Canton Merchant Volunteers Corps Uprising
Encyclopedia
Canton Merchant Volunteers Corps Uprising , refers that Chen Lianbo's (陈廉伯) Canton Merchant Volunteers Corps fought against Sun Zhongshan's (孙中山) Guangzhou Kuomintang Government in 1924 Guangzhou
.
, the social security was in chao; therefore, the canton merchants established canton merchant volunteers corps for self-defense. They elected Chen Qianbo as commander, also the director of finance at the Caonton Merchant Public Safety Organization (CMPSO, 广州粤商公安维持会). He supported and lent the funds for buying weapons. In 1917, Chen Lianbo, delegated as leader of CMPSO, continued to support the weapons for the corps. In August 1919, He served as the regimental commander of Canton Merchant Volunteers Corps. The population of corps reached 13 thousands in 1924. Since the crops kept a neutral attitude during the period of Guangzhou regime changes and their protection of merchant's benefits and social security, they were supported by many citizens in Guangzhou.
In 1923, with the alliances with Yunnan clique
and Guangxi clique
, Sun Zhongshan's army defended Chen Jiongming
(陈炯明) and occupied the regime of Guangzhou. However, Sun broke his promise in Constitutional Protection Movement to reconstruct the Kuomintang government. He admitted a law of conscript, and confiscated the property such as temples' land for sale. Furthermore, he issued a great number of cash for collecting funds. Because of the huge expense for military, the KMT Government has to reopen the gambling prohibition which was implemented during the governance of Chen. These governmental decisions dissatisfied the common to a large extent.
In January 1924, After the operation of the First National Conference of Kuomintang, KMT adopted a new policy of "Unite Russia" and "Accept Communism" (聯俄容共). Under the worry that Sun would adopt the communism in Guangzhou, Canton merchant began to change attitude toward KMT Government. In May, Guangzhou Government announced a law of "unified road ownership", so as to impose a new tax, which caused dissatisfaction. Until August, many strikes happened in Guangzhou. The Caonton Merchant Crops established a "Defense Headquarters of Caonton Merchant Crops" for adopting a curfew, in which Chen was the headquarter, Deng Jieshi (邓介石) and Chen Gongshou (陈恭受) were elected as vice-headquarters. After the negotiations between Merchant Crops and Government, the latter decided to withdraw the law, and then strike stopped temporarily.
August 24, Sun Zhongshan announced the state of siege
in Guangzhou, and listed Chen Qianbo as wanted. Two days later, Nanhai
, Panyu
, Shunde
, Taishan
, Dongwan
, Zengcheng
, Xinhui
, Qingyuan
, Gaoyao
, Qujiang
, Yangjiang
, Luoding
and other 20 counties decided to strike and support Canton Merchant Crops. Inside of KMT, Wang Jingwei
(汪精卫) and Hu Hanming (胡汉民) disagreed with Sun's proposal of suppression; Liao Zhongkai
(廖仲恺), who approved for suppression, had to resign his governance. On September 4, Sun left Guangzhou for Shaoguan
, the base of Northern Expedition; and set up a government in Guangzhou, appointed Hu Hanming as the Governor of Guangzhou. On September 15, Chen Qianbo, Chen Gongshou posted notion that refusing to topple government by Merchant Crops, and obeying Sun and KMT Government. Hu withdrew the wanted poster
of Chen Qianbo and Chen Gongshou; also released parts of weapons. The incident took a turn to an ideal side.
October 10 afternoon, the China Communist Party appointed labor unions, peasant unions and younger unions, totally over 50 thousands people for a "Double 10 Warning Day". Zhou Enlai
(周恩来) conducted the meeting and warned the merchant crops. After the meeting, the CCP held a demonstration and shouted "Beat Merchant Crops, Kill Chen Boqian, Support Revolution Government". When the crowd came into Taiping South Road (now People South Road), the conflict with merchant crops happened and more than 20 people died, 100 injured. The merchant crops built defense utilities in Xiguan
, blocked streets and posted notice as "Sun-wen should retire", "Beat Sun's government". In the night, Chen Qianzhong, the brother of Chen Qianbo, met Deng Jieshi, Li Songshao and other leaders of Merchant Crops, decided to congregate all soldiers in Xiguan at 5PM October 14, and attack governmental agencies next morning.
On the other side, Sun Zhongshan organized a revolution committee on October 11. Sun, Xu Zongzhi (许崇智), Liao Zhongkai
(廖仲恺), Wang Jingwei
(汪精卫), Jiang Jieshi (蒋介石), Chen Youren (陈友仁), Tan Pingshan (谭平山) were members. In October 15, Jiang led his army of Whampoa Military Academy
back to Guangzhou, and graduated to defeat the merchant's army. He was assisted by Soviet advisors, who supplied him with weapons, while the merchants were supplied with weapons from the Western countries. Chen had to leave for Hong Kong
. During this battle, the business areas in Xiguan got a serious destroy.
, and 2 thousand people ruined and died. Government asked protection fee for the businessmen; seized guns and 200 Yuan penalty for the participators, or else "government won't take any responsibility if soldier robs."
After this incident, some businessmen tended to support Chen Jiongming's army. However, with the support of Soviet Union
, Sun eventually defected Chen.
When Sun died in Beijing
, Beijing Government decided to hold a state funeral
for Sun. Guangzhou Chamber of Commerce (广州总商会), Guangdong Autonomy Council (广东自治会) hold a jointed protest against this arrangement.
Guangzhou
Guangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
.
Background
In 1911, during the period of Xinhai RevolutionXinhai Revolution
The Xinhai Revolution or Hsinhai Revolution, also known as Revolution of 1911 or the Chinese Revolution, was a revolution that overthrew China's last imperial dynasty, the Qing , and established the Republic of China...
, the social security was in chao; therefore, the canton merchants established canton merchant volunteers corps for self-defense. They elected Chen Qianbo as commander, also the director of finance at the Caonton Merchant Public Safety Organization (CMPSO, 广州粤商公安维持会). He supported and lent the funds for buying weapons. In 1917, Chen Lianbo, delegated as leader of CMPSO, continued to support the weapons for the corps. In August 1919, He served as the regimental commander of Canton Merchant Volunteers Corps. The population of corps reached 13 thousands in 1924. Since the crops kept a neutral attitude during the period of Guangzhou regime changes and their protection of merchant's benefits and social security, they were supported by many citizens in Guangzhou.
In 1923, with the alliances with Yunnan clique
Yunnan clique
The Yunnan Clique was one of several mutually hostile cliques or factions that split from the Beiyang Government in the Republic of China's warlord era. It was named for Yunnan Province....
and Guangxi clique
Old Guangxi clique
After the founding of the Republic of China, Guangxi served as the base for one of the most powerful warlord cliques of China: the Old Guangxi Clique. Led by Lu Rongting, the clique was able to take control of neighbouring Hunan and Guangdong provinces as well...
, Sun Zhongshan's army defended Chen Jiongming
Chen Jiongming
Chen Jiongming was a revolutionary figure in the early periods of the Republic of China. Chen Jiongming was born in 1878 at Haifeng, Guangdong, China....
(陈炯明) and occupied the regime of Guangzhou. However, Sun broke his promise in Constitutional Protection Movement to reconstruct the Kuomintang government. He admitted a law of conscript, and confiscated the property such as temples' land for sale. Furthermore, he issued a great number of cash for collecting funds. Because of the huge expense for military, the KMT Government has to reopen the gambling prohibition which was implemented during the governance of Chen. These governmental decisions dissatisfied the common to a large extent.
In January 1924, After the operation of the First National Conference of Kuomintang, KMT adopted a new policy of "Unite Russia" and "Accept Communism" (聯俄容共). Under the worry that Sun would adopt the communism in Guangzhou, Canton merchant began to change attitude toward KMT Government. In May, Guangzhou Government announced a law of "unified road ownership", so as to impose a new tax, which caused dissatisfaction. Until August, many strikes happened in Guangzhou. The Caonton Merchant Crops established a "Defense Headquarters of Caonton Merchant Crops" for adopting a curfew, in which Chen was the headquarter, Deng Jieshi (邓介石) and Chen Gongshou (陈恭受) were elected as vice-headquarters. After the negotiations between Merchant Crops and Government, the latter decided to withdraw the law, and then strike stopped temporarily.
Process
On August 10, the Britain's "Harvard" boat, carrying the weapons (9000 guns, including 40 machine guns, 3 million bullets) which Merchant Crops brought from a Britain company, was detained by Jiang Jieshi's (蒋介石) Jianggu Warship (江固舰). Although Merchant Crops already have reported this weapon before, the government thought the amount and arrival date was not same as their report. On August 12 and 15, one thousand of Canton Merchant Crops appealed for asking the government to release the weapons. Sun refused it, so Canton Merchant Crops appointed the businessmen to strike all over the Guangdong Province.August 24, Sun Zhongshan announced the state of siege
State of Siege
State of Siege is a 1972 French film directed by Costa Gavras starring Yves Montand and Renato Salvatori.-Summary:...
in Guangzhou, and listed Chen Qianbo as wanted. Two days later, Nanhai
Nanhai
Nanhai District , historically known as Namhoi, is a district of Foshan prefecture-level city, in Guangdong province, southern China. It is the first city to have developed e-government informatization at the county level in China.-Administration:...
, Panyu
Panyu
Panyu District or Pun Yue District is a district in Guangzhou, Guangdong, China. It used to be a county-level city before it was incorporated in the administration of Guangzhou. The name of Panyu dates back to the completion of the conquest of Guangdong by Qin Shi Huang. It was the old name of...
, Shunde
Shunde
Shunde District is a district of Foshan prefecture-level city in the Pearl River Delta, Guangdong Province, southeast China.-Administration:Shunde was a county-level city until December 8, 2002, when it became a district of Foshan prefecture-level city...
, Taishan
Taishan
Taishan is a coastal county-level city in Guangdong Province, China. The city is part of the Greater Taishan Region....
, Dongwan
Dongwan
Dongwan may refer to:*Dongguan, city in southern China*Kim Dong Wan, Korean singer*Dongwan, Jingyuan County, town in Gansu, China*Dongwan, Qitai County, town in Xinjiang, China*Dongwan, Shawan County, town in Xinjiang, China...
, Zengcheng
Zengcheng
Zengcheng , historically known as Tsengshing , is a County-level city in Guangzhou, Guangdong, China.It is known for the production of blue jeans. In June 2011 it was the scene of a riot of migrant workers.-External links:*...
, Xinhui
Xinhui
Xinhui also known as 'Kuixiang'. Famous people born in what is now known as Xinhui include Liang Qichao, Chen Baisha, Chan Heung, and Michael Li from Westmead Hospital.-Geography:...
, Qingyuan
Qingyuan
Qingyuan , historically known as Tsingyün, is a prefecture-level city in northwestern Guangdong province of Southern China. Its total population is 3.7 million, and the primary language spoken is Cantonese. With an area of 19,015 km², Qingyuan is the city of the largest land area in Guangdong...
, Gaoyao
Gaoyao
Gaoyao City is a county-level city under the jurisdiction of Zhaoqing prefecture-level city in Guangdong province, in southern China. Population: 706,000.-Geography:...
, Qujiang
Qujiang
Qujiang may refer to two municipal districts in the People's Republic of China:* Qujiang District, Shaoguan , Guangdong* Qujiang District, Quzhou , Zhejiang...
, Yangjiang
Yangjiang
Yangjiang , historically known as Yeungkong, is a prefecture-level city in southwestern Guangdong province, People's Republic of China. It borders Maoming to the west, Yunfu to the north, Jiangmen to the east, and looks out to the South China Sea to the south. It is famous for being the base of...
, Luoding
Luoding
Luoding is a city district of Guangdong Province, China. It is under the administration of Yunfu city.-See also:*2009 Luoding flood...
and other 20 counties decided to strike and support Canton Merchant Crops. Inside of KMT, Wang Jingwei
Wang Jingwei
Wang Jingwei , alternate name Wang Zhaoming, was a Chinese politician. He was initially known as a member of the left wing of the Kuomintang , but later became increasingly anti-Communist after his efforts to collaborate with the CCP ended in political failure...
(汪精卫) and Hu Hanming (胡汉民) disagreed with Sun's proposal of suppression; Liao Zhongkai
Liao Zhongkai
Liao Zhongkai , Kuomintang leader and financier. Liao Zhongkai was the principal architect of the first Kuomintang-Chinese Communist Party United Front in the 1920s....
(廖仲恺), who approved for suppression, had to resign his governance. On September 4, Sun left Guangzhou for Shaoguan
Shaoguan
Shaoguan , historically known as Shaokwan and Shao-chow, is a prefecture-level city in the north of Southern China's Guangdong province...
, the base of Northern Expedition; and set up a government in Guangzhou, appointed Hu Hanming as the Governor of Guangzhou. On September 15, Chen Qianbo, Chen Gongshou posted notion that refusing to topple government by Merchant Crops, and obeying Sun and KMT Government. Hu withdrew the wanted poster
Wanted poster
A wanted poster is a poster distributed to let the public know of an alleged criminal whom authorities wish to apprehend. They will generally include either a picture of the alleged criminal when a photograph is available, or of a facial composite image produced by a police artist...
of Chen Qianbo and Chen Gongshou; also released parts of weapons. The incident took a turn to an ideal side.
October 10 afternoon, the China Communist Party appointed labor unions, peasant unions and younger unions, totally over 50 thousands people for a "Double 10 Warning Day". Zhou Enlai
Zhou Enlai
Zhou Enlai was the first Premier of the People's Republic of China, serving from October 1949 until his death in January 1976...
(周恩来) conducted the meeting and warned the merchant crops. After the meeting, the CCP held a demonstration and shouted "Beat Merchant Crops, Kill Chen Boqian, Support Revolution Government". When the crowd came into Taiping South Road (now People South Road), the conflict with merchant crops happened and more than 20 people died, 100 injured. The merchant crops built defense utilities in Xiguan
Xiguan
Xiguan or Sai Kwan is a traditional geographical division of Guangzhou, China. It is situated in Liwan District. The north of the area reaches Xicun and it borders on Renmin Lu eastwards. And Pearl River lies on its west and south. The area outside the west gate of Guangzhou is collectively...
, blocked streets and posted notice as "Sun-wen should retire", "Beat Sun's government". In the night, Chen Qianzhong, the brother of Chen Qianbo, met Deng Jieshi, Li Songshao and other leaders of Merchant Crops, decided to congregate all soldiers in Xiguan at 5PM October 14, and attack governmental agencies next morning.
On the other side, Sun Zhongshan organized a revolution committee on October 11. Sun, Xu Zongzhi (许崇智), Liao Zhongkai
Liao Zhongkai
Liao Zhongkai , Kuomintang leader and financier. Liao Zhongkai was the principal architect of the first Kuomintang-Chinese Communist Party United Front in the 1920s....
(廖仲恺), Wang Jingwei
Wang Jingwei
Wang Jingwei , alternate name Wang Zhaoming, was a Chinese politician. He was initially known as a member of the left wing of the Kuomintang , but later became increasingly anti-Communist after his efforts to collaborate with the CCP ended in political failure...
(汪精卫), Jiang Jieshi (蒋介石), Chen Youren (陈友仁), Tan Pingshan (谭平山) were members. In October 15, Jiang led his army of Whampoa Military Academy
Whampoa Military Academy
The Nationalist Party of China Army Officer Academy , commonly known as the Whampoa Military Academy , was a military academy in the Republic of China that produced many prestigious commanders who fought in many of China's conflicts in the 20th century, notably the Northern Expedition, the Second...
back to Guangzhou, and graduated to defeat the merchant's army. He was assisted by Soviet advisors, who supplied him with weapons, while the merchants were supplied with weapons from the Western countries. Chen had to leave for Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
. During this battle, the business areas in Xiguan got a serious destroy.
Afterwards
The loss due to this battle is close to 50 million HK$Hong Kong dollar
The Hong Kong dollar is the currency of the jurisdiction. It is the eighth most traded currency in the world. In English, it is normally abbreviated with the dollar sign $, or alternatively HK$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies...
, and 2 thousand people ruined and died. Government asked protection fee for the businessmen; seized guns and 200 Yuan penalty for the participators, or else "government won't take any responsibility if soldier robs."
After this incident, some businessmen tended to support Chen Jiongming's army. However, with the support of Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, Sun eventually defected Chen.
When Sun died in Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
, Beijing Government decided to hold a state funeral
State funeral
A state funeral is a public funeral ceremony, observing the strict rules of protocol, held to honor heads of state or other important people of national significance. State funerals usually include much pomp and ceremony as well as religious overtones and distinctive elements of military tradition...
for Sun. Guangzhou Chamber of Commerce (广州总商会), Guangdong Autonomy Council (广东自治会) hold a jointed protest against this arrangement.