Encyclopedia > New Armies

  Article Content

New Army

Redirected from New Armies

See also the English New Model Army of the Civil War period.

The New Armies (simplified chinese 新军) were the modernized Qing armies trained and equipped according to western standards. The first of new armies was founded in 1895 with German arms.

In December 8, 1895, Empress Dowager Cixi[?] appointed Yuan Shikai the commander of 4000 men that formed the basis of the first New Army. Further expanded to 7000, this New army became the most formidable of the three army groups stationed near Beijing and proven effective against the Boxers in Shandong province. Yuan showed his loyalty to the Qing's court, nevertheless nothing more than a symbolic gesture, by committing only a detachment to relieve Beijing out of foreign hands.

The New Army was gradually expanded and upgraded in the following years, becoming the only militia that the Qing court could rely on in the midst of revolutionary upraisings throughout China. Yuan became increasingly disrespectful of the dynasty and only loyal to the party which he benefited from; his defection to Cixi against Guangxu Emperor[?] was a major blow of the Hundred Days Reform[?].

Successful example of the new army was followed in other provinces. The New Army of Yuan was renamed to "Beiyang[?]" on June 25, 1902 after Yuan was officially promoted to the "Minister of Beiyang". By the end of the dynasty in 1911, most provinces had established sizable new armies; however the Yuan's army was still most powerful, comprised of six groups and numbered more than 7,5000 men.

Yuan tightly gripped the command of army since its establishment by installing officials only loyal to him; however after his death in 1916, the army groups were quickly fragmented into four major forces of combatting warlords, respective to the locations of garrisons. These army groups and generals played different roles in the Politics of China until the establishment of the Peoples' Republic.

Notable figures of Beiyang



All Wikipedia text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License

 
  Search Encyclopedia

Search over one million articles, find something about almost anything!
 
 
  
  Featured Article
Jordanes

... Justinian, he was a Christian and possibly bishop of Croton. In approximately 580, he wrote "De origine actibusque Getarum[?]" (The origin and deeds of the Goths), "D ...

 
 
 
This page was created in 36.6 ms