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The fall of the Qing, warlordism and chaos, 1900 to 34
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In the early 1900s China's last dynasty collapsed. Decades of division, warlords and civil war followed.
The end of the Qing
The Boxer Uprising (1900) attacked foreigners; it was crushed by an international force, humiliating the Qing.
Late Qing reforms came too late.
The 1911 Revolution began with a rising at Wuchang; the boy emperor Puyi abdicated in 1912. Sun Yat-sen was the leading revolutionary.
Late Qing reforms came too late.
The 1911 Revolution began with a rising at Wuchang; the boy emperor Puyi abdicated in 1912. Sun Yat-sen was the leading revolutionary.
Warlords and new ideas
China broke up into areas ruled by warlords.
The May Fourth Movement (1919) protested against the Treaty of Versailles giving German rights in China to Japan, and called for modern ideas.
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) was founded in 1921. Sun's Guomindang (GMD) formed a United Front with the CCP, helped by the Soviet Union.
The May Fourth Movement (1919) protested against the Treaty of Versailles giving German rights in China to Japan, and called for modern ideas.
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) was founded in 1921. Sun's Guomindang (GMD) formed a United Front with the CCP, helped by the Soviet Union.
Chiang Kai-shek and the Communists
After Sun died (1925), Chiang Kai-shek led the GMD on the Northern Expedition (1926 to 28) against the warlords.
In 1927 he turned on the Communists in the Shanghai Massacres.
The CCP retreated to rural bases; Chiang's Extermination (Encirclement) Campaigns tried to destroy them.
In 1927 he turned on the Communists in the Shanghai Massacres.
The CCP retreated to rural bases; Chiang's Extermination (Encirclement) Campaigns tried to destroy them.
Why did the United Front between the GMD and CCP break down in 1927?
- Both parties wanted to defeat the warlords.
- But Chiang feared the Communists' growing power, especially among workers.
- So he attacked them in the Shanghai Massacres.
Answer: Chiang saw the Communists as a threat and turned on them.
The Boxer Uprising (1900) and the 1911 Revolution ended the Qing; Puyi abdicated (1912). Warlords divided China. May Fourth (1919); the CCP founded (1921); the United Front with Soviet help. Chiang's Northern Expedition (1926 to 28), the Shanghai Massacres (1927) and the Extermination Campaigns against the CCP.
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