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        On 12 February, 1912, an imperial edict announced the abdication of the Chinese Emperor and establishment of democracy, whereupon Dr Sun Yat-Sen who was to become known as the Father of the Chinese Republic resigned as its first President. As soon as he formed his Cabinet, Sun had misgivings about his ability to fill the office of Chief Magistrate. Troubling matters of State would have to be settled and he had no training as an administrator; defections and dissatisfactions would have to be dealt with, and he lacked over-all authority.

        The new Republic needed a President who was already known by the masses, one who could unite the whole country. Sun Yat-Sen thought that he knew the man. As his successor he selected Yuan Shih-K'ai, a liberal statesman, who had earlier persuaded the Ch'ing government to grant several reforms.

        In his speech of resignation Sun declared: 'North and South are brought together by the abdication of the Emperor. Yuan Shih-K'ai promises to support the Republic. He is a man experienced in affairs of State, and a loyal supporter of that democracy for which we have laboured for so long'.

        Sun Yat-Sen's revolution was based on three principles: nationalism, democracy, and equality. These three principles, in fact, were elevated to the status of basic principles: The Three People's Principles. The first of these held that Chinese government should be in the hands of the Chinese rather than a foreign imperial house. Government should be Republican and democratically elected. Finally, disparities in land ownership should be equalised among the people, wealth more evenly distributed, and the social effects of unbridled capitalism and commerce should be mitigated by government.

Sun Yat-Sen was mistaken in his enthusiasm for nominating Yuan Shih-K'ai as the President of the new Republic. Yuan was not a democrat but a dictator. Sun Yat-Sen became Director General of Transport and Trade, but as the founder of the Kuomintang (People's Party), he devoted himself chiefly to the preparation and spread of party propaganda. Yuan took advantage of his position and played politics with a high and heavy hand. Many commentators believe that Yuan had planned to usurp power long before he joined Sun Yat-Sen's revolution. In his famous book Sun Yat-Sen and the Chinese Republic Paul Linebarger has described Yuan as a Chinese Judas, an opportunistic traitor, a murderer, a tyrannical monster opposing the advance of the people.         To quote Paul Linebarger's words in this context: 'It is accepted as a matter of Chinese history that Sun was tricked out of the Presidency by Yuan who made Sun believe that he, Sun, could do a greater work in improving the economic condition of China as its railroad builder and director rather than by devoting his whole day's work to the supplications of office-seekers and franchise-grabbers.         The real truth is that national troubles were inherent not only in the differences between Sun Yat-Sen and Yuan but in the ground situation itself in the China of that time. The troubles came fast. Within a year the break with Yuan was complete. North and South were divided; Sun Yat-Sen was forced into open conflict with the man he had appointed President. By this time Yuan was in command of a large and disciplined army, and after a brutal battle at Nanking, Sun Yat-Sen was once more in exile. He was in Japan in December 1915, when Yuan Shih-K'ai declared himself Emperor of the Chinese Republic. Provinces revolted against him and many of his supporters deserted him. A reign of terror followed. Bands of marauders swept through the country, pillaging, looting, and burning.

Mausoleum for Sun Yat-Sen near Zhongshan mountain in Nanjing.

        Six months later, at the height of the savagery, Yuan Shih-K'ai died. Sun Yat-Sen came home to continue the interrupted formation of his constitutional government, but the conditions were unfavourable. The country was split by many factions. New gangs of armed ruffians sprang up and, before they could be seized, disappeared. Every little village politician was intent upon being a national leader. The country rioted in lawlessness; there were no authorities to whom poor helpless people could appeal.

        In 1920, Dr Sun took up his work in Canton. Conditions in the South were propitious. The warlord Chen Chung-ming had defeated the hated Kwangsi faction, and since he was friendly to the fighting Dr Sun Yat-Sen, it became possible for Sun to establish himself. Sun Yat-Sen was once more hailed as President, even though his power did not extend beyond southern China. A little later he urged Chen Chung-ming to extend the sphere of their influence northward, to bring idealism as well as strength into the conflict before civil wars wrecked the country. Chen Chung-ming refused to move. Hurt and resentful, Sun organised his own army and led his troupes northward. He was, however, unable to finance a long campaign. On his return, he dismissed Chen Chung-ming from office. Chen turned against Sun Yat-Sen and started a counter- movement. Chen's troupes attacked Sun's headquarters and forced Sun to flee. His wife Chingling escaped disguised as an elderly country woman.

        Warring cliques were ruining the country. Sun tried desperately to reunite them. He had watched the Russian Revolution of 1917 with sympathy and displayed a great interest in the development of the Soviets. He did not, however, believe that the Russian system could be introduced in China because he said: 'There do not exist the conditions for the successful establishment of either Communism or Sovietism in China'. Nevertheless he agreed that Chiang Kai-shek should receive aid and instruction from Russia's Military Advisers and the Kuomintang was reorganised along Communist lines. As matters grew worse, Sun himself could not refrain from violence and mass executions in order to consolidate his position.

        It was very clear to Sun that the people of China were not ready to exercise their power to vote, especially in matters of initiative and referendum. He believed that the people of China would require a period of time in which they were trained to exercise democracy. He called this period of training, the 'Three Stages of Revolution'. In the first stage, a period of military rule would be established in order to dismantle completely the old form of imperial government. This early stage would be nothing less than a dictatorship. After the dismantling of the old system, the revolution would enter its second stage, that of 'political tutelage.' The State would still be a military autocracy, but the people would be trained in democracy by allowing them a certain amount of regional autonomy. The third stage would see the abandonment of the military autocracy in favour of an allout democracy. Sun's stages of revolution were the first theories of 'guided democracy' to emerge in Asia and became a powerful tool under the Communists after the death of Sun Yat-Sen in 1925.

        In his approach to 'guided democracy', Sun Yat-Sen was sustained by the workers and students, but he lost the support of the politicians, landowners and other conservatives. More disturbances troubled the divided nation in 1923-24. War broke out in the North as well as in Peking and the valley of the Yangtze.

        Accompanied by Chiang Kai-shek, Sun threw himself into the conflict. At the height of the crisis, Sun Yat-Sen was invited to join others, including his enemies, in a call for people's conference. He was extremely suspicious about the sincerity of the invitation but he could not refuse. As a sick man he set out for Peking in January 1925. He died in Peking on 12 March, 1925. When he died, there was much grief expressed throughout China and tens of thousands of poems were written for the occasion, and more every year whenever that date was commemorated.

        A magnificent mausoleum was built in 1926 and Sun's remains were buried at a spot in Zhongshan Mountain in the eastern suburb of Nanjing. This mountain is also called Zijinshan Mountain (Purple Gold Mountain). The South-facing mausoleum with open space in front of it and the mountain against it has a neat formation and a magnificent view. It has a shape of an alarm bell, including the Sacrificial Hall, the Coffin Chamber, the Steel Pavilion, the Pass-way and the Marble Archway. All the buildings were arranged along a North-South axis. It is a well-known revolution memorial located in a scenic area made solemnly sublime and beautiful by its magnificent mountain, dense woods, and countless historic sites.

        What is Sun Yat-Sen's place in history? The last 10 years of his life were frustrating because he experienced both loyalty and betrayal without being able to achieve his goals. His dream of unifying the country and bringing modern economic development to all Chinese people was still nowhere in sight at the time of his death. Yet today he is the only political leader who is recognised as China's great modern leader on both sides of the Taiwan Straits, and also by the Chinese outside China. Though he was a 19th century man, yet he saw the needs of the 20th century far ahead of most of his compatriots.