page_title: Battle of Yangxia
section_title: The Battle of Hankou
hierarchical_section_title: Battle of Yangxia / The Battle of Hankou
caption_attribution_description: English: en:Beiyang Army commanded by en:Yuan Shikai on their way to en:Hankou to engage with the revolutionaries in respond to the Wuchang Uprising. Postcard published in 1911.
context_page_description: The Battle of Yangxia, also known as the Defense of Yangxia, was the largest military engagement of the Xinhai Revolution and was
  fought from October 18-December 1, 1911, between the revolutionaries of the Wuchang Uprising and the loyalist armies of the Qing Dynasty. The battle was waged in Hankou and Hanyang, which along with Wuchang collectively form the tri-cities of Wuhan in central China. Though outnumbered by the Qing armies and possessing inferior arms, the revolutionaries fought valiantly in defense of Hankou and Hanyang. After heavy and bloody fighting, the stronger loyalist forces eventually prevailed by taking over both cities, but 41 days of determined resistance by the Revolutionary Army allowed the revolution to strengthen elsewhere as other provinces defied the Qing Dynasty. The fighting ended after the commander-in-chief of the Qing forces, Gen. Yuan Shikai, agreed to a cease-fire and sent envoys to peace talks with the revolutionaries. Political negotiations eventually led to the abdication of the Last Emperor, the end of the Qing Dynasty and the formation of a unity government for the newly established Republic of China.
context_section_description: Yinchang, a Manchu noble, reached Hankou by rail and attempted to seize control of the city's northern suburbs. On October 18 more than 1,000 revolutionary fighters attacked Liujiamiao, a train station guarding the northern approach to Hankou, but were driven back and retreated to Dazhimen. In the afternoon the revolutionaries regrouped and, with the help of railway workers, ambushed a train carrying Qing troops heading south. The train derailed and sent the Qing troops fleeing, and more than 400 were killed by revolutionaries. The following day the revolutionary forces, supplemented by enthusiastic volunteers, grew to more than 5,000 and captured Liujiamiao. The revolutionaries on October 20 tried to press on to Wushengguan further north but were driven back with serious losses. Nevertheless, their victory at Liujiamiao boosted the morale of the revolutionary movement. On October 22 Hunan and Shaanxi Province both declared their independence from the Qing regime.
  Following the setback at Liujiamiao, the Qing court removed Yinchang from command and handed formal power to Yuan Shikai, whose lieutenants in the Beiyang Army, Feng Guozhang and Duan Qirui, headed the 1st and 2nd Armies moving on Wuhan, respectively. On October 26, the Beiyang Army moved swiftly south by rail and attacked the northern suburbs of Hankou with heavy artillery and machine guns. The revolutionaries suffered over 500 killed in action and were also hampered by indecisive leadership from Zhang Jingliang, who was suspected of collaborating with the Qing government. The revolutionaries lost and then regained Liujiamiao, only to lose it to Qing troops for good on October 27. The Qing armies pressed into the city and the two sides engaged in fierce house-to-house fighting.
  On October 28 Huang Xing and Song Jiaoren, two leaders of the Tongmenghui or Revolutionary Alliance, arrived in Hankou from Shanghai to support the revolutionaries. On the 29th Huang led over 1,000 reinforcements to Wuchang, which had 6,000 revolutionaries holding out against superior Qing forces. Due to inferior arms the revolutionaries suffered heavy casualties, but were supported by local residents. In retaliation, Feng Guozhang ordered the razing of Hankou. The fire burned for three days and destroyed much of the city. By November 1 Qing troops controlled Hankou. Both sides suffered casualties in the thousands.
  On November 3 Li Yuanhong handed the command of the revolutionary forces to Huang Xing. Their strength was boosted by the arrival of revolutionaries from Hunan. By then 11 provinces had broken away from the Qing regime. The Qing Navy had also defected, sending some ships to assist the Jiangsu-Zhejiang Revolutionary Army's siege of Nanjing and other ships to support the revolutionaries in Wuhan. In Hanyang the revolutionaries had 13,000 soldiers arrayed against 30,000 Qing troops across the Han River in Hankou. Huang Xing, against the advice of Sun Wu and others who favored defending Hanyang, attempted to retake Hankou. Yuan Shikai, on the other side of the river, was determined to press the Qing military's local advantage to halt the momentum of the revolution nationwide.
  On November 17 the revolutionaries shelled Hankou from the Guishan heights in Hanyang and crossed the Han River in a two-pronged attack. The revolutionaries' artillery was inaccurate and their right flank was halted by an artillery barrage from the Qing army. The left flank crossed the river alone, met stiff resistance from superior Qing forces, and was forced to retreat on the evening of the 18th, having suffered over 800 casualties.
caption: The Imperial Beiyang Army traveling by rail to recapture Hankou.
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