Zhili Clique

Zhili Clique
Name	Zhili Clique
Active	1911–1928
Leaders	Wu Peifu, Cao Kun, Sun Chuanfang, Biao Guohua
Area	Zhili Province, Beijing, Shandong, Henan, Anhui
Opponents	Anhui Clique, Fengtian Clique, Kuomintang, Beiyang Government, Chinese Communist Party

Zhili Clique The Zhili Clique was a dominant military faction in early 20th-century China that emerged from the fragmentation of the Beiyang Army after the fall of the Qing dynasty. Centered in Zhili Province and influential in Beijing politics, the faction engaged in repeated rivalries with the Anhui Clique and the Fengtian Clique while interacting with entities such as the Kuomintang, Chinese Communist Party, Soviet Russia, and foreign powers like the United Kingdom and Japan. Its leaders, including Wu Peifu and Cao Kun, shaped rhythmic shifts in power during the Warlord Era and the era of the Republic of China (1912–1949).

Origins and Formation

The clique originated within the Beiyang Army after the death of Yuan Shikai and the fragmentation following the 1911 Xinhai Revolution and the 1913 Second Revolution. Key organizers included officers who had served under figures such as Duan Qirui and Yuan Shikai and who later aligned with provinces like Zhili Province and institutions such as the Beiyang Government and the New Army. Early formation was influenced by interactions with regional leaders like Sun Yat-sen, Liang Qichao, Song Jiaoren, and by events including the 1915–1916 National Protection War and the 21 Demands controversy involving Japan.

Leadership and Key Figures

Prominent commanders and politicians in the clique included Wu Peifu, a strategist famed for campaigns against the Fengtian Clique and coordination with politicians like Cao Kun, who became president of the Beiyang Government; Sun Chuanfang, a provincial strongman in Fujian and Jiangsu; and administrators connected to figures such as Zhang Zuolin, Zhang Xun, Feng Yuxiang, Yuan Shikai-era officers like Zhang Jingyao, and contemporaries including Li Yuanhong, Xu Shichang, Duanzai (Duan Qirui). The clique’s officer corps overlapped with veterans of the First Sino-Japanese War, students from Imperial Japanese Army Academy, and personnel associated with the New Army reforms initiated by Li Hongzhang and Yongfeng-era modernization advocates.

Political and Military Activities

The Zhili leadership engaged in coalition-building with members of the Beiyang Government, negotiated with parties such as the Kuomintang and the Chinese Communist Party, and addressed foreign incursions involving Japan, United Kingdom, France, and Germany. Its military operations included coordination of divisions formed in regions like Shandong, Henan, Anhui, and Hebei, and engagements with rival factions including the Anhui Clique under Duan Qirui and the Fengtian Clique under Zhang Zuolin. Politically, the clique was involved in electoral manipulation connected to figures like Cao Kun and institutional maneuvering in Beijing against presidents such as Li Yuanhong and Xu Shichang, while negotiating with international actors such as the Soviet Union and diplomats from United States legations.

Conflicts and Wars (1916–1924)

Between 1916 and 1924 the clique fought major engagements including the First Zhili–Fengtian War, the Second Zhili–Fengtian War, and clashes with the Anhui Clique during the 1918–1920 Warlord conflicts. Commanders such as Wu Peifu led operations in battles positioned near Tianjin, Beijing, Tianjin–Pukou lines, and theaters in Shandong and Hebei. These conflicts intersected with campaigns by Feng Yuxiang (e.g., the Beijing coup), interventions by Japan in Manchuria affecting Zhang Zuolin, and the rise of political movements like the May Fourth Movement which altered public support. Outcomes included temporary dominance in the Beiyang Government, defeat in the Second Zhili–Fengtian War influenced by alliances with Feng Yuxiang and the tactical maneuvers of Zhang Zuolin and Zhang Xueliang, and subsequent shifts involving the Northern Expedition initiated by the Kuomintang under Chiang Kai-shek.

Governance and Administrative Policies

When controlling provincial administrations in Zhili Province, Shandong, Jiangsu, and Fujian, the clique’s policies reflected attempts to stabilize finances through taxation and control of railways such as the Jinghan Railway and interactions with banking institutions like the Imperial Bank of China and Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation. Administrators aligned with the clique negotiated treaties with foreign legations including United Kingdom and Japan and managed responses to social movements connected to May Fourth Movement and labor actions related to Soviet influence and Chinese Communist Party organizing. The clique also appointed civil officials from networks tied to elites such as Liang Qichao’s associates, former Qing dynasty reformers, and military academies such as the Baoding Military Academy and the Whampoa Military Academy alumni later engaged in the Northern Expedition.

Decline and Dissolution

The clique’s decline accelerated after defeats in the early 1920s, internal corruption scandals involving figures like Cao Kun, and military losses to the Fengtian Clique and betrayals by allies including Feng Yuxiang. The Northern Expedition under Chiang Kai-shek and the political consolidation by the Kuomintang eroded their territorial base, while emerging forces such as the Chinese Communist Party and regional leaders like Sun Chuanfang faced defeats by National Revolutionary Army campaigns. By the late 1920s remnants were absorbed into rival administrations, co-opted by the Nationalist Government (Republic of China), or neutralized by warlords such as Zhang Xueliang and elements loyal to the Northeast Army, marking the effective end of the clique as a distinct power.

Category:Warlord Era