The Beiyang strongman who took over the 1911 revolution and tried to make himself emperor
Recalled after the 1911 Wuchang Uprising, he pressed both the Qing court and the revolutionaries, winning the emperor's abdication and the provisional presidency in 1912. He proclaimed a monarchy in December 1915, cancelled it in March 1916 under the National Protection War, and died that June.
A soldier-official who built the Beiyang New Army in the late Qing. When the 1911 revolution broke out he pressed both the court and the revolutionaries, securing the Qing emperor’s abdication and his own installation as provisional president of the Republic in 1912. He then hollowed out parliament, dissolved the Kuomintang and, in late 1915, proclaimed himself emperor; provincial revolts forced him to cancel the monarchy in 1916, and he died months later. His death fractured the Beiyang army and opened the warlord era.
Also known as: Yuan Shih-kai
Activities and affiliations
-
1901–1907
Qing dynasty state institutionsViceroy of Zhili and Beiyang Minister
Government and administration -
–1911
Qing dynasty state institutionsCommanded the Qing Beiyang New Army
Military command -
1911–1912
Qing dynasty state institutionsPrime Minister of the Qing Imperial Cabinet
Government and administration -
1912–1916
Beiyang government and warlordsPresident of the Republic of ChinaHeads of state, government and party of China
Political and party leadership- Provisional President1912–1913
-
Beiyang government and warlordsMain
Military command -
Beiyang government and warlordsPresident of the Republic of China
Government and administration
Career Timeline
- 1901–1907Viceroy of Zhili and Minister of Beiyang
- 1901–1907Viceroy of Zhili and Beiyang Minister
- 1911–1912Prime Minister of the Qing Imperial Cabinet
- 1912.03.10–1913.10.10Became provisional president after the Qing abdication
- 1913.10.10–1916.06.06President of the Republic of China
- 1915.12–1916.03Self-proclaimed emperor of the “Empire of China”
Related historical events
- 1911–1916The 1911 Revolution and the birth of the RepublicBeiyang commander and the republic’s first presidentSecured the Qing abdication and his own presidency, dissolved parliament and attempted a monarchy in 1915.
- 1915–1921May Fourth and the founding of the Chinese Communist PartyPresident who accepted the Twenty-One Demands and sought the throneHis acceptance of the Twenty-One Demands and bid for the throne in 1915 were the immediate background of the New Culture Movement.