In ancient times, it was common for men to have three wives and four concubines, and only Zhuo Wenjun's generally strong woman would pursue monogamy and leave when her husband decided to take a concubine. In 1912, the Republic of China implemented monogamy, but it did not achieve much success, and it was not until the promulgation of the Marriage Law in 1950 that monogamy was stabilized.
So in the Republic of China, did those warlords with greater power have many wives and concubines? Let's look at a set of old photos to see what the warlords' aunts and wives look like.
The first picture shows Janssen and his wives and concubines. Born in 1884, Janssen was so interested in learning martial arts that he joined the army in 1906 and subsequently became a senior officer. As wars broke out again and again, Janssen became a famous warlord with his outstanding abilities. In addition to his outstanding combat ability in his life, his absurd and deformed married life has also made him quite controversial.
According to statistics, Yang Sen had a total of twelve wives and concubines. These women are also very pitiful, they do not really want to come to Janssen's side, but they were forcibly snatched by Janssen. These women lived very unhappily, because Janssen would often beat and scold them, and their deaths and injuries were more tragic.
The second photo is of the fifth aunt of the famous warlord Yuan Shikai. Yuan Shikai was born in 1859, and lived to be fifty-seven years old, she had many wives and concubines in her life, and her children were piled up. According to records, Yuan Shikai had a wife and nine concubines, while the children had thirty-two. This fifth aunt is very much liked by Yuan Shikai because she has a pair of small feet. In addition, her mind is also very developed, very good at financial management, and has become the financial steward of the Yuan Mansion.
The third photo is Zhang Xun's third aunt, her name is Wang Keqin, and she looks very much like Zhou Dongyu. Wang Keqin's parents died since childhood, living with relatives, and finally forced to become a drama, when many people fell for her. After marrying Zhang Xun, she did not like this old man who was more than ten years older than her, but instead looked at his Ma Ben, and finally successfully escaped Zhang Xun's door by pretending to be crazy and stupid, and became Ma Ben's partner.
The fourth photo is of Yang Xiuqiong, who is Fan Shaozeng's eighteenth aunt, who was only nineteen years old at this time. Yang Xiuqiong is very good-looking, a swimming star, and even loved by Song Meiling, who recognizes her as a dry daughter. But Song Meiling did not give her enough protection, and in 1936, she was forced to end her sports career and became Fan Shaozeng's concubine due to political factors.
The fifth is Du Yuesheng's aunt and wife, they are Yao Yulan and Meng Xiaodong. Both of them were famous Peking Opera actors who met in 1922 and became good sisters. Four years later, Yao Yulan married Du Yuesheng, and then drifted with Du Yuesheng. Meng Xiaodong is more famous than Yao Yulan, who is an excellent descendant of the Yu Sect and has become the only female disciple to close the door.
At that time, the most famous horn was Meng Xiaodong, and the most famous Dan horn was Mei Lanfang, Qiandan Kunsheng, after the two cooperated, they had a friendship and became a famous couple at that time. Unexpectedly, a series of tragic events occurred later, the two were accused by the world, and Meng Xiaodong also entered the Buddhist Gate for a time. And Du Yuesheng has already taken a fancy to Meng Xiaodong, plus Yao Yulan threaded a needle in it, and the two also got married and gave birth to a daughter.
Many of the warlords' concubines did not marry them voluntarily, and even if they were willing, the polygamous system doomed them not to live too happily. In fact, the ancient polygamy system was biased towards men with better family conditions, and monogamy, whether for men or women, was more conducive to social stability.