On October 10, 1911, the first uprising of the New Army in Wuchang, the outbreak of the Xinhai Revolution, the response of the whole country, and the declaration of independence of the provinces, for a time, the rule of the Qing Dynasty was in turmoil.
In desperation, the Qing court was forced to employ Yuan Shikai, the leader of the Beiyang clan who had been idle for more than two years, and appointed him as the minister of Chincha and the governor of Huguang, to restrain all the water and army troops on the front line to suppress the new army in Wuchang. On November 1, when the Beiyang Army conquered Wuchang, the Qing court appointed Yuan Shikai as the prime minister of the cabinet, and Yuan Shikai became Yuan Xiangguo under one person and above ten thousand people.
However, on the one hand, the old and cunning Yuan Shikai used the force of the Qing court to blackmail the revolutionaries into discussion and compromise, and on the other hand, he used revolutionary forces to force the Qing Emperor to abdicate.
When the building is about to fall, is it a retreat or a battle? The Qing court held several imperial councils to discuss, at which disputes were fierce, each holding their own views, and no consensus could be reached.
Empress Longyu, as an empress dowager who bowed to the government, did not have the wrist of Empress Dowager Cixi, and she could only hold the young Xuantong Emperor Ai Xinjue luo Puyi and cry bitterly.
Yuan Shikai was both soft and hard, and threw out the conditions of "preferential treatment of the Qing chamber" as bait, forcing the Qing court to agree to abdicate.
On December 25, the third year of the Qing Dynasty's reunification, and on February 12, 1912 , the Qing court , in desperation , issued three edicts, the Edict of Abdication , announcing the abdication of Emperor Xuantong of the Qing Dynasty and the acceptance of the republican form of government. Since Puyi was only 6 years old at the time, these three edicts were issued in the name of Empress Dowager Yi of Longyu.
So, what are all said in these three Edicts of Abdication? Below, the author lists and briefly explains them.
One of the Edicts of abdication of the Qing Emperor
Empress Dowager Longyu's will:
Because of the uprising of the Nationalist Army, the provinces responded, the Nine Summers boiled, and the lives were ruined, and Yuan Shikai was specially ordered to dispatch personnel to discuss the overall situation with the representatives of the Nationalist Army, open the National Assembly, and referendum on the form of government. In the past two months, there has been no definite way, the north and the south have been separated, they have held each other, the merchants have dropped out of the way, the soldiers have been exposed to the wilderness, and the national system has been undecided for a day, so the people's livelihood has been uneasy for a day.
The psychology of the people of the whole country today is mostly inclined to republicanism, and the provinces in the south and central regions have advocated both the front and the generals in the north and the latter. The destiny of the human heart is known. Why should Yu Yi endure the honor of a surname and the likes and dislikes of the people? It is to use the appearance of the general trend, the internal examination of public opinion, the special lead of the emperor to publicize the ruling power to the whole country, designated as a republican constitutional state, close to the heart of the sea disgusted with chaos and hope to govern, far from the ancient holy world as a justice.
Yuan Shikai was elected by the Privy Council as prime minister, and when the old and new are metabolized, it is advisable to have a way to unify the north and the south, that is, Yuan Shikai will organize a provisional republican government with full authority and consult with the people's army on a unified method.
In the whole period, the people were blocked, the sea was safe, and the five ethnic groups of Manchuria, Han, Mongolia, Hui, and Tibet were still completely territorial, and for the republic of China, the emperor was able to retire to a place of leniency, travel for years, receive the favor of the people for a long time, and see the completion of the rule of Zhi. Thanks.
This first edict is also known as the "Edict of abdication of the Qing Emperor", and its promulgation marks the end of the absolutist rule of China's feudal emperors.
In this edict, the Qing court stated that "the appearance of the general situation, the internal review of public opinion, the special lead of the emperor to the rule of the whole country, designated as a republican constitutional state, close to the heart of the sea disgusted with chaos and hope for governance, far from the ancient holy world as the righteousness of justice", the Qing court also asked Yuan Shikai to "organize a provisional republican government with full authority, and negotiate with the people's army to unify the methods", hoping that "the people will be blocked, and the sea will be at peace."
On this abdication edict, there are also the signatures of Yuan Shikai and 11 other ministers of various ministries.
The second edict of the Abdication of the Qing Emperor
The rulers of the ancient world are focused on protecting the lives of the whole people, and they cannot bear to harm others with those who feed people. Now that the new national system is being established, it is nothing more than the desire to first put an end to great chaos and ensure peace and security. If we rebel against the hearts and minds of the majority of the people and restart the infinite scourge of war, the overall situation will be broken, and the slaughter will be sought, and it will become the tragedy of the race. The Nine Temples will be shocked, the People of Zhaomin will be poisoned, and the disaster will be endured. The two evils are dwarfed, and the lesser of them is the imperial court's judgment of the changes in time and the suffering of our people.
Verdun and foreign subjects should be kind to this intention, and do harm to the whole situation, and do not take advantage of false intentions and arrogant words, so that both the country and the people will suffer. The Ministry of Civil Affairs, the commander of the infantry, Jiang Guiti, Feng Guozhang, and others took strict precautions, cut through and enlightened, and all of them knew the intention of the imperial court to be obedient to Tianshun and the selfless intention of the Grand Duke.
To the state to set up officials and posts, thinking that for the people, the cabinet, the government, the ministry, the hospital, the external construction of the governor, the fu, the division, the road, so Kang Baoqun Li, not for one person and one family. All officials, large and small, should be aware of the difficulties of the times and be cautious in their duties. The chiefs shall be instructed to admonish them not to neglect the officials, but to caress the common people with their last wishes. Thanks.
The second edict of abdication was to exhort the subjects inside and outside the capital of the Qing Dynasty, hoping that they would "be kind to this intention, to harm the rights of the whole world, and not to be arrogant and arrogant, to carry out extremist empty words, and to cause the country and the people to suffer from it."
At the same time, the edict also said that the cabinets and ministries set up by the central government and the governors set up by the local governments were all set up to protect the peace of the people of the world, not for one person and one family, and hoped that officials inside and outside Beijing would continue to work conscientiously in consideration of the difficulties of the situation. The meaning of these words also shows that the imperial autocracy of the feudal dynasty is really over.
Edict of abdication of the Qing Emperor No. 3
In the past, the overall situation was in danger, and the Zhaomin people were in distress, and the special cabinet and the civil army discussed the conditions for preferential treatment of the imperial family in order to achieve a peaceful settlement. According to the repetition, the conditions for the preferential ceremonies prescribed by the People's Army will always be enshrined in the tombs of the Zongmiao Temple, and the previous imperial tomb system has been undertaken as in the old proper repair of all sections. But the emperor stepped down from power and did not abolish the honorific title. It was also agreed that there were eight preferential treatment for the royal family, four articles for the treatment of the royal family, and seven articles for the treatment of Manchu, Mongolian, Hui, and Tibetan.
The special proclamation of the imperial family, the Manchus, the Mongols, the Hui, the Tibetans, etc., should henceforth eliminate the domain, jointly ensure public order, see the ascension of the world, and enjoy the happiness of the republic. There are high hopes for yushi. Thanks.
The third edict of abdication mainly stated that after the Abdication of the Qing Emperor, according to consultations with the government of the Republic of China, "the emperor resigned from power and did not abolish the honorific title", and "agreed to give preferential treatment to the imperial family, four articles to treat the imperial family, and seven articles to treat Manchu, Mongolian, Hui, and Tibetan".
In this edict, it not only stated that the government of the Republic of China should give preferential treatment to the imperial family and the imperial family, but also demanded that ethnic minorities such as the Manchus, Mongolians, and Tibet be equal to the Han Chinese, and that the government of the Republic of China should protect their original private property.
With the promulgation of the three Edicts of Abdication, it marked the overthrow of the Qing Dynasty, which ruled China for 268 years, and also marked the end of China's more than two thousand years of feudal monarchy since Qin Shi Huang founded the emperor system.
This article refers to: "The Words of the King under the Contemporary Perspective: Interpretation of the Classic Texts of Chinese Edict Culture"