Leader: Sun Yat-sen
History
1922
Base of Operations – Guangzhou (Canton):
- The KMT controlled Guangzhou with the support of regional military leaders, particularly Chen Jiongming, a Guangdong warlord who initially backed Sun.
- Their stated goal was to reunify China under a constitutional, republican government. Split and Betrayal (June 1922):
- Chen Jiongming turned against Sun Yat-sen, favoring federalism and opposing Sun’s plans for a Northern Expedition (a military campaign to reunify China).
- On June 16, 1922, Chen’s troops shelled Sun’s presidential residence in Guangzhou.
- Sun escaped by gunboat to Shanghai, ending this phase of KMT control in Guangdong. Sun’s Exile and Political Realignment:
- From mid-1922 to 1923, Sun remained in Shanghai, reorganizing the KMT and seeking new allies.
- This exile period was crucial: Sun began exploring cooperation with the Soviet Union and the newly formed Chinese Communist Party (CCP), leading to the First United Front (1923–1927).