Huanggutun railroad shortly after the explosion

Huanggutun Incident (Chinese: 皇姑屯事件; Japanese: 張作霖爆殺事件) was an assassination plotted by Japanese Kantogun that targeted Fengtian warlord Zhang Zuolin. It took place on June 4, 1928 at Huanggutun rail station near Shenyang in which Zhang's train was destructed by an explosion. This incident was highly concealed in Japan at the time and was refered only as "満州某重大事件" (Manshuboujudaijiken An Important Incident in Manchuria). The Kantogun (Kanji: 関東軍; Nihon-shiki: Kantōgun; Postal System Pinyin: Kwantungchun; Pinyin: Guandongjun), more commonly known as the Kwantung Army or Guandong Army, was a unit of the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA). ... The Fengtian Clique (Chinese: ; pinyin: Fèng Xì) was one of several mutually hostile cliques or factions that split from the Beiyang Clique in the Republic of Chinas warlord era. ... Chang Tso-Lin (WG) (Chinese: 張作霖, pinyin: Zhāng Zuòlín) (1873 – June 4, 1928), nicknamed the Old Marshall or Mukden Tiger, was a Chinese warlord in Manchuria in the early 20th century. ... June 4 is the 155th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (156th in leap years), with 210 days remaining. ... 1928 (MCMXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... Shenyang (Simplified Chinese: 沈阳; Traditional Chinese: 瀋陽; pinyin: ShÄ›nyáng) is the capital of Liaoning province in China. ...

Background

The Beiyang Army splited up into various factions after the death of Yuan Shikai in 1916. Zhang Zuolin, being the leader of the Fengtian clique, was one of the most powerful warlord as he holds the complete authority in Manchuria. The Beiyang Army (北洋軍 běiyáng-jūn) was a powerful and Western-appearing Chinese military force created by the Qing dynasty government in the late 19th century. ... Yuan Shikai in military uniform Yuan Shikai (Courtesy Weiting 慰亭; Pseudonym: Rongan 容庵 Traditional Chinese: 袁世凱; Simplified Chinese: 袁世凯; Hanyu Pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Yüan Shih-kai) (September 16, 1859 – June 5, 1916) was a Chinese military official and politician during the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China. ... 1916 (MCMXVI) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Fengtian Clique (Chinese: ; pinyin: Fèng Xì) was one of several mutually hostile cliques or factions that split from the Beiyang Clique in the Republic of Chinas warlord era. ... Manchuria (Manchu: Manju; Traditional Chinese: 滿洲; Simplified Chinese: 满洲; pinyin: Mǎnzhōu, Russian: ) is a vast territorial region in northeast Asia. ...

At the time of the First United Front (1924), the foreign support in China was generally divided as below: The First United Front of the Kuomintang, Nationalist Party of China was formed in 1926 to enable the implementation of the Northern Expedition. ...

• Fengtian Army (Zhang Zuolin) - Japan
• Zhili clique - European & American
• Kuomintang - Soviet Union

As it shows, Fengtian clique's foreign supporting power was Japan, which wanted to gain more benefit such as natural resources from Manchuria, while Kantogun was the army supporting the clique. The "co-operation" between Fengtian and Japan satisfied each other's benefit demands. At first, they were quite friendly to each other. Zhang admitted Japan for different kinds of priorities in Manchuria, and there were many anti-Japanese movements in Manchuria and Zhang Zuolin suppressed them strictly immediately; whereas the Kantogun helped Zhang in two Zhili-Fengtian Wars, suppress the anti-Fengtian uprising by Guo Songling, a senior general of the Fengtian clique and gained absolute control of the Beijing government. However, Zhang just needed Japan's aid for consoildating and expanding his territory whereas Japan wanted to occupy Manchuria with Zhang. After Zhang achieved his targets, he tried to improve realtions with the United States and Britain and keep Japan at a distance. The US and Britain got the same rights as Japan got, which grows the the Japanese dissatisfaction with Zhang. The Zhili clique (Chinese: ; pinyin: Zhí Xì) was one of several mutually hostile cliques or factions that split from the Beiyang clique during the Republic of Chinas warlord era. ... The Chinese Nationalist Party (Traditional Chinese: 中國國民黨; Simplified Chinese: 中国国民党; Hanyu Pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Chung-kuo Kuo-min-tang; Tongyong Pinyin: Jhōngguó GuómíndÇŽng), commonly known as the Kuomintang (KMT), is a conservative political party currently active in the Republic of China (ROC) on Taiwan. ... The Fengtian Clique (Chinese: ; pinyin: Fèng Xì) was one of several mutually hostile cliques or factions that split from the Beiyang Clique in the Republic of Chinas warlord era. ... Manchuria (Manchu: Manju; Traditional Chinese: 滿洲; Simplified Chinese: 满洲; pinyin: MÇŽnzhōu, Russian: ) is a vast territorial region in northeast Asia. ... The Kantogun (Kanji: 関東軍; Nihon-shiki: Kantōgun; Postal System Pinyin: Kwantungchun; Pinyin: Guandongjun), more commonly known as the Kwantung Army or Guandong Army, was a unit of the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA). ... Fengtian (Chinese: 奉天; Pinyin: Fèngtiān; Wade-Giles: Feng tien; Postal System Pinyin: Fengtien) is: The name of an old prefecture under which Shenyang city was administered. ... Chang Tso-Lin (WG) (Chinese: 張作霖, pinyin: Zhāng Zuòlín) (1873 – June 4, 1928), nicknamed the Old Marshall or Mukden Tiger, was a Chinese warlord in Manchuria in the early 20th century. ... The Kantogun (Kanji: 関東軍; Nihon-shiki: Kantōgun; Postal System Pinyin: Kwantungchun; Pinyin: Guandongjun), more commonly known as the Kwantung Army or Guandong Army, was a unit of the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA). ... Guo Songling Guo Songling (Traditional Chinese: 郭松齡; Simplified Chinese: 郭松龄; Hanyu Pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Kuo Sung-ling) (1883 – 24 December 1925) was a Chinese warlord and Manchurian general who led a three month rebellion against Zhang Zuolin. ... The Fengtian Clique (Chinese: ; pinyin: Fèng Xì) was one of several mutually hostile cliques or factions that split from the Beiyang Clique in the Republic of Chinas warlord era. ...

Until 1927, Japan suffered from Great Kanto Earthquake and economic depress suscessively. These made the Japanese government speeded up the plan of invading China. One of the purposes was to establish a good image in front of the Japanese people. In accordance with the Tanaka Memorial, the Japanese would invade Manchuria first. Therefore, some officials in the Japanese government suggested eliminating Zhang as quick as possible, who did not obey them. 1927 (MCMXXVII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Great Kanto Earthquake (関東大震災 Kantō daishinsai) struck the Kanto plain on the Japanese main island of Honshu at 11:58 on the morning of September 1, 1923. ... The Tanaka Memorial is an alleged Japanese war planning document from 1927, now generally regarded as a forgery, in which Prime Minister Tanaka laid out for the Japanese Emperor the strategy to take over the world. ...

On the other hand, the Northern Expedition led by Chiang Kai-shek of the National Revolutionary Army gained great success since they suscessively defeated Sun Chuanfang, Wu Peifu and other warlords of the Northern Faction, as well as the Beijing government controlled by Zhang Zuolin of the Fengtian clique. After the Nationalist army restored Northern China, they seemed to restore the Chinese Manchuria also. Therefore, Zhang Zuolin left Beijing to Shenyang on 3 June 1928. The Northern Expedition (北伐) was a military campaign led by the Kuomintang (Chinese Nationalist Party) and the Communist Party of China from 1926 to 1927. ... Chiang Kai-shek (October 31, 1887–April 5, 1975) was a Chinese military and political leader who assumed the leadership of the Kuomintang (KMT) after the 1925 death of Sun Yat-sen. ... The National Revolutionary Army (NRA) (Chinese: 國民革命軍; pinyin: guo2 min2 ge2 ming4 jun1) was the national army of the Republic of China. ... Sun Chuan-fang or Sun Chuanfang was a Zhili clique warlord and protege of Wu Peifu. ... Wu Peifu (吳佩孚) (1874–1939), was a major figure in the struggles between the warlords (軍閥) who dominated China during the years 1916 to 1927. ... Beijing (Chinese: ; pinyin: BÄ›ijÄ«ng; ; IPA: ), a city in northern China (formerly spelled in English as Peking or Peiking), is the capital of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC). ... Chang Tso-Lin (WG) (Chinese: 張作霖, pinyin: Zhāng Zuòlín) (1873 – June 4, 1928), nicknamed the Old Marshall or Mukden Tiger, was a Chinese warlord in Manchuria in the early 20th century. ... The Fengtian Clique (Chinese: ; pinyin: Fèng Xì) was one of several mutually hostile cliques or factions that split from the Beiyang Clique in the Republic of Chinas warlord era. ... Alternative meaning: In geology, North China (continent) and South China (continent) were two ancient landmasses that correspond to modern northern and southern China. ... Approximate extent Manchuria and Northeast China are names for a region (ca. ... Chang Tso-Lin (WG) (Chinese: 張作霖, pinyin: Zhāng Zuòlín) (1873 – June 4, 1928), nicknamed the Old Marshall or Mukden Tiger, was a Chinese warlord in Manchuria in the early 20th century. ... Shenyang (Simplified Chinese: 沈阳; Traditional Chinese: 瀋陽; pinyin: ShÄ›nyáng) is the capital of Liaoning province in China. ... June 3 is the 154th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (155th in leap years), with 211 days remaining. ... 1928 (MCMXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ...

Outline of the Incident

The explosion

After Zhang left Beijing to Shenyang at the night on 3 June , the bomb installed in the train where Zhang was in exploded suddenly at 5:23 a.m. on 4 June 1928. Zhang and several officials such as Wu Junsheng (吳俊升), the governor of Heilongjiang province died immediately. Shenyang (Simplified Chinese: 沈阳; Traditional Chinese: 瀋陽; pinyin: ShÄ›nyáng) is the capital of Liaoning province in China. ... June 3 is the 154th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (155th in leap years), with 211 days remaining. ... June 4 is the 155th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (156th in leap years), with 210 days remaining. ... 1928 (MCMXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... Heilongjiang (Simplified Chinese: 黑龙江省; Traditional Chinese: 黑龍江省; Hanyu Pinyin: ; Postal System Pinyin: Heilungkiang) is a province of the Peoples Republic of China located in the northeastern part of the country. ...

Direct plotters

• Staff officer Daisaku Koumoto (planned the assassination)
• Captain Kaneo Toumiya (Undertakes the plan directly)
• Sapper 1st Lieutenant Fujii Sadatoshi (Setting up the explosive)

Aftermath

Zhang Xueliang

The purpose of the assassination was to made the Fengtian clique split up. This can be understood through the fact that Kantogun was giving support to Yang Yuting (楊宇霆), a senior general in the clique as an understudy of Zhang who would give more priorities to Japan and consolidate Japan's power over Manchuria. Also, another purpose was to make Manchuria in a mess, the Japanese army could have chance to base on Manchuria, which would help Japanese invasion and occupation on Manchuria in the future. Zhang Xueliang, photo from www. ... Zhang Xueliang, photo from www. ... The Fengtian Clique (Chinese: ; pinyin: Fèng Xì) was one of several mutually hostile cliques or factions that split from the Beiyang Clique in the Republic of Chinas warlord era. ... The Kantogun (Kanji: 関東軍; Nihon-shiki: Kantōgun; Postal System Pinyin: Kwantungchun; Pinyin: Guandongjun), more commonly known as the Kwantung Army or Guandong Army, was a unit of the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA). ...

However, there was something out of Japan's prediction. That was Zhang Xueliang(張學良/张学良), the son and succeedor of Zhang, did not announce the death of his father. That was to avoid any conflict with Japan and chaos in Manchuria. Also, he carried out the policy that he co-operated with the Nationalist government of Chiang Kai-shek. Therefore, China was unified. Also, Yang Yuting was executed by Zhang Xueliang. Zhang Xueliang or Chang Hsüeh-liang (張學良, pinyin: Zhāng Xuéliáng, English: Peter Hsueh Liang Chang) (June 3, 1901 – October 15, 2001), nicknamed the Young Marshal (少帥), became the effective ruler of Manchuria and much of Northeast China after the assassination of his father Chang Tso-lin on June... Chiang Kai-shek (October 31, 1887–April 5, 1975) was a Chinese military and political leader who assumed the leadership of the Kuomintang (KMT) after the 1925 death of Sun Yat-sen. ...

In fact, Japan broke the international law that she commited assassination to a national leader. Zhang was the de facto leader of China because he held absoulte power of the Beiyang government based on Beijing. After the death of Yuan Shikai,the warlords of Beiyang Army took control of Republic of China. ... Beijing (Chinese: ; pinyin: Běijīng; ; IPA: ), a city in northern China (formerly spelled in English as Peking or Peiking), is the capital of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC). ...