Feng Guozhang, (; courtesy: Huafu 華甫 or 華符) (January 7, 1859 – December 12, 1919) was a Chinese general and politician in early republican China. He held the office of Vice-President and then President of the

Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeast ...

. He is considered the founder of the Zhili Clique of Warlords that vied for control of northern China during the chaotic Warlord era.

Early life

Feng Guozhang was born to a real estate family in Hejian, Hebei ( Zhili). His family had fallen on hard times and was forced to sell its properties to educate its sons; however being the fourth son, Feng was unable to complete his education due to costs. He reputedly had to survive part of his early life by playing the violin in theatres.Gray, p. 169.

Early career

Feng Guozhang, War Scenes of the Chinese Revolution

Without much recourse, Feng enlisted in the army, then undergoing reforms that would eventually create the Beiyang Army under the command of Yuan Shikai. Feng performed admirably and came to the notice of a battalion commander, who referred him to the Baoding Military Academy.Gray, p. 169. It was at Baoding where he would make key friends and allies who would serve him well later on. In 1895 Feng was sent to Tokyo to serve as a military attaché and came to the attention of Yuan Shikai, who began to groom him to be one of his supporters within the Beiyang Army. However, when Yuan was forced to retire in 1908 by Manchu nobles fearful of his growing power, Feng managed to maintain a good relationship with both sides.Gray, p. 169. In October 1911, after the outbreak of the Wuchang Uprising, he was ordered by the Qing Court to suppress the revolution in Wuhan. He held back the Beiyang Army until Yuan Shikai was restored to power and then proceeded to capture Hankou and Hanyang from the revolutionaries in the

Battle of Yangxia The Battle of Yangxia (), also known as the Defense of Yangxia (), was the largest military engagement of the Xinhai Revolution and was fought from October 18 to December 1, 1911, between the revolutionaries of the Wuchang Uprising and the loyalis ...

. On October 14 he was appointed to command the Second Army (consisting of two divisions) by the imperial court. In the battle he ordered the razing of Hankou. Then, following orders from Yuan Shikai, he halted the Qing military's advance on Wuchang. Yuan then negotiated the abdication of the Last Emperor and became the provisional president of the newly founded

in 1912. Feng followed Yuan into the new government and was honored for his contribution to the Xinhai Revolution, even though he actually took an active part in suppressing it.

Politics

Feng broke with Yuan Shikai when he later attempted to make himself emperor. Yuan Shikai made Feng a duke, but Feng declined. Yuan then sent an admiral to assassinate Feng but the admiral was himself murdered. Feng then moved to Nanjing, where he joined the National Protection War. His name was prominently missing from the list of proposed successors in Yuan's will. Feng then served as vice president under Li Yuanhong. During the occupation of Beijing by Zhang Xun, Feng served as acting president, a position he kept when Li formally resigned. He was sworn in as

president of the Republic of China The president of the Republic of China, now often referred to as the president of Taiwan, is the head of state of the Republic of China (ROC), as well as the commander-in-chief of the Republic of China Armed Forces. The position once had aut ...

on August 1, 1917, but his constitutionality was challenged as the National Assembly was not reconvened to recognize it. On August 14 China entered World War I on the side of the Allies after growing evidence of the

German Empire The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...

's support for Zhang's coup was uncovered, as well as intense lobbying by Premier Duan Qirui. He sent about 135,000 men in labor battalions to the

Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers *Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a majo ...

, Mesopotamia and

German East Africa German East Africa (GEA; german: Deutsch-Ostafrika) was a German colony in the African Great Lakes region, which included present-day Burundi, Rwanda, the Tanzania mainland, and the Kionga Triangle, a small region later incorporated into Mozam ...

. Troops were sent into Russia to assist the

Allied intervention Allied intervention in the Russian Civil War or Allied Powers intervention in the Russian Civil War consisted of a series of multi-national military expeditions which began in 1918. The Allies first had the goal of helping the Czechoslovak Legio ...

in Russia's civil war.

Sun Yat-sen Sun Yat-sen (; also known by several other names; 12 November 1866 – 12 March 1925)Singtao daily. Saturday edition. 23 October 2010. section A18. Sun Yat-sen Xinhai revolution 100th anniversary edition . was a Chinese politician who serve ...

set up a rival government in Guangzhou during September 1917 and also declared war later that month in a failed attempt to get international recognition. Feng wanted to peacefully resolve the north-south conflict, which led to Duan resigning in protest. Due to pressure from the Anhui clique, he brought Duan back into the premiership. Feng finished the five-year term started by Yuan in 1913 on October 10, 1918, and died in Beijing of illness. He was given a state funeral and buried in his native Hejian county of Cangzhou, Hebei. Half a century later his tomb was desecrated during the Cultural Revolution.

Descendants

*馮高鳴; Edward Feng: Traditional Chinese Medicine Licensure Trainer; Feng Chi-Shan's first son, and Feng Guozhang's grandson. *馮道復; Peter Feng: politics professor; Edward Feng's son, Feng Chi-Shan's first grandson; and Feng Guozhang's great grandson. *馮道行; Dao-Shing Feng: IT engineer; Edward Feng's son, Feng Chi-Shan's grandson; and Feng Guozhang's great grandson. *馮道芬; Karena Apple Feng: political consultant; Edward Feng's daughter, Feng Chi-Shan's first granddaughter; and Feng Guozhang's great granddaughter.

Relatives

*馮起山; Chi-Shan Feng: Shanghai-British commissioner of police, chief inspector, Feng Guozhang's son-in-law.

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Feng, Guozhang Presidents of the Republic of China 1859 births 1919 deaths Politicians from Cangzhou Vice presidents of the Republic of China Republic of China warlords from Hebei People of the 1911 Revolution Progressive Party (China) politicians Members of the Zhili clique 20th-century Chinese heads of government Empire of China (1915–1916)