-
Fall of the Qing Dynasty
The Wuchang uprising in 1911 led to the fall of the Qing dyansty and the end to China's long history of imperial rule. Sun Yat-Sen was then elected as the President of the new Republic of China, to lead the new nation against the Qing Dyansty's old warlords and consolidate the Republic of China. -
Reign of Yuan Shikai
Sun Yat-sen, the founder of the Republic of China, named a powerful general and politician with military backing, Yuan Shikai as President to fight the emperor and warlords remaining from the Qing Dynasty. However, Yuan Shikai created an autocracy and attempted to revive the Chinese monarchy and empire. He was emperor of China from 1915-1916 untill his death, leaving China in a state of chaos and without central authority. -
May Fourth Movement
The Treaty of Versailles gave Japan Chinese land that was taken by the Germans, but China felt that land was rightfully theirs. Chinese students of numerous universities then came together in a demonstration to protest both the Treaty of Versailles and the disputed land. This lead to a surge of nationalism within the nation, and many began to doubt the western world of democracy. This led to the founding of the Chinese Communist Party of China and the rise of Communism in China. -
Formation of the Chinese Communist Party
After the May Fourth Protests, many Chinese intellectuals turned their ideals from democracy towards the Soveity Union and the communism ideology. This led to the formation of the Chinese Communist Party in 1921, and battled the Republic of China in a series of civil wars from 1922 to 1949. The Chinese Communist Party eventually took control of China, and is now China's largest political party. -
Jiang Jieshi becomes President
A respected general, Jiang Jieshi led the Republic of China, the nationalists, against the Communist Party of China. He battled Mao's party between 1927 to 1950, with the exception between 1937 to 1945, where he allied with Mao to defend themselves against Empire of Japan during World War 2. Despite having a larger military and the aid of the rich, Jiang Jieshi and the Republic of China were forced into Taiwan in 1949, with Mao and his People's Republic of China taking control. -
The Long March
The Long March was the Communist Party's retreat during the civil war from Chinese Nationalist Army, which lasted for over 370 days. Mao Zedong was a stand out leader during the retreat, which led to many troop's support and approval of a new leader. As Mao's power began to grow, he gained respect among other generals and was eventually elected leader of the Communist National Party, and fought against the Chinese Nationalist Army in a series of civil wars, which led to Mao's victory in 1949. -
December 9th Movement
Mass protests by students asking for the Nationalist government to resist the Japanese attacks. Despite interference from police, the protesters sent demands to the KMT and inspired other students across the country. -
Battle of Shanghai
Going against advice he received, Jiang Jieshi sends the KMT's best troops to defend Shanghai from the Japanese. The Imperial Japanese boasted victory in 3 days, and ending the war in 3 months. The Battle of Shanghai alone lasted 3 months, and Jiang hoped that the defense could prompt Western interference. However, the loss of the best soldiers left the road to the capital Nanjing open, and in the end the League of Nations was unable to intervene. -
The Rape of Nanking
The Rape of Nanking was the pillaging and destruction of the capital of the former Republic of China, Nanking. The Japanese during the Second Sino-Japanese war brutully massacred just below three hundred thousand civilians as well as many prisoners of war. This event has been denied by many Japanese officials and remains a source of tensions between Japan and China. -
Battle of Taierzhuang
First Nationalist victory, broke belief that Japanese forces were invincible. Raised morale of soldiers after previous defeats. Lots of weapons were captured from the Japanese, helping the Nationalist war effort. -
Mao Forms the People's Republic of China
After two decades of long battle, Mao Zedong pushed the Chinese Nationalist Army out of China and into Taiwan. This led to the Chinese Communisty Party as the dominant government in China and the formation of the People's Republic of China. Mao successfully created modern day China and its current government system.
