The Empire of China was a short-lived attempt by statesman, general and

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Yuan Shikai Yuan Shikai (; 16 September 1859 – 6 June 1916) was a Chinese military and government official who rose to power during the late Qing dynasty and eventually ended the Qing dynasty rule of China in 1912, later becoming the Emperor of China. H ...

from late 1915 to early 1916 to reinstate monarchy in China, with himself as the Hongxian Emperor. The attempt was unsuccessful; it set back the Chinese republican cause by many years and fractured China into a period of conflict between various local warlords.

Preparations for formation

After

was installed as the

second The second (symbol: s) is the unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), historically defined as of a day – this factor derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes and finally to 60 seconds ...

Provisional Great President of the

Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeast ...

established by

Sun Yat-sen Sun Yat-sen (; also known by several other names; 12 November 1866 – 12 March 1925)Singtao daily. Saturday edition. 23 October 2010. section A18. Sun Yat-sen Xinhai revolution 100th anniversary edition . was a Chinese politician who serve ...

, he took various steps to consolidate his power and remove opposition leaders from office. Both Sun and Yuan were "modernizers", Sun was a "radical revolutionary", while Yuan was a "conservative reformer". To secure his own power he collaborated with various European powers as well as

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. Around August 1915, he instructed Yang Du () ''et al.'' to canvass support for a return of the

monarchy A monarchy is a form of government in which a person, the monarch, is head of state for life or until abdication. The political legitimacy and authority of the monarch may vary from restricted and largely symbolic (constitutional monarchy) ...

. On 11 December 1915, an assembly unanimously elected him as Emperor. Yuan ceremonially declined, but "relented" and immediately agreed when the National Assembly petitioned again that day.Kuo T'ing-i et al. ''Historical Annals of the ROC (1911–1949).'' Vol 1, pp. 207–41. On 12 December, Yuan, supported by his son Yuan Keding, declared the Empire of China with himself as the "Great Emperor of the Chinese Empire" ( zh, s=中华帝国大皇帝, t=中華帝國大皇帝, p=Zhōnghuá Dìguó Dà Huángdì), taking the

era name A regnal year is a year of the reign of a sovereign, from the Latin ''regnum'' meaning kingdom, rule. Regnal years considered the date as an ordinal, not a cardinal number. For example, a monarch could have a first year of rule, a second year o ...

Hongxian ( zh, s=洪宪, t=洪憲, p=Hóngxiàn, "Promote the Constitution"). However, Yuan, now known as the Hongxian Emperor, delayed the accession rites until 1 January 1916. He had

Manchu The Manchus (; ) are a Tungusic East Asian ethnic group native to Manchuria in Northeast Asia. They are an officially recognized ethnic minority in China and the people from whom Manchuria derives its name. The Later Jin (1616–1636) and ...

clothes removed from culture and had

Han Han may refer to: Ethnic groups * Han Chinese, or Han People (): the name for the largest ethnic group in China, which also constitutes the world's largest ethnic group. ** Han Taiwanese (): the name for the ethnic group of the Taiwanese p ...

clothes revived but had put some changes to it. He wore new Han clothes to attend a dress rehearsal, but it was sabotaged by his

Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula * Korean cuisine * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl **Korean dialects and the Jeju language ** ...

concubine. Soon after, the Hongxian Emperor started handing out titles of

peerage A peerage is a legal system historically comprising various hereditary titles (and sometimes non-hereditary titles) in a number of countries, and composed of assorted noble ranks. Peerages include: Australia * Australian peers Belgium * Belgi ...

to his closest relatives and friends, as well as those whom he thought he could buy with titles. The

Aisin Gioro The House of Aisin-Gioro was a Manchu clan that ruled the Later Jin dynasty (1616–1636), the Qing dynasty (1636–1912), and Manchukuo (1932–1945) in the history of China. Under the Ming dynasty, members of the Aisin Gioro clan served as c ...

family of the

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...

, then living in the

Forbidden City The Forbidden City () is a Chinese palace, palace complex in Dongcheng District, Beijing, China, at the center of the Imperial City, Beijing, Imperial City of Beijing. It is surrounded by numerous opulent imperial gardens and temples includ ...

, "approved" of Yuan's accession as emperor, and even proposed a "royal marriage" of Yuan's daughter to

Puyi Aisin-Gioro Puyi (; 7 February 1906 – 17 October 1967), courtesy name Yaozhi (曜之), was the last emperor of China as the eleventh and final Qing dynasty monarch. He became emperor at the age of two in 1908, but was forced to abdicate on 1 ...

, the last Qing monarch.

Backlash

The year 1916 was to be "Hongxian Year 1" () rather than "Republic Year 5" (), but the Hongxian Emperor was opposed by not only the revolutionaries, but far more importantly by his subordinate military commanders, who believed that Yuan's assumption of the monarchy would allow him to rule without depending on the support of the military. Province after province rebelled after his inauguration, starting with

Yunnan Yunnan , () is a landlocked Provinces of China, province in Southwest China, the southwest of the People's Republic of China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 48.3 million (as of 2018). The capital of the province is ...

, led by the emperor's governor

Cai E Cai E (; 18 December 1882 – 8 November 1916) was a Chinese revolutionary leader and general. He was born Cai Genyin () in Shaoyang, Hunan, and his courtesy name was Songpo (). Cai eventually became an influential warlord in Yunnan (Yunnan ...

and general Tang Jiyao and Jiangxi, led by governor

Li Liejun Li Liejun (; 23 February 1882 – 20 February 1946), was a Chinese revolutionary leader and general in the early Republic of China. Biography Li was born in Wuning, Jiangxi, Province. In 1904, he was sent on a government scholarship to Jap ...

. The revolters formed the National Protection Army () and thus began the

National Protection War The National Protection War (), also known as the Anti-Monarchy War, was a civil war that took place in China between 1915 and 1916. Only three years earlier, the last Chinese dynasty, the Qing dynasty, had been overthrown and the Republic of C ...

. This was followed by other provinces declaring independence from the Empire. The emperor's Beiyang generals, whose soldiers had not received pay once from the imperial government, did not put up an aggressive campaign against the National Protection Army and the

Beiyang Army The Beiyang Army (), named after the Beiyang region,Hong Zhang (2019)"Yuan Shikai and the Significance of his Troop Training at Xiaozhan, Tianjin, 1895–1899" ''The Chinese Historical Review'' 26(1) was a large, Western-style Imperial Chinese Ar ...

suffered numerous defeats despite being better trained and equipped than the National Protection Army. Seeing the Hongxian Emperor's weakness and unpopularity, foreign powers withdrew their support (but did not choose sides in the war). The

Empire of Japan The also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was a historical nation-state and great power that existed from the Meiji Restoration in 1868 until the enactment of the post-World War II 1947 constitution and subsequent fo ...

first threatened to invade, then committed to overthrowing the Hongxian Emperor and recognised both sides of the conflict to be "in a state of war" and allowed Japanese citizens to help the Republicans. Faced with universal opposition, the emperor repeatedly delayed the accession rites to appease his foes. Funding for the ceremony was cut on 1 March. Yuan deliberated abandoning the monarchy with

Liang Shiyi Liang Shiyi (; May 5, 1869 – April 9, 1933) was a Chinese minister who served as List of premiers of China, premier of China during the Beiyang government from 1921 to 1922. Biography Liang Shiyi was born in Sanshui, Guangdong in 1869. In ...

on 17 March and abandoned it on 22 March. The "Hongxian" year was abolished on 23 March and the Republic was restored. Yuan reigned a total of 83 days. After President Yuan's death on 6 June, Vice President

Li Yuanhong Li Yuanhong (; courtesy name Songqing 宋卿) (October 19, 1864 – June 3, 1928) was a Chinese politician during the Qing dynasty and the Republic of China. He was the president of the Republic of China between 1916 and 1917, and between 1922 ...

assumed the presidency, and appointed Beiyang general

Duan Qirui Duan Qirui (; ) (March 6, 1865 – November 2, 1936) was a Chinese warlord and politician, a commander of the Beiyang Army and the acting Chief Executive of the Republic of China (in Beijing) from 1924 to 1926. He was also the Premier of the R ...

as his Premier and restored the National Assembly and the provisional Constitution. However, the central authority of the Beijing government was significantly weakened and the demise of Yuan's Empire plunged China into a period of warlordism.

National symbols

Although the name of the country in

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

was changed to the "Empire of China" (and "Hongxian" for state matters), the Hongxian Emperor continued to use "Republic of China" as the English name. The Hongxian Emperor set up the Ritual Regulations Office (), which issued the new official anthem for the Republic of China, "China heroically stands in the Universe" () in June 1915. Its lyrics were written by Yin Chang () and music by Wang Lu (). The lyrics were slightly modified in December 1915, with "Five Races Under One Union" () replaced with (Shanrang, the ancient system of Chinese emperor relinquishing seats to others in Yao and Shun's era) to be used during the Hongxian Emperor's reign. Yao was a legendary Chinese ruler. The era of ''Yao'' and ''

Shun Shun may refer to one of the following: *To shun, which means avoiding association with an individual or group * Shun (given name), a masculine Japanese given name *Seasonality in Japanese cuisine (''shun'', 旬) Emperor Shun * Emperor Shun (� ...

'' () is a Four-character idiom which means times of peace and prosperity. The national flag was changed from the original five-stripe flag to one where the red stripe is a centered cross; however, a flag with the former red stripe as a

saltire A saltire, also called Saint Andrew's Cross or the crux decussata, is a heraldic symbol in the form of a diagonal cross, like the shape of the letter X in Roman type. The word comes from the Middle French ''sautoir'', Medieval Latin ''saltator ...

was the version commonly used. The national emblem remained as the national emblem of the Republic of China (1913–1928), National emblem of Twelve Symbols of Sovereignty ().

List of people given peerages by the Hongxian Emperor

Yuan Shikai at winter solstice ceremony, 1914

Crown Prince ()

* Yuntai ()

Prince of the First Rank Wuyi ()

Duke Yansheng The Duke Yansheng, literally "Honorable Overflowing with Wisdom", sometimes translated as Holy Duke of Yen, was a Chinese title of nobility. It was originally created as a marquis title in the Western Han dynasty for a direct descendant o ...

Kong Lingyi () *

()

Dukes of the First Rank ()

Duan Zhigui Duan Zhigui (; 1869 – March 1925) was a Chinese general. Born in Hefei, Anhui, he attained the post of Heilongjiang governor in the late Qing dynasty and between 1912-13 was governor of Chahar and the military governor of Hubei between 1914 ...

() *

Feng Guozhang Feng Guozhang, (; courtesy: Huafu 華甫 or 華符) (January 7, 1859 – December 12, 1919) was a Chinese general and politician in early republican China. He held the office of Vice-President and then President of the Republic of China. He is ...

() *

Jiang Guiti Jiang Guiti () (1844 – January 16, 1922) was a Chinese general who served under Song Qing in the suppression of the Taiping and Nian rebels and later against the Empire of Japan The also known as the Japanese Empire or Imper ...

() * Liu Guanxiong () * Long Jiguang () *

Ni Sichong Ni Sichong, Duke of the First Rank (; ; 1868–1924) was a Chinese general. He was one of the handful of Beiyang generals who along with Yang Du and others supported Yuan Shikai's Empire of China during the National Protection War. He was la ...

() *

Zhang Xun Zhang Xun (; September 16, 1854 – September 11, 1923), courtesy name Shaoxuan (), art name Songshoulaoren (), nickname Bianshuai (, ), was a Chinese general and Qing loyalist who attempted to restore the abdicated emperor Puyi in the Manchu ...

()

Marquesses of the First Rank ()

Chen Yi Chen Yi may refer to: * Xuanzang (602–664), born as Chen Yi, Chinese Buddhist monk in Tang Dynasty * Chen Yi (Kuomintang) Chen Yi (; courtesy names Gongxia (公俠) and later Gongqia (公洽), sobriquet Tuisu (退素); May 3, 1883 – June ...

() * Li Chun () *

Lu Rongting Lu Rongting (; September 9, 1859 – November 6, 1928), also spelled as Lu Yung-ting and Lu Jung-t'ing, was a late Qing/early Republican military and political leader from Wuming, Guangxi. Lu belonged to the Zhuang ethnic group.吴振汉. � ...

() * Tang Jiyao () *

Tang Xiangming Tang Xiangming (; 1885–1975), courtesy name Zhuxin (铸新), was a Chinese naval officer. Tang studied Naval warfare in France and the United Kingdom. In 1905, he joined the Chinese United League (Tongmenghui). In 1911, during the Wuchang Upris ...

() *

Wang Zhanyuan Wang Zhanyuan () (February 20, 1861 – September 14, 1934) was a Chinese general of the Warlord Era of China's Republican period, whose power base was in Hubei province. Biography In October 1911, during the Xinhai Revolution, he was a ...

() *

Yan Xishan Yan Xishan (; 8 October 1883 – 22 July 1960, ) was a Chinese warlord who served in the government of the Republic of China. He effectively controlled the province of Shanxi from the 1911 Xinhai Revolution to the 1949 Communist victory in ...

() *

Zhao Ti Zhao Ti () (1871–1933) was a Chinese general of the late Qing and early Republican period of China. In 1920, he was military governor of Henan. References

1871 births 1933 deaths Qing dynasty generals Republic of China warlords from Henan ...

() * Zhu Rui ()

Counts of the First Rank ()

Cao Kun General Cao Kun (; courtesy name: Zhongshan () (December 12, 1862 – May 15, 1938) was a Chinese warlord and politician, who served the President of the Republic of China from 1923 to 1924, as well as the military leader of the Zhili clique ...

() *

Jin Yunpeng Jin Yunpeng (); ; 1877 – 30 January 1951) was a Chinese general and politician of the Warlord Era of the Republic of China. He served as both Minister of War and then Premier of China several times. His ascent to the Premiership was support ...

() *

Lu Jianzhang Lu Jianzhang (; 1862 – June 14, 1918) was a general of the late Qing dynasty and early Republican period of China. Biography He enlisted in the Huai Army in 1881, before joining the New Army in 1895. He entered the military academy at Tian ...

() * Meng Enyuan () * Qi Yaolin () * Qu Yinguang () *

Tian Wenlie Tian Wenlie ({{zh, 田文烈; November 9, 1858 – November 12, 1924) was a Chinese politician of the late Qing Dynasty and early Republican period, military governor of Henan province and supporter of Yuan Shikai's restoration of the monarchy. He ...

() *

Yang Shande Yang Shande () (1873 – August 13, 1919) was a Chinese politician of the late Qing Dynasty and early Republican period. He supported Yuan Shikai's restoration of the monarchy and was made a count under the Empire of China (1915–1916) ...

() *

Yang Zengxin Yang Zengxin (; March 6, 1864 – July 7, 1928) was the ruler of Xinjiang after the Xinhai Revolution in 1911 until his assassination in 1928. Life Yang Zengxin was born in Mengzi, Yunnan Province, in 1864. Though a Han Chinese, he had c ...

() *

Zhang Mingqi Zhang Mingqi () (July 29, 1875 – September 15, 1945) was a Qing Dynasty politician who served as the last Viceroy of Liangguang from April 14 to November 8, 1911. He was born in Shandong province. He supported Yuan Shikai's creation of the Em ...

() *

Zhang Xiluan Zhang Xiluan ({{zh, 張錫鑾) (1843–1922) was a Chinese general of the late Qing Dynasty. 1843 births 1922 deaths Generals from Zhejiang Politicians from Hangzhou Qing dynasty generals Republic of China politicians from Zhejiang Empire o ...

() *

Zhu Jiabao Zhu Jiabao (; 1860 – September 5, 1923) was a Chinese monarchist politician who supported the creation of the Empire of China and the 1917 Manchu Restoration of Zhang Xun. He was born in Ningzhou Town, Huaning County, Yunnan. In 1907, he ...

()

Viscounts of the First Rank ()

* Li Houji () *

Liu Xianshi Liu Xianshi ({{zh, 劉顯世) (May 8, 1870 – October 14, 1927) was a Chinese general of the Late Qing dynasty and early Republican period. Initially supporting Yuan Shikai and his declaration of the Empire of China, Liu joined Cai E and Tang J ...

() *

Zhang Guangjian Zhang Guangjian () (1864/1867 – 1938) was a Chinese politician of the late Qing Dynasty and early Republican period. A native of Hefei, Anhui, he was the last Qing governor of Shandong, serving after the outbreak of the Xinhai Revolution in t ...

() *

Zhu Qinglan Zhu Qinglan (), formerly transliterated as Chu Ching-lan (1874 – 13 January 1941) courtesy name Ziqiao () was a Chinese military officer of the Republic of China (1912–49), Republic of China Military career Under the Republic of China, Z ...

()

Barons of the First Rank ()

* Cai Rukai () *

Chen Bingkun Chen Bingkun, (),(1868 – September 1927) was born in 1868 in Liujiang, Guangxi, China. A general in the late Qing Period, he was commander of the 1st Division of the Guangxi Provincial Army. As a supporter of the Old Guangxi Clique he beca ...

() * Duan Shuyun () * He Zonglian () *

Jin Yong Louis Cha Leung-yung (; 10 March 1924 – 30 October 2018), better known by his pen name Jin Yong (), pronounced "Gum Yoong" in Cantonese, was a Chinese wuxia (" martial arts and chivalry") novelist and essayist who co-founded the Hong Kong d ...

() * Long Jianzhang () *

Long Jinguang Long Jinguang () (1863 – 1917) was an ethnic Hani Chinese general of the late Qing and early Republican period of China. He was the older brother of Chinese general Long Jiguang. Both brothers supported Yuan Shikai Yuan Shikai (; 16 Sep ...

() * Lu Yongxiang () * Lü Diaoyuan () *

Ma Anliang Ma Anliang (, French romanization: Ma-ngan-leang, Xiao'erjing: ; 1855 – November 24, 1918) was a Hui born in Hezhou, Gansu, China. He became a general in the Qing dynasty army, and of the Republic of China. His father was Ma Zhan'a ...

() * Pan Juying () * Qi Yang () *

Ren Kecheng Ren or REN may refer to: Abbreviations * Orenburg Tsentralny Airport, IATA code REN, civil airport in Russia * Redes Energéticas Nacionais (REN), Portuguese company * Renanthera, abbreviated as Ren, orchid genus * Ringer equivalence number (RE ...

() *

Shen Jinjian Shen Jinjian () (1875–1924) was a politician of the Republic of China, the 4th Republican mayor of Beijing. He was born in Huzhou, Zhejiang. Bibliography * * {{Authority control 1875 births 1924 deaths Republic of China politicians ...

() *

Wang Yitang Wang Yitang (; October 17, 1877 – September 10, 1948) was a politician and military leader in the Qing Dynasty and Republic of China. He belonged to the Anhui clique and formed the Anfu Club (). Later he became an important politician in t ...

() *

Xu Shiying Xu Shiying (; September 10, 1873 – October 13, 1964, also romanized as Hsu Shih-ing) was a Chinese people, Chinese Kuomintang politics of the Republic of China, politician who served as Premier of the Republic of China, Premier of the Republic ...

() * Zhang Huaizhi ()

Baron of the Third Rank ()

Feng Yuxiang Feng Yuxiang (; ; 6 November 1882 – 1 September 1948), courtesy name Huanzhang (焕章), was a warlord and a leader of the Republic of China from Chaohu, Anhui. He served as Vice Premier of the Republic of China from 1928 to 1930. He was ...

() * He Fenglin () * Xu Lanzhou ()

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Empire Of China (1915-1916) Warlord Era 1915 establishments in China States and territories disestablished in 1916

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

China (1915-1916) China (1915-1916) 1916 in China Former countries in Chinese history

Conservatism in China

Preparations for formation

Backlash

National symbols

List of people given peerages by the Hongxian Emperor

Crown Prince ()

Prince of the First Rank Wuyi ()

Dukes of the First Rank ()

Marquesses of the First Rank ()

Counts of the First Rank ()

Viscounts of the First Rank ()

Barons of the First Rank ()

Baron of the Third Rank ()

See also

References

External links