ON THIS DAY ·
National Protection War
25 Dec 1915 — Yunnan’s generals declare war on Yuan’s monarchy, and the rest of the southwest follows. They win, but their victory sets a consequential precedent. Provincial armies have shown that they can bring down a central government, and they will remember it.
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The moment in context
Yuan Shikai's republic appears on the map as one blue expanse. To understand how precarious that unity was, look at the force on which the president depended. Yuan (the ● at Peking) commanded the Beiyang Army, whose officers owed their positions and advancement largely to him. The republic needed the army, but its commander could use those personal loyalties against the institutions meant to restrain him.
From Yuan Shikai and the early republic, chapter 2 of China in Revolution, 1911–1949 (1915).
The place: National Protection War — map and full story →
Teach this in 5 minutes
- Why it happened — The Beiyang network. Yuan built the Qing's modern Beiyang Army in the 1890s and 1900s. Its commanders' careers depended on his patronage: he promoted and paid them, and…
- The turn — The National Protection War, 25 December 1915. Cai E and the Yunnan leaders raised armies against Yuan's monarchy on 25 December 1915. As other provinces joined them, Yuan's own commanders…
- What it changed — Military rivalry after Yuan. After Yuan's death, Duan Qirui, Feng Guozhang, and Cao Kun were among the commanders who inherited parts of his Beiyang network. They and their…
Then ask the room: Was Yuan Shikai the republic’s betrayer, or a leader overwhelmed by an impossible task? The argued answer is on the chapter page →
The atlas that shows it
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