On August 25, 1921, an organization called the Union of Young Revolutionaries (Boshgyg Halah Zaluuchuudyn Evlel) was set up in Ulaanbaatar. One of its key figures was Choibalsan. The Soviets, not long before, had given a similar name to a Chinese youth terrorist organization and the Mongolian version was a direct translation of the ideas […]
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From Duguilan to Political Party
A duguilan is one of the traditional forms of protest and struggle of the Mongols and was especially widespread during the reign of the Qing Dynasty. The form of struggle was used against the ruling circles of the court; those taking part in would secretly or semi-secretly from a group and discuss problems from all […]
The Abolition of Autonomy
Xu Shuzeng was not satisfied with the abolition of autonomy. In order to immortalize his feat, he planned a show to commemorate the event. The Act Which Sparked Fire of Revenge A ceremony marking the abolition of the autonomy of Outer Mongolia was organized for January 1920. Soldiers lined either side of the road in […]
Pan-Mongolia
Meanwhile, in Northeast Asia, Japan’s interest in the Mongolian issue grew significantly. the Japanese warlords had realized that the creation of one large united Mongolia would help exert pressure on China and create favorable grounds for the Japanese occupation of the Russian Far East. The Japanese had at their disposal the half-Mongolian ataman Semenov. Together […]
The Return of the Chinese
The Beijing government-appointed High Commissioner Chen Yi arrived in Huree in October 1915, four months after the Kyakhta treaty was signed. The treaty had made an important but unwelcome concession to Chinese suzerainty over Mongolia by allowing the Beijing government to appoint a High Commissioner to Huree and Deputy High Commissioners to Uliastai, Hovd, and […]
Life in Autonomous Mongolia
At the time of the treaty of Kyakhta, Outer Mongolia had a territory of almost one and a half million square kilometers and a population of between six and seven hundred thousand. It was a nomadic, livestock – herding country, lagging far behind twentieth-century civilization. The Mongols raised sheep, cattle, goats, horses, and camels, numbering […]
Seeking Independence
China was alarmed at the news of the treaty between Russia and Mongolia, considering it a covert encroachment on its territory. Anti-Russian revolts took place in Beijing and Qingdao. A popular Opposition movement spread demanding that the Chinese government send troops to Huree. Hope and faith In November 1912 the Mongols tried to widen their […]
Sino-Russian Declaration
The Russian had never taken the 1912 agreement with the Mongols very seriously. For them, it was diplomatic fiction, a political lever with which to demonstrate to the Chinese their determination to secure their minimum agenda in Mongolia. The Mongols’ independence was unrecognized, and therefore Mongolia was merely a Chinese region for Russia to claim. […]
Russia Negotiates with Mongolia
Not only Beijing nu St.Petersburg also shamelessly told the Mongols that they were incapable of governing themselves once they were again independent. The Russian Foreign Minister Sanazov stated that historically “the Halhs had never governed themselves independently”. He suggested that the inability of the Mongols to govern themselves might eventually compel Russia to establish Mongolia […]