A Volatile World （1）
Yuan Shikai
Yuan Shikai asked a photographer from Tianjin Photo Studio to have this photo taken while he was at an idle end at home in 1911. Published by “Oriental Journal” in Shanghai, the photo seemed to tell people that Yuan Shikai had withdrawn from political arena and lived in seclusion.
A Volatile World （2）
Setbacks for the Democratic Forces
Beijing was in jubilation, because New Year´s Day of 1913 was the first holiday in the solar calendar after the founding of the National Republic. Yuan Shikai gave a cocktail party to entertain foreign diplomats at the official residence.
A Volatile World （3）
Twenty－one Demands
Archduke Francis Ferdinand, crown prince of Austro－Hungarian Empire, was assassinated in Sarajevo on June 28, 1914. It touched off the First World War. The Allied nations of Germany and Austria proclaimed war against the Entente countries of Russia, England and France. Europe was in the flames of war.
A Volatile World （4）
Hongxian Monarchy
In 1914, people of Nantong, a city close to the East China Sea, lived in peace while Jiaozhou Bay was under the flames of war. Textile mills of Dasheng Group were busy in production. The supply fell short of demand. European countries and the United States were forced to reduce the export of their products because of the First World War.
A Volatile World （5）
War of Protecting the Republic
1916 was a year of the Dragon. People ushered in the year when the country had both a president and an emperor. Yuan Shikai ascended the throne on the first day of the year, and the title of his reign was Hongxian. Chinese character “Hong” was composed of two parts, meaning half the Qing Empire and half the Republic as being allegorized later. Beijing citizens didn’t see any ascending ceremony on that day. They talked more about a new round－the－city railway.
A Volatile World （6）
The Beginning of Troubled Times
Built in a mixed Chinese－Western style, the tomb compared well with an imperial one. Yuan Shikai who had been an emperor for 83 days lay here. He died of worries on June 6, 1916. Anti－Yuan forces in the south had finally reached a peace agreement with Beijing government and maintained Yuan Shikai must be held responsible for his betrayal to the republic. But the Northern Warlords government buried its master in a state funeral.
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