3 The rule of Yuan Shikai 1912 16 What problems confronted

Last updated: 9/21/2023

3 The rule of Yuan Shikai 1912 16 What problems confronted Yuan Shikai as president of the republici Soon after the Manchu abdication Sun Yatsen s Alliance League declared itself to be a parliamentary party and adopted the name Guomindang GMD Aware of what little power he and his party had in the north of China Sun was willing to hand the presidency to Yuan Shikai This was not an act of generosity Sun s hope was that Yuan Shikai would come south to Nanjing to set up a new government Sun calculated that once Yuan was away from his power base in Beijing it would be much easier to control him and oblige him to honour his commitment to the republic It was precisely for that reason that Yuan was determined to stay put His authority was in the north and he was not prepared to weaken it by an ill judged move A Nanjing delegation sent to Beijing to provide him with a presidential escort for his journey south had to return without him The republicans under Sun Yatsen could do little to restrict Yuan at this stage Their influence was limited to parts of southern China whereas the centre of government and administration was in the north where Yuan held sway Sun Yatsen s republicans had been outmanoeuvred Whatever the GMD s claims to be a national party it had a regional influence only Moreover unused to open political activity it continued to operate as the secret society that it had been before the revolution As Sun Yatsen and some of his more astute supporters acknowledged the GMD s lack of experience of democratic politics restricted it to a minor role in the early years of the republic Yuan was strong enough to overcome criticism and resistance from the GMD A striking example occurred in 1913 when Yuan desperate for means to finance his government completed the negotiation of a large foreign loan To secure the money Yuan Shikai had to accept the demands of a six member international banking consortium which had been originally set up in 1911 in the last days of the Manchu dynasty The USA had been instrumental in the formation of the consortium as part of its dollar diplomacy an extension of the open door doctrine see page 36 In order to further US financial interests President Taft