Sun Yat-Sen

Who was Sun Yat-sen?

Dr Sun Yat-sen was a Chinese nationalist revolutionary who formed the Guomindang (GMD) in 1919.

What was Sun Yat-sen's background?

There were 4 key events in Sun Yat-sen's life:

• ❖ Born in Guangdong, Sun Yat-sen moved to Hawaii with his older brother.
• ❖ He was educated in Hawaii and learned English before moving to Hong Kong and converting to Christianity.
• ❖ He held strong nationalist beliefs and attempted a rebellion in Guangzhou during 1895. This failed and he went into exile, travelling across Europe.
• ❖ He returned to China in 1911 to become president, before handing control to the more powerful General Yuan. When the general died, Sun Yat-sen returned to China in 1917.

What were the key events of Sun Yat-sen's return to China?

There were 4 key events when Sun Yat-sen returned to China in 1917:

• ❖ In 1919, he set up a nationalistic government party called the Guomindang (GMD).
• ❖ He formulated the 'Three Principles of the People', which outlined the GMD's policy. This was to remove foreign control from China, to allow for democracy in China, and to solve poverty by developing state ownership of industries.
• ❖ In 1924, he formed the National Revolutionary Army (NRA) to help fight and overthrow the warlords.
• ❖ He also worked with the Bolshevik government to secure weapons for the war against the warlords.

When did Sun Yat-sen live?

Sun Yat-sen was born in 1866 and died of cancer in 1925.