Sun Yat-sen

Sun Yat-sen. He was a Chinese revolutionary, statesman, and political philosopher who served as the first provisional president of the Republic of China and the first leader of the Kuomintang. He is revered as the "Father of the Nation" in the Republic of China on Taiwan and the "Forerunner of the Revolution" in the People's Republic of China for his instrumental role in overthrowing the Qing dynasty during the Xinhai Revolution. His political philosophy, the Three Principles of the People, remains a foundational ideological tenet in both Chinese Taipei and Mainland China.

Early life and education

Born in the village of Cuiheng in Xiangshan County, Guangdong province, he was educated in a local village school before moving to Honolulu in 1879 to live with his elder brother, Sun Mei. There, he attended ʻIolani School and later Oahu College, where he was exposed to Western ideas and Christianity. He returned to China in 1883 and subsequently studied medicine at the Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese, graduating in 1892. His time in British Hong Kong and his travels to places like Singapore and Japan profoundly shaped his critical view of the Qing dynasty's governance.

Revolutionary activities

After the First Sino-Japanese War revealed the dynasty's weakness, he abandoned his medical practice to pursue revolutionary activities full-time. In 1894, he founded the Revive China Society in Honolulu, marking the start of his organized opposition. Following the failed Guangzhou Uprising, he spent years in exile, raising funds and support from Overseas Chinese communities in Europe, North America, and Southeast Asia. He formed key alliances, leading to the merger of several revolutionary groups into the Tongmenghui in Tokyo in 1905. A series of uprisings he inspired, culminating in the Wuchang Uprising of October 1911, successfully triggered the Xinhai Revolution that ended over two millennia of imperial rule.

Political philosophy and writings

His political ideology was systematically articulated as the Three Principles of the People: nationalism (*Mínzú*), people's rights (*Mínquán*), and people's livelihood (*Mǐnshēng*). These principles were detailed in a series of lectures and writings, including the *Outline of National Reconstruction*. He also developed the Five-Power Constitution, which proposed a government structure incorporating traditional Chinese censorial and examination branches alongside the Western tripartite system. His ideas were influenced by thinkers like Abraham Lincoln and the concept of the "Government of the people, by the people, for the people", as well as by Henry George's views on land value.

Presidency and later life

He was in the United States when the revolution began and returned to be inaugurated as the provisional president in Nanjing on 1 January 1912. To avoid civil war, he soon yielded the presidency to the militarist Yuan Shikai. Following Yuan's attempt to become emperor, he established a rival government in Guangzhou and reorganized the Kuomintang. After a period of struggle against various warlords, he sought assistance from the Soviet Union, leading to the First United Front with the nascent Chinese Communist Party and the reorganization of his party along Leninist lines. He delivered his seminal speeches on the Three Principles of the People at the National Sun Yat-sen University and passed away from liver cancer in Beijing in 1925.

Legacy and commemoration

He is commemorated as a unifying national symbol. His final resting place is the grand Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum in Nanjing. Major institutions bear his name, including National Sun Yat-sen University in Kaohsiung and Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou. His likeness appears on currency in both Taiwan and formerly in mainland China, and numerous memorial halls exist worldwide. The Chiang Kai-shek-led Kuomintang considered him their spiritual founder, while the Chinese Communist Party under Mao Zedong claims his revolutionary legacy as part of its own historical narrative. Annual ceremonies are held on the anniversary of the Republic and on the date of his death.

Category:1866 births Category:1925 deaths Category:Republic of China revolutionaries Category:Kuomintang politicians