Warlord Era

Duration12 years, 6 months, 3 weeks and 2 days LocationRepublic of China Key events Constitutional Protection Movement Northern Expedition Chinese Civil War

The Warlord Era was the period in the history of the Republic of China between 1916 and 1928, when control of the country was divided between rival military cliques of the Beiyang Army and other regional factions. It began after the death of Yuan Shikai, the President of China after the Xinhai Revolution. He took power by leveraging his position as Prime Minister of the Qing Dynasty to force the abdication of the Emperor in exchange for the presidency. He quickly abandoned his promises of reform, working to dismantle the parliament and consolidate military power. As a result, following Yuan's death on 6 June 1916 a power vacuum was established and quickly filled by military strongmen leading to widespread violence, chaos, and oppression. The Nationalist Kuomintang (KMT) government of Sun Yat-sen, based in Guangzhou, began to contest Yuan's Beiyang government based in Beijing for recognition as the legitimate government of China.