Wuchang Uprising
The Wuchang Uprising was an armed rebellion against the ruling Qing dynasty that took place in Wuchang (now Wuchang District of Wuhan), Hubei, China on 10 October 1911, beginning the Xinhai Revolution that successfully overthrew China's last imperial dynasty. It was led by elements of the New Army, influenced by revolutionary ideas from Tongmenghui. The uprising and the eventual revolution directly led to the downfall of the Qing dynasty with almost three centuries of imperial rule, and the establishment of the Republic of China (ROC), which commemorates the anniversary of the uprising's starting date of 10 October as the National Day of the Republic of China.
| Wuchang Uprising | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Xinhai Revolution | |||||||
Establishment of the Republic of China | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
| Qing Empire |
Tongmenghui Hubei Military Government | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
|
Ruicheng Zhang Hu |
Huang Xing Xiong Bingkun Li Yuanhong | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 10,000 troops | 2,000 troops | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| ~4,000 killed | ~1,000 killed | ||||||
| Wuchang Uprising | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Traditional Chinese | 武昌起義 | ||||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 武昌起义 | ||||||||||||||
| Hanyu Pinyin | Wǔchāng Qǐyì | ||||||||||||||
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The uprising originated from popular unrest about a railway crisis, and the planning process took advantage of the situation. On 10 October 1911, the New Army stationed in Wuchang launched an assault on the residence of the Viceroy of Huguang. The viceroy Ruicheng quickly fled from the residence, and the revolutionaries soon took control of the entire city.