The Great Han Sichuan Military Government was a former country located in modern-day Sichuan, that was formed during the 1911 Xinhai Revolution. It lasted for 142 days, and ended after its absorption and dissolution by the Republic of China.
Great Han Sichuan Military Government 大漢四川軍政府 (Chinese) | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1911-1912 | |||||||||
 Flag | |||||||||
| Capital | Chengdu | ||||||||
| Recognised national languages | Mandarin Chinese | ||||||||
| Ethnic groups | Sichuanese people | ||||||||
| Demonym(s) | Sichuanese | ||||||||
| Government | Regional military government | ||||||||
• Military Governor | Pu Dianjun | ||||||||
• Deputy Governor | Zhu Qinglan | ||||||||
• Director of War (Later Military Governor) | Yin Changheng | ||||||||
| Domestic sovereignty | |||||||||
| History | |||||||||
• Established after rebellion in Sichuan, part of the 1911 Revolution | November 27, 1911 | ||||||||
• Merged with Shu Military Government to form Sichuan Military Government | April 27, 1912 | ||||||||
| Area | |||||||||
• Total | 485,000 km2 (187,000 sq mi) | ||||||||
| Currency | Yuan | ||||||||
| |||||||||
| Today part of | Sichuan, China | ||||||||
History
editPrelude
editIn 1904, a revolutionary organization called Gongqianghui was established in Sichuan, with the goal of overthrowing the Qing dynasty and re-establishing the Han-led government.[1]
In late summer of 1911, units of the Hubei New Army were ordered to Sichuan from the neighboring Guangdong, to quell riots caused by the new Railway Protection Movement, a movement seeking to stop the Qing government's nationalization of local railway projects. Officers of the Eight Banners, including railroad superintendent Duanfang and Zhao Erfeng, led the Hubei New Army against the Railway Protection Movement. The riots were crushed, and an uneasy peace was established in the region.[2]
1911 Revolution
editOn October 10, 1911, the city of Wuchang was launched into revolt by Republican, anti-Qing revolutionaries led by Xiong Bingkun. The city was captured by the next morning, where they established a headquarters and declared the Military Government of Hubei as part of the Republic of China.[3]
The success of the uprising soon stirred uprisings in other neighboring provinces, the Sichuan province among them. On November 21, revolutionaries in Guang'an organized the Great Han-Shu Northern Military Government.[4][5] This was followed by an uprising the next day, when Chengdu declared independence from the Qing dynasty. By the 27th, the Great Han Sichuan Military Government had been established, led by revolutionary Pu Dianjun.[6] The Qing official Duanfang was killed in this uprising.[7]
Pu declared himself Military Governor, and appointed Zhu Qinglan to serve as Deputy Military Governor. Reportedly, the reason Zhu was chosen for the position was due to the negative attitude he took regarding the use of force to suppress the Railway Protection Movement.[8] Pu also appointed another revolutionary, Yin Changheng, to the position of the Director of War.[9]
Sichuan soldiers mutiny
edit
On December 8, Sichuan soldiers mutinied in Chengdu, dissatisfied with the delay regarding their military pay. Pu and Zhu both resigned and fled, leaving Yin in charge to stop the mutiny. Yin managed to stop the mutineers, and led his troops to attack the Governor's Gate where they captured Zhao Erfeng, executing him on the grounds of him leading the "counter-revolutionary conspiracy".[10][11] Yin had so much public support that he arose to become the military governor due to his bravery. As military governor, he promoted the reorganization of the military government, finally managing to stabilize the situation in Sichuan.[12][13]
Government merger
editNow two governments existed in Sichuan: The Dahan Sichuan Military Government and the Shu Military Government. The latter had been established in November 1911, and was led by Zhang Peijue. Yin planned to unify them by force, and invited the army of the Yunnan clique to aid in unification. Yin gave up on forceful reunification after mediation, and the Yunnan Army left Sichuan. Both governments sent representatives to Chongqing to make an agreement in January 1912. The sides eventually came to an agreement on March 21: Chengdu would serve as the political center with the Sichuan Governor's Office, with the governors of Dahan and Shu respectively serving as chief and deputy governors. Chongqing would be an important town, and a pacification office established there. The two governments officially merged on April 27, officially bringing both the Dahan Sichuan Military Government and the Shu Military Government to their ends.[14][15]
Yin was appointed as the military governor of the Sichuan Governor's Office, Zhang was appointed as the deputy governor, and Xia Zhishi was appointed as the chief pacification chief of the Chongqing Pacification Office.[16]
Absorption by the Republic of China
editThe now-united Sichuan Military Government existed in a region with over 10 other military governments. To the west, the rapidly-expanding Republic of China soon reached the Sichuan region. Sichuan was soon absorbed as a province of the Republic, putting an end to all of the military government in the region, including the Sichuan Military Government.[17]
Recognition
editThe Great Han Sichuan Military Government did not have any international recognition, partly due to its short lifespan. It did have recognition from fellow revolutionary governments in Qing China, including the aforementioned Shu Military Government and Yunnan clique.
References
edit- ^ 中国人民大学. 书报资料中心. [1982] (1982). 中国近代史, Issues 1–6. 中国人民大学书报资料社 publishing. University of California Press.
- ^ Robert H. Felsing (1979). The heritage of Han: the Gelaohui and the 1911 revolution in Sichuan. University of Iowa. p. 156. Retrieved 2 March 2012.
The railway company's chief officer at Yichang was no longer listening to company directives and had turned company accounts over to Duanfang, Superintendent of the Chuan Han and Yue Han railroads. The situation of the Sichuanese
- ^ 戴逸, 龔書鐸. [2002] (2003) 中國通史. 清. Intelligence Press. ISBN 962-8792-89-X. pp. 86–89.
- ^ "武昌起義之後各省響應與國際調停 _新華網湖北頻道". Xinhua News Agency. Archived from the original on 21 May 2014. Retrieved 16 October 2011.
- ^ 中國地圖出版社. [1991] (1991). 辛亥革命史地圖集. 中國地圖出版社 publishing.
- ^ "武昌起義之後各省響應與國際調停 _新華網湖北頻道". Xinhua News Agency. Archived from the original on 21 May 2014. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
- ^ "武昌起義之後各省響應與國際調停 _新華網湖北頻道". Xinhua News Agency. Archived from the original on 21 May 2014. Retrieved 16 October 2011.
- ^ Colville, Alex (2021-05-10). "'Zhu was first': The rise and fall of commander-in-chief Zhu De". The China Project. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
- ^ Xiaowei, Zheng (2018). "8. The End of Revolution: The Rise of Republicanism and the Failure of Constitutionalism". The Politics of Rights and the 1911 Revolution in China. Stanford University Press. ISBN 9781503601093.
- ^ Xu (main ed.) (2007), p.243.
- ^ Chen (2000), pp.42-43.
- ^ "Beiyang People's History: Sichuan-Tibet Wind and Cloud (Yin Changheng) (3)". iNews. 2024-10-02. Retrieved October 2, 2024.
- ^ Chen (2000), pp.43-44.
- ^ Black III, Edward Avery (2014). Weston, Dr. Timothy; Kim, Dr. Kwangmin (eds.). "The Chaotic Epoch: Southwestern Chinese Warlords and Modernity, 1910-1938."
- ^ "Sichuan - Han Dynasty, Three Kingdoms, Qing Dynasty | Britannica". www.britannica.com. 2024-09-25. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
- ^ Chen (2000), pp.43-44.
- ^ "The Chinese Revolution of 1911". US Department of State. Archived from the original on 19 October 2016. Retrieved 27 October 2016.
Footnotes
edit- Chen Zuwu (陈祖武), Yin Chanheng. Institute of Modern History, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (2000). The Biographies of Republic People, Vol.10 (民国人物传 第10卷). Zhonghua Book Company. ISBN 7-101-02114-X.
- Xu Youchun (徐友春) (main ed.) (2007). Unabridged Biographical Dictionary of the Republic, Revised and Enlarged Version (民国人物大辞典 增订版). Hebei People's Press (Hebei Renmin Chubanshe; 河北人民出版社). ISBN 978-7-202-03014-1.