1. As in most of the countries in the 19th century, the rising middle class in China also realized the necessity of reform. Through the efforts of students and others emerged many secret clubs eager to take their country forward.
Their premier revolutionary organization, Tong Meng Hui was led by a physician Dr. Sun Yat-Sen (1866-1925), a Christian. He was greatly helped by the prosperous Chinese diaspora.

2. The revolutionary programme of Tong Meng Hui was based on three principles namely Peoples' Rules or Democracy's Peoples Nationalism and Peoples' Livelihood. They had an agenda of political reform and played a major role in the revolution of 1911, which posted the Manchu dynasty.
Sun-Yat-Sen became the first President but only for a fortnight. Their new capital was at Nanjing. His successor, General Yuan Shikai was more inclined towards the monarchical regime, and not much really changed for the better.

3. The Chinese got a fairly liberal Constitution in 1912, but it did not last long : it was suspended. This was a signal for chaos. The rural landed gentry in collaboration with the military governors known as the Warlords were now the effective rulers of China.
They were rapacious in collection of taxes and ruthless otherwise. Sun Yat Sen had to flee abroad, and he founded another political party - Ching Kuomintang (Revolutionary Party of China).

4. Yuan Shikai enjoyed the support of the eimperial powers and he banned the revolutionary organizations. China was so weak that Japan demanded its immediate compliance with some atrocious demands known as the 21 points.

5. China joined the Allied Powers in the Ist World War. The 21 demands made by Japan on China in January 1915, was an ultimatum which had to be accepted by the later within 48 hours. It not only sought practical control over Manchuria but also a virtual dominance over China.
It has been described as the first enunciation of the policy of Asia for the Asiatic as propounded by Japan. Hence it is also called a Japanese version of 'Asiatic Monroe doctrine'. China accepted most of demands. It was a big blow to her prestige. The USA kept quiet after protesting that it was violative of the 'Open door policy'.

6. After the end of the First World War, Sun Yat-Sen with the help of warlords set up a government with headquarters at Canton. Despite political instability and growing uncertainty, China was economically doing quiet well.
Modern industries were growing up in Wuhan on the Yangtze river and Shenyang in southern Manchuria and investment was flowing in Chinese middlemen called compradors helped the western companies in their marketing operations.
Certain sectors of economy related to electricity, kerosene, tobacco, looms for textile production and stem-ships showed growth and technological improvement. Progress in the educational field was another important development. Here western influence was very important.

7. One important political development of this period was the massive demonstration by the students of Peking University on 4 May 1919, known as the May Fourth movement. It spread to other parts of the country. It was directed against their politicians and foreign powers.
Besides students, the May Fourth movement also enjoyed the support of the teachers, workers and men from the business community. It started as a protest against Shantung provisions. Boycott of forigen goods was an item on their agenda too. This movement has been seen as a part of a Large Culture Movement covering the period 1916-1921.
It was a major manifestation of the resurgent Chinese nationalism. It was then that the Communist Party was set up in Shanghai in 1921 with Lenin's Comintern providing help.

8. Sun Yat-Sen gradually came under the communist influence and revised his three principles to accommodate the Chinese Communist Party in the First United Front (1924). Backed up by them, Sun Yat-Sen set up a military academy at Whampoa, near Canton. The Kuomintang Party and the Communists then set up an United Front to tackle the political problem.

9. There were frequent clashes between the foreign owned factories protected by foreign security forces and the nationalists. Scores of Chinese protesters were killed. The Communists made use of the propaganda department of the United Front Government to popularize their ideas among the working class people.
This was one of the reasons for the final break with the Nationalist Government. Finally, the Shanghai massacres (1927) led to the end of the United Front.

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