The Government of the Republic of China ({{Zh, t=廣州中華民國政府) was the government that led the
Second Constitutional Protection Movement
The Constitutional Protection Movement () was a series of movements led by Sun Yat-sen to resist the Beiyang government between 1917 and 1922, in which Sun established another government in Guangzhou as a result. It was known as the Third Revolut ...
. The
military junta
A military junta () is a government led by a committee of military leaders. The term ''junta'' means "meeting" or "committee" and originated in the national and local junta organized by the Spanish resistance to Napoleon's invasion of Spain in ...
was replaced by a
presidential system
A presidential system, or single executive system, is a form of government in which a head of government, typically with the title of president, leads an executive branch that is separate from the legislative branch in systems that use separatio ...
.
History
After
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 ...
left
Guangzhou
Guangzhou (, ; ; or ; ), also known as Canton () and Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Kwongchow or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, sou ...
on 21 May 1918, he returned to Guangzhou on 28 November 1920, reorganized the
southern military government, and began the
Second Constitutional Protection Movement
The Constitutional Protection Movement () was a series of movements led by Sun Yat-sen to resist the Beiyang government between 1917 and 1922, in which Sun established another government in Guangzhou as a result. It was known as the Third Revolut ...
. On 12 January 1921, the Extraordinary Congress resumed its meeting in Guangzhou. On 2 April, the Extraordinary Congress met and announced the abolition of the southern military government, claiming to form the government of the Republic of China. Sun Yat-sen was elected "Great President" on 7 April, and he took office in Guangzhou on 5 May.
After his election, Sun Yat-sen issued separate statements at home and abroad, and wrote an open letter to
Xu Shichang
Xu Shichang (Hsu Shih-chang; ; courtesy name: Juren (Chu-jen; 菊人); October 20, 1855 – June 5, 1939) was the President of the Republic of China, in Beijing, from 10 October 1918 to 2 June 1922. The only permanent president of the Beiyang ...
, President of the
Beiyang Government
The Beiyang government (), officially the Republic of China (), sometimes spelled Peiyang Government, refers to the government of the Republic of China which sat in its capital Peking (Beijing) between 1912 and 1928. It was internationally ...
, persuading him to resign voluntarily. At the same time, he published his new government central personnel list:
* Minister of Foreign Affairs
Wu Tingfang
**
Wu Chaoshu
*Minister of Finance
Tang Shaoyi
**
Liao Zhongkai
Liao Zhongkai (April 23, 1877 – August 20, 1925) was a Chinese-American Kuomintang leader and financier. He was the principal architect of the first Kuomintang–Chinese Communist Party (KMT–CCP) United Front in the 1920s. He was assassina ...
*Secretary of the Army
Chen Jiongming
Chen Jiongming, (; 18 January 187822 September 1933), courtesy name Jingcun (竞存/競存), nickname Ayan (阿烟/阿煙), was a Hailufeng Hokkien revolutionary figure in the early period of the Republic of China.
Early life
Chen Jiongming wa ...
*Minister of the Interior Chen Jiongming
*Secretary of the Navy
Tang Tingguang
*Chief of Staff
Li Liejun
*Secretary-General
Ma Junwu
*General Senate and Chief Civil Officer
Hu Hanmin
*President
Xu Shaozhen
*Political Minister
Hu Hanmin
*Governor of Guangdong Chen Jiongming
After Sun Yat-sen took office, the main force was the
Northern Expedition
The Northern Expedition was a military campaign launched by the National Revolutionary Army (NRA) of the Kuomintang (KMT), also known as the "Chinese Nationalist Party", against the Beiyang government and other regional warlords in 1926. The ...
to unify China. However, Sun Yat-sen's idea of the Northern Expedition was opposed by Chen Jiongming, who had risen to prominence in Guangzhou through the development of the Guangdong Army. Chen Jiongming advocated joint provincial autonomy – proposed by Hunan warlord
Tan Yankai – and a federal system. Chen Jiongming advocated "suspending the military", implementing
inter-provincial autonomy to secure territory, "establishing the provincial constitution first," and building Guangdong. But Sun Yat-sen believed that "inter-provincial autonomy" recognized the status quo of the regime of the
Beiyang government
The Beiyang government (), officially the Republic of China (), sometimes spelled Peiyang Government, refers to the government of the Republic of China which sat in its capital Peking (Beijing) between 1912 and 1928. It was internationally ...
, and in essence would still be a disguised warlord regime. Sun Yat-sen implemented the strategy of unifying the country by force, and eventually clashed with Chen Jiongming.
In April 1922,
Wu Peifu secretly sent someone to Guangdong to contact Chen Jiongming, asking Chen Jiongming to oppose Sun Yat-sen's Northern Expedition. In May, Wu Peifu had a secret appointment with Chen Jiongming. Wu Peifu expelled
Xu Shichang
Xu Shichang (Hsu Shih-chang; ; courtesy name: Juren (Chu-jen; 菊人); October 20, 1855 – June 5, 1939) was the President of the Republic of China, in Beijing, from 10 October 1918 to 2 June 1922. The only permanent president of the Beiyang ...
in the north, and Chen Jiongming overthrew Sun Yat-sen in the south. The first step was to reinstate
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 ...
, and use the abolition of the government to disarm
Cao Kun and the warlords of the provinces. If the failure was also the victim of Li Yuanhong, let the Congress urgently elect Wu Peifu and Chen Jiongming as the president and vice president.
Wu Tingfang and
Cai Yuanpei were the transitional president and vice president. According to the wishes of Cao Kun and Wu Peifu, the northern warlords issued energizations one after another, demanding that the North and South presidents abdicate at the same time. On 31 May 1922, 203 members of the Senate and House of Representatives of the old Congress issued a declaration announcing that they would exercise parliamentary powers on the same day, abolish the North and South governments, and form a united government.
After the end of the
First Zhili–Fengtian War, the situation became increasingly sinister. On 3 June 1922,
Ye Ju declared
martial law
Martial law is the imposition of direct military control of normal civil functions or suspension of civil law by a government, especially in response to an emergency where civil forces are overwhelmed, or in an occupied territory.
Use
Martia ...
in Guangzhou. Wu Peifu and Chen Jiongming used Li Yuanhong's reinstatement as an excuse to say that the purpose of protecting the constitution had been achieved, and they demanded that Sun Yat-sen and Xu Shichang step down at the same time. Since Sun Yat-sen once issued a political declaration during a war to defend the law, he promised that if the Beiyang veteran Xu Shichang and his Beiyang government step down and disband, he will also step down. Cai Yuanpei,
Hu Shi,
Gao Yihan
Gao Yihan (高一涵, P: ''Gāo Yīhán'', W: ''Kao I-han'', 1884–1968) was a Chinese intellectual and political scientist. In addition to holding both educational and governmental positions, he contributed often to the publications '' The Tiger ...
and more than two hundred celebrities from all walks of life who supported the inter-provincial autonomy jointly called Sun Yat-sen and the Guangzhou Extraordinary Congress to fulfill his promise. At the same time, Wu Peifu also separately invited Sun Yat-sen, Wu Tingfang, Li Liejun and others to go north to reconnect with the country and create an atmosphere of "national unity."
Chen Jiongming took the final step on 13 June 1922, convening a meeting with Ye Ju and others in
Shilong to discuss the military deployment of the rebellion. In the middle of the night on 15 June, senior generals of the Guangdong Army convened a meeting and decided to launch a military operation to remove Sun from power. On the same day, Ye Ju mobilized troops in
Baiyun Mountain to prepare for bombardment of the Guanyin Mountain Presidential Palace and Yuexiu Tower. On 16 June, the Cantonese military first called and notified the bombardment of the Guanyin Mountain Presidential Palace. Sun Yat-sen left on the Yongfeng ship under the escorts of
Jiang Zhongzheng
Chiang Kai-shek (31 October 1887 – 5 April 1975), also known as Chiang Chung-cheng and Jiang Jieshi, was a Chinese Nationalist politician, revolutionary, and military leader who served as the leader of the Republic of China (ROC) from 1928 ...
and
Chen Ce, and retired from Guangdong in early August to
Shanghai
Shanghai (; , , Standard Chinese, Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four Direct-administered municipalities of China, direct-administered municipalities of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the ...
, where
Lu Yongxiang Lu Yongxiang may refer to:
*Lu Yongxiang (warlord)
Lu Yongxiang, (; October 22, 1867 – May 15, 1933), Anhui clique warlord, military governor of Zhejiang, Zhili, and Jiangsu.
Lu Yongxiang was born October 22, 1867, in Jiyang, Shandong, C ...
held influence. The government of the Republic of China in Guangzhou collapsed. The second constitutional protection movement failed.
After the
June 16 Incident, Sun Yat-sen continued to serve as the extraordinary president.
On 19 January 1923, Sun Yat-sen handed over power to Hu Hanmin, Li Liejun,
Wei Bangping,
Xu Chongzhi
Xu or XU may refer to:
People and characters
* Xu (surname), one of two Chinese surnames ( or /), transliterated as Xu in English
* ǃXu, a name for the ǃKung group of Bushmen; may also refer to the ǃKung language or the ǃKung people
* ǃXu ...
, and
Zou Lu to collectively take full powers as president. On 21 February, Sun Yat-sen arrived in Guangzhou again and set up the
Army and Navy Marshal stronghold.
1921 in China
1922 in China
History of Guangzhou