Second Zhili-Fengtian War

Second Zhili–Fengtian War
Part of Warlord era
Date September 15, 1924 - November 3, 1924 Location North China Result Fengtian victory
Belligerents
Zhili Clique	Fengtian clique
Commanders and leaders
Wu Peifu	Zhang Zuolin
Strength
200,000	250,000
Casualties and losses
Thousands plus 40,000+ captured	Tens of thousands

The Second Zhili–Fengtian War (Second Chihli-Fengtien War; simplified Chinese: 第二次直奉战争; traditional Chinese: 第二次直奉戰爭; pinyin: Dì'èrcì Zhífèng Zhànzhēng) of 1924 was a conflict between the Japanese-backed Fengtian clique based in Manchuria, and the more liberal Zhili clique controlling Beijing and backed by Anglo-American business interests. The war is considered the most significant in China's Warlord era, with the Beijing coup by Christian warlord Feng Yuxiang leading to the overall defeat of the Zhili clique. During the war the two cliques fought one large battle near Tianjin in October 1924, as well as a number of smaller skirmishes and sieges. Afterwards, both Feng and Zhang Zuolin, the latter being ruler of the Fengtian clique, appointed Duan Qirui as a figurehead prime minister. In south and central China, more liberal Chinese were dismayed by the Fengtian's advance and by the resulting power vacuum. A wave of protests followed. The war also distracted the northern warlords from the Soviet-backed Nationalists based in the southern province of Guangdong, allowing unhampered preparation for the Northern Expedition (1926–1928), which united China under the leadership of Chiang Kai-shek.

By the summer of 1924 the Zhili clique, led by President Cao Kun and supported by the military of Wu Peifu, controlled much of China proper and its internationally recognized Beiyang government. The clique had no national rivals left, enjoying the support of both London and Washington.

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