Around 3,000 students from 13 universities in Beijing gathered in Tiananmen Square
Date
4 May 1919
Location
Republic of China
Resulted in
Pro-Japanese officials removed
Treaty of Versailles not signed by China
Premier Qian Nengxun's government weakened
Student and labor movements continued
New Culture Movement split
Spread of communism
Parties
Protesters
Republic of China
May Fourth Movement
Traditional Chinese
五四運動
Simplified Chinese
五四运动
Literal meaning
5-4 Movement
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin
Wǔsì yùndòng
Bopomofo
ㄨˇ ㄙˋ ㄩㄣˋ ㄉㄨㄥˋ
Gwoyeu Romatzyh
Wuusyh yunndonq
Wade–Giles
Wu3-ssu4 yün4-tung4
Tongyong Pinyin
Wǔ-sìh yùn-dòng
IPA
[ù.sɨ̂ ŷn.tʊ̂ŋ]
Yue: Cantonese
Yale Romanization
Ńgh-sei wahn-duhng
Jyutping
Ng5 sei3 wan6 dung6
IPA
[ŋ.sei˧ wɐn˨.toŋ˨]
Southern Min
Tâi-lô
Ngó-sì ūn-tūng
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The May Fourth Movement was a Chinese cultural and anti-imperialist political movement which grew out of student protests in Beijing on May 4, 1919. Students gathered in front of Tiananmen to protest the Chinese government's weak response to the Treaty of Versailles decision to allow Japan to retain territories in Shandong that had been surrendered by Germany after the Siege of Tsingtao in 1914. The demonstrations sparked nation-wide protests and spurred an upsurge in Chinese nationalism, a shift towards political mobilization away from cultural activities, and a move towards a populist base, away from traditional intellectual and political elites.
The May Fourth demonstrations marked a turning point in a broader anti-traditional New Culture Movement (1915–1921) that sought to replace traditional Confucian values and was itself a continuation of late Qing reforms. Even after 1919, these educated "new youths" still defined their role with a traditional model in which the educated elite took responsibility for both cultural and political affairs.[1] They opposed traditional culture but looked abroad for cosmopolitan inspiration in the name of nationalism and were an overwhelmingly urban movement that espoused populism in an overwhelmingly rural country. Many political and social leaders of the next five decades emerged at this time, including those of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).[2]
^Schwarcz 1986, pp. 9–11.
^Hayford (2009), p. 569.
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