On This Day - What happened 6 June in China

Following the collapse of the Qing dynasty in the aftermath of the Xinhai Revolution, China fell into a brief period of civil war before Yuan Shikai assumed the presidency of the newly formed Republic of China. The administration became known as the Beiyang Government, with its capital in Peking. Yuan Shikai was frustrated in a short-lived attempt to restore monarchy in China, with himself as the Hongxian Emperor. After the death of Yuan Shikai in 1916, the following years were characterized by the power struggle between different cliques in the former Beiyang Army. In the meantime, the Kuomintang, led by Sun Yat-sen, created a new government in Guangzhou to resist the rule of Beiyang Government through a series of movements.

In 1937, the Japanese Imperial Army quickly marched into the heart of Chinese territory. On June 6, they captured Kaifeng, the capital of Henan, and threatened to take Zhengzhou, the junction of the Pinghan and Longhai railways.

Following the collapse of the Qing dynasty in the aftermath of the Xinhai Revolution, China fell into a brief period of civil war before Yuan Shikai assumed the presidency of the newly formed Republic of China. The administration became known as the Beiyang Government, with its capital in Peking. Yuan Shikai was frustrated in a short-lived attempt to restore monarchy in China, with himself as the Hongxian Emperor. After the death of Yuan Shikai in 1916, the following years were characterized by the power struggle between different cliques in the former Beiyang Army. In the meantime, the Kuomintang, led by Sun Yat-sen, created a new government in Guangzhou to resist the rule of Beiyang Government through a series of movements.

In 1937, the Japanese Imperial Army quickly marched into the heart of Chinese territory. On June 6, they captured Kaifeng, the capital of Henan, and threatened to take Zhengzhou, the junction of the Pinghan and Longhai railways.