2. The Beginning of a Dictatorship
• 1912: Constitutional republic sets up
• Meant to be a democracy
• 1913: National Assembly (elections for a
parliament) Sun Yatsen
• Sun Yatsen’s Guomindang (KMT) wins majority
of the seats
• Yuan Shikai did not share power with the KMT
3. • January 1914: Yuan Shikai makes himself
president for the next ten years
(Dictatorship)
• Gained support of Europeans
• Used his military strength
• 1915:Yuan Shikai accepts Mandate of Heaven,
tries to make himself Emperor
• Image above: A coin depicting Yuan Shikai
4. Oppositions of Yuan Shikai
• Yuan Shikai plans to call his dynasty ‘The Grand
Constitutional Era’
• The following groups opposed:
• Guomindang - wanted a democratic government
• Generals and military governors - would lose
authority if Yuan had more power
• Japanese - wants to bring China under its control
5. Japanese Interference
• 1915: Japanese presents Yuan with Twenty-
One Demands
• Demanded control of China’s factories,
railways, ports etc.
• Threatened war if not accepted
6. Downfall of Yuan’s Reign
• Yuan accepts Twenty-One Demands
• Loses support of the people
• December 1915: Rebellion against Yuan
• Gives up on his plans to become Emperor
• June 1916: Dies of stroke
