China during World War I
China participated in World War I from 1917 to 1918 in an alliance with the
Background
China was neutral at the start of the war, as the country was financially chaotic, unstable politically, and militarily weak.
In January 1915, Japan issued an ultimatum called the Twenty-One Demands to the Chinese government. They included Japanese control of former German rights, 99-year leases in southern Manchuria, an interest in steel mills, and concessions regarding railways.[9] After China rejected Japan's initial proposal, a reduced set of "Thirteen Demands" was transmitted in May, with a two-day deadline for response. Yuan, competing with other local warlords to become the ruler of all China, was not in a position to risk war with Japan, and accepted appeasement. The final form of the treaty was signed by both parties on 25 May 1915.[10]
Events of 1916
As China was initially not a belligerent nation, her citizens were not allowed by the Chinese government to participate in the fighting. However, in 1916, the French government began a scheme to recruit Chinese to serve as non-military personnel. A contract for China to supply 50,000 labourers was agreed upon on 14 May 1916, and the first contingent left
The Chinese Labour Corps comprised Chinese men who came mostly from Shantung,
Workers cleared mines, repaired roads and railways, and built munitions depots. Some worked in armaments factories and in naval shipyards. At the time they were seen as cheap labour, not even allowed out of camp to fraternise locally, and dismissed as mere coolies.[13]
Events of 1917
On 17 February 1917, the French passenger/cargo ship
By entering the war, Tüan Ch'i-jui, Premier of the Republic of China, hoped to gain international prestige from China's new allies. He sought the cancellation of many of the indemnities and concessions that China had been forced to sign in the past.[3] The major aim was to earn China a place at the post-war bargaining table, to regain control over the Shantung Peninsula, and to shrink Japan's sphere of influence.[5] China officially issued a declaration of war on 14 August 1917.[11]
After war was declared the Labour Department of the Chinese government began officially organizing the recruitment of Chinese nationals as labourers.[11] The government considered sending a token combat unit to the Western Front, but never did so.[16]
Events of 1918
The
Although no Chinese troops saw combat in the theaters of World War I, 2,300 Chinese troops were sent to Vladivostok in August 1918 to protect Chinese interests during the Siberian intervention. The Chinese army fought against both Bolsheviks and Cossacks. This conflict is considered part of the Russian Civil War.[18]
After the Armistice of 11 November 1918, most of the Chinese labourers serving abroad were shipped home.[19]
Aftermath
When the war ended, some Chinese labourers remained employed to clear mines, to recover the bodies of soldiers, and fill in miles of trenches.
The number of Chinese nationals who died in the war is unknown, and estimations are controversial. European records put the number at only 2,000, while Chinese scholars estimate the number to be as high as 20,000.
Paris Peace Conference
China sent a delegation to the
The apparent weak response of the Chinese government led to a surge in Chinese nationalism. On May 4, 1919, widespread student protests began in China, with a movement in Beijing that involved mainly young students, the general public, citizens, business people and other classes, through demonstrations, petitions, strikes and violent confrontations with the government, followed by support from students and workers in Tianjin, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Nanjing, Hangzhou, Wuhan and Jinan. This uprising came to be known as the May Fourth Movement. The fundamental aim of this movement was to get the government to refuse to sign the Treaty of Versailles.[22] Thus, the Chinese delegation at the conference was the only one not to sign the treaty at the signing ceremony.[23]
See also
References
- ^ ISBN 9780674049994), pp. 1-9, and passim.
- ^ ISBN 0-393-02708-2.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-19-870069-2.
- ^ Dreyer (2014). China at War 1901-1949.
- ^ a b Stephen G. Craft, "Angling for an Invitation to Paris: China's Entry into the First World War." International History Review 16#1 (1994): 1–24.
- ^ Walker (1973). China Diplomacy, 1914-1918.
- ^ a b Boissoneault, Lorraine. "The Surprisingly Important Role China Played in WWI". Smithsonian Magazine. Archived from the original on 25 April 2021. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
- ^ Madeleine Chi, China Diplomacy, 1914-1918 (Harvard Univ Asia Center, 1970)
- ^ Zhitian Luo, "National humiliation and national assertion-The Chinese response to the twenty-one demands" Modern Asian Studies (1993) 27#2 pp 297–319.
- ISBN 9780275968533. Archivedfrom the original on 2023-01-11. Retrieved 2020-12-22.
- ^ a b c d The University of Hong Kong Libraries. "Fawcett, Brian C., "The Chinese Labour Corps in France, 1917–1921", in Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society Hong Kong Branch, Volume 40, 2000, pp. 33–111" (PDF). Sunzi1.lib.hku.hk. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2011-06-12. Retrieved 2014-04-10.
- ^ The University of Hong Kong Libraries. "Waters, D., "The Chinese Labour Corps in the First World War: Labourers Buried in France", in Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society Hong Kong Branch, Vol. 35, 1995, pp. 199–203" (PDF). Sunzi1.lib.hku.hk. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2011-06-12. Retrieved 2014-04-10.
- ^ ISBN 978-2-8289-0793-8.
- ^ Mühlhahn, Klaus: China Archived 2021-04-14 at the Wayback Machine, in: 1914-1918-online. International Encyclopedia of the First World War, ed. by Ute Daniel, Peter Gatrell, Oliver Janz, Heather Jones, Jennifer Keene, Alan Kramer, and Bill Nasson, issued by Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin 2016-01-11. DOI: 10.15463/ie1418.10799. Translated by: Reid, Christopher
- ^ Jens Budischowsky (May 28, 2010). "Die Familie des Wirtschaftswissenschaftlers Joseph Alois Schumpeter im 19. und 20. Jahrhundert" [The family of economic scientists, Joseph Alois Schumpeter in the 19th and 20th century] (PDF). www.schumpeter.info (in German). Archived from the original (PDF) on July 21, 2011. Retrieved January 20, 2011.
- ^ Guoqi Xu, "The Great War and China's military expedition plan." Journal of Military History 72#1 (2008): 105–140.
- ISBN 1-55750-883-6.
- ISBN 963-7326-14-6. Retrieved 18 March 2012. "At the end of the year 1918, after the Russian Revolution, the Chinese merchants in the Russian Far East demanded the Chinese government to send troops for their protection, and Chinese troops were sent to Vladivostok to protect the Chinese community: about 1600 soldiers and 700 support personnel."
- ^ a b Condliffe, John Bell (1928). Problems of the Pacific: Proceedings of the Second Conference of the Institute of Pacific Relations Conference. United States: University of Chicago Press. (page 410)
- ^ "China's WW I Effort Draws New Attention". Voice of America. 22 September 2010. Archived from the original on 5 August 2020. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
- ISBN 9781736850084.
- ^ Zhang, G (1977). Chinese history. China Academy.
- Peacemakers: The Paris Peace Conference of 1919 and Its Attempt to End War(2001), also published as Paris 1919: Six Months That Changed the World (2003)