IB History Political Instability in China Notes

The Fall of the Qing Dynasty and the Warlord Era

1. The Qing Dynasty collapsed in the 1911 Revolution, ending over 2000 years of imperial rule. Sun Yat-sen founded the Republic of China.
2. Military strongman Yuan Shikai seized power from Sun, attempted to make himself Emperor, and died in 1916. His death removed the last figure capable of holding China together.
3. China fractured into regions controlled by rival warlords. Between 1916 and 1928, there were 7 major warlord groups in southern China and 3 in the north, plus smaller factions.
4. Warlords maintained private armies, imposed taxes, and fought for territory. No central authority existed, and foreign powers including Japan, Britain, and the USA exploited the chaos to expand influence.
5. Japan preferred a weak, divided China that could not challenge Japanese interests. A unified China under nationalist leadership would threaten Japan's economic and territorial ambitions.

Early Japanese Ambitions in China

1. In 1915, Japan issued the Twenty-One Demands to China, seeking extensive economic and political privileges in Shandong, Manchuria, and Inner Mongolia. China was forced to accept most demands under threat of war.
2. The demands caused outrage across China and fuelled the growth of Chinese nationalism directed against Japan. They also alarmed Western powers who saw Japan as overreaching.
3. The May Fourth Movement (1919) erupted after the Treaty of Versailles transferred German concessions in Shandong to Japan rather than returning them to China. Over 3,000 students protested in Beijing.
4. May Fourth became a broader cultural and political awakening, boosting support for both the KMT and the newly-formed CCP. It marked the birth of modern Chinese anti-imperialist nationalism.

The Rise of the Kuomintang (KMT)

1. Sun Yat-sen reorganised the KMT with Soviet assistance in the early 1920s, modelling its structure on the Communist Party. His ideology rested on the Three Principles of the People: nationalism, democracy, and livelihood.
2. The First United Front (1923-1927) allied the KMT and CCP against the warlords. Soviet advisers trained KMT officers at the Whampoa Military Academy, commanded by Chiang Kai-shek.
3. After Sun's death in March 1925, Chiang Kai-shek emerged as leader. He launched the Northern Expedition (1926-1928) to unify China, deploying over 1 million troops.