Republic of China Founded

Setting the scene

The Republic of China was founded on January 1, 1912, after the Xinhai Revolution overthrew the Qing Dynasty, ending 2,000 years of imperial rule in China. The revolution began October 10, 1911, with the Wuchang Uprising, and spread as provinces declared independence from the Qing. Sun Yat-sen, the revolutionary leader, returned from exile and was inaugurated as provisional president in Nanjing on January 1, 1912.

What happened

The Qing emperor Puyi, aged 5, abdicated on February 12, 1912, after General Yuan Shikai, commander of the Beiyang Army, negotiated a deal—Yuan would force the Qing to abdicate in exchange for becoming president. Sun Yat-sen stepped aside for Yuan on March 10, hoping to avoid civil war. The Republic adopted the Five-Colored Flag representing China's major ethnic groups and established a provisional constitution based on American and French models.

Why it still matters

The 1912 Republic was the first attempt at democracy in China, but it quickly failed. Yuan Shikai became a dictator, dissolved parliament in 1914, and tried to make himself emperor in 1915. After Yuan's death in 1916, China fragmented into warlord era. The Republic of China government retreated to Taiwan in 1949 after losing the civil war to communists, where it continues today. The 1912 founding remains significant as Asia's first republic and the ideological ancestor of both modern Taiwan and, ironically, the People's Republic, which claims Sun Yat-sen as a founding father.

Background

Warlordism soon fragmented the country.