First Zhili-Fengtian War

Part of Warlord era

Date	April 10, 1922 - June 18, 1922
Location	Zhili, China
Result	Zhili victory

Belligerents

Zhili Clique

Fengtian clique

Commanders and leaders

Wu Peifu

Zhang Zuolin

Strength

100,000

120,000

Casualties and losses

Low

20,000 killed, 10,000 deserted, 40,000 surrendered

The First Zhili–Fengtian War (First Chihli-Fengtien War; simplified Chinese: 第一次直奉战争; traditional Chinese: 第一次直奉戰爭; pinyin: Dìyīcì Zhífèng Zhànzhēng) was a 1922 conflict in the Republic of China's Warlord Era between the Zhili and Fengtian cliques for control of Beijing. The war led to the defeat of the Fengtian clique and the fall of its leader, Zhang Zuolin, from the coalition Zhili-Fengtian government in Beijing. Wu Peifu was credited as the strategist behind Zhili's victory.

Having jointly seized Beijing in 1920, the Fengtian and Zhili cliques controlled the nominal government of China. Tensions soon began building between the two cliques in their uneasy coalition government. In 1922, the Fengtian clique replaced Premier Jin Yunpeng with Liang Shiyi without getting the prior consent of their partner, the Zhili clique. While the Zhili clique had the backing of the British and Americans, the Fengtian leader was backed by Japan. The Japanese government had once supported their enemy, the Anhui clique, but had switched sides soon after the change of power. On December 25, 1921, a cabinet under Liang Shiyi’s leadership was formed with strong support from Zhang Zuolin, whereupon the new cabinet immediately granted amnesty to six former cabinet members of the Anhui clique. The Zhili clique strongly opposed the plan but were overruled.

The conflict further intensified as the new cabinet refused to give some $3 million in military budgets previously promised to the Zhili clique. As a result, Wu Peifu and other Zhili clique members forced Liang Shiyi to resign on January 25, 1922. With the pro-Fengtian clique cabinet having collapsed only a month after its formation, Zhang Zuolin threatened to resolve the conflict by force. Troops were deployed on April 10, 1922, though Wu Peifu and his Zhili clique did not formally denounce their opponent until April 25, 1922.

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