Central Plains War (simplified Chinese: 中原大战; traditional Chinese: 中原大戰; pinyin: Zhōngyúan Dàzhàn) was a civil war within the factionalised Kuomintang (KMT) that broke out in 1930. It was fought between the forces of Chiang Kai-shek and the coalition of three military commanders who were previously allied with Chiang: Yan Xishan, Feng Yuxiang, and Li Zongren. The war was fought across the Central Plains, a core region of China on the lower reaches of the Yellow River and the cradle of Chinese civilization.
In consolidating power for the Kuomintang in the Northern Expedition of 1927–1928, Chiang had forged alliances with the warlord armies of Yan, Feng, and Li, but relations soon soured, resulting in the war. The war almost bankrupted Chiang's Nationalist Government and cost over 300,000 total combined casualties, but allowed the victorious Chiang to further consolidate power as the undisputed leader of most of China.
Read more about Central Plains War: Preparations, Outbreak, Aftermath
Famous quotes containing the words central plains, central, plains and/or war:
“Incarnate devil in a talking snake,
The central plains of Asia in his garden,
In shaping-time the circle stung awake,
In shapes of sin forked out the bearded apple....”
—Dylan Thomas (1914–1953)
“The Federal Constitution has stood the test of more than a hundred years in supplying the powers that have been needed to make the Central Government as strong as it ought to be, and with this movement toward uniform legislation and agreements between the States I do not see why the Constitution may not serve our people always.”
—William Howard Taft (1857–1930)
“When I say artist I don’t mean in the narrow sense of the word—but the man who is building things—creating molding the earth—whether it be the plains of the west—or the iron ore of Penn. It’s all a big game of construction—some with a brush—some with a shovel—some choose a pen.”
—Jackson Pollock (1912–1956)
“Both parties deprecated war; but one of them would make war rather than let the nation survive; and the other would accept war rather than let it perish. And the war came.”
—Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865)