Explain the growth of political instability from 1912 to 1927

1
Explain the growth of political instability from
1912 to 1927
2

• Introduction
• Definition of political instability
• ? chaotic political conditions
• unstable government

• 3 phases
• ? Yuan Shikais presidency (1912-1916)

3
? early warlord era (1916-25) ? late warlord
period (1925-27)
- previous problems remained unresolved and the
situation became increasingly complicated ?
growth of political instability
4
Early Republican Period (1912-1916)
5
1. Conflict between Yuan Shikai and the
revolutionaries

• Yuan didn't favor republicanism
• ? led to regionalism national
• disintegration
• ? disputes between the Parliament
• and the President

6

• ? personal lust for power
• Yuan dreamed of the revival of the
• monarchy

- The revolutionaries wanted to uphold a
genuine republic
? bring liberal rights to the people ? adopt the
cabinet system ? check the abuse of Yuan
7

• ? Clashing goals of Yuan and the
• revolutionaries led to political
• instability

e.g. the Assassination of Song Jiaoren the
Second Revolution (1913) the dissolution
of the GMD (1914) the revival of the
monarchy (1916)
8
2. High degree of regional autonomy

• Before the 1911 Revolution, the
• provincial leaders held supreme financial
• and military power in their own regions
• Regionalism continued after the
• establishment of the Republic

9

• ? the provinces ignored the central
• order
• administrative re-integration by Yuan in
• 1914
• ? greatly antagonized the provinces
• ? opposed the monarchical movement
• ? all centralization policies were abolished
• after the death of Yuan

10

• the provinces tightened their control
• over their bases afterwards
• ? free from the central authority
• ? intensified regionalism reflected
• political instability

11
3. Foreign Imperialism

• great humiliation due to the loss of
• sovereignty
• ? mass protests and demonstrations
• ? criticism on the government
• ? growing demands for a genuine
• republic on the part of the intellectuals

12
e.g. After the presentation of the ? Twenty One
Demands (1915), boycotts of Japanese goods
were organized ? people were
increasingly anti-Yuan - ? political instability
13
Warlordism (1916-1925)
14
Warlordism (1916-1925)

• 1916 Death of Yuan Shikai
• ? disappearance of a strong power-holder
• the Beiyang Army broke into smaller
  constituencies and fought against each other for
  personal interest
• the warlord period
• ?A period of chaos and disorder

15
First phase of struggle

• Order was sought by reviving the provisional
  constitution pf 1912 and reconvening the
  parliament of 1913
• The parliament became increasingly under the
  control of warlords
• ?estranging the southern provinces

16
Second phase of struggle

• A wider north-south split, further fragmentation
  of power and greater frustration of civilian
  politicians
• The split of Beiyang militarists into 2 factions
• Anhui Clique under Duan Qirui Vs. Zhili Clique
  under Feng Guozhang
• Sun Yixians military government in Guangzhou
  also split
• Negotiation between the North and South failed

17
Third phase of struggle

• Minority in both North and south seek allies,
  ousted the groups in power
• Wars between the Zhili Clique and Fengtian clique
• ? the First Zhi-Feng War 1922
• ? the Second Zhi-Feng War 1924

18
Reasons for the growth of political instability

• Disappearance of a strong power holder Yuan
  Shikai
• Constant civil wars among warlords and between
  warlords and the politicians
• Feature of warlord politics extraordinary
  rapidity and frequency with which national and
  provincial posts changed hands
• ? ?political instability

19
May Fourth Movement (1919)

• Chinas demand on the recovery of Shandong and
  the complete abolition of the unequal treaties
  were rejected at the Versailles Peace
  Conference?resulted in great disappointment among
  the Chinese
• Mass demonstration, general strikes etc. were
  organized
• ? ?political instability

20
From 1925-27
The Northern Expedition
Intensified Political Instability
Why?.
21
Prolonged Warfare gtBetween the Warlords Groups
and The National Revolutionary Army
The NRA struck a blitzkrieg from Guangzhou to
Central China The warlord governments in the
provinces were abruptly attacked and driven away
Political instability in the provinces
HEIGHTENED!
22

• The presence of the NRA added confusion to the
  already unstable political condition

Before 1925 Warlords VS Warlords
23
Confrontation between the Chinese Communist Party
and the Nationalist Government
The admission of CCP members into GMD Distrust
and suspicion from the beginning gt ideological
differences
What made it worse?
24

• Mobilization of peasant and worker organization
  by the CCP

• Growing influence of the CCP over the mass
  movement

• Question of dual membership of the Communists

Creation of a bloc within
25

• Break with Communist
• 20/3/1926 the Warship Chung-shan incident
• gt sowed the seed of desire to curb the power of
  the Communists

• 15/5/1926 GMD Central Executive Committee took
  actions to
• limit the communist membership in the committee
• Prohibit GMD from accepting Communist members

26
Factionalism gtPower struggle between the
leftists and the rightists within the Nationalist
Government
Leftists cooperative with the Communists Rightist
s hostile towards the Communists
gt constant rivalry and accusation against one
another gtinternal instability of the
government
27
August 1925 assassination of Liu Zonghai gt
afterwards, the rightists hold the Fourth Central
Executive Committee gt called for the expulsion
of the Communists from GMD and dismissal of
Borodin gt leftists accused the Western Hill
Group (rightists) of lacking the legal quorum to
pass resolution gt 1/1/1926 called for a Second
National Congress Western Hill Group split with
Guangzhou !!
28
Separation of Jiang Jieshi from Wuhan Government

• gt built up a power base in eastern and
  southeastern China independent from the central
  government
• gt24/3/1927 set up the Nanjing government
  against the Wuhan Government

• Purge
• gt10/4/1927
• Dissolve the political department of NRA
• Wholesale liquidation of the Communist
• gtWuhan govt dismissed Jiang
• !!marked an open split!!

29

• Soviet Interference
• Sent supplies to the CCP
• Influence of the Soviet agents (e.g. Borodin,
  M.N.Roy)
• Stalins instructions to the CCP
• gt3/3/1927
• call for the intensification of mass movement
• Arming the workers and peasants
• Mobilizing the masses to embarrass and attack the
  rightists

30
Conclusion

• 1912-27 the rapid growth of political
  instability in China
• One cause of the problem remained unsolved
• gtConflict between the CCP and GMD
• The chaotic condition in politics maintained