Speaking of Yuan Shikai, calling him a towering figure of his time would likely raise no disagreement. His life was filled with legend; during the final years of the late Qing Dynasty, he rose to prominence amid turbulent times, ascending rapidly in rank and once serving in the Grand Council alongside Zhang Zhidong. After the accession of Puyi, Prince Chun Zaifeng became the regent. Zaifeng and Empress Dowager Longyu, harboring old grudges from the Hundred Days’ Reform, both advocated for Yuan Shikai’s execution. However, thanks to Zhang Zhidong’s strong plea, the execution was called off, and Yuan was instead dismissed on the pretext of suffering from a foot ailment and ordered to return to his hometown.
Yuan Keding Encourages the Imperial Restoration
Yuan Shikai’s dismissal this time was undoubtedly the greatest setback of his life. By the third year of the Xuantong era, he made a comeback, assuming the role of Prime Minister of the Cabinet and regaining supreme power. At that time, the orphan (Puyi) and widow (Longyu) of the Aisin Gioro clan had no choice but to submit to his authority. After the Qing court issued the edict of abdication, he transformed first into the President of the Republic, and then into the “Hongxian Emperor” for a mere eighty-three days. After becoming president, he had significant potential in both domestic and foreign affairs, but he knew nothing of democratic governance. Moreover, influenced by his son Yuan Keding, he undertook the absurd move of proclaiming himself emperor in 1916. This led to the National Protection War against him, his isolation, and his ultimate downfall. He died in frustration and anger.
Yuan Shikai (1859–1916), courtesy name Weiting, also known as the Master of Rong’an, was from Xiangcheng, Henan. His father, Yuan Baozhong, served as an acting prefect. Yuan Shikai was adopted by his uncle Yuan Baoqing in childhood. After Yuan Baoqing’s death, he went to Yanjing (modern-day Beijing) with his cousin Yuan Bao’heng to study. Disappointed with the imperial examinations early on, he abandoned literature for the military and joined the Huai Army. In May 1881, Yuan Shikai went to Dengzhou, Shandong, to join Wu Changqing (a famed general of the Huai Army), who was a sworn brother of Yuan Baoqing, and served as deputy director of the camp affairs office of the “Qing Army.” The following year, he accompanied Wu Changqing across the sea to aid Korea. For his contributions during the Korean expedition, he was appointed as an acting prefect by imperial decree. By spring 1884, when the Sino-French War broke out and tensions flared along the coast, Wu’s army was ordered to defend Jinzhou, while Yuan Shikai was left behind. Wu Changqing requested permission from Li Hongzhang, the Viceroy of Zhili, and Yuan was given the title of “director of the Qing Army camp affairs office and supervisor of Korean defense.” He remained in Korea until being recalled to China before the outbreak of the First Sino-Japanese War in 1894.
After the defeat in the First Sino-Japanese War, the Qing court deemed the Huai Army unreliable and sought to establish a new army. In October 1895, Yuan Shikai was ordered to train troops at Xiaozhan. The officers and personnel he employed included both seasoned veterans of the Huai Army and graduates of the Tianjin Military Academy. Figures such as Wang Shizhen, Duan Qirui, Feng Guozhang, Chen Guangyuan, Wang Zanyuan, Zhang Huaizhi, Lei Zhenchun, Tanaka Yuku, Meng Enyuan, Lu Jianzhang, Cao Kun, and Duan Zhigui all held the rank of deputy commander at the time, while Xu Shichang was also part of the staff, assisting with camp affairs. The later “Beiyang Warlords” largely emerged from this group.
In 1899 (the 24th year of the Guangxu reign), Emperor Guangxu was determined to pursue reforms. The reformist Tan Sitong suggested using Yuan Shikai to wrest military power from the conservative Viceroy of Zhili, Ronglu. However, Yuan informed Ronglu of the plot. Ronglu reported this to the throne, claiming the reformists were a threat to Empress Dowager Cixi. Enraged, Cixi orchestrated the Hundred Days’ Reform crackdown. Yuan Shikai, having been rewarded for informing on the plot, was promoted to Governor of Shandong. Looking back, Yuan Shikai’s rise to prominence during the Qing era was initially due to the patronage of Wu Changqing, followed by recognition from Li Hongzhang, the protection of Weng Tonghe and Li Hongzao, and finally the support of Ronglu.
In 1900, during the Boxer Rebellion (Gengzi Incident), Yuan Shikai joined the Southeast Mutual Protection alliance. In 1901, after Li Hongzhang’s death, Yuan took over as Viceroy of Zhili. The following year, he was officially appointed Viceroy of Zhili and concurrently Minister of Beiyang, becoming the Qing court’s foremost central official. Major state affairs were often referred to him by the Grand Council for decision-making. His prominence and the breadth of his authority far surpassed those of other provincial governors. However, his excessive power and control over a formidable army unsettled the Qing imperial family and nobility. In 1908 (the 34th year of the Guangxu reign), he was forced to resign on the pretext of a foot ailment and returned to Henan.
In 1911 (the third year of the Xuantong era), following the Wuchang Uprising, Yuan Shikai was reinstated by the Qing court. In September, he became Prime Minister of the Cabinet. After forming his cabinet, Yuan hinted to frontline generals such as Duan Qirui to issue telegrams advocating for a republic. In January 1912, Sun Yat-sen assumed the provisional presidency of the Republic, which displeased Yuan Shikai. On January 15, Sun and Yuan reached an agreement: if the Qing emperor abdicated, Yuan would be elected provisional president. Thus, Yuan pressured the Qing court with both soft and hard tactics, leading to Puyi’s abdication edict. On February 15, the Nanjing Provisional Senate elected Yuan as provisional president and urged him to take office in the south. Yuan used the excuse of unrest in Beijing to delay, and on March 10, he assumed the provisional presidency in Beijing.
Provincial Independence Provokes Illness from Shame
In the 1913 National Assembly elections, Song Jiaoren, aiming to establish party politics, united various parties to form the Kuomintang (KMT), with Sun Yat-sen as chairman and Song as acting leader. They prepared to counter Yuan Shikai with their congressional majority. On March 20, Song Jiaoren was assassinated. On July 12, the Second Revolution erupted, with anti-Yuan forces rising. However, Sun Yat-sen and Huang Xing were soon defeated and fled to Japan and Southeast Asia, respectively. After the Second Revolution, Yuan Shikai first used police and military pressure to coerce the National Assembly into electing him official president. After his election, he dissolved the National Assembly, abolished the 1912 “Provisional Constitution,” and enacted a new “Constitution” that granted the president sweeping powers, extended the term to ten years, and allowed for re-election.
In short, Yuan Shikai was not only an autocratic leader but also sought lifelong presidency. When World War I broke out in 1914, Japanese forces captured Qingdao, seizing German interests in China, and subsequently proposed the Twenty-One Demands. To gain Japan’s diplomatic support, Yuan accepted the first four demands on May 9, 1915. Later, Yang Du and others initiated the “Peace Planning Society” to advocate for constitutional monarchy. On December 12, Yuan formally accepted the proposal, declared 1916 as the first year of the “Hongxian” era, and planned to hold his coronation on New Year’s Day. Yuan’s imperial ambitions provoked nationwide backlash. On December 25, 1915, Cai E launched an anti-Yuan rebellion in Yunnan. Facing military defeats and widespread defections, Yuan first postponed his coronation, then on March 22, 1916, issued an order to abolish the monarchy but still sought to retain the presidency. However, as provinces declared independence one after another, Yuan, humiliated and angered, fell ill and died on June 6 from uremia complications at the age of fifty-eight.
Numerous biographies of Yuan Shikai have been published. The book *The Opening and Closing of Yuan Shikai* chronicles his journey from training troops at Xiaozhan to becoming president and then declaring himself emperor. It includes his inseparable relationship with Duan Qirui. Whether there were frictions or rifts between Yuan and Duan, how Duan served Yuan, and how Yuan treated Duan—all these hidden details are beyond the knowledge of outsiders. Among them, Xue Guanlan, the grandson of the late Qing statesman Xue Fucheng and son-in-law of Yuan Shikai, as well as a relative of Duan Qirui, had unique insights into the political intrigues of the time. Everything he recorded was based on firsthand observations of those precious historical moments.
To fulfill his promise, Sun Yat-sen submitted his resignation to the Provisional Senate, recommending Yuan Shikai as the successor to the provisional presidency, with the condition that he take office in Nanjing. Cai Yuanpei, Song Jiaoren, and others were even dispatched to the north to welcome Yuan. However, the cunning Yuan Shikai still found an excuse to take office in Beijing. The articles *President Sun Relinquishes Office • Yuan Shikai Refuses to Come South* and *Recollections of Yuan Shikai’s Refusal to Assume the Presidency in the South* provide detailed discussions on this matter.
On December 25, 1915, Cai E, Tang Jiyao, and others jointly issued a telegram to the nation, declaring Yunnan’s independence and initiating the National Protection Movement. The southwest erupted in anti-Yuan activities. The renowned journalist Huang Tianshi, who in his youth served in the Yunnan military and managed official documents, once represented Tang Jiyao on diplomatic missions to Hunan and Guangdong. On the 57th anniversary of the Yunnan Uprising, he specially wrote the article *An Impartial Analysis of the Yunnan Uprising*, which is fair and balanced and can be regarded as a timeless masterpiece. (To be continued)