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The Zhili–Anhui War was a 1920 conflict in 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 ...
between the
Zhili Zhili, alternately romanized as Chihli, was a northern administrative region of China since the 14th-century that lasted through the Ming dynasty and Qing dynasty until 1911, when the region was dissolved, converted to a province, and renamed ...
and
Anhui clique The Anhui clique () was a military and political organization, one of several mutually hostile cliques or factions that split from the Beiyang clique in the Republic of China's Warlord Era. It was named after Anhui province because several of its ...
s for control 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 r ...
.


Prelude

Tensions between the two factions developed during the
Constitutional Protection War 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 Government of the Republic of China in Guangzhou, another government in Guangzh ...
of 1917.
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 ...
, leader of the Anhui clique, favored aggressive action against the South, and after becoming premier of the state department (Guwu Zongli, 国务总理) advocated a military solution. His plan was to rid southern China of rival warlords, as well as unify the country. The Zhili clique favored compromise and negotiations, hoping to sway rival warlords to their side with financial and political support. Duan refused to acknowledge the Zhili's efforts and favored his own officers and politicians over others. After building a ''de facto'' private army using the
Nishihara Loans The were a series of loans made by the Japanese government under the administration of Prime Minister Terauchi Masatake to the Anhui clique warlord Duan Qirui from January 1917 to September 1918 to persuade him to favor Japanese interests in China ...
, he used it to occupy Outer Mongolia. Feeling threatened,
Manchuria Manchuria is an exonym (derived from the endo demonym " Manchu") for a historical and geographic region in Northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day Northeast China (Inner Manchuria) and parts of the Russian Far East (Outer Manc ...
's
Fengtian clique The Fengtian clique () was one of several opposing military factions that constituted the early Republic of China during its Warlord Era. It was named after Fengtian Province (now Liaoning), and operated from a territorial base comprising the thr ...
allied with the Zhili clique and began courting those warlords in southwestern China who had previously been threatened by Duan's Anhui armies. Obtaining British and American backing, the Zhili and Fengtian cliques had President
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 ...
dismiss Gen.
Xu Shuzheng Hsu Seu-Cheng or Xu Shuzheng (; ) (11 November 1880 – 29 December 1925) was a Chinese warlord in Republican China. A subordinate and right-hand man of Duan Qirui, he was a prominent member of the Anhui clique. Early life Xu was born in ...
, the leader of the Mongolia expedition. Having publicly lost face and been undermined by a less powerful but still dangerous pair of ex-allies and hangers-on, Gen. Xu and Duan denounced the actions and prepared for war. In November 1919 Zhili clique leader Gen.
Wu Peifu Wu Peifu or Wu P'ei-fu (; April 22, 1874 – December 4, 1939) was a major figure in the struggles between the warlords who dominated Republican China from 1916 to 1927. Early career Born in Shandong Province in eastern China, Wu initi ...
met with representatives of
Tang Jiyao Tang Jiyao () (August 14, 1883 – May 23, 1927) was a Chinese general and warlord of Yunnan during the Warlord Era of early Republican China. He was military governor of Yunnan from 1913-27. Life Tang was born in Huize county in 1883 in ...
and
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. ...
at
Hengyang Hengyang (; ) is the second largest city of Hunan Province, China. It straddles the Xiang River about south of the provincial capital of Changsha. As of the 2020 Chinese census, Its total population was 6,645,243 inhabitants, whom 1,290,715 ...
, where they signed a treaty entitled "Rough Draft of the National Salvation Allied Army" (救国同盟军草约). This formed the basis of a true anti-Anhui clique alliance. In April 1920, while visiting a memorial service at
Baoding Baoding (), formerly known as Baozhou and Qingyuan, is a prefecture-level city in central Hebei province, approximately southwest of Beijing. As of the 2010 census, Baoding City had 11,194,382 inhabitants out of which 2,176,857 lived in the b ...
for soldiers who died in
Hunan Hunan (, ; ) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the South Central China region. Located in the middle reaches of the Yangtze watershed, it borders the province-level divisions of Hubei to the north, Jiangxi to ...
, one-time presidential-candidate
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 in ...
added more warlords to the anti-Anhui clique alliance, including the rulers of
Hubei Hubei (; ; alternately Hupeh) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, and is part of the Central China region. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Dongting Lake. The prov ...
,
Henan Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is al ...
,
Liaoning Liaoning () is a coastal province in Northeast China that is the smallest, southernmost, and most populous province in the region. With its capital at Shenyang, it is located on the northern shore of the Yellow Sea, and is the northernmost ...
,
Jilin Jilin (; alternately romanized as Kirin or Chilin) is one of the three provinces of Northeast China. Its capital and largest city is Changchun. Jilin borders North Korea (Rasŏn, North Hamgyong, Ryanggang and Chagang) and Russia (Prim ...
,
Heilongjiang Heilongjiang () formerly romanized as Heilungkiang, is a province in northeast China. The standard one-character abbreviation for the province is (). It was formerly romanized as "Heilungkiang". It is the northernmost and easternmost province ...
,
Jiangsu Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, Postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an Eastern China, eastern coastal Provinces of the People's Republic of China, province of the China, People's Republic of China. It is o ...
,
Jiangxi Jiangxi (; ; formerly romanized as Kiangsi or Chianghsi) is a landlocked province in the east of the People's Republic of China. Its major cities include Nanchang and Jiujiang. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze river in the north int ...
and
Zhili Zhili, alternately romanized as Chihli, was a northern administrative region of China since the 14th-century that lasted through the Ming dynasty and Qing dynasty until 1911, when the region was dissolved, converted to a province, and renamed ...
. The conflict became public as both sides began deploying for the coming war.


Paoting-fu Telegram

Various Zhili and Fengtian generals—such as
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 in ...
,
Zhang Zuolin Zhang Zuolin (; March 19, 1875 June 4, 1928), courtesy name Yuting (雨亭), nicknamed Zhang Laogang (張老疙瘩), was an influential Chinese bandit, soldier, and warlord during the Warlord Era in China. The warlord of Manchuria from 1916 to ...
,
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 ...
, Li Shun, Chen Guangyuan,
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 ...
and
Ma Fuxiang Ma Fuxiang (, Xiao'erjing: , French romanization: Ma-Fou-hiang or Ma Fou-siang; 4 February 1876 – 19 August 1932) was a Chinese military and political leader spanning the Qing Dynasty through the early Republic of China and illustrated the po ...
—signed a denunciation of the Anhui clique and its political arm, the Anfu Club, which was led by Xu Shuzheng and Duan Qirui. This denunciation was circulated through a telegram called Paoting-fu on July 12, 1920.


Strategies

In early July 1920 the Anhui clique gathered five divisions and four combined brigades to form the so-called National Stabilization Army (定国军), with Duan Qirui as its commander-in-chief. The army was deployed in two fronts, the western covering the regions of
Zhuozhou Zhuozhou (), is a county-level city with 628,000 inhabitants in Hebei province, bordering Beijing to the north. It is administered by Baoding prefecture-level city. Zhuozhou has 3 subdistricts, 6 towns, 5 townships, and 1 development zone. Adm ...
, Laishui (涞水) and Gu'an (固安), while the eastern covered the regions of Liang (梁) Hamlet and Beijimiao (北极庙), just to the west of Yang(杨) Hamlet. Zhili and allied forces gathered a division and nine combined brigades to form their own "Traitor Suppression Army" (讨逆军), with Wu Peifu as its front-line commander-in-chief. This, too, was deployed on two fronts, with an eastern zone in the region of Yang(杨) Hamlet and a western front in the region of Gaobei (高碑). Meanwhile, Zhang Zuolin ordered a detachment of his troops to enter
Shanhaiguan Shanhai Pass or Shanhaiguan () is one of the major passes in the Great Wall of China, being the easternmost stronghold along the Ming Great Wall, and commands the narrowest choke point in the Liaoxi Corridor. It is located in Shanhaiguan Di ...
, taking up positions at Machang ( 马厂) and Junliangcheng (军粮城).


Battle

On July 14, 1920, the Anhui army attacked the Zhili army on both fronts. Zhili troops were forced to abandon Gaobei (高碑) and retreated. Two days later, with help from Japanese troops, the Anhui army also succeeded in taking Yang(杨) Hamlet, forcing Zhili forces to form a second line of defense in the region of Beicang(北仓). Here the Anhui army's advance was finally halted. On July 17 Wu Peifu personally commanded the Zhili army's western front, performing a daring maneuver, outflanking the enemy and taking the western zone's Anhui headquarters. He captured the Anhui army's front-line commander-in-chief
Qu Tongfeng Qu Tongfeng, (; ; 1873–1929) was a general who served Yuan Shikai and the Anhui clique. Qu Tongfeng was born in Fushan County, now in Yantai, Fushan District of Shandong. At age 16 he joined the Beiyang Fleet and served as second-class en ...
(曲同丰) and many of his officers, including the 1st Division commander. After taking the town of
Zhuozhou Zhuozhou (), is a county-level city with 628,000 inhabitants in Hebei province, bordering Beijing to the north. It is administered by Baoding prefecture-level city. Zhuozhou has 3 subdistricts, 6 towns, 5 townships, and 1 development zone. Adm ...
, Wu pursued the retreating enemy toward Beijing. With the exception of the 15th Division, the remainder of the Anhui army on the western front was annihilated. On the same day the Fengtian army attacked the Anhui eastern front. Upon learning of the collapse of the western zone, Anhui's eastern commander, chief of staff Gen.
Xu Shuzheng Hsu Seu-Cheng or Xu Shuzheng (; ) (11 November 1880 – 29 December 1925) was a Chinese warlord in Republican China. A subordinate and right-hand man of Duan Qirui, he was a prominent member of the Anhui clique. Early life Xu was born in ...
, fled
Langfang Langfang () is a prefecture-level city of Hebei Province, which was known as Tianjin Prefecture until 1973. It was renamed Langfang Prefecture after Tianjin became a municipality and finally upgraded into a prefecture-level city in 1988. Lang ...
to Beijing, leaving his troops to surrender to the combined might of the Fengtian and Zhili cliques. On July 19, 1920, Duan Qirui realized the fight was over and resigned from his post. On July 23 the combined Fengtian and Zhili cliques entered Nanyuan (南苑) for the takeover of Beijing, concluding with the defeat and surrender of the Anhui clique.


Conclusion

Slightly more than a week of fighting led to the unexpected defeat of the Anhui clique and the permanent breakup of 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 ...
.
Wu Peifu Wu Peifu or Wu P'ei-fu (; April 22, 1874 – December 4, 1939) was a major figure in the struggles between the warlords who dominated Republican China from 1916 to 1927. Early career Born in Shandong Province in eastern China, Wu initi ...
was nationally credited as the strategist behind the Zhili clique's victory, while the Fengtian clique provided token support and were allowed to form a joint government, an arrangement which would last until the
First Zhili-Fengtian War First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...
in 1922.


See also

*
List of battles of the Chinese Civil War The following is a list of Chinese wars and battles, organized by date.Xiaobing Li, ''China at War: An Encyclopedia.'' (ABC-CLIO, 2012).excerpt/ref> Ancient China Imperial China Qin dynasty (221–206 BCE) Han dynasty (206 BCE – ...
*
National Revolutionary Army The National Revolutionary Army (NRA; ), sometimes shortened to Revolutionary Army () before 1928, and as National Army () after 1928, was the military arm of the Kuomintang (KMT, or the Chinese Nationalist Party) from 1925 until 1947 in China ...
*
Chinese Civil War The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led government of the Republic of China and forces of the Chinese Communist Party, continuing intermittently since 1 August 1927 until 7 December 1949 with a Communist victory on m ...
* Warlord Era


References

*Ke-Wen Wang
Modern China: An Encyclopedia of History, Culture, and Nationalism.
Taylor & Francis Taylor & Francis Group is an international company originating in England that publishes books and academic journals. Its parts include Taylor & Francis, Routledge, F1000 (publisher), F1000 Research or Dovepress. It is a division of Informa ...
, 1997. ; pp. 419–420 *Zhang, Tongxin ''History of Wars between Nationalist New Warlords'', 1st Edition, published by
Heilongjiang Heilongjiang () formerly romanized as Heilungkiang, is a province in northeast China. The standard one-character abbreviation for the province is (). It was formerly romanized as "Heilungkiang". It is the northernmost and easternmost province ...
People's Publishing House in
Harbin Harbin (; mnc, , v=Halbin; ) is a sub-provincial city and the provincial capital and the largest city of Heilongjiang province, People's Republic of China, as well as the second largest city by urban population after Shenyang and largest ...
& distributed by New China Bookstore
Heilongjiang Heilongjiang () formerly romanized as Heilungkiang, is a province in northeast China. The standard one-character abbreviation for the province is (). It was formerly romanized as "Heilungkiang". It is the northernmost and easternmost province ...
branch, 1982. {{DEFAULTSORT:Zhili-Anhui War Conflicts in 1920 Wars involving the Republic of China Warlord Era 1920 in China Anhui clique