Sun Yat-Sen: A Biography

Sun Yixian (12 November 1866–12 March 1925), whose real name was Sun wen, the genealogical name was Sun Deming, the milk name was Sun Dixiang, the Cantonese pronunciation is Sun Yat -sen. He was a Chinese revolutionary, first president and founder of the Guomingdang and the Republic of China(ROC). So in Taiwan province, he was also been called as Sun Guofu, it was meaning ‘father of the nation’. And on the Chinese mainland, in the People’s Republic, he is well known as Sun Zhongshan. Sun Zhongshan will be used in this essay, and Sun Zhongshan success or failure will be discussed. The first succeed of Sun Zhongshan was overthrew the feudal. Modern China was a semi-colonial and semi-feudal society, it was different with the feudal society before the Opium War, and also different with the nonmoral capitalist society. Imperialist aggression forces defeated China and forcing Qing dynasty government signed unequal treaties. These imperialist forces not only manipulated China’s financial and economic lifeline, but also manipulated China’s political and military power. China’s feudal forces colluded with imperialism to maintain its status with the dirty means which was betrayed national sovereignty to imperialist as exchange.

With the imperialist invasion, the self-sufficient economy which was the basis of the feudal era bankrupt. But the foundation of the feudal exploitation system still alive, and together with the comprador capital and usury capital. The occupied a significant advantage in China’s society and economy. Although national capitalism had some development, but their power were weak. They could not become the main form of China’s socio-economic as they faced the foreign capitalist forces, bureaucratic comprador forces and feudal forces. At this beleaguered situation, China had to establish an independent and unified modern state and a powerful central government for the national revival. Sun Zhongshan was a peace-loving people. He tried to submit a written letter to Li Hongzhang who was the prime minister of Qing dynasty. Tried to push the improvement of the Qing dynasty for top-down and achieve self-reliance. But he was ignored by Li Hongzhang. Sun had to abandon the way of improve and embarked revolution.

In August 20, 1905, Sun Zhongshan and Huang xing created Revolutionary Alliance(Tongmenghui) with the vows “to expel barbarians, to revive Zhonghua, to establish a Republic, and to distribute land equally among the people”. Sun’s political philosophy of the ‘Three People’s Principles’ was publish in the News paper of Tongmenghui. The establishment of the Revolutionary Alliance effectively promoted the development of the national revolutionary movement. Sun dispatch revolutionary to the domestic and foreign develop organizations and revolutionary propaganda. He widely spread bourgeois democracy republican ideology, so more and more people engaged in anti-revolutionary. Sun’s thoughts made a powerful ideological preparation for the Xinhai Revolution. October 10, 1911, the Wuchang Uprising was outbreaking and responding by many provinces. Sun came back from America in December after the news and then inaugurated as provisional president of the Republic of China in Nanjing. Revolutionary party setting the provisional government of the Republic of China. In February 12, 1912, the last emperor (Puyi) —Xuantong emperor was forced to abdicated.

This abdicated meaning the ending of autocratic monarchy which had over 2000 years’ history. Xinhai Revolution established the first bourgeois nature of the Democratic Republic in Chinese history. Republic of China promulgated the “Provisional Constitution of the Republic of China”. The idea of democratic republic was deeply into Chinese people’s mind. This revolution gave a heavy blow to imperialist aggression force in China. It was a historic groundbreaking process and effect of revolution emancipation the mind of Chinese. Although Xinhai Revolution was failed to change old China’s social nature and the plight of Chinese, but it opened the gate for progress. The reactionary’s ruling order was no longer to be stabilize. Xinhai Revolution inspire the Chinese people to fight for national independence, people’s liberation and country’s rich and powerful. China’s modernization develop started been transferred from a passive response to the initiative development. Because of this, the 15th National Party Congress has set the Xinhai Revolution was the “first great historic change” of the “Chinese people’s road forward” in 20th century.

Therefore, Sun Zhongshan became a great figure, and Xinhai Revolution became the beginning of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation in the full sense. The second succeed of Sun Zhongshan was wake up the the Chinese people by revolution and the ‘Three People’s Principles’. This political philosophy was consist by the principle of nationalism, principle of democracy, principle of livelihood. It was one of the most important legacy from Sun Zhongshan and the major political strategy of Guomingdang. Three People’s Principles interpretation the basic social contradictions of the Old Democratic Revolution, outlines the objectives historical process of the three fighting tasks. Nationalism was the first battle banner. It reflects the complexity of the modern Chinese society’s ethnic contradictions – both imperialism and the Chinese nation contradictions, Qing dynasty Manchu nobility with the Han nationality. And imperialism collude with the Qing dynasty ruling clique. One of the main content of nationalism was the ‘anti-Manchu’. “Expel barbarians, revive Zhonghua” always the rallying cry of the bourgeois revolutionary in the late Qing Dynasty.

This not only due to the Qing dynasty was a Manchu nobility autocratic regimes, but also because it has become a “foreigners’ court”. Nationalism increased the national liberation movement to a new level. Principle of Democracy was the core of the Three People’s Principle. It reflect another major contradiction of modern Chinese society which was between the feudalism and the broad masses. It exposed and criticized the feudal despotism which deprived the human rights of people. Thus, Qing dynasty was not a equal country and must be overthrow and replaced by democratic constitutional republic. Principle of Democracy was created a “equal”, “the people’s”, “nationals” of the Republic through the way of national revolution. Sun tried to build a series of republican system requirements which were “Theory of Political Party”, “empowerment distinguish”, the universal political and the five-power constitution. Principle of livelihood was the programme of Sun Zhongshan’s social revolution. It hoped to resolve the issue of China’s modernization, which develop the capitalist economy and made China stronger and richer.

Obviously, his livelihood purposes and the essence of the doctrine was not only develop the industry, develop the capitalism; but also prevent the ills of capitalism. With the rapid development of domestic and international situation, China’s democratic revolution changed from the old democratic revolution to the new democratic revolution. Under the influence of the October Revolution in Russia and the practice of the revolutionary, Sun Zhongshan started recognized that only complete overthrow the imperialism and feudalism in China, the Three People’s Principle can be achieved in China. With the help of the Chinese Communist Party and the Comintern, Sun combined the Three People’s Principle with the policy of alliance with Russia, RPC, workers and farmers. Then he reinterpreted the the Three People’s Principle with new spirit. The new principle of nationalism made exempt imperialism aggression as the primary task. New principle of democracy advocated that civil rights should be direct, ordinary and revolutionary. Civil rights should be shared by all ordinary civilians, but not hold by minority people. People enjoy democratic rights. New principle of livelihood made the “every tiller has his land” as its main slogan for the agrarian program.

And “temperance capital”, “develop country capital” was the basic kernel of industrialize program. The New Three People’s of Principle was similar to the Communist Party’s, that was the political base of Guomingtang-Communist cooperation. It played an important role in the process of promoting China’s democratic revolution. The third succeed of Sun Zhongshan was he insist develop industry to change China’s current situation which was a feudal agricultural country. In the early years of the Republic, Sun had already clearly put forward that must be committed to the economic construction after the success of the revolution. He though after the successful revolution, in order to make China prosperous and strong, the only way was develop Chinese economic. After many years brewing and researching, Sun made a dream plan to help Chinese economic all-round development. The plan’s name was . There were four main contents: Build five main railway system, and road system across the country. Together China’s coastal areas, inland and border as one. Construct three international port and many medium-sized commercial port.

Dredging canal and governing the Yellow River, Yangtze River and Pearl River system. Develop the coal, iron , oil and other minerals; Build steelworks, cement plant, shipyard, locomotive works and other factory. Theses will be really helpful to develop food, textile, construction and other industries. Improve agriculture, promote agricultural science and technology. Encourage reclamation and develop vast border areas. These plan almost involved in various fields of national economy and the people’s livelihood.It inspire Chinese people to develop economy. But there was no perfect people in the world. Although Sun Zhongshan made great contribution to Chinese revolution and China historic progress, but Sun also had some failures in his life and the way to save country. For example, he did not notice Yuan Shikai, Duan Qirui, Chen Jiongming and other warlords’s duplicitous face. As a result the fruits of revolution victory was stolen by the warlord which leaded by Yuan Shikai.

This was the result of the revolutionaries misconceptions and weakness. But compared to the old China’s objective reality and the social environment in history, Sun Zhongshan’s localized minor mistakes could be ignored. His failure could not stifle the direction of the old democratic revolution and historical trajectory. Even could not obliterate his contribution which he founded a revolutionary doctrine, leaded the revolutionary movement and created a new chapter of the Chinese history.

Bibliography

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