousin Liu Xianqian were military men, like their father before them Liu Guanli, who was a regimental commander who helped suppress a Hui uprising. Liu Guanli bolstered his family name to the point the family became heavily dominant within the military forces of Guizhou. During the Wuchang Uprising, Guizhou was tossed into a panic. Li Xianshi went to the capital to help suppress the revolution. Meanwhile, Zhang Bailin, a Tongmenghui leader in Guizhou alongside others stormed the capital and forced the governor, Shen Yuqing to step down. On November 4th, they declared Guizhou independent. However the wannabe revolutionaries failed to take measures to protect their gains and soon Shen Yuqing was fighting back. Liu Xianshi found himself appointed as the Chief of Staff of the Privy Council of a provisional government. Thus emerged a battle between the revolutionaries and counter-revolutionaries. The counter revolutionaries sought assistance and turned to the recently emerged strongman, Cai E of Yunnan. They asked him to invade Guizhou to stop the crisis. Cai E dispatched Tang Jiyao with some troops who entered Guizhou rather peacefully and began to organize proper governance. Then Cai E received panic messages from Tongmenghui Guizhou members asking him to not meddle in Guizhou affairs, and with Sichuan looking more appetizing he backed off. Cai E ordered Tang Jiyao to divert his forces and march into Sichuan. However Tang Jiyao complained that in order to comply he had to take a route through Guizhou and this resulted in his army being chased by revolutionary forces. Well that's one way of stating the story, the other is Tang Jiyao simply sought to conquer Guizhou. Regardless, Liu Xianshi helped Tang Jiyao launch a successful coup against the current Guizhou Junta. Thus Tang Jiyao became the military governor of Guizhou on March 4th of 1912 and Yuan Shikai recognized this a few months later. For his role, Liu Xianshi was appointed Minister of War. Tang Jiyao did what all decent dictators do, he massacred all revolutionary forces he could catch in the province. While Tang Jiyao was at the head, Liu Xianshi used his new political power to begin placing family members in prominent positions. In the meantime Tang Jiyao treated Guizhou like a fiefdom, forbidding modernization efforts and prevented any development of the KMT. It goes without saying Tang Jiyao was not beloved in Guizhou. In November of 1913, Cai E was placed under house arrest and stripped of his rank, so Tang Jiyao ran back to Yunnan to grab his position as governor. This left the mantle of Guizhou to fall into the hands of Liu Xianshi. When Yuan Shikai declared himself Emperor, Liu Xianshi initially kept Guizhou neutral, but as the situation looked more and more dire for Yuan Shikai, he bandwagoned and declared independence on January 27th, 1916. Liu Xianshi sent forces to fight in the National Protection War, then after Yuan Shikai's death, the Beiyang government appointed Liu Xianshi as the military governor over Guizhou. From there Liu Xianshi had pretty much dictatorial power and he soon went to work forming his own Guizhou clique. To make matters even more complicated, within the Guizhou clique were the Xingyi clique, of the Liu family because they came from Xingyi and the Tongzi clique led by Zhou Xicheng. Basically two families and others fought for dominance, leading to a cycle of assassinations followed by seizure of power. Now we come to the Old and New Guangxi Cliques. The Old Guangxi Clique came about after Governor Chen Bingkun declared Guangxi independ during the Wuchang uprising. After the rebellion, Yuan Shikai installed Lu Rongting as the military governor of Guangxi and during the second revolution Lu remained loyal. Yet when Yuan Shikai went Walrus emperor mode, Lu bandwagoned with Cai E and Tang Jiyao. Meanwhile Long Jiguang proclaimed Guangdong independent and after Yuan Shikai's death, Guangxi and Guangdong found themselves at war. The war largely came about when Dr Sun Yat-Sen split from the Guangzhou government, he dispatched a subordinate, Chen Jiongming to seize Guangzhou and effectively get rid of the Guangxi warlords. Both Long Jiguang and Chen Jiongming were KMT loyalists, thus this led Lu Rongting into a bitter war with Guangdong and even Yunnan got involved, and the whole mess saw the Old Guangxi clique beaten severely. Again I don't want to tell to much as it will be covered in future podcasts, but a hell of a mess, lot of backstabbing. After the Guangxi-Guangdong wars, yes plural, Li Zongren, Bai Chongxi and Huang Shaohong formed the New Guangxi clique alongside a brand new Guangxi Army. Li Zongren was its commander in chief, Huang Shaohong deputy commander and Bai Chongxi chief of staff. They all worked together to kick Guangdong forces out of Guangxi and Li Zongren emerged the military governor over Guangxi. The New Guangxi clique came about during the formation of a new coalition I can't get into here. While both the old and new Guangxi cliques were on the smaller side, they would take part in the reunification of China. Next, although we spoke already a bit about them was the Guangdong Clique. Long Jiguang would die in 1918 leaving the mantle to fall onto Chen Jiongming. Cheng Jiongming had joined the Tongmenghui in 1906 and participated in a coup attempt in 1910 in Guangzhou. During the Xinhai revolution Chen Jiongming was part of another uprising in Guangzhou. After this Chen Jiongming received the post as commander in chief of the Guangdong Army and fought for the KMT. He did however butt heads with Dr Sun Yat-Sen, particularly over the direction of reform the KMT should take. Dr Sun Yat-Sen sought to unify China by force and institute change through a centralized government based on a one party system. Chen Jiongming sought a multiparty federalist system with Guangdong being the model province and hoped for a peaceful reunification of China. There would be a split between the two men and it would be quite violent. The Guangdong clique like the old and new Guangxi clique was again a small part of something bigger cooking in the south. The next is the Sichuan Clique which consisted of a loose group of smaller warlords each with their own regions within Sichuan. Each had their own defensive zone, with their own police, political and economic bases. There were not many large conflicts, it mostly came down to coalitions dismantling a disgruntled warlord. As I already mentioned, Yunnan invaded Sichuan during the Yuan Shikai days, and the local Sichuan warlords initially welcomed the Yunnanese, siding with them to declare independence. But as you can imagine, the Yunnanese soon were seen as overbearing and a lot of soured feelings erupted. This was only further soured when troops from Guizhou came into Sichuan. In 1916, the Sichuan troops were led by General Liu Cunhou who quickly established a ceasefire with the Guizhou and Yunnanese forces. Because of her geography, Sichuan was always relatively isolated from the rest of China, thus she turned inwards instead of outwards. For the majority of the warlord period Sichuan was split into half a dozen districts under military rule. During the late 1920s even into the 1930's 5 Sichuan warlords dominated the scene, Yang Sen, Liu Wenhui, Deng Xihou, Tian Songyao and Liu Xiang. Neither had enough power to take all the others on, thus there was a real balance of power at play. In a true game of thrones like fashion, the Sichuan scene was that of warlords forming secret alliance, pitting one against another, but no one ever truly dominated the province. Of the 5 Sichuan warlords, Liu Xiang would be the most influential. Liu Xiang dominated Chongqing and its surrounding areas. His territory straddled the Yangtze River, thus rich in maritime trade, in essence he wielded significant control over Sichuan's economy. By the 1930's Sichuan was ruled by Liu Xiang in the east; Liu Cunhou in the northeast adjoining Shaanxi; Tian Songyao in the north adjoining Gansu; Deng Xihou in the northwest adjoining Qinghai and Liu Wenhui in the southwest adjoining Xikang and Yunnan. Within a small central enclave was also Yang Sen. After Yuan Shikai's death the province fell into quite a lot of disorder. All the district governors fought each other and quite often at that, but they rarely ever crossed the Sichuan border. The common people of Sichuan lived in despair and fear nicknamed their warlords as Rotten Melons or Crystal Monkey's. Liu Xiang was born in 1889 to a modest family, received a decent education and joined the military. He rose quickly and saw a lot of warfare. By 1926 he had established a strong base in Chongqing and he held onto it until his death. Now the standard troops of Sichuan were lesser than other parts of China. The Sichuan armies were funded largely by taxes levied on grain, salt and opium. Holding Chongqing along the Yangtze, Liu Xiang had an enormous economic base and thus managed to enrich himself and funded a large army. He enforced strict military discipline, though he was known to turn a blind eye to his officers' rackets. Despite this Liu Xiang's army had a lot of problems facing bandits in the rural areas. One of the other Sichuan Warlords, Yang Sen was quite flamboyant. His nickname was rat face because he had a small mouth. Yang Sen had a small enclave, but it consisted of Chengdu which he tried to clean up. He paved streets with flagstone to help increase rickshaw traffic, a rather new concept for many there. Chengdu happened to have a commodity all warlords wanted, an arsenal, so Yang Sen was by no means a poor warlord. While Sichuan seemed to always be in a state of decline, Chengdu in comparison was quite opulent and luxurious. Now again, and I keep saying it, I don't want to give up too much of the later stories, but Sichuan like many other southern provinces would join the Northern Expedition and help reunify China. Now despite the warlord era being technically ended in 1928 when China was reunified, in reality the warlords were around well into WW2. The Sichuan Clique would brush shoulders a lot with Chiang Kai Shek. During the Second Sino-Japanese War Liu Xiang led the Sichuan 15th Army during the battle of Shanghai and the 23rd Army Group during the battle of Nanjing. Later in 1938 he took 100,000 soldiers out of Sichuan to fight the Japanese, showcasing how far he had come as a commander as well as a warlord. Last there was the Hunan Warlords, a similar situation to that of Sichuan, just a lot more autonomous warlords. The first prominent Hunan Clique member was Tan Yankai, a member of the KMT who became the military governor of Hunan. Tan Yankai had connections amongst Guanxi warlords allowing him loose control over his province. He tried to arouse the people of Hunan to take active opposition to the Northern Warlords, but this prompted Duan Qirui to toss a Hunan born commander, Fu Liangzuo to come take his job. Tan Yankai was forced to take the job as civil governor while Fu became the warlord. Tan Yankai appealed to his Guangxi buddies for help. Even Tang Jiyao of Yunnan asked if he could invade Hunan to help, air quotes on help, but it never came about. Unfortunately for Tan Yankai, Hunan was right beside the Zhili Clique and thus got engulfed in the Northern wars. Hunan basically as a result of geography was stuck in the middle of bigger players and would be tossed around like a ragdoll. Tan Yankai would be backstabbed by a subordinate who favored the Zhili, then later another KMT member would simply grab up Hunan during the Northern expedition. Honestly to call Hunan a Clique is a bit of a stretch as it was more of just an area that had overlaps with other cliques all fighting for territory. Now that basically covers the southern cliques, theres actually more, but if I talk about them we would get lost in the weeds as they say. What is important to know going forward, the North-South divide would see two distinct theaters at play. In the North the Anhu, Zhili and Fengtian Cliques would fight for dominance over Beijing. In the South, many KMT oriented, Communist Orient and independent warlords would fight for dominance over Guangzhou, and later in history other rival southern governments. Typically the Warlord Era is taught North to South and I think that will be the case with us because its simply more cohesive. As Samuel Jackson playing Ray Arnold in Jurassic Park once said, “hold onto your butts” because the warlord Era about to begin. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. So we talked about the Northern Warlords and now the Southern Warlords. Time to put the Game of Thrones intro music on, as we are soon going to jump into a world of cutthroat backstabbing, secret alliance, little fingers and megalomaniac figures who will all fight to reunify China under their own image. As for the Chinese common people, as usual they will suffer tremendously, continuing the Century of Humiliation.
Last time we spoke about the Northern Warlords and their respective factions. We covered the three big names, Duan Qirui and his Anhui clique; Wu Peifu and his Zhili cliques and Zhang Zuolin and his Fengtian clique. We also went into the smaller ones like Yan Xishan's Shanxi clique, Feng Yuxiang's Guominjun clique, the Ma clique of the three Ma's, Ma Bufang, Ma Hongkui and Ma Hongbin known as the Xibei San Ma “thee Ma of the northwest”; the Xinjiang clique of Yang Zengxin and we barely scratched the surface of the Manchu Resotrationist clique of Zhang Xun. There was over 100 warlords, its really difficult to pick and choose who to delve into the most. However, there were two warlords who were bitter rivals, in a comedic fashion might I add. One was hailed as the good Christian warlord, the other a devilish monster. Today we are going to tell the tales of these two figures. #95 Feng Yuxiang, Zhang Zongchang: the Angel and Devil Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. Feng Yuxiang was born in Zhili province, today Hebei in 1882. His parents were poor, his father joined the Qing army to make ends meet. At the age of only 10 he joined the Huai Army alongside his father. He earned a uniform and food but no salary as his rank was “Fu Bing”, deputy soldier. By the age of 16 he proved himself capable and became a regular. Unlike his colleagues who gambled their money away, Feng saved his money and even used portions of it to help out soldiers in need, particularly Fu Bing's. Because of this he became quite popular amongst his comrades. He did not gamble nor drink alcohol. In 1902 he joined Yuan Shikai's guard units and rose through the ranks becoming a company commander. From there he was transferred to the 3rd division, a crack one of Yuan Shikai's soon to be Beiyang Army. During the Xinhai Revolution Feng Yuxiang joined the Luanzhou uprising against the Qing, supporting the revolutionaries in the South. The uprising was suppressed by the Beiyang army and Feng was imprisoned by Yuan Shikai. Once Yuan Shikai stole the presidency of the Republic, Feng was released and he took back his military position while supporting Yuan Shikai's regime. By 1914 he became a brigade commander and helped supress uprisings in Henan and Shaanxi. It was also during this year Feng Yuxiang developed a curiosity about Christianity. He converted to Christianity, being baptiszed into the Methodist Episcopal Church. When Yuan Shikai declared himself emperor, this ushered in the Anti-Yuan resistance. Feng Yuxiang helped supress anti-yuan forces of General Cai E in Sichuan, but in the process, began secrely negotiating with Cai E. He formed an agreement to “put on a show” rather than actually fight. After Yuan Shikai's death, Feng Yuxiang was deprived command of the 16th Mixed Brigade, something he had come to see as his personal property. He managed to stay in touch with its officers who remained loyal to him personally. Now it gives away further episodes to dvevle deep into the following years, but what I will say, Feng Yuxiang played important roles in critical moments of the wars during China's warlord Era. To be blunt, Feng Yuxiang was a real game of thrones little finger kind of guy if you get the reference. He always looked where the wind was blowing and was quick to switch sides turning the sides of one clique against another. He would found the Guominjun Clique, a sort of little borther to the Kuomintang, but its powerbase was located in the north rather than the south. Feng Yuxiang's career as a warlord began right after Yuan Shikai's death, but he certainly set himself apart from other warlords. Feng Yuxiang would receive a lot of western press for his rather, very different methodology compared to the other warlords. In a lot of ways, he was similar to a public school headmaster in England. He forbade his men from smoking tobacco or opium, from drinking alcohol and he forced them all to study the bible. He forbade prostitution, gambling and selling drugs. He quickly earned the nickname “the Christian General”. He had a reputation of baptizing his troops with fire hoses, though this has been highly contested. Indeed he was a hardcore Christian and actively promoting Christianity while showing no tolerance for other religions in China. For exmaple in 1927 when entering Henan Province he launched a cmapaign to supress Buddhism by expelling over 300,000 monastic members and confisciating hundreds of Buddhist monasteries for military purposes. In 1923 a British Protestant Missionary, Marshall Broomhall said this of him “The contrast between Cromwell's Ironsides and Charles's Cavaliers is not more striking than that which exists in China to-day between the godly and well-disciplined troops of General Feng and the normal type of man who in that land goes by the name of soldier ... While it is too much to say that there are no good soldiers in China outside of General Feng's army, it is none the less true that the people generally are as fearful of the presence of troops as of brigand bands”. Feng Yuxiang required his troops to take part in sports, gymastics and hardcore marches. Any illiterates were forced to learn to read and write, many were also trained in trades so they would not simply leave the army and become bandits. Feng looked at Christianity as a means of providing morale and disciplin for his army, he often told foreign missionaries 'Remember that your chief work is not to try to convert the rank and file of my army, but to use your strength in trying to get all my officers filled with the Spirit of God, for as soon as that takes place, the lowest private in the army will feel the effects of it”. Feng Yuxiangs was closely intouch with his troops often stopping to chat with them about their living conditions. He reduced corporal punishments, encouraged singing patriotic songs. One of the oddest things that I came across when I was making my Warlord Era content on the Pacific War Channel was video's of Feng Yuxiang personally checking the fingernails of his troops. He was pretty hardcore about cleanliness, I guess “cleanliness is next to godliness”. Alright that is a lot of information about the good toe shoes Christian General Feng Yuxiang, now let me talk about Zhang Zongchang, the Dogmeat General. Zhang Zongchang was born in 1881 in Yi county, present day Laizhou in Shandong. He grew up in an impoverished village, his father was a trumpeter, a headshaver and a rampant alcoholic. His mother exorcized evil spirits. . . Yeah she was basically a witch, oh and she left Zhang and his dad chasing another man. The family moved to Manchuria when Zhang was in his teens and he immediately got involved in petty crime around Harbin. Zhang would work as a pickpocket, bouncer, prospector and bandit throughout his life. He ended up doing some work as a laborer in Siberia amongst the Russians, picking up some Russian in the process, something that would really help his career out later. He then became a Honghuzi bandit roaming the Manchurian countryside when the Russo-Japanese war of 1904-1905 hit. During the war he served as a Imperial Russian Army auxiliary, interestingly enough his future boss who was also a Honghuzi did the same for the Japanese. After the war he went back to his Honghuzi lifestyle, becoming the leader of a local bandit gang. During the 1911 Xinhai Revolution, Zhang was leading his Honghuzi as a sort of revolutionary desperados gang. He then went to Jiangsu and joined the Green Standard Army where he impressed his commander officer Cheng Dechuan so much so he made Zhang his successor…or Zhang threatened the guy who knows. Thus for a little while Zhang was leading a small cavalry detachment under the Division commander Leng Yuqin, battling Honghuzi groups. During the second revolution of 1913, Zhang became the divisional commander when Leng died. There was an issue with his division, the revolutionary General Feng Guozhang did not like them, probably because they were criminals, so he reduced their role in the revolution to being a symbolic unit. Zhang responded to this by murdering the revolutionary Chen Qimei in Shanghai in 1916, proving his loyalty and reliability to Feng Guozhang. Feng Guozhang later became vice president of the new Republic, appointing Zhang as the commander of his personal guard. As China's Warlord Era began in 1918, Zhang like every other big guy, looked for the best strongman to follow. In 1922 he turned his attention to a new rising star, the tiger of manchuria, Zhang Zuolin. There is a famous story, that Zhang Zuolin was celebrating his birthday in 1922, seeing countless people showering him with gifts trying to earn his favor. Zhang Zongchang apparently sent him two empty coolie baskets and did not show up in person. Zhang Zuolin was baffled by this at first, until he realized the empty baskets implied Zhang Zongchang was a man willing to shoulder any heavy responsibilities that Zhang Zuolin would entrust to him. This apparently worked like a charm as Zhang Zongchang was rewarded a position within his army. Zhang Zongchang's time in Siberia and work under the Russians during the Russo-Japanese war paid off as he managed to secure White Russian Mercenaries. These were refugee veterans of the Russian Civil War who had been straddling the Manchurian/Soviet borders. Zhang hired thousands of them, organizing them into units, including Cossack bodyguards. He even recruited woman on a large scale, the first Chinese general to do so. The women mostly served as nurses and one regiment was exclusively white Russian women. The white russians trained their Chinese counterparts resulting in excellent medical, a significant boost for morale and combat capability. The white russians were crucial to Zhang Zongchang's rise as they knew how to build and operate armored trains giving the warlord a huge edge. Now just like with Feng Yuxiang, I don't wanna give away future parts of the warlord era story, just know Zhang Zongchang greatly impressed Zhang Zuolin and would be rewarded military governorship over Shandong Province. As the Military governor of Shandong, this is where you hear about him being a monster. For those who don't know, Shandong has a long spanning history of being where trouble starts in China. Zhang's mismanagement of Shandong was legendary, to call it one of Shandong's darkest times is an understatement. For example it is said one of his favorite hobbies was “to split melons”, that was bashing in the skulls of people with rifle butts. He also liked to hang people and their severed heads from telephone poles. He would reign over Shandong until 1928 and it was 3 very hard years for the people there. Basically he did what all corrupt officials had done historically in China, he fleeced the population of his province. He implemented excessive taxes and starved public institutions of funds. The provincial education system collapsed in 1927 and the provincial economy was stagnant as all hell, save for the black market. To fight the economic collapse he printed money as fast as it could be printed and became nearly valueless, reminds me a lot of my nation's leader today. Now any criticism of Zhang Zonghcang or the Fengtian governance would lead to imprisonment and resistance led to more split melons, seeing severed heads hung everywhere. For example if a newspaper criticized his regime, Zhang literally had the editors shot. Things got so bad for the peasants of Shandong, they formed a group called the Red Spear Militia, branding red-tasseled spears, but not too many firearms. These men and women were completely outgunned trying desperately to resist Zhang Zongchangs tyranny, and tyrannical it was. He imposed an incredible amount of taxes on the people, taxes on rice, tobacco, firewood, dogs, rickshaws, livestock, brothels, military pensions, opium pipe lighters, honestly anything that could be taxed he taxed. He once forcefully collected donations for a shrine; that shrine was a bronze statue of himself. He extorted money from banks, misappropriated his troops wages, because he was paying them in worthless printed money and gave a monopoly to the opium dealers. In fact he was the personal benefactor for drug lords and arms dealers, the black market was his chocolate factory. Shandong was so bad, a very young Vinegar Joseph Stilwell visited the area when he was serving as a young military attache at the US legation in Peking. He said the dead and dying littered the streets and the only thing the citizens of Shandong had to eat were crushed soya-bean cakes usually fed to pigs. There were abandoned children everywhere, carts of animals seized by warlord troops and houses literally torn down for the troops firewood. Poverty and famine was rampant. Now the devastation of Shandong was far removed from Zhang Zongchang however as he kept his quarters in the capital of Jinan (Capital in eastern Shandong). His HQ was described to be more like a medieval court full of extravagant entertainment. He had elaborate feasts, secured French champaign, scotch and his favorite Cuban cigars. He entertained artists, writers, entertainers, arms dealers, drug kingpins, western journalists and such. He loved to play poker with other minor warlords and they were high stakes games, sometimes he would walk away losing 30-50 thousands at a sitting. The poker games were always played with silver dollars and not the useless money he printed for his troops and the citizens of Shandong. One of his more famous recurring guests was Madame Wellington Koo, this was the wife of one of the most famous Chinese politicians of the age, Wellington Koo was the frontrunner at the Paris Peace conference for China. Now Mr. Wellington Koo's wife had this to say about Zhang “Zhang Zongchang was so delightfully outrageous that he was disarming. There were many stories about him. He was called “old eighty-sin” some said he was the height of a pile of 86 dollars, other said that figure represented the length of a certain portion of his anatomy. When I visited him my Pao Pei and Chow Chow would come with me and Zhang would roar at the servants “never mind what you give Madame Koo to eat. But be sure her dogs get the very best or you'll suffer for it”. Now why this guy is so famous today is of course because of his nicknames and infamous lifestyle. His most famous nickname was the “Dogmeat General”, and its said to be based on his fascination with the domino game Pai Jiu. Others say his favorite brand of tonic was known as dogmeat. And of course there was the rumor he ate a meal of black chow chow dog every day, as it was popularly believed at the time that this boosted a man's vitality. But if you noticed the quote from Madame Wellington Koo, I think he may have been a dog lover. But the part about the man's vitality fits this guy to the core. He was of course known by the populace of Shandong as “Monster”, but there was also nicknames like “the lanky general or general with three long legs” were certainly something he publicized heavily. His nickname “old 86” referred to the length of his penis being 86 mexican silver dollars, there was also a nickname “72-cannon Zhang” referring to that length. I mean the man was 6 foot 6, people described him quote “with the physique of an elephant, the brain of a pig and the temperament of a tiger”. Alongside his penis propaganda, he was a legendary womanizer. Take his other nickname for example “the general of three don't-knows”: he did not know how many women, how many troops, or how much money he had. I think that nickname fits him better than the nickname he gave himself “the Great General of Justice and Might”. He had a ton of concubines. The exact number of concubines he had has variously been reported between 30-50, but historians have a hard time trying to fix the numbers as Zhang himself allegedly did not know. Allegedly his concubines were from 26 different nationalities, each with her own washbowl marked with the flag of her nation. He was also said to give his concubines numbers since he could not remember their names nor speak their various languages. Many of these women he married, he was a polygamist after all. There was known to be Chinese, Japanese, Russian, Korean, Mongolians and at least one American amongst Zhang's women. Zhang was semi-literate, whenever people asked where he was educated he would say “the college of the green forest” a euphemism for banditry. Despite being semi-literate Zhang Zongchang is famously known for his poetry, most notably his Poem on Bastards: You tell me to do this, He tells me to do that. You're all bastards, Go fuck your mother. Untitled They ask me how many women I have. To be honest, I don't know either. Yesterday, a boy called me dad. I don't know who his mother was. Praying or Rain The sky god is also named Zhang Why does he make life hard for me If it doesn't rain in three days I'll demolish your temple Then I'll have cannons bombard your mom It should be noted a lot of the poetry attributed to Zhang Zongchang may have been fabricated by a political opponent named Han Fuju who took over Shandong Province after him. Zhang Zongchang despite being a brutal tyrant by all means, did reward his inner circle well, he had a lot of very loyal officers around him. Zhang Zongchang traveled with a teakwood coffin planted atop a car during his campaigns. He had this done to signify his willingness to die in combat, the old “I win or come back on a shield” idea. During of his failed campaigns, Zhang Zongchang paraded himself sitting in the coffin while smoking a cuban cigar. So as you can imagine, Feng Yuxiang and Zhang Zuolin were quite different characters to say the least. Yet both these men were born under very similar conditions. Both were born into poverty, both joined the military and were raised through the ranks with the help of patrons. Both became warlords leading cliques that allied themselves to larger cliques. Both men avoided silver bullets, the term silver bullet was used during this era to refer to being assassinated by a subordinate who was bribed by a rival warlord. To avoid such a fate, one had to make sure to conserve the loyalty of their officers, which both men did by very different means. Feng used Christianity like a glue to bind his soldiers together. He provided missionaries to encourage conversion. If christianity did not work, he employed nationalism. In the mid 1920's he became very hostile to the unequal treaties that Europe and Japan plagued China with. He began indoctrinating his men with anti-imperialistic literature and ironically began brushing shoulders with the anti-religious Soviet Union. The USSR would become his main benefactor, earning him a second nickname “the red general”. Zhang Zongzhang was much more akin to other warlords at keeping silver bullets at bay. He paid his inner circle in silver, he made sure the pockets of his best men were always full. He allowed every evil corrupt thing imaginable to occur under his subordinates hands. Zhang Zongchang was a ruthless tyrannical monster who focused on his own power above all. Both warlords had to navigate the extremely complex alliance and rivalry system amongst the warlords. Feng Yuxiang aligned himself with the Yuan Shikai, then against Yuan Shikai, then again for Yuan Shiaki, with the Zhili clique, the Kuomintung, Communists and basically whoever looked to be winning at the time. Chiang Kai-shek said of him “the so-called Christian General was a master in the art of deception”. This was extremely true, Feng Yuxiang was a hell of a backstabber, his career actually was propelled by it. Zhang Zongchang tossed his lot in with Banditz, then Russians, then with the Fengtian Clique out of necessity, brushing shoulders with the Japanese by proxy. Zhang Zongchang really did not have any large ideology, he went with the flow as long as it benefited him. In many ways both men sort of just did what they did to empower their positions. The people living under their rule could not have had a more different experience. Under Feng Yuxiang, Christian beliefs were enforced, a more progressive outlook was present. He did a lot to improve the living conditions of ordinary people under his control. He promoted education heavily, healthcare, infrastructure development. He was insane about discipline and thwarting corruption. He stopped gambling, smoking, drug trafficking, prostitution, he really was a man of law and order. Zhang Zongchang was the complete opposite, it was as if he was trying to outdo the devil himself. Zhang Zongchang, ruled with an iron fist, extracting resources from the population through taxation, extortion, and forced labor, while enriching himself and his inner circle. Under Zhang the common people starved, they were pillaged, raped, abused in all manners. Zhang took away funds from education, infrastructure (unless it was a statue of himself), from anything that would benefit the people. Zhang loved to smoke cigars, drank excessively, had 50 concubines, and was literally bestfriends with the black market of China. Inevitably given their spheres of influence both warlords would run into each other in the 1920s. Feng Yuxiang's powerbase was around Shanxi and Hebei while Zhang Zongchang was firmly in Shandong. These territories border another, producing frequent clashes over strategic resources, trade routes and territorial disputes. While Feng Yuxiang betrayed many cliques, he more or less stuck to the Kuomintang. At one point Feng Yuxiang even joined the Fengtian clique to only betray them. Zhang Zongchang remained loyal to the Fengtian clique, pretty much until his death. By the way his death would be at the hands of an officer who served Feng Yuxiang, so I guess Feng won in the end haha. Most warlords were ostentatious in their dress and lifestyle, but Feng Yuxiang was quite an exception to this. Numerous photographs show warlords sporting glittering uniforms copied from other nations. For example, Zhang Zuolin wore a large gold braid, numerous decorations, giant gleaming buckles, shoulder pads and white gloves. He had a small peaked cap suggesting he was modeling himself on a Russian Tsar. Chiang Kai-Shek favored an american style officers uniform with a high peaked cap. Many warlords liked French-styled kepis, British ww1 uniforms with sam Brown belts or helmets with enormous plumes. Pull up a picture of Zhang Zongchang and its absolutely ridiculous. He has giant shoulder pads, large medal star decorations, a giant belt, a large ribbon cross over, double golden braids, white gloves, basically he looks like hes trying to out do Zhang Zuolin. But Feng Yuxiang while a warlord wore the same plain dress as his soldiers. If you read contemporary or older books on the warlords, you immediately notice the authors favor Feng Yuxiang and talk about him positively, while strongly villianizing Zhang Zongchang. Put simply the propaganda wars that were going on during China's Warlord Era were exactly that, Feng Yuxiang made sure he was presented as a good Christian General, while Zhang Zongchang really seemed to bask in being the bad boy or base General. Hell Zhang Zongchang publicized most of what was said about him himself! In the end they were two cogs in a very large machine and they played their parts. During for however long this warlord era lasts on the podcast, we will come to learn about as many of the warlords as I possibly can cover. They are colorful characters who had a profound effect on the formation of Nationalist China and the People's republic of China. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. Thus were the tales of the good Christian General Feng Yuxiang and the basest warlord, Zhang Zongchang. We will further tell the tales of their ventures in the battles of China's Warlord Era, but in the next episode we are going to meet the Southern faction Warlords!
Last time we spoke about the May fourth movement of 1919 . The Xinhai Revolution of 1911 sparked the May Fourth Movement marked by nationalism, anti-imperialism, and a quest for modernization. Disillusioned with traditional values and foreign encroachments, Chinese intellectuals, students, and workers embraced Western ideals, particularly Marxism, to reform Chinese society. The movement led to the emergence of the Chinese Communist Party and a broader alliance against warlordism and Japanese imperialism. Tensions arose between reformist liberalism and revolutionary Marxism, reflecting debates over China's path to progress. Despite setbacks, the May Fourth Movement's legacy persisted, shaping China's political landscape and laying the groundwork for future revolutionary action. Its an understatement to say it was a watershed moment in modern Chinese history. But underneath it lurked a new Era, one that was to be fought and ruled by warlords. #94 Meet the Northern Warlords Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. How to even begin. I am staring at roughly 10 tabs of books alongside numerous scripts I had written nearly a year ago about China's Warlord Era. I have already written an extensive series, that I also molded into a long form documentary about the Warlord Era, you can find it at the Pacific War Channel on Youtube or in audio form on all podcast platforms. However, I realize now, I really did not dig deep enough, specifically on….who exactly were the warlords? Its true, I covered their numerous battles, made jokes about them, but I did not really go deep into their backgrounds.To be honest their backgrounds are quite fascinating, they were all kooky characters. Thus I thought what better than to start off the Warlord Era by introducing some of the warlords and their cliques. But because there is literally so many warlords, I literally halfway through writing this one had to change it to just the Northern Warlords, next episode we cover the southern ones. After the death of Yuan Shikai China underwent a major shift from being a state-dominated civil bureaucracy overseen by a central authority to military dominated regions. These regions were dominated by the Warlords whom in the words of American political scientist Lucian Pye “were instinctively suspicious, quick to suspect that their interests might be threatened, hard-headed, devoted to the short run and impervious to idealistic abstractions". Most of the Warlords, came from military backgrounds, having gone through the new-style military colleges of the late 19th and early 20th century with foreign instructors. Most of the warlords were extremely brutal to not just their enemies, but civilians and their own troops. They killed without a second thought their own men if they suspected insubordination. They used horrible torture tactics like suspending a victim by the neck in bamboo or wooden cages, breaking knees, slicing limbs, branding and so forth. If railway workers tried to go on strike, a Warlord would often execute a few of them to get them back to work. A British diplomat in Sichuan province witnessed two mutineers being publicly hacked to death with their hearts and livers cut out; another two were burned to death; and others had slits cut into their bodies into which were inserted burning candles before they were hacked to pieces Warlords had to depend on subordinate officers, thus personal loyalty was of vital importance. Many Warlords would be betrayed by their officers who were often bribed by other Warlords. During the Warlord period, there was a balance of power. For those who don't know, the Balance of Power theory suggests states or in this case warlord regions, may secure their own survival by preventing any other state from gaining enough military power to dominate all others. So basically in Europe historically you see this with Britain, France and Spain. Two of the states would always join forces against the largest state to keep everyone in check. During the Warlord Era where there are numerous cliques with their own regional bases, the balance of power becomes quite complicated, but most books or even Youtube videos for that matter focus on 3 big ones, that we will get into soon. Now the Warlords entire power scheme relied on their military, thus it was a precious thing to conserve. Going to war with another Clique might increase ones sphere of influence, but it might also weaken ones military so much they become vulnerable to attacks from other Cliques. This is further complicated by all the intricacies of the 20th century, this is an age of industry, economic power, trade and so forth. Not all the Warlords held regions with the economic capacity or logistical strength to wage longterm wars, some needed decisive knockout blows. As you can imagine, theres thousands of variables at play, making it nearly impossible for any given Clique to dominate all of China. The Warlord Era played out during a time when railroads were the fastest and cheapest means of transporting troops, thus capturing railroads was of vital importance. This was also an age directly after WW1 where the armored train was king. An armored train full of artillery and machine guns could land troops and perform fire support for them in battle. Warlord armies consisted of common soldiers and more often than naught bandits. These grunt types had no loyalty to anyone, many joined Warlord armies as a means to an end, everyone has to eat as they say. Often a bandit became a soldier during times of war, then during times of peace they went back to banditry, it was a vicious cycle. Warlord armies were a plague upon the populations they came into contact with. They plundered, raped, took hostages for money, took women into sexual slavery, murder was rampant. Warlords often looted the countryside as a means to pay their troops. Peasants often joined a Warlord army, fought a battle, became captured by the enemy who simply enlisted them. Yes, Warlords often incorporated POW's into their armies, a system that would bite them in the ass often. Since I am the Pacific War Channel, I have to mention, a famous figure of the Pacific War, Vinegar Joseph Stilwell went to China as an attache in the 1920's and got to see Warlordism first hand. In 1926 he inspected a warlord unit and estimated 20% of the men were 4 foot 6, the average age was roughly 14 and many walked barefoot. Warlord armies were composed of infantry, cavalry, artillery, sometimes armor and even airforces for the lucky big guys. They were organized like any modern military with commanding officers over various units. They were composed of regular units, typically the core of a Warlords army. These were professionally trained soldiers, often equipped with modern firearms and artillery, the backbone of the army so to say. Then there were irregular militias, these were the local recruit types. They were less trained, less equipped, but like in any good army they provided numbers and numbers are a strength of its own. They could be used for garrison duties, patrolling, support roles, freeing up the regular army units. They were more prevalent in rural areas where manpower was always needed to keep control. Next there were foreign advisors and foreign mercenaries. Some Warlords hired foreign military advisors and mercenaries to bolster their strength. The advisors came from any of the great powers, but most especially Japan, Britain, France and Germany. The Russian civil war also added a ton of White Russians to the mix, some Warlords took advantage of this hiring full White Russian regiments like Zhang Zongchang. In 1916 China had roughly half a million soldiers, by 1922 this tripled, then it tripled again in 1924. Such manpower cost money, thus Warlords enacted large taxes to keep their armies going. One way of raising funds were specific taxes called lijin, it was a form of internal tariff, placed on the transit of goods being traded between provinces. One example of lijin was seen in Sichuan province were 27 different taxes were placed upon salt and paper going down the Yangtze river to Shanghai. It was taxes 11 different times by various warlords to the sum of 160% of its total value. Warlords also took enormous loans further complicated the economic order. Many Warlords got into the black market, stealing, cultivating and selling opium. Countless Warlords faced insane inflation situations seeing them continuously printing more and more money. As a Canadian under Justin Trudeau I have no idea what that is like, cough cough. Warlords were not all well educated, thus the illiterate Warlord of Manchuria, Zhang Zuolin when facing increasing prices obviously caused by inflation, he assumed it was the result of greedy merchants and began executing them. All of these money problems occurred because men and equipment were needed. Warlords bought their military arms typically from foreign nations. They purchased weapons from all sorts of nations like Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Japan, thus there was a plethora of different weapons. For rifles, many used the domestic manufactured Hanyang 88 and Mauser, while also importing rifles like the German Mauser Gewehr 98, British Lee-Enfield, the French Chauchat rifle and Italian Carcano M1891. For handguns the most popular was the Mauser C96. For Submachine guns apparently the Bergman MP28 was a favorite, but of course the Thompson submachine gun and MP18 also were purchased. For machine guns its was the Maxim, Chauchat, Browning, Vickers, MG08, Lewis gun, Hotchkiss m1909, honestly there are too many to list. Bayonets were bought and forged en masse alongside a variety of swords and sabers, the Chinese preferred the Dao and Jian for cavalry and ceremonies. Armored cars and trucks were bought en masse, armored trains were employed by a few warlords like Zhang Zongchang. Zhang Zuolin managed to buy some Renault FT tanks in the later 1920s. All the big warlords scrambled to get their hands on WW1 tanks and aircraft, though few used these effectively in battle. In the case of aircraft they really served primarily as reconnaissance. Now lets talk about the Warlords and their Cliques. There were hundreds of warlords, I can't go through them all, but what I will do is name the larger guys, and throughout the series I am sure we will keep adding more. First, the origin of the warlords is of course the father of warlords, Yuan Shikai. Yuan Shikai built up the strongest army in China, the Beiyang Army that outlasted him. Many of Yuan Shikai's officers would become Warlords and their loyal followers made up cliques. Two officers very close to Yuan Shikai were Duan Qirui and Feng Guozhang. Both men began their military careers in the Tientsin Military academy a school established by Li Hongzhang ack in 1885. Duan Qirui's grandfather had served in Li Hongzhangs army, thus he was very much a military son. Feng Guozhang came from a family of landowners who had fallen on hard times, he failed to obtain his second civil service degree dashing his hopes to gain a post in the civilian bureaucracy, so he turned to the military. Both Duan and Feng gained good reputations, prompting Yuan Shikai to bring them into his inner circle. Both served him faithfully during the Xinhai Revolution and were rewarded with high office positions in his new government. Duan received military governorship over Hunan and Hubei and Feng received military governorship over Jiangsu. When Yuan Shikai died, Li Yuanghong took the presidency, actually forced by Duan Qirui who became Premier and Feng Guozhang became Vice-President. The Beiyang government henceforth, basically served at the whim to whichever warlord held the strongest army and largest presence within Beijing at any given time. Now leaderless, the Beiyang Army broke apart, its regiments and divisions fell under the control of various warlords in northern China who claimed them for their private armies. The Warlords sought to increase their power by increasing the size of their armies. This also resulted in the creation of major factions, better known as “cliques”. Duan Qirui became the founder of the Anhui clique, it was called this because the majority of its most influential members came from Anhui, including Duan. This clique had close ties to Japan, in previous episodes I mentioned Duan Qirui's secret Nishihara loans, this was done to bolster the cliques army. The Anhui clique organized themselves very early on and were more politically sophisticated than their rivals. The clique had a political wing known as the Anfu Club meaning “peace and happiness club”. Basically this was a group of Beijing politicians who favored Duan and tried to mold the political order his way. There was also a financial wing known as “the new communications clique” led by Cao Rulin who was a rival to Liang Shiyi's “Old Communications clique” part of the Cantonese clique, yes this gets really confusing. The Anhui clique basically became the biggest clique at the offset and would be led by multiple figures over the years. There were many Beiyang officers who were not allowed into the Anhui clique. In the Beiyang Army as in any army, countless men had been overlooked for promotions by those like Duan Qirui and became bitter. These disgruntled officers who felt Duan Qirui had snubbed them gradually rallied behind Feng Guozhang forming the Zhili Clique. The Zhili Clique had its power base in Jiangsu, Jiangxi and Hubei. The Zhili clique was western oriented relying on western nations for funding and arms. Unlike the Anhui, early on the Zhili lacked strong bonds, thus they were more likely to abandon or betray another. They would be led by multiple figures, but no one would be as popular as Wu Peifu. Now as I very much know after creating my Warlord series on the Pacific War channel, I got a ton of comments about Wu Peifu, he is a fan favorite. Wu Peifu was born in Shandong and he received a traditional confucian education. Most would argue Wu Peifu was a Confucian scholar turned soldier in fact. It seems the Japanese victory over China in 1895 persuaded Wu to join the military. He enrolled in one of the new military academies at the time, the Baoding Military academy in Beijing and graduated in 1903 as a 2nd Lt in the beiyang army. Three years later he was assigned to Cao Kun's 3rd division and this sprang a 20 year relationship between the two men. Cao Kun took Wu under his wing and would become the leader of the Zhili clique after Feng Guozhang. However, Cao Kun was heavily invested in political matters. Because of this he relied heavily on Wu Peifu to manage military affairs and this paid off big time as Wu Peifu became one of modern China's greatest military strategists. Think Lelouche from Code Geass, if you get that reference you are a person of culture haha. Wu Peifu earned the epithet “the Jade Marshal” because of his military and intellectual prowess. He would won many battles and campaigns over rival warlords, often outmaneuvering or outwitting them. He also was very committed to maintaining integrity and order within his military. He emphasized professionalism and adhered to codes of conduct, earning a lot of respect amongst his men and China in general. To many he looked elegant and composed, resembling the qualities of Jade. He would brush shoulders with other famous Zhili clique warlords like Sun Chuanfang and Qi Xieyuan, but honestly the list is very large. Now if you read about the warlord Era, typically they display three large cliques in the north who influence most of the era, the Anhui clique, Zhili clique and of course the Fengtian clique. They basically form a balance of power in North China. I should also probably note, China is facing a North/South divide during the Warlord Era so you often hear the cliques called Northern faction cliques or SOuthern faction cliques. The Fengtian clique's sphere of influence was Manchuria and thus was heavily backed by Japan. Like Wu Peifu, the founder of the Fengtian clique is also a fan favorite, his name was Zhang Zuolin, the Tiger of Manchuria. Zhang Zuolin was born in Haicheng in southern Fengtian province, modern Liaoning to a poor family. He received very little formal education, but when old enough he ran a stable at an Inn. He was a slender, kind of frail man with a droopy mustache and a soft voice. He enlisted in the military during the first sino-Japanese war learning how to be a soldier and returned to Fengtian were some say he became a Honghuzi. There is a story, most likely made up by Zhang Zuolin mind you that he was on a hunting trip when he came across a wounded Honghuzi on horseback. He killed the man, stole his horse and took his Honghuzi identity for himself. He gradually organized a small militia force to defend the locality and this became the nucleus of his personal army. Scholars are unsure whether Zhang Zuolin was ever a Honghuzi. Some claim he led a honghuzi gang, others state he was accused of being honghuzi because his local militia was not a regular military unit. During the Boxer Rebellion his gang joined the imperial army and afterwards they worked as security escorts for traveling merchants. During the Russo-Japanese war his men worked as mercenaries for the IJA. After the war he reached an arrangement with the military governor of Fengtien to have his forces become a regiment in the regular Qing army. During the Xinhai revolution as many declared independence movements in Manchuria, the pro-Manchu governor used Zhang Zuolins regiment to set up a “Manchurian People's peacekeeping council”. This was simply done to intimidate and threaten the revolutionaries, but for Zhang Zuolin's role he was awarded the Vice Ministry of Military affairs. When Yuan Shikai was trying to seize the presidency from Dr Sun Yat-Sen, Zhang Zuolin supported him and received military provisions for doing so. Zhang Zuolin murdered a number of leading figures in Mukden and was promoted multiple times by the Ailing Qing dynasty. When it became obvious Yuan Shikai was going to takeover, Zhang Zuolin threw his lot in with him. After 1911 Zhang Zuolin helped quell the rebellion earning a rank of Lt-General. Then when Yuan Shikai declared himself emperor, Zhang Zuolin was one of the very few who supported him. For this Yuan Shikai promoted him to Military governor of Fengtian. In 1916 when Yuan Shikai had to put down rebellions in the southern provinces, Zhang Zuolin supported the effort, however when Duan Qirui sent a new military governor to replace him, Zhang Zuolin went to the Kwantung Army for help. With the Japanese help Zhang Zuolin got rid of the many and would retain his authority over Fengtian. When Yuan Shikai died, Zhang Zuolin was in the perfect position to become a warlord in his region. By 1919 he managed to gain the position of inspector general over all 3 provinces of Manchuria and appointed loyal subordinates all over Manchuria to make sure his control was absolute. By 1920 he was the de facto supreme leader of Manchuria and controlled the Fengtian Army. Zhang Zuolin would dominate the Fengtian Clique nearly its entire existence, only to be replaced by his son Zhang Xueliang after his death. The Fengtian clique produced many warlords, the most notorious being of course, the Dogmeat General Zhang Zongchang. I wont get into it here, but I honestly plan on doing an entire episode to cover Zhang Zongchang's life story, its too hilarious and horrifying not to. The next northern warlord clique was the Shanxi clique of Yan Xishan. Yan Xishan was born in the late 19th century in Wutai county of Xinzhou, Shanxi. His family were mostly bankers and merchants, he himself worked in his fathers bank and pursued a traditional Confucian education. However economic depression in his region, prompting Yan to join a military school in Taiyuan. There he was introduced to western sciences and in 1904 he went to Japan to study at the Tokyo Shimbu Gakko, a military preparatory academy. He enlisted in the Japanese army academy and graduated in 1909. Yan studied in Japan for 5 years and was impressed by Japan's modernization efforts. He observed much of what he could and would later use it to modernize Shanxi. Yan concluded Japan had successfully modernized largely because of its governments abilities to mobilize its populace in support of its policies and the close respectful relationship that existed in its military and civilian populations. In 1910 Yan wrote a pamphlet warning China that it was endanger of being overtaken by Japan unless it developed a form of Bushido. Before going to Japan, Yan had been disgusted with the wide scale corruption of Shanxi officials and believed the Qing dynasty's hostility towards modernization and industrialization led to its downfall. While in Japan Yan met with Dr Sun Yat-Sen and joined his Tongmenghui. When Yan came back to China he was assigned divisional command of the New Army in Shanxi. Despite his post, Yan actually covertly worked to overthrow the Qing. During the Xinhai revolution Yan led a local revolutionary force to drive out the Qing loyalist troops in the province and proclaimed its independence. Yan hoped to join forces with another prominent Shanxi revolutionary named Wu Luzhen, to resist Yuan Shikai's dominance over Northern China. However Wu Luzhen was assassinated just before Yan was elected military governor. Yan tried to resist, but Yuan Shikai's Beiyang Army overwhelmed Shanxi. Yan only survived by withdrawing further north forming alliances with the neighboring Shaanxi province. Yan managed to avoid a military confrontation with Yuan Shikai, thus preserving his own base of power. Although Yan was friends with Dr Sun Yat-Sen he did not support his 1913 Second Revolution and instead got closer to Yuan Shikai. Because of this Yuan Shikai allowed him to retake his post as military governor of Shanxi. Yan used this post to build a personal army and by the time of Yuan Shikai's death solidified his control over Shanxi. Now a little bit about Shanxi, it was one of the poorest provinces in China. Yan believed unless he modernized and revived its economy, Shanxi would simply succumb to rival warlords. As Yan watched from the sidelines in 1919, he saw his province simply could not compete with the bigger boys, thus he took up a policy of neutrality. While the warlord Era wars raged on he instead exclusively worked to modernize Shanxi, particularly developing its resource sector. Yan's governance of Shanxi led to him being dubbed the “model governor” by foreigners. In 1918 there was a bubonic plague outbreak in northern Shanxi taking the lives of nearly 3000 people in two months. Yan dealt with this by issuing instructions on modern germ theory and plague management to his provincial officials. He told his populace the plague was caused by germs that were breathed through lungs, that the disease was incurable and the only way to thwart it was social distancing. He ordered his officials to keep infected family and friends, even entire infected communities quarantined, by threat of police if necessary. Yan also sought foreign doctors to help suppress the epidemic. When Yan was in Japan he spent time in a hospital for 3 months where he saw X-rays, microscopes and other medical equipment for the first time and it seems this greatly impressed him. The epidemic prompted Yan to modernize Shanxi's medicine industry, funding the Research Society for advancement of Chinese Medicine in Taiyuan in 1921. The school promoted both western and chinese medicine, teaching courses in German, Japanese and English. While Yan would a isolationist for most of the warlord era, he had a large role in the end of it. The next northern clique is one I don't want to talk too much about because they only come into the scene later on. There is also the fact the leader of this faction happens to be the rival to Zhang Zongchang, and I think I might make the next or in a future episode a comparison of the two because it would be funny. What you should know is the Guominjun were basically a spin off of the Kuomintang. They were more or less a branch of the Kuomintang, but located in the north. The clique was formed by Feng Yuxiang, known as the “christian general”. Again I don't want to say too much, but this guy was funny, he used to check the fingernails of his troops before battle, no joke I've seen footage of it. Feng Yuxiang's Guominjun would end up being based in northwestern Hebei province. The next northern clique was known as the Ma Clique or the “Three Ma's of the northwest”. This clique goes back to our episode on the Dungan revolt. The Ma cliques traces back to the Qing General Dong Fuxiang, the same man who fought during the Dungan revolt and saved Empress Dowager Cixi during the Boxer Rebellion. He commanded Hui armies whose commanders went on to found the Ma Clique such as Ma Anliang and Ma Fuxiang. During the Xinhai revolution, Ma Anliang led 20 Hui battalions to defend the Qing dynasty by attacking Shaanxi where revolutionaries led by Zhang Fenghui sprang up. Ma Anliang failed to capture Shaanxi and when Puyi abdicated Ma agreed to join the new republic. Unlike Ma Anliang, Ma Fuxiang did not fight for the Qing, but rather the revolutionaries. Ma Fuxiang refused to join the invasion of Shaanxi and instead declared independence of Kansu from Qing control. Because of this Ma Fuxiang was rewarded military governor of Ningxia by Yuan Shikai. Ma Anliang was the founder of the Ma CLique, but died in 1918 leaving the mantle of de fact leader of Muslims in northwest China to fall to Ma Fuxiang. The Ma clique controlled Qinghai, Gangsu and Ningxia. Its three most prominent memers were Ma Bufang, Ma Hongkui and Ma Hongbin known as the Xibei San Ma “thee Ma of the northwest”. The clique would fight the Guominjun and later Xinjiang cliques during the warlord era wars. The next northern clique was the Xinjiang clique with their power base in Xinjiang. One thing that is unique to this clique was that some of their leaders were from outside the province. In 1907 Yunnanese Yang Zengxin was assigned governor over Xinjiang. He received support from Ma Yuanzhang, a Sufi Jahriyya Shaykh who enabled him to raise a massive Hui muslim army primarily from Jahriyya communities. Like Ma Anliang, Yang Zengxin was a manchu loyalist, neither trusted the revolutionaries. When the Xinhai revolution broke out, like Ma Anliang, Yang Zengxin fought for the Qing. After Puyi's abdication, Yang Zengxin supported Yuan Shikai becoming emperor, simply because he believed monarchy was the best system for China. Thus Yang Zengxin invited a bunch of anti-yuan leading officials to a banquet and decapitating them. Yuan Shikai rewarded him with a first rank of count during his brief tenure as emperor. After Yuan Shikai's death, Li Yuanhong assigned Fan Yaonan to observe Yang Zengxin to see if he could be replaced. Yang Zengxin was not a idiot, he made sure to recognize which ever faction at any given time controlled the Beiyang government to avoid any troubles. He kept his rule over Xinjiang relatively peaceful, at least in terms of Warlord Era China. When the Russian Civil War broke out he remained luke warm to the new Soviet Union, because the reality was, Xinjiang had always been economically dependent on Russia. Under his leadership Xinjiang formed a lot of deals with the Soviets independent of the Beiyang government. To complicate things, certain Ma's like Ma Fuxiang were also members of the Xinjiang clique and held military positions under Yang Zengxin. Yang Zengxin controlled his province with an iron first, relying heavily on Hui muslims forces to keep conflict at bay. He had absolute power and had a funny habit of keeping the radio station keys on him at all times and read every message that aired on it prior, making sure to get rid of any parts he did not approve of. Because of the geographical location of Xinjiang, the clique did not have as much influence on warlord era china vs others. The last northern clique, is honestly not one I really consider a real clique, but then again you could say the same thing about many others. This clique would be called the “Manchu Restorationists” kind of like a Qing white lotus in some ways. They were prominent figures who simply wanted to bring back the Qing dynasty after the Xinhai Revolution. I really don't want to tell the story just yet, because its a wild and rather comical one, but if anyone was the so-called leader of this clique it was Zhang Xun, the Pigtailed General. But I guess I have to leave you with a bit of a teaser, Zhang Xun technically overthrew the republic and ushered in a Manchu Restoration….for a few days. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. I think I covered roughly 60% of the Northern Warlords and their respective cliques. In the next episode I literally decided just now I will tell the tale of two northern warlords, one a angel and one a devil. I hope you are ready for some comedy and a bit of horror, for it will be the rivals Feng Yuxiang and Zhang Zongchang.
Le riz cantonais est un mets incontournable des restaurants chinois. On le retrouve donc souvent dans nos assiettes. Ce plat, dans lequel le riz est sauté à feu vif, comporte en principe des petits pois, des dés de jambon, des œufs et des oignons verts.Mais il existe des variantes, certains cuisiniers y ajoutant d'autres ingrédients, comme les carottes. Selon certains, la recette de ce riz frit daterait du VIIe siècle et serait due à l'Empereur Yang Tong.D'après la légende, ce monarque l'aurait emprunté à des villageois, qui avaient l'habitude d'accommoder ainsi leurs restes. À l'origine d'ailleurs, il n'y avait pas de recette particulière, en dehors du fait de faire sauter le riz à la poêle et de lui ajouter des œufs.Mais ce mets n'est pas originaire de la région de Canton. En effet, ce plat de riz frit serait apparu, au Moyen-Âge, dans la ville de Yangzhou. Or, cette cité se trouve dans la région du Jiangsu, au nord de Shanghai. Rien à voir, donc, avec Canton.Alors pourquoi avoir appelé ce plat "riz cantonais" ? Ce nom est lié à l'origine des immigrants asiatiques qui, dans les années 1950 et 1960, se sont installés en France. Beaucoup, en effet, habitaient la région de Canton, d'autres venaient de diverses régions de Chine ou des pays de l'ancienne Indochine française.Ils n'étaient d'ailleurs pas, pour la plupart, restaurateurs de métier. Ils le sont devenus par nécessité, ne pouvant pas, pour diverses raisons, exercer leur véritable profession.Ces cuisiniers amateurs, du moins au début de leur nouvelle vie professionnelle, n'ont pas vu d'inconvénient à adapter la recette du riz frit aux goûts culinaires des Français. Ainsi y ont-ils introduit des dés de jambon, inconnus des consommateurs chinois.Cette appellation de "riz cantonais" vient peut-être aussi de la connaissance assez imprécise qu'ont nos compatriotes de la géographie chinoise. En tous cas, le nom de cette spécialité culinaire n'est pas connu en Chine. Pas même à Canton, où les restaurants seraient bien en peine de vous servir un "riz cantonais". Hébergé par Acast. Visitez acast.com/privacy pour plus d'informations.
Last time we spoke about the Wuchang Uprising and the Xinhai revolution. The revolutionary armies formed a massive assault, managing to seize Wuchang, Hanyang and Hankou. However, the Qing Dynasty had a card up their sleeve in the form of Yuan Shikai and his Beiyang Army. Yuan Shikai defeated the rebel armies with ease, but when the time came to eradicate them for good, he held back. Instead he plotted with the revolutionaries, to coerce the emperor to abdicate in order for himself to be made president over the new Republic. In a masterstroke Yuan Shikai seized the presidency and immediately went to work consolidating his power. Through the use of policial abuses, bribery, threats and assassination, Yuan Shikai was securing his control over the new republic. However all of his actions were met with outraged from the public and particularly the KMT. Now Dr Sun Yat-Sen would unleash a second revolution to save the republic. #88 A Great War and the Siege of Tsingtao Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. When Yuan Shikai became provisional president he was hailed by the senate “of all the presidential elections in world history, only [George] Washington enjoyed unanimous approval. Now, you [Yuan], sir, have repeated Washington's record. To the world, you are the second Washington in this regard. To our Republican China, you are the first.” A few days later, Manchu elite troops, the Eight Banners, delivered Yuan a letter, which read that the “people in North China regard you as China's first Washington; the people from South China see you as the world's second Washington. There is no doubt how much the entire country adores you”. Now the original abdication edict given to Yuan Shikai read like this “Yuan Shikai holds the absolute authority along with the civilian army [ minjun – the south] to organize the provisional republican government and discuss the approach for achieving the unification of the country.” But Yuan Shikai revised the edict “Yuan Shikai holds the absolute authority to organize the provisional republican government and discuss the approach for unifying the country along with the civilian army.” In early 1912, Dt Sun Yat-Sen had set 3 conditions for Yuan Shikai's assumption of the provisional presidency: Nanjing would be the national capital, he would assume his presidency in Nanjing, and he would have to respect the Provisional Constitution. As mentioned in he previous episode, Yuan Shikai performed some false flag-like operations to make sure Beijing became the capital, where he and his Beiyang Army had the strongest position. It is estimated in 1912 China had roughly a million soldiers. This was a enormous financial burden on the government and quite a threat to the regime as many of these soldiers began to join cliques that were loyal to local warlords. When soldiers pay is delayed they tend to mutiny, thus Yuan Shikai demobilized them in late april of 1912. He sought to reduce the military to half a million in 50 divisions. He disbanded 16 divisions in Jiangsu, Anhui, Hunan and Sichuan. Within Nanjing he made sure 100,000 troops under the command of Huang Xing were ordered to step down. By june of 1912 Nanjing's force would be a third its original size. Now while the number of troops were reduced everywhere, this did not hinder his own Beiyang Army, for they were an army of quality over quantity. It was the pro-KMT forces that would suffer the most and this was intentional. To prevent local forces from becoming regional powers, Yuan Shikai began enforcing a policy of separating powers between military command and civilian administration in the provinces. Yet as we mentioned in the last episode, as Yuan Shikai weakened the other forces he strengthened his own. He took foreign loans in secrecy, known infamously as the shanhoudajiekuan or Reorganization loan. The Chinese public were outraged at the humiliating situation, and the KMT were the most furious. In early May General Li Chun led the 8th division from Baoding to Wuhan while also dispatching crack troops to reinforce Shanghai. On June 9th, Yuan Shikai removed the pro KMT governor of Jiangxi, Li Liejun and replaced him with Vice President Li Yuanhong. On June 13th, Yuan Shikai replaced the pro-KMT military governor of Guangdong Hu Hanman with Chen Jiongmin. Then on June 30th pro-kmt governor of Anhui Bai Wenwei was dismissed and on that same day Li Yuanhong performed a mass arrest of many party leaders in Wuhan. Yuan Shikai then dispatched the 6th division under Li Chun into Jiangxi on July 3rd. It was obvious to the KMT what was going on. All of the political maneuvering coupled with the assassination of Song Jiaoren prompted Dr Sun Yat-Sen to unleash a second revolution. On July 12th, Li Liejun issued an anti-Yuan declaration which effectively began the second revolution. With this Jiangxi claimed its independence. 3 days later Haung Xing scrambled to Nanjing where he organized an anti-yuan force and announced Jiangsu independent. 2 days after this the previous governor of Anhui Bai Wenwei declared his province independent. The next day Chen Qimei announced Shanghai's independence, this was followed by Guangdong under Chen Jiongming, then Fujian. Of course the KMT actions drew a quick response from Yuan Shikai. He had of course already preemptively moved his forces as I mentioned to key locations where they would easily dominate their KMT opponents. Yuan Shikai had been given ample time and ample funding in 1913. Meanwhile the revolutionary forces were divided, poorly organized, poorly armed, they lacked the same fever they held during the first revolution. Yuan Shikai also used propaganda to demonize the KMT and justify his military campaign. Yuan Shikai accused Dr Sun Yat-Sen of “revolutionary proclivity” meaning he only knew who to bring chaos and destruction. Yuan Shikai remarked “Sun Yat-sen and Huang Xing have no real ability besides causing disturbances and bringing troubles.” On July 22nd anti-yuan forces were defeated around Xuzhou by the 2nd division led by Feng Guozhang and Zhan Xun. They fled to Nanjing and from the 22nd to the 28th, rebel groups attacked the Manufactural bureau of Jiangan. The Beiyang navy came to help the army and repelled the attack. On the 30th, 2 forces led by Long Jiguang, Li Yaohan joined up around Zhaoqing and advanced upon the Sanshui district. The next day a Beiyang force led by Ni Sichong attacked Fengtai. By the 2nd of august Fengtai fell to the beiyang forces. When Sichuan declared independence on August 4th, Yuan Shikai ordered Yunnan's warlord Tang Jiyao to attack the Sichuan rebels. On August 5th, Beiyang forces attacked Shou country, 2 days later many Anhui forces deserted the revolutionaries to join Yuan Shikai and on the 11th the capital of Anqing was taken. That same day He Haiming led 2000 to try and defend Nanjing against the Beiyang Army; as Long Jiguang seized Guangzhou. The next day Hunan canceled their independence movement as the Beiyang navy captured Wusong. On September 1st, Nanjing fell, prompted Sun Yat-Sen, Huang Xing and Chen Qimei to flee to Japan. On September 11th, Chongqing's defenders simply dispersed, and the second revolution had collapsed. There were many reasons why Yuan Shikai won. The strength and disparity between his forces and the revolutionaries was vast. His army was well trained, the reorganization loan had greatly boosted them. The revolutionaries were very divided, there was certainly many vying for power. The general public were so tired of war and conflict. They loathed the assassination of Song Jiaoren, they simply wanted peace. National mood simply favored Yuan Shikai. Dr Sun Yat-sen yet again, went to work strengthening his KMT abroad. The foreign powers threw their support to Yuan Shikai's government. Yuan Shikai now exacted all effort to eliminate revolutionaries with firm support from the progressive party. Its estimated 1000 activists were killed and many more were arrested. The purge saw countless accused without a fair trial, some not even a trial at all. Freedom of speech was stamped out, countless newspapers ordered censored. Yuan Shikai's military victories during the second revolution saw him secure positions in Anhui, Jiangsu, Hunan, Guangdong and Fujian. Though local forces persisted to be a problem, Yuan Shikai was dramatically centralizing power. After crushing the second revolution, Yuan Shikai passed the Presidential election law on October 5th of 1913. It is said Yuan Shikai resorted to using citizen corps to besiege Congress, harassing and threatening them into voting for him. In the first round Yuan Shikai received 471 ballots, in the second 497, but neither were enough. The third round of voting saw him win 507, just enough to become president. He refused to take the oath in Congress and instead did a ceremony in the former imperial palace. He sat in the emperors throne in his military uniform before he had a grand parade on the Tiananmen Rostrum with 20,000 of his loyal troops. Yuan Shikai dissolved Congress on January 10th of 1914 because “it lacked a legitimate quorum due to the expulsion of Nationalist legislators; it was not effectively organized; it was not operating efficiently or achieving much; and it was deliberately fostering nationwide chaos” He literally gave them all 400$ and told them to go home. After this he ordered the suspension of all provincial assemblies and local autonomous organs. In other words he made himself a dictator. He did create a Political Council called Zhengzhuhuiyi but it was nothing more than an advisory body. On January 26th the Political Council convened a Constitutional drafting conference. On March 14th of 1914 the conference drafted the Constitution of the Republic of China which Yuan Shikai proclaimed in effect on May 1st. The new Constitution gave Yuan Shikai paramount power to convene and shut down legislature. No clear lines were drawn between the executive, judicial and legislative branches, basically Yuan Shikai controlled all 3. Yet Yuan Shikai's authority all rested upon one thing, his military power. To assert control over all the provinces, he promoted military governors. These military governor would have civil authority and control over their own armies. For those of you who know the next period of Chinese history, yes the Warlords were being born. Yet while the beginnings of the warlord era were approaching, the year of 1914 brought something else to China. World War One began at a time when China was in complete disarray. She was militarily weak, in financial chaos and very unstable politically. Yuan Shikai attempted keeping China neutral during the war, but the war came to her door nonetheless. On August 6th of 1914, China proclaimed its neutrality and prohibited warring states from undertaking any military actions on her soil. However with so many different world powers holding concessions on her territory, well it was going to happen one way or another. By the way what I am about to talk about is known as the Siege of Tsingtau, its actually an incredible historic event, multiple firsts in history occur. If you want to see a visualization of this go over to my youtube channel the pacific war channel and check it out alongside my entire series/documentary on Asia during WW1. Going back in time somewhat, in 1902 Britain and Japan signed the Anglo-Japanese alliance. Because of this, when WW1 broke out, the alliance basically encouraged the Japanese Empire to enter the war on the side of Britain for mutual defense. At the outbreak of the war, Britain feared the German East Asiatic Squadron would raid her merchant shipping and planned to run the Germans out by destroying their bases and communications. If you want to learn more about the honestly courageous and badass German raiders of the Pacific during WW1, again check out the pacific war channel, I particularly liked making the episode on German Raiders. Within the first week of the war, Britain requested assistance from Japan to identify German shipping. I must emphasize the word “assistance”, Britain in no way wanted Japan to start attacking and seizing German colonial possessions in China and the Asia-Pacific. You see the German empire held numerous islands out in the pacific and notably the port city of Tsingtao, current day Qingdao. Yes the place that makes the delicious beer, honestly a personal favorite of mine. Well in the face a a extremely weak German presence in the pacific, and all these goodies just sitting around, the Japanese empire was not going to let the opportunity slip. Japan held larger ambitions in the Asia-Pacific, so she instead offered to enter the war and join the Entente. Britain did not want this, but the German raiders were causing absolute havoc upon her and Anzac shipping, so she reluctantly accepted this, but privately warned Japan not to seize German islands in the south Pacific, because she desired them to be taken by Australia and New Zealand. Japan's war aims were to first capture the German base at Tsingtao, then the Marshall, Caroline, and Marianas islands and secondly to hunt down the East Asiatic Squadron. On August 15th Japan issued an ultimatum to Germany demanding her warships withdraw from Chinese and Japanese waters and transfer control of Tsingtao to Japan. When the ultimatum expired on the 23rd Japan declared war on Germany. The Germans hoped their garrison would be able to hold out until the war in Europe was won and done, so they instructed governor of the leased territory of Jiāozhōu, Alfred Meyer-Waldeck to defend Tsingtaoto the last. Kaiser Wilhelm II exact words to Admiral Alfred Meyer-Waldeck were "... it would shame me more to surrender Tsingtao to the Japanese than Berlin to the Russians" When the war broke out, most of the warships of the East Asia Squadron led by Vice Admiral Maximilian von Spee were dispersed across the Pacific. Meyer-Waldeck assembled all the available warships he could; the torpedo boat S90, unprotected cruiser Cormoran, Auxiliary cruiser Cormoran, steamer Ryazan, gunboats Luchs, Tiger, Jaguar, Iltis and the Austro-Hungarian protected cruiser Kaiserin Elisabeth. Obviously Tsingtao's warships would be absolutely dwarfed by the Imperial Japanese Navy who dispatched the 2nd squadron under Vice Admiral Sadakichi Kato on August 27th, supported by some British warships. Tsingtao's defenses consisted of the port, town and three defensive lines, the first extending from the Kaiserstuhl to the Litsuner Heights. The second line lay across the steep hills from Prinz Heinrich to Kuschan. The third line consisted of three fortified hills, Mount Moltke, Mount Bismarck and Mount Iltis, each equipped with guns of various caliber; Fort Moltke had two 240mm guns; Fort Bismarck had four 280 mm howitzers; Fort Iltis had two 240mm guns. Tsingtao's towns seaward and landward defenses were 4 batteries and 5 redoubts. Meyer-Waldeck had at his disposal, 1300 marines of the 3rd Seebataillon, 750 naval gunners, 180 naval personnel staff, 400 sailors, 1500 reservists and 100 Chinese policemen, totalling nearly 4000 men. They had 90 guns of various calibers, 120 machine guns, 28 automobiles and two Etrich Taube aircraft. By the way this is 1914, very early days of WW1 and the aircraft literally look like something Leonardo Davinci would have sketched. You might be asking, what is China doing during all of this, since they proclaimed neutrality and demanded other nations not fight on their soil. Just like the Russo-Japanese War, China yet again took the humiliation. The Chinese government initially protested against the Japanese warfare on her soil against the Germans, however given Japan simply did not care, Yuan Shikai begrudgingly had no choice but to permit the Japanese encroachment against Qingdao. The battle for Tsingtao would be the only acts of war on Chinese soil during the first world war. On August 22nd the SMS Lauting and S90 were attacked by the HMS Kennet led by Lt Commander F. A Russel of the China squadron. The Germans raced back to port with the S90 scoring two hits on Kennet, before she peeled off when a Tsingtao 4 inch shore battery began to fire upon her. On the 27th the IJN 2nd squadron led by Vice-Admiral Sadakichi Kato began a naval blockade of Jiaozhou. The fleet quickly seized 3 coastal islands and began minesweeping operations. On the 30th a storm drove the IJN destroyer Shirotaye aground on a coastal island, allowing the HMS Jaguar to surge out of the port and destroy her. On September 2nd the Japanese began landing 23,000 soldiers of Major General Mitsumo Kamio's 18th infantry division along with 142 pieces of artillery. They fanned the area, finding no enemy north of the Paisha River. The region was experiencing a terrible flood making it a muddy nightmare. It was at this point, the local Chinese protested the breach of neutrality, but offered no real opposition. By the 7th an advance guard was riding to Tsingtao. Meanwhile the British were suspicious the Japanese intended to seize all of Shandong province, so they dispatched a symbolic force of 1500 men led by Brigadier General Nathaniel Walter Barnardiston from Tientsin. They would be followed up by 500 men of the 36th Sikhs. Meyer-Waldeck responded to the landings by withdrawing his forces to the two inner defensive lines. On the 5th the IJN Wakamiya launched a Farman seaplane that scouted the port and town. The pilot reported the East Asiatic squadron was absent, prompting the IJN to dispatch two fast squadrons to hunt them down. The next day, the Wakamiya launched another Farman who unsuccessfully attacked the Jaguar and Kaiserin Elisabeth in Jiaozhou bay with bomblets. This would be the second air-sea battle to occur in history. The first occurred during the Balkan wars in 1913. In response both cruisers had guns removed from them to be added to the land defenses, establishing Battery Elisabeth. On 13th, Japanese cavalry ran into a German outpost at Jimo causing them to flee after a short skirmish. The Japanese seized the small town of Jiaozhou and on the 14th cut the Shandong railway. You really have to imagine how pathetic the Chinese government looked during all of this. Now the weather conditions were abysmal, the flooding and mud was so terrible, Kamio knew it would take weeks to move his entire division over the peninsula, so instead he took a calculated risk. Kamio ordered his 24th infantry brigade, whom were just landing ashore at the time, to re-embark as his cavalry, engineers and 23rd infantry brigade continued their advance to Jimo, thus abandoning the bridgehead. Kamio ordered the rest of his forces to land in Lau Schan Bay. On the 17th, the Japanese attacked Wang-ko-huang, 13 miles from Jimo causing the Germans to withdraw from the town during the night. The next day the Japanese arrived at Jimo exhausted and nearly starving as IJN cruisers bombarded the empty beaches of Lau Shan Bay allowing the 23rd infantry brigade to land. With Jimo secured, Kamio ordered his forces to seize the Hotung pass, driving back another small German outpost. After a cavalry company of the 24th brigade made contact with the forces at Jimo, Tsingtao was now effectively surrounded. On the 19th the Japanese seized Mecklenburg House, a mountain spa, and broke through the outermost defensive line. Kamio now figured the Germans would only mount a defense within the city's fortifications, so he ordered his forces to close in, causing the German patrols to withdraw inwards. Because of the terrible terrain conditions, the Japanese began constructing piers at Lau Schan and an airfield at Jimo. On the 21st the Imperial Japanese Army launched four Farmans from Jimo to survey, bomb and if possible shoot down German aircraft. In late September Japanese Farmans would perform the first night-time bombing raid in history. The Germans had accidentally crashed one of their Taubes, leaving only one to be operated by legendary Lt Gunther Plüschow. Plüschow performed daily reconnaissance flights and attempted to bomb Entente vessels. Plüschow would become the first aviator in history to be fired upon and receive damage by flak from naval ships. In late September according to Plüschow, he ran into a Farman performing reconnaissance over Tsingtao harbor and he claims he shot the pilot with his pistol causing the aircraft to crash. If this was true, this would be the first aerial victory or first over claiming aerial victory in history. Again the Siege of Tsingtao is full of many history firsts, yet honestly hardly anyone knows about this event. Meyer-Waldeck realized the Japanese were maneuvering past the mountain line unmolested, so he ordered a counter attack as his artillery began firing up to 1500 shells upon the incoming enemy per day. On the 25th a German force of 130 men, 2 field guns and 4 machine guns raided an outpost on Kletter Pass. The Japanese stood their ground and forced the Germans back, meanwhile the British began landing at Lau Schan. On the 26th, Kamio ordered a general advance, causing the Germans to completely pull back to their second line. The Japanese crossed the river Paisha early in the day, swiftly crossing the seven-mile lowland plain and reached the northern bank of the Litsun. To help their withdrawal, the Jaguar and S90 came up the harbor side and bombarded the Japanese right flank. The outer mountain outposts fell one by one, nearly bloodlessly. The Kaiserin Elisaeth, Jaguar and S90 continued to shell the harbor flank, prompting Kamio to assign a field battery to engage them. The German ships managed to destroy an observation post and neutralized the battery. Kamio then requested Vice Admiral Kato begin a bombardment of the German land batteries to cover his advance, but Kato instead bombarded the German sea batteries. The infamous interservice rivalry between the IJA and IJN was blossoming. Meyer-Waldeck knew they would soon have to abandon the second line. He ordered his engineers to prepare a small outpost on the crest of Prinz Heinrich Hill. They connected a telephone and heliograph to its heavy land batteries. 60 men with 4 machine-guns manned the outpost with provisions for a 2-month siege. On the night of the 27th, Kamio ordered the 46th infantry regiment, reinforced with an engineer platoon, to scale the hill, right in the middle of a typhoon. The men reached the crest by dawn, but were quickly pinned down by German machine gun fire. The Japanese charged the outpost numerous times, receiving heavy casualties, until the German CO decided to negotiate. He offered to surrender the peak, if the Japanese would allow his men to withdraw back to Tsingtao. The Japanese commander simply refused and seized the CO by force. The Germans surrendered after suffering 6 deaths with 54 men captured, the Japanese suffered 24 deaths, with 150 total casualties. Meanwhile the Kaiserin Elisabeth, Leopard and S90 continued to shell the Japanese right flank, prompting the IJN and IJA field artillery to counter fire. On the 28th, the Japanese were closing in on the German inner line, as their engineers began constructing concrete platforms upon Prinz Heinrich Hill for heavy artillery deployment. Meyer-Waldeck ordered the land batteries and Plüschow to hit the Japanese rear. That same day the Cormoran, Iltis and Luchs were scuttled, lest they become prizes of war. On October 2nd, 3 German companies performed a night raid against the Japanese right flank. It quickly fell apart, seeing 29 Germans killed and 6 captured. The Japanese began digging trenches a km away from the German line as the British finally advanced to the front line. A large issue began where the Japanese had a difficult time with friendly fire as they could not tell the British and Germans apart, kind of funny if you ask me. To remedy this the British were given Japanese overcoats, to distinguish them from the Germans. On 6th and 10th Entente blockading ships dueled with Tsingtao's coastal batteries, but were driven off. On the 14th, the entire fleet performed a massive bombardment, seeing HMS Triumph take some light damage. On the 15th flash floods drowned 25 Japanese within their trenchwork, showcasing how terrible the typhoon weather was. On the 17th Meyer-Waldeck ordered S90 to attempt an escape. The S90 slipped out of the harbor during the night, but ran into the IJN cruiser Takachiho. S90 fired a torpedo, detonating her magazine, sinking the cruiser and claiming the lives of 256 men. The S90 then attempted to flee, but would be interned at a Qing port further down the coast. On the 21st, the 36th Sikh landed at Lachan Bay. On the 22nd Meyer-Waldeck ordered another raid seeing 80 Germans creep towards the Japanese trenches only to be turned back when sentries opened fire. By the 25th the IJA artillery were all in position, each with 15 days worth of ammunition. Kamio ordered them all to fire 80 shells per day, beginning on the 31st. Meanwhile Japanese engineers formed special platoons with rifle grenades and bamboo tubes filled with explosives. Many lessons had been learnt during the Russo-Japanese War, Japanese sapping and trench warfare was quite advanced for 1914 standard. The Entente fleet drew close and on October 31st, the birthday of Emperor Taisho, 100 field guns and naval guns began a mass bombardment, directed by balloons, Farmans and the observation post atop Prinz Heinrich Hill. It was truly a very advanced battle, showcasing how much war had changed at the turn of the century.The first day destroyed Tsingtao's land batteries as sappers drew 300 meters forward. The Redoubts were particularly hit hard by artillery and to the left of the German line, 100 Chinese in the village of Taotungchien were unfortunately caught in shell fire. Yet again like the Russo-Japanese War, little attention was paid to the Chinese victims. The next day Meyer-Waldeck had Kaiserin Elisabeth and Jaguar scuttled as their crews joined the garrison. After Tsingtao's land batteries were neutralized, the Japanese bombardment targeted redoubts and barbed wire fields. On November 2nd the sappers advanced another 300 meters. On the 3rd, redoubts were systematically pulverized, barbed wire was flattened and the Tsingtao power station was obliterated. By the 4th the Japanese had a parallel assault line dug and at dawn Japanese infantry and engineering platoons assaulted the water pumping station. They seized the station, capturing 21 prisoners, now Tsingtao had no well water, basically she was doomed. That same night the Japanese sappers advanced another 300 meters, while their British counterparts holding a rather difficult section of the line failed to keep up with them. The British suffered 26 casualties from small arms fire. On 5th the Entente Fleet closed in to point-blank range and the IJN Suwo destroyed the Huitschuen huk, killing 8 men and that of the last sea battery. Barbed wire lay crushed, redouts pulverized or abandoned, Tsingtao lay defenseless by land and sea. On the night of the 6th, the Japanese dug their final assault line running between 100 to 1000 meters from the German trenches. On the 6th Meyer-Waldeck knew it was the end and ordered Plüschow to fly his final dispatches back to Berlin. Plüschow flew 250 km's before crash landing in a rice paddy. He burned his Taube and began advancing on foot. Plüschow walked all the way to Daschou where some locals erected a party for him. He managed to obtain a pass to cross China as well as a junk to sail down a river to Nanjing. Plüschow felt he was being watched, he assumed he would be arrested at any moment so he leapt aboard a rickshaw and traveled to the local railway station. There he bribed a guard and slipped aboard a train to Shanghai. AtShanghai, Plüschow met up with a friend who provided him with documents as a Swiss national, as well as some money and a ticket on a ship sailing for Nagasaki, then Honolulu, and, finally, to San Francisco. In January 1915, he crossed the United States to New York City. He was reluctant to approach the German consulate there, as he had entered the country under a false identity. Worse, he read in a newspaper that he was presumed to be in New York. Luck favored him again, this time he met with a friend from Berlin who managed to get him travel documents for a ship that sailed on January 30, 1915, for Italy. After crossing the Atlantic Plüschow's ship docked at Gibraltar, where the British arrested him as an enemy alien. To their amazement they discovered he was the famous aviator of Tsingtao. You would think that would be the end of his incredible story, but no. On May 1, 1915, Plüschow was sent to a prisoner of war camp in Donington Hall in Leicestershire. On July 4, 1915, he escaped during a storm and headed for London. Scotland Yard began hunting him down, issuing an alert, asking the public to be on the lookout for a man with a "dragon tattoo" on his arm. Plüschow disguised himself as a worker and felt safe enough to take souvenir photographs of himself at the London docks. He then occupied his time by reading books about Patagonia, and also visited the British Museum. Now this was wartime, so there were no notices published announcing the departure of ships, but by observing the riverway, Plüschow saw the ferry Princess Juliana, sailing for the neutral Netherlands and managed to sneak aboard. He arrived safely and finally reached Germany, where he was at first arrested as a spy since no one believed he could have possibly accomplished such a feat. Plüschow became the only German combatant during either World War to have successfully escaped from a prison camp in the British Isles. Once he was identified, Plüschow was acclaimed as "the hero from Tsingtao". He was decorated, promoted, and assigned command of the naval base at Libau in occupied Latvian Courland. In June 1916, in an airplane hangar at Libau, Plüschow got married. There he wrote his first book, “The Adventures of the Aviator from Tsingtau”. It sold more than 700,000 copies. Back at Tsingtao, Kamio gave the British sappers time to dig their approach next to his parallel line as his units probed the German lines for weak points. A Japanese company led by Major General Yoshimi Yamada the commander of the 24th infantry brigade assaulted Redoubt 4 causing the Germans to launch a bayonet charge pushing them back. Meyer-Waldeck ordered reinforcements to quickly head over to Redoubt 4, but before they arrived a second Japanese company surrounded Redoubt 4 forcing their surrender. 200 prisoners were seized and the rising sun flag was hoisted. The German reinforcements arrived to the scene and performed a counter attack, but were crushed quickly. Meanwhile the Japanese stormed Redoubt 3, surrounding and firing into its loopholes and cracks until the Germans surrendered. A local German reserve force launched a counter-attack, overwhelming a Japanese flank outpost before the main force crashed down upon them. Japanese platoons then spread out along the trench lines. Redoubt 2 was attacked from both flanks and rear, falling quickly. 3 hours of battle saw numerous courageous bayonet charges from both sides, as all the Redoubts were stormed and captured, excluding Rebouts 1 and 5 who held out desperately. Kamio then ordered the general assault to begin as the Japanese forces charged through a gap in the German center line. At 5:10am on the 7th, the north battery of Shaotan Hill was captured, half an hour later the east battery of Tahtungehin and Fort Chungchiawa, the base for the German right wing were seized. As the Japanese surged forward a company stormed up Iltis Hill. Searchlights poured down upon them and soon the Japanese wielding bayonets and Katana's charged into the Germans , fighting in hand to hand combat. Two opposing officers dueled Katana against German dress sword, seeing the Japanese officer cut down his opponent. After this the Germans upon Iltis surrendered. Another company stormed Bismarck Hill seeing a quick surrender as men atop Iltis cheered. Meyer-Waldeck knew it was over and seeking to save lives, ordered Major von Kayser with a small force to march out of Redoubt 1 and 5 waving white flags. On the morning of the 7th, on an ironically beautiful day, Japanese and British troops entered Tsingtao with shouts of Banzai. Its said as the Japanese entered the city, the Germans looked on with curiosity, but upon seeing the British, the Germans turned their backs and spat in contempt. The Japanese had suffered 733 deaths, 1282 wounded; the British 12 deaths with 53 wounded; the Germans 199 deaths and 504 wounded and 98 Chinese civilians were killed, 30 wounded and countless incidents of rape against Chinese women by Japanese soldiers were reported. A memorial service was held in Tsingtao as the Germans buried their dead. 4700 Germans were taken to POW camps in Japan and were famously treated well until 1919. 170 of the German prisoners would remain in Japan having found wives or new lives. To this day little remains of German influence in Qingdao. Yet the old brewery in Qingdao still produces the pre-war-style German beer titled “Tsingtao”. It was another brutal humiliation against China. Unfortunately it was just the start to such abuses during the great war. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. Yuan Shikai was now the defacto dictator or better said Father of Warlords over China. World War One, was not something China wanted to be a part of, but they would have absolutely no choice when the war literally came to their door. Japan was the first to start encroaching and they were nowhere near done.
Last time we spoke about the Railway Protection Movement and the Wuchang Uprising. Emperor Guangxi and Empress Dowager Cixi were dead leaving regent Zaifeng in charge of the ailing dynasty. Alongside their deaths, the Guangzhou-Hankou and Sichuan-Hankow railway lines would become the trigger to end the Qing dynasty. The people were already angry, but would become furious when news came that the railway lines were going to be nationalized using foreign loans. Some in Sichuan attempted financing their railway line to thwart the foreigners, but in the end they simply were unable. Zaifeng unleashed the brutish General Zhao Erfeng to quell the protesters, but this massively backfired. Revolutionaries within the Hubei army unleashed an uprising in Wuchang. The mutineers formed a military government representing Hubei with Li Yuanhong as their leader. The year is 1911, Wuchang is but the spark that will light the flame of revolution. #87 The Xinhai Revolution of 1911 Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. The insurrection that broke out in Wuchang on October 10th of 1911, was not a sheer accident. It was part of a larger event occurring all over China. Revolutionary leaders like Dr. Sun Yat-sen had inspired multiple groups of revolutionaries, many of whom recruited men within the New Armies forming in the provinces. These groups also had links to secret societies. If you pop open wikipedia and look up the Xinhai Revolution or 1911 revolution one of the first things you will notice is the page consists of a long list of uprisings. Uprisings sprang out all over China. Some of these groups were connected, many were not at all. A famous revolutionary leader, Song Jiaron founded the Revolutionary Alliance in 1911. Song Jiaoren and Huang Xing helped Sun Yat-sen start a second uprising in Guangzhou that failed, and this basically ended the Revolutionary Alliance's role as the dominant revolutionary group. When the Wuchang uprising began, all these leaders were taken by surprise. The Hubei revolutionaries had very loose connections to the revolutionary alliance. It was Song Jiaorens intent to use the Revolutionary alliance as a sort of authority over the multiple revolutionary groups. Song Jiaoren advised the Wuchang uprisers to take it slower, but they simply were impatient for action. As a result of the Wuchang uprising, the Qing court ordered the Minister of War, General Yinchang and General Feng Guozhang to lead the Beiyang Army to quell the rebellion in Hubei. In the last episode I mentioned Admiral Sa Zhenbing was also asked to take the Qing navy to quell the rebellion, but they simply sailed off to Shanghai and got caught up in their own sort of mutiny. Now while this was going on, back in 1909 Yuan Shikai, the man who created the Beiyang Army, had been relieved of all his posts by Zaifeng. Yuan Shikai kept networking with influential figures during his exile. Something particularly important he did was manage his contacts that could help him remain in control of his precious Beiyang army. He married his niece to his adopted son Duan Qirui. Duan Qirui was reported to him regularly the ongoings of the beiyang Army. Now the Qing court knew the only force capable of quelling the rebellion was the Beiyang army, but their loyalty seemed to still be with the exiled Yuan Shikai. The Qing court in a panic had been repeatedly requesting Yuan Shikai return, offering him first Viceroy of Huguang and then Prime Minister of the Imperial Court. But Yuan Shikai kept procrastinating, stating he had a foot ailment and could not take such appointments. The Qing court kept begging and on October 30th, Yuan Shikai finally agreed and became Prime Minister on November 1st. As soon as Yuan Shikai took this position he asked Zaifeng to withdraw from Politics, effectively resigning as regent. After this Yuan Shikai formed a new cabinet, notably Han dominant. Empress Dowager Longyu awarded Yuan Shikai the noble title of Marquis of the 1st rank. Basically the Qing court was bending over backwards to please Yuan Shikai because he literally was holding them hostage because he made it clear the Beiyang army was his to command alone. Meanwhile Yinchang and Feng had traveled to Hankou by rail and attempted to seize control over the city's northern suburbs. By October 18th, 1000 revolutionary soldiers had attacked Liujiamiao train station located at the northern approach to Hankou. The rebels were driven back initially, but later that day they regrouped and with the help of railway workers ambushed a train coming in with Qing soldiers. The train derailed, as Qing soldiers fought the rebels, but many also fled for their lives. 400 Qing soldiers were killed by the revolutionary force who proceeded to capture Liujiaomiao. The revolutionaries were greatly emboldened and grew to a force 5000 strong. On October the 20th, the rebels attacked Wushengguan, but were dealt a defeat and forced to withdraw back to Liujiaomiao. Despite the defeat, the rebels had proven themselves capable and this had an enormous impact. On October the 22nd, Tongmenghui in Hunan province led by Jiao Defeng and Chen Zuoxin declared an uprising at Changsha. They captured the city, killing the local Qing general and announced a new Hunan Military government in opposition to the Qing dynasty. Alongside this on October 22nd, Tongmenghui in Shaanxi led by Jing Dingcheng, Qian Ding and Jing Wumu launched an uprising and captured Xi'an after two days of battle. The Hui muslim community was divided on who to support. Hui of Gangsu supported the Qing dynasty while Hui of Shaanxi supported the revolutionaries. The Hui muslims of Xi'an joined the revolutionaries to slaughter Manchu, but General Ma Anliang led over 20 battalions of Hui Muslims to fight for the Qing against a revolutionary army led by Zhang Fengui. Within the Xi'an area, over 20,000 Manchu would be massacred by revolutionary forces. However Ma Anliang would be very successfully fighting back for the Qing forces, it was only after learning later on that the throne was abdicating that Ma Anliang would change sides. Thus Hunan and Shaanxi had both declared independence from the dynasty. Back in Hubei, the Qing court removed Yinchang from command and handed formal power to Yuan Shikai whose loyal lt's Duan Qirui and Feng Guozhang were right and ready for action. Duan and Feng led the 1st and 2nd armies who marched upon Wuhan. By the 26th, the Beiyang Army was advancing by rail and stormed the northern suburbs of Hankou. They began their assault using heavy artillery and machine guns to devastating effect. The revolutionary forces took 500 deaths, under the rather poor leadership of Zhang Jingliang. It was suspected Zhang Jingliang was sitting on the fence, possibly collaborating with the Qing. The revolutionaries would lose control over Liujiamiao and regain it twice. By the 28th Liujiamiao saw house to house fighting between the two sides. On that same day Song Jiaoren and Huang Xing arrived to Hankou from Shanghai. They came to offer their support to the revolutionaries. Huang Xing had brought over 1000 revolutionary troops to help bolster Wuchangs 5000 strong force. With the additional support the revolutionaries were able to hold the Qing forces back, but they lacked heavy artillery and machine guns. The Qing forces were dishing out severe casualties. Facing such tough resistance, Feng Guozhang became enraged and ordered Hankou razed to the ground. A fire would burn throughout the city for over 3 days. By the 1st of November, the Qing had seized control over Hankou, but both sides had suffered casualties in the thousands as a result. On November 3rd, Li Yuanhong handed command of the revolutionary forces to Huang Xing who had proven himself a more capable military leader. New recruits from Hunan began to boost their force and by November the 11th the province declared independence. Around this time, the Qing Navy had effectively defected, multiple warships had gone to assist revolutionaries in Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces. An uprising broke out in Hangzhou seeing revolutionaries capture a large quantity of military supplies. Here a young Chiang Kai-shek captured some government offices and gradually Hangzhou. The revolutionaries of Zhejiang and Jiangsu raised a siege against Nanjing using Qing warships. The siege was led by Xu Shaozhen, Chen Qimei and other defected generals. Between November 24th to December 1st, the revolutionaries captured Wulongshan, Mufushan, Tianbao, Yuhuatai and countless other Qing strongholds. On December 2nd, Nanjing fell to the revolutionaries, it was a tremendous victory. Back over in Hubei, the revolutionaries now 13,000 strong at Hanyang, forded the Han river marching to take back Hankou. Yuan Shikai was on the other side of the river leading a force 30,000 strong. While many revolutionary leaders sought to defend Hanyang, it was Huang Xing who seized the initiative. On November 17th the revolutionary forces began an artillery bombardment of Hankou from the Guishan heights, before launching a two-pronged attack. Their artillery was quite inaccurate and as their infantry advanced, Yuan Shikai's artillery quickly pinned down their right flank. This saw the revolutionary left flank managing to ford the river alone, whom ran into Qing defenders who easily repelled them back by the 18th. The revolutionary army suffered 800 casualties in the disastrous attempt. On the 21st of November, Yuan Shikai launched an attack against Hanyang. One force bypassed the revolutionaries' defenses by assaulting Xiaogan further to the west. The two armies gradually converged and fought at Sanyanqiao. The next day another Qing force forded the Han river from Hankou and seized the strategic heights in Hanyang. The revolutionaries sent reinforcements twice from Wuchang to advance across the Yangtze river to Hanyang, but suffered tremendous casualties in the process. Another group of revolutionaries in Wuchang planned to cross the Yangtze to advance to strike Liujiamiao behind the Qing defensive lines, but apparently their commander got too drunk and failed to initiate on time. As a result his force failed to help the general assault which saw the Qing artillery bombardment the revolutionaries as they attempted crossing the Yangtze. Facing such terrible losses, the Hubei revolutionaries began to preserve their strength, causing outrage amongst the Hunan revolutionaries. After a week of brutal house to house combat, Yuan Shikai's forces gradually fought their way to the center of Hanyang. There they captured the munitions factory and revolutionaries artillery position upon Guishan. By November 27th, the revolutionaries were in a full retreat from Hanyang after suffering 3300 deaths trying to defend the city. By the end of November, Duan Qirui and Feng Guozhang both submitted plans to Yuan Shikai on how to deliver the killing blow to Wuchang. However despite their victories at Hankou and Hanyang, things overall were not good for the Qing loyalists. During the battle for Hanyang, as Huang Xing became the defacto commander in chief, Song Jiaoren had decided to withdraw south of the Yangtze to create a secondary revolutionary center. This was of course occurring everywhere in China. The fight to dethrone the Manchu empire had created an enormous power vacuum that many were eager to set upon. Within weeks of the Wuchang uprising, as I had mentioned over in Shanghai leaders of the revolutionary alliance began an uprising declaring Shanghai independent. This spread to Zhejiang and Jiangsu, and soon 14 provinces had seceded. With so many provinces declaring independence and so many revolutionary groups vying for power, the need for a central government became a necessity. If the movement was to survive, regional rivalries needed to be overcome, national unity was essential. Wuchang and Shanghai being two of the strongest factions began to clash, but while they did the siege of Nanjing saw the great secondary capital seized by rebels. Now while all of this was going on, secret talks were being made between the revolutionaries and none other than Yuan Shikai. Unbeknownst to the Qing court as they continuously lavished Yuan Shikai with titles, he was being tossed countless bribes to come to the revolutionary side. On november 3rd the Qing Court under immense pressure had passed the 19 articles, intending to finally reconstitute the Qing government into a constitutional monarchy. 6 days later Huang Xing cabled Yuan Shikai inviting him to join their republic. Yuan Shikai was thus in one of the most advantageous positions possible. For he and he alone could control the strongest army in CHina, the Beiyang army. He could crush the rebels in Wuchang, but he did not do so. In fact he had held his men back the entire time. On December 1st, Yuan Shikai agreed to a 3 day cease-fire and secretly began talks with the revolutionaries in Hankou. The 3 day ceasefire soon turned into another 3 days, then 15 days, and finally it encompassed all of december. On December 2nd Nanjing fell, and the revolutionaries agreed the new provisional government should be set up there. Revolutionary leaders met there and passed an outline on December 3rd on how they would create a republic. A public announcement was made that within a week's time they would elect a provisional government. This all was done within the scramble for power, for example Song Jiaoren and Chen Qimei had stayed in Shanghai attempted to hold their own assembly. On December the 18th, a North-South Conference was held in Shanghai trying to figure out how to solve issues between the north and south. Yuan Shikai sent his subordinate Tang Shaoyi to negotiate with the revolutionaries in Wuhan. Meanwhile the revolutionaries chose Wu Tingfang to speak to the foreign powers of the UK, US, Germany, Russia, France and Japan about helping support their new republic. Thus simultaneously, the Revolutionaries were negotiating with foreign powers to fix future deals with their republic as they negotiated with Yuan Shikai to allow their revolution to succeed. In the end, it was Yuan Shikai who held the keys to the car as we say. You might be asking yourself, ok, but where is Dr. Sun Yat-Sen during all of this? At the offset of the Wuchang uprising Dr Sun Yat-sen was in Denver Colorado. He had been in the US for quite some time fund raising for revolutions. He was shocked to find out about the Wuchang uprising and there was little he could do about everything. Huang Xing was thus his 2nd in command trying to hold the fort down for him. Dr Sun Yat-Sen with his closest foreign advisor and friend, Homer Lea rushed over to Britain trying to secure financing for a future Chinese republic, before sailing back to China by December 21st. He had come back just in the nick of time as the presidential election was held on December 29th. Over 45 representatives from 17 provinces participated and Sun Yat-Sen received 16 out of 17 votes. On January 1st of 1912, Sun Yat-Sen announced the establishment of the republic of China in Nanjing and was inaugurated as the provisional president of the republic. General Li Yunhong was made provisional vice president; Huang Xing became minister of the army; Song Jiaoran became director general of law making and countless other positions were filled. At the same time many leaders sought to establish the new flag of the republic. Wuchang wanted to use their 9 star flag; Lu Hadong wanted to use his Blue Sky with a White sun flag; Huang Xing favored a flag bearing the mythical well field system of village agriculture, but in the end a major compromise was met. The new flag would be the banner of 5 Races under one Union. If you google the flag, you can see its 5 colors; red for Han, yellow for Manchu, blue for Mongols, white for Muslims and black for Tibetans. This was all grand, but there was one problem, Yuan Shikai could obliterate their new republic at any moment. To solve the Yuan Shikai problem, some of the revolutionaries sought to lure him to the south. To do so they began secretly negotiating with him, offering to appoint him president over the new Nanjing government. However if Yuan Shikai were to move to the south, he would lose the power of his northern armies. On January 16th, while returning to his residence, Yuan Shikai was ambushed in a terrorist attack organized by the Tongmenghui. 18 revolutionaries tried to kill him with a bomb at Donghuamen in Beijing. 10 Qing guards were killed in the process, but Yuan Shikai was not seriously injured. Yuan Shikai sent a message to the revolutionaries the next day pledging his loyalty to their cause and asking them not to try assassinating him again. To make a point, Yuan Shikai secretly ordered his troops to begin looting and burning down parts of Beijing like the Dong'anmen gate. Thousands of people were killed in this type of mutiny. Yuan Shikai was showcasing to the rebels the new government would be in Beijing and that he refused to move to Nanjing where he would not be able to control his military as effectively. In the meantime there was the pesky issue of…well the Qing dynasty and their emperor still existed! The entire time Yuan Shikai and the revolutionaries were playing game of thrones, Yuan Shikai was also manipulating the Qing court. Yuan Shikai told the Qing court and Empress Dowager Longyu the revolutionaries would butcher them all, unless dramatic concessions were made. Zaifeng stepped down as regent on December 6th, and the Empress Dowager Longyu took over the empire. Yuan Shikai made it clear to her, Puyi had to abdicate the throne, because he would not be able to protect them from the revolutionaries. On February the 12th, Yuan Shikai and Empress Dowager Longyu met, and as recalled in Puyi's autobiography “The Dowager Empress was sitting on a kang [platform] in a side room of the Mind Nature Palace, wiping her eyes with a handkerchief as a fat old man [Yuan] knelt before her on a red cushion, tears streaming down his face. I was sitting to the right of the widow and wondering why both adults were crying. There was no one in the room other than the three of us and everything was very quiet; the fat man snorted as he spoke and I couldn't understand what he was saying... This was the time when Yuan directly raised the question of abdication”. Yuan Shikai pressured Empress Dowager Longyu, by stating the imperial family's lives would not be spared if the emperor did not abdicate. If the revolutionaries reached Beijing before an abdication, the provisional government would not honor and terms between them. On February the 3rd Longyu gave Yuan Shikai full authority to negotiate the abdication terms between the Qing dynasty and the provisional government. Yuan Shikai sneakily drew up his own terms and dispatched it to the revolutionaries. The Imperial edict of abdication of the Qing Emperor would thus end 276 years of Qing rule and imperial rule that has lasted over 2132 years. Nearly 4000 years of monarchy had come to an end. Throughout China's grand history, old dynasties had always been replaced by new dynasties. After 1911, it was the first time a monarchy was completely overthrown and a republic was ushered in. Puyi would retain his imperial title and be treated as a monarch by the new Republic. Puyi and the royal family could remain in the northern half of the Forbidden city and the Summer palace. The Republic would grant them an annual 4 million taels. The reign of the last Qing emperor Puyi, had thus come to an end. All of this was negotiated through Yuan Shikai with the revolutionaries. He promised the revolutionaries he would get the emperor to abdicate, in return to be made the president of the new provisional government. It was a masterstroke of deception and power grabbing. In many ways you game of thrones fans can think of him as little finger if he actually won the throne…well maybe in the books he might still do so if Martin ever gets his fat ass to finish them. The revolutionaries really had no choice in the matter. During the battles, Yuan Shikai proved his Beiyang army was overwhelmingly more powerful. The only reason Yuan Shikai did not crush the rebellion was simply because he sought the best outcome for himself. After working most of his life to bring an end to the Qing dynasty, to usher in democracy, Dr Sun Yat-sen had to give up his presidency. It was a bittersweet moment to be sure. Dr Sun Yat-Sen is considered the Father of the Nation by both China and Taiwan. Though Dr Sun Yat-Sen had to step down, he still fought bitterly to keep the new capital as Nanjing rather than Beijing. But Yuan Shikai's powerbase was in Beijing, his Beiyang Army and loyal officers were all there. On February the 14th the issue came to a vote in the provincial senate, 20-5 in favor of Beijing vs Nanjing, there were two other votes for Wuhan and Tianjin. The senate majority wanted to secure the peace with Yuan Shikai, and there was also the added effect of checking against a Manchu restoration or Mongol secession. Sun Yat-sen and Huang Xing argued for Nanjing to balance against Yuan Shikai's power base in the north. Li Yuanhong presented Wuhan as a compromise, the provincial senate voted again, this time 19 vs 6 for Nanjing. Sun Yat-Sen then dispatched Cai Yuanpei and Wang Jingwei to persuade Yuan Shikai to move to Nanjing. Yuan Shikai welcomed the delegation and agreed to the move, but then suddenly on February 29th riots and fires broke out all over Beijing. It was allegedly orchestrated by Cao Kun a loyal officer under Yuan Shikai. The chaos gave Yuan Shikai pretext to stay in Beijing, lest the unrest continue. Thus Yuan Shikai won the issue, Beijing would be the capital. The battles during the Xinhai revolution had raged on for 41 days and in the end 13 provinces joined the revolution. In October of 1912 Yuan Shikai conferred honors to commanders on both sides of the battles to commemorate the founding of the new republic. It is estimated the battles had taken the lives of 4300 soldiers. Yuan Shikai was air quotes elected provisional president of the republic of China on February 14th and sworn in March 10th. In 1912, the Chinese national assembly elections were held, the first for the new republic. 30,000 electors chose 2000 members of the provincial assemblies and 596 members of the house of representatives and 274 senate members were elected by the provincial assemblies. Adult males over the age of 21 who were educated, owned property, paid taxes or who could prove they resided in China for more than 2 years were allowed to vote. Its estimated 40 million people registered for the election, that's roughly 5% of the population. Now Sun Yat-Sen was not going to allow Yuan Shikai to steal the new republic without a fight. Sun Yat-Sen was no fool and knew he would have to take a backseat for awhile so he asked Song Jiaoren to lead the political war effort to try and dismantle Yuan Shikai's stranglehold. Song Jiaoren mobilized the Tongmenghui. He offered an alliance to like minded small parties to join the Tongmenghui and thus ushered in the Kuomintang on August 25th of 1912 at the Huguang Guild Hall in Beijing. Song Jiaoren's KMT party won 269 out of 596 seats in the house of representatives and 123 seats out of 274 in the senate. The remaining seats were taken by the 3 other parties; the republicans led by Li Yuanhong; The Unity Party led by Zhang Binglin and the Democratic Party led by Tang Hualong. There were countless other smaller parties, but effectively Song Jiaoren was regarded as the next prime candidate for the position of Prime Minister. The 3 other losing parties all merged into the Progressive Party under the leadership of Liang Qichao and thus they were the opposition. At this point Yuan Shikai held overwhelming executive power and Song Jiaoren was leading the fight to dismantle that. During his campaigning Song Jiaoren made it abundantly clear he vehemently desired to limit the powers of the president. He also always took the chance to be critical of Yuan Shikai's obvious ambitions. Song Jiaoren from the very beginning began a campaign against Yuan Shikai, accusing him of attempting to restore a monarchical system, most likely to make himself Emperor. Song Jiaoren was learning from Dr Sun Yat-Sen and proved himself a very capable politician, but he also made a ton of enemies, above all else, Yuan Shikai. It looked like Song Jiaoren's first major action would be to push for an election of a future president. On March 20th of 1913, while traveling with a group of colleagues to parliament in Beijing, Song Jiaoran was shot twice at the Shanghai railway station by a lone gunman named Wu Shiying. Wu Shiying had been contracted by Ying Guixin, the leader of the Green Gang an underworld group. Ying Guixin also happened to be the chief of intelligence for Chen Qimei and a close associate of Yuan Shikai. Yuan Shikai had his secretary Zhao Bingjun order the hit. Song Jiaoren died two days later from his wounds. An investigation was made implicating Ying Guixin in the assassination, but Ying Guixin fled for his life and was murdered by two unknown swordsmen. Then Zhao Bingjun was poisoned. Talk about loose ends? Chinese media sources all pointed fingers at Yuan Shikai and indeed the population basically knew it was him. However there was no significant evidence to pin the crime upon Yuan Shikai and thus he was never actually implicated. Yuan Shikai was busy planning further assassinations of his political enemies and in april he secretly secured a loan of 25 million pounds sterling from Britain, France, Germany, Russia and Japan. This loan was used to bolster his Beiyang Army. In order to secure this loan the Beiyang government had to cede partial control over its national treasury to foreign ownership as leverage. This of course was humiliating and done without parliament causing massive outrage. The ones giving the most voice against Yuan Shikai were of course the KMT, whose leader had just been assassinated. Yuan Shikai began a process of bribing and killing his KMT enemies. Yuan Shikai began dismissing governors who were pro KMT and did whatever he possibly could to collapse them. Meanwhile as a result of the formation of the republic of China, all the revolutionary armies had been disbanded, but their soldiers were not compensated for toppling the Qing dynasty. This led to wide scale discontent. Yuan Shikai continued to gradually seize control over the government, while increasing his Beiyang Army and diminishing any other military forces that could threaten him. Yuan Shikai had thus greatly angered the revolutionary soldiers and the KMT. His political abuses were rampant, he was using violence to basically dissolve any opposition. The paint was on the wall as they say. Dr Sun Yat-Sen and the KMT would not stand for it any longer, there was to be a second revolution. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. The Wuchang Uprising was a springboard for other uprisings that ushered in the Xinhai revolution. The Qing dynasty had fallen and now a new Republic of China had emerged, but for how long could this experiment last? Yuan Shikai sought to seize ultimate power and it seems he was winning.
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