Zhihua talks about history, and history talks about itself. Welcome everyone to [follow] me, talk about the past and the present, and discuss the general trend of the world.
On December 1, 1919, the Beijing government issued the Great Presidential Decree on the aftermath of Outer Mongolia, which stated:
"Now that Outer Mongolia has revoked its autonomy, the aftermath is complicated. Suibian is extremely important. Xu Shuzheng was instructed to supervise all matters related to the aftermath of Outer Mongolia as a border envoy in the northwest. All the original clerks and assistants will be abolished. The State Council, in conjunction with the competent organs, should properly draw up the official system, submit it for approval, and promulgate it in accordance with the law. Before it was promulgated, the Office of the Treasurer was merged into the Northwest Frontier Embassy Office. Its adjutantical members are still temporarily staying in the region to handle the current incident in accordance with the Northwest Border Envoy. ”
At the same time, the Beijing government transferred Chen Yi back to Beijing and reappointed him as General Yu Wei.
1, Xu Shuzheng's "three fires"
After the abolition of "autonomy" in Outer Mongolia, the president of the Republic of China added new titles to Jebtsundamba and the Living Buddha, and specially appointed Xu Shuzheng as a special envoy. On December 27, 1919, Xu Shuzheng sent the seal book to the warehouse.
"The princes and lamas of the Outer Mongolian government and the military and business gentry, etc., are ten miles away from the suburbs, and the etiquette is very prosperous. Men, women, old and young spectators flocked to the road, and the market was all hung with flags. ”
On January 1, 1920, the canonization ceremony was held at Jebtsundamba's residence. "Xu Shuzheng and others led the civil and military attachés, held the guard of honor, honored the seal, and arrived at the Buddhist officials in their own pavilion, and there were more than 100 people outside the palace and lamas."
The national flag of the Republic of China and the portrait of the President of the Republic of China were displayed in advance.
Jebtsundamba bowed three times each to the national flag, the portrait of the president and the canonized seal. After the canonization envoy reads the text of the canonization in the south, he personally confers the canonization seal, and the Buddha and the living Buddha receive it in the north. Xu Shuzheng and others saluted the Buddha and the living Buddha, and the Buddha and the living Buddha replied with a ceremony and led the Han and Mongolian military officials and businessmen to congratulate the Buddha. The audience cheered long live, and the ceremony was solemn. The prince and lama only gave it as a gift. Today's scenery is beautiful, the climate is peaceful, and there are more than 20,000 residents in Kulun. Most of them are out of view, and the way is stopped. More than 20 foreign guests watched the ceremony."
In order to celebrate the canonization of Jebtsundamba, the State Council of the Republic of China announced to the whole country: from January 1, 1920, it will be celebrated for three days. Kulen, Uriya Sutai and other places hoisted flags to celebrate, and Chinese civil and military officials in Vladivostok and businessmen living in Vladivostok also held celebrations.
As soon as the celebration of canonization ended, Xu Shuzheng immediately took over the Outer Mongolia government and the office of the senior secretary in the treasury. He abolished the former telegraph and telephone bureau, changed the Kulen telegraph and telephone bureau into the telegraph and telephone bureau, and changed the telegraph and telephone bureaus in Nalin, Ude, Kyakhta, and other places into sub-bureaus. A trial bureau was temporarily set up in Kulun to clean up more than 100 cases transferred by the former Outer Mongolia judicial yamen. More than 400,000 rubles of cash transferred by the former Outer Mongolia Government Livelihood Bureau "still instructs the original officials to be the proper managers for the time being."
The army under the former Outer Mongolia government had been dismissed by the government before it was taken over, and "only a few border guards remained." Jebtsundamba's guards were planned to be reorganized, and "instruments, guns, knives, bows and banners were to be received and safekept." The letters of the various ministries are also submitted". Jebtsundamba had an old book seal, "paid by the Shabi Yamen Guwen on behalf of the document".
Subsequently, Xu Shuzheng reorganized the five yamen of the former Outer Mongolia government into three departments: the three yamen of internal affairs, justice, and foreign affairs were merged into the General Affairs Department, the army yamen was changed into the Soldier and Guard Department, and the financial yamen was changed into the Finance and Accounting Department.
The Consul General of the old Russian regime in Kulen was established in accordance with the Sino-Russian Treaty of Beijing in 1860, and the name of "diplomat" was added without authorization in 1913.
"Now that the treatment has been abolished, the old system should be restored, and it seems that the honorable department can inform the Russian leader, and directly consult with your office in case of trouble, so as to conform to the old practice. If you go to the Russian consul general, you can only call it the Russian consul general, and it seems that you can ignore it to avoid disputes. ”
Outer Mongolia is under the effective jurisdiction of the Chinese central government, and the sovereignty of the Chinese government over Outer Mongolia has been fully restored.
In the following six months, Xu Shuzheng took charge of the Outer Mongolia region as a border envoy in the northwest.
2, Xu Shuzheng's "Essentials of Governing Mongolia"
Russia, a neighboring country that has a great impact on the future and destiny of Outer Mongolia, was in the autumn of civil war, the prospects of which of the old and new parties would win or lose, and the prospects were not yet clear, and the officials and people of Outer Mongolia were still waiting and watching the development of the situation in Russia; After eight years of "independence" and "autonomy", the old system was suddenly restored, and the officials and people of Outer Mongolia needed a psychological adaptation process; Coupled with the temptation of external forces and the activities of a small number of separatists in Outer Mongolia, the people of Outer Mongolia are unstable.
The economy of Outer Mongolia is withering, and the people are exhausted. The combined effect of these factors makes the governance of Outer Mongolia a very difficult matter. Xu Shuzheng took over this matter in this situation.
In order to smash the foreign aggression plot, enhance the centripetal force of the officials and people of Outer Mongolia towards the motherland, and maintain China's sovereignty over the Outer Mongolia region for a long time, it is necessary to do something in a down-to-earth manner.
He once said:
"Empty words, the difficult period is long, all important policies, if you don't take timely measures, I am afraid that this place is not mine, and it is better to have nothing."
At the beginning of May 1920, he drafted the "Outline of Mongolian Governance", made a detailed report to the State Council, and submitted it to President Xu Shichang and Border Supervision Office Duan Qirui for review.
Xu Shuzheng's "Essentials of Governing Mongolia" is divided into three parts: general administration, official system, and military affairs.
In terms of general administration, he advocated raising military horses on a large scale, strengthening education in traditional Chinese culture, giving preferential treatment to the Russians, especially the Buryat Mongolia, strictly imposing telegraph fees, releving taxes on tobacco and alcohol and other luxury goods, formulating criminal laws specifically applicable to Mongolia with reference to the Qing Law and the laws of the Republic of China, developing reclamation and animal husbandry, setting up various industries such as industrial and commercial salt affairs, forestry and mining, and encouraging Mongolia herdsmen to settle down.
In terms of the official system, he suggested that Outer Mongolia "set up a general system in the whole territory, sit in key districts, and control all matters of military, civil and commercial affairs"; The Khalkha Four Leagues and six regions, including Kobdo and Tangnu Ulianghai, "each has a member in charge of politics and business."
On the military side, Xu Shuzheng proposed to garrison seven brigades in several strategic points in Outer Mongolia, among them, "two brigades on the Krulun River and Kyakhta, one brigade on the Kulun River, two brigades on the Tangnu Ulianghai Brigade, two brigades on Kobdo and Uriya Sutai, and one brigade on Ude and Sarwusu."
The brigades had to increase their cavalry and reduce their infantry. In addition to combat readiness training, soldiers can also practice tuntian in areas suitable for reclamation.
Some of the contents of Xu Shuzheng's plan to govern Mongolia are inappropriate.
For example, the imposition of telegraph fees and the imposition of taxes on tobacco and alcohol will increase the burden on Mongolians and may worsen ethnic relations. But a lot of the content still makes sense. The development of various economic undertakings is conducive to improving the livelihood of local people and enhancing national defense strength; The development of criminal laws adapted to local conditions will help to maintain local social order; The establishment of officials and the stationing of heavy troops are conducive to preventing foreign aggression and ensuring national unity.
However, in order to implement these measures, Chinese mainland must be unified and stable, and the central government must have sufficient financial and military resources. None of these conditions were available at the time. Therefore, his strategy for governing Mongolia can only be on paper. Since he couldn't do it in a big way, Xu Shuzheng did something within his power to win the hearts of the people and maintain the situation.
On the political front, in order to resolve the contradictions between the princes and lamas and to liaise with the upper echelons of Outer Mongolia, in late January 1920, Xu Shuzheng set up a "political and religious association" in Kulen, inviting important princes and lamas to gather and celebrate.
And presented 2,000 yuan to Shabi Yamen, and asked Jebzundamba to recite the scriptures, "seeking spirit for the Mongolian realm, in order to stop the epidemic this winter, the pasture grass is abundant next spring, and the livestock are fertile."
In early to mid-June, he summoned the princes and zasaks of various tribes of Outer Mongolia to Kulun for a meeting, which was attended by more than 40 people, and the commanders of the various banners of Tangnu and Ulianghai were also called to attend the meeting. The meeting discussed such matters as "emphasizing religion, promoting animal husbandry, reducing strict levies, rectifying public stations, setting up schools, protecting forests, changing seals, and demarcating borders."
During the meeting, Xu Shuzheng led business leaders and military officers to banquet all princes and Zasak on the day to "connect and celebrate".
On November 17, 1919, when the former Outer Mongolia government submitted a submission to Xu Shuzheng abolishing "autonomy," it stated that it would send another representative to Beijing in the future to discuss the conditions for the aftermath.
Xu Shuzheng convened a meeting of all the princes and lamas in Kulun to "decide" and selected "12 princes and 4 lamas" from Outer Mongolia and 1 lama from Tangnu Ulianghai, a total of 17 people, "to enter Beijing and negotiate conditions."
They are Chechen Khan Nawangnarin, Chechen Khan League Commander Chao Kebadar Hu, Prince Bangchu Krabutan, Tushetu Khan League Leader Bangchuk Chelin, Jinong King Hilning Damuding, Sanyin Noyan Prince Cheden Sunom, Prince Zamuyan Dorji, Beizi Chaoketuvazir, Zasaktu Khan County King Gaochuk Danba, Dulbert Department Beile Sanga Bazar, Beizi Ayol Zhana, Gong Ayur Zana, Tangnu Ulianghai Grand Lama Dakdan, Shabi Prince Jiahan Zenghu Tuktu Damudin Bazar, Dehibu Hutu Ketu Zamu Selengyalpa, Prince Shabi Dash Dingdub, King of Shabi County, Grand Lama Bangchuk Dorji.
In the first year of the Republic of China, the Chinese Provisional Senate passed the "Regulations on the Treatment of Mongolia", and Xu Shuzheng suggested that the central government should explicitly reiterate it at an appropriate time in order to win the hearts of the people.
The fierce contradictions between the princes and the lamas within the ruling group of Outer Mongolia were fierce, and Xu Shuzheng believed:
"After the abolition of Outer Mongolia, if we do not urgently talk about the strategy of fighting between the two parties, it will still be difficult for the Mongolian people to be at peace. In the dispute between politics and religion, the lama was knighted, and the prince's fiefdom was usurped". "Lamas are always hard-working, so those who are in love with the government are planning for money."
He advocated that "the princes should be allowed to pay money every year, called religious funds, or donations, and collect them from the government, and the government will set them as the annual fees of the lamas, and pay them on time, so that the lamas will have the support and will not die of starvation, and the princes will regain the towns they have taken... Du Bile from". The matter was only recommended to the President and the State Department, but was not put into practice.
On the economic front, Xu Shuzheng put the establishment of the border industry bank into practice. After the approval of the State Council, the Northwest Frontier Embassy Office "contacted and contacted the honest gentlemen and businessmen from all over the country, convened the share capital of the bank, drafted Article 21 of the articles of association, and submitted it to the government for approval, and proposed a total share capital of 10 million yuan, divided into 100,000 shares, 100 yuan per share, and 750,000 yuan of share capital raised by the Border Embassy, which was advocated."
The bank is supervised by the Northwest Frontier Embassy Office, with its head office in Beijing and its branch in Kulun. Since its establishment, "the handling has been properly handled, the fund-raising is relatively thick, the credit has gradually increased, and the issuance of banknotes has been very welcome by the border people." Outside the Cypriot Finance, the Sun-shaped activity, the power of this bank is the majority".
The alliance banners of Outer Mongolia owed a lot of old debts to the former Qing Dynasty household banks, "totaling 568,665,560 taels of silver." In 1918, the Kulen Branch of the Bank of China signed a contract with the Outer Mongolia government, stipulating that all interest on this debt would be waived and the principal would be repaid within three years.
After Outer Mongolia abolished its "autonomy," Xu Shuzheng reported to the Beijing government for approval and wrote off the old debt. In addition, Xu Shuzheng also raised the repayment of Outer Mongolia's Russian debts. In the following years, in order to pay for military and political expenses, the Kulen authorities borrowed 5.1 million rubles from the Tsarist government on three occasions (4.5 million rubles were paid), and Tsarist Russia took the opportunity to blackmail and seize many privileges.
After the "October Revolution", Russia fell into civil strife, the ruble was greatly devalued, and the Kulen authorities raised more than 400,000 rubles to demand the repayment of Russian debts. After the abolition of "autonomy" in Outer Mongolia, this debt will be borne entirely by the Chinese central government, and Xu Shuzheng plans to negotiate with the Russian side again to repay this debt.
In terms of foreign relations, Xu Shuzheng took some measures to strengthen border defenses and adopt a neutral attitude towards the war between the two Russian political forces in the Sino-Russian border area at that time.
At that time, the old and new parties in Russia, north of Kyakhta, were fighting fiercely.
On January 13, 1920, hundreds of Soviet and Russian armed men occupied Uschchakta, 25 kilometers northwest of Kyakhta, and prepared to attack the Kyakhta Russian city circle, which was entrenched by the old Russian White Party.
At that time, the 4th Suiyuan Cavalry Regiment had been transferred to Qiacheng to garrison, and Li Yuan, the Chinese assistant officer in Kyakhta, sent the cavalry of the regiment to patrol the Chinese and Russian city circles in Kyakhta, and sent Niu Wenbing, secretary of the Qia Bureau, to Ushchaktu by car to negotiate with the commander of the Soviet and Russian armed forces, "dissuading from many parties and bitterly talking about the misery of the war." Finally, the two sides reached an agreement: The area within 25 kilometers of the Russian side of the Sino-Russian border line in Kyakhta is a no-war area, the Russian New Party will not attack Kyakhta, and the Chinese army will set up a card in Ushchaktu to prohibit the old Russian White Party from crossing the forbidden area.
Xu Shuzheng received a telegram from Li Yuan and agreed to his plan, that is, he sent the first battalion to Kyakhta for reinforcements, and combined the battalion with the various units in Kyakhta to form the "Weicha Detachment", and appointed Li Yuan as the commander and Gao Zaitian, the commander of the 4th Cavalry Regiment, as the deputy commander.
At this time, the strength of the Weicha detachment included a regiment of infantry of Chu Qixiang's brigade, a company of artillery, a company of machine guns, and six companies of Gao Zaitian cavalry. On January 19, Xu Shuzheng took a car to Kyakhta to inspect defense affairs and returned on the 24th.
At that time, the Beijing government followed the Entente powers and sent a small number of troops to Vladivostok and other places to intervene in the Russian civil war, which was wrong, but in the Sino-Russian border, including the border areas of China's Outer Mongolia and Russia, the Beijing government and its local officials adopted a policy of neutrality, which was wise and correct.
3, Xu Shuzheng's resignation
Xu Shuzheng, a figure who left important traces in the history of Outer Mongolia, has only been to Outer Mongolia three times in total, staying for less than 100 days.
From January 5, 1920, when he took over the Outer Mongolia government, to July 4, 1920, when he was dismissed by the Beijing government from his post as envoy to the northwest of the country, Xu Shuzheng stayed in Outer Mongolia for less than 60 days in half a year.
As a cadre of the Anhui clique and a core figure of the "Anfu Club," he devoted most of his energy to the struggle for power and profit within the Beijing government, and it was impossible to go all out for the governance of Outer Mongolia.
In the summer of 1920, the contradictions between the Anhui and Zhifeng factions within the Beiyang warlords suddenly intensified, and the two factions united to launch an attack on the Anhui faction.
On July 3, Cao Lu, Zhang Zuolin, and Li Chun telegraphed the whole country to denounce Xu Shuzheng and announced his six major crimes.
The next day, President Xu Shichang issued an order to remove Xu Shuzheng from his post as the border envoy in the northwest and use Li Yuan as his deputy; The Commander-in-Chief of the Frontier was abolished, and the army under his jurisdiction was taken over by the War Department. On the 10th, Duan Qirui set up the Dingguo Army Headquarters, with Xu Shuzheng as the chief of staff. On the 14th, the Anhui army and the Zhifeng coalition army started a war in, and on the 18th, Wu Peifu broke the Anhui army in Zhuozhou. Duan Qirui resigned by telegram, Xu Shuzheng fled to the Japan embassy for refuge, and the direct warlords took control of the Beijing government.
On July 15, the day after the outbreak of the Zhiwan War, representatives from Outer Mongolia who had come to Beijing to make a pilgrimage and agree on the conditions for dealing with the aftermath came to Zhangjiakou.
These delegates were selected by Xu Shuzheng for a meeting of the princely lamas convened by Xu Shuzheng in Kulen, and a total of 17 people, including Chechen Khan, Shrinindamuddin, and Gahanzeng Hutuktu.
Xu Shuzheng has been dismissed, but the representative of Outer Mongolia still embarked on the journey to Beijing as originally planned. Li Yuan, the acting envoy of the northwest frontier, accompanied them. At this time, the Zhifeng coalition army and the Anhui army exchanged fire in the area of Zhuozhou and Gaobeidian, and the Fifth Brigade of the Northwest Army "blocked the tunnel and demolished the bridge" at Qinglongkou and Juyongguan, so that the Beijing-Zhangzhou traffic was cut off.
King Tingzhen, the commander of Chahar, received this group of Outer Mongolia. He ordered people to properly take care of more than 50 tribute horses brought by the Outer Mongolia representatives, and sent his subordinates to accompany the Mongolian to watch dramas and tour the mountains for several days, "so as not to feel the sense of haste with the entertainment of hearing and hearing."
4. Chen Yi was reinstated
On July 24, he called the president and the State Department to report the incident. These men later arrived in Beijing. They asked to send Chen Yi, who had been recalled to Beijing more than half a year earlier, to Outer Mongolia.
On August 15, 1920, the Beijing government appointed Chen Yi as the border envoy of the northwest. On 10 September, the Beijing government promulgated a new official system for Outer Mongolia, abolishing the post of border envoy in the northwest and setting up a "Kuukotang Town Fu Envoy" to oversee the civil affairs of the Kulun, Uriya Sutai, Kobdo, and Tangnu Ulianghai ministries, as well as the affairs of the Turkish and Che alliances to which Kulun belongs, and to oversee the troops stationed in Outer Mongolia, the Mongolian flag garrison, and all military and political affairs, and was specially appointed by the central government to supervise the financial and judicial administration and the administrative affairs of other special official offices. The cantonment is in Kulen.
There are two deputy envoys of Kuukotang Town, whose names are counselors, and one each of Meng and Han. Uriya Sutai, Kobdo, and Tangnu Ulianghai all set up counselor's offices, each with a counselor and a deputy counselor, who were subordinate to the pacification envoy to manage the affairs of the alliance flags in the area under their jurisdiction, and were appointed by the pacification envoy to control the stationing of troops and Mongolian flag garrisons in their territory.
Kyakhta has a civil affairs officer and a deputy civil affairs officer, who are subordinate to the town envoy and manage the civil affairs and border trade affairs of the territory. Counselors, deputy counselors, civil affairs officers, and deputy civil affairs officers are respectively served by Han and Mongolian people. There are five functional departments in the Kuukotang Township Envoy Office, including the General Affairs Department, the Military Affairs Department, the Internal Affairs Department, the Negotiation Department, and the Finance Department, and a judicial department has been set up to deal with judicial affairs.
The offices of the Counsellors of Ukraine, Kosovo and Tang and the Office of the Civil Affairs Officials of Kyakhta have also set up corresponding functional departments. This bureaucratic system "seems to have changed the entire territory of Outer Mongolia into a province," and was criticized by people familiar with Mongolia at the time and afterwards.
The Beijing government then appointed candidates for various positions. Chen Yi, the former envoy of the northwest border, was the envoy of Kuukotang Town, and the deputy minister of Kulun Mongolia at the end of the Qing Dynasty was his deputy. The counselor of Uriya Sutai is the prince of the Khalkha Sanyin Noyan Department, Zamuyan Dorji, and the deputy counselor is Chen Wence, a Han official.
Counsellor Kobdo was first Hong Zhen, the former commissioner in Kobdozori, and later changed to Li Yuan, and the deputy counsellor was the local prince of Mongolia. Tangnu Wuliang Sea Counselor was first Li Yuan, and then changed to Huang Chengyu. Kyakhta civil affairs officer for Lu Bangdao.
Chen Yi was not in a relaxed mood when he sat on the throne of the head of Outer Mongolia. At that time, the warlords in Chinese mainland were fighting and the political situation was unstable, and the central government could not manage Outer Mongolia with its strength. In Russian Siberia and the Far East, the Russian Soviet power had already won a decisive victory.
The old Russian and White Party, which was facing extinction in the civil war, tried to turn Outer Mongolia into their refuge and base area, and declared to the feudal upper echelons of Outer Mongolia that their purpose was to restore the "autonomy" of Outer Mongolia.
Under these circumstances, some of the feudal elites in Outer Mongolia, who were unwilling to abolish "autonomy," were ready to move, and they colluded with the remnants of the old Russian White Party to engage in separatist activities again.
(End of text)
If you have other topics or opinions about the field of history, you can [follow] me for a private chat, or you can leave a message in the comment area below and reply as soon as possible.