Provisional Government of the Republic of China (1937–40)

Provisional Government of the Republic of China
中華民國臨時政府
Zhōnghuá Mínguó Línshí Zhèngfǔ
Chūka Minkoku Rinji Seifu
Unrecognized State
Puppet state of the Empire of Japan
1937–1940


Flag

Motto
Xinminism
Anthem
The Song to the Auspicious Cloud[1]
Capital Beiping
Languages Chinese
Government Republic
Acting Chairman Wang Kemin
Historical era Interwar period
 • Marco Polo Bridge Incident July 1937
 •  Government established 14 December 1937
 •  Merged into Reorganized National Government 30 March 1940
Preceded by 		Succeeded by
Republic of China (1912–49)
East Hebei Autonomous Council
Reorganized National Government of China
The sign of the government unveiled in Zhongnanhai in Beijing on December 14, 1937.
Signs on Tiananmen Gate hailing the founding of the government in 1937.

The Provisional Government of the Republic of China (traditional Chinese: 中華民國臨時政府; simplified Chinese: 中华民国临时政府; pinyin: Zhōnghuá Mínguó Línshí Zhèngfǔ, or Japanese: Chūka Minkoku Rinji Seifu) was a Chinese provisional government protected by the Empire of Japan that existed from 1937 to 1940 during the Second Sino-Japanese War.[2]

History

After the conquest of Northern China, Japanese Imperial General Headquarters authorized the creation of a collaborationist regime as part of its overall strategy to establish an autonomous buffer zone between China and Japanese-controlled Manchukuo. It nominally controlled the provinces of Hopei, Shantung, Shansi, Henan and Kiangsu.[3]

The Provisional Government of the Republic of China was officially inaugurated by Wáng Kèmǐn, former Kuomintang Minister of Finance, on 14 December 1937, with its capital at Beijing. Wang was assisted by Tang Erho, who served as chairman of the Legislative Yuan and Minister of Education.

Its activities were carefully prescribed and overseen by advisors provided by the Japanese Northern China Area Army. The failure of the Japanese to give any real authority to the Provisional Government discredited it in the eyes of the local inhabitants, and made its existence of only limited propaganda utility to the Japanese authorities.[4]

The Provisional Government was, along with the Reformed Government of the Republic of China, merged into Wang Jingwei's Nanjing-based reorganized national government on 30 March 1940, but in practical terms actually remained virtually independent under the name of the "North China Political Affairs Commission" [5] (華北政務委員會) until the end of the war.

Provisional Government Army

The security of the first Provisional Government was at first based around a 5,000-man police force. The Provisional Government Army began to be organized in May 1938 with the organization of a Japanese-run military academy in Tongzhou. Non-commissioned officers (NCOs) began six months of training in February 1939 and the army officially formed in September 1939. At first the Army had to fill most of the officer and NCO slots with former Nationalist officers until the newly trained officers could take charge.[6]

The army consisted of 13,200 men in eight infantry regiments of 1,650 men each. Six of the regiments were organized in three brigades of two regiments each and put under the command of a Chinese Major General with a Japanese advisor. In addition, a 400-man-strong bodyguard was formed to protect government officials after all of Wang Ke-min's Japanese bodyguards were assassinated.

The order of battle as of September 1939 was as follows:[6]

See also

References

  1. ↑ China 1921-1928 at nationalanthems.info
  2. ↑ Brune, Chronological History of US Foreign Relations, page 521
  3. ↑ Jennings, John M.; The Opium Empire: Japanese Imperialism and Drug Trafficking in Asia, 1895-1945, pg. 92
  4. ↑ Black, World War Two: A Military History, pg. 34
  5. ↑ Li, Lillian M., et al; Beijing: From Imperial Capital to Olympic City, pg. 166
  6. 1 2 Philip, pp. 44-45
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Preceded by
Nationalist government
(1927–1948)		 Provisional Government of the Republic of China
1937–1940 		Succeeded by
Reorganized National Government of the Republic of China
(1940–1945)
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