Rise of National Identity in China (1912–1919)
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Flip to reveal answersWho became president of China's new Republic in 1912 after the Qing dynasty fell?
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All 12 Flashcards — Rise of National Identity in China (1912–1919)
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Question
Who became president of China's new Republic in 1912 after the Qing dynasty fell?
Answer
Yuan Shikai — a former Qing general who took power, sidelined parliament, and later tried to make himself emperor.
Question
What happened when Yuan Shikai tried to declare himself emperor in 1915?
Answer
It was seen as betraying the 1911 revolution; his own generals turned against him and he abandoned the plan, dying in 1916.
Question
Define warlordism.
Answer
The period (roughly 1916–1928) when China fragmented into regions controlled by rival military generals rather than one central government.
Question
Who was Sun Yixian (Sun Yat-sen)?
Answer
Revolutionary leader who briefly served as the Republic's first provisional president and promoted the Three Principles of the People: nationalism, democracy, people's livelihood.
Question
What were the 21 Demands (1915)?
Answer
A list of demands from Japan for sweeping control over China's territory, economy and government; Yuan's government was forced to accept a reduced version.
Question
What was the New Culture Movement?
Answer
An intellectual movement (c1915–1919) attacking Confucian tradition and promoting science, democracy and a simpler written Chinese language.
Question
What decision at the Treaty of Versailles (1919) angered China?
Answer
Germany's former territory in Shandong province was given to Japan instead of being returned to China.
Question
What was the May Fourth Movement?
Answer
Mass protests beginning 4 May 1919 in Beijing, spreading to merchants and workers nationwide, which forced China to refuse to sign the Treaty of Versailles.
Question
Why is May Fourth 1919 often called the birth of modern Chinese nationalism?
Answer
It fused the New Culture Movement's ideas with real mass political action for the first time, and radicalised a generation, some of whom turned to Marxism.
Question
Compare: political unity vs national identity in China by 1919.
Answer
National identity had grown strongly through May Fourth, but political unity had not — China remained fragmented under warlordism.
Question
Why did some Chinese intellectuals turn toward Marxism after 1919?
Answer
Disillusionment with Western democracies, which had failed to protect China's interests at Versailles, made socialist ideas more appealing.
Question
What is the causal chain linking Yuan Shikai's death to the May Fourth Movement?
Answer
Yuan's death (1916) left a power vacuum → warlordism spread → foreign humiliations (21 Demands, Versailles) continued → New Culture Movement ideas + anger → May Fourth protests (1919).
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China and Korea (1910–1950)
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